FRIDAY 10 OCTOBER, 2025 epaper.morningstandard.in facebook.com/TheMorningStandard EXAM CENTRES TO BE ALLOCATED BASED ON AADHAAR ADDRESSES X.com/TheMornStandard PA R L I A M E N T Starting from 2026-27 academic session, the NTA will assign exam centres for JEE Main, NEET-UG, and CUET-UG solely on Aadhaar card address EU CHIEF SURVIVES CONFIDENCE VOTES Top EU official Von der Leyen on Thursday survived two more votes of no confidence, as lawmakers rejected censure motion against her PAGE 9 NEW POLICY AIMS TO ENHANCE FAIRNESS A CAPITAL VIEW OF NEWS PM calls Trump, hails Gaza truce, discusses trade Ceasefire plan involves freeing Israeli hostages held in Gaza, releasing Palestinian prisoners J AYA N T H J A C O B @ New Delhi officials, it marks the first phase of a 20-point WashingPRIME Minister Narendra ton-backed peace framework. Modi on Thursday held a phone “We welcome the agreement conversation with US President on President Trump’s peace Donald Trump, congratulating plan. This is also a reflection of him on the Gaza ceasefire deal the strong leadership of Prime and reviewing the status of bi- Minister Netanyahu,” Modi lateral trade negotiations. Modi said, adding that he hopes the described Trump as a “friend” deal will facilitate humanitarin a post on X and praised the ian relief for Gaza’s civilians. “success of the historic Gaza The Modi-Trump call also repeace plan”. vives the possibility of a meet“I spoke to my friend, Presi- ing between the two later this dent Trump, congratulating month on the sidelines of the him on the success of ASEAN Summit in the historic Gaza Kuala Lumpur. Both peace plan. We also rehave been invited, and viewed the positive going by the diplomatprogress in trade neic calendar it may be We hope the release of gotiations and agreed the last multilateral hostages and to remain in close conevent this year where enhanced tact in the coming they can meet. “This humanitarian weeks,” Modi posted is a multifaceted relaassistance to the on X, signalling that tionship. We are confipeople of Gaza high-level communident of sailing through will bring respite cation between the to them and pave this phase,” said a two leaders is set to the way for lasting source, adding “the peace continue regularly . trade ne gotiations Later, Modi called have been going on Narendra Modi, PM Israeli Prime Minister and the next round is Benjamin Netanyahu being planned.” and congratulated him for the Trade tensions between Inpeace deal. According to a state- dia and the US escalated in rement by the Israeli PMO, Netan- cent months after Washington yahu ‘paused’ the security cabi- imposed a 50% tariff on certain net meeting discussing the Indian goods. While negotiaGaza deal to take Modi’s call. tions have resumed, many The Gaza deal—announced sticking points remain. by Trump on his Truth Social “Definitely, the relationship platform—includes a ceasefire, is going through an unexpected the release of all hostages held patch,” a source familiar with in Gaza, a partial withdrawal the talks said, adding, “but deof Israeli forces, and a large- spite that, there is a strong perscale prisoner exchange. Nego- sonal equation between Prime tiated in Cairo with the US, Is- Minister Modi and President raeli, Egyptian, and Qatari Trump.” JOY, RELIEF IN GAZA ON P9  NEW DELHI  J8.00 J AYA N T H J A C O B @ New Delhi INDIA and the UK on Thursday cemented a new phase in their evolving relationship, unveiling a wide-ranging set of agreements across trade, defence, education and technology, as prime ministers Narendra Modi and Keir Starmer expressed a strong commitment to build on the momentum of the Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA) signed in July and highlighted a deepening strategic alignment amid shifting global power dynamics. “India and the UK are natural partners. In today’s time of global uncertainty our growing partner, ship stands as an important pillar of global stability and economic progress,” Modi said after the meeting with Starmer. Both leaders hailed the potential of CETA to double bilateral trade by 2030 through tariff cuts, greater market access, and enhanced investment. Accompanied by the UK’s largest-ever business and academic delegation to India, Starmer described India as a “global player” with a “remarkable growth story”. A key outcome was the announcement of a £350 million defence deal under which the UK will supply Lightweight Multirole Missiles (LMMs) to the Indian Army The missiles, manufactured . RANKINGS IISC BANGALORE GETS THE BEST RANK BAND Next to the US, India has the highest number of educational institutions in the Times Higher Education World University Rankings 2026. A total of 128 institutes from India have made it to the list, with the IISc Bangalore rated the best in the country | P5 Border