25 FEBRUARY 2024 www.thestatesman.com Pages 12 |` 5.00|LC Twitter.com/thestatesman Facebook.com/thestatesman INDIA’S NATIONAL NEWSPAPER SINCE 1818 KOLKATA | NEW DELHI | SILIGURI | BHUBANESWAR ‘GOVT FOCUSING ON LONG-TERM GAINS’ TDP JANA SENA RELEASE , JOINT CANDIDATES’ LIST FOR ANDHRA POLLS P4 WEATHER GENERALLY CLOUDY SKY. THE MAXIMUM AND MINIMUM TEMPERATURES WOULD BE AROUND 26 AND 09 DEGREES CELSIUS RESPECTIVELY. RAINFALL: NIL RELATIVE HUMIDITY Max. 92 % Min: 08.7 °C (-3) SUN SETS 18:18 hrs MOON SETS 07:49 hrs THUMBNAILS Actors enact the roles of Ravana, Lord Hanuman and other characters of the 'Ramayana' during the 'Dastaan-e-Ramayana: Ramleela in Urdu' by the Shri Shraddha Ramlila Committee theatre group in the four-day 'Jashn-e-Urdu' event in ANI New Delhi on Saturday. 22 people die in mishap in UP: In a horrifying accident , 22 people, including 7 children and 8 women, were killed in a road accident in this district of Uttar Pradesh on Saturday. According to reports, a tractor trolley fell into a pond on Patiali Dariyavganj road in Kasganj at around 10 am. All the victims were going to the Ganga ghat for bathing on Maghi Purnima. NEW DELHI, 24 FEBRUARY Ending all speculations, the Congress and Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) on Saturday officially announced their alliance for the upcoming Lok Sabha elections. The two parties have been holding parleys since the formation of the INDIA bloc to take on the BJP in the general elections. In Delhi, out of the seven Lok Sabha seats, the Congress will contest in three seats and AAP in four constituencies. Addressing a joint Press conference along with the senior leaders of the AAP here, senior Congress leader and convenor of the party's STATESMAN NEWS SERVICE P rime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday hit out at the Congress, saying the grand old party is unable to think beyond nepotism, corruption and appeasement. Those who work only for their families can never think about others' families. Those who are only busy in making the future of their sons and daughters can never worry about the future of others' sons and daughters, he said. Congress formed governments again and again, but forgot to build the India of the future, because forming a government was its only task and taking the country forward was not on its agenda, Mr Modi said, adding even today the direction of the party's politics remains the same. The PM was addressing the ‘Viksit Bharat Viksit Chhattisgarh’ programme via video conferencing today. During the programme, he dedicated to the nation multiple development projects worth over Rs 34,400 crores. The projects cater to many important sectors including Roads, Railways, Coal, Power, and Solar Energy. Drawing attention to the transfer of funds directly to the accounts of beneficiaries under various schemes by his government without any leakage, he said development starts the moment corruption comes to an end, creating many job opportunities for the people. He threw light on the development of health facilities and education infrastructure and the construction of new roads and rail lines as a result of good governance. The PM also spoke about the ''leakages in the transfer of funds'' that would have occurred during the regime of the previous governments due to a lack of transparency. National Alliance Committee (NAC) Mukul Wasnik while announcing the alliance between both the parties said AAP will contest in four and Congress in three Lok Sabha seats. He said it was decided that AAP will contest in New Delhi, West Delhi, South Delhi and East Delhi parliamentary seats, while Congress will field candidates in Chandni Chowk, North East and North West seats. In the 2019 Lok Sabha elections, both the parties drew a blank in Delhi. Talking about Gujarat, Mr Wasnik said Congress will contest in 24 seats in Gujarat and in two seats the AAP will field its candidates. The two seats are Bharuch and Bhav- nagar. In Haryana, the Congress will fight in nine seats and AAP in one seat, which is Kurukshetra, he informed. For Chandigarh seat, after a threadbare discussion, it was decided that Congress will field its candidate, added Mr Wasnik. The senior Congress leader also said after a detailed discussion, it was decided that Congress will contest in both the seats in Goa. The latest development came days after the Congress and Samajwadi Party (SP) announced alliance in Uttar Pradesh. It may be mentioned that , the NAC