Monday 18 1,000 days November, 2024 Will have passed ON Tuesday since Russia INVADED Ukraine ON fEB 22, 2022 epaper.morningstandard.in facebook.com/TheMorningStandard X.com/TheMornStandard blackouts in Ukraine as Russia launches fiercest attack in months Trump team Russia on Sunday launched a massive drone and missile attack targeting Ukraine’s energy infrastructure, killing two civilians and injuring six Fossil fuel exec to be energy secy ‘200 missiles and drones FIREd AT UKRAINE’ Trump has selected Chris Wright, a campaign donor and fossil fuel executive, to serve as energy secretary in his second administration A CAPITAL VIEW OF NEWS Page 09 l New Delhi l J8.00 l PAGES 12 Russia launched 120 missiles and 90 drones, Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskyy said. Explosions were heard across the country, including in capital Kyiv, the key southern port of Odesa, as well as the country’s west and central regions, according to local reports. It was the biggest missile and drone attack on Ukraine since August | P9 Nato member poland mobilises forces ■ The scale of the attack prompted neighbouring Poland, a NATO member, to scramble fighter jets and mobilise all available forces ■ The strikes caused massive power cuts across the country. The attack came as fears are mounting about Moscow’s intentions to devastate Ukraine’s power generation capacity ahead of the cold winter India in elite club after successful long-range hypersonic missile test Shah holds key meet as Manipur simmers H e m a n t K u m a r R o u t & Maya n k S i n g h @ Bhubaneswar/New Delhi Union home minister Amit Shah on Sunday cancelled his campaign in poll-bound Maharashtra and rushed to Delhi to hold a high-level review meeting on the fresh violence in Manipur. Sources said Shah sat down with senior officials to take stock of the situation, and directed them to take all possible measures to bring back normalcy in the strife-torn state. It is learnt that Shah has called another meeting on Monday for a detailed discussion on the state’s law and order situation in the northeastern state. Meanwhile, the director-general of the Central Reserve Police Force, Anish Dayal, was sent to Imphal to assess the security situation in the state, which has been witnessing intermittent violent incidents since May 2023 following the ethnic clashes between Meitei and Kuki communities. Tensions escalated in Manipur on Saturday following the recovery of the bodies of six individuals, who were reportedly abducted and killed by militants in Jiribam. On Saturday, irate mobs attacked the residences of state In a significant demonstration of India’s growing military prowess, the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) on Saturday successfully flight-tested the country’s first long-range hypersonic missile from Dr APJ Abdul Kalam Island, off Odisha coast. The test missile was launched from a ground-based mobile launcher positioned at the launching complex-IV of the Integrated Test Range at Dr APJ Abdul Kalam Island around 6.55 pm on Saturday . The missile, developed by the laboratories of Dr APJ Abdul Kalam Missile Complex, Hyderabad along with other DRDO laboratories and industry partners, can carry various payloads for ranges greater than 1,500 km, an official readout said. At present, only a few countries like the US, Russia and China, have hypersonic missiles. These missiles can travel at speeds exceeding Mach 5 (five times the speed of sound or roughly around 6,200 kmph). With such extreme speed, manoeuvrability, and the ability to fly at lower altitudes than traditional ballistic missiles, hypersonic missiles are harder to detect and intercept. Defence Minister Rajnath Singh described the missile test on Saturday under the country’s first longrange hypersonic mission as a “stupendous” achievement and a “historic moment”. “The flight data obtained from down range ship stations confir med the successful ter minal maneuvers and impact with high degree of accuracy” the Ministry of Defence said in a statement. Sources told this newspaper that the test was “a stupendous success as the test missile covered around 1,400 km in its first attempt validating all its subsystems and exhibiting excellent terminal manoeuvres”. Also, it was the first time the DRDO conducted the experimental trial of an indigenously-designed and developed missile after sunset. Test missile being fired from Dr APJ Abdul Kalam Island, off the Odisha coast | PTi Cancels Maharashtra poll rallies, rushes to Delhi to hold high-level meeting in view of rising tension in the state M u k e s h Ra n j a n @ New Delhi Amit Shah ministers and MLAs. The protesters also attempted to storm Chief Minister N Biren Singh’s house, prompting security forces to respond with tear gas to disperse the crowds. The fresh incidents of violence took place on Saturday night even as an indefinite curfew was clamped after people, agitated by the killing of three women and children each by militants in Jiribam district, Mob vandalises BJP MLA’s house in Imphal Imphal: A mob vandalised the ancestral house of BJP MLA Kongkham Robindro in Manipur’s Imphal West district on Sunday evening, police said. The incident occurred a day after a house built by the legislator himself in the same district was attacked. Miscreants also reportedly attacked the BJP, Congress offices in Manipur’s Jiribam district on Sunday Arms race l Russia and China have made significant progress in developing their own hypersonic missiles In a setback to the Aam Aadmi Party ahead of the Delhi Assembly elections, its senior leader and cabinet minister Kailash Gahlot on Sunday announced he would step down from his ministerial