WEDNESDAY 11 SEPTEMBER 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 INDIA-UAE BOND TO DEFINE RELATIONSHIP OF DECADE SC STAYS DEFAMATION PROCEEDINGS AGAINST SHASHI THAROOR P4 SENSEX 81,921.29p361.75 WEATHER Scattered thunderstorms. Storms could contain frequent lightning. Maximum and minimum temperatures likely to be around 32 °C and 27 °C respectively. 25,041.10p104.70 P6 ` vs $ 83.97 Mamata reaches out to agitating doctors STATESMAN NEWS SERVICE Min: 27.3˚C SUN SETS 17:43 hrs MOON SETS 22:56 hrs KOLKATA, 10 SEPTEMBER C Full Moon on 18 September THUMBNAILS A woman wades through a severely waterlogged area after a spell of rainfall, in Amritsar on Tuesday. n ANI Sitaram Yechury on respiratory support at AIIMS Delhi:Communist Party of India (Marxist) general secretary Sitaram Yechury is on respiratory support at the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) here. “Comrade Sitaram Yechury, General Secretary of Communist Party of India (Marxist), is in the intensive care unit of the All India Institute of Medical Sciences, New Delhi, being treated for an acute respiratory tract infection. He is on respiratory support,” the CPI(M) said in a statement on Tuesday. hief minister Mamata Banerjee on Tuesday reached out to agitating junior doctors, inviting them to the state secretariat for a meeting to resolve the impasse amid their ongoing protest over the R G Kar issue, but they did not turn up, Chandrima Bhattacharya, minister of state for health, said. “The state government supports the reasons behind the agitation of the junior doctors and that's why the chief minister was waiting for their representatives at Nabanna till 7.30 pm to discuss their demands but they didn't come. The chief minister left for the day. The principal secretary of the health department sent them an email around 6.10 asking them to send a 10-member delegation to Nabanna for talks but they didn't respond," Mrs Bhattacharya, told reporters at the state FIR against IAF Wing Commander after complaint of sexual assault The striking junior doctors on Tuesday continued their stir, declining to comply with an order of the Supreme Court asking them to resume duties by 5 pm. secretariat this evening. The striking junior doctors on Tuesday continued their stir, declining to comply with an order of the Supreme Court asking them to resume duties by 5 p.m today. The junior doctors are staging a dharna outside the Swasthya Bhavan in Salt Lake demanding the removal of the state health secretary Mr NS Nigam and the Director of Medical Education and other senior officials of the state health department. They said they received an email from the health secretary, but it was not positive in terms of their charter of demands. Mrs Bhattacharya also said only Miss Banerjee will speak to the media on the current events that are taking place following the rape and murder of a junior doctor at RG Kar Medical College and Hospital on 9 August. Mrs Bhattacharya also said the state Cabinet, at a meeting today chaired by Miss Banerjee, decided to set up five more POCSO courts in Bengal. Mrs Bhattacharya said the decision was taken as the state government is determined to ensure speedy trial and conviction of the culprits involved in abuse and molestation of girls. Already, there are 62 POCSO courts in the state. The work to set up the additional POSCO courts will start immediately. There are 6 ePOSCO courts in the state. Police have registered an FIR against a Wing Commander of the Indian Air Force in Kashmir on the allegations of rape against him by a woman flying officer. Both IAF officers are presently stationed in Srinagar. After the complaint, an FIR under “relevant sections of the law” was filed at Budgam police station in central Kashmir on Saturday, a senior police officer said. The woman officer has accused senior IAF officers of not taking her complaint seriously. She has also alleged “continuous harassment, sexual assault, and mental torture” that she has been subjected to over the last two years, primarily by authorities at the Air Force Station, Srinagar. In her complaint, the woman officer has alleged that she was forced to perform a sexual act on the Wing Commander after the New Year’s Party held at the Air Force Station, Srinagar, on 31 December 2023. An IAF officer, meanwhile, said that the force is cooperating with the local police in Jammu and Kashmir's Budgam in probing the complaint of alleged sexual assault. "We are aware of the case. The Air Force Station in Srinagar was approached by the local Budgam police station on the subject. We are fully cooperating towards this case," a senior IAF official said. AGENCIES BERLIN, 10 SEPTEMBER External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar on Tuesday asserted that India's stand on the war between Russia and Ukraine "rests on some postulates" and emphasised that differences can only be resolved through dialogue and negotiations, not war, and that negotiations are the only way forward. The remarks by the EAM came while he was addressing a joint press conference with German Minister for Foreign Affairs Annalena Baerbock. Addressing the press conference, Mr Jaishankar said, "Minister Baerbock and I regularly talk about Ukraine. We are talking about this time in person. But from time to time, we speak on the phone or otherwise." He added: “In the last two-and-a-half years, in different ways, India has had some involvement with var- External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar addresses diplomatic community and business leaders at the annual Ambassadors' Conference of the German Foreign