FP The publishers permit sharing of the e-paper's pdf on WhatsApp and other social media platforms Vol. XLI No. 161 | INDORE | MONDAY | NOVEMBER 18, 2024 | Pages 12 ` 3 | Regd. No. Indore MP/ICD 216/2024-2026 | RNI No. 38281/83 FREE www.freepressjournal.in Sports McGrath urgesAussies to go hard on ‘emotional’ Kohli ESTD-1983 iii QUALITY @ VALUE EDITIONS: INDORE Digjyoti Lahkar GUWAHATI Briefs NEW DELHI Delhi 2nd most polluted Delhi's air quality worsened further on Sunday, with an AQI of 441, making it the second-most polluted city in the country. The city's 24-hour AQI, recorded at 4 pm daily, stood at 441, in the "severe" category. TEL AVIV Hezbollah's main spokesman killed The main spokesman for Lebanon's Hezbollah militant group was killed in the first Israeli airstrike on central Beirut in more than a month on Sunday, an official of the militant group said. Security personnel check a vehicle in a sensitive area of Manipur Shah reviews situation Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Sunday reviewed the security situation in Manipur and directed top officials to take all possible steps to ensure peace in the Northeastern state, sources said. Shah is expected to hold another detailed meeting with top officers on Monday. BJP wants Manipur to burn: Kharge As fresh violence erupted in Manipur, Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge on Sunday alleged the ruling party deliberately wants the border state to burn as "it serves their hateful divisive politics". "@narendramodi ji, Under your double engine governments, 'neither Manipur is one, nor is Manipur Safe'," the Congress president said in a post on X. the NPP has laid bare growing cracks within the coalition. The turmoil in Manipur deepened over the weekend with the discovery of two more Meitei bodies floating in Assam's Barak River. The victims, including a woman and a headless minor, are suspected to be among six individuals abducted last week from Jiribam. Their deaths have ignited widespread protests in the valley regions, with mobs targeting political leaders’ residences. Over 13 lawmakers’ homes, including those of BJP and opposition leaders, were either vandalised or torched by angry demonstrators. Among the targeted properties were the residences of a state minister and nine BJP legislators, signalling public outrage against the government’s perceived inaction. 4Continued on | P6 AAP leader Gahlot shows party the mirror, resigns Kejriwal refuses to comment FP News Service NEW DELHI In a dramatic move, Kailash Gahlot, the Delhi Transport Minister, resigned from both the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) and its Cabinet on Sunday, dealing a severe blow to the party ahead of the upcoming Delhi Assembly elections. The 50-year-old Jat leader’s decision comes after months of mounting internal and external pressures, particularly over corruption allegations surrounding his party’s leadership and the government’s failure to deliver on key promises. In his resignation letter ad- dressed to AAP convener Arvind Kejriwal, Gahlot expressed his disillusionment with the party’s shifting priorities and internal conflicts. He cited the ongoing controversy over the renovation of Kejriwal’s official residence, dubbed 'Sheeshmahal', which has been the subject of an investigation by the CBI. Gahlot described the con- ‘Giving Pak Guru Nanak’s birthplace was a mistake’ At a press meet to welcome former BJP MLA Anil Jha into AAP, Kejriwal was asked about Gahlot's surprise exit, the former CM promptly turned the microphone towards senior party leader Durgesh Pathak, seated next to him. troversy as deeply embarrassing and damaging to the party's credibility, noting that such issues undermined AAP’s claim of representing the common man. 4Continued on | P6 4-month-old tiger cub found dead in Pench Our Staff Reporter BHOPAL Our Staff Reporter BHOPAL Chief Minister Mohan Yadav said that Pakistan should never have been allowed to keep the birth place of Guru Nanak Dev as part of its territory. It was a big historical mistake made during the time of partition, he said. Had this mistake not being made, then the birth place of Guru Nanak Dev would have been inside our country. He was addressing the pro- gramme organised to mark the 555th Pavan Prakash Parv of Guru Nanak Dev at CM House on Sunday night. He maintained that even the division of Punjab was a big mistake. Assuring all possible help to Sikh community to solve some of their pending issues, including that in Arera Colony, he said that the government has already made efforts to include the lives and works of all Gurus, from Guru Nanak to Guru Govind Singh in school syllabus. A tiger cub of around four months was found dead in camp number 188 of Ari Buffer range in Pench Tiger Reserve. All vital organs of the cub are safe. Help of dog squad is being taken to probe the case. Intense search exercise is being carried out. Field Director of Pench Tiger Reserve, Deva Prasad said that the sample of the dead cub was collected and being sent for forensic probe. 