FP The publishers permit sharing of the e-paper's pdf on WhatsApp and other social media platforms Vol. XLI No. 34 | INDORE | FRIDAY | JULY 12, 2024 | Pages 14 ` 3 | Regd. No. Indore MP/ICD 216/2024-2026 | RNI No. 38281/83 FREE www.freepressjournal.com Sports Jabalpur’s Rubina Francis secures quota for Paris Paralympics 2024 fp ESTD-1983 iii QUALITY @ VALUE EDITIONS: INDORE MONEY UJJAIN PRESS PUNE BHOPAL NASHIK NEW DELHI Modi meets economists M Narendra Modi is meeting eminent economists on Thursday to elicit their views and suggestions for the upcoming Budget, a senior government official said. Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman is scheduled to present the Budget for 2024-25 in the Lok Sabha on July 23. Besides economists and sectoral experts, Niti Aayog Vice Chairman Suman Bery and other members also attended the meeting. Finance Minister Sitharaman, Planning Minister Rao Inderjit Singh, Chief Economic Advisor V Anantha Nageswaran and economists Surjit Bhalla and Ashok Gulati and veteran banker K V Kamath among others were present in the meeting. India pips China to become real estate capital of Asia Cinema Bollywood’s dark secrets P.14 P BHUBANESWAR Odisha ADM dies while singing n additional district magistrate (ADM) collapsed on the stage while singing a Jagannath bhajan at a get-together of government officials in Odisha's Gajapati district and later died, an official said on Thursday. The deceased, identified as Birendra Kumar Das, was serving as ADM (Revenue) in Gajapati district. A video clip of the incident which took place on Wednesday evening went viral on social media. A NEW DELHI SC to hear NEET-UG cases on July 18 he Supreme Court on Thursday adjourned till July 18 the hearing of a clutch of petitions seeking cancellation, re-test and probe into alleged malpractices in the conduct of NEET-UG 2024 as the responses of the Centre and the NTA were yet to be received by some parties. Amid the festering row over the all-India examination, the top court noted that separate affidavits filed on Wednesday by the Centre and the NTA. T CJI to Centre: List steps taken to prevent suicides PTI Referring to Delhi Police data, the petition said 140 cases of suicides by kids under 18 years were recorded between 2014 and 2018 NEW DELHI Terming the rising number of suicides a "social issue", the Supreme Court on Thursday granted four weeks to the Centre for filing a comprehensive reply to a PIL seeking effective implementation of a public health programme for prevention and reduction of suicides. A bench comprising Chief Justice D Y Chandrachud and justices JB Pardiwala and Manoj Misra took note of the submissions of lawyer and petitioner Gaurav Kumar Bansal that effective steps are needed to deal with the rising number of suicide cases and asked the Centre to file a comprehensive affidavit. "It is a social issue, let them (Centre and authorities) file a counter affidavit," the CJI said. The top court, on August 2, 2019, had issued notices to Centre and all states and Union territories on the PIL. The plea has also sought a direction to all the states and Union territories to start a project for providing support and advice through call centres and helplines to persons with suicidal thoughts. Referring to data provided by Delhi Police, the petition said 140 cases of suicides of children below 18 years were recorded between 2014 and 2018. The plea said the failure of the authorities in "drafting, designing and implementing public health programme for the prevention and reduction of suicides in India is not only violative of section 29 and 115 of the Mental Healthcare Act, 2017 but is also in violation of Article 21 (protection of life and personal liberty) of the Constitution". Bansal has alleged in his plea that the Delhi government has "failed to provide a healthy social atmosphere" here.” The plea said all the states and Union territories have failed to implement various provisions of the Mental Healthcare Act 2017 and they should be directed to take appropriate steps for the prevention and reduction of suicides in their jurisdiction. 