ENVIRONMENT · LUDHIANA–JAGRAON CORRIDOR
Source: The Tribune (Ludhiana edition), published August 19, 2026.
A beautification drive along Jagraon Bridge in Ludhiana — the very artery that links the city to Jagraon and the wider Malwa belt — has run into trouble just days after it began. Saplings planted on the bridge's road dividers under a corporate social responsibility (CSR) tie-up with the firm Palm Heights have dried up within three days of being put in the ground, according to a report published by The Tribune on August 19.
The plantation was part of a wider agreement signed in January that also covers graffiti art, the upkeep of the national flag at the bridge, and the maintenance of statues of Bhagat Singh, Rajguru and Sukhdev — figures revered across Punjab. Work on the ground, however, began only in recent days, nearly seven months after the memorandum was signed, and the Municipal Corporation's own Horticulture Department says it was not looped in until two days after planting had already started. A worker on site offered that the saplings would "initially look dry and grow well later," but with the zonal commissioner unreachable for comment, residents and commuters passing through the bridge — a route used daily by Sangat travelling between Ludhiana's gurdwaras and the villages around Jagraon — are left wondering who is accountable for the upkeep of a shared civic space.
For a community that prizes seva, or selfless service, the episode is a reminder that goodwill gestures need follow-through to matter. Local voices in Jagraon have long pushed for greener, better-maintained approach roads into the city; this latest lapse, however small, adds to a running conversation about whether beautification pledges around Ludhiana translate into lasting care on the ground.
