THURSDAY 12 SEPTEMBER 2024 www.thestatesman.com X.com/thestatesmanltd. Fb/thestatesman1875 INDIA’S NATIONAL NEWSPAPER SINCE 1818 Pages 14 |` 5.00|LC KOLKATA | NEW DELHI | SILIGURI | BHUBANESWAR ‘BJP RATTLED BY INDIA ALLIANCE UNITY IN J&K’ KERALA MLA PHONE TAPPING ROW: GUV SEEKS REPORT FROM CM P4 SENSEX 81,523.16q398.13 WEATHER Scattered thunderstorms. Storms could contain frequent lightning. Maximum and minimum temperatures likely to be around 33 °C and 27 °C respectively. RAINFALL: NIL RELATIVE HUMIDITY Max. 89 % P5 24,918.45q122.65 Min. 81 % ` vs $ 83.98 GOLD 74,150.00 Full Moon on 18 September THUMBNAILS Devotees immerse an idol of Lord Ganesha at Dadar Beach during the ongoing Ganesh Jayanti celebrations, in Mumbai on Wednesday. n ANI Two heavily armed terrorists killed in gunfight with Army in Jammu's Kathua: Days ahead of the first phase of the assembly election in J&K, the Indian Army eliminated two heavily armed terrorists in an ongoing gunfight at Khandara near the Basantgarh area in the Kathua. The gunfight took place when troops of the 1st Para of the Army along with police moved to Khandara top following information about the presence of a group of terrorists. Doctors reject second invite from govt for talks, put up conditions A second invitation was sent by the state chief secretary for a meeting with state government and the agitating junior doctors on Wednesday, but the latter did not turn up at Nabanna, the state administrative headquarters. he impasse between the state government and junior doctors agitating over the brutal rape and murder of a PGT doctor at the RG Kar Medical College and Hospital continued on Wednesday, with the striking doctors rejecting a fresh invitation for talks with the government. A second invitation was sent by the state chief secretary for a meeting between state government officials and the agitating junior doctors on Wednesday, but the latter did not turn up at Nabanna, the state administrative headquarters this evening. Mrs Chandrima Bhattacharya, state finance minister, said the state government had sought discussions with the junior doctors with an open mind, but they are interested in imposing conditions. “No discussion can be held after imposing conditions,” she said, adding that the agitating junior doctors are being guided by political parties and urging them A junior doctor speaks during the second day of their sit-in demonstration in front of Swasthya Bhawan over the RG Kar Hospital rape-murder case, in Kolkata on Wednesday. n ANI not to be swayed by political provocation. She asked: “Is it normal to send an email to the Chief Minister at 3.45 a.m? Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee had waited for them till 7.30 p.m at Nabanna on Tuesday. The Supreme Court had given instructions to the junior doctors to resume duties by 5 p.m on Tuesday. But they flouted the Supreme Court order." Asked what step the state government would take regarding the matter, she said: “We have not yet decided.” Mr Manoj Pant, the state chief secretary said: “A letter was sent to the junior doctors at 3.25 p.m. informing them about the meeting at 6 p.m. The junior doctors, however, put up several conditions, which included that the entire discussion will have to be telecast in private television channels and that the Chief Minister will have to remain present at the meeting.” Mr Pant hoped that the junior doctors will resume duties. “We wanted to discuss the matter like improvement of infrastructures in hospitals with an open mind, but they did not turn up.” Rajnath Singh, Amit Shah, other ministers slam Rahul Gandhi for his remarks on Sikhs, reservations STATESMAN NEWS SERVICE NEW DELHI, 11 SEPTEMBER Gurdwaras, they are being prevented from behaving according to their religion. This is completely baseless and far from the truth," the Defence Minister said. Mr Singh said the entire country recognises and respects the great role played by the Sikh community in protecting the culture of India. “It is not befitting for an Opposition leader to make such false statements about them,” he added. He also slammed Mr Gandhi for his claims that the NDA government wants to abolish reservation and said that these are “baseless” claims. “Rahulji’s claim that the NDA government wants to abolish reservation is also completely baseless. Our Prime Minister has strengthened the reservation system for the welfare and development of Dalits, backward classes and tribals. Similarly, the kind of claims he has made on the soil of America regarding the India-China border dispute are also misleading and beyond facts. It seems that while running the shop of love, Rahulji has opened a shop of lies. Rahulji should refrain from making such false statements,” he added. During an interaction at Georgetown University, Mr Gandhi had remarked, “We will think of scrapping reservations when India is a fair place. And India is not a fair place.” Union Home Minister Amit Shah also launched a scathing attack on Mr Gandhi, accusing him and his party of consistently aligning with forces that threaten national unity. He pointed to the Congress’ history of supporting the Jammu and Kashmir National Conference (JKNC) and its opposition to the reservation system in Jammu and Kashmir, claiming these actions have repeatedly endangered national security.