26082026-ATR-01.qxd 8/25/2026 10:28 PM Page 1 c m y b Amritsar tribune FORECAST PARTLY CLOUDY GOVT DEPRIVING EMPLOYEES OF BENEFITS, SAYS MANCH BEHIND THE DOWNFALL OF BOOMING BATALA INDUSTRY GURVINDER SINGH SAYS CRITICS IN INDIA UNDERSTAND HIS CINEMA BETTER Members of the Sanjha Mulazam Manch burn effigies of Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann. P2 Around 60 per cent of the units in Batala have shut down in the past three decades, statistics state. P3 MAX 34°C | MIN 28°C YESTERDAY MAX 35°C | MIN 27°C Gurvinder, whose film Rehmat was the only Indian entry at Locarno Film Festival, says Indians can relate to the cultural context better. P4 » » SUNSET WEDNESDAY 6.54 PM SUNRISE THURSDAY 5:56 AM » WEDNESDAY | 26 AUGUST 2026 | AMRITSAR 3 held with 10 kg heroin, pistol Tribune News Service Amritsar, August 25 In another major breakthrough against the crossborder drug trade, the Amritsar Rural Police arrested three persons and seized 10 kg of heroin, a .30bore pistol and a motorcycle from the Ram Tirth area. DIG (Border Range) Harmanbir Singh Gill said the seizure was made on Monday following specific intelligence input, leading to the arrest of Sajan Arora, 26, of Bhilowal Pakka; Vijaypal Singh, 23, of Sarai Amanat Khan in Tarn Taran; and Jashanpreet Singh, 24, of Gandiwind village. He said preliminary investigation had revealed that the accused were allegedly in contact with Pakistan-based smugglers and part of an illegal drug supply network operating across the border. Bandh call by govt employees tomorrow Tribune News Service Amritsar, August 25 Government employees are gearing up for a statewide protest on August 27, with several organisations announcing their participation in the proposed “Maha Bandh”. A meeting of senior leaders of various health department employee organisations was held at the Civil Surgeon’s office under the leadership of Baba Malkiat Singh Bhatti. The leaders decided to extend full support to the protest, saying the employees would not work on August 27. Representatives of the Health Employees Association, MLT Association, Pharmacy Officers Association, Ward Attendants Class IV Union, ANM-LHV Union and Staff Nurses Association attended the meeting. The leaders condemned the alleged use of force against employees and pensioners during their protest at Satauj village in Sangrur on August 23. They urged the Punjab Government to accept the employees’ demands and resolve the issues through dialogue. Meanwhile, a Joint Coordination Committee of the Punjab Employees and Pensioners Joint Front and Joint Employees Platform met Deputy Commissioner Dalwinderjit Singh and apprised DIG (Border Range) Harmanbir Singh Gill addresses the media in Amritsar. PAK LINKS ESTABLISHED ■ DIG (Border Range) Harmanbir Singh Gill said the seizure was made on Monday following specific intelligence input, leading to the arrest of Sajan Arora, 26, of Bhilowal Pakka; Vijaypal Singh, 23, of Sarai Amanat Khan in Tarn Taran; and Jashanpreet Singh, 24, of Gandiwind village. ■ He said preliminary investigation had revealed that the accused were allegedly in contact with Pakistanbased smugglers and part of an illegal drug supply network operating across the border. ■ A case under Sections 21 and 29 of the NDPS Act was registered at the Lopoke police station. Investigators are now questioning the accused to identify their Pakistan-based handlers, the source of the consignment and the intended recipients of the heroin. A case under Sections 21 and 29 of the NDPS Act was registered at the Lopoke police station. Investigators are now questioning the accused to identify their Pakistan-based handlers, the source of the consignment and the intended recipients of the heroin. One of the arrested accused, Vijaypal Singh, has a significant previous record under the NDPS Act. He was earlier booked in two cases, including a 2025 case registered at the Lopoke police station. The police had recovered 1 kg of heroin from his possession. The latest seizure highlights the continued use of the Amritsar-Tarn Taran border belt as a route for movement of narcotics allegedly pushed into Punjab through Pakistan-linked networks. The police are also examining the communication and financial links of the accused to establish the wider network behind the consignment. The motorcycle used by the accused and the recovered weapon have also been taken into possession as part of the investigation. Petrol bombs hurled at bizman’s house in Batala Ravi Dhaliwal Tribune News Service Batala/Gurdaspur, August25 Two motorcycle-borne youths hurled a petrol bomb at the residence of a foreign-based businessman at Rangar Nangal under the Batala police jurisdiction at midnight. The police