THURSDAY 24 OCTOBER 2024 www.thestatesman.com Pages 12 |` 5.00|LC X.com/thestatesmanltd. Fb/thestatesman1875 INDIA’S NATIONAL NEWSPAPER SINCE 1818 KOLKATA | NEW DELHI | SILIGURI | BHUBANESWAR WAYAND BYPOLL: PRIYANKA GANDHI FILES NOMINATION THE GREAT DIVIDE P6 SENSEX 80,081.98q138.74 WEATHER MAINLY CLEAR SKY. MIST IN THE MORNING HOURS. THE MAXIMUM AND MINIMUM TEMPERATURES WOULD BE AROUND 33 AND 19 DEGREES CELSIUS RESPECTIVELY. RAINFALL: Nil RELATIVE HUMIDITY Max. 93 % TEMPERATURE P8 NIFTY 24,435.50q36.60 P9 ` vs $ 84.08 GOLD 81,070.00 PM Modi and Chinese Prez Xi Jinping hold first bilateral talks in 5 years NEW DELHI, 23 OCTOBER Min: 20.5 °C (+3) SUN SETS 17:43 hrs MOON SETS 14:02 hrs THUMBNAILS A woman arranges earthen lamps for drying ahead of the upcoming Diwali festival in Bikaner on Wednesday. n ANI Cong-Shiv Sena (UBT)-NCP (SCP) to contest 85 seats each in Maharashtra polls: The Congress, Shiv Sena-Uddhav Balasaheb Thackeray and NCP-Sharadchandra Pawar-led Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) on Wednesday finalised seat-sharing for the forthcoming Assembly elections in Maharashtra with each of the parties to contest 85 seats. (Pg5) U nderlining that the relationship between India and China is very important not only for the people of the two nations but also for global peace, stability and progress, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday told Chinese President Xi Jinping that mutual trust, mutual respect and mutual sensitivity should be the basis for ties between the two neighbours. The two leaders met at Kazan in Russia this evening on the margins of the BRICS Summit. This was their first bilateral meeting in five years. The two leaders had last met for an informal summit at Mamallapuram in October 2019, a few months before a military standoff erupted between the forces of the two countries at eastern Ladakh in AprilMay 2020. The much-anticipated meeting came two days after Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri announced that the two countries Prime Minister Narendra Modi meets Chinese President Xi Jinping on the sidelines of the BRICS Summit, in Kazan on Wednesday. n ANI have reached an agreement for patrolling arrangements along the Line of Actual Control (LAC), leading to disengagement and a resolution of the military stand-off after over four years. Briefing reporters after the nearly 50-minute meeting between Mr Modi and Mr Xi, the foreign secretary said the two leaders welcomed the pact reached between the two countries on patrolling arrangements across the LAC through a sustained dialogue. They underscored the need for Clean and pollution-free environment a fundamental right, says Supreme Court PARMOD KUMAR NEW DELHI, 23 OCTOBER Stating that it is a fundamental right of the citizens to live in a clean and pollution-free environment under Article 21 of the Constitution guaranteeing right to life, the Supreme Court on Wednesday criticised the Punjab and Haryana governments for their failure to take action against the farmers involved in stubble burning, worsening the air pollution in the national capital and adjoining areas. Taking strong exception to the Punjab and Haryana governments not taking action against individuals for stubble burning and imposing nominal fines only in some cases, a bench comprising of Justice Abhay S. Oka, Justice Ahsanuddin Amanullah and Justice Augustine George Masih said that if Punjab and Haryana governments were genuinely interested in enforcing the law, there would have been at least one prosecution. The bench in its order said that both the state governments are picking and choosing people in collecting compensation and registering FIRs. “Time has come to remind the Union (of India), and both the states that there is a fundamental right subsisting with the citizens to live in a pollution-free environment. These are matters of blatant violation of fundamental rights under Article 21. It is not just a violation of orders of Commission (CAQM) but the government has to answer its own-self as to how it is going to protect the citizens right to live with dignity and in a pollution free environment. This litigation is not adversarial and is only litigation for us to ensure that citizens’ rights to live with dignity and clean environment are upheld,” the bench said. The top court also perused the affidavits by the Chief Secretaries of Punjab and Haryana who were present in the court in person in pursuance to the October 16 order directing their personal presence. Besides Punjab and Haryana, the top court’s stick also extended to the Central government as it slammed it for making ‘toothless’ environment laws, stating that the Commission for Air Quality Management (CAQM) Act provision on the penalty for stubble burning was not being implemented. The court told the Additional Solicitor General (ASG) Aishwarya Bhati, appearing for the central government, that the CAQM Act was enacted without creating a required machinery for its implementation to curb air pollution. IT Ministry slams Elon Musk-run X for ‘abetting crime’ after 100 flight bomb threats AGENCIES NEW DELHI, 23 OCTOBER The IT Ministry on Wednesday slammed Elon Musk-run social media platform