Roads Organisation personnel clear snow from the Baralacha La Pass on the Manali-Leh Highway, in Himachal Pradesh. | PTI Prime Minister Narendra Modi with his UK counterpart Keir Starmer in Mumbai | PTI by Thales in Northern Ireland, will not only boost India’s defence capabilities but also support 700 jobs in the UK. The two sides also agreed to move forward with a government-to-government framework for future defence deals and signed a military training coop- Modi flags need to curb Khalistani radicalism Modi raised strong concerns over Khalistani extremists during his talks with Starmer, stressing the need for firm action within legal frameworks. Radicalism and extremism must not be allowed to exploit democratic freedoms, he said “We request the executive chairman of Bihar legal services authority to send a comTHE Supreme Court on Thurs- munication to all the secretarday asked the Bihar State Legal ies in local authorities to Service Authority (BSLSA) to provide free legal aid counsel issue directions to its district- to help the excluded ones to file level bodies for assisttheir appeals,” said the ing 3.66 lakh voters exbench. cluded from the final The bench said the electoral rolls in filing district legal service appeals with the Elecauthority will release a tion Commission. list of para-legal volunA two-judge bench teers for assisting the headed by justices excluded voters by filADR’s Surya Kant and Joyming appeals and ensurquestion alya Bagchi clarified ing that they have deDuring the that the question of detailed orders of their hearing, ciding appeals by votname’s rejection. “We Prashant ers who have been exwant everyone to be Bhushan, for cluded after the SIR given a fair chance to exercise of electoral ADR sought to appeal and they should know the rolls in Bihar within have detailed orders the stipulated time and reason behind with them on why their with a reasoned order ECI’s refusal to names have been exwill be considered on provide the poll cluded. It should not be the next date of hear- roll in machine a one-line cryptic oring on October 16 in re- readable form der,” the bench said. sponse to pleas chalThe Supreme Court lenging the EC’s exercise. is currently seized of a batch The court said that regard- of pleas filed by ADR, PUCL, less of outcome of these pro- Yogendra Yadav, Trinamool MP ceedings, it is to be noted that Mahua Moitra, RJD MP Manoj the right to appeal for 3.66 lakh Jha, Congress leaders K C voters who were excluded Venugopal and Mujahid Alam, stands firm. seeking to set aside SIR. S U C H I T R A K A LYA N M O H A N T Y @ New Delhi Literature Nobel for master of the ‘long-form’ LASZLO Krasznahorkai, a Hungarian novelist known for protracted sentences — some of which run into hundreds of pages — and whom a fellow writer termed “master of the apocalypse”, was awarded the Nobel Prize for literature on Thursday . Krasznahorkai (pronounced CRAS-now-hoar-kay), 71, who has written five major novels, hopped into limelight with his debut Satantango in 1985. The Nobel Committee would go on to term it “a literary sensation” of its time. The book was adapted nine years later by Hungarian film-maker Bela Tarr into a 415-minute-long film acclaimed by many . “Krasznahorkai is a great epic writer in the Central European tradition that extends through (Franz) Kafka to Thomas Bernhard, and is characterised by absurdism and grotesque excess,” the Nobel Committee said. Tarr, a dear friend, also filmed Krasznahorkai’s next masterpiece ‘The Melancholy of Resistance’ as Werckmeister harmóniák (2000). This particular novel has one sentence eration agreement, including an exchange of flying instructors between the Indian Air Force and the UK’s Royal Air Force. In the education sector, the UK announced approvals for two new university campuses in India. Lancaster University will open in Bengaluru and the University of Surrey in Gujarat’s GIFT City. With nine campuses now confirmed or operational, the UK is poised to become the country with the largest foreign higher education presence in India. On the innovation front, both countries launched new joint centres focused on artificial intelligence, critical minerals and connectivity to secure resilient tech and supply chain ecosystems. SC directs legal help to all 3.66L excluded from Bihar final roll LASZLO KRASZNAHORKAI @ Chennai PAGES 12 ‘Global stability pillar’: £350 mn missile deal part of deepening ties with the UK PAVING THE WAY EXPRESS NEWS SERVICE  Candidates will no longer have the option to select preferred test cities, unlike the previous system allowing three to four choices. The policy aims to enhance fairness by reducing instances of impersonation and cheating during national-level entrance exams. Rural students will benefit from centres assigned closer to their Aadhaar-based addresses | P7 spread over 280 pages, and is known as the book that defined his ouevre to a great extent. Other famous books include War and War (1999), Seibo there below (2008), and Herscht 07769. Krasznahorkai describes his writing style as “reality examined to the point of madness”. Born in Communist Hungary in 1954 into a middle-class Jewish family, Krasznahorkai grew up in a small town on the outskirts of Budapest. He had won the Man Booker International Prize in 2015. Cheers! 