THURSDAY 28 AUGUST, 2025 epaper.morningstandard.in facebook.com/TheMorningStandard X.com/TheMornStandard GREENLAND OPS Narendra Modi Stadium DENMARK HEAT ON TOP US ENVOY AHMEDABAD WILL BE CWG’S HOST CITY The cabinet, led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, okayed sports ministry’s proposal for submission of the bid. According to a PIB statement, “the cabinet gave its approval to sign the Host Collaboration Agreement (HCA) along with required Guarantees from concerned Ministries, Departments and Authorities and sanction of required grant-in-aid to Gujarat” | P7 Three people with connections to President Trump have been carrying out covert ops in Greenland, Denmark’s main national broadcaster said. A CAPITAL VIEW OF NEWS PAGE 9 Will address theaterisation dissonance in best national interest: CDS M AYA N K S I N G H @ Mhow AMID apparent dissonance in the armed forces regarding creation of integrated theatre commands, Chief of Defence Staff Gen Anil Chauhan, the seniormost Indian military officer, on Wednesday said it will be addressed keeping the best national interest in mind. While Air Chief Marshal A P Singh opined at the Ran Samwad here that the armed forces shouldn’t come under any pressure to roll out theatre commands, Navy Chief Admiral Dinesh Tripathi said the opposite: “We are committed to synergising our command control communications and combat capability with the Indian Army and Indian Air Fo rc e. F u l l stop, period.” In his closing address, Gen Anil Chauhan said, Navy Chief Adm “A s a C D S Dinesh Tripathi (Chief of Deand Air Chief fence Staff), I Marshal A P Singh actually set out to promote jointness among the three services. And today, I can say with some kind of pleasure and confidence that we can speak about our differences in a very conducive environment, and with openness to different views without temperatures being risen,” he said. “There could be a difference among the three services, but yet we are able to listen to that point. I think that thing is very important,” he added. Chief of Air Staff A P Singh had on Tuesday argued against creating an entirely new structure at this stage. “There is no need for another layer of command. We can begin with joint planning mechanisms and see how they function. If additional structures are truly required, they can be considered later. But disrupting everything to create something entirely new at once isn’t advisable,” he said. AFGHAN FOREIGN MINISTER TO ARRIVE IN SEPT India is finalising plans for the first visit by an Afghan minister since the Taliban seized power in August 2021. Taliban foreign minister Amir Khan Muttaqi is expected to arrive next month  NEW DELHI  J8.00 PAGES 12  2 03 0 M EGA EV E N T G ETS C A B I N ET A P P R OVA L Outreach in 40 nations to ease textile sector stress IN DARBHANGA STALIN JOINS RAHUL’S VOTER ADHIKAR YATRA Bid to cushion it from US tariff blow as it employs 45 million people D I PA K M O N D A L @ New Delhi WITH textiles emerging as the worst-hit sector under the US’s reciprocal tariff regime, the government is moving in “war mode” to cushion the blow to the industry that employs over 45 million people. Government sources told this newspaper that 40 key importing countries have been identified as part of efforts to diversify India’s textile exports. These markets, spread across North America, Europe, Asia, Africa, Latin America, and Oceania, together account for nearly three-fourths of global demand for textiles and apparel. “Dedicated outreach programmes are being designed to expand India’s modest 5-6% market share in these economies, with particular emphasis on apparel, home textiles, technical textiles, and handicrafts,” a government source said. The diversification exercise began a few months ago, and exports to these countries have already shown an uptick. Russian oil not the lone deal-breaker: US Russian oil purchase was not the only India-US dealbreaker, US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said as he hinted that India’s delaying tactics in the trade deal may have resulted in the 50% tariff. He, however, said: “I think at the end of the day, we’ll come together.” According to the Directorate General of Commercial Intelligence & Statistics (DGCIS), textile exports touched $3.10 billion in July 2025, a 5.37% rise yearon-year. Between April and July 2025, cumulative exports stood at $12.18 billion, up 3.87% over the same period last year. Special focus is being placed on Free Trade Agreements (FTAs) with partner nations, including the recently signed India–UK Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA). Export Promotion Councils, in coordination with Indian missions abroad, will spearhead targeted promotion drives to position India as a reliable source of quality sustain, able, and innovative textiles while reducing overdependence on a handful of traditional markets, officials said. The US, India’s largest textile export market, accounted for $10.8 billion or 35% of shipments last year. But with apparel exports now facing a 63.9% duty, Indian exporters are at a 30-35% price disadvantage