said the accused had allegedly demanded Rs 50 lakh from Gurjeet Singh Cheema. But when the latter refused to give in, they attacked his residence, no substantial damage was reported though. Batala SSP Dr Mehtab Singh said he had formed a special team to look into the sequence of events leading to the firing. “We are working on several clues and hope to arrest the miscreants soon,” he said. In Gurdaspur city, two youths fired at the residence of a social worker Rakesh Kumar in the busy Nangal Kotli locality. The location is near the Jahaz Chowk, one of the most crowded areas in the city. The firing took place at midnight. The police said Rakesh Kumar had received a call from an international phone number yesterday, asking for Rs 50 lakh. Gurdaspur SSP Adiya said: “I have formed a team which is operating under the supervision of SP (Investigation). We are working on various angles and hope to crack the case soon,” he said. The use of petrol bombs is becoming common in Punjab. “These are low-grade and easy to fabricate devices which continued on page 2 Rajinder Singh — Mind behind district’s top weightlifting talent NEWSMAKER OF THE WEEK Neeraj Bagga Tribune News Service Amritsar, August25 He served the nation and then went on to impart free training to budding weightlifters. Rajinder Singh's gentry, passion and the ability to add spunk to any training session he took caught the attention of the district sports department, with the latter approaching him to train its budding players. Also, one of his training videos went viral. One of the weightlifters, Sunil Singh, whom he trains at the Guru Nanak Stadium won two silver medals and a bronze medal under the 65 kg weight category in the Asian Youth Weightlifting Championship held in Kazakhstan in July last year. He finished sixth in the International Weightlifting Federation's Youth World championship in Peru in April last year. A resident of Dhapai village, Rajinder Singh guided the district weightlifting team to victory in the Punjab State Youth Junior and Senior State trophies in 2025. At present, he is training 22 boys and it girls at the district weightlifting centre. Most of the weightlifters he has coached have either bagged gold medals or pocketed silver medals. Those on the list include Surendra Pal Rajinder Singh trains a youth at Amritsar’s Guru Nanak Stadium. COACHING 22 WEIGHTLIFTERS AT PRESENT ■ A resident of Dhapai village, Rajinder Singh guided the district weightlifting team to victory in the Punjab State Youth Junior and Senior State trophies in 2025. At present, he is training 22 boys and it girls at the district weightlifting centre. ■ Most of the weightlifters he has coached have either bagged gold medals or pocketed silver medals. Those on the list include Surendra Pal Singh, who bagged a silver in ‘Khelo India’ held in 2023 and Vidushi Sharma, who won a silver medal in a competition held at Panjab University in December last year. Singh, who bagged a silver in "Khelo India" held in 2023 and Vidushi Sharma, who won a silver medal in a competition held at Panjab University in December last year. He started his stint as a coach at Army Sports Institute (ASI), Pune, in 2004. He joined the Army in 1989 and participated in various athletic events. During his stint as a coach with the Army, he produced about 40 international players. Back then, he was credited with the victory of 2006 weightlifting team. He also coached Commonwealth best weightlifter Ajay Singh Sherawat. Anganwadis run out of ration Ahead of festive season, food safety officials go into checking overdrive, collect 10 samples Tribune News Service Amritsar, August 25 Anganwadi centres in the city have been awaiting the supply of ration from The Food Corporation of India since August 1. After the Punjab State Cooperative Supply and Marketing Federation (Markfed) stopped supplying ready-to-cook food to the centres, the latter have been left high and dry. “We used to receive khichdi, sweet/salty dalia premixes, dal and dry milk under the Integrated Child Development Services (ICDS), a flagship programme of the Central Government, ensuring the provision of adequate nutrition to infants, adolescent girls, pregnant and nursing mothers. Now, we get rice and wheat flour, which are inadequate and disbursed as per the requirement on a daily basis,” said Tribune News Service Markfed decided to scrap the Supplementary Nutrition Programme after complaints over quality of food items. Neetu, an anganwadi incharge at the New Golden Avenue Centre, Amritsar. The decision to scrap the Supplementary Nutrition Programme (SNP) was taken by Markfed after repeated complaints related to the sourcing and quality of food items from private