05082026-CT-01.qxd 8/5/2026 12:39 AM Page 1 c m y b Chandigarh tribune WATERLOGGING, SLUSH CONTINUE TO PLAGUE SECTOR 26 MANDI SWIMMERS FACE UNCERTAINTY AMID NO STATE MEETS KABUL TO COPENHAGEN, VIA BOLLYWOOD The city’s main vegetable and grain market continues to struggle with insanitation and waterlogging. P3 Lack of a proper setup for conducting meets has forced many swimmers to shift from Chandigarh. P3 How Bollywood inspired an Afghan refugee to become celebrated ambassador of Indian cuisine. P4 » » GENERALLY CLOUDY MAX 32°C | MIN 24°C YESTERDAY MAX 31.3°C | MIN 23.7°C SUNSET WEDNESDAY 7.14 PM SUNRISE THURSDAY 5.44 AM » WEDNESDAY | 5 AUGUST 2026 | CHANDIGARH FORECAST /THETRIBUNECHD FACEBOOK/CHANDIGARHTRIBUNE Maid strangles elderly woman over theft accusation in Panchkula Tribune News Service A tree lies uprooted near the Sector 19-27 traffic light point in Chandigarh on Tuesday, disrupting traffic movement. TRIBUNE PHOTO: PARDEEP TEWARI Heavy rain floods UT again, exposes drainage gaps Tribune News Service Chandigarh, August 4 Medium to heavy rain lashed the city on Tuesday. Showers began around 6 am after Monday evening’s spell and continued intermittently till afternoon. The rain brought relief from hot and humid conditions but once again exposed shortcomings in the city’s storm-water drainage system as several roads and low-lying areas were inundated. The city received 16.5 mm rainfall between 8.30 am and 5.30 pm, while the IAF airport AIR QUALITY INDEX CHANDIGARH 35 PANCHKULA 66 401-500 301-400 201-300 101-200 51-100 0-50 SEVERE VERY POOR POOR MODERATE SATISFACTORY GOOD WHAT’S ON APNI MANDI Chandigarh: Sectors 15, 40, 46 Please send information about events in tricity at: whatson@tribunemail.com POWER SHUTDOWN CHANDIGARH 10 am to 2 pm: Parts of Burail village Cop slaps hotel receptionists, sent to Police Lines Zirakpur, August 4 Baltana police post in-charge Harinder Singh has been sent to the Police Lines and an inquiry ordered against him for allegedly slapping and assaulting two female hotel receptionists while investigating a rioting case. The incident was captured on CCTV on July 29. Harinder had reportedly visited the hotel as part of an investigation after an FIR was registered against hotel staff for allegedly assaulting a man and fracturing both his legs earlier that day. Zirakpur Assistant Superintendent of Police (ASP) Ghazalpreet Kaur said a new police post in-charge would be appointed soon. — TNS observatory recorded 13 mm during the same period. Earlier, the city had received 4 mm rainfall and the airport observatory 29 mm during the past 24 hours ending 8.30 am. The fresh spell again led to waterlogging at several lowlying areas, roads, streets, markets, parking lots, rotaries and busy junctions, disrupting traffic during peak school and office hours. School buses and office-goers were caught in long traffic snarls as vehicles crawled through inundated stretches. Reports of trees being uprooted and portions of roads caving in were also received from different parts of the city. The recurring flooding highlighted gaps in the drainage, with water accumulating rapidly at several vulnerable locations despite repeated claims of pre-monsoon desilting of road gullies and their maintenance. Continuous cloud cover and rain brought a sharp fall in temperatures. Chandigarh recorded a maximum temperature of 31.3°C, 3.4 degrees lower than the previous day and 2.1 degrees below normal. The minimum temperature dropped by 2.5 degrees to 23.7°C, settling 3 degrees below normal. It was the lowest minimum temperature recorded in Punjab and Haryana, according to the IMD bulletin. Relative humidity ranged between 74% and 93%. The IMD has forecast another wet spell, retaining a yellow alert for Wednesday and Thursday with fairly widespread rainfall and heavy rain at isolated places. Rainfall activity is expected to reduce to scattered showers on Friday and Saturday and weaken further to isolat- ed showers from Sunday onwards. Maximum temperatures are likely to remain between 32°C and 33°C, while minimum temperatures are expected to hover around 24°C over the next five days. Despite the latest spell, Chandigarh’s monsoon remained below normal. The city recorded 383.2 mm of seasonal rainfall till 8.30 am on Tuesday, representing a 19% deficit. Following the day’s rain, the cumulative seasonal rainfall increased to 399.7 mm till 5.30 pm, though the city continued to remain in rainfall deficit. Panchkula, August 4 A 71-year-old woman was allegedly strangled to death by her domestic help, who had been working at the house for nearly two decades, following a heated confrontation over a theft at her Sector 21 residence here. The maid’s husband and son helped move the body to an adjoining terrace in a bid to destroy evidence, the police said. The deceased, Neera Mehta, wife of Captain Manmohan Lal Mehta (retd), was found dead late Saturday night, wrapped in a bedsheet and covered with a wooden photo frame on the roof of House No. 484, Sector 21 — a house next to the residence of domestic help, Sunita. The accused lives in House No. 483, barely a few houses away from the victim’s home (House No. 366). According to the police, the couple was living alone. Their two sons