MONDAY 17 JUNE 2024 www.thestatesman.com Pages 12 |` 5.00|LC INDIA’S NATIONAL NEWSPAPER SINCE 1818 X.com/thestatesmanltd. Fb/thestatesman1875 KOLKATA | NEW DELHI | SILIGURI | BHUBANESWAR P6 WEATHER Partly cloudy sky. Rain / thundershower likely to occur in some areas.. Maximum and minimum temperatures likely to be around 36 °C and 29 °C respectively. Max. 86 % Min. 57 % Max: 36.4°C (+2.6) SUN RISES 04:52 hrs MOON RISES 13:17 hrs Min: 29.3°C (+2.3) SUN SETS 18:23 hrs MOON SETS 00:35 hrs Full Moon on 22 June THUMBNAILS Aspirants leave the examination centre after appearing in the Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) Civil Services (Preliminary) exams, in New Delhi on Sunday.  ANI Mob attacks madrassa in Telangana: Ahead of Bakrid, tension prevailed in Medak in Telangana after a mob attacked a madrassa over allegations that cattle were being transported for sacrifice. Several local BJP leaders were taken into custody and party MLA Raja Singh who was trying to reach Medak was also placed under preventive custody. Sec 144 has been imposed to prevent any untoward incident in the district. BRS and other political parties have blamed the Congress government in the state for (Pg 4) failing to control law and order. PATNA, 16 JUNE Two accused, including an examination mafia, have confessed their role in the question paper leak in the National Eligibility-cum-Entrance Test (NEET), an official of the Economic Offences Unit (EOU) of Bihar Police said. The EOU has constituted a 9-member Special Investigation Team (SIT) to probe the NEET question paper leak case. Thirteen persons including six examination mafias, four students and three parents have been arrested in connection with the alleged question paper leak case. One of the arrested exam mafia, Sikandar Yadvendu (56) who is a Junior Engineer in Danapur Municipal Council, confessed his role in the paper leak. A candidate named Ayush Kumar also confessed that he was made to memorise the question paper a day P5 Replicate Kashmir model in Jammu: HM ‘INDIA bloc will support TDP’s candidate for Speaker’s post’ STATESMAN NEWS SERVICE STATESMAN NEWS SERVICE NEW DELHI, 16 JUNE A day after the INDIA bloc hinted that it might field its candidate for the Lok Sabha Speaker’s post, Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Sanjay Raut on Sunday asserted that the Opposition's alliance will back a Telugu Desam Party (TDP) candidate for the post. Speaking to reporters in Mumbai, Mr Raut said that the election to the Speaker's post is important and that the situation is not the same as it was in 2014 and 2019. He claimed that the BJP will try to break the NDA alliance partners if the Speaker's post is not given to them. “This fight of the Lok Sabha Speaker is important. This time, the situation is not similar to 2014 and 2019. The government is not stable...We have heard that Chandrababu Naidu has asked for the Lok Sabha Speaker post... If a candidate of NDA does not get the post of Lok Sabha Speaker, then PM Modi and Union Home Minister Amit Shah will break eiterating the government’s zero tolerance policy against terrorism, Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Sunday said the government will leave no stone unturned in rooting out terrorism from Jammu and Kashmir. Chairing a high-level review meeting on the security scenario in Jammu and Kashmir in the national capital, the Union Home Minister said the fight against terrorism in Jammu and Kashmir is in its decisive phase, adding that recent incidents show that terrorism has been forced to shrink from highly organised acts of terrorist violence to a mere proxy war. “We are determined to root it out as well,” he stressed. In the five-hour-long meeting, which was separated into two rounds, including a short break, the Union Home Minister also took stock of preparations for the upcoming annual Amarnath Yatra which will commence on 29 June and conclude on 19 August. The meeting was attended by National Security Advisor Ajit Doval, Lieutenant Gov- R Thirteen persons including six examination mafias, four students and three parents have been arrested in connection with the alleged question paper leak case. before the exam. The NEET was held on 5 May and the examination mafia obtained the question paper a day earlier on 4 May. As per the confession of Sikandar Yadvendu, two persons named Amit and Nitish had obtained the question paper on 4 May. They went with the question papers and answers to a playschool located within Ramakrishna Nagar police station limits. At least 25 to 30 NEET candidates were already there. All were made to memorise the question paper and its answers till 9:00 a.m. on 5 May.He also confessed that all the candidates were dropped off directly at the exam centres by car after 9:00 a.m. In the five-hour-long meeting the Union Home Minister also took stock of preparations for the upcoming annual Amarnath Yatra which will commence on 29 June and conclude on 19 August. ernor