TUESDAY 22 OCTOBER, 2024 epaper.morningstandard.in facebook.com/TheMorningStandard X.com/TheMornStandard GOLD PRICE SOARS, SILVER MOVES CLOSER TO `1 LAKH / KG MILESTONE 109 MEMBERS INDONESIA GETS A JUMBO CABINET Gold price on Monday surged `750 to hit `80,650 per 10 grams (99.5% purity), while silver zoomed `5,000 to `99,500 per kg in the national capital Newly appointed President Prabowo Subianto swore in 109 members to Indonesia’s cabinet on Monday — the largest since 1966, when it had 132 ministers. DIWALI, GEOPOLITICAL FACTORS PUSH DEMAND A CAPITAL VIEW OF NEWS PAGE 9 CHINA DAULAT BEG OLDI AKSAI CHIN Y JUNCTION, DEPSANG Y E S H I S E L I & M AYA N K S I N G H DEMCHOK The fine print The pre-2020 situation was that the Army was patrolling till its line of perception in Demchok and Depsang. “Whether we can return to those areas will be clear in the fine print,” sources said FOREIGN Secretary Vikram Misri’s primary briefing on Monday was about the upcoming 16th BRICS Summit in Kazan, Russia, but what was casually mentioned became the story of the day — that India and China have arrived at a patrolling agreement along the Line of Actual Control (LAC) in Ladakh. The jaw-dropping announcement of the thaw in eastern Ladakh came in response to a question from this reporter on the buzz on the possibility of Prime Minister Narendra Modi having a bilateral meeting with Chinese President Xi Jingping on the sidelines of the BRICS Summit. TELEGRAM The K-link to blast outside Rohini school U J W A L J A L A L I @ New Delhi DELHI Police on Monday wrote to social media app Telegram seeking information about a channel, ‘Justice League India’, which posted a video of the Rohini explosion with a “Khalistan Zindabad” watermark. The police are verifying the claim made in the post. A mysterious blast occurred near a CRPF school in Rohini on Sunday morning, sparking a security alert in the city The . blast, which appeared to be triggered by a crude bomb, partially damaged the school’s wall and cars parked nearby In the . evening, a screenshot of the Telegram post was circulated on social media platforms. “If Indian coward agency and their master think they can hire filthy goons to target our members to silence our voice then they live in fools world. They can’t imagine how close we are to them and how capable we are to strike anytime #KhalistanZindabad #JLI,” the alleged post read. The police have zeroed in on two-three suspects after scanning CCTV footage in which one can be seen wearing a white shirt and moving around the area where the blast took place. “We have questioned several people in the vicinity to check whether they saw anyone suspicious placing the explosives,” a senior officer said. The police may look into “end-to-end encrypted calls” of active mobile numbers near the place of the incident. “It is hard to trace end-to-end encrypted calls, but with special investigative techniques and dump of nearby numbers, we can find out who were around the area where the blast took place,” said another senior police officer, pleading anonymity . The Delhi Police is awaiting a report from the Institute of IED Management, CRPF, P u n e, a n d N S G ’s B o m b Disposal Squad. J8.00 PAGES 12 Chances brighten for Modi-Xi talks PRODUCT OF PATIENT DIPLOMACY: JAISHANKAR “There are areas which for various reasons after 2020, they blocked us, we blocked them. We have now reached an understanding which will allow patrolling as we did till 2020... It is a positive development and I would say it is a product of very patient, very persevering diplomacy,” Jaishankar said At a different event later in the day, foreign minister S Jaishankar indicated that both sides had effectively gone back to the pre-2020 situation. “With that we can say the disengagement with China has been completed. Details will come out in due course,” he said. It was in 2020 that 20 Indian jawans died after a brawl with PLA soldiers in the Galwan valley along the LAC. Bilateral ties became frigid ever since. “Over the last several weeks, Indian and Chinese diplomatic and military negotiators have been in close contact with each other in a variety of forums. As a result of these discussions, an agreement has been made for patrolling arrangements along the LAC leading to disengagement and a resolution of the issues that had arisen in these areas in 2020. We will be taking the next steps on this,’’ Misri said. Sources indicated that there is a strong likelihood of the ModiXi bilateral. The prime minister will also have bilateral meetings with Russian President Vladimir Putin and Iranian President Dr Masoud Pezeshkian. The announcement came days after the US law enforcement department unsealed the second indictment in the alleged murder-for-hire attempt against Khalistani radical Gurpatwant Singh Pannun on American soil, in which a former RAW officer was named and shamed. The two sticking points on the LAC that had defied resolution for this long are at Depsang and Demchok. Multiple military sources said that things will take time to get clear as “not much has changed on ground”. Troops continue to be stationed in the vicinity of the 832 km LAC on P7 Eastern Ladakh. N95 MASKS RUNNING OUT OF STOCK AT POLLUTION HOTSPOT WORSENING AQI ACROSS DELHI 1 A monitoring station at Anand Vihar sees high levels of vehicular pollution, as hundreds of diesel-powered inter-state buses operate daily from the terminal 2 Last November, Anand Vihar recorded a ‘hazardous’ AQI of 999, with residents constantly complaining about toxic ambient air 3 Across Delhi, daily average AQI is likely to remain in the ‘very poor’ category (between 301 and 400) in the coming days 4 Following GRAP-II on Monday, curbs are imposed on the use of