23072026-ATR-01.qxd 7/22/2026 11:50 PM Page 1 c m y b Amritsar tribune FORECAST PARTLY CLOUDY TEACHINGS OF GURU RAVIDAS TAKE CENTRE STAGE SHOWERS ARE HERE, SO ARE MISHAPS 5-HOUR EVENING OF TIMELESS QAWWALIS, MUSIC AT MOBE A 30-minute documentary is being shown through mobile LED vans across 13,000 villages in Punjab. P2 Orthopaedic departments witness an increase in patients during the rainy season, says Dr Ashish Chauhan. P3 Sana Khan will present an evening of soulful melodies and timeless qawwalis at Mobe on July 24. P4 » » » MAX 26°C | MIN 24°C YESTERDAY MAX 26°C | MIN 25°C SUNSET THURSDAY 7.28 PM SUNRISE FRIDAY 5:38 AM THURSDAY | 23 JULY 2026 | AMRITSAR Blackout hits 12 villages; officials blame workers’ stir Ravi Dhaliwal GLITCH IN FEEDER BEING FIXED: XEN Tribune News Service Gurdaspur, July 22 As many as 20,000 villagers of 12 villages here have been without electricity for the past 36 hours. What made the situation even worse is the fact that instead of addressing the issue, PSPCL officials deflected the blame on the ongoing strike of contractual and outsourced employees. The officials said due to the strike, they couldn’t help much. The villages fall under the ■ Gurdaspur XEN Kuldeep Singh stated that there was a glitch in the electricity feeder. “The problem is being fixed,” he added. ■ While 10 of these villages depend on the Pathankot division for power supply, the remaining two look to the Gurdaspur division. ■ Voicing anger, Amrik Singh, a resident of Paniyar village, said: “What is our fault? If that’s the case why does Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann keep saying all villages in Punjab, including the far-off ones, have access to electricity? We cannot even charge our mobile phones.” Dinanagar sub-division, part of Gurdaspur district. While 10 of these villages depend on the Pathankot division for power supply, the remaining two look to the Gurdaspur division. A senior PSPCL official said the power supply was erratic as these villages were located in the tail-end areas. Voicing anger, Amrik Singh, a resident of Paniyar village, said: “What is our fault? If that’s the case why does Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann keep saying all villages in Punjab, including the far-off ones, have access to electricity? We cannot even charge our mobile phones.” Gurdaspur XEN Kuldeep Singh stated that there was a glitch in the electricity feeder. “The problem is being fixed,” he added. Gagan Bhaskar, Pathankot division XEN, said, “The load of damaged electricity poles is being shifted to an agriculture pump (AP) feeder. We are hopeful of an early resolution.” Manjit Singh Dala, a resident of Dala village, said, the water supply too was hit. The private bus was en route to Jammu from Jalandhar. PHOTO: VISHAL KUMAR Two killed in mishap, mob setsbus on fire Tribune News Service Pathankot, July 22 An irate mob set ablaze a luxury tourist bus after it collided with a motorcycle and killed two persons. The incident took place near Kaunterpur village, 15 km from Pathankot, on the Jalandhar-Jammu road around 10 am. The bus was en route to Jammu from Jalandhar. Driver tries to flee spot, nabbed by police; FIR registered SSP Daljinder Singh Dhillon said, “The driver tried to flee but we managed to arrest him.” The deceased, Ranjit Singh and Arun Kumar, were from Kaunterpur village. The motorcycle they were on belonged to “Laxmi Travels”, a transport company. The bus, which was being driven at high speed, hit a two-wheeler first, dragged it to nearly 200 m before ramming into another bike,” said eyewitness Parladh Singh. The SSP said they were investigating the matter and that an FIR had been registered at the Nangal Bhur police station. Teerth Yatra bus driver assaulted, Man dies of ‘drug overdose’, AAP holds Congress responsible police detain his friend Tribune News Service Pawan K Jaiswar Tribune News Service Amritsar, July 22 Two youths allegedly assaulted the driver of a Punjab Government’s Chief Minister Tirth Yatra bus following a minor altercation on the Amritsar-Attari road on Wednesday morning, triggering panic among 65 passengers, many of whom were elderly pilgrims. The police said the bus was on its way from Amritsar to Attari when the occupants of a car got into an argument with the driver. Crackdown on cross-border smugglers Pawan K Jaiswar Tribune News Service Amritsar, July 22 The Amritsar Rural Police have arrested 349 persons and seized over 15.5 kg of heroin, 24 pistols and a drone during a two-day crackdown under Operation Prahar 4.0, launched against drug traffickers, gangsters and crossborder smuggling modules. Launched on July 21, the operation focuses on villages along the India-Pak border, drug hotspots and public transit hubs. Police teams carried out intensive search and surveillance operations to prevent drone-based smuggling. They intercepted narcotics consignments and apprehended smugglers operating in the border areas. Preventive action was also taken against habitual offenders and associates of gangsters to maintain law and order. 