98 premium liquor vends set to make capital comeback A S H I S H S R I V A S TA V A @ New Delhi TO address the continued absence of premium and popular liquor and beer brands ahead of the festive season, the Delhi government has designated 98 vends to stock all premium labels. These brands have been largely missing since the previous liquor policy was scrapped following allegations of corruption and kickbacks during the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) government’s tenure. “General public is hereby informed that 98 liquor vends as per list attached have been designated as preferred vends where all premium brands with sufficient stocks are available for purchase of liquor on P-10 permit. The information regarding location of liquor vends and availability of brands can also be ascertained through the eAbkari app,” read a circular issued by the Excise Department (ED) on Thursday . The move follows deliberations among members of the excise committee formed to draft a new liquor policy . Officials said the high brand licence fee has discouraged several Indian alcoholic beverage makers from participating in the Delhi market. Industry data shows that beer sales in the city dipped to one-third in 2024 compared to previous years. The Confederation of Indian Alcoholic Beverage Companies had in August approached several state governments, flagging anomalies in their excise policies, placing premium Indian spirit manufacturers at a disadvantage. Officials pointed out that while there is no major price gap for Indian brands, Delhi’s fixed retail margin on a per-bottle basis has made the market less competitive. “Due to this fixed margin, the government corporations don’t keep premium imported liquors priced above a thousand rupees, because of which customers go to neighbouring cities,” said an excise department official. In Gurugram, by contrast, there is no fixed retail margin. Traders there enjoy the flexibility to decide prices and offer discounts since they pay hefty sums during the auction of retail licences, they added. EXPRESS READ Cough syrup factory Surrogacy law not owner arrested in TN retrospective: SC G Ranganathan, 75, proprietor of Sresan Pharmaceuticals, was arrested in Chennai on Thursday morning for allegedly manufacturing the cough syrup linked to the deaths of at least 20 children in Madhya Pradesh. The state also suspended two senior drug inspectors for allegedly failing to conduct routine inspections at the unit over the past two years. P8 The Supreme Court has said that age restrictions would not apply on all intending couples who began the process for having a child, before the enactment of Surrogacy (Regulation) Act, 2021. Those who froze their embryos before the implementation of the law (January 25, 2022) would be allowed to go for surrogacy irrespective of their age. 40K docs ‘missing’ from govt records: RTI A S H I S H S R I V A S TA V A @ New Delhi MORE than 40,000 doctors appear to have vanished from official records in Delhi between 2020 and 2024. The United Doctors’ Front (UDF) uncovered this discrepancy through a RTI response. It revealed a mismatch between the figures from the Delhi Medical Council (DMC) and those presented by the Health Ministry in Parliament. According to the RTI, the DMC had 72,636 registered doctors in 2020. However, on Au- gust 2, 2024, the ministry informed the Lok Sabha that the number stood at 31,479. “Either the Ministry placed false data before Parliament, or the records were never verified with the DMC, the primary statutory authority.” said Dr Arun Kumar, National General Secretary UDF. , The RTI also showed Delhi had 57,749 registered doctors in 2014. With over a thousand new registrations every year, officials find it implausible that the total could drop by 40,000. Former DMC president Dr Naresh Chawla said the numbers in Parliament were wrong. “Before the dissolution, the number of registered doctors had already crossed 1 lakh. We used to register over 2,000 doctors monthly including foreign medical graduates and those transferring from other states. The numbers should be going up, not down,” he said. Since the DMC’s executive body was dissolved, the Delhi government’s Directorate General of Health Services now oversees its functions. No official explanation has been provided.