During the recent long motorcycle ride through Himachal Pradesh, Ladakh, Jammu and Kashmir, and Punjab, when we reached Mohali, near Chandigarh, we were met by a bunch of people running a 'chhabeel' (a stall serving sweetened, cold water to passersby for free). The cold water they were serving contained a dash of milk, Rooh Afza sherbet, and sugar. My fellow riders, who were from Bihar and Kerala, were mystified. They asked me if the free service marked a special day. I told them it was merely because it was the peak of summer and too hot outside. They had their fill and filled their water bottles with the sweet liquid.
Beyond Mohali, we were met with roadside chhabeels not only in and around Amritsar (on our way back from Kashmir) but also in a few villages in the Jammu region, which shares a cultural and linguistic affinity with the state of Punjab.
Apparently, the Punjabis do not want you to go thirsty on a hot day, no matter the day or date. I do not know why people from other North Indian states do not seem to care about that, although it's equally hot there. Perhaps it is a cultural thing. Not for nothing are the Punjabis known as large-hearted people! My non-Punjabi fellow riders would certainly vouch for that.
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