349 held; drugs, pistols seized PROCLAIMED OFFENDERS IN POLICE NET The accused allegedly made obscene gestures before overtaking the bus and parking their vehicle in front of it, forcing the bus to stop. The accused then came out of the car with a baseball bat and an iron rod, dragged the driver out of the bus and assaulted him. Passengers, including senior citizens, were left in fear. Some of them alerted the police control room, but the accused fled the spot. A police team reached the scene and on the basis of a CCTV footage and other evidence, registered a case against the accused. Raids are on to arrest them. Meanwhile, the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) alleged that the attack was carried out by Congress workers and described it as an attempt to derail the Bhagwant Mann government’s flagship welfare scheme. Addressing a press conference in Chandigarh, AAP Punjab media in-charge Baltej Pannu claimed that the two arrested accused, identified as continued on page 2 Amritsar, July 22 After a resident of Kot Khalsa died of suspected drug overdose, the police detained his friend for allegedly abandoning the body instead of informing the family or the authorities. The deceased, identified as Sukhwinder Singh, worked as a painter. Assistant Commissioner of Police, Central, Surinder Singh and SHO, Islamabad police station, Harsandeep Singh said they received information on Tuesday afternoon that a body wrapped in a sheet had been dumped in the locality. The police rushed to the spot, took the body into custody and initiated inquest proceedings. The body has been sent for autopsy. The police examined CCTV footage of the area and found that Sukhwinder had consumed liquor with his friend, Kuldeep Singh, before allegedly taking another intoxicating substance. Investigators suspect that the excessive consumption of drugs led to Sukhwinder’s death. The police later detained continued on page 2 Subsidised urea misuse: Surprise checks in units Tribune News Service ■ DIG, Border Range, Harmanbir Singh Gill said as many as 226 accused were arrested in old criminal cases, while 123 persons were booked under preventive action, taking the total number of arrests to 349. The police also arrested three associates of gangsters and verified the credentials of 69 out of 119 suspected associates. ■ During the operation, the police registered 72 cases under the NDPS Act, leading to the arrest of 90 accused, besides 13 Arms Act cases and 15 Excise Act cases. Twelve proclaimed offenders were also arrested. Launched on July 21, Operation Prahar 4.0 focuses on villages along the India-Pak border. DIG, Border Range, Harmanbir Singh Gill said as many as 226 accused were arrested in old criminal cases, while 123 persons were booked under preventive action, taking the total number of arrests to 349. The police also arrested three associates of gangsters and verified the credentials of 69 out of 119 suspected associates. During the operation, the police registered 72 cases under the NDPS Act, leading to the arrest of 90 accused, besides 13 Arms Act cases and 15 Excise Act cases. Twelve proclaimed offenders were also arrested. Recoveries included 15.503 kg of heroin, 24 pistols, 26 magazines, 60 cartridges, 970 grams of opium, 695 intoxicant tablets, 1.26 lakh ml of illicit liquor, Rs 14,200 in drug money, six stolen motorcycles and one drone. Two alleged cross-border smugglers, six suppliers and four peddlers were also arrested. The DIG issued a warning to gangsters and drug traffickers, asking them to surrender voluntarily. Those attempting to evade the law would face stricter legal action. Amritsar, July 22 The Agriculture Department conducted surprise checks at feed factories and dyeing units across the district to prevent the illegal use of subsidised urea for industrial purposes. The inspections were part of the drive to protect farmers’ interests and stop the diversion of subsidised urea meant for agricultural use. Chief Agriculture Officer Amarjit Singh Dosanjh supervised the operation. Officials inspected several feed manufacturing units and dyeing industries in the district. No case of storage or use of subsidised urea was found in any industrial unit, claimed continued on page 2 A two-wheeler rider braves rain in Amritsar on Wednesday: PHOTO: VISHAL KUMAR City sees highest rainfall in two decades; border belt put on alert Tribune News Service No light at end of tunnel, say 2025 Ravi flood victims Manmeet Singh Gill UNENDING STRUGGLE, UNHEALED WOUNDS Tribune