BOEING DETECTS SOFTWARE ISSUE ON SOME OF ITS 737 MAX PLANES MONDAY 28 The glitch could result in disengagement of the automated flight guidance system after a missed landing approach, a Boeing spokesperson said SEPTEMBER, 2026 epaper.morningstandard.in facebook.com/TheMorningStandard X.com/TheMornStandard MASS SHOOTINGS 27 DEAD IN TWO TOWNSHIPS IN SA Two separate mass shootings in South African townships within hours of each other have left at least 27 people dead, police said on Sunday PAGE 9 Pak test-fires missile from China-built stealthy sub J A V A R I A R A N A @ New Delhi EVEN as India’s long-delayed P-75(I) project for six new-generation submarines continues to hang fire, Pakistan on Sunday announced that its newly inducted Chinese-built Air Independent Propulsion submarine has successfully test-fired an anti-ship cruise missile in the North Arabian Sea. The Pakistan military’s media wing ISPR said PNS/M Hangor “accurately engaged” a long-range target during the firing, witnessed by Pakistan Navy chief Admiral Naveed Ashraf. It did not identify the missile, specify its range or say when the test was conducted. Sources in the Indian defence establishment, however, said the missile fired was the Chinese YJ-18, assessed to be derived from the Russian Klub family, with a claimed strike range of up to 540 km in some variants. The real concern for the Indian Navy, however, is the platform itself. The submarine is fitted with an air-independent propulsion (AIP) system. Conventional diesel-electric submarines must surface or snorkel every few days to run their diesel engines and recharge their batteries, which exposes them to detection. AIP allows them to stay submerged for up to three weeks at a stretch, making them far stealthier and harder to detect. India does not have any operational AIP-equipped submarine as of now. Hangor, the first of eight submarines Pakistan is acquiring from China, was commissioned in China at the end of April and arrived in Karachi in June. Four of the eight are being built in China and four in Karachi. With a surface fleet that is only a fraction of India’s, Pakistan has long relied on submarines as its main asymmetric weapon to challenge Indian naval dominance in the Arabian Sea. The test comes just 12 days after a Pakistani naval vessel and an Indian warship collided in the North Arabian Sea on September 15. PAUSE OF OPENAI MODEL TRAINING DUE TO ROGUE ACTION OpenAI said it has paused training of its latest models as reports of AI agents going rogue increase | P9 AUTOMATED FLIGHT GUIDANCE SYSTEM AFFECTED A CAPITAL VIEW OF NEWS  NEW DELHI  J8.00  PAGES 12 Pvt Punjab univs on the boil over alleged rapes PWD minister slaps man during road inspection H A R P R E E T B A J W A @ Chandigarh A N U P V E R M A @ New Delhi Phagwara university students clash with the police, SIT to probe charges AMID unrest at two major private universities in Punjab over unverified social media posts, violence escalated at the Lovely Professional University (LPU) in Phagwara on Sunday evening with the police resorting to lathi charge to manage the situation. More than a dozen students and police personnel were reportedly injured in the violence. Earlier in the day the police , filed an FIR and set up a Special Investigation Team (SIT) to probe allegations of rape of a woman student. Trouble first broke out at Chitkara University, near Rajpura in Patiala district, on Friday night, after videos claiming that two girl students had gone missing or died by suicide. Registrar Col Rakesh Sharma (Retd) dismissed the allegations as “all rumours.” In Phagwara, dramatic scenes unfolded at LPU where a student climbed atop a decommissioned MiG-23UM aircraft installed on campus, while a few others mounted a military tank. Viral videos on social media showed the protesting students damaging window panes and flower pots on campus, even putting some ob- AI ENHANCED A videograb of police using batons on LPU students in Phagwara Sunday | ANI 5 students in probe panel LPU Vice-Chancellor Dr Jaspal Singh Sandhu said the university would take legal action if the allegations proved genuine. “I wasn’t even aware of this incident... The police registered an FIR based on allegations. Five students are part of the SIT.” jects on fire, with cries of “we want justice” echoing in the background. The unrest at LPU began on Saturday night near the girls’ hostel over rape allegations against an outsider, with some 2,000 students from other hostels joining in. It spiralled on Sunday evening around 8 pm, when students pelted stones at police and set at least three po- lice vehicles ablaze, including those of a DIG and an SSP. The protesters then blocked a stretch of the Delhi-Amritsar National Highway-44 outside the campus, leading to a massive traffic jam. They briefly lifted the blockade before resuming it. Student representatives earlier met the management, but the talks failed. An FIR was filed on a student’s allegation of rape on campus. Protesters insisted on LPU Chancellor’s assurance to resolve the issues. Later, LPU suspended regular classes for 10 days starting September 28, and told its students they may return home or remain in hostels. Chitkara University suspended academic activities till October 1. PRESSURE FROM RIGHTS ACTIVISTS After flak, law and order back in RTI ambit in TN R U D H R A N B A R A A S U @ Chennai BARELY a few hours after