has been holding meetings with the parties of the INDIA alliance on seat-sharing for the forthcoming polls. EAM: Quad has become a significant platform for 4 vibrant democracies STATESMAN NEWS SERVICE NEW DELHI, 24 FEBRUARY External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar on Saturday asserted that Quad has become a significant and substantive platform for four large resident Indo-Pacific vibrant democracies, that are seeking to uphold an open, and inclusive Indo-Pacific. His comments came amid Beijing's repeated criticism of the Quad as a grouping aimed at containing China and its continued aggressive posturing in the Indo-Pacific. ''Like any new mechanism or platform, the Quad too is a product of its times. It emerged from global necessities, faltered, for some time, due to a complexity of reasons and was then reincarnated with new governments and different circumstances,'' Mr Jaishankar said at the inaugural Quad Think Tank Forum here. The minister said the fournation grouping, comprising India, Australia, Japan and the US, is there for global good and for global commons. The Quad has grown P12 Congress formed govts but forgot to build the India of the future: Narendra Modi Congress announces alliance with AAP for Lok Sabha polls STATESMAN NEWS SERVICE P7 PM takes swipe at Congress Three new criminal laws to come into for nepotism, corruption force from 1 July NEW DELHI, 24 FEBRUARY TEMPERATURE Max: 26.6°C-1) SUN RISES 6:50 hrs MOON RISES 19:05 hrs P5 STATESMAN NEWS SERVICE Min. 31 % BASHIR HELPS ENGLAND TAKE THE UPPER HAND WORLD'S EYES WILL BE ON AMERICAN POLLS so rapidly because all four governments have behaved differently from how they normally do. “Quad is an overhead light, creative, flexible, nimble, responsive and open-minded enterprise. These are not adjectives we normally associate with the bureaucracy. So, even as we assess its achievements, some compliments at least are due to all those who have shepherded it, who have grown it, who have actually made it unfold with such rapidity,” he added. He said the Quad focused initially on addressing the region’s most pressing needs and challenges like maritime security, infrastructure and connectivity, HADR, critical technologies, communications, space cooperation, cyber security, counter-terrorism, Fellowships and climate action to name a few. Referring to recent activities of the Quad, he said that the grouping seeks to build resilient supply chains in telecom, cyber security, semiconductors and AI. Mr Jaishankar noted that Quad has given birth to some larger collaborations that serve the same objectives of global good. Two of them merit particular attention. One is the Indo-Pacific Maritime Domain Awareness Initiative, under which data is being supplied for countering illicit maritime activities. The other is the IndoPacific Economic Framework (IPEF), which seeks to offer alternative economic engagement mechanisms and it is making steady progress and addressing issues like supply chains, clean economies, sustainability, digital economies amongst others. India and 13 other countries are negotiating the text of agreements under IPEF. The PM emphasised that Viksit Chattisgarh will be created by the empowerment of the youth, women, poor and farmers and modern infrastructure will strengthen the foundation of Viksit Chhattisgarh. Mr Modi highlighted the government’s endeavour to make Chhattisgarh a centre for solar energy and mentioned dedicating solar power plants in Rajnandgaon and Bhilai that have the potential to supply electricity to nearby regions even during the night. “The government strives to cut down the electricity bills of consumers to zero,” he said and referred to the PM Surya Ghar Free Electricity scheme which cur- India’s digital ‘Nagriks’ not to be ‘experimented on’ with unreliable platforms: MoS IT NEW DELHI, 24 FEBRUARY Explanations about unreliability of AI models do not absolve or exempt platforms from laws, Union Minister Rajeev Chandrasekhar said on Saturday. The minister's comments came after Google, which is under fire over AI tool Gemini's objectionable response and bias to questions on PM Narendra Modi, said it has worked quickly to address the issue and conceded that the chatbot "may not always be reliable" in responding to certain prompts related to current events and political topics. Mr Chandrasekhar further warned that India's digital 'Nagriks' "are not to be experimented on" with unreliable platforms and