X after more than 100 bomb threats were received by airlines over the past few days, with many of these hoaxes being circulated via social media platforms. In a virtual meeting with representatives of airlines and social media platforms such as X and Meta, the IT Ministry officials said the situation amounts to "X abetting crime" and questioned its representatives on the steps taken to stop such alarming rumours from spreading. Joint Secretary, IT, Sanket S Bhondve chaired the virtual meeting, according to reports. The online threats have NEW ZEALAND EYE RARE FEAT AS INDIA FACE A MUST-WIN TEST IN PUNE P12 SILVER 1,12,000 BRENT CRUDE (IN $) 74.69q1.35 ‘Mutual trust and respect No scope for double standards on should be basis for our ties’ terrorism, PM tells BRICS summit ASHOK TUTEJA Min. 45 % Max: 33.1 °C (+1) SUN RISES 06:28 hrs MOON RISES 23:56 hrs AUSTIN CONFIRMS N KOREA HAS SENT TROOPS TO RUSSIA created panic among the passengers and set off alarm bells for security agencies. Several flights, including international ones, were diverted after the hoax calls. More than 120 flights operated by Indian carriers have received bomb threats over the past few days. On Tuesday, 30 flights operated by IndiGo, Vistara and Air India received such threats. Union Civil Aviation Min- ister K Rammohan Naidu said on Monday that those circulating such hoax threats will face tough action, including being put on a no-fly list. The government plans to amend the ‘Suppression of Unlawful Acts’ against the ‘Safety of Civil Aviation Act’ so that action could be initiated for offences when an aircraft is on the ground. Currently, the aviation security norms largely cover in-flight offences. “We are trying to make amendments and the legal team has worked on it. We need consultations with other ministries also. We are definitely pushing forward to have changes in the Act also so that it addresses offences that happen when the flight is on the ground and also make it a cognisable offence,” the minister said. not allowing differences over the border issue to disturb peace and tranquility. In this regard, they underscored that the Special Representatives (SRs) on the border issue of the two sides have a central role to play. They instructed the SRs to meet at an early date to resume their dialogue. National Security Advisor Ajit Doval and Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi are the SRs on the two sides. The foreign secretary said Mr Doval and Mr Wang have been meeting on the sidelines of the multilateral summits since December 2019. ''We hope to schedule the next round of their meeting at an appropriate time,'' he added. The two leaders, Mr Misri said, were of the view that stable relations between their two countries will have a positive impact on global peace and stability. They also were of the opinion that the restoration of peace on the border will create space for normalisation of bilateral ties. He said officials of the two countries will now meet for strategic communication by utilising the available mechanisms, including at the level of the foreign ministers. Mr Modi assured President Xi of India's support for China's presidency of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO). In response to a question, Mr Misri said the pact on patrolling arrangements and the meeting between the two leaders had enabled the two countries to begin the journey to normalise bilateral ties. STATESMAN NEWS SERVICE NEW DELHI, 23 OCTOBER Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday told the 16th BRICS Summit at Kazan, Russia that fighting terrorism and terror financing required united and firm support of all nations and there was no scope for “double standards” in dealing with the serious problem.Addressing the plenary session of the Summit, he said: “We need to take active steps to stop radicalization of youth in our countries.” Mr Modi also said: “We must work together on the long pending matter in the UN of the Comprehensive Convention on International Terrorism.” The Prime Minister said the BRICS was meeting at a time when the world faced several pressing challenges such as wars, economic uncertainty, climate change and terrorism. The world was talking about North-South divide and the East-West divide. On conflicts, he said: “We support dialogue and diplomacy, not war. And just as we were able to overcome a challenge like Covid together, we are certainly able to create new opportunities to ensure a secure, strong and prosperous future for coming genera- tions.” He said there were high expectations from BRICS. “I believe that as a diverse and inclusive platform, BRICS can play a positive role” in facing the current challenges. “Our approach must remain people-centric. We have to give the world the message that BRICS is not a divisive organisation, but one that works in the interest of humanity,” he said. Priorities before all nations are preventing inflation, ensuring food, energy, health and water security, he said. The current era of technology has thrown up new challenges like cyber deep-fake and disinformation. “We need to work on global regulations for cyber security and for safe and secure AI,” the Prime Minister said. BRICS is