SATURDAY 31 AUGUST 2024 www.thestatesman.com X.com/thestatesmanltd. Fb/thestatesman1875 INDIA’S NATIONAL NEWSPAPER SINCE 1818 Pages 12 |` 5.00|LC KOLKATA | NEW DELHI | SILIGURI | BHUBANESWAR HARRIS DEFENDS SHIFTING FROM SOME LIBERAL POSITIONS ‘INDIA MAKING GIANT STRIDES TOWARDS BECOMING SELF-RELIANT’ P5 SENSEX 82,365.77p231.16 WEATHER Showers with thunderstorms developing in the afternoon. Maximum and minimum temperatures likely to be around 33 °C and 28 °C respectively. P9 NIFTY 25,235.90p83.95 P7 ` vs $ 83.86 STATESMAN NEWS SERVICE KOLKATA, 30 AUGUST TEMPERATURE C Min: 28.3˚C SUN SETS 17:54 hrs MOON SETS 16:26 hrs Full Moon on 3 September THUMBNAILS Wrestler Vinesh Phogat visits the Golden Temple, in Amritsar on Friday. n ANI Revanth Reddy apologises to Supreme Court: Following a rap by the Supreme Court, Telangana CM Revanth Reddy today expressed his unconditional regret for his comments suggesting that K Kavitha got bail following a deal between BRS and BJP. Mr Reddy in a statement said his comments were taken out of context. The CM had said that the BRS worked for the victory of the BJP in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections. (P4) hief minister Mamata Banerjee today wrote to the Prime Minister Narendra Modi for the second time, reminding him of her earlier letter pressing for a stringent central law on incidents of rape and for exemplary punishment of the perpetrators. Miss Banerjee in the fresh missive pointed out that she had not received any reply from the Prime Minister to her first letter dated 22 August. The reply received from the Union minister of women and Child Development on 25 August did not address the gravity of the issue, Miss Banerjee wrote. “I am of the thought that the seriousness of the subject and its relevance to the society has not been adequately appreciated in the reply,” her letter said. She also outlined the initiatives the state has already taken in the area “which appears to have been overlooked in the reply”. “Regarding Fast Track Special Courts (FTSCs), 10 exclusive POCSO Courts have been approved by the State Government. In addition to this, 86 FTSCs and 62 POCSO-designated Courts are functioning throughout the State on complete State funding. Monitoring and disposal of cases is completely in the hands of the Courts.” Miss Banerjee also noted that as Central Era of uninterrupted dialogue with Pakistan over: Jaishankar STATESMAN NEWS SERVICE NEW DELHI, 30 AUGUST External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar, on Friday, made it unequivocally clear that the era of interrupted dialogues with Pakistan is over, asserting that "actions have consequences". Speaking at the release of Ambassador Rajiv Sikri’s book ‘Strategic Conundrums: Reshaping India’s Foreign Policy’ here, he said as far as Jammu & Kashmir is concerned, Article 370 is done. On whether India is content with the current level of relationship with Pakistan, Mr Jaishankar said: "Maybe yes, maybe not. But what I do want to say is that we are not passive, and whether events take a positive or negative direction. Either way, we will react." His comments came days after the minister, during his recent Singapore visit, spoke about Pakistan's "almost industry-level" sponsoring of terrorism and emphasised government guidelines, only retired judicial officers can be posted as presiding officers in FTSCs, but the High Court has observed that in view of the severity of the cases, permanent judicial officers need to be posted. “This requires examination at the level of Government of India and suitable action thereafter, for which your intervention would be necessary,” she wrote. The chief minister also mentioned the helpline numbers 112 TV Somanathan takes over as new Cabinet Secretary HYDERABAD, 30 AUGUST that "India will not skirt this problem." Mr Jaishankar's comments are also important against the backdrop of repeated demands by the National Conference and the People's Democratic Party in J&K that India should resume dialogue with Pakistan. Meanwhile, Ministry of External Affairs spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal confirmed that India has received an invitation from Pakistan for the SCO (Shanghai Cooperation Organisation) meeting to be hosted by Islamabad. Mr Jaishankar, in his remarks at the book release, also termed Indo-US ties as a valuable relationship. "The US is today indispensable for our multipolarity to go ahead. Nobody will say we have congruence with the United States. If we actually understand the expectations of the relations. It is not about an alliance and congruence, it is about convergences, overlapping interests, about the ability to work together on issues and areas and theatres which suit us," he said. "But there are regions and issues on which we profoundly agree with the US and there are issues on which we do not. It is on full public display," he said. T V Somanathan on Friday took over as the new Cabinet Secretary in the Government of India, after the superannuation of Mr Rajiv Gauba. Prior to this, Mr Somanathan was Finance Secretary and Secretary, Department of Expenditure in the Ministry of Finance. Mr Somanathan is an IAS officer of Tamil Nadu cadre (1987 batch). He holds a PhD in Economics from Calcutta University. He has completed the Executive Development Program of Harvard Business School, and is a fully qualified Chartered Accountant, Cost Accountant and Company Secretary. Mr Somanathan has held important assignments at the Centre like Joint Secretary and Additional Secretary in Prime Minister’s SNS Office. and 1098 are “satisfactorily working” in the state along with Dial 100, used for emergency