01072026-CT-01.qxd 7/1/2026 12:58 AM Page 1 c m y b Chandigarh tribune IRATE RESIDENTS SLAM GOVT, PSPCL OVER POWER OUTAGES PORTRAYAL OF DOCTORS IN CINEMA HAS EVOLVED FILMMAKER MAHESH BHATT RETURNS TO THEATRE Some villages of Dera Bassi and Lalru received power only for two hours in the past two days. P2 From idealistic healers to human protagonists, the portrayal of docs in cinema has evolved over time. P4 Bhatt is set to return to theatre with Wo Subah Hum Hi Se Aayegi, an original Hindi stage production . P4 » » AIR QUALITY INDEX CHANDIGARH 60 PANCHKULA 94 401-500 301-400 201-300 101-200 51-100 0-50 SEVERE VERY POOR POOR MODERATE SATISFACTORY GOOD POWER DEMAND ON A STEADY RISE APNI MANDI Chandigarh: Sectors 15, 40, 46 Please send information about events in Tricity at: whatson@tribunemail.com INBRIEF WOMAN HELD WITH ILLICIT LIQUOR Chandigarh:The police have arrested a woman with illicit liquor at Maloya. A case under Sections 61, 1 and 14 of the Excise Act has been registered. TNS FACEBOOK/CHANDIGARHTRIBUNE MC moots stringent rules for bulk waste generators of city Ramkrishan Upadhyay Just 4 MW short of last year’s June 12 peak of 465 MW| Residents in some pockets complain of outages Tribune News Service WHAT’S ON Chandigarh, June 30 Chandigarh’s peak power demand touched 461 MW on Tuesday, the highest this June and the season’s record so far, as hot and humid conditions pushed electricity consumption to near last year’s levels. The figure is only marginally lower than the 465 MW peak logged on June 12, 2025, the highest recorded last summer. The city’s power demand has risen sharply over the past week. It stood at 400 MW on June 26, was 398 MW on June 27, climbed sharply to 412 MW on June 28, 437 MW on June 29 and finally to 461 MW on Tuesday. On June 10, the city had logged 419 MW, after which the load eased over the following fortnight before the current upswing began in the past few days. and humidity across the city. The southwest monsoon is yet to set in over the region. The round-the-clock use of air-conditioners and cooling appliances has kept the grid under sustained load. MERCURY RISE BEHIND DEMAND SPIKE SUPPLY STABLE, SAYS POWER FIRM The spike in power consumption is a result of a sustained spell of rising temperatures Chandigarh Power Distribution Limited (CPDL) said it had successfully met the 400 MW 398 MW 412 MW JUNE 26 JUNE 27 OUTAGES IN POCKETS Even as the CPDL maintained that supply across the city remained smooth, residents in certain pockets complained of power outages, frequent tripping and voltage fluctuations over the past few days. city’s highest power demand recorded so far this season. The demand is expected to surpass the 461 MW mark in the coming days. The company claimed it had maintained an uninterrupted power supply despite the sustained summer heat and rising demand, through proactive planning, continuous system monitoring and dedicated network manage- JUNE 28 437 MW JUNE 29 461 MW JUNE 30 ~50-CRORE INFRA PUSH ■ The CPDL has spent over ~50 crore on upgrading the power distribution infra ahead of peak summer ■ Four 20 MVA transformers have been installed at grid sub-stations to augment capacity, improve load management ■ Over 100 distribution transformers have been installed or replaced at various sites ■ The utility has also laid 21 km of high-tension lines and 30 km of low-tension lines as part of the exercise ment. It had carried out the preventive maintenance of transformers and feeders ahead of the peak season. Operations and maintenance teams have been deployed round-the-clock to address faults and complaints promptly. Chandigarh’s power distribution has been fully privatised since February 1, 2025. The UT Administration had transferred 100 per cent of the erstwhile public utility’s shares and operations to the CPDL, a subsidiary of CESC (RP-Sanjiv Goenka Group), under the privatisation pact. The company draws 65 per cent of its power from renewable sources. The utility serves 2.36 lakh consumers across the city, including 2.03 lakh residential connections. Tribune News Service Chandigarh, June 30 The Municipal Corporation has proposed stringent rules for bulk waste generators with a fine up to Rs 50,000 for violations. In the draft solid waste management rules 2026, which were tabled in the MC General House meeting on Monday, the civic body has widened the definition of the bulk waste generators. Ranging from residential societies to private and governmentrun buildings, RWAs will also be covered under the proposed rules. The definition of “Bulk Waste Generator” in the draft rules covers the entities meeting at least one of the following criteria — buildings with a floor area of 20,000 sq m or above, water consumption of 40,000 litres per day or solid waste generation of 100 kg per day. Institutional users, including government departments, private companies, schools, colleges and universities; and commercial users such as industrial units, multiplexes, hotels, hospitals, sports complexes, banquets and expo centres fall in various categories under the draft rules. 