MondAY 22 june, 2026 epaper.morningstandard.in facebook.com/TheMorningStandard X.com/TheMornStandard S t a r m e r un d e r s i ege Burnham gains momentum Germany players celebrate Deniz Undav’s (L) second goal on Saturday | ap Germany enter knockouts, historic point for Curacao UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer is facing a decision to step down or fight a possible challenge from Labour Party rival Andy Burnham A CAPITAL VIEW OF NEWS Page 9 l New Delhi l J8.00 l Germany become third side to officially qualify for the World Cup Round of 32 while debutants Curacao hold Ecuador to a goalless draw. Substitute Deniz Undav was the standout as Germany beat Ivory Coast 2-1 in Toronto | p11 PAGES 12 NEET-UG retest done, Three indigenous vessels join Navy to Physics stumps many strengthen India’s maritime influence No slip-ups this time; questions far more difficult, say experts E x p ress ne w s ser v i c e @ New Delhi A collective sigh of relief was evident across the country on Sunday evening after the NEET-UG retest concluded without any slip-ups. For a majority of the 20 lakh-odd medical aspirants across India who sat for the re-examination on Sunday, nearly six weeks after the original test was scrapped following a paper leak that triggered widespread protests and put the government on the defensive, the question paper appeared much tougher than the earlier one. The National Testing Agency (NTA) said candidates appeared at 5,440 centres in India and 14 abroad, with the exam conducted in 13 languages. Around seven lakh officials — including police personnel, observers and examination staff — were deployed to oversee the exercise, completed in what the agency described as a record 37 days. “This was not the NTA acting alone. It was Team Bharat — a chain of people across the country who showed up so that, for each candidate, the only thing that mattered that morning was the paper in front of them,” Director General of NTA, Abhishek Singh, said in a statement. NTA announced the results would be released earlier than expected. Security was visibly tightened at examination centres, with Aadhaar-based biometric authentication, CCTV surveillance, signal jammers and a mandatory two-layer frisking deployed. Impersonation attempts and forged admit cards were detected at a few locations, NTA Director General Abhishek Singh confirmed. “There have been a few instances of the usage of fake admit cards as well as fake Aadhaar cards by a few who tried to write the exam for others. They could not succeed in their objective,” Singh said. A candidate being frisked ahead of NEET-UG retest in Nagpur on Sunday | PTI NTA is especially grateful to the experts from academic institutions across the country who gave their personal time to help prepare multiple sets of question papers — National Testing Agency CJP protest to continue on Monday, farmers invited The Cockroach Janta Party on Sunday invited farmer groups to join its protests over alleged exam irregularities and the NEET paper leak, with founder Abhijeet Dipke saying the protest at Delhi’s Jantar Mantar will continue on Monday. On the second day of the protest, Dipke sought support from farmer unions and reiterated the demand for Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan’s resignation. He also alleged that Delhi Police personnel were seeking Aadhaar details and addresses of people donating water and food to the protesters E x p ress ne w s ser v i c e @ Kolkata Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday commissioned three indigenously designed and built naval vessels—INS Dunagiri, INS Sanshodhak and INS Agray—at the Shyama Prasad Mookerjee Port in Kolkata, highlighting the country’s push for maritime strength and defence self-reliance under the Make in India flagship. Addressing the ceremony, Modi said maritime power would play a defining role in shaping the global balance of power in the coming decades. “Nobody can ignore the importance of maritime power. No nation can become a great power without it. Oceans are linked to security prosperity and develop, ment,” he said, pointing to the growing strategic significance of sea routes, undersea data networks, critical minerals and emerging energy resources. Linking the induction of the vessels to India’s broader defence manufacturing ambitions, the PM said the ships reflected the country’s growing indigenous capabilities. Referring to INS Vikrant, India’s first domes- Prime Minister Narendra Modi receives a memento from Chief of Naval Staff Admiral Krishna Swaminathan during the tri-commissioning ceremony in