FP The publishers permit sharing of the e-paper's pdf on WhatsApp and other social media platforms Vol. 14 No. 154 | BHOPAL | SUNDAY | NOVEMBER 17, 2024 | Pages 16 ` 4 | Regd. No. Indore MP/ICD 216/2024-2026 | RNI No. mpeng/2010/35815 FREE www.freepressjournal.in Sports After Rohit, Gill also doubtful for 1st Test P.16 fp Briefs BEIJING 8 killed in stabbing spree Eight people were killed and 17 others injured when a 21-year-old student went on a stabbing spree in China's eastern city of Wuxi on Saturday evening, police said in a statement. The incident comes just days following an hit-andrun incident where thirtyfive people were killed and 43 others injured after a car drove into a group of people outside a sports centre in China's southern city of Zhuhai. HOSUR Jumbos damage crops An elephant herd entered villages near here from the Sanamavu reserve forest area and raided standing crops on Saturday, an official said. ESTD-1983 iii QUALITY @ VALUE EDITIONS: INDORE UJJAIN PRESS PUNE BHOPAL NASHIK WORLD Israeli troops reach deepest point in Lebanon since Oct 1 Cinema Nayanthara’s open letter fury P.14 Protesters storm homes of mins over hostage deaths PTI Bodies of 10 ‘ultras’ airlifted from Silchar IMPHAL Protesters stormed the residences of two ministers and three MLAs in Manipur's Imphal on Saturday, demanding justice for the murder of three persons in Jiribam district, police said. The mob attacks on legislators' houses prompted the Imphal West administration to impose prohibitory orders in the district for an indefinite period. According to an order issued by Imphal West District Magistrate Th Kirankumar, the curfew was imposed from 4.30 pm on Saturday. A mob stormed the residence of Health and Family Welfare Minister Sapam Ranjan in Lamphel Sanakeithel area, a senior officer said. Lamphel Sanakeithel Development Authority's representative David told reporters, "Sapam assured us that the issues related to the killing of three persons will be discussed at a cabinet meeting and that the minister will People run past burning vehicles during a protest in Imphal on Saturday BODIES OF THREE HOSTAGES FOUND Three bodies suspected to be of six persons missing were found near the confluence of Jiri river and Barak river along Manipur-Assam border on Friday night. The bodies were found around 16 km from Borobekra in Jiribam district on Friday night from where the six persons went missing since November 11 after clash between ‘ultras’ & CRPF personnel where 10 suspected militants were killed. tender his resignation if the government fails to honour the sentiment of the public." Protesters also stormed the house of Consumer Affairs and Public Distribution Minister L Susindro Singh, another senior officer said. Agitators in Sagolband area of Imphal West district gathered in front of the residence of BJP legislator RK Imo, who is also the son-in-law of Chief Minister N Biren Singh. 4Continued on | P6 Rameshwar, Hemant and many other leaders may be out of the race The process for organisational polls in the BJP is afoot. The party will soon elect its state unit president, and several leaders have begun to make efforts to get the position. Many legislators are also in the race and working hard to get the job. According to sources in the party, the chances of legislators becoming the state party president are thin. Instead of a legislator, an MP or any other leader may be given a chance to lead the state BJP, sources said. Among the legislators, the names of Rameshwar Sharma, Hemant Khandelwal and Bhupendra Singh are doing the rounds. Among the ministers, Rajendra Shukla and Vishvas Sarang are also in the race. According to sources, none of them is going to be elected as state president. After Chhattisgarh was separated, an MP or any other leader has been elected as BJP’s MP unit president. Kailash Joshi, Satyanarayan Jatiya, Prabhat Jha, Nandkumar Singh Chouhan, Rakesh Singh and VD Sharma were the party’s state unit presidents. But none of them UP govt orders three-tier probe into Jhansi hosp fire PTI LUCKNOW/JHANSI The Uttar Pradesh government on Saturday ordered a three-tier probe into the fire incident at the children's ward of a medical college in Uttar Pradesh's Jhansi district that killed 10 newborns and also dismissed reports that the facility had expired fire extinguishers. Post-mortem of seven infants was carried out on Saturday while the autopsy of three could not be conducted as their parents have not been identified yet, Additional Superintendent of Police (City) of Jhansi Gyanendra Kumar Singh told PTI. According to Jhansi District Magistrate Avinash Kumar, the fire broke out around 10.45 pm on Friday in the NICU wards of the Maharani Laxmi Bai Medical College, one of the largest government hospitals in the state's Bundelkhand region, possibly due to an electrical short circuit. Deputy Chief Minister Brijesh Pathak dismissed media reports that the medical college had expired fire extinguishers. "All firefighting equipment in the medical college was completely fine," he said in a statement, adding a fire safety audit was carried out at the medical college in February and a mock drill was conducted in June. The principal of the medical college, Dr Narendra Singh Sengar, also termed the allegations "baseless". The blaze at the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU), was elected during their tenure as legislator. Only Narendra Singh Tomar was an exception. He became the state unit president when he was a legislator. After becoming the president, Tomar did not contest the assembly