27022026-LT-01.qxd 2/27/2026 12:39 AM Page 1 c m y b Ludhiana tribune KARAMJEET, RAJ NAMED BEST ATHLETES AT SPORTS MEET FROM BOARDROOM BASICS TO BOLD FASHION STATEMENT Karamjeet Kaur and Raj Yadav were adjudged best athletes during athletics meet of Doraha college. P3 How Aishwarya Rai, Sushmita Sen, Isha Koppikar & others are redefining power dressing. P4 » FORECAST MAINLY CLEAR SKY MAX 28°C | MIN 15°C YESTERDAY MAX 27°C | MIN 14°C BAKING SOME LOVE ON SHIMLA’S MALL ROAD SUNSET FRIDAY 6.20 PM National Bakers located on Mall Road in Shimla offers delicious cakes, burgers, patties & cookies. P4 » SUNRISE SATURDAY 6:50 AM » FRIDAY | 27 FEBRUARY 2026 | LUDHIANA Mahesh Sharma Ludhiana, February 26 The Ludhiana police have initiated a probe into two recent incidents of extortion calls made to two persons. In one of the cases, a call was received by singer Parmish Verma’s manager Harvinder Singh Hardy of Bhai Randhir Singh Nagar, here. The caller allegedly demanded a payment of Rs 10 crore. An FIR has been registered against unidentified persons at the Sarabha Nagar police station on Wednesday. Hardy alleged that he had been receiving WhatsApp calls from foreign numbers since February 14. Callers identified themselves as members of the Lawrence Bishnoi gang and threatened Callers identify themselves as Lawrence Bishnoi gang members, threaten them of dire consequences him of dire consequences if the money was not paid. In another case, a citybased trader and BJP activist allegedly received extortion calls by a member of the Lawrence Bishnoi gang last week. An FIR was registered at the Model Town police station against unidentified persons on Wednesday. It stated that the trader and BJP activist Gurbir Singh Garcha had received an extortion call through a recorded voice message demanding Rs 5 crore. The caller claimed to be Goldy Brar (Satinderjit Singh), a fugitive Indian gangster, the FIR stated. The complainant received repeated calls and finally received an ultimatum on February 22, for ignoring the earlier calls. “You are ignoring our call but how will you ignore the bullet,” stated the final message. Garcha informed the police that he had approached senior functionaries earlier for getting security and a case was pending in the Punjab and High Court regarding demands raised for security Drug smuggler’s properties worth ~1.27 crore attached Nikhil Bhardwaj Tribune News Service Ludhaina, February 26 Adopting a zero tolerance policy against drug smugglers under the ongoing campaign ‘ Yudh Nashian Virudh’, the Khanna police have attached properties worth Rs 1.27 crore of a drug smuggler. These include a property and an SUV bought in the name of his brother-in-law and the latter’s wife, which had also been attached as the same was bought by the suspect in their names. The suspect has already been facing three FIRs of drug smuggling registered against him in the past. DSP Samrala, Tarlochan , Singh, along with the police team put up notices outside the attached properties. SSP , Khanna, Darpan Ahluwalia, said the smuggler whose property was attached was identified as Jasdev Singh of Machhiwara while his brother-in-law Jagroop Singh (wife’s brother), and Jagroop’s wife Sukhraj Kaur, are residents of Chak Gujjran Batala. She said after recovery of 21.90 gm of heroin from Jasdev, a case was filed under the NDPS Act on August 14, 2025. Following the arrest, the SHO, Machhiwara police station, who has conducted the probe into the illegally acquired properties of the suspect, has passed an order to attach the properties on January 28. The properties were seized/attached and it had been ordered that the same would not be transferred/sold/purchased or dealt with, unless permission was received either from the police or the competent authority, the SSP said. Dr Ahluwalia said Jasdev owned a house worth Rs 64.82 lakh in Machhiwara and he also bought a land in the name of Sukhraj worth Rs 47.46 lakh and a Scorpio vehicle in the name of Jagroop worth Rs 15.38 lakh. The properties had been acquired by the suspect in his name and in the name of his associates out of illegal income earned through drug trafficking. The SSP passed on a message to smugglers that once they were caught, the police would attach every property or valuables bought by them or in the name of their relatives with the proceeds of drug money. Several cases of attaching such properties are already under process. from the police. Garcha owns a petrol pump and is also a real estate entrepreneur. ACP Guriqbal Singh said a coordinated probe had been initiated to establish the point of origin of the threat calls and WhatsApp messages. Goldy Brar is wanted for masterminding the murders of singer Sidhu Moosewala and Dera Sacha Sauda follower Pardeep Singh, besides giving threats to actor Salman Khan. Goldy was also on Canada’s top 25 most-wanted list. Besides traditional law enforcement methods, specialised digital tools, forensic and cyber techniques are being used to establish the source of threat calls and ascertaining the identities of local criminals working for kingpins. Two injured as speeding car hits roadside vends Ludhiana, February 26 Two persons were injured when a speeding car going towards Jagraon collided with vends selling sugarcane juice and jujube near the Toll Plaza on the Ludhiana-Ferozepur national highway here on Thursday. The injured included a man standing at the vend, Nirmal of Raikot, and the occupant of the vehicle, Arun of Muzaffarnagar. The injured were taken to a multispecialty hospital in the city by the Ludhiana (rural) police with the help of passers-by. Though the police are yet to ascertain the exact reason behind the mishap, preliminary investigation and circumstantial evidence revealed that the car collided with vends along the highway after the driver lost control over the vehicle. — OC Two dairy owners booked for dumping wastewater into Buddha Dariya Manav Mander Mahesh Sharma Tribune News Service Ludhiana, February 