its order exempting the Public (Law and Order) Department from the Right to Information (RTI) Act came to light, the Tamil Nadu government on Sunday revoked it following criticism from the Opposition and rights activists. The order, issued by the Human Resources Management Department under Section 24(4) of the RTI Act on September 21, had declared the Law and Order department an ‘Intelligence and Security Organisation’ and exempted it from the Rule allows RTI Act. The Public (Law and Order) Department deals with communal and caste clashes, the apexemption pointment of Commissions of Inquiry into lawSection 24(4) and-order issues and follow-up action on their of the RTI recommendations. It also examines inquiry reAct allows ports into police firing and deals with deaths in a state police custody, custodial torture and deaths of government remand prisoners, besides handling agitations to exempt an by students, agricultural labourers and political intelligence parties, and requests to withdraw cases on politior security cal, communal, caste or student agitations. organisation The state government had initially defended established by the order, with School Education, Information it from the Act and Publicity Minister Rajmohan telling reportthrough a ers that information was being twisted by one notification in party to its benefit in the name of freedom of the Official speech. Law Minister CTR Nirmal Kumar also Gazette sought to downplay the scope of the exemption, saying it covered only a few of the department’s roughly 20 sections—particularly those relating to caste-related issues and national security—and not the department as a whole. He said the matter would be taken up with CM C Joseph Vijay . Activists Jayaram Venkatesan of Arappor Iyakkam and Henry Tiphagne of People’s Watch opposed the blanket nature of exemption. Tiphagne had called for order to be withdrawn. Venkatesan said some department functions could reasonably be considered sensitive, but exempting the entire department was excessive. HOLES IN THE CAPITAL’S SECURITY NET A month of sexual assault cases has exposed several gaps in city’s governance mechanisms | P4 PARVESH Verma, PWD Minister of Delhi, slapped a young man on Sunday in the Tilak Nagar area. The young man was recording a road inspection event being undertaken by Verma. The confrontation took place after Verma and AAP MLA Jarnail Singh sparred over the quality of road construction in the area. A viral video of the incident shows Verma pulling down the man’s mobile phone before slapping him on the face. The man then appears to confront the minister, but a security guard steps between the two, as people gather around them. Later, the PWD minister defended the act, claiming that he was provoked, explaining the incident involving AAP MLA Jarnail Singh’s personal assistant. “When one of ... [Jarnail Singh] workers started abusing my family I reacted in anger the , way anyone naturally would,” Verma said. Jarnail Singh represents Tilak Nagar in the Delhi Assembly The video shows the . victim, Sahib Singh, recording the minister, Jar nail Singh, with huge chunks of road in his hand right next to him. The two are walking, and then the minister pulls down the mobile phone of the man recording them and slaps him. Delhi Police has received a complaint from the Sahib Singh at Vikaspuri police station regarding the assault, police sources said, adding that facts are being verified. Meanwhile, the Delhi PWD and a private contractor have filed a complaint against AAP MLA Jarnail Singh, alleging that he has continuously indulged in “acts of interference and undue pressure” regarding illegal demands. PWD Janakpuri division assistant engineer, in a complaint to Tilak Nagar SHO, said that on September 27, during an official inspection by the PWD minister in Tilak Nagar, the AAP MLA arrived with around 50 people. According to the complainant, the persons accompanying Jarnail Singh threatened him and other officials with “serious consequences”, including threats to “kill” him, saying that “I was a small person and should not mess with Jarnail Singh”. In another complaint, the contractor executing road works said that an AAP MLA had arrived at the work site earlier and demanded `50 lakh to “settle” a matter. O VER the last few years, elite athletes have increasingly tur ned to something very fundamental to improve their chances of medalling at the biggest events. Thanks to the increasing involvement of sports scientists in elite sport, there’s now a better understanding of what a good night’s sleep can do. Alas, the Asian Games organisers didn’t get the memo. A host of players struggled with the relentless wall-towall schedule due to poor planning and scheduling. P V Sindhu was highly critical of Sukma collector Amit Kumar says the cafe is just the beginning of a larger aspiration. “Rural women stepped forward as the capable faces of a thriving new enterprise. Seven more Panchayat Cafés will open across former red bastions, like Jagargunda, Polampalli and Errabor, in the next couple of months,” he said. other common café menu items. The Panchayat Cafe emerges as a shining example of transformation where women members from self-help When one of ... [Jarnail Singh’s] associates started abusing my family, I reacted in anger the way anyone naturally would Parvesh Verma, PWD minister AAP seeks arrest AAP leader Arvind Kejriwal