Kolkata on Sunday | PTI We don’t want to be a buyer of global defence: PM Prime Minister Narendra Modi stressed that India must move beyond being a major importer of defence equipment. “India no longer wants to be a buyer in the international defence sector. India wants to be a manufacturer. The day we become a manufacturer, we will also be the decider,” the prime minister said. tically built aircraft carrier, he said, “When we presented INS Vikrant to the nation, we announced India’s self-sufficiency in maritime power to the world. Today, INS Dunagiri, INS San- shodhak and INS Agray add speed to that journey .” Modi stressed that India must move beyond being a major importer of defence equipment. “India no longer wants to be a E x p r ess Re a d ‘Will pull Bengal-type poll success in Punjab’ PM Modi delays travel back home in view of retest BJP national chief Nitin Nabin on Sunday expressed confidence that his party would form the next government in Punjab, pulling the kind of poll success that it has recently achieved in Bengal. Nabin’s ongoing three-day visit to the state is being viewed as part of the BJP’s strategy to expand its political footprint in Punjab. P8 Preventing standard security-related traffic restrictions, Prime Minister Narendra Modi delayed his departure from Delhi Airport by around 45 minutes on Sunday to avoid traffic disruptions for NEETUG re-examination candidates. Arriving at Delhi’s IGI airport from Kolkata at 1.15 pm, PM Modi learned that the NEET-UG exam was slated to start at 2 pm and there were several exam centres along his route to Lok Kalyan Marg, his residence. The PM chose to hold his convoy until most students reached their centres, officials said A male candidate who attempted to hide a SIM card and an old question paper in his undergar ments was caught, said a PTI report. Students though appeared flummoxed by the difficulty level of the Physics segment of the test. Students told this paper that the question paper was much tougher than the cancelled May 3 exam. Deepak Kumar, who was making his fifth attempt, said, “Biology was easy but Physics is what I would call tough. Let me see how much I can score.” A good number of candidates across the country missed the exam by turning up late and were denied entry after 1.30 pm for re-exam. Leading coaching centre Akash Educational Services Limited said this NEET was calculation-heavy and rigorous and the cut-off is slated to correct below 600. P3 buyer in the international defence sector. India wants to be a manufacturer. The day we become a manufacturer, we will also be the decider,” he said and added that more than 40 naval ships have been produced in recent years, while 45 platforms are under construction. The vessels will strengthen distinct operational areas of the Navy. INS Dunagiri, the fifth Project 17A stealth frigate and the second of its class built by Garden Reach Shipbuilders and Engineers, is equipped with BrahMos supersonic cruise missiles, surface-to-air missiles and advanced combat management systems. The warship was delivered in 80 months, an improvement over the 93 months taken for the lead vessel, INS Nilgiri. INS Agray is the fifth vessel under the 16-ship Arnala-class Anti-Submarine Warfare Shallow Water Craft programme. INS Sanshodhak, the fourth and final vessel of the Sandhayak-class survey ship programme, is fitted with autonomous and remotely operated underwater systems for seabed mapping, hydrographic surveys and navigational charting. P8 3 men held for beating man to death at station International Yoga Day People perform yoga during a session on the occasion of the International Day of Yoga at Namo Ghat in Varanasi on Sunday | pti Three men have been arrested and two juveniles have been taken into custody in connection with the death of a Delhi Metro security guard following a scuffle while deboarding the Yoga Express at Shahdara railway station, police said on Sunday. Further probe is under way. Shwetha-led AMMA leadership quits Two BBA students arrested E XP R E S S N E W S S E R V I C E @ Kochi Workers get treated at a hospital (L); NDRF personnel clearing the dormitory 2 workers dead, 62 hospitalised after ammonia gas leak R a j a l a k sh m i S a m path @ Chennai Two women workers from Odisha died and 62 others were hospitalised after an ammonia gas leak from a seafood export unit at Kannigaipair near Periyapalayam (around 40km from Chennai) in Tiruvallur on Sunday morning. The deceased were identified as Jumani Juang (19) and Malati (20). The condition of seven workers is critical, sources said. Chief Minister C Joseph