MONDAY 08 JULY 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 NAIDU VOWS TO REVIVE TDP IN TELANGANA BORDER DIPLOMACY P6 WEATHER Generally cloudy sky. Rain/ thundershower likely to occur. Maximum and minimum temperatures likely to be around 34 °C and 28 °C respectively. RAINFALL: 12.9 mm RELATIVE HUMIDITY Min. 67 % Max: 33.7 °C (+1.2) SUN RISES 04:58 hrs MOON RISES 05:55 hrs Min: 27.7°C (+0.9) SUN SETS 18:25 hrs MOON SETS 19:49 hrs TEMPERATURE P4 New Moon on 21 July THUMBNAILS Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee offers prayers during the inauguration of the ISKCON Rath Yatra, in Kolkata on Sunday.  BISWAJIT GHOSHAL Soldier injured as terrorists attack Army camp in J&K: A day after the ongoing twin gunfights in south Kashmir's Kulgam district in which two soldiers and six terrorists were killed, another soldier was injured on Sunday when terrorists attacked an Army camp in Manjakote area in Rajouri district of Jammu. Meanwhile, two more bodies of terrorists were recovered on Sunday morning at the encounter site in the Kulgam district, taking the total to six. Lakhs throng Puri for two-day Rath Yatra; President Murmu attends celebration BHUBANESWAR, 7 JULY akhs of devotees thronged the pilgrim town of Puri on Sunday to participate in the annual Rath Yatra of Lord Jagannath, Lord Balabhadra, and Devi Subhadra. A minor stampede occurred as the chariots were being pulled, resulting in the collapse and death of one person. Several others, including two policemen, sustained injuries and were rushed to the hospital. While the exact number of injured individuals remains unconfirmed, one of the injured policemen suffered a leg fracture. “There were minor injuries to some people, and they have been discharged,” said a doctor at the hospital, even as patients were being carried on stretchers. Several people were transported by ambulances, most complaining of breathlessness and suffocation . The surge of devotees eager to catch hold of the ropes and pull the chariots led to pushing and shoving. This year's Rath Yatra is unique, being a two-day L Priests and devotees take part in the two-day Lord Jagannath Rath Yatra, in Puri on Sunday.  SNS affair.The pulling of the chariots that began today will resume on Monday. The coincidence of Nabajauban Darshan (youthful appearance after recovering from illness), Netra Utsav (freshly painted eyes), and Rath Yatra on the same day makes it a twoday Rath Yatra. The last time such a celestial alignment occurred was in 1973. President Droupadi Murmu, Governor Raghubar Das, Chief Min- Speeding BMW rams into two-wheeler in Mumbai, woman killed; driver at large STATESMAN NEWS SERVICE NEW DELHI, 7 JULY In a hit-and-run incident in Mumbai's Worli, a speeding BMW struck a fisherman and his wife who were riding a scooter near Atria Mall, killing the woman. The speeding car hit the two-wheeler from behind, which resulted in the woman falling on the car's bonnet. The driver, who drove on for about a 100 metres with the woman still on the bonnet, fled the spot after the accident. The injured woman was taken to Nair Hospital, where she was declared dead. Reports said the car was being driven by Mihir Shah, the son of a leader of the Shiv Sena led by Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde. The 24year-old is absconding.Rajesh Shah, Mihir Shah's father and deputy leader of the Shinde Sena in Palghar district, was detained by police. The BMW was registered in his name, Reports said the car was being driven by Mihir Shah, the son of a leader of Shiv Sena led by Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde. The 24-yearold man is absconding since the incident. according to police. Rajesh Shah's driver, Rajrishi Bidawat, who was also in the car at the time of the accident, has also been detained. Speaking about the incident, Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde said the law was equal for everyone and no would be spared. This incident follows the recent hit-and-run case in Pune, where a drunk minor rammed his luxury car into a two-wheeler, killing two IT professionals. The minor, son of an influential builder, was granted bail within hours on the condition of writing an essay on road accidents by the Juvenile Justice Board, triggering massive outrage. Later, the minor was arrested again and sent to a children's home. The matter escalated as the minor's family attempted to mislead the investigation, falsely claiming that their family driver was behind the wheel. They also swapped the minor's blood samples with his mother's to prove he was not drunk, only for a video to surface online showing the minor drinking at a pub. The minor's father and grandfather were arrested for allegedly wrongfully confining the driver. All three were later granted bail, although the father remains in jail for another case. ‘Hindenburg shared Adani report with client 2 months in advance’ STATESMAN NEWS SERVICE NEW DELHI, 7 JULY The market regulator Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) said the Hindenburg Research shared an advance copy of its critical report on the Adani group with New York-based hedge fund manager Mark Kingdon about two months before its public release, profiting from a deal to share gains from the resulting share price movements. In a 46-page show cause notice, SEBI detailed how the US short-seller Hindenburg, Kingdon's hedge fund, and a broker associated with Kotak Mahindra Bank benefited from the over USD 150 billion decline in the market value of Adani group's 10 listed firms post-publication of the report. Further, the market regulator accused Hindenburg of making unfair profits through collusion, using non-public and misleading information P5 P12 Minor stampede at Puri PM leaves for Russia today for crucial talks with Putin Rath Yatra, one dead STATESMAN NEWS SERVICE Max. 91 % 2ND T20I: INDIA LEVEL SERIES 1-1 SOREN GOVT FLOOR TEST, CABINET EXPANSION TODAY to induce panic selling in Adani Group stocks. Hindenburg made the Sebi notice public and responded by describing the notice as an attempt to silence and intimidate those who expose corruption and fraud perpetrated by the most powerful individuals in India. They revealed that the vehicle used to bet against Adani's flagship firm, Adani Enterprises Ltd, belonged to Kotak Mahindra (International) Ltd, a Mauritius-based subsidiary of Kotak Mahindra Bank Ltd. KMIL's fund placed bets on Adani Enter- prises Ltd for its client, Kingdon's