position. He also resigned from the primary membership of the party. His resignation was reportedly accepted by Chief Minister Atishi. AAP sources said Gahlot had no choice other than joining the BJP due to multiple investigations by Central agencies, including the Enforcement Directorate (ED) and the Income Tax Department. Gahlot has reportedly been under scrutiny in several cases, with multiple raids conducted on his properties in recent months. Gahlot in his letter alleged lOther countries, including France, Germany, Japan, Iran, and Israel, are also pursuing projects to build hypersonic missiles Express read Prohibitory orders in Bengal town after clashes Prohibitory orders were clamped and internet services suspended after groups of people clashed over an “objectionable message” on a digital display board at Beldanga in West Bengal’s Murshidabad district. The clash occurred after a message on a gate near a Kartik Puja pandal was noticed by members of one of the groups, a police officer said. NPP withdraws support to Biren Singh-led govt PR A S A N TA M A Z UM D A R @ Guwahati THE National People’s Party (NPP) on Sunday withdrew its support to the BJP-led government in Manipur saying it has “completely failed” to resolve the crisis and restore normalcy . In a letter addressed to BJP president J P Nadda, NPP chief and Meghalaya Chief Minister Conrad K Sangma expressed deep concern over the prevailing law and order situation in Manipur, where innocent lives have been lost and people are going through immense suffering. “…we strongly feel that the Manipur government under the leadership of Shri Biren Singh has completely failed to resolve the crisis and restore normalcy Keeping the current . situation in mind, the NPP has decided to withdraw its support to the Biren Singh-led government with immediate effect,” the letter read. Gahlot quits, AAP claims ED-CBI pressure Govt to function with only 4 ministers A n u p v e r m a @ New Delhi lThe US is in the process of developing a range of hypersonic weapons attacked the residences of three state ministers and six MLAs earlier in the day . The angry mobs torched the houses of PWD Minister Govindas Konthoujam at Ningthoukhong, Hiyanglam’s BJP MLA Y Radheshyam at Langmeidong Bazar, Wangjing Tentha’s BJP MLA Paonam Brojen in Thoubal district and Khundrakpam’s Congress MLA Thokchom Lokeshwar in Imphal East district, according to officials. On Sunday morning, there was a tense calm in all five districts of the Imphal Valley, where the curfew was imposed and internet services were suspended following violent protests after the discovery of the bodies of six people who were allegedly abducted and killed by militants in Jiribam. Last week, Manipur police said it shot dead 10 militants. The strength of Delhi ministers has dipped to four. Two ministerial berths will remain vacant till the end of current term of the Delhi Assembly. Sources indicate that portfolios previously held by Gahlot will be reassigned to the current ministers, and no new faces will be inducted in the cabinet. Gahlot held key portfolios in the government.| P3 that political ambitions overtook AAP’s commitment towards people, leaving many promises unfulfilled. “For example, the Yamuna, which the party had promised to transform into a clean river, but never got around doing it,” he said. “Besides, there are many awkward controversies such as ‘Sheeshmahal’ which are now making everyone doubt whether we still believe in being the common man,” he wrote. The BJP dubbed Kejriwal’s former official residence 6 Flagstaff Road as ‘Sheeshmahal’, alleging that he spent crores on modern facilities. “Another painful point is the fact that instead of fighting for people’s rights, we have increasingly been fighting for our own political agenda. This has se- verely crippled our ability to even deliver basic services to the people of Delhi,” Gahlot wrote. AAP leader and Rajya Sabha MP Sanjay Singh called the resignation a part of the BJP’s ‘dirty politics’, while AAP spokesperson Priyanka Kakkar asserted that Gahlot chose to join the BJP to avoid imprisonment. “Pressure was created on Gahlot by conducting ED-CBI raids, and now he is speaking according to the script given to him by the BJP The Modi Wash. ing Machine has become active before the Delhi elections,” Singh said. He said Gahlot was being continuously pressured by the BJP , and ED-CBI raids were being conducted. He was repeatedly called for questioning at the ED office, and income tax raids were conducted at his house.” GRAP-4 restrictions kick in as city chokes e x p r e s s n e w s s e r v i c e @ New Delhi The Commission for Air Quality Management (CAQM) has announced the implementation of Stage-4 of the Graded Response Action Plan (GRAP) in the Delhi-NCR region, starting on Monday due to a significant , increase in the Air Quality Index (AQI), which reached 457 pm in the evening. The restrictions include a ban on the entry of trucks and a temporary suspension ofconstruction activities on public projects. On Sunday, Delhi’s AQI deteriorated, recording a value of 441 at 4 pm, which then rose to 457 by 7 pm,making it the second most polluted city in the country . Trucks will not be permitted to enter the capital unless they are carrying essential goods or are using clean fuels such as LNG, CNG, BS-VI diesel, or areelectric. In addition, non-essential light commercial vehicles registered outside Delhi will be prohibited, with exceptions for electric vehicles (EVs), CNG vehicles, and BS-VI diesel vehicles. The panel announced that Delhi-registered BS-IV or older diesel medium and heavygoods vehicles are banned, except for those used in essential services. As