FP The publishers permit sharing of the e-paper's pdf on WhatsApp and other social media platforms Vol. 15 No. 63 | BHOPAL | WEDNESDAY | AUGUST 20, 2025 | Pages 14 ` 3 | Regd. No. Indore MP/ICD 216/2024-2026 | RNI No. mpeng/2010/35815 FREE www.freepressjournal.in Sports Gill’s crown shines brighter, Samson’s shadow grows longer P.12 ESTD-1983 iii QUALITY @ VALUE EDITIONS: BHOPAL UJJAIN NATION PRESS PUNE INDORE NASHIK MUMBAI E-paper World Meloni’s ‘namaste’ grabs eyeballs P.10 Poll roll ruckus simmers Cinema Manika crowned Miss Universe India P.14 Class 12 student sets female teacher afire WANG YI VISIT | Measures come amid growing estrangement in ties between India and the US over President Donald Trump’s policies on trade and tariff India-China to reopen border trade, resume direct flights and ease visas PTI ‘No change in position on Taiwan’ NEW DELHI In a major thaw in their frosty ties, India and China on Tuesday unveiled a series of measures to forge a "stable, cooperative and forward-looking" relationship that included jointly maintaining peace along the frontier, reopening border trade, promoting investment flows, and resuming of direct flight connectivity at the earliest. The announcements aimed at realising the full development potential of the two Asian giants came amid growing estrangement in ties between India and the US over President Donald Trump's policies on trade and tariff. India and China listed the measures in a joint document after Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi held wide-ranging talks with External Affairs Min- fp Briefs There is no change in India's position on Taiwan and New Delhi's relationship with it focuses on economic, technology and cultural ties, government sources said on Tuesday. The clarification came after the Chinese foreign ministry misquoted External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar as saying during his talks with his Chinese counterpart, Wang Yi, that Taiwan is part of China Our Staff Reporter PTI BHOPAL NEW DELHI ing and promote sustained, sound and steady development of India-China relations. Chief minister Mohan Yadav said that India would not depend on countries like China for rare earth elements after discovery of rich deposit of rare earth elements in Singrauli. Union coal and mining minister G Kishan Reddy informed Parliament that it is for the first time that such a massive deposit of rare earth elements has been found in the country. 4Continued on | P8 4Continued on | P8 Former Supreme Court judge B Sudershan Reddy is the joint candidate of the Opposition parties for the Vice-Presidential polls, Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge announced on Tuesday, as he called the upcoming election for the country's second-highest office an "ideological battle". Reddy is a former judge of the Supreme Court and the first Lokayukta of Goa. He is also on the Board of Trustees of the International Arbitration and Mediation Centre in Hyderabad. Reddy would arrive in the national capital on Tuesday evening and meet with various Opposition leaders. He will file his nomination on August 21. The joint opposition would hold a meeting in the central hall of Samvidhan Sadan (old Parliament building) on Wednesday afternoon. "All Opposition parties have decided to have a common candidate; the decision has been taken unanimously. Unilateral bullying rampant: China Modi accepts Xi’s SCO invitation A Chinese statement said that Wang Yi told EAM Jaishankar that the world is undergoing a "once-in-a-century transformation at an accelerating pace". In an apparent reference to Washington, DC's pressure, he said "unilateral bullying is rampant" and free trade and the international order face severe challenges ister S Jaishankar and National Security Advisor Ajit Doval over the last two days besides meeting PM Narendra Modi. The two sides agreed that Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi met PM Narendra Modi on Tuesday and handed over a message and an invitation from President Xi Jinping for the SCO Summit being held in Tianjin in China. The Prime Minister thanked President Xi for the invitation to the SCO Summit and conveyed his acceptance they should earnestly implement the important common understandings reached between Prime Minister Modi and Chinese President Xi Jinp- No American boots on ground: Trump says won’t deploy US troops in Ukraine Cabinet approves bill to regulate online gaming WASHINGTON NEW DELHI HYDERABAD ISRO working on massive rocket ISRO Chairman V Narayanan on Tuesday said the space agency has been working on a rocket as high as a 40-storey building to place a 75,000 kg payload in low earth orbit. Narayanan said this year, the space agency has lined up with projects such as NAVIC satellite and the N1 rocket, besides placing a 6,500 kg communication satellite of the USA into orbit using Indian rockets. BHOPAL Tiger electrocuted A T3 tiger died of electrocution in Dubri area of Sanjay Tiger Reserve, Sidhi on Tuesday. Forest officials said that the full grown adult tiger might have accidently come in contact with live wire purportedly laid by farmers to protect crops from wild animals. NEW DELHI Cotton exempted from customs duty In a move aimed at stabilising domestic cotton prices and supporting the textile industry, the government has waived all customs duties on the import of raw cotton with effect from August 19 until September 30. Oppn announces Rare earths in former SC judge Singrauli will