23072026-CT-01.qxd 7/23/2026 12:33 AM Page 1 c m y b Chandigarh tribune POWER CUT CRIPPLES WORK AT MAJRI OFFICES TWO DERA BASSI MEN DIE ON WAY TO KHATU SHYAM TEMPLE ON BATALVI’S BIRTH ANNIV ON JULY 23, A LO0K AT HIS SONGS Working of Sewa Kendra, Fard Centre, Patwarkhana in Majri block hit as power supply cut over dues. P2 Two Dera Bassi youths die, three others hurt in mishap on way to Khatu Shyam temple in Rajasthan. P2 Shiv Kumar Batalvi — a Punjabi poet whose verses continue to echo across generations. P4 » » AIR QUALITY INDEX CHANDIGARH 36 PANCHKULA 30 401-500 301-400 201-300 101-200 51-100 0-50 SEVERE VERY POOR POOR MODERATE SATISFACTORY GOOD WHAT’S ON APNI MANDI Chandigarh: Sectors 34, 56 and Ram Darbar Mohali: Sec 88 and Phase 8 Please send information about events in Tricity at: whatson@tribunemail.com POWER SHUTDOWN CHANDIGARH 9 am to 11 am: Parts of Sector 33 11 am to 11.45: Parts of Sector 9-B 12 noon to 4 pm: Parts of Sectors 42, 9-B A CLARIFICATION In the report, ‘Cycled through Tricity as BJP in-charge in early 90s, recalls Modi’, published in Chandigarh Tribune on July 18, it was inadvertently mentioned that Prime Minister Narendra Modi had an informal chat with a Tribune reporter during his July 17 visit to Chandigarh. This is deeply regretted. UT advocates start chain hunger strike Chandigarh, July 22 Advocates at the District Court here have started a chain hunger strike against the Legal Aid Defence Counsel System (LADCS). The District Bar Association’s decided to begin the protest in support of the movement initiated by the Joint continued on page 2 Ramkrishan Upadhyay Tribune News Service Chandigarh, July 22 Taking serious note of threat allegations made by a witness in a bribery case, the CBI court here has directed the UT Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) and the Head of Bureau (HOB), CBI, Anti-Corruption Branch, Chandigarh, to expedite action on the witness’ application for protection. In an order passed on Wednesday, the court said the prosecution witness, Lokesh Saini, submitted that he was not in a stable state of mind MAX 31°C | MIN 23°C YESTERDAY MAX 32.3°C | MIN 24°C SUNRISE FRIDAY 5:35 AM /THETRIBUNECHD FACEBOOK/CHANDIGARHTRIBUNE Students, Cong workers stage protest over Delhi lathicharge Yellow alert fizzles out, weather warnings till Sunday withdrawn Tribune News Service Chandigarh, July 22 A day after the orange alert for heavy to very heavy rain proved false, the yellow alert for heavy rain on Wednesday also passed without any major impact in Chandigarh. Residents woke up to a brief spell of rain around 5 am, followed by overcast skies and a cool breeze. However, no further rainfall was recorded during the day despite favourable weather conditions. According to the India Meteorological Department (IMD), 7.7 mm of rainfall was recorded in Chandigarh during the 24 hours ending 8.30 am on Wednesday. No rainfall was recorded between 8.30 am and 5.30 pm. The maximum temperature continued to rise after Tuesday’s increase. Chandigarh recorded a maximum temperature of 34.2°C on Wednesday, up 1.9 degrees from the previous Chandigarh, July 22 Panjab University students, members of youth organisations and Congress workers gathered at the Sector 17 Plaza here on Wednesday evening to condemn the BJP-led Central government over the lathicharge on protesters at Jantar Mantar in New Delhi. The protest lasted around three hours. Under the banner of ‘Against Brutal Repression Inflicted on Youth in Delhi’, PU student outfits, including PSU (Lalkar), SFS, Punjabnama, AFDR, Saakhi, SOPU and NSUI, along with the Naujawan Bharat Sabha, Disha, AISA and other organisations, held a demonstration at the Plaza. Representatives of these groups carried placards opposing the police action in Delhi, which allegedly injured the protesting students, and also criticised the government’s handling of the situation. They slammed the Centre’s response to the protesters’ demands, including the resignation of Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan. “We strongly condemn the Delhi Police’s alleged barbaric action, taken at the behest of the BJP-RSS. The youth of the country is suffering due to repeated paper leaks, unemployment and a deteriorating education system. Seventeen students have ended their lives due to paper leaks. Unemployment is at an alltime high. The government’s anti-student policies have pushed the youth into a dense web of unrest,” said Anshita, a protesting student. continued on page 2 Gather at Sec 17 Plaza to flay police action, seek Pradhan’s resignation Protesters gather at the Sector 17 Plaza on Wednesday; and (below) show posters in support of their demands. PHOTOS: RAVI KUMAR as someone on behalf of the accused had been continuously approaching and threatening him for the past few days. The witness claimed that he was being asked to make his statement before the court in the case in a particular way, leaving him under fear and mental stress. In view of the witness’ allegation, the court deferred recording his testimony and discharged him for the time being. The proceedings were adjourned to July 31 for evidence of the prosecution. Lokesh is a witness in the bribery case registered against Sub-Inspector Sewa Tribune News Service Chandigarh, July 22 Aimed at strengthening cooperatives, improving public services and creating local employment opportunities, UT Administrator Gulab Chand Kataria today launched the Chandigarh Cooperation Policy-2026. The policy envisages the formation of around 50 new cooperatives by December Singh, who was arrested eight years ago while allegedly accepting Rs 5,000 bribe from the complainant. The court also directed the accused to show cause as to why their bail should not be cancelled in view of the threat allegation levelled by the witness. The court ordered that a reminder be sent to the UT SSP and the HOB, CBI, Chandigarh, with a direction to expedite action on the application of the witness in pursuance of the order dated July 20, 2026. The officials were directed to submit their