part of the restrictions, all construction activities—such as highways, roads, flyovers, power lines, pipelines, and other public projects—have been suspended. Schools have been instructed to shift to online classes for students in Classes 6 to 9 and Class 11. It has also been recommended that offices in the National- Capital Region (NCR) operate at 50% capacity, with the remainder of employees working from home. Further more, work-fromhome options may be introduced for central government employees, according to the panel. State governments may also choose to close colleges, limit non-essential commercial activities, and implement oddeven vehicle rules if necessary . Residents woke up to toxic air conditions in the morning, with the air quality crossing the ‘‘severe” category, which poses risks to human health. | P3 Grand Commander Prime Minister Narendra Modi holds the certificate of Grand Commander of the Order of the Niger received from Nigeria’s President Bola Tinubu (R), in Abuja | AFp | P7 new projection Avg max temperature to rise 1.50C as early as 2047 if fossil fuel use not cut A k n i s r e e Ka r t h i k @ Bengaluru India’s average annual maximum temperature could rise by 1.5 degrees Celsius as soon as 2047, a new report said. As per Climate Change Projections for India (2021-2040) report of Azim Premji University, released on Sunday, the average annual maximum temperature will increase by 1.5 degrees Celsius by 2057,under the ‘Middle of the Road’ emission scenario where society is assumed to take moderate steps to cut emissions. The more extreme ‘Fossil Fuel Development’ (society relying heavily on fossil fuels for energy) emission scenario predicts that the temperature will rise a decade earlier, by 2047. States like Karnataka, Gujarat, parts of Uttar Pradesh and Madhya Pradesh, and parts of Ladakh will experience an increase in precipitation by 20% to 60%, according to the report. The new climate data offers critical insights into how climate change will impact the country over the next two decades, revealing key information about India’s climate, detailing how extreme weather events Summer wet bulb temp to hit 310C in 25 districts Twenty-five districts across the coastal states and eastern Himalayas will experience over 31 degrees Celsius summer wet bulb temperature, posing serious threats to human health, the report said could affect communities, agriculture and natural resources. The western part of India will experience a significant increase in precipitation, compared to most of the eastern and northeastern parts, said Prof. Santonu Goswami, Centre for Climate Change and Sustainability, Azim Premji University . Changes in precipitation patterns can have a significant im- pact on Indian agriculture, the report said. The projections examine two Intergovernmental Panel of Climate Change scenarios—SSP2-4.5 and SSP5-8.5 (high emissions with heavy fossil fuel reliance). Under the high emissions scenario, 249 districts in India will experience an annual maximum temperature change of one degree Celsius or more. The NPP has seven MLAs. The BJP-led government’s survival will not be threatened by this development as the NDA still has 46 members in the 60-member House. The party’s withdrawal of support comes a day after irate mobs vandalised the houses and properties of over a dozen legislators. As there is an apprehension of further attacks, security has been beefed up outside the legislators’s houses. The protestors are demanding their resignation for failing to check violence. Meanwhile, the Congress said Manipur Chief Minister N Biren Singh should seek an appointment of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, so the MLAs of ruling and opposition parties can go and meet him to discuss the situation. “What is the point of being a member of the Assembly if we cannot save Manipur?” Congress leader and former chief minister Okram Ibobi Singh said. ‘Threat to life’ Vikas to court: Exempt me from physical appearance S h e k h a r S i n g h @ New Delhi Vikas Yadav, a former officer of India’s intelligence agency Research and Analysis Wing (RAW), accused by the US of involvement in a plot to assassinate Khalistani terrorist Gurpatwant Singh Pannun, informed a Delhi court that his life is at risk from dangerous elements. Citing these threats, Yadav requested exemption from physically appearing in an extortion and kidnapping case in which he is an accused. The court approved his plea, with the next hearing scheduled for February 3, 2025. Arrested in December 2023 by the Delhi Police Special Cell in the case, Yadav was released on bail earlier this year. Represented by advocates RK Handoo and Aditya Chaudhary , Yadav asserted he faced “serious threats” due to the widespread disclosure of his personal details. “ Fa l s e a n d f r ivo l o u s allegations have been leveled against the applicant and the particulars of the applicant such as his residence, his background along with his photographs have been published all over the world, exposing the applicant to serious threat to his life from nefarious elements,” read his application in Patiala House Courts. The plea further stated that threat to the life of the applicant is clear, present, grave, imminent and potential and physical appearance of the applicant before the court is likely to lend an opportunity to annihilate the applicant. In October, Yadav was charged by the United States as a co-conspirator in a plot to assassinate Gurpatwant Singh Pannun. Another Indian national, Nikhil Gupta, had already been indicted in the same case. Strongly denying the allegations, Yadav has maintained that he is being unfairly targeted and made a scapegoat.