WEDNESDAY 11 JUNE, 2025 epaper.morningstandard.in facebook.com/TheMorningStandard X.com/TheMornStandard 18 CRORE GAZA-BOUND SHIP USERS EMPLOY CHATGPT ON A DAILY BASIS ACROSS THE WORLD ISRAEL DEPORTS GRETA THUNBERG Israel deported activist Greta Thunberg on Tuesday, a day after the Gaza-bound ship she was on was seized by the country’s military. PAGE 9 OVER 800 COMPLAINTS FROM INDIA ALONE A CAPITAL VIEW OF NEWS  NEW DELHI  J8.00  PAGES 12 According to the real-time monitoring platform Downdetector, user reports of ChatGPT outages surged rapidly around 3pm, with about 800 complaints logged in India alone. About 88 per cent of complaints from India cited the chatbot not responding to queries, 8 per cent reported issues with the mobile app, and 3 per cent faced API-related problems K’taka to hold fresh caste survey Data to be collected door-to-door and online, the process will be completed in 90 days P R E E T H A N A I R @ New Delhi ENDING days of uncertainty, Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah on Tuesday said his government will hold a fresh caste survey to address concerns flagged by several stakeholders. The announcement came after the party’s top brass met Siddaramaiah and his deputy and PCC president D K Shivakumar at the Congress’ new headquarters in New Delhi, and discussed various issues, including the June 4 stampede in Bengaluru. Siddaramaiah said the new survey will be completed within 90 days. “At the meeting, the leadership said the report submitted on the caste census has been accepted in principle. However, concerns were raised by some organisations, religious heads, and a few ministers as the last survey was conducted in 2015. So we have Now, mystery over Sonam’s whereabouts A N U R A A G S I N G H @ Indore DAY after Meghalaya police said they cracked the May 23 murder of Indore businessman Raja Raghuvanshi and arrested his wife and four aides, the million-dollar question now is where was Sonam for 17 days after her husband’s murder. Two kinds of unconfirmed information are cropping up during the ongoing probe. Investigators are probing the possibility of Sonam having returned to her home Indore on May 25 (two days after husband’s killing in Meghalaya) before leaving by road for Varanasi in eastern UP Once in In. dore, she met prime suspect Raj Kushwaha (alleged boyfriend), who kept her in hiding close to Dewas Naka in Indore. On May 27, she boarded a taxi hired by Raj to Varanasi, after which she went into hiding, before dramatically re-surfacing in Ghazipur district’s Nandganj on the night of May 8-9. Another possibility being probed is Sonam took a bus from Varanasi for Gorakhpur on June 8, but left the bus 65 km away near the roadside dhaba in Nandganj (Ghazipur) after knowing that Raj and his henchmen had been arrested in Indore on night of June 8-9. Some people in the bus she is believed to have boarded said they spotted her at ISBT in Varanasi. “If the second possibility is true then the question arises why was she on her way to Gorakhpur. People in hiding who proceed towards Gorakhpur take that route to go to Nepal, generally a source who ,” P8 is part of the probe said. Congress chief Mallikarjun Kharge, LoP in Lok Sabha and party leaders Rahul Gandhi and KC Venugopal with Karnataka CM Siddaramaiah and Deputy CM DK Shivakumar during a meeting to discuss the Bengaluru stampede in New Delhi | PTI HUMAN LIVES OF GREAT VALUE TO CONG: RAHUL On the stampede issue, a source said Rahul Gandhi told the CM and PCC president that human lives are of great value to the Congress and the government has to be responsive towards people. agreed to hold a fresh caste enumeration,” said Siddaramaiah. The decision comes ahead of the state Cabinet meeting on June 12, which will discuss the contentious social and educational survey (caste census) report, which was released in April. Though the re- port has been discussed in as many as three Cabinet meetings, the state government failed to reach any consensus. Shivakumar said the caste census would be redone to allay doubts of various communities over the sanctity of data, and that the government has plans to finalise the resurvey of the caste census in the next Cabinet meet on June 12 “Data will be collected through door to door and online surveys. The process would be done in a very transparent manner. We will correct all concerns expressed about the previous caste census. Online option is given so that people of our state can ... be enumerated even if they are living outside the state,” he said. The state government has been facing heat from opposition and party leaders for ‘unscientific data’. Several leaders from Lingayat and Vokkaliga communities opposed the report, saying their numbers were less than what had been previously extrapolated. While the survey pegged total population of backward classes at 70%, Lingayats were about 11% while Vokkaligas were 10.29% of the population. 