Kingdon Capital Management. The notice by Sebi includes time-stamped chats between a hedge fund employee and KMIL traders coordinating the sale of future contracts in AEL. Kotak Mahindra Bank stated that Kingdon never disclosed that they had any relationship with Hindenburg nor that they were acting on the basis of any pricesensitive information. Notably, Kingdon, which had a controlling stake in KMIL's K-India Opportunities Fund Ltd, had an agreement to share 30per cent (later reduced to 25per cent) of profits from trading based on the report with Hindenburg. Sebi stated Kingdon transferred USD 43 million in two tranches to build short positions in AEL, squaring off these positions post-report, making Rs 183.23 crore (USD 22.25 million) in profit. ister Mohan Charan Majhi, Union Minister Dharmendra Pradhan, former Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik, and a host of other dignitaries were present. The President knelt and prayed before the chariots and touched the ropes. Chants of "Jai Jagannath," sounds of gongs, conches, and cymbals filled the air as the chariots of the holy trinity were pulled. Descending from their 'Ratna Sinhasana' (bejew- Seven bodies recovered from collapsed building in Surat JCB machines remove the debris after a four-storey building collapsed in the Sachin area in Surat on Sunday.  ANI AGENCIES SURAT , 7 JULY Seven bodies have been recovered from the debris of a collapsed five-storey building in Surat, Gujarat, an official said on Sunday. According to the official, a woman was safely rescued from the debris. In a conversation with ANI news agency, Basant Pareek, Chief Fire Officer of Surat, said: "Around 3:55 p.m. on Saturday, the Surat Fire and Emergency Services received information about the collapse of a five-storey building. Around 20 fire officers, along with the administration, rushed to the spot. We conducted a search and rescue operation throughout the night." Chief Fire Officer Pareek added that a woman was rescued safely from the debris, and a total of seven bodies were retrieved. “During the operation, we heard a woman's voice from beneath the debris. After digging out the debris, the firemen safely rescued her. We continued the search operation and have so far recovered seven bodies," he said. Chief Fire Officer Pareek added that there are no reports of any more missing persons. “However, the search operation is still underway,” he said. CMYK elled throne), the three deities were taken out of the temple one after another, down the 22 steps in a ceremonial procession. The deities moved forward step by step in rhythmic movement amid the beating of cymbals, ‘ghantas’, ‘kahalis’, the blowing of conch shells, and chants in praise of the Lords by priests and devotees, creating a reverberating atmosphere. The grand ceremony of pulling the three majestic and colourfully decorated chariots on the “Bada Danda,” the grand avenue in front of the 12th-century Jagannath temple, commenced in the late afternoon. Thousands of devotees pulled the giant chariots from the temple towards the Gundicha temple, around 2.5 km away. The chariot pulling started around 5:20 p.m. after Puri Shankaracharya Swami Nischalananda Saraswati visited the chariots and Puri's titular king Dibyasingh Deo completed the‘Chhera Pahanra’ (chariot sweeping) ritual. The entire town was placed under a security blanket with air, sea, and ground level hi-tech surveillance. STATESMAN NEWS SERVICE NEW DELHI, 7 JULY Amid the ongoing war in Ukraine, Prime Minister Narendra Modi will leave here on Monday on an official visit to Russia to hold the 22nd Annual India-Russia Summit with President Vladimir Putin. From Moscow, the PM will leave for Austria in what will be the first visit by an Indian PM to the European nation after 41 years. The Indian leader will reach Moscow tomorrow afternoon. He will be welcomed with a private dinner to be hosted by President Putin. Among other engagements the next day, Mr Modi will have an interface with the Indian community in Russia. He will also pay respects at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldiers in the Kremlin and visit an exhibition in Moscow. This will be followed by his restricted talks with President Putin and delegation-level talks between the two countries. A whole range of issues, including defence, trade linkages, culture, education, civil nuclear cooperation, culture and people-topeople contacts, will be on the agenda. They will also discuss global developments. Given the personal chemistry between the two leaders, the ongoing Russia- Ukraine conflict is likely to figure prominently during the Modi-Putin meeting. The PM is expected to reiterate India's stand that this is not the time for war and that the two warring nations must give dialogue and diplomacy a chance to resolve the crisis. The talks between the two leaders will also provide Mr Modi an opportunity to raise with Mr Putin the issue of Indian nationals who were misled into the Russian Army to join its ongoing war with Ukraine. According to Foreign Secretary Vinay Kwatra, while ten Indians have returned home, an estimated 30-45 Indian nationals are still working for the Russian Army. He said India has strongly taken up with the Russian authorities the issue of their early repatriation to India. The PM's visit to Moscow marks a continu- ation of high-level engagement between India and Russia. “The last annual summit was held in New Delhi in December 2021,” Mr Kwatra said, adding that the two leaders have maintained contact through various means, including a meeting on the sidelines of the SCO summit last September and multiple phone conversations. The India-Russia Summit is being held at a time when India is under intense pressure from its Western allies to minimise its contacts with Russia in view of its aggression against Ukraine. After concluding the Moscow leg of his tour, Mr Modi will reach Austria in the afternoon of July 9. He will call on President Alexander Van der Bellen and hold talks with Chancellor Karl Nehammer. The PM and the Chancellor will also address business leaders from India and Austria. Mr Modi will also interact with members of the Indian community in Vienna. Mr Modi said in New Delhi on Sunday that it would be a “historic occasion” and an honour for him to visit Austria for the first time next week, which will coincide with 75 years of the establishment of bilateral diplomatic relations between both countries.