compared to competitors such as Bangladesh, Vietnam, Mexico, and Central American nations. Industry insiders have warned that if the tariffs persist, the apparel sector alone could witness to 15-20 lakh job cuts. To counter this, four industry-led committees have been formed to recommend timebound measures covering fiscal, banking and credit support, structural reforms in the value chain, and cost competitiveness through innovation. P 7 & 10 R A M A S H A N K A R @ Darbhanga Rahul Gandhi with Tamil Nadu CM M K Stalin during the Voter Adhikar Yatra in Bihar | PTI Even those with valid identity cards are being struck off as if they do not exist. What can be more treacherous than this? M K Stalin, TN chief minister Gujarat model is about vote chori: Rahul ‘This march is to protect the Constitution’ Speaking at the gathering, Rahul said, “The Gujarat model is about vote chori.” He also accused the BJP of stealing votes in 70 to 80 constituencies in the previous Lok Sabha election DMK leader Kanimozhi, in a social media post after the march, said, “This is a march to defend democracy, protect the Constitution and uphold people’s mandate” Landslide toll on Vaishno Devi route reaches 34 THE sordid saga of the dowry death of Nikki Bhati, which commenced in Greater Noida on August 21, seems to be taking new twists every day. The latest being the accusation of dowry harassment against the victim’s family by Meenakshi, the estranged wife of Nikki’s brother Rohit Gurjar. With the emergence of contradictory facts, Nikki’s sister Kanchan, who had filed a Panel to check arbitration awards worth `1 cr & above A N U P V E R M A @ New Delhi 1 2 3 1) Aerial view of an area affected by heavy rainfall in Jammu; 2) An Army helicopter rests on a rooftop during a rescue operation near Madhopur Headworks; 3)Students trapped at a school in Punjab being rescued | PTI F AYA Z W A N I @ Srinagar THE toll in the landslide on a route to the Vaishno Devi shrine in Katra in Jammu’s Reasi district, rose to at least 34 people, with 23 others being reported missing. Most of the dead were pilgrims. Days of heavy rainfall have battered Jammu, causing landslides and flash floods that damaged roads, bridges, houses and vital infrastructure. The latest landslide struck near Inderprastha Bhojnalaya at the Ardhkuwari cave temple en route to the shrine on Tuesday evening. The Army, National and State Disaster Response Forces, along with the local police and civil agencies, launched rescue operations soon after. Officials confirmed 34 people had died and 23 were injured. The injured were shifted to different hospitals for treatment. 41 killed in J&K amid record 380 mm rains The total toll due to heavy rains in Jammu and Kashmir climbed to 41 on Wednesday. Jammu received a record 380 mm rainfall in 24 hours between Tuesday and Wednesday morning, breaking the previous record of 270 mm rainfall recorded in 1988, an official said “My thoughts are with the bereaved families. May the injured recover at the earliest. The administration is assisting all those affected. My prayers for everyone’s safety and wellbeing,” Prime Minister Narendra Modi posted on X. Chief minister Omar Abdullah said, “We are sad that about 29-30 people have lost their lives in Katra.” He, however, ques- tioned why officials had not stopped pilgrims despite warnings. “We had been warned about inclement weather days in advance. Why were pilgrims allowed on the track? Why weren’t they stopped and kept safe?” Abdullah asked. While Jammu has taken much of the beating from incessant rains, Kashmir is also facing flood threats as water has begun flowing over the danger mark in Jhelum in south Kashmir and Srinagar. In Anantnag, water entered houses in many areas, while a locality in the Rajbagh area of uptown Srinagar was submerged. All educational institutions in Jammu and Kashmir will remain closed on Thursday and all exams have been postponed. The mobile and internet services in the Valley remained erratic. P8 380 students stuck in flood at Punjab school rescued H A R P R E E T B A J W A @ Chandigarh THE flood situation remained grim in eight districts of Punjab—Gurdaspur, Pathankot, Amritsar, Hoshiarpur, Kapurthala, Tarn Taran, Ferozepur, and Fazilka— on Wednesday, with the key rivers Ravi, Beas, and Sutlej in a furious spate, and water levels at key reservoirs breaching the danger mark. Rescue works progressed at a rapid pace. In Gurdaspur, more than 380 students and 70 staff trapped by rising floodwaters at Jawahar Navodaya Vidyalaya were rescued by the district administration teams, Twists & turns: Victim’s sister-in-law says harassed by Nikki kin N A M I TA B A J PA I @ Lucknow SIGNALLING the DMK’s continued support for the INDIA bloc’s campaign ahead of key state elections, party president and Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M K Stalin joined Congress leader Rahul Gandhi’s Voter Adhikar Yatra from Darbhanga to Muzaffarpur in Bihar on Wednesday . Speaking at a gathering, accompanied by DMK parliamentary party leader Kanimozhi, Congress MP Priyanka Gandhi Vadra and RJD’s Tejashwi