30,000 MSMEs in Heavy rain expected in Tricity from tomorrow city set to get free Udyam registration Tribune News Service Tribune News Service Chandigarh, June 30 The Department of Industries, Chandigarh Administration, has launched a drive to bring 30,000 unregistered micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) into the formal economy under the Centre’s Raising and Accelerating MSME Performance (RAMP) Programme. Deputy Commissioner Nishant Kumar Yadav, who also holds charge of Secretary, Industries, said the drive was aimed at extending the benefits of formalisation to enterprises that had so far remained outside the government’s radar. “Thousands of small businesses across Chandigarh operate without any formal recognition, which keeps them out of institutional credit and government schemes. This drive will bring them into the mainstream,” he said while speaking to The Tribune. Under the initiative, unregistered MSMEs across the city, including manufacturers, service providers and traders, will be facilitated in obtaining free Udyam registration, the Government of India’s official MSME recognition system. Formalisation will make these enterprises eligible for institutional credit and flagship schemes such as the Pradhan Mantri MUDRA Yojana (PMMY), the Credit Guarantee Fund Trust for Micro and Small Enterprises (CGTMSE), and the Prime Minister’s Employment Generation Programme (PMEGP), besides enhancing their market credibility. The department has engaged Forvis Mazars LLP as the implementing agency for the drive. Trained survey teams will fan out across MAX 36°C | MIN 30°C YESTERDAY MAX 37°C | MIN 29.8°C SUNRISE THURSDAY 5:25 AM /THETRIBUNECHD UT’s power demand hits season’s high of 461 MW as mercury soars PARTLY CLOUDY SUNSET WEDNESDAY 7.28 PM » WEDNESDAY | 1 JULY 2026 | CHANDIGARH FORECAST Teams to visit traders,small unitsunderAdmndrive HOW TRADERS WILL BENEFIT Formalisation will make these enterprises eligible for institutional credit and flagship schemes such as the Pradhan Mantri MUDRA Yojana (PMMY), the Credit Guarantee Fund Trust for Micro and Small Enterprises (CGTMSE) industrial areas, commercial markets and business clusters in the city to identify unregistered enterprises and provide free, on-the-spot facilitation for Udyam Registration. “We need accurate information from business owners for this exercise to succeed. The more enterprises we register, the stronger our local economy becomes,” he said, adding that enterprises could also contact the Department of Industries directly for assistance. The city’s Udyam-registered units currently stand at 65,164, employing nearly 4.69 lakh people. The RAMP programme, sanctioned at Rs 43.07 crore by the World Bank and running till March 2027, has reached over 2,748 MSMEs since its rollout last year. The move is also in line with the ease-of-doing-business agenda, which has seen the UT’s score on the Centre’s Business Reform Action Plan rise to 89% in 2025. It follows the UT’s recent proposal to extend Punjab’s Right to Business Act to Chandigarh to give businesses statutory and time-bound clearances. Chandigarh, June 30 Tricity residents will have to endure one more day of hot and humid weather before the long-awaited southwest monsoon finally arrives on Thursday. The India Meteorological Department (IMD) has forecast a spell of thunderstorms and heavy rain from Thursday through Monday. Moderate rain is likely at a few places on July 1, and at many places between July 2 and 6 across Chandigarh. The IMD’s district-wise warnings place Chandigarh under a yellow alert till July 4. The local centre of the IMD has stated that the southwest monsoon has advanced further into parts of Madhya Pradesh, the remaining areas of Chhattis- As Chandigarh reels under the scorching heat, kids splash at a fountain in Sector 17. PARDEEP TEWARI garh, Jharkhand and Bihar, parts of Uttar Pradesh and Himachal Pradesh. The IMD said conditions were turning favourable for the monsoon to push into parts of Chandigarh, Punjab and Haryana over the next few days. JUNE THIRD DRIEST MONTH IN 14 YEARS According to the IMD’s monthly weather report, the Union Territory received just 39.3 mm of rainfall in June 2026 against a normal of 155.5 mm, a 75% deficit, categorising the month as “deficient.” A look back at the past 14 years of June rainfall data shows this is the third driest June since 2013, behind only 2024 (11.9 mm, a steep 92% departure) and 2019 (24.8 mm, 81% below normal). By contrast, June 2025 had brought 213 mm of rain, a 37% surplus, underscoring just how sharp this year’s reversal has been. Tuesday offered limited relief from the heat. The maximum temperature in Chandigarh settled at 37°C, 2.6°C cooler than Monday’s 39.6°C, but still 1.5°C above normal. Violations to invite fine up to ~50,000 Every bulk waste generator must register with the local body through a centralised online portal. It will have to make necessary arrangements for collecting and handing over dry, sanitary and special care waste to the local body or any agency authorised by it. A bulk waste generator shall also