30092026-LT-01.qxd 9/30/2026 12:53 AM Page 1 c m y b Ludhiana tribune KILA RAIPUR GAMES STALWART PARAMJIT GREWAL PASSES AWAY BOHRU: VILLAGE OF FREEDOM FIGHTERS, REFORMERS KUSHA KAPILA, SHEEBA IN INSTAGRAM SERIES State sports fraternity has lost one of its most dedicated personnel with the passing of Paramjit Grewal. P2 Natives of Bohru village have been at forefront of various causes, including the country’s freedom struggle. P3 Khusha Kapila and Sheeba Chaddha will appear in a 14-episode Instagram series, Likhe Jo Khat Tujhe. P4 » » » FORECAST PARTLY CLOUDY MAX 28°C | MIN 23°C YESTERDAY MAX 30°C | MIN 24°C SUNSET WEDNESDAY 6:11 PM SUNRISE THURSDAY 6:15 AM WEDNESDAY | 30 SEPTEMBER 2026 | LUDHIANA Probe begins against three building branch officials over alleged lapses, revenue loss Senior officials have forwarded records to MC chief, recommending action against them Sukhpreet Singh Tribune News Service Ludhiana, September 29 At a time when complaints of unauthorised constructions are continuing to surface across the city, three officials of the Municipal Corporation’s Building Branch are facing disciplinary action over alleged lapses in checking building violations and assessment/recovery of civic charges. Senior MC officials have forwarded relevant records to the Municipal Commissioner, recommending departmental action against Building Inspectors Dalip Soni and Kamaljit Dhir and Assistant Town Planner (ATP) Gurvinder Singh Lucky. The reports point to alleged failure to prevent unauthorised constructions, incorrect classification of a building and possible short assessment of charges, which could have caused financial loss to the civic body. The departmental reports, however, describe the financial loss as a prima facie possibility, with the exact amount to be calculated after verification of the covered An illegal under-construction building in Zone C of the MC in Ludhiana. area, applicable rates and other statutory charges. In the case concerning Dalip Soni, the report relates to a building at Guru Nanak Nagar, Daba Road, opposite Krishna Convent School. The site inspection report found that the construction appeared to be commercial in nature while the building had been processed as an industrial building. The report against Kamaljit Dhir similarly raises questions over the classification and assessment of a building. The inspection report stated that the actual use appeared to be commercial, whereas the construction had been treated as an industrial building. It also flagged alleged non-compoundable construction and possible short recovery of applicable charges. The third report against ATP Gurvinder Singh Lucky having similar allegations against a few buildings which have been running without any permission and causing direct financial loss to corporation. The reports list several alleged lapses, including failure to properly verify the actual use of the buildings, failure to act against unauthorised constructions, fail- ure to ensure compliance with building by-law and failure to ensure assessment and recovery of applicable charges such as CLU, EDC, UDC, permission and compounding fees. The MC reports have recommended that the complete building files, challans, assessment sheets, site inspection reports, photographs and applicable rate notifications be examined. They also recommend recalculation of the amount payable by the owners/builders and recovery of any shortfall found due. The reports have proposed charge sheets and departmental proceedings, subject to approval of the competent authority. The role of other officials involved in inspection, assessment and processing of the cases has also been recommended for examination. MC Commissioner Ojasvi Alankar said: “I have initiated the inquiry against the officials as I have received reports with documents against them. I am verifying things minutely, if found, strict disciplinary action will be taken against them.” 50 tola gold stolen from house by two posing as locksmiths Nikhil Bhardwaj Tribune News Service Ludhiana, September 29 Thieves posing as locksmiths entered a house in the Model Town area on the pretext of repairing a lock and key and decamped with around 50 tolas of gold from the residence of a former chartered accountant (CA). After committing the crime, the suspects fled on a bicycle without even collecting Rs 150 repair charges. The Model Town police have registered a case against the unidentified persons who are said to be uncle-nephew and begun scrutinising the CCTV camera footage of the area. Complainant Kanchan Dhir told the police that on September 27 she and her family members were present at the house. They had got the main gate of the house