Yadav, Stalin accused the BJP of undermining democracy through large-scale ‘vote theft’. The yatra is part of the opposition’s efforts to mobilise public opinion against the alleged electoral malpractice in Bihar. Stalin travelled in an open vehicle along with Rahul and other INDIA bloc leaders and the group received a rousing welcome from locals at different sites along the route. Addressing the gathering at Jarang High School in Muzaffarpur, Stalin, who spoke in Tamil, said that the deletion of nearly 65 lakh names from the voters’ list amounted to a “massacre of democracy”, which was “more dangerous than terrorism”. “I have travelled nearly 2,000 km to stand in solidarity with the people of Bihar. Even those with valid identity cards are being struck off as if they do not exist. What can be more treacherous than this,” he asked. Recalling the political legacy of RJD supremo Lalu Prasad, Stalin noted that he had consistently resisted the BJP despite legal and political pressures, and described Tejashwi as continuing that tradition. police complaint claiming that the victim was set ablaze by her husband Vipin after years of harassment and abuse over dowry demands, is set to be re-examined by the investigators. Meanwhile, Meenakshi, who was married to Rohit Gurjar in 2016, alleged that her father had already given her a car and 31 tola gold at the time of her marriage, but her in-laws demanded a better vehicle. Meenakshi alleged relent- less assault by her in-laws, including both Kanchan and Nikki. She also accused Rohit of firing at her brother once. She alleged that she was forced to undergo two abortions, said the local sources. Coming to the defence of the Bhati family, she described them as nice and well-off. She also claimed that her brother Deepak Bhati had lodged an FIR in 2024 in support of her claims. However, the Greater Noida police denied it. ADCP Sudhir Kumar ‘VIPIN WAS AT SHOP AT THE TIME OF INCIDENT’ On Tuesday, Vipin’s cousin Devendra, had given a fresh twist to the episode by claiming that prime accused Vipin and his father were at the shop when the incident occurred around 5:45 pm. His claims were substantiated by the new CCTV footage from the street. said that if they could provide a case number, it could be cross checked with the records. “As of now, no such evidence has come to the fore,” he told the media. Nikki, 28, was allegedly set on fire by Vipin and his family in front of her son and sister. Vipin, his parents Satveer and Daya, and brother Rohit have been arrested. Vipin was shot in the leg on Sunday while allegedly trying to escape police custody . with the support of BSF and the NDRF. The school premises were submerged under 4 to 5 feet of water from the Ravi river. The rescue operation was delayed as vehicles could not reach the school due to floodinundated roads. In Pathankot, the Army rescued 22 CRPF personnel and 53 civilians, including 50 staffers of Madhopur Headworks. Three floodgates at the barrage were washed away by the gushing waters. Meanwhile, the water level at two major dams Pong and Ranjit Sagar—has breached the danger mark, while at Bhakra it was just nine feet short of the maximum level. EXPRESS READ 6 booked for solemnising child marriage in Basti Three days after a marriage between a minor girl and a 21-year-old man was solemnised at a temple in Basti district of UP, the police on Wednesday booked half a dozen people, including the groom, parents of the couple and the priest for their role in the illegal marriage. The priest was held for conducting the ceremony despite the girl being a minor as per the Prohibition of Child Marriage Act. CHIEF Minister Rekha Gupta on Wednesday constituted a high-level committee to review all arbitration awards of `1 crore and above issued over the past 20 years in the Public Works Department (PWD) and the Irrigation & Flood Control Department. The committee’s mandate is to assess the payments made and the financial losses incurred by the government in these cases. The review was prompted by concerns over repeated economic losses to the exchequer through arbitration awards. Gupta said that the Comptroller and Auditor General will serve as a member of the committee, while the Additional Director General (PWD/I & FC) will be the m e m b e r secretary . She stated that the internal finance support teams of the PWD and the Irrigation & Flood Control Department, along with two audit teams from the Directorate of Audit, will assist the committee. According to the CM, the committee will review all arbitration awards of `1 crore and above in both departments over the past 20 years. It will compile year-wise and award-wise data on these cases, including the total number of arbitration matters and the proportion decided against the government. Along with payment details, the committee will assess the financial losses incurred by the government in such decisions. Once the concerned departments provide the necessary data, the committee will commence its review. If required, the Directorate of Audit will assign additional teams based on the volume or complexity of cases.