make necessary arrangements to collect and process wet waste or horticulture waste, if applicable, in a decentralised manner through composting, bio-methanation or any other approved technology. In case an institution fails to deal with the waste in accordance with the rules, it will be fined Rs 50,000. A fine of Rs 20,000 has been proposed for violations by market welfare associations. For the Resident Welfare Associations, a fine of Rs 10,000 has been proposed. AAP, BJP workers clash over SIR Mohali, June 30 A dispute between BJP and AAP workers over the special intensive revision (SIR) of electoral rolls in Kumbhra village escalated into a violent clash on Tuesday. Both sides levelled serious allegations against each other and lodged complaints with the police as well as the administration. State BJP president Kewal Singh Dhillon visited the injured workers at the hospital. He demanded strict action by the administration, stating that this was clear hooliganism by AAP . The BJP district president, Sanjeev Vashisht, stated that his party workers, including district vice-president Hardeep Singh Baidwan, were present at the scene. continued on page 2 Police barricades acting as hurdles for road users, say Tricity residents Gaurav Kanthwal Tribune News Service Chandigarh, June 30 The nakas set up by the Chandigarh Police on the busy main roads of the city during daytime are more of a hurdle than a security feature, feel residents. After a string of shooting incidents by gangsters rocked the city, the police started putting up barricades not only on the UT borders and vulnerable points, but also on the busy inner roads near markets, causing chokepoints and snarl-ups. The cops reason that it is being done to keep a check on vehicular movement, but the practice is leading to traffic snarl-ups on the narrow city roads. Hitesh Puri, head of CRAWFED, a federation of resident welfare associations, said, “We have repeatedly requested the police and administration that nakas are required at nine border points of the city, but not Snarl-ups at a police barricade on the Madhya Marg in Chandigarh on Tuesday. TRIBUNE PHOTO: PARDEEP TEWARI inside the city. CCTVs may be used effectively to monitor traffic on city roads.” Residents feel the police are punishing them after the recent incidents. Mohali resident Ashish Kapila, who commutes to Sector 17 daily, said, “It doesn’t help when you are stuck in traffic at 9.30 am on way to office. The cops are just watching road users honking and waiting for their c m y b turn to get past on one such chokepoint on the road separating Sectors 33 and 34.” Most road users said they are not aware what exactly the police check at the nakas. “Neither do they ask for licence or documents of the vehicle, nor do they scan the antecedents of vehicle occupants or the vehicle itself for suspicious objects,” said Nilesh Sharma, a Sector 22 resident, who faces one such naka in Sector 35 daily. The road users complain that the worst part of the new system is that the cops leave barricades unattended after their shift gets over. “Barricades remain unattended well past 9 am, standing as a hurdle in the middle of the road. At night, somebody may bang into them as many a times there are no reflectors,” said Yukti Verma, a Sector 7 resident. The barricades near the Chandigarh-Zirakpur border near a CRPF picket is the most cited example of this aberration. Of late, newly put up barricades in the middle of Sector 17, Sector 22 and Sectors 51-52 light point have become problematic. All the barricaded roads in the southern part of the city are, however, manned by the cops on Sunday afternoon. But the residents say it is the weekdays and office hours when the situation gets worse. Can review nakas if causing inconvenience to public: IGP Chandigarh, June 30 Chandigarh Inspector General of Police Pushpendra Kumar feels police nakas are non-intrusive and for the security of city residents. He, however, is open to a rethink if the system is causing inconvenience to people. Excerpts from a conversation: to ensure security and safety of the residents. It is done to keep a check on criminals fleeing after an incident. It is a process followed to maintain security. It was after incidents such as grenade attack on the BJP office and shootings that Road users complain nakas were introthat barricades near duced. Are they necSector 17, 22, 29 and essary on regular 34 markets create Pushpendra Kumar days as well? chokepoints leading Nakas have been laid to congestion and traffic to curb such incidents only. snarls. What is the point of doing it after We have not received any such an incident has taken place? complaint so far. If it comes to our notice, the police will take Is there any timeline? steps to resolve the issue. It is a process the police have followed in the past, depending on What is the purpose of setting the situation. There is no fixed extensive police nakas inside timeline. The police keep reviewthe city on regular days? ing the situation from time to Police nakas have been set up time and act accordingly. —TNS