“Standing with forces that conspire to divide the country and making antinational statements has become a habit for Rahul Gandhi and the Congress party,” Mr Shah stated. Mr Rajeev Kumar, director general of police, said steps are being taken to ensure safety and security in state run hospitals. “We have taken certain measures to beef up security and we wanted to discuss with the junior doctors. But they impose certain conditions. With this attitude no discussion with open mind is possible,” Mr Kumar said. The agitating doctors, among other conditions, said any meeting should be held according to their terms and their original demands (for the resignation of the Kolkata commissioner of police and senior health department officials, and that they should be allowed to send a 30-member delegation. BRENT CRUDE (IN $) 69.85p1.02 STATESMAN NEWS SERVICE NEW DELHI, 11 SEPTEMBER from shale rock) and border security. Ms Harris, in turn, blamed Mr Trump for what she called the “Trump abortion bans” spreading across states and condemned him for the 6 January 2021 attack on the Capitol following his defeat in the previous elections. According to early snap polls, Ms Harris appeared to have won the debate, but Mr Trump later claimed she “lost very badly”. American voters appeared to agree that Ms Harris outperformed Mr Trump during the presidential debate, with 63 per cent of viewers polled by an independent research firm for CNN saying that she had done better. The vice president also outpaced both debate watchers’ expectations for her and Joe Biden’s onstage performance against the former president earlier this year, the poll found. Most US media organisations also declared Ms Harris the clear winner, with The New York Times saying Ms Harris "owned much of the night" as she ffectively put Trump on the defensive from the start, maintaining control throughout the debate. Politico declared Ms Harris the winner of the debate, and said it wasn't even a close victory. The Washington Post said Mr Trump often strayed from facts and resorted to debunked theories about the 2020 presidential polls that he lost and immigration. CNN said Mr Trump took every bait that Ms Harris used to throw him off his game. The Wall Street Journal echoed this, noting that Ms Harris successfully baited Mr Trump into animated responses on several issues, including his legal troubles. USA Today described Harris' performance as forceful, rattling a defensive Trump. Even right-leaning Fox News agreed that Ms Harris had won the debate, though it focused on Mr Trump having to spar with the ABC News' debate moderators for factchecking him. (See also page 9) STATESMAN NEWS SERVICE The decision will benefit approximately 4.5 crore families with six crore senior citizens with a Rs 5 lakh free health insurance cover on a family basis, I&B minister Ashwini Vaishnaw said. NEW DELHI, 11 SEPTEMBER The Union Cabinet, chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, on Wednesday approved health coverage to all senior citizens aged 70 years and above irrespective of income under the flagship scheme Ayushman Bharat Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana (AB PM-JAY). Briefing newspersons Information and Broadcasting Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw said the decision will benefit approximately 4.5 crore families with six crore senior citizens with a Rs 5 lakh free health insurance cover on a family basis. Senior citizens of 70 years and above age who are already availing benefits of other public health insurance schemes such as Central Government Health Scheme (CGHS), Ex-Servicemen Contributory Health Scheme (ECHS), Ayushman Central Armed Police Force (CAPF) may either choose their existing scheme or opt for AB PMJAY. With today’s decision, all senior citizens of age 70 years and above irrespective of their socio-economic status will be eligible to avail the benefits of AB PM-JAY. The eligible senior citizens will be issued a