are settled abroad. Sunita had been working with the family for nearly 20 years. The police said Neera Mehta discovered on Saturday morning that gold jewellery weighing 4-5 tolas was missing from her cupboard and immediately Arrested along with husband, son; body found hidden in house next to accused’s residence Panchkula police officials address a press conference regarding the arrest of accused in the Neera Mehta (inset) murder case on Tuesday. TRIBUNE PHOTO: RAVI KUMAR suspected Sunita, who had been absent from work for two days. She left home around 11:30 am to confront the domestic help at her residence. The confrontation reportedly turned violent, with the two women getting into an argument that escalated into abuse and a physical scuffle. Sunita allegedly strangled Mehta to death during the scuffle. Captain Mehta told police that when his wife didn’t return home even by 5:30 pm, he made repeated calls to her, none of which were answered. He then approached the Sector 21 police post, following continued on page 2 High Court sets Aug 6 Chandigarh has more IAS, IPSofficers ~645-CRORE IDFC FIRST BANK SCAM than sanctioned strength: Centre Undertrial Wadhwa deadline for holistic MP Manish Tewari calls UT ‘a quintessential bureaucratic nabbed from hotel master plan framework parking lot’; Centre rules out any review of cadre strength Tribune News Service Saurabh Malik Tribune News Service Chandigarh, August 4 The Punjab and Haryana High Court has directed the consultant engaged for the court’s holistic development and expansion plan to submit a “Holistic Master Plan Framework” by August 6. The Bench made it clear that the document would thereafter be considered by the Chandigarh Heritage Conservation Committee (CHCC) and the UT Administration before reporting back the progress to the court on the next date of hearing. Recording compliance with its earlier directions, the Bench of Acting Chief Justice Ashwani Kumar Mishra and Justice Rohit Kapoor noted that the Executive Engineer, Capital Project Division No. 6, Chandigarh, had sent a communication dated July 30 to consultant M/s Design Associates Inc. The court reproduced the consultant’s response, stating that heritage impact assessment consultant, DRONAH, has been associated for the “required work”. The proposed framework, according to the consultant, would define the broad contours of the comprehensive planning exercise. The Bench quoted the consultant’s communication as saying: “The holistic master plan framework will outline the process to be followed in the site management plan and will broadly define the structure, policy framework and phased action plan for the Holistic Master Plan of Chandigarh Capitol Complex — The Indian Component of the Serial Transnational Property — ‘The Architectural Work of Le Corbusier, an Outstanding Contribution to the Modern Movement’.” The matter has been adjourned to August 11. Chandigarh, August 4 Chandigarh is currently functioning with more IAS and IPS officers than its sanctioned strength, the Centre has admitted in Parliament. The disclosure has reignited the debate over the Union Territory’s bloated administrative structure. In a written reply to an unstarred question by Chandigarh MP Manish Tewari in the Lok Sabha today, Union Minister of State for Home Affairs Nityanand Rai stated that against a sanctioned strength of 11 IAS and seven IPS posts, the UT currently has 12 IAS and nine IPS officers. Of these, five IAS and two IPS officers are on deputation from the Punjab and Haryana cadres. Three IAS officers and one IPS officer are on deputation from Punjab, while two IAS officers and one IPS officer are from Haryana, the minister said. Responding to a specific query on the rationale for maintaining such a large com- OFFICERS POSTED IN UT SERVICE IAS IPS SANCTIONED POSTED ON DEPUTATION 11 7 12 9 5 (3 Punjab, 2 Haryana) 2 (1 Punjab, 1 Haryana) plement of senior officers in a city that spans barely 114 sq km, the minister sidestepped the comparison sought by Tewari with neighbouring Mohali and Panchkula. He said officer strength was “determined based on functional requirements” and was “a dynamic process.” On whether the government proposed to review or rationalise the bureaucratic framework, the reply was unambiguous: “At present, no proposal for review or rationalisation of the cadre strength and composition of the AGMUT cadre, including the Union Territory of Chandigarh, is under consideration in the Ministry of Home Affairs.” Reacting to the reply, Tewari said the numbers vindicated what he described as the core dysfunction of Chandigarh Administration. “This question is the kernel of all the problems in Chandigarh. It is over-governed and underserved — a quintessential bureaucratic parking lot,” he said. He pointed out that Mohali and Panchkula districts, each four to five times the geographical size of Chandigarh, are administered by a single Deputy Commissioner and a single Senior Superintendent of Police respectively. “There are 12 IAS and 9 IPS officers posted in Chandigarh, more than even the sanctioned strength, for a 14x14 sq km city,” he said, adding that the Governor of Punjab doubles as the UT’s executive administrator. “No wonder nothing ever gets