FREE PRESS The publishers permit sharing of the e-paper's pdf on WhatsApp and other social media platforms VOL. 13 NO. 279 | BHOPAL | FRIDAY | MARCH 22, 2024 | PAGES 16 ‘THE FIRST FEELING IS I AM HAPPY THAT I AM ALIVE’ SPORTS `3 - r Regd. No. Indore MP/ICD 216/2021-2023; EDITIONS: INDORE, BHOPAL, UJJAIN, MUMBAI, PUNE MONEY FLASH COMPOSITE PMI JUMPS TO 8-MTH HIGH OF 61.3 IN MAR WEATHER FP 32.60c. 19.00c Sunrise : 06.30 Sunset : 06.37 India’s fertility rate down from 6.2 in 1950 to under 2 in ‘21: Lancet WILL FALL to 1.29 in 2050 & 1.04 in 2100 NEW DELHI: India's fertility rate dropped from nearly 6.2 in 1950 to just under 2 in 2021, and is projected to fall further to 1.29 and 1.04 in 2050 and 2100, respectively, according to a new global research published in The Lancet journal. These numbers were found to be in line with global trends, where the In India, there were more than 1.6 crore and over 2.2 crore livebirths in 1950 and 2021. The number is projected to fall to 1.3 crore in 2050 roughly 9.3 crore in 1950, but a decline from the peak of 14.2 crore in 2016. However, even as much of the planet contends with the challenges of low fertility, many low-income countries will still be facing high fertility issues during the 21st century, said the researchers from the Global Burden of Disease (GBD) 2021 Fertility and Forecasting Collaborators. The high fertility in these low-income regions, par- ED arrests Kejriwal Total Fertility Rate (TFR) was over 4.8 children per woman in 1950 and fell to 2.2 children per woman in 2021. These figures have been projected to fall to 1.8 and 1.6 in 2050 and 2100, respectively . The study found that there were 12.9 crore livebirths the world over in 2021 -- an increase from The Delhi CM has moved SC seeking an urgent hearing challenging the Delhi HC order NEW DELHI A 12-member team of the Enforcement Directorate (ED) has arrested Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal at his residence in North Delhi's Civil Lines this evening. The ED team reached his residence and began questioning after Delhi HC refused to grant CM Arvind Kejriwal protection from coercive action in excise policy case earlier today . NEWS BRIEF Gold touches new high NEW DELHI: Gold prices surged by Rs 1,130 to hit an all-time high of Rs 67,450 per 10 grams in the local market here following strong global trends. The precious metal had closed at Rs 66,320 per 10 grams in the previous trade. Silver also zoomed by Rs 1,100 to Rs 77,750 per kg on increased demand. It had settled at Rs 76,650 per kg in the previous close. Sonia hits out at BJP NEW DELHI: Putting the spotlight on its precarious finances ahead of the Lok Sabha polls, the Congress' top brass on Thursday demanded immediate access to its frozen bank accounts to ensure a level playing field as Sonia Gandhi accused Prime Minister Narendra Modi of a "systematic effort" to cripple the party's finances. Meanwhile, the Delhi CM has moved the Supreme Court seeking an urgent hearing challenging the Delhi HC order. The top court is expected to hear the matter on Friday morning. Earlier in the day, a division bench of the Delhi HC heard CM Arvind Kejriw- al's application for interim relief for 'no coercive steps' against him, challenging the summons issued to him in the excise policy case by the ED and the validity of certain provisions of the PMLA. The HC noted: "At this stage we are not inclined to pass such an order". Diggy likely from Rajgarh, Yadav from Guna Bhuria may contest from Ratlam OUR STAFF REPORTER city.bhopal@fpj.co.in Former chief minister Digvijaya Singh may contest election from Rajgarh seat, Kantilal Bhuria from Ratlam and Arun Yadav from Guna-Shivpuri seat, the Congress' Central Election Committee has finalise Lok Sabha poll candidates for Madhya Pradesh in a meeting held, in New Delhi on Thursday . The ex-CM Singh contested the election from Bhopal seat in the year 2019 and have lost it to the BJP candidate Pragya Singh Thakur with around 3.64 lakh votes. The meeting of the CEC was attended by former to media Patwari in New after TalkingheDelhithat the meeting, said names for the elections has been decided unanimously, "We had stated that we will give more than 50 per cent tickets to youth. We have kept that in mind and the decisions have been taken unanimously. It will be declared tonight or tomorrow." "All big leaders with chances of winning are contesting the election," he said Congress chief Sonia Gandhi, party general secretary K C Venugopal and other members of the panel. From the state MP, the state president Jitu Patwari, leader of opposition Umang Singhar, in-charge of state Jitendra Singh finalised the names of the candidates. CONTD. ON P8 Section 144 has been imposed outside Delhi CM's residence as AAP leaders and followers gather outside the residence to show support. Security was beefed up around Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal's residence in Civil Lines Thursday evening with the deployment of RAF and CRPF units along with Delhi Police personnel. Barricades were put up on the lane leading to his official residence in Civil Lines in north Delhi and additional police personnel deployed there, officials said. Kejriwal was summoned for the ninth time by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Thursday in connection to the excise policy case. Cash-strapped Pakistan seeks 24th bailout PM Sharif & IMF confirm AGENCIES Islamabad Pakistan would require another IMF bailout programme for its macroeconomic stability, the cashstrapped country's Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif said on Thursday, a day after Islamabad reached a staff-level agreement with the global lender on the successful completion of the existing shortterm facility. Addressing a meeting of the Special Investment and Facilitation Council's (SIFC) Apex