3 of family jump from 9th floor of Dwarka building to escape fire, die N I T I N R A W AT @ New Delhi A major fire broke out on the ninth floor of a residential building in Dwarka, leading to the deaths of three family members who jumped from their balcony to escape the flames on Tuesday police said. , One of the videos doing rounds shows a house engulfed in flames, with massive flames and smoke billowing out. In another video, the children can be seen jumping from the balcony followed by the man. The incident took place at Shabad Society in Dwarka Sector-13, and the victims include 40-year-old Yash Yadav, his 11-year-old daughter Ashima and his nephew Shivam. His wife was, however, rescued and is undergoing treatment. At the time of the incident, there were 12 people inside the house, including Yash’s sister, her children and sister-in-law. The Delhi Fire Services officials stated that they received infor mation regarding the blaze at 10:01 am. Thirteen fire tenders were rushed to the spot. Five people were injured in the incident, of which three succumbed to their injuries. “We saw three helpless individuals on the balcony pleading for help. They were asked to move to the shaft area of the building for rescue, but they were unable to do so and jumped from the structure,” Amit Kumar, an eyewitness, said. However, the relatives of the victims believe that had mattresses been placed on the ground, the three would have been saved. The bodies will be taken to Etah (UP), their native place, for the final rites, they added. P4 MEASURED RESPONSE MODI GOVT 3.0 ADAPTS AND ADVANCES J AYA N T H J A C O B @ New Delhi AS the Modi gover nment completes the first year of its unprecedented third consecutive term, India finds itself navigating a landscape defined by both political recalibration at home and assertive re-engagement abroad. The 2024 general elections ushered in a significant shift as Prime Minister Narendra Modi is at the helm of a coalition government for the first time since 2014. This has necessitated a more consultative and consensus-driven style of governance, compelling the BJP to adapt its political strategy to accommodate the diverse interests within the National Democratic Alliance (NDA). Domestically this new coali, tion dynamic has driven both tactical flexibility and policy evolution. While the BJP fell short of a parliamentary majority it swiftly reasserted its , dominance within the NDA and gained momentum in key state elections, indicating political resilience. Legislative moves such as the caste census and the Waqf (Amendment) Act, 2025, underscore a balancing act between ideological priorities and the imperatives of coalition politics. Simultaneously, efforts to revive “re- A N U P V E R M A @ New Delhi THE cabinet, led by CM Rekha Gupta, has approved an ordinance to regulate fees charged by schools, Education Minister Ashish Sood said on Tuesday . “The ordinance will be sent for presidential assent through the LieutenantGovernor. This is a day of happiness for parents whose children study in private schools. It will eventually take the form of a law,” Sood said, adding that the Delhi School Education (Transparency in Fixation and Regulation of Fees) Ordinance, 2025, once enacted, will restrain private schools from arbitrarily increasing fees. The ordinance will come into effect retrospectively from April 1, 2025. R A J E S H K U M A R T H A K U R @ New Delhi Zeeshan Akhtar, alleged mastermind behind NCP leader Baba Siddique’s murder, detained in Canada. Authorities are working to bring him back | P8 Domestic coalition, global recalibration First year of Modi 3.0 has seen a dual transition: From single-party dominance to coalition governance at home, and from rhetorical assertiveness to pragmatic recalibration abroad. The challenge now is sustaining policy momentum amid alliance politics and the global order under Trump forms” like “One Nation, One Election” reflect the continued pursuit of a key ideological project, despite being in a coalition government. On the foreign policy front, Modi 3.0 has projected continuity with added urgency . From making an all-out engagement with the Trump administration from the very beginning to initiating all-party diplomatic delegations and managing delicate relationships in South Asia, the government has sought to build bipartisan consensus on external affairs on national security front. Strategic engagement with China led to limited disengagement at Depsang and Demchok, while ties with Bangladesh turned fragile amid Dhaka’s political shifts. P7 Cabinet approves ordinance regulating private school fees As per the ordinance, there are strict penalties for schools involved in hiking fees arbitrarily. If a school is found charging fees that exceed the permitted norms, it must roll back the excess amount and refund it within 20 working days, the ordinance said. The ordinance says if the school f a i l s t o re f u n d t h e amount within the stipulated time, the fine will double after 20 days, triple after 40 days, and continue to increase with every 20-day delay . For a first offence, the school will be fined between `1 lakh and `5 lakh and for repeat offences, the penalty will increase to anywhere between `2 lakh and `10 lakh, according to the ordinance. THE United Nations Population Fund’s latest report