02022026-ATR-01.qxd 2/1/2026 11:23 PM Page 1 c m y b Amritsar tribune FORECAST PARTLY CLOUDY MC CRACKS DOWN ON ILLEGAL KIOSKS NEAR BUS STAND VALLAH MANDI BEGS FOR FRESH START NINE BUDGETS, NINE HANDLOOMS: FM SITHARAMAN’S SAREE SAGA According to officials, tin sheets were being installed on the roofs of kiosks at night to avoid detection. P2 Open House: Flagging lack of security & sewerage, residents call for relocation or revival of the market.P3 Sitharaman’s sartorial choice reaffirmed a tradition that has quietly evolved into a cultural statement. P4 » » » MAX 19°C | MIN 7°C YESTERDAY MAX 20°C | MIN 6°C SUNSET MONDAY 6.05 PM SUNRISE TUESDAY 7.21 AM MONDAY | 2 FEBRUARY 2026 | AMRITSAR Mixed reactions from trade, industry to FM’s proposals Corporate-friendly Budget: Farmer leaders Tribune News Service Amritsar, February 1 The Union Budget presented by Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman evoked a mixed reaction from trade, industry, MSMEs and other sections of society. Gunbir Singh, Past Chair, CII Punjab, and president, Dilbir Foundation, said there was no big bang in a bland Budget. But the tax holiday for data centres till 2047, IT push, 20 new waterways to boost cheap cargo and passenger logistics were some of the positive boosts in the document, he added. “Missing major upsides for employment generation for the youngest nation globally is disheartening. Ease of doing business highlighted at every high table, including Davos last week, has not been addressed either. One wonders what we are waiting for After going through this fiscal breakfast, one is left looking around for spice and salt to add taste. The farm economy and visionary impact-based sensitivities seem beyond the government’s radar, even as this can ease fiscal deficit,” he said. Amit Kapur from the pharma sector stated that the “Budget’s focus on boosting biopharma production with a Rs10,000 crore allocation is a positive step. Strengthening regulatory compliance is also crucial. However, there is concern that small and micro pharma units like ours might face financial challenges. It’s unfortunate that there is no mention of specific financial assistance for these units in our region, which could hinder their growth and compliance efforts.” To save the pharma industry and to bring it to global standards, there must be vital financial assistance to the pharma industry, he added. Piara Lal Seth, president, Punjab Pradesh Beopar Mandal (PPBM), while reacting to the Union Budget 2026-27, said BSF, police seize 1.15 kg heroin, drone from fields Our Correspondent Tarn Taran, February 1 The Border Security Force (BSF) and a team of the Khalra police conducted a joint search operation in the fields of a farmer, Gurwinder Singh of Thehkalla village, and recovered heroin and a drone, which appeared to have come from across the border on Saturday. ASI Gursahib Singh, who led the police team, said that the recovery made contained 1.15 kg of heroin with 125 grams of packing material and a drone. The Khlara police have registered a case under section 21-C, 61, 85 of the NDPS Act and section 25, 26 and 29 of the Bharatiya Vayuyan Adhiniyam, 2024. The recovered heroin is valued at an estimated Rs 5 crore. It ignores basic tenets of Guru Ravidas: SAD Charanjit Singh Teja Neeraj Bagga Gurbaxpuri Tribune News Service People look at the proceedings of the Union Budget in Amritsar on Sunday. POSITIVES ■ Tax holiday for data centres till 2047, IT push, 20 new waterways to boost cheap cargo and passenger logistics. ■ Boosting bio-pharma production with a ~10K cr allocation. ■ Increase in capital expenditure to Rs 12.2 lakh crore to strengthen India’s infrastructure, boosting logistics and connectivity, which will directly benefit Punjab. ■ Champion MSMEs through the Rs 10,000 crore SME Growth Fund to give fillip to Punjab’s light engineering and bicycle industries. that while the Budget talks of balancing development and fiscal discipline at the national level, it offers nothing concrete for a border state like Punjab, which is facing economic challenges. He said the Budget places a strong emphasis on infrastructure, defence, electronics manufacturing and capital expenditure, but the lack of special incentives or economic package for Punjab’s trade, small industries, MSMEs and border districts is extremely disappointing. PPBM state general secretary Sameer Jain said Punjab has long been grappling with PHOTO: VISHAL KUMAR NEGATIVES ■ Ease of doing business, highlighted at every high table, including Davos, not addressed. ■ Not enough boost to employment generation for the youngest nation globally. ■ Concern over small and micro pharma units facing financial challenges. ■ Nothing concrete for a border state like Punjab, which is facing economic challenges. serious problems such as high debt, industrial migration, decline in rural and urban demand, rising unemployment among youth and business risks in border districts. They felt that the Budget does not offer a clear roadmap to address these issues as it lacks transparency in budgetary allocations for key schemes and fails to meet the expectations of the common man. Concerns remain regarding inflation, rural demand and job creation. There is also criticism for the insufficient attention given to unemployment and state-specific issues (such as Punjab’s debt). Karan Gilhotra, Chair, Punjab State Chapter, PHDCCI, said the increase in capital expenditure to Rs 12.2 lakh crore in Budget 2026 