Office in Berlin on Tuesday.n ANI ious specific initiatives, the green corridor, matters relating to the security of the Zaporizhzhia nuclear station and some other discussions.” Talking about Prime Minister Narendra Modi's meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and Russian President Vladimir Putin, Mr Jaishankar added: “This year, PM Modi went to Russia in July. He met President Zelenskyy in Italy in June and then he went to Kyiv in August. And in both, Moscow and Kyiv, he had fairly detailed long discussions with the two Presidents.” Mr Jaishankar, during the joint press conference, further said that a lot of things were said during the discussions and asserted that "India's position on the ongoing war rests on some postulates." Elaborating on the postulates, he said: “We don't Rahul stokes controversy with Sikh remarks, BJP calls it absurd STATESMAN NEWS SERVICE NEW DELHI, 10 SEPTEMBER Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha, Rahul Gandhi, has stoked a controversy after he said the fight in India is about whether a Sikh is going to be allowed to wear his turban or go to a Gurdwara, in a veiled attack on the ruling BJP, which he has been accusing of doing “divisive” politics. The BJP slammed Mr Gandhi for his remarks and accused him of setting a ''dangerous narrative''. Addressing the Indian diaspora in Washington DC in the United States, Mr Gandhi said: “We have to understand what the fight is about. The fight is not about politics. It is superficial.” Asking a person wearing a turban who was present in the hall what his name is, he said: “The fight is about whether he as a Sikh is going to be allowed to wear his turban in India or he as a Sikh is going to be allowed to wear a kada in India. Or he as a Sikh is going to be able to go to Gurudwara. That’s what the fight is about. And not just for him, for all religions.” Attacking the RSS, the Leader of Opposition in the Lower House, while mentioning the names of the several states of India, said: P12 BRENT CRUDE (IN $) 70.93q−0.43 Manipur govt imposes curfew, cuts internet as student protests escalate STATESMAN NEWS SERVICE IMPHAL, 10 SEPTEMBER The Manipur government has imposed an indefinite curfew in Imphal East and Imphal West districts and suspended internet services amid escalating violence and clashes between students and authorities. Over 40 students were injured on Tuesday following clashes with security forces when they attempted to march towards the Raj Bhavan in Imphal to press for their demands to remove the DGP and security advisor to the state government, police said. Student protests, which began at Manipur's Ima Market on 9 September, have gained momentum. Protesters have issued a 24-hour ultimatum to Governor Lakshman Acharya, demanding action on their charter of demands. Thousands of students and women demonstrators tried to march towards the Raj Bhavan but were stopped by security forces. The agitators shouted slogans and pelted security personnel with stones and slingshots. Security personel retaliated by firing tear gas shells. "More than 40 students were injured in the clashes and have been admitted to hospital," the officer said. An indefinite curfew, preventing people from coming outside their houses, has been clamped in Imphal East and West districts, while prohibitory orders under Section 163 (2) of BNSS were imposed in Thoubal. The government also suspended internet services across the valley districts for five days amid intensified agitation by students. A notice issued by the Manipur government said that the internet ban is to prevent the spread of disinformation and false rumours, through various social media platforms such as WhatsApp, Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter. The ban will continue till 15 September. Earlier today, Manipur Inspector General of Police for Operations, IK Muviah, said that the state police would most likely hand over all the pieces of evidence that they have collected during their investigation of the drone bombing case to the central investigating agencies and that it will be investigated at a higher level. Referring to a statement by senior retired Army officer that no drones were used in the recent attacks, Mr Muivah said: “We have clarified the incident on our official media handles very clearly and we stand by it,” Mr Muivah, a Tangkhul Naga officer, also rejected the statement by the retired officer that there were no Manipur police but there were Meitei and Kuki police, calling it an immature statement. (See also Page 10) ‘Remove obstacles in ‘Negotiations are only way forward’: EAM Jaishankar on conflict between Russia and Ukraine scientific research’ STATESMAN NEWS SERVICE JAMMU, 10 SEPTEMBER SILVER 91,000 GOLD 73,815.00 Min. 81 % TEMPERATURE Max: 32.6˚C SUN RISES 05:22 hrs MOON RISES 12:16 hrs P8 State Cabinet decides to set up five more POCSO courts in Bengal RAINFALL: NIL RELATIVE HUMIDITY Max. 90 % NIFTY RINKU CALLED UP FOR DULEEP TROPHY BACKLASH IN FRANCE “When I say Kerala or Punjab…. These are not simple words, these are your history, your language, your tradition, your entire imagination is in these words. What the RSS is basically saying, is that certain states are inferior to other states, certain languages are inferior to other languages, certain religions are inferior to other religions, certain communities are inferior to other communi- ties.” Referring to the Congress, Mr Gandhi said: “We are of the opinion, whether you are from Punjab, Haryana, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, all of you have your history, tradition, language