The Story of Chandigarh’s ‘Broom Warrior’: Three Decades after retiring from the IPS, Padma Shri awardee Inderjeet Singh Sidhu continues to sweep the streets at the age of 88

IN JULY 2025,  a retired IPS officer caught the attention of the internet after a video of him cleaning the streets in Chandigarh went viral. A year later on June 23, 2026, the 88-year-old Inderjit Singh Sidhu received Padma Shri, one of the highest civilian honors in India, by the President Droupadi Murmu for his selfless public service. 

However, Sidhu’s motivation wasn’t to chase recognition or awards. That is why three decades after his retirement, he continues to wake up at 5 a.m., leaves his home without food or water and heads out with a broom and a bag to pick up litter from the streets. Here’s the story of the man who has earned the title of Chandigarh’s ‘Broom Warrior.’

From childhood to post-retirement: Sidhu’s unwavering passion for cleanliness

Born in 1938, Sidhu’s habit of cleanliness stems from his childhood and college days. He grew up in a military family in Gagarpur village of Punjab’s Sangrur district. Thus, discipline and responsibility became a part of his life from an early age. But it was his college professor who left an indelible impression in his formative years. 

While studying at Government Ranbir college in Sangrur, Sidhu’s economics professor, Munshi Ram Verma, would take students to parks and encourage them to clear litter. In an interview with ThePrint, the ex-IPS officer said, “The habit stayed with me through my years in the police force.”

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Following his retirement in 1966, Sidhu settled in Chandigarh and was disturbed by the condition of the city's parks and public spaces. When writing handwritten letters to authorities, including the governor of Chandigarh, didn’t yield any response, Sidhu decided to take the initiative himself.

Initially, during his morning walks, Sidhu would go out and clear the streets in whatever way he can. This gradually became a daily routine that he still continues in 2026. He gradually started going out with more equipment like garbage bags and a broom to clean roads, parks and other public areas. He picks up everything from plastic bottles, food wrappers and fallen branches, and disposes it somewhere Municipal workers would pick it up. 

The accident that almost halted Sidhu

While speaking to ThePrint, Sidhu’s family revealed that he often gets bruised and injured while picking up the litter at this age. In March 2026, while visiting his daughter in Mohali, the octogenarian was hit by a car during his cleaning strolls on a busy road after dark. The accident injured both of his legs, leaving one in a plaster cast.

Following the incident, his son Amoldeep Sidhu, who has been running a business in the United States, returned to look after Inderjeet and even tried to stop his morning walks. Failing to completely halt him, Amoldeep restricted his father, who used to walk for more than 2 km every day, to only cover the 200-meter radius around their home. 

How Ex-IPS officer Inderjeet Singh Sidhu earned the Padma Shri in 2026

Inderjit Singh Sidhu joined the Punjab Police as an inspector in 1963. According to his interview with ThePrint, he remembered that around 6,000 candidates competed for just four vacancies, including two inspector posts. 

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While in the force, he served in Punjab, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, New Delhi and Kolkata during his police career. His early postings were at Pangi valley near the China border, followed by a posting at Kolkata, where he served with anti-Naxalite forces in 1966-67. He also served in the Samba sector during the 1971 India-Pakistan war.

In 1981, he was promoted to the Indian Police Service (IPS) and received the Police Medal for Meritorious Service a decade later. Sidhu retired as the deputy Inspector General (DIG), Intelligence, Punjab, in 1996. 

In his interview with ThePrint, Sidhu recalled that his years in the police force took a toll on his family, with frequent transfers making it difficult to raise children. Nearly three decades after retirement, his public service was brought into national spotlight in July 20225 when Chandigarh-based advocate Gaurav Goel shared a video of him collecting garbage while pulling a cycle car. Business tycoon Anand Mahindra subsequently reshared the video on X calling him a “quiet warrior of the streets.”

The recognition earned Sidhu a Padma Shri in the field of social work in June 2026. Despite the state honor, Sidhu hasn’t deterred from his daily routine. His work also inspired several residents of his neighborhood to take responsibility for their surroundings. However the lack of action from the civic bodies remains a major concern for Sidhu. 

No matter how inspiring his story is, it also raises questions about why an 88-year-old retired police officer has to take it upon himself to clean Chandigarh’s streets. If only the state could have taken note of the work of the authorities the same way it took note of an old man’s effort when he became an internet sweetheart. Nonetheless, tomorrow Inderjeet will still wake up at 5 am, head out with a broom to clean the streets with the same resolve that he has maintained throughout his life.

_[Rh/HP]

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