actiontaken report before the court in sealed envelopes on July 31. day and 0.4 degree above normal. The minimum temperature also increased by 0.7 degree to 24.7°C, though it remained 2.2 degrees below normal. Relative humidity remained high under partly cloudy to overcast conditions. The IMD, in its evening media bulletin, has withdrawn all weather warnings for Chandigarh from Thursday to Sunday, indicating subdued monsoon activity over the city during the period. The forecast, however, suggests partly cloudy skies with the possibility of isolated light rain or thundershowers. The yellow alert will return on Monday and Tuesday, when the IMD has forecast heavy to very heavy rain at isolated places, accompanied by thunderstorms, lightning and gusty winds. The five-day forecast indicates maximum temperatures are likely to remain between continued on page 2 UT Cooperation Policy to boost jobs, public services Tribune News Service CBI court orders action on protection plea as prosecution witness ‘threatened’ BRIBERY CASE GENERALLY CLOUDY SUNSET THURSDAY 7:23 PM » THURSDAY | 23 JULY 2026 | CHANDIGARH FORECAST 31, 2027, supported through simplified registration, training, assistance in accessing bank credit and bulk procurement benefits. A dedicated Chandigarh cooperative development authority will guide and monitor its implementation. Keeping in view Chandigarh’s predominantly urban character, the policy gives special emphasis to service continued on page 2 5 years on, man gets Farmers stage sit-in as cops life term for murder foil march to city BJP office Tribune News Service Mohali, July 22 A local court on Wednesday sentenced a resident of Parol to life imprisonment in a fiveyear-old murder case. The court also imposed a fine of Rs 1 lakh on the convict, Jagir Singh, alias Ghola. Two other accused named in the FIR — Satnam Singh, alias Sunny, and Deshraj, alias Desa — were acquitted. Sucha Singh, a goat rearer and resident of Choti Badi Naggal, was murdered by having his throat slit. The accused was convicted on July 17 while the sentence was pronounced on Wednesday. According to the FIR, Jagir Singh owed Sucha Singh Rs 40,000 for the goats he had purchased from the victim. Sucha Singh went missing on June 12, 2021, while grazing goats. After the incident, the deceased’s pet dog, Rocky, used to lead the bereaved family members to a spot and stand there. On suspicion, the police dug up the spot and recovered a headless body. After naming Jagir Singh Ghola and others in the FIR, the police recovered the head from another location. Centre seeks report from UT on ~117-cr Smart City scam Cops stop farmers from marching towards the BJP office, at Kisan Bhawan in Sector 35, Chandigarh, on Wednesday. TRIBUNE PHOTO: VICKY Union Ministry’s letter to Chandigarh Admn follows MP Tewari flagging issue in Lok Sabha Tribune News Service Tribune News Service WHAT TEWARI SAID IN LOK SABHA Chandigarh, July 22 The Rs 117-crore Chandigarh Smart City-IDFC First Bank fraud has reached the floor of Parliament, with the Union Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs seeking a detailed report from the UT Administration on the alleged misappropriation of Smart City Mission funds deposited in the bank. In a demi-official letter dated July 10, Minister of State for Housing and Urban Raising the matter during Zero Hour on April 2, MP Manish Tewari had stated that the Smart City Mission’s tenure had ended on March 31, 2025, and that its remaining funds were transferred to the Municipal Corporation, Chandigarh, and subsequently deposited in IDFC First Bank. The money, he said, had then disappeared from the bank and was allegedly misappropriated. Affairs Tokhan Sahu informed Chandigarh MP Manish Tewari that the ministry had taken cognisance of the matter he raised during Zero Hour in the Lok Sabha on April 2 regarding the alleged misappropriation of funds under the Smart City Mission deposited in a sched- uled commercial bank in Chandigarh. “The ministry has sought a detailed report from the Chandigarh Administration. The same is, however, awaited. A comprehensive reply addressing the issues raised by you will be furnished upon receipt of the requisite information from the UT Administration,” wrote Sahu. Raising the matter during Zero Hour on April 2, Tewari had told the Lok Sabha that the Smart City Mission’s tenure had ended c m y b on March 31, 2025, and that its remaining funds to the tune of Rs 125 crore were transferred to the Municipal Corporation (MC), Chandigarh, and subsequently deposited in IDFC First Bank. The money, he said, had then disappeared from the bank and was allegedly misappropriated. Demanding immediate government intervention, Tewari had called upon the Centre to instruct the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) to investigate the continued on page 2 Chandigarh, July 22 On a nationwide call by the Samyukt Kisan Morcha (SKM) against the proposed India-US Free Trade Agreement (FTA), a group of farmers staged a protest outside Kisan Bhawan in Sector 35 here on Wednesday. While the protest was to be held at 10 am, it started around 12 noon amid heavy police deployment. The protesters had announced that they would march towards the Chandi- Protest held in response to SKM call against India-US free trade pact garh Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) office in Sector 33. However, the UT police stopped them outside Kisan Bhawan. The police thwarted their attempts to breach the barricades. The protesters raised slogans against the government and staged a sit-in there. Some protesters were briefly detained by the police. Farmer leaders alleged that they wanted to hand over a representation to the city BJP president but the Administration stopped them from marching to the party office. In an open letter on Tuesday, the farmer body had urged President Droupadi Murmu to not sign the India-US FTA, repeal all signed free trade pacts and ensure that a discussion was held in Parliament on their impact on the country’s economy, self-reliance and sovereignty.