Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Singh Mann on Monday renewed his pledge to serve the state with renewed vigor, passion, dedication and commitment while following the footsteps of Dashmesh Pitaah Sri Guru Gobind Singh.

The Chief Minister, who paid obeisance at Gurudwara Bhatha Sahib, greeted people on the sacred occasion of Parkash Purb of Tenth Sikh Master Sri Guru Gobind Singh ji. He said that the great Sikh guru had taught us to fight against tyranny, injustice and oppression. Bhagwant Singh Mann said that on this sacred day all of us must should take pledge to discharge our duty with utmost sincerity, dedication and commitment to serve the people.

Amritsar Commissionerate Police have busted a cross-border drug and weapon smuggling cartel with the arrest of 12 people, including kingpin Manjeet Singh, said Director General of Police (DGP) Punjab, Gaurav Yadav, here on Friday.

The other 11 arrested accused have been identified as Aniket Verma, Jobanpreet Singh, Babli, Harpreet Singh, Amritpal Singh, Reshma, Harshpreet Singh, Mandeep Singh, Gurpreet Singh, Lovepreet Singh and Akashdeep Singh.

Police teams have recovered 2.19 kg heroin, three sophisticated pistols, including two automatic ones, and Rs 2.60 lakh drug money from their possession.

DGP Yadav said that accused Manjeet, who is a key player, was in direct contact with Pakistan-based smugglers and handlers and was receiving consignments of drugs and weapons from across the border.

The probe revealed that consignments were being dropped at Ramdas and Ajnala border sectors with the help of drones, he added.

The DGP said further investigations are on to establish forward and backward linkages in this case.

The river-interlinking initiative proposed by the Union government warrants comprehensive review and needs to be thoroughly examined, said Punjab Assembly Speaker Kultar Singh Sandhwan on Friday, while characterising this initiative as an unprecedented intervention in natural systems.

He cautioned that such projects could adversely impact agricultural productivity and disrupt monsoon patterns.

In an official statement here, Sandhwan said Prime Minister Narendra Modi recently inaugurated the Ken-Betwa River Interlinking Project in Madhya Pradesh.

"Although the Union government said the objective of redistributing water resources to drought-prone regions," the Speaker said, adding that scientific research indicates such interventions could significantly alter natural hydrological systems.

The Speaker expressed concerns that large-scale hydrological modifications could disrupt established monsoon patterns, potentially endangering agricultural sustainability and affecting multiple sectors nationwide.

A road accident took place in Mohali on Tuesday. Here an overspeed Mercedes car hit two people. Both were injured due to the car collision. After this, the uncontrolled car hit the iron grill on the roadside and overturned. As soon as the information about the accident was received, the police team reached the spot and admitted both the injured to the hospital. At the same time, the accused car driver has been taken into custody. It is being told that the condition of one of the injured remains critical. He has been referred to PGI Chandigarh

To increase green cover and protect the wildlife in Punjab, the state Forest and Wildlife Preservation Department has undertaken several initiatives this year, Forest and Wildlife Preservation Minister Lal Chand Kataruchak said on Tuesday.

This involved the plantation of 2.84 lakh saplings under various schemes such as the State Authority CAMPA and Greening Punjab Mission and furthermore, 3153.33 hectares have been brought under forests, an official statement said on Tuesday.

Kataruchak said the Tree Preservation Policy for Non-Forest Government and Public Lands 2024 was okayed by the Cabinet in order to save the trees in non-forest and government lands from illegal felling, besides saving the environment from pollution and promoting afforestation.

In a grand tribute to the legendary singer Mohamad Rafi Saheb, the Yaadgar-e-Rafi Society organized the Rafi Memorial Nite-2024 to mark his 100th birth anniversary. The event featured an enchanting evening of soulful melodies, with renditions of iconic songs sung by Rafi.The event was graced by Harbhajan Singh ETO, cabinet minister Punjab chief guest and distinguished guests of honor, Dr. Zora Singh, Chancellor of Desh Bhagat University and Dr. Tajinder Kaur, Pro-Chancellor, who paid homage to the legendary artist.