election in 2008. When he became the president for the second time in 2012, he was an MP. 4Continued on | P6 Man held for assault on UP min’s staff Our Staff Reporter BHOPAL where the infants admitted were mostly prematurely born, has been doused but the air around is heavy with sorrow. Man attacked the personal security officer of UP minister Manohar Lal and snatched his pistol following a road rage incident in Gwalior district, police said on Saturday. Police arrested the accused. ASP Gajendra Vardhaman, said that the accused also beat up another employee of the Uttar Pradesh minister in the incident that took place near Jaurasi village on Gwalior-Jhansi highway on Friday night. He said that the vehicle of the UP minister, who was on his way from Agra to Lalitpur, got stuck in a traffic jam following an accident involving a truck on the highway between Gwalior and Dabra in MP. 4Continued on | P6 4Continued on | P6 Newborn babies after being safely rescued crime Guwahati: The bodies of the 10 Kuki-Zo youths killed in a gunfight with security personnel in Manipur's Jiribam town were on Saturday airlifted to Churachandpur from Assam's Silchar town, where the autopsies were conducted. Earlier in the day, police had to resort to lathi-charge outside the Silchar Medical College Hospital (SMCH) after the family members of the youths clashed with forces, demanding the bodies be handed over to them. Assam Police officials tried to convince them that the bodies would be handed over to Manipur Police, and they could take the matter up with the authorities there. However, the agitated family members refused to accept the proposal, attacking police personnel and resorting to stone pelting, injuring several people. All the arrested are residents of Bihar, who used to sell fake ID proofs and SIM cards to cyber crooks for committing frauds across the country Our Staff Reporter BHOPAL ducted a raid on the gang’s call centre and arrested seven individuals, including six men and one woman. Bhopal police commissioner Harinarayanchari Mishra told the media that the accused used to manipulate official identification MUDA SCAM: Clean chit to Sidda in Lokayukta interim report cards by altering photographs and linking fake documents to open fraudulent bank accounts. 4Continued on | P6 Agencies NEW DELHI 4 suspended for removing Scindia’s bust Our Staff Reporter BHOPAL BJP state president VD Sharma has strongly criticized the insensitive manner in which the bust of late Madhav Rao Scindia was shifted from Katni Bypass. He directed district collector and NHAI officers that the bust should be done at a better place and the spot should be beautified. He said that showing insensitivity while shifting busts of great leaders won’t be tolerated. After his intervention, NHAI Project Director suspended guilty Senior Engineer Manoj Verma, Engineer Ashish Singh Parihar, Team Leader Rajesh Kumar Nema and Assistant Bridge Engineer Deepak Soni with immediate effect. Meanwhile, late Scindia’s bust has not been placed at a proper place. The bust was coming in the way of road construction and the NHAI officials removed the bust without taking proper care of it. The Election Commission on Saturday sought explanations from the party presidents of the BJP and the Congress - the two principal rival parties at the national level - asking them to explain the comments made by their star campaigners Amit Shah and Rahul Gandhi. The comments allegedly violate the poll code. BJP's JP Nadda and Congress' Mallikarjun Kharge have to submit their responses by 1 am on Monday, two days before polls close for Maharashtra and Jharkhand (which will be conducting round two of polling). The BJP had filed a complaint against Rahul Gandhi, claiming that the Congress leader "falsely accused other states of stealing and snatching alleged opportunities from the State of Maharashtra" in a speech in Mumbai on November 6. "Rahul Gandhi with his statements is inciting the youths of Maharashtra which is immensely dangerous for the unity and integrity of the nation. As only expected and in line with his typical pattern of campaigning and general conduct, Rahul Gandhi's IANS FP News Service BENGALURU Mysuru Lokayukta police probing the allotment of alternative plots scam by Mysore Urban Development Authority (MUDA) has given clean chit to Chief Minister Siddaramaiah while pointing at serious lapses by officials. An interim report was submitted by investigating officer and Superintendent of Police (SP) TJ Udesh to Lokayukta Inspector General of Police (IGP) Dr A Subramaneswara Rao. Siddaramaiah is number one accused in the case, while his wife BM Parvathi is accused number two, her brother Mallikharjun Swamy is three and Devaraj who had sold land to Swamy is accused number four. In the report, it is said that there is no evidence against the CM's role in allotment of alternative plots to his wife BM Paravathi by MUDA in lieu of 3.16 acres of agricultural land acquired by the latter. It is said that Parvathi's brother Mallikharjuna Swamy purchased the land from Devaraju. Devraju had acquired this 3.16 acres of land from his brother who in turn inherited it from his father. Rahul’s bag checked Ahead of the Maharashtra Assembly election, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi found himself under scrutiny as Election Commission officials inspected his bags upon his arrival at Amravati district today. This inspection, which took place just a day after a similar controversy over his helicopter being grounded in Jharkhand, has prompted Congress to accuse