4Continued on | P6 fire power boost India joins elite hypersonic missile club IANS This hypersonic missile is designed to carry various payloads for ranges greater than 1,500 km for all Indian Armed Forces wings NEW DELHI The DRDO has conducted a successful flight trial of a longrange hypersonic missile off the Odisha coast. Union Defence Minister Rajnath Singh in a post on X on Sunday announced the significant achievement and said that this has put the country in the group of select nations having capabilities of such critical and advanced military technologies. The flight trial of the longrange hypersonic missile was BHOPAL NASHIK conducted from the Dr APJ Abdul Kalam Island off the coast of Odisha. The trial was carried out in the presence of senior scientists of DRDO and the Armed Forces. The Defence Minister congratulated the Armed forces and the Industry for the suc- cessful launch. "India has achieved a major milestone by successfully conducting flight trial of long range hypersonic missile from Dr APJ Abdul Kalam Island, off-the-coast of Odisha. 4Continued on | P6 MUMBAI E-paper Edit No escaping the Trumpian chaos P.8 India’s FTAs not paused, all talks progressing as per schedule: Official NPP withdraws support from BJP-led coaliton govt fp PUNE MONEY MANIPUR VIOLENCE FALLOUT: No immediate threat to govt as BJP enjoys absolute majority in the house with 32 members The Conrad Sangma-led National People’s Party (NPP) has withdrawn its support from Manipur’s BJP-led government, citing dissatisfaction with Chief Minister N. Biren Singh’s handling of the state’s spiralling ethnic violence. However, the BJP retains a comfortable majority in the Assembly, securing its position despite the political turbulence. In a strongly worded letter to BJP national president JP Nadda, Sangma condemned the government's inability to restore normalcy amid ongoing violence, which has left communities shattered. "The situation has spiralled out of control, with innocent lives lost and communities suffering," the letter read. With the withdrawal of its seven MLAs, UJJAIN PRESS Brand Sutra Classrooms Of The Future P.12 Jawan hurt in exchange of fire with Naxals Our Staff Reporter BHOPAL Short circuit blamed forJhansi hosp fire Agencies In a gunfire exchange between left wing extremists and security forces, a Hawk Force jawan received gunshot wounds in Balaghat, police said on Sunday. The police informed that based on intelligence input, Hawk force teams lay siege of Kundul forest area which falls under police station Roopjhar on Sunday morning. When the police reached the spot, around 10-12 LWE extremists opened fire on them. The police team also got engaged in cross firing. In the fight, constable Shivkumar Sharma received a gunshot. 4Continued on | P6 NEW DELHI The fire at a hospital in Uttar Pradesh that killed 11 newborns, was entirely accidental and not deliberate, a twomember committee investigating the matter has found. There is no criminal conspiracy or negligence in the incident, due to which no FIR has been registered till now, sources said, quoting the findings of the two-member panel. The fire broke out around 10.45 pm on Friday in the neonatal wards of Jhansi's Maharani Laxmi Bai Medical College, one of the largest government hospitals in the state's Bundelkhand region. The doctors told the committee that water sprinklers are not installed in the NICU ward due to the presence of newborns, sources said The committee of Jhansi Commissioner Vipul Dubey and DIG Range Kalanidhi Nathani - which was expected to file its report within 24 hours - found that the fire was caused by a short circuit in the switchboard and could not be brought under control as sprinklers were not installed in paediatrics ward. At the time, six nurses and other staff and two doctors were present in the NICU ward. One of the nurses sus- tained burns on her legs while attempting to douse the fire. The fire from the switchboard had rapidly started spreading towards the oxygen concentrator when a paramedical staff and two others went in with fire extinguishers. But by then, the fire was beyond control, sources said, pointing to the findings of the committee. Within minutes though, fire tenders reached the spot. 4Continued on | P6 38 hurt as cylinder explodes at Chhatarpur bus stand Flames engulf 100-metre radius FP News Service CHHATARPUR A gas cylinder exploded at Bijawar bus stand on Sunday afternoon, which left 38 people injured, including women and children, the police said. The blast occurred at a food stall selling patties, where gas leakage preceded the explosion. According to the bystanders, the flames engulfed a 100-metre radius, causing panic and chaos in the crowded marketplace. Of the injured, 34 have been referred to the Chhatarpur district hospital, with six in critical condition suffering burns over 40% of their bodies. They are being sent to Gwalior for advanced treatment. Four individuals with minor injuries were treated at a private clinic in Bijawar, the police said. Eyewitnesses told the media that the food stall had three cylinders, one of which exploded during the busy Sunday market. The explosion triggered a stampede as people tried to escape the flames, but many sustained injuries while fleeing. Local MLA Rajesh Shukla Bablu visited the victims at Bijawar hospital and assured them of support. Chhatarpur Collector Parth Jaiswal stated, “All injured are receiving the best possible treatment. Strict action will be taken against the use of domestic gas cylinders by vendors.” 4Continued on | P6