painted about 20 days ago, due to which the lock of the gate was not working properly. In the morning, when her husband Suresh Kumar was standing outside the house, a person riding a bicycle came and claimed that he could repair keys and locks. Her husband called him inside to fix the lock of the main gate. The suspect started fixing the same and said the key was not A CCTV grab shows the suspects leaving on bicycles in Model Town. working properly due to the paint stuck inside. He asked her husband to bring all keys in the house, after which the latter gave him several keys of the house. The key of our main almirah was also given to the suspect in which our gold and silver ornaments were kept. “Though the suspect fixed the main gate key but damaged the almirah key. He said he would come and fix the same the next day. On September 28, the man along with his associate came to our house and went into the room where the almirah is placed to fix the key. My husband and our caretaker Aman both went inside the room, she said. “My husband being elderly, started sitting in the other room and resting. The man who sent the caretaker out for water on the pretext of doing so and the other person had big black bags and kept sitting in the room for a long time fixing the key. In our almirah, our ancestral, inherited, gifted and purchased ornaments weighing around 50 tolas, valued at over Rs 80 lakh, were kept. After 30 minutes, they came and started demanding money. We asked them to show us that the problem was fixed or not but they kept on arguing with us. Following which, they took their bags and left the house on their bicycles. Afterwards, we opened the almirah and locker and checked the same. We found that the gold weighing 40 tolas and more in our locker was missing,” the house owner said. The complainant said they also searched streets and roads near the house to find them but they could not trace them. Both suspects fled without taking the Rs 150 labour charge. A police official said the CCTV footage of the suspects was collected and a probe was on to identify them. Illegal drug de-addiction centre busted, Property tax: Last day to avail of 10% rebate 132 rescued, three managers nabbed Tribune News Service Nikhil Bhardwaj Tribune News Service Ludhiana, September 29 The Khanna police busted an illegal drug de-addiction centre and rescued 132 addicts kept illegally on its premises on Tuesday. The centre was being run from a dhaba at Ghulal village near the Toll Plaza. Out of the 132 persons, seven addicts are proclaimed offenders of various police districts while seven are bail jumpers. The Khanna police would inform the police stations concerned for necessary action against the wanted persons. Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP), Khanna, Dr Darpan Ahluwalia, said after receiving a tip-off about the Among rescued, 7 are POs; owners at large illegal de-addiction centre, a letter was sent to the health authorities informing that an illegal drug de-addiction centre was running near Ghulal Toll Plaza and a medical team was sought for checking. Accordingly, a team was formed, including Senior Medical Officer, Samrala, Dr Navneet Kaur, Psychiatrist, Khanna, Dr Davinderpal Singh, Medical Officer, Samrala, Sandeep Kasik, Drugs Control Officer and Jasdeep Singh, Pharmacy Officer, were formed by the Health Department. Dr Ahluwalia said as many as 132 addicts were rescued by the joint team of health and police departments of which many were those against whom FIRs had already been registered in the past under the NDPS Act and other sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS). One stolen motorcycle was also recovered from the centre and a probe was on in this regard. She claimed that owners of the centre were identified as Jagmanjit Singh, a resident of Tarn Taran, Sukhwinder Singh, a resident of Ahmedgarh Mandi, Malerkotla, Charanpreet, alias Bablu, of Samrala (who also runs two more de-addiction centres at Ropar and Sangrur) and Navdeep Singh of Ghudani Kalan, Payal. The Khanna police have arrested three managers of the centre and raids were on to nab the owners. The SSP said previously the place from where the centre was being run known as Golden Dhaba. When the police contacted the dhaba owner, Harpreet Singh of Ludhiana, he stated that his dhaba was shut down, after which he leased the property at Rs 40,000 per month. On September 9, the Khanna police had busted an illegally operated de-addiction centre at Ghungrali Rajputan village and seized 15 gm of heroin from its owner. The centre was sealed and nearly 55 inmates were safely rescued and shifted to government-run de-addiction and rehabilitation