coal and firewood, including tandoors at hotels, restaurants, and open eateries corded a ‘hazardous’ AQI of 999. Multiple factors are responsible. “Factories in nearby Sahibabad and Ghaziabad often use unclean fuel, impacting local air quality,” said environmentalist Varun Gulati. Then, National Highway-24, which passes close to Anand Vihar, is a major traffic corridor, heavily congested with vehicles entering and exiting Delhi, significantly contributing to vehicular emissions. An air quality monitoring station, managed by the Delhi Pollution Control Committee (DPCC), is located within the Inter-State Bus Terminal (ISBT) at Anand Vihar. The ISBT sees high levels of vehicular pollution, as hundreds of diesel-powered inter-state buses operate daily from the terminal. Unlike Delhi, where fuel restrictions are imposed, neighbouring states allow diesel vehicles, further escalating pollution P R A B H AT S H U K L A @ New Delhi VIVEK Gahlot usually begins stocking up on N95 masks towards the end of October. This year, however, the 53-year-old pharmacist in Anand Vihar has been forced to look for supplies earlier. “Mask sales began to pick up soon after the monsoon retreated and have skyrocketed over the past week,” he said. A look at the Central Pollution Control Board’s bulletin reveals the reason behind the Anand Vihar resident’s troubles. At 8:30 am on Monday, the Air Quality Index (AQI) in the locality stood at 454, the worst in Delhi. This puts the AQI in the ‘severe’ category, which according to the CPCB, “affects healthy people and seriously impacts those with existing diseases.” Over the years, Anand Vihar and the nearby Vivek Vihar have consistently seen some of the worst air pollution in the capital. Last November, Anand Vihar re- levels in the area. Result is that residents struggle to grapple with the consequences of consistently breathing in polluted air. “In the past, we used to conduct lung health check-up camps, but there’s no point in doing so anymore. The authorities have done nothing to curb the root cause of pollution,” says local resident BS Vohra. Meanwhile, the National Green Tribunal has sought a response from the Delhi Pollution Control Committee and other authorities about the heavy metal pollution in east Delhi’s air. The green body was hearing a matter in which it had taken suo motu cognisance of a report on a study by IIT-Delhi detecting “alarming levels of heavy metals such as lead, cadmium, and nickel in the air in east Delhi,” which could cause respiratory and cardiovascular diseases. P3 Hoax callers to be put under no-fly list: Rammohan Naidu E X P R E S S N E W S S E R V I C E @ New Delhi TO deal with the menace of hoax bomb threats to airlines, the Centre plans to amend rules to place the culprits in the no-fly list and initiate criminal charges against them, Civil Aviation Minister K Rammohan Naidu said on Monday. He said such threats will be made a cognisable offence, which will attract punishment and fines. Naidu said the government is considering amendments to the Suppression of Unlawful Acts Against Safety of Civil Aviation Act, 1982, to strengthe n m e a s u r e s . “ E ve n though most of them are hoax threats, we cannot take them lightly The lives . of passengers are important, the security situation is impor- tant, and protocol is important,” he added. These hoax bomb calls also caused financial loss to airlines that had to divert flights for safety reasons. An airline official said the financial loss due to frequent diversions ranges from a few lakh rupees to a couple of crores per flight, depending on the size of the plane. The minister also announced the extension of affordable regional air connectivity scheme, UDAN, for 10 more years. Around 1.5 crore passengers have benefited so far. Meanwhile, CISF and BCAS brass met Home Secretary Govind Mohan on Monday. Sources said the threats originated overseas but their exact location could not be traced so far. P7 EXPRESS READ DUSU polls: Delhi HC Cong announces first Saini keeps home, summons candidates list for J’khand polls finance portfolios The Delhi High Court on Monday issued notices to several student candidates to appear before it for allegedly defacing public property during the Delhi University Students’ Union polls in September. A bench comprising Chief Justice Mamohan and Justice Tushar Rao Gedela questioned the university as well as Delhi Police for not taking action against those responsible for defacement and hooliganism. P4 Both sides arrive at patrolling agreement on the LAC @ New Delhi INDIA (LADAKH) NEW DELHI INDIA, CHINA IRON OUT WRINKLES SC: Secularism part of statute’s KARAKORAM PASS SIACHIN GLACIER Bullion traders attributed the jump in gold prices to pick-up in buying by local jewellers to meet increased demand in the festive and wedding season. According to experts tracking the commodities market, the price escalation is also driven by the rising tensions in West Asia and uncertainties related to the US elections, prompting investors to pool their money into safe-haven assets The Central Election Committee of the Congress on Monday released the first list of 21 candidates for the Jharkhand assembly elections. AICC in-charge of the state, Ghulam Ahmad Mir, exuded confidence that a final seat-sharing deal with the INDIA bloc allies would be clinched on Tuesday. The voting for the 81-member Jharkhand assembly will take place in two phases — on November 13 and 20, 2024. P8 Haryana Chief Minister Nayab Singh Saini kept key departments, including home and finance, while Anil Vij got energy and transport as portfolios were allocated to the Council of Ministers on Sunday. Saini will handle 12 portfolios. Besides home and finance, he is