the poll body of unfairness speech was full of falsehood and lies, intending to create disaffection, enmity and ill-will between the states of Union of India. Rahul Gandhi with his misleading statement has tried to create a divide between the people of Maharashtra and Gujarat & other states," said the BJP in its complaint on November 11. The Congress in a counter-complaint alleged that Home Minister Amit Shah delivered a "slew of false, divisive, malicious, and slanderous statements about the Indian National Congress (INC) and its allies" during an election rally in Dhanbad on November 12. Centre approves uniform protection protocol for users of Indian grid NEW DELHI The Central Electricity Authority (CEA) on Saturday said it has approved the uniform protection protocol for users of the Indian grid for implementation on a pan-India basis. The protocol is for the users of the grid for proper coordination of the protection system in order to protect the equipment/system from abnormal operating conditions, isolate the faulty equipment and avoid unintended operation of the protection system.It aims to ensure grid stability, reliability, security and also support the government’s vision for integration of 450 GW renewable energy into the national grid by 2030 and an ambitious target of 2,100 GW of Renewable energy by 2047, said the Ministry of Power in a statement. Baba Siddique murder: Bishnoi gang aide held Rajesh Moudgil CHANDIGARH Punjab Police’s Anti Gangster Task Force (AGTF) in a joint operation with Maharashtra olice on Saturday claimed to have nabbed a Fazilka-based person in connection with the NCP leader Baba Siddique murder case. It may be recalled that Baba Siddique was shot dead by three assailants on October 12 last outside his son Zeeshan’s office in Mumbai’s Bandra area. Director General of Police (DGP), Punjab, Gaurav Yadav said that the arrested accused was identified as Akash Gill, a resident of Pakka Chishti in district Fazilka and preliminary investigation revealed the accused is an associate of Lawrence Bishnoi Gang and was providing logistical assistance to the shooters involved in the murder of Baba Siddique. He said that the accused has been handed over to the Mumbai police for further investigations. The National Power Committee (NPC), in consultation with regional power committees (RPCs), has prepared the protocol for the users.The key features of the protocol are applicability, general philosophy of protection system, protection schemes, monitoring and audits and disturbance monitoring, analysis and reporting, performance monitoring and compliance monitoring. During a meeting of high-level officials from the sector, various other key issues of the Indian power sector were discussed. Govt planning major reshuffle of Bandhavgarh Reserve staff IANS BHOPAL In the wake of the mass death of 10 wild elephants in the Bandhavgarh Tiger Reserve (BTR), the Madhya Pradesh Forest Department has planned a major reshuffle of the staff posted there soon. Forest staff posted in the BTR in the state's Umaria district for the last several years will be transferred, a senior official associated with the Forest Department told IANS on condition of anonymity. ISRO satellite to ride Musk’s SpaceX NEW DELHI Inter-state gang making fake IDs busted City’s Hanumanganj police on Saturday busted an interstate gang from Bihar accused of making and selling fake Aadhaar and PAN cards, SIM cards, and bank accounts mainly to cyber criminals across India. The Hanumanganj police con- EC notices to BJP, Cong over Shah, Rahul speeches MANIPUR ON BOIL: Curfew imposed in Imphal West and Imphal East, internet suspended in 7 districts after violence Chances of MLA becoming state BJP prez slim Nitendra Sharma E-paper readers’ corner Gender Equality: Govt & Civil Society Partnership a must P.8 When will PM With the PM embarking on a three-nation tour, the Congress on visit Manipur Saturday asked when Modi visit the strife-torn state. BHOPAL MUMBAI The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) is all set to launch its communication satellite aboard the Elon Muskowned SpaceX's Falcon 9 rocket. ISRO's launch vehicle Mark3 can put 4,000 kg into a geostationary transfer orbit, however, as GSAT-N2 weighs 4,700 kg, the space agency is using SpaceX's launch vehicle. This marks ISRO's first commercial launch using SpaceX. GSAT-N2 (GSAT-20) is a Kaband high-throughput communication satellite of The 4700-kilogram GSAT-N2 satellite aims to provide data or Internet services to remote areas. It will also enable the availability of Internet in aeroplanes across the Indian region NewSpace India Limited (NSIL), under the Department of Space and the commercial arm of ISRO. The satellite features multiple spot beams and aims to support a large subscriber base with small user terminals. According to ISRO: "GSATN2 has a mission life of 14 years. and is equipped with 32 user beams, comprising 8 narrow spot beams over the Northeast region and 24 wide spot beams over the rest of India. These 32 beams will be supported by hub stations lo- cated within mainland India. The Ka-Band HTS communication payload provides a throughput of approximately 48 Gbps". "This homegrown satellite when operational will fill that big hole of in-flight Internet connectivity that exists over India on the world Internet map," said Dr M Sankaran, Director of UR Rao Satellite Centre in Bengaluru. "This is India's highest throughput satellite and the only one operating exclusively in the much sought-after Ka-band," says Dr Sankaran. 4Continued on | P6