done,” Tewari said. UTtohikemonthlyallowanceforgallantryawardees by 50% Vijay Mohan Tribune News Service Chandigarh, August 4 The Zila Sainik Board (ZRB) has recommended a 50 per cent increase in the monthly allowance paid by the UT Administration to Armed Forces gallantry and distinguished service award winners from the city. The allowance is applicable to personnel who were conferred gallantry awards before 2009. Subsequently, gallantry award recipients are entitled to a onetime lump sum payment. At present, a Param Vir Chakra recipient is entitled to Rs 41,580 per month, while Maha Vir Chakra and Vir Chakra awardees get Rs 31,600 per month and Rs 18,295 per month, respectively. The monthly allowances were last revised in 2013, sources said. Recipients of the Ashok Chakra, Kirti Chakra and Shaurya Chakra, the peacetime equivalents of the aforementioned awards, are also entitled to monthly payments, which are a little lower. Similarly, other recipients of awards for distinguished service are also granted monthly payments. These are also being increased. For post-2009 recipients, a Param Vir Chakra awardee is entitled to a lump sum payment of Rs 2 crore, Maha Vir Chakra Rs 1 crore and Vir Chakra Rs 50 lakh. These rates were last revised in 2022 and brought on a par with the policies of the Punjab and Haryana Governments. At present, there are around 100 pre-2009 beneficiaries in Chandigarh, with Kirti Chakra being the highest award. Though recipients of higher awards like the Maha Vir Chakra have resided in Chandigarh, some of them were granted benefits by the Punjab Government owing to their domicile. State governments have their own policies on giving benefits to gallantry c m y b awardees from their respective state as a mark of respect. At a meeting held under the chairmanship of Nishant Kumar Yadav, Deputy Commissioner-cum-president of the ZRB, it was also proposed to hike one-time payment for the Sena Medal from Rs 14 lakh to Rs 21 lakh, bringing it on a par with Haryana. Further, grant of one-time financial assistance of Rs 1 lakh out of the Armed Forces Flag Day Fund to the next of kin of defence personnel, who die in harness and are declared as “Physical Casualty (Fatal)”, and an increase in the Rashtriya Indian Military College Schol- arship from Rs 33,000 to Rs 50,000 per cadet per annum has also been mooted. Briefing the meeting, Col HS Ghuman (retd), secretary of the ZRB, said the UT Administration had approved 20 per cent horizontal reservation for ex-Agniveers of Chandigarh domicile in direct recruitment posts of constable in the Chandigarh Police, jail warden in the Prison Department and forest guard in the Forest and Wildlife Department. He added that a sum of Rs 2.07 crore had been sanctioned for the repair and renovation of the Sainik Rest House, Chandigarh. with two UT cops Tribune News Service Chandigarh, August 4 Undertrial prisoner and tainted real estate businessman Vikram Wadhwa, accused in the alleged Rs 645-crore IDFC First Bank embezzlement case involving government officials, was nabbed from a hotel in Sector 17 on Tuesday along with two Chandigarh Police personnel who allegedly facilitated his stay there. The police claimed Wadhwa was planning to escape with the help of his two sons. Wadhwa, alleged to be a major beneficiary of the scam proceeds, had reportedly been taken out of jail on the pretext of undergoing a medical examination. Acting on a tip-off, a Chandigarh Police team raided the hotel and arrested Wadhwa, his two sons and two police personnel present at the scene. “On the basis of secret information, a case under Sections 7 of the Prevention of Corruption Act and 199, 261, 262, 62 and 61(2) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) has been registered against SI Jagmehar Singh, ASI Surender, Karan Wad- Was planning to escape with help of his sons hwa, Kunal Wadhwa (sons of Wadhwa) and undertrial prisoner Vikram Wadhwa,” a police statement said. The two police personnel had been deputed from the Police Lines, Sector 26, to escort Wadhwa from Model Jail, Burail, to the Government Multi-Speciality Hospital, Sector 16, for a medical check-up. However, after the examination, they allegedly failed to return him to the jail. According to the police, Wadhwa and his two sons had hatched a conspiracy to facilitate his escape from lawful custody. The police alleged that the two officers were induced with undue favour or reward to take Wadhwa to Hotel City Heart instead of continued on page 2 26-year-old man beaten to death Mohali, August 4 A 26-year-old man was allegedly beaten to death in Khedi village of Dera Bassi on August 2. The police have arrested the accused. According to the police, the victim, identified as Chandra Bhushan Giri, alias Subhash, a resident of Sundran village, was allegedly assaulted on the rooftop of a house in Khedi village. SHO Sumit Mor said the complainant, Vikas Gupta, a resident of Khedi village, told the police thatheheardaloudthudfromthe roof of an adjoining room. When he went upstairs, he allegedly found Chandra Bhushan Giri lying unconscious while Shiv Pratap was kicking him in the head. The injured man was rushed to the Sub-Divisional Hospital, where doctors declared him dead. — TNS