fridAY World champ on his opponent Ding Liren december, 2024 He has been one of the best players in history for several years. To see how much pressure he had to face and the kind of fight he gave in this match, it shows what a true champion he is. 13 On becoming champion epaper.morningstandard.in I have been dreaming about this and living this moment since I was 6 or 7. I have been living this moment for more than 10 years. Every chess player wants to live this moment facebook.com/TheMorningStandard X.com/TheMornStandard clemency US commutes 1,500 sentences in a day President Biden is commuting the sentences of 1,500 people released from prison during the pandemic. It’s the largest single-day act of clemency. A CAPITAL VIEW OF NEWS Page 9 at 18, the youngest world champ l New Delhi l J8.00 first indian after anand at summit gukesh king of all squares swaroop swaminathan @ Singapore C hess has a new king. The promised prince is here and he will be coronated on Friday evening. D Gukesh joined the most exclusive of Indian sporting clubs late on Thursday — only the second player and first since Viswanathan Anand to be crowned as world champ. With the scores level at 6.5 after 13 games and the 14th game meandering towards a draw, attention had already turned towards tie-breaks on Friday. However, Ding Liren blundered to give the Indian teen an opportunity to become the youngestever champion. As soon as he had realised what Ding had done, he welled up before basking in the afterglow of something he had wanted to achieve ever since he was a spectator at the World Championship match between Magnus Carlsen and Anand in 2013. This continues the 18-year-old’s rapid rise over the last two-and-a-half years. In 2022, he stunned the world of chess when he won individual gold on board one at the Olympiad. Last year, he qualified for the Candidates before winning that eight-player tourna- ment. In September, he again won individual gold from board one at Olympiad. Now, this. His next target? Getting Magnus Carlsen back to the World Championship cycle. “When Magnus won (in Chennai), I thought I really want to be the one to bring back the title to India.” As the lights were switched off and the people belatedly left the arena, one thought lingered. You are 18. Nobody younger than you has ever attempted this. You lose the first game. The person sitting opposite you has four-times your experience and is the world champion. It’s time to forget the pre-match prediction and the outside noise. This is now as real as they come. You win the third game before eking out a string of draws. You miss a string of chances before winning game 11. Your opponent shows why he’s the boss as he wins game 12. You miss an opportunity to convert in game 13 and have Black with tie-breaks to follow. You don’t play too many Rapid and Blitz while your opponent is too good. What do you do? You go for the win in game 14. Of course you go for the win. And you end up winning the most important match of your career.  P11 l PAGES 12 how they reacted The legendary Viswanathan Anand, who won the title five times, praised Gukesh. “It’s a great feat. To become the world champion at the age of 18 is no small feat. It was a great sight to see him celebrating after the win. Hopefully, this will inspire a lot of aspiring players,” Anand said. “Historic and exemplary! Congratulations to Gukesh D on his remarkable accomplishment. This is the result of his unparalleled talent, hard work and unwavering determination,” PM Modi wrote on ‘X’ I was looking inside the glass box (in 2013). Thought it would be so cool to be inside one day. When Magnus won, I thought I really want to be the one to bring back the title to India SC halts surveys of mosques Cabinet OKs ‘one poll’ bill, Freeze on 18 suits SUCH I TRA K ALYA N M OHA N T Y @ New Delhi 5.5% Inflation eases in November as food prices drop Retail inflation in November fell to 5.48% and came within RBI’s comfort zone, creating headroom for a rate cut by the central bank’s Monetary Policy Committee in February 2025 | P10 the Supreme Court on Thursday issued a sweeping order restraining courts across the country from accepting fresh suits seeking to reclaim religious structures or passing orders to survey mosques to determine whether temples lie beneath them. A three-judge bench led by the Chief Justice of India Sanjiv Khanna and justices K V Viswanathan and Sanjay Kumar said its nationwide directive will remain effective till further orders. The matter will be taken up again for hearing after four weeks. The bench was hearing a batch of six petitions, including one filed by BJP leader and lawyer Ashwini Upadhyay The order stalls proceedings in 18 suits filed by Hindu parties seeking survey to ascertain the original religious character of 10 mosques, including Gyanvapi at Varanasi, Shahi Idgah Masjid at Mathura, and Shahi Jama Masjid at Sambhal in Uttar Pradesh challenging various provisions of the Places of Worship (Special Provisions) Act, 1991. The 1991 law bars conversion of any place of worship and provides for the maintenance of the religious character of places of worship as existed on August 15, 1947. However, the dispute over Ram Janmabhoomi-Babri Masjid at Ayodhya was kept out of its purview. The bench made it clear that it would be examining the legality, contours, and ambit of the 1991 law. It said until it decides on the matter, other courts must keep off. The court observed that the