FP The publishers permit sharing of the e-paper's pdf on WhatsApp and other social media platforms FREE PRESS Vol. 15 No. 184 | BHOPAL | TUESDAY | DECEMBER 16, 2025 | Pages 16 ` 3 | Regd. No. Indore MP/ICD 216/2024-2026 | RNI No. mpeng/2010/35815 www.freepressjournal.in Sports CAPITAL IN MESSI MODE P.14 VIJAY DIWAS ESTD-1983 iii QUALITY @ VALUE EDITIONS: BHOPAL MONEY India’s exports rise 19.37% in Nov; trade gap shrinks to 5-month low UJJAIN PUNE INDORE NASHIK Cinema ‘People assume I’m sitting on a high horse’ P.12 SIMHASTHA LAND POOLING SCHEME use Land Acquisition Act for necessary work TO BE CANCELLED The government will BJP MLA to Govt: Will join protest BHOPAL The Bharatiya Kisan Sangh (BKS) has rejected the new draft of the land pooling scheme for Simhastha. Since the BKS has rejected the draft, the government is getting ready to cancel the scheme. According to the new draft, instead of 2,376 hectares, 155 hectares will be acquired under the scheme. According to sources, the government is preparing a fresh draft to cancel the land pooling scheme and may make it public. The BKS has warned the government of launching an fp Briefs NEW DELHI Raj Kumar Goyal is CIC Retired IAS officer Raj Kumar Goyal was sworn in as the Chief Information Commissioner in the Central Information Commission on Monday.President Droupadi Murmu administered the oath of office to Raj Kumar Goyal at Rashtrapati Bhavan. AMMAN PM Modi in Jordan The BKS has warned the government of launching an agitation against the land pooling scheme on December 26. BJP legislator from the Ujjain north constituency Anil Jain wrote to Chief Minister Mohan Yadav that he would participate in the agitation to be launched by the BKS. At a meeting with the BKS held on November 17, an announcement was made cancelling the land pooling scheme, he wrote. But some amendments were made in an order issued on November 19. In his letter, Jain appealed to Yadav to withdraw the land pooling scheme. agitation against land pooling on December 26. The government may announce the cancellation before the beginning of the agitation. After cancelling the scheme, the land will be acquired for necessary work through the Land Acquisition Act. Land is necessary for constructing roads, sewerage, and other important work. Now, the government has to do exercises for acquiring land afresh. At a meeting between the government and BKS rep- resentatives, there was an agreement to cancel the land pooling scheme. But the government, instead of cancelling it, modified the scheme. The BKS opposed the modification of the scheme. Afterwards, the government MGNREGA renamed G RAM G, guarantees 125 days of work PTI Why Mahatma’s name dropped: Oppn NEW DELHI The government came under sharp criticism on Monday over a bill that seeks to repeal the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act and replace it with a new rural employment law, with opposition MPs asking why the name of the father of the nation is being removed The Viksit Bharat Guarantee for Rozgar and Ajeevika Mission (Gramin) (VB-G RAM G) Bill, 2025 that seeks to replace the existing rural employment law MGNREGA is set to be introduced in the Lok Sabha during the ongoing Winter session of Parliament. According to a copy of the Bill, it will provide a statutory guarantee of 125 days of wage employment in every financial year to every rural household whose adult members volunteer to undertake unskilled manual work. Within six months from the date of commencement of the VB-G RAM G Act, states will have to make a scheme consistent with the provisions of the new law. Under this centrally sponsored scheme, the financial liability would be shared between the Centre and the state governments. It would be 90:10 for the Northeastern states and Himalayan states and 60:40 for all other states and Union territories with legislature. For the UTs without legislature, the whole cost would be borne by the Centre. The MGNREGS was a 100 per cent centrally sponsored scheme. While MGNREGS was a demand-driven scheme with the Union government bound to allocate more money if demand for work was there, under the proScan & Watch posed scheme, 4Continued on | P8 E-paper Edit BJP ends new chief suspense P.6 BKS REJECTS FRESH DRAFT | Warns of launching protest against land pooling on Dec 26, cancellation likely before beginning of agitation Nitendra Sharma MUMBAI prepared a fresh draft, which the BKS rejected. State president of the BKS Kamal Singh Anjana rejected the new draft, saying the decision taken at the meeting on cancelling the land pooling scheme should be carried out. Ram Janmabhoomi movement stalwart Vedanti passes away LUCKNOW: Dr Ram Vilas Das Vedanti, a prominent figure of the Ram Janmabhoomi movement and former Member of Parliament from Ayodhya, passed away while undergoing treatment in Rewa, Madhya Pradesh. Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath expressed deep grief over the demise of Dr Vedanti, who was also a member of the Ram Janmabhoomi Teerth Kshetra Trust. Dr Vedanti was regarded as one of the leading voices of the Ram Janmabhoomi movement. During his tenure as the MP from Ayodhya, he consistently advocated the construction of the Ram Temple, raising the issue both in Parliament and through public mobilisation. Very close to sealing interim trade deal with US: Top official IANS NEW DELHI Commerce Secretary Rajesh Agrawal said on Monday that India is "very close" to concluding an interim trade deal with the US to bring down tariffs, but stopped short of fixing any timeline on the issue. "We are very close on closing the initial framework deal, but I don't want to put a timeline to it," the Commerce Secretary told journalists here. "We have done six rounds of talks with the US, where we have discussed both the BTA (bilateral trade agreement) as well as an interim deal to lower reciprocal tariffs. There's a fair expectation that both countries will be able to agree to a deal to lower reciprocal tariffs," he said. "The visit of Deputy USTR was to take a stock of our trade relations and to see where we are on the BTA as well as the framework deal," Agrawal said. US Trade Representative (USTR) Jamieson Greer also said recently that the US has received the "best-ever offers from India" on the proposed trade agreement. Speaking at a Senate Appropriations Subcommittee hearing in Washington, Greer said that there is resistance in India to certain row crops (corn, soybean, wheat, and cotton) being exported to its market from the US. 4Continued on | P8 PAHALGAM ATTACK LeT, TRF, 7 others named in chargesheet IANS JAMMU The National Investigation Agency (NIA) on Monday filed a chargesheet in connection with the April 22 Pahalgam terror attack before the designated NIA court in Jammu city of Jammu and Kashmir. In a press statement, the NIA said it has chargesheeted seven accused in the case, including the Pakistan-based Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) and its affiliate, The Resistance Front (TRF), as a terrorist organisation. "The chargesheet, which details Pakistan's conspiracy, the roles of the accused, and the supporting evidence in the case, has charged the banned LeT/TRF as a legal entity for its role in planning, facilitating and executing the Pahalgam terror attack," the agency said. The NIA stated that the attack involved religion-based targeted killings carried out by Pakistan-sponsored terrorists and resulted in the deaths of 25 tourists and one local civilian. Pakistani terrorist handler Sajid Jatt has also been named as an accused in the 1,597-page chargesheet filed before the NIA Special Court in Jammu. The agency further said that its chargesheet names Tina Khatri PM Narendra Modi on Monday met Jordan's King Abdullah II ibn Al Hussein at the Husseiniya Palace here and discussed issues of bilateral and regional interests. Modi arrived here on a two-day visit to Jordan at the invitation of King Abdullah II. LOS ANGELES Rob Reiner, wife found dead Director-actor Rob Reiner and his wife Michele were the two people found dead at a Los Angeles home owned by Reiner, according to a law enforcement official briefed on the investigation. INDORE Madhya Pradesh emerged as the first state in the country to complete the registration of exotic pet owners within the timelines mandated by the Wildlife (Protection) Amendment Act, 2022, marking a significant step in tightening oversight of India’s exotic animal trade. GOA FIRE TRAGEDY Luthra bros to land in Delhi today NEW DELHI: Saurabh and Gaurav Luthra, the owners of North Goa's Birch by Romeo Lane nightclub, are likely to arrive in Delhi from Thailand on Tuesday, the Goa Police said. The brothers will be taken into custody by the Goa Police immediately upon their arrival in the national capital. Thai authorities had detained the Luthra brothers on the basis of an INTERPOL Blue Corner Notice issued at the request of Indian law enforcement agencies. State forest and wildlife authorities launched an intensive compliance drive soon after the amended law came into force, aiming to document species that had earlier existed in a legal grey zone due to the absence of mandatory ownership records. Gujarat and Maharashtra followed closely, securing the second and third positions respectively in the nationwide registration effort. The move directly addresses India’s persistent wildlife trafficking problem. Official data show that more than 70,000 native and exotic animals were trafficked through Indian airports between 2011 and 2020. Madhya Pradesh is widely recognised as a key hub and transit corridor for illegal wildlife trade, alongside West Bengal, Rajasthan and Assam, owing to its central location and extensive transport networks. 4Continued on | P8 BANKEY BIHARI TEMPLE FP News Service JABALPUR A video has surfaced on social media, showing at least 3 to 4 rats running around a patient’s bed in the ICU of Jabalpur’s District Hospital on Monday. The video, reportedly recorded by a patient’s relative, has gone viral on social media and sparked public anger. In the footage, several rats can be seen moving freely near a patient who is admitted in the intensive care unit. 4Continued on | P8 Sikkim opens Doklam, Cho La to tourists IANS GANGTOK a key step in the state’s initiative to connect citizens with India’s border history while The Supreme Court on Monday expressed unhappiness over the practice of allowing people to do 'special pujas' in temples after paying money, disrupting the "resting time" of deity, as it sought a response from authorities on a plea challenging