{
  "id": 17307936,
  "title": "SAD will establish ‘Build Punjab’ department, says Badal",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/10/30/sad-will-establish-build-punjab-department-says-badal",
  "topic": "world",
  "section": "World",
  "published": "2026-10-30T23:45:29.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "The Hindu",
    "slug": "the-hindu",
    "url": "https://www.thehindu.com/news/national/punjab/sad-will-establish-build-punjab-department-says-badal/article71645471.ece"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "Sukhbir Singh Badal, president of the Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD), announced on Friday that if the party wins the upcoming Assembly election in 2027, they would establish a new department called 'Build Punjab' to expedite clearances for builders. The party's government would aim to bring down power rates for the industrial sector to ₹5 per unit and allow industrialists to set up their own solar power plants, reducing their power bills to ₹1.50 per unit. Badal stated that the 'Build Punjab' department would issue all building permissions within a month. He also addressed concerns raised by traders about increased violence due to drug addiction, promising a law that would deny bail to drug offenders for ten years, leading to seizure of their properties. Badal urged the trade and industry to compare the SAD's past ten-year rule with the last ten years of Congress and the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) governments, urging voters to choose the SAD for peace and progress in Punjab.",
  "summary": "“We will allow industrialists to install their own solar power plants which would bring down their power rates to ₹1.50 per unit,” Sukhbir Singh Badal said",
  "key_points": [
    "SAD plans to create 'Build Punjab' department post-2027 election",
    "Department aims to reduce industrial power rates to ₹5/unit",
    "Build Punjab to expedite building permissions within a month"
  ],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}