26 The Municipal Corporation has rolled out a stringent action plan to tighten Ludhiana’s sanitation system, introducing daily monitoring, fines and multi-level inspections to ensure accountability among staff and cleanliness across public spaces. Will ensure accountability among staff; officials found guilty of lapses to face action A detailed schedule has been issued for checking attendance of sanitation workers, with Zonal Commissioners required to send daily reports accompanied by selfies to confirm the on-ground work. “Fines will be imposed on individuals found dumping garbage in the open while notices will be served on vendors and vacant plot owners responsible for littering. Unauthorised garbage, vehicles and encroachments will be removed from city roads. Attendance of sanitation staff in the field will be closely monitored and negligence will not be tolerated,” said a senior official. Street vendors and hawkers have also been warned to main- INDERJEET VERMA Singer Parmish Verma’s manager, trader get extortion calls; probe on Daily checks, fines & drives to improve city’s cleanliness Fines will be imposed on people found dumping trash in the open. tain cleanliness, with fines and notices to be served against those spreading garbage in public spaces. Zonal Commissioners have been instructed to conduct regular inspections in their areas to ensure compliance. Action has also been ordered against unauthorised vehicles parked on roads and public places. Tehsildar-level nodal officers will be responsible for removing such vehicles during special drives. To ensure the presence of sanitation staff in the field, the corporation has introduced a multi-level monitoring and attendance system. A high-level review team comprising the Mayor, Commissioner, Additional Commissioner, Joint Commissioner, Zonal Commissioners, and sanitation inspectors will oversee compliance. Officials found guilty of lapses will face strict disciplinary action. The former MC Commissioner, Aaditya Dachalwal, had started night patrolling during which over 100 challans (fines) were issued across the city against open garbage dumping and waste burning. “We often see garbage piling up despite workers being on duty. If attendance is monitored strictly, it will make a difference,” said Ramesh Kumar, a resident of Model Town. “We are ready to cooperate but the MC should also provide proper dustbins near markets. Fines alone won’t solve the problem,” said Sunita Devi, a fruit seller. “Cleanliness drives are welcome but they must be consistent. One-time action won’t change habits,” noted Simran Kaur, a college student. Ludhiana, February 26 The administration has again tightened noose around dairy owners who have been allegedly polluting the Buddha Dariya in the Tajpur and Bhamian Kalan areas of the city. While the authorities have initiated a process for prosecution of several dairy owners, the Jamalpur police have booked two dairy owners, identified as Sat Pal and Micky, owners of two plots at Tajpur and Bhamian Kalan Dairy Complexes. The case was registered on the statement of Manjit Singh, Executive Engineer, Ludhiana Drainage- –cummining and Geology Division Water Resources Department, Punjab, after the suspects cared two hoots about instructions of various teams of officials regarding dumping of wastewater from their dairies into the Buddha Dariya from time to time. Perusal of records at the Jamalpur police station revealed that police personnel, led by investigating officer Karanjit Singh, had initiated a process to take further action against the suspects after verifying the allegations against them. Turn your skills into a powerful portfolio - master real projects through hands-on modules! Introduction to AI & AI Tools AI Creativity & Presentations Workshop Building with AI: Websites, Games & Apps AI Avatars & Chatbot Development From Idea to Business Plan (Launch Your First AI Project) Recap & Finale Registrations Open Now Course Begins: 04.04.2026 MASTER AI- SHAPE THE FUTURE VC Dr Satbir Singh Gosal and other dignitaries during the flower show; and (below) a family admires flowers at the PAU. HIMANSHU MAHAJAN Two-day flower show kicks off at PAU Tribune News Service Ludhiana, February 26 The two-day annual flower show at Punjab Agricultural University (PAU) unfolded like a living canvas where nature painted its brilliance in every hue imaginable. Beds of marigolds glowed like drops of sunshine, roses blushed in shades of crimson and pink while delicate orchids and lilies lent elegance to the scene. Garden paths seemed to ripple with yellow, purple, red and white blossoms swaying gently in the breeze creating a symphony of fragrance and beau- ty. Families, students and visitors paused to admire the artistry of blooms that celebrated both science and nature’s timeless charm. Flower growers and lovers flocked to the show, exhibiting multi-hued varieties of flowers in varied designs and dimensions. Organised in collaboration with the Estate Organisation, the show was dedicated to the versatile personality, Dr MS Randhawa, who played an institutional role in the promotion of landscaping and penned several books on ornamental trees, shrubs and gardens. Inaugurating the show, Dr Satbir Singh Gosal, ViceChancellor, PAU, who was the chief guest, applauded the Department of Floriculture and Landscaping for keeping the momentum high among flower cultivators continued on page 2 c m y b A comprehensive AI Certification Course : Designed exclusively for students from Class 6 to 12 Foundations of Artificial Intelligence Data, Automation & Real-World Use Cases AI Education by Certified & Experienced Faculty No coding experience required SCAN TO REGISTER While others wait, smart students are already building apps, games & tools. Equip yourself with the #1 skill of the 21st century! Inaugural Offer: ₹ 9,999 [Full Fees: ₹ 15 000] 15,000] Register Online at learning.tribuneindia.com For more information learnaiwithtribune@tribunemail.com