an organisation, which is willing to evolve with time. “By giving our own example to the world we must collectively and in a united manner, raise our voice for reforms of global institutions,” he said, adding that India is ready to welcome new countries into BRICS as Partner Countries. He said all decisions should be taken by consensus, and the views of BRICS founding members should be respected. The guiding principles, standards, criteria and procedures adopted during the Johannesburg summit, should be complied with by all members and partner countries. “We must move forward in a time bound manner on reforms in global institutions such as the UN Security Council, multilateral development banks, and the WTO,” he said. However, he said: “As we take our efforts forward in BRICS, we must be careful to ensure that this organisation does not acquire the image of one that is trying to replace global institutions, instead of being perceived as one that wishes to reform them.” Hopes, aspirations and expectations of countries of the Global South must also be kept in mind, he said. “During our Voice of Global South Summits and G20 Presidency, India put the voices of these countries on the global stage,” he said. Cyclone Dana to make landfall between Bhitarkanika and Dhamara in Odisha STATESMAN NEWS SERVICE BHUBANESWAR, 23 OCTOBER Cyclone Dana hurtled menacingly towards the Odisha coast on Wednesday with dark clouds covering the afternoon sky and rain already taking place in districts like Bhadrak, Kendrapara and Balasore, which are likely to bear the brunt of the storm. The Odisha government has intensified its preparations, seeking to minimise the impact by evacuating people from lowlying areas, with barely 24 hours left for Dana to hit the coast. The landfall of the cyclone is likely to take place on 24 October night or 25 October morning close to Bhadrak and Kendrapara. The worry, more than the wind speed of the cyclone, is the forecast of tidal surge of at least one to two metres and the very heavy rainfall which is likely to inundate vast areas. With safety as a top priority, Odisha is racing against time to evacuate people, many of whom are reluctant to move as yet. More than 5,000 relief centres have been set up across the cyclone-prone Govt to hold 2-yr-long celebration to mark Sardar Patel’s 150th birth anniversary: Amit Shah regions, fully equipped with food, water, medicines, and other essential supplies, according to Revenue and Disaster Management Minister Suresh Pujari. Signs of nature’s fury triggering havoc are imminent. The government agencies launched the evacuation operation well in advance today as it began drizzling in the vulnerable Balasore, Bhadrak, Kendrapara and Jagatsinghpur districts as well as in other parts of the state. As many as 3,000 vulnerable coastal villages across 14 districts have been identified for shifting people to safety. Odisha Disaster Rapid Action Force units (51 of them), NDRF teams (19 in the state) and more flown in from Punjab reached the state on Tuesday. Fire services teams have also been deployed at vulnerable places. In a departure from previous years, ministers have been given responsibility and deputed to nine coastal districts to oversee the preparedness, relief and rescue operations. Amid these efforts, fear is rising as the India Mete- orological Department (IMD) predicts Dana will make landfall between Bhitarkanika and Dhamra on the night of 24 October or early morning of 25 October. With winds potentially reaching 110 km/h and gusting up to 120 km/h, accompanied by extremely heavy rainfall, residents are bracing for severe damage. Reassuring the public, Minister Pujari urged people not to panic, emphasising that communication lines will remain operational, with the telecom department working to ensure uninterrupted services. Power supplier Tata Power has also committed to maintaining electricity supply, with backup systems ready in case of outages. Over 288 rescue teams have been deployed to 14 districts, including 19 National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) and 51 Odisha Disaster Rapid Action Force (ODRF) teams. SMOKE CHOKES CAPITAL STATESMAN NEWS SERVICE NEW DELHI, 23 OCTOBER Union Home Minister Amit Shah has announced that the Government of India will commemorate the 150th birth anniversary of Sardar Patel with a two-year-long nationwide celebration from 2024 to 2026. In a social media post on X platform, he said: “Sardar Patel Ji’s enduring legacy as the visionary behind the establishment of one of the world's most robust democracies and his pivotal role in unifying India from Kashmir to Lakshadweep remains indelible.'' To honour Sardar Patel's monumental contributions, the Government of India, under the leadership of PM Narendra Modi, will com- memorate his 150th birth anniversary with a twoyear-long nationwide celebration from 2024 to 2026, Mr Shah said, adding that the celebration will serve as a testament to Sardar Patel's remarkable achievements and the spirit of unity that he epitomised. A view of India Gate covered in a layer of smog as the AQI was categorised as 'Very Poor' as per the Central Pollution Control Board in New Delhi on Wednesday. n ANI