Sudershan Reddy reduce China dependency: CM as V-P candidate Putin ready for direct talks: Rubio President Donald Trump on Tuesday offered his assurances that US troops would not be sent to help defend Ukraine against Russia after seeming to leave open the possibility the day before. Trump also said in a morning TV interview that Ukraine's hopes of joining NATO and regaining the Crimean Peninsula from Russia are "impossible." The Republican president, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and other European leaders held hours of talks at the White House on Monday aimed at bringing an end to Russia's war against Ukraine. While answering questions from journalists, Trump did not rule out sending US troops to participate in a European-led effort to defend Ukraine as part of security guarantees sought by Zelenskyy. US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said that Russian President Vladimir Putin told his US counterpart Donald Trump that he was willing to meet Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky. Rubio highlighted that the fact that Putin is ready to meet Zelensky after three years of war, is a "big deal". "But just the fact that Putin is saying, sure, I'll meet with Zelenskyy - that's a big deal.” Trump said after his meeting in Alaska last week with Russian President Vladimir Putin that Putin was open to the idea of security guarantees for Ukraine. But asked Tuesday on Fox News Channel's "Fox & Friends" what assurances he could provide going forward and beyond his term that American troops would not be part of defending Ukraine's border, Trump said, "Well, you have my assurance, and I'm president." Trump would have no control over the US military after his terms ends in January 2029. The president also said in the interview that he is optimistic that a deal can be reached to end the Russian invasion, but he underscored that Ukraine will have to set aside its hope of getting back Crimea, which was seized by Russian forces in 2014, and its long-held aspirations of joining the NATO military alliance. Union Cabinet has approved a bill related to promotion and regulation of online gaming, and the government is likely to bar platforms offering any online money gaming service, a source said on Tuesday. The bill is likely to be tabled in Parliament on Wednesday, the source added. "The Cabinet has approved the bill to regulate online gaming platforms that involve real money. The government is trying to table the bill in Parliament on Wednesday," the source said on condition of anonymity. The bill has taken into account significant mental health issues among users of online games, particularly those involving monetary incentives. Missing lawyer Archana found in UP’s Kheri dist DRI DRUG FACTORY CASE House purchased at premium for ‘battery charging station’ SP said that a team was bringing her back to Bhopal   Our Staff Reporter Our Staff Reporter BHOPAL BHOPAL Within days of the Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI) busting an illicit Mephedrone manufacturing facility in Bhopal district, sources revealed on Tuesday that the property was bought only last month at a premium, ostensibly to establish a ‘battery charging station’. The DRI busted the factory in Jagdishpur (Islamnagar) village of Bhopal district on August 16, confiscating 61.20 kg of liquid Mephedrone, valued at Rs 92 crore in the illicit market, in a meticulously coordinated ‘Operation Crystal Break’.  PTI After 12 days of search, Government Railway Police (GRP) tracked missing lawyer Archana Tiwari (28) to Lakhimpur Kheri district of Uttar Pradesh close to Nepal border. SP, GRP, Rahul Kumar Lodha on Tuesday night said a team was returning to Bhopal with her. Archana had gone missing on August 7, while travelling from Indore to Katni on Narmada Express. Earlier in the day, sources Chiklod resident Sabiha Khan was the original owner of the house, and with the help of a broker, Abrar, she sold it to Ganj Basoda-based Rajjak Khan for Rs 13.5 lakh on July 16 this year. According to the sale agreement, Rs 1 lakh was paid upfront, while the rest was scheduled to be paid in September. 4Continued on | P8 claimed that Archana's location was traced to Delhi. GRP officials said during the investigation, police questioned more than 50 passengers from the B-3 coach of the train in which Archana was last seen. CCTV footage from stations along the Indore– Katni route was examined and cyber teams were deployed to track her mobile data and online activities. Eight officers worked on analyzing digital evidence and scanning social media platforms for clues. Since her disappearance, multiple agencies including GRP, RPF, local police, the forest department and family members joined the search. 4See also | Nation Accused held; teacher suffers 25% burns FP News Service NARSINGHPUR A student of class 12 has been Suryansh entered the arrested for setting a 25-yearhouse, sprinkled petrol on the old female teacher on fire in teacher, and set her afire. On Narsinghpur, the police said Monday, the youth went to the on Tuesday. The female Government Excellence teacher filed a complaint of School and objected to her harassment against the stuwearing a sari. dent at the police station. Afterwards, he went to her The woman was a guest house and called her outside. teacher at the Government Just as she came out, the boy School of Excellence, threw petrol on her from where the stuand torched her. dent was expelled The principal of two years ago. Excellence School The student, GS Patel said Suidentified by the poryansh had studied lice as Suryansh Koin the school up to char, enrolled in a Class 9. government school He was not in Kalyanpur and Suryansh keeping well, and continued his there were several studies. But he often went to complaints against him for his his old school. misconduct with other stuThe teacher, who received dents. 