said Verma should be arrested. He said he would visit Tilak Nagar on Monday and inspect the road. P3 The NTA office is now located at a govt building (above) near Minto Road NTA gets CISF security cover at new office EXPRESS NEWS SERVICE @ New Delhi THE National Testing Agency (NTA) has shifted its confidential and sensitive operations to a new office in Delhi, with the premises now under Central Industrial Security Force (CISF) security cover amid a broader overhaul of examination safeguards following the 2024 NEET-UG paper leak case. The NTA has been allotted more than 55,000 square feet across the fifth floor and parts of the fourth and sixth floors of the Government of India Press Building on Minto Road in New Delhi. A total of 39 CISF personnel have been deployed to secure the premises and regulate access, officials said. The agency moved its sensitive operations to the new facility over the past month, replacing its earlier office in Okhla area of the National Capital for these functions. “CISF personnel will man entry and exit points and oversee screening procedures, including frisking, X-ray baggage checks and Door Frame Metal Detector screening. Confidential zones within the building have also been separately demarcated, with movement and operations in these areas to be closely monitored,” said a senior security officer, adding that the Union Home Ministry has approved CISF security cover. The security overhaul follows findings by the CBI in the NEET-UG paper leak case. The agency identified three subject experts as primary sources of the leaked question paper. INDRANEEL DAS the organisation post her quarterfinal loss to Chen Yufei in the women’s singles event. Sindhu was forced to play three matches in under 24 hours. Her first round was on Saturday afternoon. The Round of 16 was later that night with no chance to go back to the hotel in between. By the time she had shut her eyes for a few hours on Saturday night, her alarm had al- Sarvesh Kushare with his silver medal in the men’s high jump event | PTI ready gone off on Sunday morning. “Even though you think you are doing physically well, you might not be able to go there, or you might not be able to play When there are . long rallies, recovery is important. Your le gs don’t move,” Sindhu said. Sure, you can argue that the schedule remains the same for everyone, but it was the same point Jonathan Christie made after the Indonesian men’s singles player went down in a last eight match. “I’m very disappointed with the organiser,” was all he could manage. This problem also affected the likes of Japan’s own Kodai Naraoka, who was also asked to play two matches in a day P11 . EXPRESS READ More units in former red bastions soon violence has been broken by the sizzle of hot samosas, crisp crackle of moong badas, steady hiss of boiling ginger tea served in earthen kulhads and Rahul Gandhi wrote on X, “Ask a question on the street—a slap. Ask a question on paper leaks—a lathi charge. Ask a question in Parliament— the mic is put off. They do this because they no longer fear that elections can remove them.” EXPRESS @ ASIAN GAMES NAGOYA Chhattisgarh women take cafe route for self-reliance E JA Z K A I S E R @ Raipur Rahul talks ‘vote theft’ SHUTTLERS RUE HECTIC SCHEDULE AFTER RED LABEL IN India’s buzzing metropolises, café culture is seen as the gleaming frontier of nightlife, co-working luxuries, and artisanal leisure. Yet miles away from the neon-lit glass facades a transformation is apparent in the most unexpected corner of the republic—the once-feared hinterlands of Sukma in south Chhattisgarh’s Bastar. Today that silence of Maoist , A Boeing spokesperson said its engineers are working on a software update to address the issue, adding that all 737 operators were informed about it last month. Sources said the glitch could result in the automated flight guidance system disengaging after a missed landing approach if the subsequent approach path differs from the one originally planned groups (SHG) create good scope for livelihood through their skills and hard work. At the heart of this dramatic turnaround is the Keralapal Panchayat Café—a vibrant community hub run entirely by determined women from the Jeevan Sandesh SHG. Armed with ladles instead of despair, these women have taken ownership of a modern village space funded through a`15 lakh convergence of government programmes, uniting resources from the District Mineral Fund Foundation, National Rural Livelihood Mission, and Swachh Bharat Mission. Surgical strike a bold response to terror: Modi Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday reiterated that India practises a policy of zero-tolerance towards terrorism. In a periodic episode of Mann ki Baat, he said that the country has demonstrated to the world that it will not go soft on terror attacks. P7 BJP CMs defend poll panel on SIR exercise Many chief ministers of BJPruled states defended the Election Commission’s exercise on electoral rolls, trashing the Opposition allegations. Suvendu Adhikari, Samrat Choudhary and Bhajan Lal Sharma blamed the Opposition for targeting the poll panel. P8 SRFTI students clash with ABGP members A clash between the RSSaffiliated Akhil Bharatiya Grahak Panchayat (ABGP) workers and students at SRFTI in Kolkata on Sunday. Many people from both sides were injured. Clashes erupted when a section of students objected to an ABGP event.