was a monumental step to strengthen India’s infrastructure, boosting logistics and connectivity, which will directly benefit Punjab. He also emphasised that the focus on “Champion MSMEs” through the Rs 10,000 crore SME Growth Fund is a gamechanger, giving a massive fillip to Punjab’s light engineering and bicycle industries. Furthermore, initiatives like the National Fibre Scheme offer significant potential for electronics and textile sectors to scale up globally. Support for agriculture, diversification and allied activities will enhance farm incomes and promote value addition. Emphasis on skilling, employment generation and youth empowerment is timely for Punjab’s young workforce. Bharti Sood, Senior Regional Director, PHDCCI, while welcoming the Union Budget, highlighted the Corporate Mitras initiative as a significant step in supporting Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs), especially in Tier-II and Tier-III regions, by providing an affordable regulatory and compliance assistance which is expected to ease operational challenges and promote greater formalisation of small enterprises. She also appreciated the proposal to establish an Education to Employment and Enterprise Standing Committee for the services sector. Amritsar, February 1 Farmer union leaders and agriculture experts have expressed their disappointment over the Union Budget. The Kisan Mazdoor Sangharsh Committee (KMSC) said the government had brought out ‘anti-farmer’ policies and termed it a procorporate budget. Farmer leader Sarwan Singh Pandher strongly criticised the Union Budget, terming it “corporate-friendly” and anti-poor. Pandher said that the budget has completely ignored the basic and essential sectors such as education, healthcare and the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA). He alleged that instead of addressing the problems of farmers, workers and unemployed youth, the Centre has continued to frame policies that benefit big corporate houses. Pandher said that despite lakhs of government posts lying vacant across various departments, the Union Budget fails to offer any concrete plan for employment generation for youth. Dr Satnam Singh Ajnala, state president of Democratic Kisan Sabha, and a prominent leader of Sanyukt Kisan Morcha (SKM), said, “The agriculture sector has been completely ignored in the Central Budget for 2026-27. This budget is only going to provide relief to the corporate and big business houses. Farmers have been demanding for a long time to make agriculture profitable. All crops, vegetables, fruits, milk and wood should be given MSP and legal guarantee for it should be provided. A debt Warn that share of agriculture in budgetary allocation is decreasing of some Rs 19 lakh crore that has accrued on farmers due to the wrong policies of the Central and state governments should be waived. But the sad thing is that the budget is silent about these while Rs 16.5 lakh crore dues of corporate houses were forgiven in the past years. Regarding the profession of agriculture, only dairy producers and fish farmers have been given some encouragement in this budget to increase their income so that you sow valuable crops.” “Punjab, which is contributing a large share to the country’s food grain stock, does not have any provision in the budget regarding the contamination of its groundwater,” said Dr Satnam Singh Ajnala. He said that the agriculture sector is still contributing 27-28 per cent to the country’s gross domestic product (GDP) and the most important thing is that it is providing direct or indirect employment to almost 50 per cent of the country’s population. Despite this, the share of agriculture is decreasing in the budget. Last year, only 2.7 per cent of the Rs 50.65 lakh crore was allocated. This time, how much of the Rs 53.5 lakh crore budget has been allocated to the entire agriculture sector, the budget is silent on it,” said Dr Ajnala. In such a situation, Dr Ajnala strongly demanded that at least 10 per cent of the entire budget should be given to this sector to bring the entire agricultural sector of continued on page 2 Tarn Taran, February 1 Vice-president of the Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) and former MLA Ravinder Singh Brahmpura on Sunday stated that while the Union Government’s decision to rename Adampur Airport after Sri Guru Ravidass Ji reflects the sentiments of humanity and the Dalit community, a move that SAD whole-heartedly welcomes, the Union Budget presented today has utterly disregarded the Guru’s core principle of equality and the teaching, ‘Hari Ke Naam Bin Jhoothe Sakal Paasare’ (Without the truth, all worldly displays are false). Lauds renaming of Adampur Airport after the revered saint In a press statement issued here today, Brahmpura remarked, “Guru Sahib envisioned ‘Begampura’, a land free from sorrow and poverty. Renaming the airport is a commendable gesture, but a ‘true tribute’ would have been had the Prime Minister arrived today announcing substantial scholarships for Dalit students, permanent employment for landless labourers and concrete housing for the poor in the Union Budget.” He lamented that contrary to Guru Sahib’s philosophy, subsidies for labourers and the impoverished have been slashed. Brahmpura reiterated SAD’s commitment that party president Sukhbir Singh Badal never viewed the Dalit community merely as a vote bank. “Welfare schemes continued on page 2 42-kg heroin seizure 4 months on, family has no