situations. She reiterated her earlier request for a stringent Central legislation ensuring exemplary punishment from crimes like rape or rape and murder and speedy disposal of the trial process in such cases. In her previous letter on 22 August, Miss Banerjee had requested the Prime Minister to initiate a process where that trial in rape and rape-and-murder cases can be completed in 15 days. Earlier this week, Miss Banerjee, speaking at a rally held to mark the foundation day of the Trinamul Congress Chhatra Parishad, had said that a special session of the state Assembly would be convened soon where a Bill mandating capital punishment for convicted rapists would be introduced and passed. The special session is scheduled to take place on Monday and Tuesday. TRIDIB BAPARNASH NEW DELHI, 30 AUGUST Five months before the Paris Paralympics, the Rajasthan shooter was down with pain and eventually had to undergo a surgery to get rid of gallbladder stones. On Friday, after Avani fired 249.7 to not only defend her title but also better her Paralympics record of 249.6 that she had set three years ago, her father Praveen Lekhara breathed a sigh of relief. “It wasn’t easy for her since last year. She used to frequently complain of pain around the stomach and waist because of the gallbladder stones. It also affected her training regime as she couldn’t give her 100 per cent focus, and eventually we decided to get the gall bladder removed in March this year,” Mr Lekhara told The Statesman. “At that time, we knew she had very little time left for Paris, but there was no alternative. She needed to get her focus back completely on her game. She has made us all proud again today with that historic feat,” he added. Avani had earlier secured her spot at the Paris Paralympics by winning the gold in women’s 10m Air Rifle standing SH1 event at the Para Shooting World Cup in France in 2022, with a record score of 250.6. While she agonisingly came close to better her world record at the Paris Games on Friday, her coach Chandra Shekar detailed the challenges that Avani faced while making her comeback post the surgery. “She has been struggling for quite some time, even during the New Delhi World Cup last year, she had complained of pain. Once she underwent the surgery, she was advised a couple of months rest. We knew we had to take one step at a time and not rush her back into training,” he said. With the historic gold at Paris, Avani also went past NEW DELHI, 30 AUGUST India's economic growth slowed to a 15-month low of 6.7 per cent in April-June 2024-25, as against a growth rate of 8.2 per cent in the same period last year, the government data said on Friday. This decline is mainly due to poor performance of the agriculture and services sectors. As per the Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation (MoSPI) data, real GDP in Q1 of 2024-25 is estimated at ₹43.64 lakh crore, against ₹40.91 lakh crore in Q1 of 2023-24. Nominal GDP for Q1 of 2024-25 is estimated at ₹77.31 lakh crore, against ₹70.50 lakh crore in Q1 of 2023-24, showing a growth rate of 9.7 per cent. Real GVA (Gross Value Added) in Q1 of 2024-25 is estimated at ₹40.73 lakh crore, against ₹38.12 lakh crore in Q1 of 2023-24, showing a growth rate of 6.8 per cent. Nominal GVA in Q1 of 2024-25 is estimated at ₹70.25 lakh crore, against ₹63.96 lakh crore in Q1 of 2023-24, showing a growth rate of 9.8 per cent. As per the data, the GVA in the mining and quarrying sector accelerated to 7.2 per cent in the first quarter from 7 per cent a year ago. Electricity, gas, water supply and other utility services grew by 10.4 per cent from 3.2 per cent. The construction segment also grew by 10.5% from 8.6 per cent. Trade, hotels, transport, communication and services related to broadcasting slowed to 5.7 per cent from 9.7 per cent. Further, as per the data released by the Ministry of Finance, the Union government received Rs 10,23,406 crore, which is 31.9 per cent of corresponding BE 2024-25 of Total Receipts, upto July 2024. This comprises Rs 7,15,224 crore as Tax Revenue, Net to Centre, Rs 3,01,796 crore of Non-Tax Revenue and Rs 6,386 crore of NonDebt Capital Receipts. As per the ministry data, Rs 3,66,630 crore has been transferred to state governments as devolution of share of taxes by the government of India upto this period, which is Rs 57,109 crore higher than the previous year. Vadhvan launch big event in Maha’s development: PM STATESMAN NEWS SERVICE NEW DELHI, 30 AUGUST Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday laid the foundation stone of the Vadhvan deep-water port in Maharashtra and said the port will be the country’s largest container port, receiving more containers than all containers received by the country’s existing ports at present. Addressing a large gathering on the occasion, he said it was a big day in the history of development of Maharashtra and the country. The Vadhvan port will be built at a cost of Rs 76,000 crore. The region known for ancient forts will be in future known for a modern port also, he said. Mr Modi said in the last 10 years, and since the beginning of his third term in office, major decisions have been taken on development projects for Maharashtra. Viksit Maharashtra is the most vital part of the Viksit Bharat dream, he said. The state has capacity as well as resources for development. Avani Lekhara wins historic gold in Paralympics “Life consists not in holding good cards, but in playing those cards you hold well.” Avani Lekhara truly lives the motto her Twitter bio proudly carries. On Friday, when the 22year-old won the gold medal in the women’s 10m Air Rifle Standing SH1 final at the