new distinct card under AB PM-JAY. The senior citizens of the age 70 years and above belonging to families already covered under AB PM-JAY will get an additional top-up cover up to Rs 5 lakh per year for themselves (which they do not have to share with the other members of the family who are below the age of 70 years). It has been clarified that senior citizens of 70 years and above who are under private health insurance policies or Employees’ State Insurance scheme will be eligible to avail benefits under AB PMJAY. The AB PM-JAY is the world’s largest publicly funded health assurance scheme which provides health cover of Rs. 5 lakh per family per year for secondary and tertiary care hospitalization to 55 crore individuals corresponding to 12.34 crore families. All members of the eligible families irrespective of age are covered under the scheme. The scheme has covered 7.37 crore hospital admissions including 49 per cent women beneficiaries. The public has benefited to the extent of over Rs 1 lakh crore under the scheme. The AB PM-JAY scheme has witnessed continuous expansion of the beneficiary base. Initially, 10.74 crore poor and vulnerable families comprising the bottom 40 per cent of India’s population were covered under the scheme. Later, the government in January 2022 revised the beneficiary base under AB PMJAY from 10.74 crore to 12 crore families considering India’s decadal population growth of 11.7 per cent over 2011 population. The scheme was further expanded to cover 37 lakh ASHAs/AWWs/AWHs working across the country and their families for free healthcare benefits. PM Modi has not handled Chinese situation well, alleges Rahul Gandhi STATESMAN NEWS SERVICE NEW DELHI, 11 SEPTEMBER Against the backdrop of the border standoff with China, Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi said Prime Minister Narendra Modi has not handled the situation well and added that he sees no reason for Chinese troops sitting in “Indian” territory. In his maiden interaction with the media after taking over as the Leader of Opposition in the Lower House, at the National Press Club, Washington DC, USA, he said: “We’ve got Chinese troops occupying land the size of Delhi in Ladakh, and I think that’s a disaster.” “The media doesn’t like to write about it. How would America react if a neighbour occupied 4,000 square kilometers of its territory? Would any president be able to get away with saying he has handled that well? So, I don’t think Mr Modi has handled China well at all. I see no reason US presidential debate: Edge to Harris in first face-off with Trump NSA Ajit Doval In a fiery 90-minute US presidential debate in Philadelphia, Vice-President Kamala Harris and her Republican rival Donald Trump faced off for the first time ahead of the 2024 US presidential elections, one that viewers and media outlets broadly agreed that Ms Harris had won handily. The debate, which started with a hand-shake, sparked intense exchanges, starting with policy discussions but quickly descending into sharp personal attacks. Ms Harris took a potshot at Mr Trump’s rallies, claiming that attendees leave his poll events early out of “exhaustion and boredom.” Mr Trump shot back, claiming people don’t even show up to Ms Harris’s rallies. Mr Trump criticised Ms Harris for allegedly shifting her stance on issues such as fracking (technology that allows oil and gas to be extracted SILVER 91,500 P14 Impasse between govt, All citizens above 70 yrs brought striking docs continues under Ayushman health scheme T Min: 27.5˚C SUN SETS 17:42 hrs MOON SETS 23:54 hrs Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, Union Home Minister Amit Shah and other Union ministers Wednesday launched a scathing attack on Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi over his remarks on the Sikh community and reservations in the US, saying his statements are “misleading, baseless and extremely shameful.” It seems that while running ‘Mohabbat Ki Dukaan (shop of love), the Congress leader has opened ‘Jhooth Ki Dukaan’ (shop of lies), Defence Minister Rajnath Singh said in a social media post on X. "The kind of misleading, baseless and factless things that the Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha, Rahul Gandhi, is saying during his foreign tour are extremely shameful and hurt the dignity of India. He has said that the Sikh community in India is not allowed to wear turbans in P7 STATESMAN NEWS SERVICE KOLKATA, 11 SEPTEMBER TEMPERATURE Max: 33.2˚C SUN RISES 05:22 hrs MOON RISES 13:15 hrs NIFTY VINESH SMELLS POLITICS BEHIND PHOTO WITH PT USHA BALANCING PRIVACY WITH NATIONAL SECURITY NEEDS attends BRICS meet in