and every single one of them is as important as any other one.” He further said: “The ideology of RSS is that Tamil, Marathi, Bengali, Manipuri, these are only inferior languages. That’s what the fight is about. It ends up in the polling booth, in Lok Sabha and Vidhan Sabha, but the fight is about what type of India we are going to have.” “Are we going to have an India where people are allowed to believe what they want to believe, people are allowed to respect , what they want to respect, say what they want to say, listen to what they want to hear? Or we are going to have an India, where only a few limited people can decide what is going to happen. The problem is these people don’t understand India,” Mr Gandhi said. Asserting that India is called a Union of states, Mr Gandhi said: “In the Constitution it is written clearly, India i.e Bharat is a union of states. What does it mean ? It means a union of languages, it’s a union of traditions , union of histories… That is what the fight is about.” Reacting to Mr Gandhi’s statement, Union Minister Hardeep Singh Puri while accusing him of setting a dangerous narrative, said: “One needs to figure out why the Leader of Opposition Mr Rahul Gandhi makes outlandish and defamatory statements about India on foreign soil. But what he has now said about Sikhs not being able to wear Kada and Turban borders on being purely delusional and absurd.” believe that differences and disputes can be settled through war. This is not the era of war; We don't believe in this conflict and a solution will come from the battlefield. So we do think that negotiations are the only way forward. At some point, there has to be negotiations. When there is a discussion, we also think that it is essential to have Russia in it unless the discussions don't gain further moment.” Notably, PM Modi concluded his visit to Ukraine on 23 August, the first by an Indian PM to the European nation since India established diplomatic ties with Ukraine in 1992. During their bilateral meeting, PM Modi had told Mr Zelenskyy that dialogue is the only solution to the conflict in Ukraine. "India was never neutral, we have always been on the side of peace," PM Modi had told Mr Zelenskyy in their bilateral meeting. STATESMAN NEWS SERVICE NEW DELHI, 10 SEPTEMBER Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday chaired the first meeting of the Governing Board of the newlyformed Anusandhan National Research Foundation (ANRF) and said there is need to identify and remove obstacles in the research ecosystem in the country. He said the day marked a new beginning in the field of scientific research in the country. Research should focus on finding new solutions to existing problems. Problems might be global in nature but their solutions must be localised in accordance with Indian needs, the Prime Minister said. Mr Modi said there is need to set high targets, focusing on them and doing pathbreaking research. He discussed the need for upgradation and standardisation of institutions and suggested preparing a list of domain experts on the basis of their expertise. The ANRF has been set up as an apex body to provide high-level strategic direction to scientific research in the country as per recommendations of the National Education Policy. The Prime Minister stressed on the need for scientific monitoring of utilisation of resources for research and innovation. Saying that this is an ambitious beginning, he said the scientific community of the country should have faith that there will be no dearth of resources for their endeavours. US losses from crypto scams surge by 45 pc in 2023, India loses $44 million STATESMAN NEWS SERVICE NEW DELHI, 10 SEPTEMBER There has been a significant spike in cryptocurrency-related frauds, with the United States losing over USD 5.6 billion registering a surge of 45 per cent in 2023, the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) said in a report. India ranked fifth globally in terms of the number of cryptocurrency-related complaints, with 840 cases reported, according to the report. India's losses amounted to USD 44,054,244, placing it in the top ten countries in terms of total financial impact. Following a crypto market downturn in 2022, token prices began to rally last year, triggering renewed interest from criminals. Bitcoin more than doubled last year, and has risen about 35 per cent in 2024. "Criminal actors exploit cryptocurrencies for all schemes, to include tech support, confidence and romance, investment, and government impersonation scams. Investment fraud was the most reported cryptocurrency scheme in 2023 and also saw the most reported losses, with about USD 3.9 billion lost," said the FBI in the report. Use of cryptocurrency by criminals was most pervasive in investment scams, where losses accounted for almost 71 per cent of the total, according to the report. Call centre frauds, such as government impersonation scams, accounted for about 10 per cent of cryptocurrency losses. “Scams targeting investors who use cryptocurrency are skyrocketing in severity and complexity,” said FBI Director Christopher Wray. “The best way to help stop these crimes is for people to report them to ic3.gov, even if they did not suffer a financial loss. The information allows us to stay on top of emerging schemes and criminals’ use of the latest technologies, so we can keep the American public informed and go after those who commit these crimes,” he added. The report said the losses from cryptocurrency-related investment fraud schemes rose from USD 2.57 billion in 2022 to USD 3.96 billion in 2023, an increase of 53 per cent.