Chateauroux Shooting Range, she rewrote the history books by becoming the first ever Indian woman athlete (in both Olympics and Paralympics) to win two consecutive gold medals. Her compatriot, Mona Agarwal, claimed the bronze in the event. For Avani, who won the gold in the same event three years back in the Tokyo Paralympics, the journey to her title defence at the Paris Games hasn’t been smooth at all. BRENT CRUDE (IN $) 78.03p0.05 STATESMAN NEWS SERVICE CM points out that PM Modi has not responded to her first letter Max. 89% Max: 33.4˚C SUN RISES 05:19 hrs MOON RISES 02:37 hrs SILVER 88,400 GOLD 74,060.00 P12 Mamata writes to PM again, India’s economic growth slows to a 15-month-low of 6.7 pc in Q1FY25 urges strict anti-rape laws RAINFALL: NIL RELATIVE HUMIDITY Min. 76% MANISH ADDS SILVER LINING AFTER AVANI, MONA’S HEROICS ‘INDO-BANGLA BORDER MUST BE FENCED’ Beijing Olympics gold medallist Abhinav Bindra, whose autobiography had once inspired her to take up shooting in 2015. This was three years after a car crash on the highway from Jaipur to Dholpur left her with a spinal cord injury, resulting in loss of mobility and sensation from the waist down. In 2015, Praveen introduced Avani to shooting when he took her to a range during one summer vacation, and since then, as they say, the rest is history. Avani began her shooting career with a rented air rifle at the Jagatpura Shooting Range before coming under the wings of coach Shekar in 2016. Within a year, the youngster showcased her potential by winning titles in para nationals apart from a silver medal in WSPS World Cup in AL Ain and a bronze in the World Cup in Bangkok. At the start of his speech, the Prime Minister said he had prayed at the Samadhi of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj at the Raigarh fort in 2013, when his party chose him to be Prime Minister of the country. He said the damage to Shivaji’s statue at Sindhudurg a few days ago, was a matter of sorrow, and he offered deep apologies for that. “The entire world is looking towards Vadhvan Port today,” the Prime Minister said as he highlighted that very few ports in the world can match Vadhvan Port’s depth of 20 metres. He said the port would transform the economic landscape of the entire region due to railway and highway connectivity. It would create opportunities for new businesses and warehousing owing to its connectivity to the dedicated Western Freight Corridor and proximity to the Delhi-Mumbai Expressway. “Cargo will flow in and out of the region throughout the year, thereby benefiting the people of Maharashtra,” he said. of Maharashtra is a huge priority for me,” he said, highlighting the gains made by Maharashtra through ‘Make in India’ and ‘Atmanirbhar Bharat Abhiyan’ programmes. Lamenting that previous governments had stalled the Vadhvan Port project for almost 60 years, the Prime Minister said that India required a new and advanced port for maritime trade but the work in this direction did not start until 2016. It was only after Devendra Fadnavis came to power that this project was taken seriously and it was decided to create a port in Palghar by 2020. However, the project again got stalled for 2.5 years due to a change in government, he said. The Prime Minister said development on India’s coasts has gained unprecedented speed in the last decade. Giving examples of modernizing ports, developing waterways, and efforts to encourage ship-building in India, he said: “Lakhs of crore of rupees have been invested in this direction.” PM Modi to visit Brunei, Singapore next week Former J’khand CM Champai Soren joins BJP STATESMAN NEWS SERVICE NEW DELHI, 30 AUGUST NEW DELHI, 30 AUGUST Prime Minister Narendra Modi will travel to Brunei on 3-4 September and then pay a two-day visit to Singapore on 4-5 September, it was officially announced on Friday. At a media briefing here, Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said the PM will be visiting Brunei at the invitation of Brunei Sultan Haji Hassanal Bolkiah and it will be the first-ever bilateral visit by an Indian prime minister. "Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi, at the invitation of His Majesty Sultan Haji Hassanal Bolkiah, is scheduled to visit Brunei Darussalam, during 3-4 September. This will be the firstever bilateral visit by an Indian The MEA confirmed that Pakistan has invited Prime Minister Narendra Modi to attend the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) meeting scheduled to be hosted by Islamabad in October. Prime Minister to Brunei. The visit coincides with the 40th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic ties between India and Brunei," the spokesperson said. "From Brunei, the Prime Minister will visit Singapore on 4-5 September at the invitation of Prime Minister His Excellency Mr Lawrence Wong of Singapore. During the visit, there are several elements of the programme,” the spokesperson added. In a significant development ahead of the Jharkhand Assembly polls due later this year, former chief minister of the state and veteran JMM leader Champai Soren joined the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) at an event in Ranchi on Friday. On joining the BJP, he expressed his faith in Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union Home Minister Amit Shah. “I have faith in the PM of the country and Amit Shah. I am now with the largest party in the world. Earlier I was in a regional party. Jai Shree Ram,” Mr Soren said. Union minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan, Assam CM Himanta Biswa Sarma and Jharkhand BJP President Babulal Marandi among other state BJP leaders were also present. SNS