13082026-LT-01.qxd 8/13/2026 1:03 AM Page 1 c m y b Ludhiana tribune MC PANEL INSPECTS KITCHLU NAGAR ROAD CAVE-IN SITE ANAND KUMAR LAUNCHES FREE LEARNING PLATFORM MEET HOLLYWOOD ACTORS WHO HAVE PLAYED SPIDER-MAN The O&M cell committee of the MC recommends FIR against cable firm, if found guilty during probe. P2 Anand Kumar, whose life inspired Hrithik Roshan-starrer Super 30, reinvents maths once again. P4 Spider-Man: Brand New Day has crossed a threshold no superhero film has managed before. P4 » » FORECAST PARTLY CLOUDY MAX 34°C | MIN 27°C YESTERDAY MAX 34°C | MIN 26°C SUNSET THURSDAY 7:06 PM SUNRISE FRIDAY 5:49 AM » THURSDAY | 13 AUGUST 2026 | LUDHIANA Dengue & malaria: Over 40 localities Councillor’s son among three attacked over road rage, 2 held identified as ‘high-risk’ zones in dist Nikhil Bhardwaj Tribune News Service 17 dengue, 47 malaria cases reported so far; no hotspots, says MC official Shivani Bhakoo Tribune News Service Ludhiana, August 12 Over 40 localities in both urban and rural areas of the district have been identified as the ‘high risk’ zones for both dengue and malaria diseases. This season, the Health Department has received 17 confirmed cases of dengue and 47 cases of malaria. At the same time, the health branch of the Municipal Corporation said there might be high-risk areas but there are no ‘hotspots’ for both vector-borne diseases so far in the district. Dr Vipal Malhotra of the MC Health Department said fogging was being done on a daily basis in vulnerable and other areas. “There are no hotspots as of now. An area is identified as a hotspot when five patients are reported from it,” he said. Dr Sheetal Narang from the Health Department said 17 cases of dengue and 47 cases Mosquito larvae in stagnant water on a road near the Dairy Complex in Ludhiana. ASHWANI DHIMAN of malaria had been reported till date. She added that teams were visiting areas, creating awareness and conducting inspections to check the breeding of mosquitoes. The high-risk areas The high-risk zones identified for dengue in urban areas include Shimlapuri, Urban Estate Chandigarh Road, New Chander Nagar, I-Day spirit New Sant Nagar in Haibowal, Basant Vihar, Kakowal Road and Rajguru Nagar. The zones identified for dengue in rural areas include Panjeta village, Sahnewal Khurd, Green Avenue, Raikot, Seh village, Ipolaha, Bahomajra, Basant Nagar in Khanna and Mansuran. The high-risk zones identified for malaria in urban areas include Urban Estate Dugri, Dashmesh Nagar, Field Ganj, Kidwai Nagar, Model Town, area near CMC, Subhash Nagar, Tajpur Road, Shivpuri, Chavanni Mohalla, Haibowal, Kot Mangal, Madhopuri, Sabzi Mandi, Transport Nagar and Sunet. The zones identified for malaria in rural areas remain Mangali Uchi, Daba, Kanech, Mundian Kalan, Giaspura, Kot Gangu Rai, Bhagour, Noorwala, Khasi Kalan and Sihala. Keeping in view the rainy season, the Health Department has intensified its special anti-dengue campaign across the district, which focuses on denguelarval surveillance, anti-larval activities and public awareness to prevent the spread of dengue. Man’s body found in Buddha Dariya Students take part in a rehersal for the Independence Day event at the PAU. ASHWANI DHIMAN Ludhiana, August 12 The body of an unidentified man was found in the Buddha Dariya here on Wednesday. As the news spread in the area, people gathered at the scene. A passer-by informed the police control room. Police and administration teams rushed to the scene. The police, with the help of local residents and divers, pulled out the body from the drain. Initial investigation revealed that the body was decomposed and it might have been lying in the water body for days. The identity of the deceased was yet to be established. The police completed legal proceedings and sent the body to the Civil Hospital mortuary for autopsy and identification. The police had been questioning the locals to get any clue about the victim. The body will be kept in the mortuary for the next 72 hours for identification. During this time, the police will review missing persons’ reports filed at police stations in the city and surrounding areas to identify the deceased. The police said if the victim was identified within 72 hours, statements of his family members would be recorded and further action will be taken in the matter. However, if identification was not done within the stipulated time, autopsy and other legal proceedings would be initiated as per rule. A police official said the autopsy would confirm the cause of victim’s death. — TNS Ludhiana, August 12 Three persons, including the son of a councillor, were attacked by another group on a road here. A CCTV footage of the incident also