News Service Amritsar, July 22 A year has passed since the Ravi unleashed devastating floods across villages in the rural Ajnala belt. The disaster has long faded from headlines, but for affected families, the struggle to rebuild their lives continues to this day. An apt example of how floods changed lives is Sukhwinder Singh of Machiwal village. Every day, Sukhwinder goes to his deserted poultry shed, where he keeps himself busy with small, unnecessary chores as the shed is empty. The idea is to stay away from his wife and parents, who often ask about the future. Unable to answer those questions, Sukhwinder remains hopeful that someday, his fortune would change. So far, that hope remains unfulfilled. Every day, Sukhwinder goes to his deserted poultry shed, where he keeps himself busy with small, unnecessary chores as the shed is empty. The idea is to stay away from his wife and parents, who often ask about the future. Sukhwinder Singh has been without work since the 2025 Ravi floods. His memories of the flood are still vivid. His voice trembles as he recalls the morning when the river breached the area. “The entire previous night was spent trying to save our village. People were reinforcing the embankments with whatever material they could find. Around 5.30 in the morning, the water came rushing in. My brother and I were at the poultry farm. There were 6,000 fully grown chickens inside the shed,” he said. “We barely had enough time to switch off the inverter to save birds from electrocution. The shed was quickly inundated. Most of the chickens drowned. We had neither the time nor the means to save them.” Within minutes, years of hard work were washed away. Sukhwinder had built the poultry shed at a cost of near- ly Rs 10 lakh through a bank loan. Before the floods struck, the business had begun showing promise. “We had successfully sold three batches of chickens and were finally seeing the rewards of our labour. Everything seemed to be falling into place,” he recalled. Today, the family remains burdened by debt. Unable to resume operations, Sukhwinder has not paid even the interest on the loan over the past year. “The outstanding amount has now risen to nearly Rs 8 lakh. Had the floods not occurred, we could have cleared the loan by now,” he said. His greatest concern, however, is the future of the farm. Poultry companies are unwilling to place birds in the shed, fearing another flood-related loss. He said, “They believe the area remains vulnerable and c m y b do not want to take the risk.” For him, the compensation process brought little relief. Sukhwinder claimed that officials who surveyed the damage offered compensation for only 50 birds. “I lost 6,000 chickens. When they said they could compensate me for just 50, it felt like an insult,” he said. For many others like Sukhwinder, who lost their homes, livelihoods and crops to the calamity, the flood is far from over. Avtar Singh of Ghonewal said, “The government and people may think that life has returned to normal, but it has not.” He stated that 67 farmers in the village were still awaiting compensation. Despite their efforts to rebuild their lives, many continued to struggle. “Some have lost less, while others have lost more. But for us, it is far from over,” he said. Amritsar, July 22 According to the IMD weather data, Amritsar has recorded its heaviest 24hour rainfall in at least two decades. The city received 185 mm rain of rainfall, which is above normal for the entire month of July (between July 21 and July 22. The IMD update stated that more moderate-to-heavy rain spells were likely during the next three days, with a possibility of thunderstorm and squall. Incessant rains lashed the holy city, throwing life out of gear by causing waterlogging in most parts of the city for the second consecutive day. The rainfall also caused a sharp drop in the day temperature, with the average temperature being recorded between 26-28 degrees Celsius, whereas it touched 48 degrees Celsius a few days ago. In the low-lying localities in Clouds hover over the Golden Temple in Amritsar. VISHAL KUMAR Amritsar in Putlighar, Chheharta, Rani KA Bagh, Kot Khalsa, Sultanwind and Maqboolpura, the streets and roads got inundated, with the vehicular movement coming to a halt. A two-hour traffic congestion was reported on the GNDU stretch of the GT road till the Khalsa College crossing and Putlighar chowk. Rainwater remained stagnant for hours despite the Municipal Corporation operating disposal pumps in several areas. Waterlogging was also reported from several upscale neighbourhoods as well as unplanned colonies, where residents complained of poor drainage infrastructure. With more rainfall predicted in the days to come, the border belt areas, including Ajnala and Ramdas, have been put on alert.