committee, Sharif asserted that the new tranche of the bailout package by the International Monetary Fund (IMF) would likely be received in a few days, but signalled the need for a new programme by the Fund, the Dawn newspaper reported. Washington-based IMF's global team reached a stafflevel agreement with the Pakistani authorities on the second and final review of Pakistan's stabilisation programme supported by the global lender's USD 3 billion standby arrangement approved in July last year. CONTD. ON P8 Twin setbacks for Centre in one day STOP SENDING ‘VIKSIT BHARAT’ MESSAGES: EC POLL BODY had received several complaints NEW DELHI Taking a strong step to ensure compliance with the model code of conduct, the Election Commission has directed the Union government to "immediately halt" Viksit Bharat messages being sent over WhatsApp. The poll panel has also instructed the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology to immediately submit a compliance report. Thursday's action by the Election Commission comes after it received several complaints about the model code being violated by MeitY sending the messages. In response, the ministry had informed the panel that the messages, which contain a letter from the Prime Minister, were sent out on March 15 - before the model code of conduct (MCC) came into force and that some of them could have been delivered with a delay because of "system architecture and network limitations". CONTD. ON P8 SC STAYS FACT CHECK UNIT NOTIFICATION THE IT rules gave power to Centre to identify fake news about itself NEW DELHI The Supreme Court on Thursday stayed the March 20 notification of Fact Check Unit by the Centre government under the Information Technology (Intermediary Guidelines and Digital Media Ethics Code) Amendment Rules 2023 (IT Amendment Rules 2023). A bench of Chief Justice of India DY Chandrachud and Justices JB Pardiwala and Manoj Misra put on hold the notification till the Bombay High Court finally decides the challenges to the IT Rules Amendment 2023. The bench stayed the notification till third judge of Bombay High Court gives its verdict after completing hearing on legality of Rules setting up FCU. Earlier, the Bombay High Court had delivered a split decision. The third judge is hearing the case after split verdict from a division bench of High Court on validity of FCU. CONTD. ON P8 ticularly in some countries and territories in western and eastern sub-Saharan Africa, will result in a demographically divided world, they said. The majority of children will be born in some of the poorest regions in the world, with low-income countries' share in the global livebirths almost doubling from 18 per cent to 35 per cent from 2021 to 2100, the researchers projected. CONTD. ON P8 ED files charge sheet against Karti NEW DELHI: The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has filed a charge sheet before the Special PMLA Court in Delhi against Karti P. Chidambaram and his former Chartered Accountant S. Bhaskararaman in the Chinese visa scam case. The agency stated on Thursday that the court took cognizance of the charge sheet on Tuesday. Besides Karti Chidambaram, Advantage Strategic Consulting Private Limited, Talwandi Sabo Power Limited and others are also named as accused in the money-laundering case. The financial probe agency had initiated the investigation on the basis of an FIR registered by the CBI under the provisions of IPC, 1860 and Prevention of Corruption Act, 1988. CONTD. ON P8 r RNI No. mpeng/2010/35815 QUALITY AT VALUE www.freepressjournal.in WRAPPED IN SUNSHINE CINEMA PS, secretary of CJI raps jails at loggerheads; TN Guv issue reaches CS AGENCIES NEW DELHI get out, Rastogi himself went out of it. Afterwards, Dahima dashed off a letter to Chief Secretary Veera Rana about the incident that took place on Wednesday . In the letter, Dahima wrote that because Rastogi’s conduct was objectionable that he would not be able to work with him anymore. CONTD. ON P8 The Supreme Court today came down heavily on Tamil Nadu Governor RN Ravi for his refusal to re-induct a DMK leader as minister despite a pause on his conviction. In strong remarks, Chief Justice of India DY Chandrachud said the Governor was "defying the Supreme Court" and asked the Centre, "If the Governor does not follow the Constitution, what does the government do?" The bench, also comprising Justice JB Pardiwala and Justice Manoj Misra, has now given the Governor a day's time till tomorrow to appoint DMK's K Ponmudi as minister. CONTD. ON P8 help match their purchasers with the political parties that received the funds. Two separate lists of the donors and the recipients were published by the poll panel on its website after the details were submitted to it by the State Bank of India earlier in the day as per a Supreme Court order. The State Bank of India was the only bank autho- rised to sell and redeem the bonds, which were first issued in March 2018 and were being sold until the scheme was declared null and void by the top court last month. The Election Commission said it has uploaded the data on electoral bonds on its website as received from SBI on "as is where is basis". RASTOGI TELLS Dahima to get out of his chamber OUR STAFF REPORTER BHOPAL Principal Secretary (PS) of jails Manish Rastogi, known for picking up a fight with other officers, has locked horns with secretary of the department, Lalit Dahima. His tempers ran so high that Rastogi told Dahima and deputy secretary of the department Kamal Nagar to get out of his chamber. When Dahima refused to Rastogi Dahima SBI submits all electoral bond details, EC makes it public NOW, BOND purchaser and receiving pol party can be matched NEW DELHI The Election Commission on Thursday made public a fresh data set of electoral bonds, including their alphanumeric numbers that can