surfaced, showing a heated argument between both parties, followed by the scuffle. The police arrested two assailants in the case. The suspects who attacked the three victims were identified as Gurjit Singh and Ganga Singh, both residents of Bhaini Sahib. Two unidentified persons were at large. A CCTV camera also captured the attack. The complainant, Pankaj Govind, a resident of Shankar Colony, told the police that he owns a finance business. On August 11, he was going towards Metro Road from the Jamalpur side on a motorcycle. When he reached near the Vishwanath temple, a person sitting on a front seat in the Nissan car (bearing registration number PB31Q-4600) opened the door of the vehicle, which hit his motorcycle Minor girl ‘abducted’ from Umedpur village Lovleen Bains A CCTV grab of the victims being attacked by suspects in Ludhiana. and he fell on the road. “When I got up and asked car occupants, they held me responsible for the mishap and beat me up with the intention of killing me. The miscreants even thrashed my acquaintance Karan Nanchahal and Pinku Sharma, who were trying to save me. The miscreants also threatened to kill me and snatched Rs 7,000 from my pocket,” the complainant said. After conducting an investigation on his own, they got to know the names of the culprits, Gurjit Singh and Ganga Singh. Karan Nanchahal is the son City resident booked for violating woman Tribune News Service Sahnewal, August 12 A minor has been reportedly kidnapped from Umedpur village. A case has been registered under the BNS at the Sahnewal police station on Tuesday. According to the father of the victim, Ilham, a resident of Umedpur, his 14-year-old daughter was forcibly taken away by Dharma, his wife Sonia, Gori, Gurpreet, Vicky and contractor Bhawar Singh on June 26. The complainant further alleged that during the incident, the suspects also took away gold jewellery and cash from his house. “Ever since, we have been searching for our daughter at every place but to no avail,” the father said. Investigating officer in the case Avtar Singh said the probe was in progress. of a sitting councillor and his mother Anita Nanchahal is a councillor from Ward 21. Karan said he received a call from his friend Pankaj on Tuesday afternoon. He told him that his bike had collided with the door of a car and a dispute was underway. He then went to the spot with another friend to resolve the matter. During a conversation, the other group escalated the dispute, abused him and began assaulting them. Investigating officer ASI Gurmukh Singh said during the probe, two suspects were arrested and their vehicle was seized. Ludhiana, August 12 A case of alleged rape after administering an intoxicating substance to a woman has come to light. The victim also accused the man of blackmailing her by threatening to circulate her video. The Dehlon police on Tuesday registered a case against Kamaljeet Singh, alias Raju, a resident of Kot Mangal Singh. In her complaint to the police, the woman stated that the suspect used to visit their family and gradually gained her trust. In November 2024, he allegedly sent her husband, father-in-law and mother-in-law somewhere on the pretext of showing them a new property. The woman alleged that when they left the place, the man allegedly brought a cold drink allegedly laced with some intoxicating substance and served to her. Following which, she became unconscious and the suspect allegedly raped her. The complainant alleged that the suspect recorded the act on his mobile phone. Later, he began blackmailing her by threatening to make the video viral. The suspect raped her on several occasions. She accused him of repeatedly threatening to make the video viral, defame the victim’s family and kill her. Distressed by the continuous threats, she approached the police and lodged a complaint. HC terms summons to M’kotla complainant Noorwala Road stretch remains dug ‘serious issue’; Mohali top cop apologises up two months after pipeline work Court cautions authorities to be more vigilant and diligent in future Saurabh Malik Tribune News Service Chandigarh, August 12 The Mohali Superintendent of Police (Investigation) has tendered an unconditional apology before the Punjab and Haryana High Court for issuing summons to a complainant living in Malerkotla against a person living in Ludhiana. Taking a note of the developments, Justice Alok Jain disposed of the petition after cautioning the authorities to be in future “more vigilant and diligent in such like proceedings”. The word of caution came after Justice Jain termed the circumstances surrounding the summons a serious issue. “The present petition raises a serious issue as to how Superintendent