also in charge of planning, excise and taxation, town and country planning and urban estates, information and public relations. basic structure S U C H I T R A K A LYA N M O H A N T Y @ New Delhi The Supreme Court on Monday said secularism had always been held to be part and parcel of the basic structure of the Constitution. A two-judge bench of the court comprising justices Sanjiv Khanna and Sanjay Kumar made the observation while hearing a batch of petitions filed by former Rajya Sabha MP Subramanian Swamy, advocate Vishnu Shankar Jain and others, challenging the insertion of the words “socialist” and “secular” in the Preamble of the Constitution. The addition came through the 42nd constitutional amendment moved by the then Indira Gandhi government in 1976. “This court has in a number of judgments held that secularism was always part of the basic structure of the Constitution. If one looks at the right to equality and the word ‘fraternity’ used in the Constitution, there is a clear indication that secularism has been held as the core feature of the Constitution,” the bench said. “When secularism was debat- Retrospective ed, there was only the French effect challenge model. The Supreme Court has Advocate Ashwini struck down statutes that go Upadhyay said he was against secularism. You may not against the words look at Article 25. For socialism, “socialist”, “secular” or we have not followed the West- “integrity” but was ern concept and we are happy against their insertion about it,” Justice Khanna told into the Preamble in the petitioners. 1976 with retrospective He said there were different effect from Nov 26, 1949 meanings of socialism and one “should not take the meaning adopted in Western countries”. “Socialism can also mean there has to be a fair opportunity for all — the concept of equality Let us not take it as a Western concept. It can . have some different meanings as well. Same goes with the word secularism,” he said. Swamy submitted that the Preamble was a declaration made on November 26, 1949 and therefore, adding further words to it through a subsequent amendment was arbitrary He said it was wrong to say that according to the . present Preamble, the Indian people agreed on November 26, 1949 to make the country a socialist and secular republic. The Preamble cannot be altered, varied or repealed, he argued. The bench said it would examine the matter and posted it for further hearing on November 18. Medics call off fast after talks with Didi S U L A G N A S E N G U P TA @ Kolkata ETERNAL PAIN A woman breaks down during the funeral of Dr Shahnawaz, who was shot dead by terrorists in J&K’s Ganderbal district on Sunday evening, at Naidgam in Budgam district, on Monday. Six migrant workers were also killed in the targeted terror attack | PTI | P7 PROTESTING doctors in West Bengal called off their hunger strike on Monday following a two-hour meeting with Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee. They also cancelled their proposed strike across hospitals on Tuesday . The decision was taken after a general body meeting of the junior doctors in the wake of their meeting with Banerjee in the state secretariat. The doctors had launched the fast-unto-death protest on October 5 in response to the horrific rape-murder of their colleague at RG Kar Medical College and Hospital on August 9. Their demands included safety and security within hospitals, systemic reforms in the healthcare sector, and removal of West Bengal’s health secretary . In the meeting, which was streamed live, Banerjee assured the doctors of her government’s resolve to address their concerns but refused to remove health secretary Narayan Nigam without evidence against him. The doctors said that they were not fully satisfied with the state government’s assurances but decided to relent out of respect for the parents of the RG Kar hospital victim. The parents had urged the medics to call off their fast in view of their deteriorating health. As of Monday six doctors had been hospitalised due to , health complications from the fast. “In the meeting, the body language of the state government was not positive,” said a doctor. DRDO scientist robbed of `2 cr cash, 260 gm gold U J W A L J A L A L I @ New Delhi TWO persons were arrested for a sensational burglary at the house of a senior scientist at Defence Research & Development Organisation (DRDO) in Rohini. Police said that six people first entered the house pretending to be courier boys, tied the elderly couple and stole `2 crore cash along with 260 grams of gold jewelry . The Rohini police arrested two suspects while three others were nabbed by the Crime Branch. DCP (Rohini) Amit Goel said the complainant reported that five boys forcibly entered his home, pretending to be courier boys, when he and his wife were alone at home. One of them approached the scientist on the stairs, pretending to have some papers for delivery. They pushed him in- side, covered his mouth, and one of them brandished a knife, asking for his son’s cash. “The intruders searched both floors and took away gold and cash from the rooms and left, locking the couple inside,” the DCP said. Around `2 crore cash and 260 gram of gold were reportedly taken away . “Two of the suspects were initially identified with the help of STF, Sonepat and later all were identified through human and technical surveillance,” Goel said. The CCTV footage led the police team to Karol Bagh and helped in establishing the identity of all accused. The teams checked more than 100 CCTV cameras along the route,” Goel said. The probe revealed that it was the complainant’s ex-employee who provided information to the suspects.
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