predicts that India’s population will reach an estimated 1.46 billion by 2025 but at the same time the fertility rate has declined below the replaceable level. Right now the fertility rate is precariously placed at 1.9. This means soon the population curve will start moving south. According to UNFPA’s 2025 State of World Population Report, in the next 40 years India will reach an estimated pop- ulation of about 1.7 billion before it starts declining. The report says that nearly 36 per cent of adult women in India experience unintended EXTERNAL Affairs Minister S Jaishankar has issued a stern warning to the neighbour, asserting that India will strike deep into Pakistan if provoked by terrorist attacks. Talking to Politico during his visit to Europe, Jaishankar said that retribution would be directed at terrorist outfits and their leaders in response to barbaric acts such as the Pahalgam attack. Jaishankar, who is travelling a month after India launched Operation Sindoor, accused Pakistan of openly training and unleashing “thousands” of terrorists against India. “If you continue to do the kind S Jaishankar of barbaric acts which they did in April, then there will be retribution against the terrorist organisations and leadership.” He said, “We don’t care where they are. If they are deep in Pakistan, we will go deep into Pakistan.” Jaishankar also addressed China’s close ties with Pakistan, stating: “On an issue like terrorism, you cannot afford ambiguity or double standards. In the end, it’s a problem that concerns all of us.” On the ongoing Ukraine conflict, Jaishankar reiterated India’s neutral stance, advocating for a negotiated peace. He downplayed concerns over Indo-US trade tensions, stressing that ties have strengthened over decades. Northwest and Central India are expected to experience severe heatwave conditions, with temperatures reaching around 45°C over the next three days, the IMD has said and issued alerts for the region, advising people to take precautions against the extreme heat during the day and warmer nights. P3 Trump deploys Marines, raising tensions in LA SCHOOL SHOOTING Rescue service personnel attend the scene of a shooting at a school in Graz, Austria. A former student opened fire on Tuesday killing 10 and injuring at least 12 before taking his own life. Police said the 21-year-old suspect was not known to them and had legally owned the two weapons he used but there is no immediate information on his motive | AP | P9 pregnancies while 30 per cent face an unfulfilled desire to have either more or fewer children. The report says that 23 per cent face both the issues. It 1.46 BN Estimated population in 2025 Population doubling time J AYA N T H J A C O B @ New Delhi IMD issues health advisory for three days INDIA IN NUMBERS 79 YRS India will strike back at terror, says Jaishankar EXPRESS READ India’s fertility rate drops below replaceable level LAWRENCE BISHNOI GANG OPERATIVE Security concerns spurred a measured response blending diplomacy with limited military action, showing a more adaptive deterrence posture YEARS OF BJP GOVT 2025 UNFPA REPORT NABBED OPENAI PROBES HIGH ERROR RATES AS CHATGPT HIT BY GLOBAL OUTAGE 2.1 Replaceable rate 1.9 India’s total fertility now 68% (15-64) POPULATION BY AGE 26% GROUP (10-24) 24% (0-14) 7% Aged above 65 years Age in Bracket () stresses the need to shift focus from concerns about underpopulation and overpopulation to addressing unmet needs regarding sexual health, contraception, and family planning. Despite decline in fertility rate, India’s youthful population remains significant with 24 per cent in 0-14 age-group and 26 per cent in 10 and 24. A substantial 68% is of working age aged between 15-64 presenting a potential demographic dividend if matched by adequate employment and policy support. LOS ANGELES: Hundreds of US Marines were expected in Los Angeles on Tuesday after President Donald Trump ordered their deployment in response to protests against immigration arrests and despite objections by state officials. The 700 elite troops will join around 4,000 National Guard soldiers | P9 SC refuses relief to lawyer convicted of abusing judge 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 Tuesday dismissed a lawyer’s plea against his 18-month jail term for verbally assaulting a woman judge inside a courtroom in Delhi on October 30, 2015. A bench comprising Justices Prashant Kumar Mishra and Manmohan rejected the appeal of advocate Sanjay Rathore against the May 26 verdict of the Delhi HC. Directing Rathore to surrender within two weeks, the SC rejected his pleas to reduce the sentence. “If a stern view is not taken against such a behaviour, women judicial officers would not be ensured a safe work environment,” the SC said. Rathore was convicted by the trial court, which sentenced him to 18 months imprisonment. Justice Swarana Kanta Sharma of the Delhi HC refused to reduce the sentence. Rathore moved SC seeking relief. Refuring to take a lenient view, the SC said, “Today majority of our , officers in Delhi are women. They will not be able to function like this if somebody can get away like this.”