info Tarn Taran BJP unit case: Two arrested on kin who joined Russian army terms it pro-poor Tribune News Service Amritsar, February 1 In a major breakthrough, CIA staff of Amritsar (Rural) Police arrested two persons in connection with the seizure of 42 kg of heroin and four hand grenades recovered on Thursday. The accused were identified as Sonu, a resident of Bhalla Colony in Chheharta, and Mohit, a resident of the India Gate area of Amritsar. Superintendent of Police (Investigations), Amritsar Rural Police, Aditya Warrior, confirmed their arrest and said Sonu was an auto-rickshaw driver by profession, while Mohit worked as a courier responsible for collecting consignments of heroin and explosives. Investigations revealed that the contraband was being concealed and transported in Sonu’s auto-rickshaw for further delivery. “It was these two accused who had fled the spot, leaving the contraband behind at Dhotian village. They were identified through technical investigations and subsequently arrested by a police team led by Neeraj Kumar, Deputy Superintendent of Police (Rajasansi),” he said. During interrogation, it came to light that the accused had already delivered six to seven similar consignments in the past. The arrested duo has been remanded to three-day police custody. A senior official privy to the investigation said questioning of Sonu and Mohit revealed that the consignments were being handled on the instructions of two key handlers, identified as Rehmat and Ritik. The police suspect that Rehmat may have links with Pakistanbased drug traffickers. Acting on his directions, heroin, grenades and other explosives were allegedly being smuggled into India through drones, the official added. Meanwhile, the Special Cell of Amritsar (Rural) Police has detained eight suspects for questioning. Sources said those detained are either relatives or close associates of the main accused. Family members of the accused are also being questioned as police have intensified efforts to track down Rehmat and Ritik and recover any additional consignments that may have already been hidden or delivered. Neeraj Bagga Our Correspondent Tribune News Service Amritsar, February 1 The family of 33-year-old Hira Singh from Amritsar is worried about his well-being as it lost contact with him after he joined the Russian army on August 28, 2025. His wife Navdeep Kaur last spoke to Hira, who went to Russia on study visa, on September 24, 2025, a month after joining the Russian army. He was at Ivanovo where the Russian army operates a major aviation centre. Qualified up to class 10, he went to Russia over a year ago to augment the family income to support his three children, including a mentally challenged one. His youngest child is 11 months old who was born after he left for Russia. Navdeep said she did not receive any remittances from him after he joined the Russian army. In the name of proof, the family only possesses his photographs in olive green while holding guns. The family went from pillar to post to learn about his wellbeing in Russia and their search eventually got them connected to 30 families spread across Punjab, Haryana and c m y b Navdeep Kaur with her children in Amritsar. PHOTO: VISHAL KUMAR Jammu and Kashmir. She said one member each from these families went to Russia and circumstances made them join the Russian forces who were engaged in fighting with Ukraine. All families are in touch, making all efforts to learn about the safety of their loved ones in Russia. Experts say many semi-qualified and unskilled youngsters from here went to Russia because it involves hassle-free paperwork and mediocre investment of Rs 2-3 lakh. She said Hira had earlier conveyed to her that he was working at a construction site. The earning was not enough and the living cost was high. Hence, he was unable to send money back home. So he was planning to return to India. But then, he received an offer to join the Russian army. He was to get Rs 14 lakh at first and Rs 2 lakh per month salary which made him stay back, she added. Navdeep said earlier, Hira had lived in Malaysia for five years, serving as a security guard with a private concern. Before marriage, he was earning Rs 50,000 per month. Before moving to Russia, he was working as a delivery boy for an online company earning between Rs 20,000 and 30,000 per month. Tarn Taran, February 1 The district unit of the BJP expressed its appreciation for the Union Budget and described it as “pro-poor”. Harjit Singh Sandhu, district president of the BJP while , addressing a meeting of party workers here today, said the Budget presented by Modi government at the Centre would be beneficial for the economic prosperity of the country. He said that the Budget presented by the Union Government has given special attention to the health of the poor and middle class. The burden of ailments in the country is continuously increasing towards noncommunicable varieties such as diabetes, cancer, heart, kidney and liver diseases. Medicines for seven serious diseases have been made cheaper, along with solar energy equipment, 17 anticancer drugs, diabetes, leather goods, mobiles, EV batteries, microwave ovens, cotton clothes and shoes, said Sandhu. Harpreet Singh Sindbad, Surjit Singh Sagar, Shiv Kumar Soni, Satnam Singh Bhullar, Jaskaran Singh and other party leader too addressed the gathering on the occasion. BJP workers and leaders expressing their happiness over the Union Budget. PHOTO: GURBAXPURI