of J&K Manoj Sinha, Chief of Army Staff General Manoj Pandey, Union Home Secretary, Director, Intelligence Bureau, senior Army Officers including Chief of Army Staff (Designate) Lt. General Upendra Dwivedi, Directors General of CAPFs, Chief Secretary and DGP of J&K and other senior officers. Mr Shah directed security agencies to replicate the successes achieved in Kashmir valley through Area Domination Plan and Zero Terror Plan in Jammu division. Mr Shah asserted that Narendra Modi-led government is committed to set an example by cracking down on terrorists through innovative means. He directed all security agencies to work in a mission mode and ensure quick response in a coordinated manner. He laid stress on seamless coordination amongst the security agencies, identifying vulnerable areas and addressing the security concerns of such areas. Mr Shah said efforts of the Government of India have yielded great positive results in Kashmir Valley with significant reduction in terror related incidents. He noted that the improvement in law-and-order situation is reflected in record flow of tourists in Kashmir Valley. The Union Home Minister appreciated securi- ty agencies and the J&K administration for successful conduct of the Lok Sabha elections, which saw record voter turnout in Jammu and Kashmir. Mr Shah held a similar meeting on Friday with Home Ministry officials, who informed him about the current security situation and preparedness to handle such terror attacks in Jammu and Kashmir. Since 9 June, there have been terror strikes at four places in Reasi, Kathua and Doda, in the course of which nine pilgrims and a Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) jawan were killed, and a civilian and at least seven security personnel were injured. Chandrasekhar, Elon Musk debate EVMs; Rahul calls them ‘black box’ STATESMAN NEWS SERVICE NEW DELHI, 16 JUNE After former Union minister Rajeev Chandrasekhar joined issue with Tesla chief Elon Musk after the latter called for elimination of Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs), Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Sunday jumped into the debate, calling the voting machines a “black box" that can't be scrutinised. In a social media post on microblogging site X, the Gandhi scion said: “EVMs in India are a ‘black box’, and nobody is allowed to scrutinize them. Serious concerns are being raised about transparency in our electoral process. Democracy ends up becoming a sham and prone to fraud when institutions lack accountability.” His remarks came against the backdrop of a social media debate following Mr Musk's remarks. On Saturday, the Tesla chief had called for elimination of EVMs, saying they were prone to hacking by humans and Artificial Intelligence. “We should eliminate electronic voting machines. The risk of being hacked by humans or AI, while small, is still too high,” Mr Musk said. Former Union Minister and BJP leader Rajeev Chandrashekhar was quick to counter Mr Musk's apprehensions on EVMs and asserted that the voting machines that are built in India can't be hacked. Moreover, the BJP leader also offered to run a tutorial for the Tesla chief on how to build EVMs correctly. “This is a huge sweeping generalisa- tion statement that implies no one can build secure digital hardware. Wrong,” replied the former minister. “Elon Musk’s view may apply to US and other places ~ where they use regular compute platforms to build Internet connected Voting machines.. .Indian EVMs are custom designed, secure and isolated from any network or media ~ No connectivity, no bluetooth, wifi, Internet. ie there is no way in. Factory programmed controllers that cannot be reprogrammed. Electronic voting machines can be architected and built right as India has done. We would be happy to run a tutorial, Elon," Mr Chandrashekhar said. However, Mr Musk rejected the BJP leader's claim and said: “Anything can be hacked”. Mr Chandrasekhar, in turn responded by saying anything is possible with quantum compute and “I can decrypt any level of encryption”. Dharavi redevelopment project: ‘Land transfer is to Maharashtra govt, not developer Adani Group’ AGENCIES MUMBAI, 16 JUNE The world's largest slum redevelopment project involves no land transfer to Special Purpose Vehicle created for the project (SPV) or to the Adani group, sources close to the project have clarified. The sources told Asian News International that land transfer will be done to Dharavi Redevelopment Project/slum rehabilitation authority (DRP/SRA) which is part of the Maharashtra government’s housing department. According to the tender documents, DRPPL will pay for the land in lieu of development rights and build facilities like housing, commercials and hand over back to the Maharashtra government’s DRP for P12 NDA discusses candidates for Speaker, Dy Speaker posts NEW DELHI, 16 JUNE Bihar: Two accused ‘confess’ their role in NEET paper leak AGENCIES P4 Fight against terrorism