algorithms. In a post on social media platform X, the minister said that ensuring safety and trust are legal obligation of platforms. “Government has said this before - I repeat for attention of @GoogleIndia...Our DigitalNagriks are NOT to be experimented on with "unreliable" platforms/algos /model...'Sorry Unreliable' does not exempt from law," the minister said. Earlier, the minister had warned that Google AI tool Gemini's response to a question around the prime minister was in direct violation of IT rules as well as several provisions of the criminal code. Mr Chandrasekhar has taken immediate cognisance of the issue raised by a social media user alleging bias in Gemini in response to a question on Mr Modi while it gave no clear answer when a similar question was asked for former US president Donald Trump and Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskyy. He had marked the post to Google and the Ministry of Electronics and IT indicating further action in the SNS matter. rently comprises one crore households around the country. He informed that the government will provide financial aid directly into the bank accounts for setting up rooftop solar panels where 300 units of electricity will be made free and the excess electricity produced will be bought back by the government, thereby creating additional income for citizens worth thousands of rupees. He also mentioned the government’s emphasis on transforming the 'annadata' into 'urjadata' by assisting farmers to set up small-scale solar plants on barren farmlands. The PM commended the completion of guarantees by the double-engine government in Chhattisgarh. Lakhs of farmers in the state have already received a bonus that was pending for two years. The doubleengine government has also fulfilled the election guarantee of increasing the emoluments of Tendu leaves collectors, he said. He said that when India emerges as the third largest economy in the world, Chhattisgarh too will reach new heights of development. “This is a big opportunity, especially for the first-time voters and young people studying in schools and colleges. Viksit Chhattisgarh will fulfil their dreams,”he added. NEW DELHI, 24 FEBRUARY The provisions of the three new laws passed by Parliament to replace the Indian Penal Code, Code of Criminal Procedure and the Evidence Act will come into effect from 1 July, the ministry of home affairs has notified. The Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, the Bharatiya Nagrik Suraksha Sanhita and the Bharatiya Sakshya Act had been passed by Parliament on 21 December last year, and signed into law by President Droupadi Murmu on 25 December. These will replace the Indian Penal Code of 1860, the Code of Criminal Procedure of 1898 and the Indian Evidence Act of 1872. As per an MHA notification, "the Central Government hereby appoints the 1st day of July, 2024 as the date on which the provisions of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), Bharatiya Nagrik Suraksha Sanhita, and Bharatiya Sakshya Sanhita, except the provisions of the entry relating to Section 106 (2) in the First Schedule, shall come into force." The provision related to hit-and-run under the Bhartiya Nyay Sanhita has been put on hold, and will not be implemented for now. The three legislations are aimed at overhauling the criminal justice system in the country, and have special focus on crimes against women and children, murder and crimes against the nation. The Indian Penal Code (IPC) has been replaced with the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, the CrPC with Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita and the Indian Evidence Act has been replaced with the Bharatiya Sakshya Adhiniyam. The Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita has 358 sections (instead of 511 sections of IPC). A total of 20 new crimes have been added to the Sanhita, and jail sentences have been increased for 33 crimes. The amount of fine has been increased in 83 crimes and mandatory minimum punishment has been introduced in 23 crimes. The penalty of community service has been introduced in six crimes and 19 sections have been repealed or removed in the Act. The Bharatiya Nagrik Suraksha Sanhita has 531 sections (in place of 484 sections of the CrPC). A total of 177 provisions have been changed in the Sanhita and nine new sections as well as 39 new sub-sections have been added to it. The act has added 44 new provisions and clarifications.