Vijay has ordered a probe by a high-level committee and a solatium of `2 lakh each to kin of the deceased. Police registered a case and the interrogation of the unit’s owners is currently under way . The workers, most of them young women aged 19-20 and hailing from Odisha, Jharkhand, Assam and West Bengal, were off-duty and resting in their hostel rooms about 50m from the unit’s ammonia plant when the leak occurred around 11 am. The NDRF team roped in by the Tamil Nadu government said the gas had spread to the workers’ accommodation. According to Health Minister K G Arunraj, one of the deceased was brought to the hospital dead. Of the 62 hospitalised, 58 are women and four are men. Shwetha Menon, the first woman president of the Association of Malayalam Movie Artists (AMMA), and the entire executive committee on Sunday stepped down amid mounting internal rifts and controversies. The dramatic resignations followed the annual g eneral body meeting in Kochi, which witnessed heated arguments over the annual report and statement of accounts. Several senior members alleged financial discrepancies when the accounts were presented. Shwetha said Sunday’s incidents were part of an agenda. “I feel efforts were going on to hand over the association to persons against whom allegations had been raised. I am not willing to act as a puppet for such people. There is a conspiracy,” she said, adding she has also resigned as a member of the association. Following the development, the general body appointed an ad-hoc committee headed by Ramesh Pisharody to manage the association’s affairs for the next four months. Speaking to re por ters, Baburaj, a former joint secretary, alleged financial discrepancies in connection with `67 lakh spent for a family event organised by the association. Shwetha said accounts relating to a particular period could not be produced as the association’s treasurer, Unni Shivapal, was unavailable. She claimed the rest of the financial details provided were in order. for road rage in Gurugram E x p ress N e w s S er v i c e @ New Delhi An argument between two college students and a man led to the arrest of the students following a road rage case in Gurugram. The accused allegedly assaulted the man and vandalised his car for not giving way between Sohna Road and Rajiv Chowk. The accused students have been identified as Parth and Paras, both aged 22 and studying BBA. The duo, who were driving a Scorpio SUV reportedly had an , altercation with the man, following which they allegedly stopped his car and smashed the windowpanes. In addition to that, the driver alleged that he was beaten with sticks. A video of the incident that the man filmed from inside his car went viral. Soon, the Gurugram Police took note. The two accused, both residents of Sector 48, were arrested and their car was seized. Currently, they are being questioned. Nihangs block access to gurdwara roof in U’khand N A R E N D R A S E T H I @ Dehradun A tense standoff at a gurdwara in Nagarsu, Rudraprayag, entered its second day on Sunday , with Nihang Sikhs occupying the rooftop for over 24 hours. The incident has raised concerns along the busy Badrinath highway . Trouble began on Thursday at 3:40 pm when police received an emergency call about a dispute between gurdwara sevadars and visiting Nihang Sikhs. Gholtir outpost Police reached immediately . “Both sides were counselled and the situation assessed,” Rudraprayag SP Neeharika Tomar said. During talks, some Nihangs moved to the roof and blocked access for others. Officials said dialogue continued through Sunday. “We are in constant contact with the Nihang Sikhs to understand and resolve their issues. One has come down and is speaking with us,” she added. Authorities denied social media claims of a “hostage situation” or gurdwara “seizure”. “No one is held captive. The Nihangs on the gurdwara roof | pti gurdwara remains open. Langar, ardas and religious activities are continuing normally,” Tomar stated. Dialogue with the Nihang Sikhs occupying the gurdwara rooftop is yielding results, officials said Sunday . “Police, district administration and the gurdwara committee are in continuous talks with them to understand their concerns and find a solution,” Tomar told this newspaper. “Talks have shown positive outcomes. One Nihang has come down and is speaking with us. Dialogue with others continues,” she added. DM Vishal Mishra said the Hemkund Sahib and Char Dham yatras are safe. Heritage waiting to for rejuvenation As MCD starts restoration of eight historical structures, spot visits show a repeat story of neglect | P4