centres. Ludhiana, September 29 With Wednesday (September 30) last day to avail of 10 per cent rebate on payment of property tax for the current financial year (2026-27), Municipal Corporation (MC) Commissioner Ojasvi Alankar have appealed to residents to submit the pending tax on time and avail the rebate. The residents can submit To avoid long queues, residents can pay online at mcludhiana.gov.in the pending property tax at zonal suvidha kendras of the civic body. For avoiding long queues at suvidha kendras, they can submit the tax online by visiting mcludhiana.gov.in. No penalty will be imposed on payment of tax till December 31. PHOTO: ASHWANI DHIMAN The residents can avail of a 10 per cent rebate on payment of property tax for the current financial year, if the payment is done by September 30. No penalty is imposed on payment of tax from October 1 to December 31 while the department imposes a 10 per cent penalty on payment of tax from January 1 to March 31. The penalty is increased to 20 per cent and 18 per cent annual interest is also imposed, if the residents fail to pay the tax for the current financial year by March 31. Workers, farmers raise issues ahead of paddy procurement Two booked for assaulting youth Manav Mander Tribune News Service Ludhiana, September 29 With official paddy procurement set to begin on October 1, concerns have been raised across grain markets in the district. From labourers in Jagraon to farmer union leaders are pressing the authorities to address long-standing issues before the season gets underway. In the Jagraon grain market, workers have a long list of demands. Market president Dev Raj said every year labourers face hardships due to the “lack of basic facilities and the lax functioning of procurement agencies”. He stressed that if problems were resolved before the season, “procurement and lifting could be carried out smoothly without disruption”. The paddy procurement is set to begin on October 1 in state. Workers demanded strict enforcement of moisture norms during procurement, timely lifting of purchased grain within 72 hours to avoid space crunch, adequate sup- ply of gunny bags, regular cleaning of mandis, uninterrupted power, clean drinking c m y b water and a 25 per cent hike in labour charges. They also urged the administration to convene a joint meeting of procurement agencies, officials and labour unions for permanent solutions. Farmer unions too have raised a few issues. Bharatiya Kisan Union (Lakhowal) president HS Lakhowal pointed to the accumulation of old wheat and rice stocks in mills and godowns coupled with milling conditions fixed by the Centre will prove hurdles in smooth procurement. “Paddy has already started arriving in mandis. This time procurement should have begun earlier as sowing dates were advanced for shortduration varieties,” he said. BKU (Kadian) president Harmeet Singh Kadian echoed the concern, stating that “while arrivals have begun, the government had not made adequate arrangements for procurement.” He demanded immediate start of government purchase and assurance that farmers’ produce be bought without deductions. Farmers have also flagged the issue of lack of shed infrastructure and restroom at the Gill Road grain market, an issue that has been pending for years. “Things become difficult when it rains. With no proper shed facility, we have to cover the produce with tarpaulins. But it becomes impossible to save everything as water also gets stagnant there and damages the produce. Moisture exposure leads to mold, discoloration and fungal growth that severely impact the quality and market value of the crop,” said Satinder Singh, a farmer from Lalton Kalan. Tribune News Service Ludhiana, September 29 The Shimlapuri police on Monday registered a case against two miscreants for injuring a youth by hitting on his head with a pistol. The suspects were identified as Sandy and Mani. Complainant Rajan Kumar, alias Mangu, of Tower Colony told the police that on September 28, he along with his friends Neeraj Kumar, Jagga and Billa were sitting near Celebration Plaza Palace to consume alcohol. At that time, Sandy and Mani came to meet Billa. “Before we could ask anything from the suspects, they started arguing with us, which led to a Probe on to nab suspects, says cop fight. Sandy took out a pistol and threatened to kill me. Later, he hit me on the head with the butt of the pistol and Mani also thrashed me,” the complainant alleged. After the arrest of the suspects, it will be cleared whether the pistol was licensed or unlicensed. Investigating officer ASI Vijay Kumar said after registering a case, further investigation was launched and efforts were on to nab the suspects.