primary issue was with regard to Section 3 and 4 of the 1991 law. While Section 3 deals with bar of conversion of places of worship, Section 4 pertains to declaration as to the religious character of certain places of worship and bar of jurisdiction of courts, etc. The petitions argue these provisions take away the right of judicial remedy to reclaim a place of worship. The bench asked the Centre to file a detailed affidavit clarifying its views in the matter within four weeks. @4.5oC, city records coldest Dec day australia in 3 years, IMD predicts further dip to force tech titans to pay for news I f r a h M u f t i @ New Delhi The national capital recorded its coldest morning of the season on Thursday, with minimum temperature dropping to 4.5 degrees Celsius, according to the India Meteorological Department (IMD). This marked the second consecutive day that the city’s minimum temperature had fallen below 5 degrees Celsius. On Wednesday, the temperature was 4.9 degrees Celsius. According to IMD, the minimum temperature did not drop below 4.9 degrees Celsius in December 2023 and 2022. The lowest minimum temperature in December last year was 4.9 degrees Celsius on the 15th, while the lowest in 2022 was 5 degrees Celsius on the 26th. Cold wave conditions were observed at isolated places, including Ayanagar and Pusa, where temperatures dropped to 3.8 and 3.2 degrees Celsius. Ac- Lowest temps minimum temp recorded didn’t drop Ayanagar Pusa below 4.9oC in ° ° Dec ’23 and ’22 3.8 C 3.2 C cold days Cold wave conditions occur when temp drops below 4.1°C Cold wave ° forecast Max temp until Dec 15 ahead 22.2 C The Australian government said on Thursday it will tax large digital platforms and search engines unless they agree to share revenue with Oz news media outlets | P9 could be sent to JPC after introduction in Parliament M U K E SH RA N J A N @ New Delhi The Union Cabinet on Thursday approved two bills to implement Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s plan of holding simultaneous elections to the Lok Sabha and state assemblies. Local body elections have not been bunched with Lok Sabha and state polls as of now. Sources said the draft legislations are likely to be introduced in the ongoing session of Parliament and could subsequently be referred to a joint parliamentary committee (JPC) for vetting. The prime minister, sources said, was keen on holding wider consultations on the ‘One Nation One Election’ (ONOE) scheme by involving speakers of state legislative assemblies as well through the JPC. The Cabinet’s decision comes nearly three months after it accepted the recommendations of the Kovind panel on holding simultaneous polls. Of the two bills approved on Thursday, one is on Constitutional amendments to conduct simultaneous polls. The second one is an ordinary bill to align Won’t need ratification by state assemblies The two bills cleared by the Cabinet would not require ratification by at least 50% of the state assemblies as local body elections have not been bunched with the Lok Sabha and state assembly elections, sources said elections for assemblies in the Union territories of Delhi, Puducherry, and Jammu and Kashmir, sources said. Based on the report of the Kovind panel, sources said one of the bills would seek to amend Article 82A by adding sub-clause (1) relating to the ‘appointed date’. Sub-clause (2) to Article 82A relating to the end of terms of the Lok Sabha and state legislative assemblies together has been inserted in the bill. It proposes to amend Article 83(2) to insert sub-clauses 3 and 4 relating to the duration and dissolution of the Lok Sabha. It also has provisions on the dissolution of state legislative assemblies and amending Article 327 to insert the term simultaneous elections. P7 Sandeep Dikshit Cong candidate from New Delhi A s h i s h S r i va stava @ New Delhi the Congress on Thursday named Sandeep Dikshit, son of former Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit, as its candidate from the New Delhi constituency, currently held by AAP supremo Arvind Kejriwal. The decision was taken during a meeting of the Congress Central Election Committee, chaired by party chief Mallikarjun Kharge. The announcement is seen as a symbolic attempt by the Congress to reclaim the constituency where Kejriwal defeated Sheila Dikshit in 2013, ending her 15-year tenure as CM. The CEC also cleared the first list total of 21 candidates for the upcoming Assembly polls. Among prominent names are DPCC president Devender Yadav, who will contest from Badli, and former Delhi Congress chief Anil Chaudhary who will , take on AAP candidate Awadh Ojha in Patparganj. Other candidates include Ragini Nayak from Wazirpur, Abhishek Dutt from Kasturba Nagar, and Haroon Yusuf from Ballimaran. Mudit Agarwal, son of Congress leader JP Agarwal, has been made a candidate from Chandni Chowk. P4 Kejriwal promises `2.1K/mnth to women if AAP wins E x p r e ss N e ws Se r v i c e @ New Delhi cording to IMD, cold wave conditions occur when actual temperatures fall below 4.1 degrees Celsius or when the departure from normal is 4.4 degrees Celsius or more below average. Meanwhile, the maximum temperature during the day was recorded at 22.2 degrees Celsius, 0.8 degrees below normal, the IMD said. The humid- ity fluctuated between 88% and 52% during the day . The weather department has forecast cold wave conditions at isolated places until December 15. Smog and mist are likely on Friday