of Police (Investigation), SAS Nagar (Mohali), has issued a notice to the petitioner, who is a complainant and living in Malerkotla, and the complaint has been filed against one person who is living in Ludhiana,” the Bench observed. The matter was placed before Justice Jain’s Bench after the petitioner sought protection of his life and liberty and against alleged false implication in a criminal case. He also challenged the summons issued by the Mohali police on a complaint given by the Ludhiana resident. Appearing before the Bench on the petitioner’s behalf, counsel Gaurav Vir Singh Behl submitted that matter dated November 14, 2024, under Section 138 of the Negotiable Instruments Act was already under consideration before the trial court. But the petitioner was being summoned by the police “without any jurisdiction” and “without reason”, giving rise to strong apprehension of false implication at the instance of the Ludhiana resident and another respondent. Behl added that the petitioner had not even been supplied a copy of the complaint filed by the respondents. Behl added the petitioner then had then approached the DGP and IG regarding the alleged arbitrary summons but no action was taken by the authorities concerned. The counsel for the Ludhiana resident and the other respondent submitted that they had earlier filed a direction petition seeking a proper investigation into the complaint given by the complainant-petitioner. The petition was later dismissed as withdrawn. They subsequently approached the DGP concerned and he “initiated the process”. At the onset, SP (Investigation) Saurav Jindal joined the proceedings through videoconferencing and tendered the apology for issuance of the summons dated June 17. It was also submitted before the court that an FIR had already been lodged and the petitioner was “neither the accused nor named” in it. He further submitted that the petitioner would not be harassed or called in the dispute with persons, against whom he was seeking an appropriate remedy before the competent court. Before parting with the order, Justice Jain asserted: “In view of apology tendered by the SP (Investigation), the present petition is disposed of and in future, the authorities will be more vigilant and diligent in such like proceedings.” c m y b questioned why the road was not restored before the monsoon despite the authorities being aware of the approaching rainy season. Sukhpreet Singh Tribune News Service Ludhiana, August 12 A major stretch of Noorwala Road has been left in a damaged condition for nearly two months after being dug up for laying pipes under the 24x7 canal water supply and sewerage project, with rain now worsening the situation and exposing newly laid pipelines at several places. The road was excavated around four to five months ago for laying a pipeline under the World Bank-funded water supply project. Sewerage pipes were also laid along the stretch. Though pipeline work has reportedly been completed for nearly a kilometre, the road has not been properly restored. With the monsoon adding to the woes, portions of the road have started sinking and potholes have appeared. At some locations, pipes laid underneath are now visible Previous road cave-ins raise concern A stretch of Noorwala Road in bad shape. ASHWANI DHIMAN from the damaged road surface, raising concerns among commuters and residents. The residents said the responsibility for restoring the road after completion of the pipeline work lies with the agency executing the project. Despite repeated requests, the restoration work had not been taken up. Shopkeepers and residents said they had also submitted complaints to the MC Commis- sioner, seeking immediate repair of the road but to no avail. The condition has become particularly difficult for motorists and pedestrians during rain. Water collects in uneven portions of the road, making it difficult to judge potholes and damaged patches. Residents fear that a twowheeler rider or pedestrian could suffer serious injuries if the road caves in further. Vivek Kumar, a resident, The situation has also brought back concerns over repeated road cave-ins in the city. Residents pointed towards the recent road collapse near Hotel On and the damaged stretch near Kitchlu Nagar and said the civic authorities should inspect such locations technically rather than merely carrying out temporary repairs. They said a proper assessment of the road surface and underground pipelines was necessary to avert any untoward incident. They have urged the MC and the agency concerned to inspect the entire Noorwala Road stretch, restore the damaged portions and ensure that the road was made safe for traffic at the earliest.