25% of burns, was sent to the Consequently, he was given district hospital after the incia transfer certificate, the prindent on Monday. cipal said. As there is no system of The principal of Governtreating burn cases in the hosment Higher Secondary pital, he was referred to JabalSchool in Kalyanpur, OP Kaupur. rav, said Suryansh was a stuAdditional Superintendent dent of class 12 of the school. of Police Sandeep Bhuria said According to Kaurav, Suwhen the incident took place, ryansh came to him and said the teacher, a resident of Rewa he would not attend school for Nagar, was at her residence six days, for he would visit Jaiwith her sister. pur with his grandfather. Cabinet okays MP Civil Services Rules, maternity leave for surrogate moms On adoption of a child, male govt employee to get paternity leave Our Staff Reporter BHOPAL The state cabinet approved the Madhya Pradesh Civil Services (Leave) Rules 2025 for government employees on Tuesday. The key provision includes eligibility for maternity leave for surrogate and commissioning mothers. On adoption of a child, a male government servant will be entitled to paternity leave of 15 days. The MP Civil Services (Leave) Rules 2025 replace the 1977 Leave Rules to suit present requirements. The single male government employee will get leave for childcare. For long leave, salary arrangement will be according to the norms of the Centre. The other provision aims to increase the maximum limit of earned leave from 120 to 180 Teacher complained to police against him for objectionable comments against her Endocrinology dept In another major decision, the cabinet approved establishment of an endocrinology department in Gandhi Medical College, Bhopal. Twenty posts of professor, associate professor, senior residents and junior residents etc have been sanctioned. One dietician will also be outsourced. This will strengthen superspecialty health services, improve diagnosis and treatment of hormonal disorders, expand medical education and research and promote innovation in endocrinology. days. In case of seriously ill or divyang employees, family members can move the application for leave. Academic cadre employees will be eligible for 10 days earned leave annually. 4Continued on | P8 CARICATURE OF PM, RSS Publish apology within 10 days: SC to cartoonist Agencies NEW DELHI The Supreme Court on Tuesday extended the protection from arrest granted to Indore-based cartoonist Hemant Malviya for his objectionable caricatures of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS). Malviya's counsel said he would publish an apology on Facebook, Instagram and other social media platforms for his post. A bench of Justices Aravind Kumar and NV Anjaria said that Malviya should publish the apology within 10 days and extended the interim protection till the next date of hearing. Additional Solicitor General (ASG) KM Nataraj appearing for the Madhya Pradesh government said that the post should not be deleted because the investigation is ongoing. MONSOON MAYHEM 4Continued on | P8 cbse schools Survey flags gaps in support for disabled students Tina Khatri INDORE Despite legal mandates and policy commitments, inclusion of children with special needs (CwSN) in CBSE-affiliated schools continues to fall short, both in reach and quality. Data released by the Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) and findings from the PARAKH Rashtriya Sarvekshan 2024 have revealed systemic lapses in enrolment, infrastructure, teacher training and classroom practices. According to CBSE’s examination data for 2025, 9,248 CwSN students from 4,484 schools appeared in Class X Board examinations, while 5,712 students from 3,107 schools sat for Class XII. Though these numbers reflect a gradual rise in participation, they stand in sharp contrast to the World Health Organ- isation’s (WHO) estimate that around 15 per cent of any population lives with some form of disability (World Report on Disability, 2011). The gap between the estimated number of children with disabilities and those actually enrolled and supported in schools, points to a persistent failure in identification, outreach and provision of services. Many CwSN continue to remain out of school or remain invisible within them. The PARAKH Rashtriya Sarvekshan 2024 — a national school survey conducted by the Performance Assessment, Review and Analysis of Knowledge for Holistic Development (PARAKH) — presents a concerning picture. Page 34 of the report states that while 52 per cent of schools with CwSN report providing some level of academic support, only 38 per cent have trained or certified special educators. 4Continued on | P8 Rains pummelled most parts of Maharashtra on Tuesday, leaving 10 persons dead, bringing Mumbai to a near standstill Eight persons have died in Nanded district which witnessed flooding due to a cloudburst-like situation, while Mumbai received a record rainfall of 300 mm A Monorail train with at least 200 passengers on board came to a halt due to apparent power failure between Mysore Colony and Bhakti Park stations in Mumbai