mor ning, with a mainly clear sky during the day. Smog and mist are expected again in the evening and night. With Assembly polls coming closer, AAP supremo Arvind Kejriwal on Thursday announced the Mukhya Mantri Mahila Samman Yojana and promised to raise the monthly aid from `1,000 to `2,100 if his AAP voted to power. He, however, said the money would be credited into beneficiaries’ accounts only after elections as the dates are likely to be announced soon. However, CM Atishi said if the Model Code of Conduct comes into force after January 13, the first installment will be transferred into the bank accounts of eligible women before elections. The registration for the Mukhya Mantri Mahila Samman Yojana, which was announced during the Budget 2024-25 by then finance minister and now CM Atishi, will begin from Friday, he said. The scheme originally proposed to give `1,000 per month to all eligible women aged above the age of 18 years. “The registration for the scheme will start tomorrow. It will be for `2,100,” Kejriwal said. “While the BJP calls it revdis, I see it as a step towards strengthening our society. The BJP asks from where the money will come. But I said that we will give free electricity and we did it,” Kejri, wal added. The AAP leader urged women to support his party inb the elections. “If all women work together, we will secure more than 60 seats,” he said. The BJP, however, attacked Kejriwal, asking why the AAP government did not implement such a scheme in Punjab despite making a similar announcement before the 2022 elections in the state. “Arvind Kejriwal is only repeating his fake promise. Even during the Lok Sabha polls, they got women to fill up forms but paid nothing to them,” Delhi BJP president Virendra Sachdeva said. Express read shah’s 3-day visit Raj cop cremated murder most foul JeM conspiracy NDMC budget from ’09-’19 massive tariffs 7 Maoists killed in C’garh encounter Driver linked to CM’s convoy accident dies Orisha rape accused burnt victim’s head NIA conducts raids on 19 places across 8 states Night cleaning, mist spray on streetlights 1.5m deaths/yr linked to air pollution: Lancet Trump invites China’s Xi to his inauguration Seven Maoists, including two women, were killed in an encounter with security forces in Chhattisgarh’s Narayanpur district on Thursday. The gunfight broke out around 3 am in the forest of south Abujhmad along the border of Narayanpur and Dantewada districts, Bastar Range IG Sundarraj P said. Meanwhile, Home Minister Amit Shah will be on a three-day visit to Chhattisgarh’s Naxal-hit areas from December 14 during which he will review the lawand-order situation. | P8 Taxi driver Pawan Kumar, who was involved in the accident with CM Bhajanlal Sharma’s convoy, died of his injuries during treatment on Friday. This comes a day after ASI Surendra Singh lost his life in the same accident that occurred on Wednesday. The discovery of a Dubai ID card of Kumar raised suspicions. Kumar, from Gangapur City near Jaipur, had previously lived and worked in the UAE. After returning to Jaipur, Kumar had been living in a rented house and working as a taxi driver. The gruesome murder of the 18-year-old girl whose dismembered body parts were found in Rourkela was not just horrifying, it was executed in cold blood as main accused Kunu Kisan came fully prepared to destroy evidence and derail probe. He burnt the victim’s severed head before disposing it of in a swamp. The accused watched crime shows revolving around kidnapping and murder, to learn the tricks before killing the girl whom he had allegedly raped and impregnated. | P5 The National Investigation Agency (NIA) on Thursday conducted raids against Jaish-eMohammad-linked members at 19 locations across eight states, including Assam, Maharashtra, Bihar, Gujarat, Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan, West Bengal and Jammu & Kashmir. An NIA spokesperson said, “Several incriminating documents, electronic devices including mobile phones, pen drives, CDs, hard disks etc. were seized during the searches carried out across eight states.” | P8 The New Delhi Municipal Council has proposed a budget of `5,770.60 crore for the financial year 2025-26, with plans to deploy mist spray for streetlights and launch a nightcleaning programme. It also plans to shift to 100% renewable energy usage, set up innovation labs for students and launch a Safe City initiative. “The council has passed the proposed budget before the model code of conduct is enforced,” NDMC Chairman Keshav Chandra said. | P4 About a million and a half deaths every year from 2009 to 2019 is potentially linked with a long-term exposure to PM2.5 pollution, according to a study published in The Lancet Planetary Health journal. Researchers, including those at Ashoka University, Haryana, and Centre for Chronic Disease Control, Delhi, said the entire 1.4 billion population of India live in areas having PM2.5 levels higher than WHO-recommended five micrograms per cubic metre yearly average. | P7 Donald Trump has invited President Xi Jinping to attend his inauguration next month, extending a diplomatic olive branch as he threatens to levy massive tariffs on Chinese goods. Trump’s incoming press secretary, Karoline Leavitt, confirmed on Thursday that Trump invited Xi. “This is an example of President Trump creating an open dialogue with leaders of countries that are not just our allies, but our adversaries and our competitors too,” Leavitt said.