in J&K in decisive phase: Shah at security meet RAINFALL: NIL RELATIVE HUMIDITY TEMPERATURE MANDHANA BECOMES NEW CRIMINAL LAWS 2ND INDIAN WOMAN TO WILL TAKE EFFECT SCORE 7,000 INT’L RUNS FROM 1 JULY: MEGHWAL LDF LS POLL DEBACLE RESULT OF KERALA CM'S ARROGANCE: CPI CHALLENGES IN SOUTH AFRICA allotments as per government schemes. This arrangement ensures that the land remains under government control throughout the process. The state support agreement which is part of the tender, clearly states that government of Maharashtra has the obligation to provide land to their own DRP/SRA depart- ment. The Rs 23,000 crore slum redevelopment project comes under controversy after questions were raised whether the project would unduly benefit the Adani Group. In a 15th June news report in an English daily, newly elected Congress MPVarsha Gaikward raised questions about the issue of government land transfer to Adani for the project. “Earlier, the Mulund land was sought for the project. Then, the government allocated salt pan lands in Mumbai for the project. They also want Deonar land now, the government issued an order to hand over the land at Kurla.Why does the government want to transfer so much land to Adani?" asked Mr Gaikward. However, DRPPL sources clarified that the railway land allocated to the DRP was acquired by DRPPL at a premium of 170 per cent above the prevailing market rates. On concerns about the allocation of land across Mumbai to Adani when residents of Dharavi prefer in-situ rehabilitation, under which they are provided pucca dwelling units with basic civil infra- structure to improve the quality of life, sources clarified that the tender norms and government resolutions from 2018 and 2022, have specifically assured that no Dharavi resident will be displaced. Residents with tenements existing on or before 1 January 2000, are eligible for in-situ rehabilitation within Dharavi. Those with tenements from 1 January 2000 to 1 January 2011, will receive homes under the Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana outside Dharavi for a nominal fee of Rs 2.5 lakh or through rental housing. Those with tenements after 1 January 2011 upto a governmentdetermined cut-off date, will be provided homes under the state's proposed affordable rental housing policy, with an option for hire-purchase. CMYK STATESMAN NEWS SERVICE NEW DELHI, 16 JUNE TDP JDU and LJP (RamVilas)... , If Chandrababu Naidu doesn't get this position then we will ensure that his candidate gets the support from the INDIA alliance...," he said. According to reports, the INDIA bloc has been demanding the post of Deputy Speaker. If not given the post, the Opposition alliance said, it will field its own candidate for the Speaker's post as it has the numbers to make it a tough contest. Nitish Kumar's JD-U, which is the second largest constituent of the ruling NDA alliance, has said that they will support the BJP's pick for the important post of Lok Sabha Speaker. However, Chandrababu Naidu's TDP has reportedly demanded an “NDA candidate”. A meeting of the NDA was held at Defence Minister Rajnath Singh’s residence to discuss candidates for the posts of Speaker and Deputy Speaker of the 18th Lok Sabha, sources said. The sources further said that the meeting, attended by among others, BJP President JP Nadda, Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju, Union Ministers Rajiv Ranjan Singh (Lalan Singh) and Chirag Paswan, held discussions on the first parliamentary session of the 18th Lok Sabha. The election to the post of Speaker is scheduled to be held on 26 June during the first session of the 18th Lok Sabha. India attends Ukraine peace summit but refrains from signing communiqué STATESMAN NEWS SERVICE NEW DELHI, 16 JUNE India participated in the twoday “Summit on Peace in Ukraine” at Burgenstock in Switzerland but did not sign any communiqué or document. Mr Pavan Kapoor, Secretary (West) in the Ministry of External Affairs, attended the Opening and Closing Plenary Sessions of the two-day summit which concluded this evening. “India did not asso- ciate itself with any communique/document emerging from the summit,” the Ministry of External Affairs said. Reports said Saudi Arabia, South Africa, Thailand, Indonesia, Mexico and the UAE were also among countries that did not sign the final communiqué. Switzerland said over 90 countries took part in the talks, and a vast majority of them signed the communiqué. Brazil, which was listed as an ‘observer’ on the list of attendees, also did not fea- ture as a signatory. “India’s participation in the Summit, as well as in the preceding NSA/Political Director-level meetings based on Ukraine’s Peace Formula, was in line with our consistent approach to facilitating a lasting and peaceful resolution to the conflict through dialogue and diplomacy. We continue to believe that such a resolution requires a sincere and practical engagement between the two parties to the conflict,” the MEA added.