changes in 'darshan' timings and temple practices at the famous Bankey Bihari Ji Temple at Vrindavan. It issued notice to the SC-appointed high-powered temple management committee and the Uttar Pradesh government and listed the matter for further consideration in the first week of January. A bench comprising Chief Justice Surya Kant and justices Joymalya Bagchi and Vipul M Pamcholi took note of the submissions of senior advocate Shyam Divan and lawyer Tanvi Dubey assailing the change in 'darshan' timing of the deity at Congress state president Jitu Patwari slammed the health department for negligence. Drawing parallels between the govt and Ramayana character Kumbhkaran, infamous for sleeping, he said, "Kumbhakran toh fir bhi 6 mahine sota tha, apka swasthya mantralya 2 saal se sou raha hai." (Your health department is worse than Kumbhkaran). According to information, the incident is from hospital Victoria from Jabalpur. offgrid In a historic move aimed at promoting battlefield tourism and fostering development in border regions, Sikkim on Monday opened two of its most sensitive and historically significant border areas, Doklam and Cho La, to tourists under regulated conditions. The announcement marks NEW DELHI Video shows rats running Fog disrupts flights; around patient’s bed in ICU very dense to moderate Health dept worse fog prevails in 24 districts than Kumbhkaran, says Jitu Patwari enhancing livelihoods in remote villages. Speaking on the occasion, Chief Minister Prem Singh Tamang said the opening of Doklam and Cho La reflects a broader national vision for border development. Expressing gratitude to the Government of India and Prime Minister Narendra Modi, he emphasised that the progress witnessed today is the result of a focused and coordinated effort between the Indian Army, the State Government, and central authorities. “The development we are seeing in border areas is driven by the vision of the Hon’ble Prime Minister,” Tamang said. “Tourism initiatives in these regions will not only attract visitors but also improve living conditions for local communities and support vibrant border villages.” 4Continued on | P8 4Continued on | P8 Deity not allowed to rest: SC fumes over spl pujas for affluent PTI MP first in India to register exotic pets three Pakistani terrorists who were killed by Indian security forces during Operation Mahadev at Dachigam in Srinagar in July 2025, weeks after the Pahalgam attack. The three terrorists have been identified as Faisal Jatt a.k.a. Suleman Shah, Habeeb Tahir a.k.a. Jibran, and Hamza Afghani. According to the NIA, the LeT/TRF and the four aforementioned terrorists have been charged under relevant provisions of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), 2023, the Arms Act, 1959, and the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA), 1967. "In its chargesheet, the NIA has also invoked penal provisions relating to waging war against the Government of India," the statement said. Scan & Watch Bankey Bihari Ji Temple and also stopping of certain essential religious practices, including Dehri Pooja there. "These darshan timings are part of tradition and rituals. The timings during which the temple is open to the public are a part of a long tradition," Divan said, adding that historically, strict timings had been followed. "The change in temple timings has led to a change in the internal temple rituals, including the timings when the deity wakes up in the morning and sleeps at night," he said. 4Continued on | P8 BONDI SHOOTING, MANY FAILURES Aus let off IS shooter, cops froze amid firing Agencies CHILL CHART Rewa, Satna and Chhatarpur disBHOPAL tricts. Dense fog is 0 Rajgarh 5.4 likely in Datia, 0 Fog disrupted Pachmarhi 5.4 Mauganj, Panna, flights at Raja Bhoj Bhopal 5.80 Tikamgarh, NiAirport on Mon- Shahdol 5.80 wari and Maihar, day. Morning while moderate 6.60 fog may affect flights were de- Indore 7.00 Bhopal, Vidisha, layed, while In- Umaria diGo afternoon Anuppur Sin7.40 Shivpuri, and evening flights Rewa 7.50 grauli, Shahdol, were cancelled. Umaria, Katni, Ja7.60 balpur, Damoh Fog-like con- Raisen 7.80 and Sagar. ditions prevailed Betul across many dis- Nowgong Bhopal re7.80 tricts of Madhya corded day temMalajkhand 7.80 Pradesh, with perature of 25.0°C Rewa and Satna recording visafter a drop of 2.2°C and night ibility below 50 meters. temperature of 5.8°C, down Orange alert has been is1.2°C. sued for very dense fog in 4Continued on | P8 Gwalior, Bhind, Morena, Sidhi, Our Staff Reporter City Temp The Bondi Beach mass shooting that killed at least 15 people, has exposed serious failures in Australia’s intelligence, policing and counterterrorism systems. The December 14 attack, carried out during a Jewish Hanukkah celebration, is being described by Prime Minister Anthony Albanese as “an act of pure evil, antisemitism and terrorism.” Twenty-four-year-old Naveed Akram had been investigated by the Australian Security Intelligence Organisation (ASIO) in 2019 due to links with a Sydney-based Islamic State (IS) cell. ASIO Director-General Mike Burgess confirmed Akram was under surveillance for six months but was cleared after authorities assessed that he posed no ongoing threat. That decision is now under inScan & Watch tense scrutiny. 4Continued on | P8