suppliers. The federation supplied ready-to-cook ration to 27,314 centres in Punjab. Sanjeev Kumar, Assistant Child Development Project Officer, Amritsar, said after the discontinuation of supplies, the stock supplied by contractors lasted till the end of July. “We had provided each centre with 5 kg of wheat flour, dal and rice. We have been conveyed that new tenders will be floated and supplies resumed, but no official notification has been issued to date.” Amritsar, August 25 Food safety officials on Tuesday inspected several areas of the city and collected 10 food samples for testing. The inspections were carried out following the directions of District Health Officer Dr Manjeet Singh Ratol. The official said two teams had been formed to conduct checks at various eateries. He added that food safety officers Satnam Singh and Simranjit Singh would oversee the inspections. The teams inspected eateries and preparation units in areas, including Ram Tirath Road, Lawrence Road, Chheharta Road, Gate Hakima, Pawan Nagar, Mohkampura and Samples of moong dal laddoos, cooking oil, bread, atta biscuits and paneer were collected. Krishna Nagar. Samples of moong dal laddoos, cooking oil, patty, bread, atta biscuits, paneer, green sauce, ras malai, gravy and lassi were collect- ed and sent for testing. The food safety teams also inspected a place where moong dal laddoos were being prepared. Officials found garbage around the preparation area and open drains nearby. They said flies were seen hovering over the food. A notice was issued to the food business operator. The officials also warned the eatery owner of legal action in case of non-compliance of the Food Safety Act norms. The teams also collected three samples from food served under the mid-day meal scheme in government schools. The samples included flour, cooked rice and rajma. These samples will also be tested to ensure that the food served to schoolchildren is safe. Homecoming of sorts — Punjabi writer’s book re-released at his native village Charanjit Singh Teja Tribune News Service FIRST PUBLISHED IN 1973 Amritsar, August 25 In a homecoming of sorts, 53 years after its publication, “Payal”, a book written by Punjabi writer Sukhbir Singh Sandhu was re-released at his village — Kalsian Khurd. Man behind the event, retired ETO Surjit Singh Sandhu, ensured that the occasion looked beyond a conventional book launch. He made sure that a copy of the book, a collection of ghazals, reaches every household, turning the event into a village-wide celebration. Born in 1932, Sukhbir Singh Sandhu, was the ■ Born in 1932, Sukhbir Singh Sandhu, was the writer of the famous ghazal, “Us Bewafa Di Yaad Vich Royea Karaan Ke Na,” which was later rendered by several renowned Pakistani singers, including Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan, Nazakat Ali, Maratab Ali, Naseebo Lal and Akram Rahi. ■ “Payal” was first published in 1973. To acknowledge the writer and celebrate his great work, the Punjabi Lok Virasat Academy, Ludhiana, got the book printed. << Residents of Kalsian Khurd village with the copies of the book penned by Sukhbir Singh Sandhu. writer of the famous ghazal, “Us Bewafa Di Yaad Vich Royea Karaan Ke Na,” which was later rendered by several renowned Pakistani singers, including Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan, Nazakat Ali, Maratab Ali, Naseebo Lal and Akram Rahi. c m y b “Payal” was first published in 1973. In a bid to acknowledge the writer and celebrate his great work, the Punjabi Lok Virasat Academy, Ludhiana, got the book printed after 53 years, the news of which reached the villagers through these columns. Filled with happiness and pride, the residents decorated the entire village with canopies, turning it into a dreamy setup. Every village resident made it a point to grace the event. On the re-release, Surjit Singh Sandhu said it was a matter of great pride for the villagers to present the book of a writer born in their village to the people of his own native place. “When a person who emerges from the soil of a village establishes a literary identity through his pen, his achievement does not remain a personal accomplishment. It becomes a shared legacy of the entire village,” he added. Surjit Singh Sandhu said distributing the book’s copies was a conscious effort to connect the writer’s work with the people of his native village. The initiative, he added, transformed what could have been a formal literary function into a collective family celebration. The villagers also remembered Sukhbir Singh Sandhu and recalled his literary journey. Sandhu expressed gratitude to Prof Gurbhajan Singh Gill for tracing the book and getting it republished after more than five decades.