Russia why Chinese troops should be sitting in our territory,” Mr Gandhi said. Notably, India and China have been holding rounds of military-level talks to end the ongoing stand-off at eastern Ladakh. Referring to China, Mr Gandhi said: “The central question is, how do you challenge China on production and value addition? China's strength comes from that. China has a strong military, which stems from its ability to produce. It thrives because Americans are buying Chinese products, and Indians are buying Chinese products. So, what are we going to do about it? We can't continue on this trajectory.” “We simply can't move forward without building a manufacturing base, without involving large numbers of our people, and creating jobs for them. We are not like Singapore, where we can focus on services and expect everything to be fine. With billions of people in our country, it's not feasible. We need a solution, and that solution will come only from production,” Mr Gandhi said. Asserting that India is a very plural country, he said: “India is not just one idea, India is multiple ideas. When you imagine yourself to be something you are not, that’s when all your strategic problems begin.” In a veiled attack on the ruling BJP, Mr Gandhi said, “We are weakening our biggest strategic asset: India’s democracy. It’s not just India’s asset; it’s a global asset because it’s so significant. It’s a global public good. It’s being attacked in India. The Indian democracy has been under attack over the past ten years and has been greatly weakened, but now it’s fighting back. I am confident it will fight back.” “We feel very strongly that there is a very deep problem with participation, and we are going to address that problem. We want a comprehensive understanding of what’s going on and then apply a series of policies to correct it, with reservations being one of them,” he said. ‘India ready for a chips revolution’: PM Modi inaugurates SEMICON India 2024 STATESMAN NEWS SERVICE ST. PETERSBURG, 11 SEPTEMBER NEW DELHI, 11 SEPTEMBER National Security Adviser (NSA) Ajit Doval on Wednesday attended the BRICS National Security Advisers meeting in Saint Petersburg, Russia. The meeting of BRICS and BRICS Plus High-Level Security Officials is being held in St. Petersburg from 10 to 12 September. The Indian Embassy in Russia stated in a social media post: “Shri Ajit Doval is participating in the BRICS NSAs meeting in Saint Petersburg, Russia. During the sessions in the first half of the day, he spoke on modern security challenges, including ICT ( information and communication technology) related issues and terrorism, and the need to address them through joint efforts within the BRICS framework." AGENCIES Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday assured global semiconductor giants that a sound business ecosystem exists in India and when industries invest and create value, the government complements that with stable policies and Ease of Doing Business. He was inaugurating the three-day SEMICON India 2024 at India Expo Mart in Greater Noida. Organised to showcase India’s semiconductor strategy and policy, the conference is being attended by global leaders, companies and experts of the semiconductor industry. The PM said: “In the 21stcentury India, the chips are never down,” and added, India of today assures the world, “when the chips are down, you can bet on India.” Like the integrated circuits in the semiconductor industry, India provides an integrated ecosystem, he said. India’s designers have immense talent. Their contribution to the world of designing is 20 per cent and is growing continuously. India is creating a semiconductor workforce of 85,000 technicians, engineers and R&D experts, he said. “India is focused on making its students and professionals industry ready,” the Prime Minister said, recalling the first meeting of the Anusand- han National Research Foundation which aims to give a new direction and energy to India’s research ecosystem. The initiatives are bound to increase the scope of semiconductors and innovations in the science sector, highlighting the government’s emphasis on semiconductor infrastructure, the PM said. India is today powered in three ways, he said. It has a reform-oriented government, a growing manufacturing base and an aspirational market which appreciates technology. This three-dimensional powered environment is difficult to find elsewhere, he said. The PM told the semiconductor industry that India’s aspirational and tech-oriented society is very unique. For India, a chip is not just a technology. “For us, it is a means to fulfil millions of aspirations,” he said.