4Continued on | P6 Country sees highest suicides in the world Agencies NEW DELHI Even as the latest suicide case of a father-son duo in Mumbai shocked us, experts on Thursday said that suicide is the largest public health crisis facing people, both young and old in India. India has the dubious distinction of having the highest number of suicides in the CISF, BSF to reserve 10% jobs for Agniveers PTI NEW DELHI world. According to a National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB) report released in April, 1.71 lakh people died by suicide in 2022 in India. The suicide rate has increased to 12.4 per 1,00,000 -the highest rate ever recorded in India. Health experts point out that the major reason is depression -- a mental illness that in some can be genetic and Drunk teachers a menace for govt schools in Dindori Agencies The chiefs of CISF and the BSF on Thursday said 10 per cent posts of constables will be reserved in their respective forces for former Agniveers in line with a decision by the Union Home Ministry. The remarks by CISF Director General Nina Singh and her BSF counterpart Nitin Agrawal came amid fresh spotlight on the Agnipath recruitment scheme for shortterm induction of personnel in the Army, Navy and the Air Force. "The Union Home Ministry has taken an important decision regarding the recruitment of ex-Agniveers. Accordingly, the CISF is also preparing the process of the recruitment of ex-Agniveer," Singh said. The chief of the Central Industrial Security Force (CISF) said 10 per cent jobs will be reserved for exAgniveers in all future appointments of constables. In physical tests also, they will be given exemption along with the relaxation on the age. can be induced by some kinds of stressors. "The most common under- BHOPAL At least 15 teachers were found coming to classes drunk on a regular basis at various government schools in a Madhya Pradesh district, reveals a review report, exposing the rot in the education system in the state. The damning detail has been disclosed in a letter issued by the Block Education Officer (BEO) from Mehadwani in tribal-dominated Dindori district, some 460 km from capital Bhopal. The letter, issued by BEO HS Masram, outlines that 15 teachers across various government schools in the Mehadwani development block 4Continued on | P6 are frequently attending school under the influence of alcohol. "He (teacher) comes sometimes. He is always drunk. Sometimes we read and then he goes away," said a Class 8 student. One of the drunk teachers is Santosh Kumar Ahirwar. "He (teacher) stays for an hour or two and then leaves. He repeats this everyday," said another student form the same school. Additionally, it has been reported that nine teachers have not been attending school for several years, and seven teachers are in violation of civil service rules due to having two wives. 4Continued on | P6 School in Mehadwani lying reason for suicide is depression which in layman's language we say stress otherwise it can be due to impulsiveness or other factors also, but the majority are because of depression," Rajiv Mehta, Vice Chairperson, Institute of Psychiatry and Behavioral Science, Sir Ganga Ram Hospital, New Delhi said. 4Continued on | P6 Panel to vet how officer Puja ‘sneaked’ into IAS V SUDARSHAN NEW DELHI The Centre on Thursday constituted a single-member Committee "to verify the candidature" of controversial probationary IAS officer P u j a Khedkar, amid allegations she misused the disability and Other Backward Class quota to secure a position in the service. The probe would be conducted by an additional secretary-rank officer to verify the candidature claims and other details of the 2023 batch officer, who has been allotted the Maharashtra cadre. The report will be submitted in two weeks. In untangling the various strands of the Khedkar controversy, there are three aspects that swim into view: 4Continued on | P6 offgrid ‘Live-in partner cannot be tried as hubby’ PTI KOCHI The penal offence of cruelty against a woman by her husband or his relatives will not be applicable when a couple is in a live-in relationship, according to a recent ruling by the Kerala High Court. The High Court said that section 498A of the IPC provides the punishment for subjecting a woman to cruelty by a husband or his relative and since a couple in a live-in relationship are not married, the man will not be covered by the term 'husband'. Marriage is the constituent which takes the woman's partner to status of her husband. Marriage means a marriage in the eye of law "... in order to attract an offence punishable under section 498A of IPC, the most essential ingredient is, subjecting a woman to cruelty by her husband or relative/ relatives of the husband. The term 'husband @ hubby' means, a married man, woman's partner in marriage. "Thus, marriage is the constituent which takes the woman's partner to the status of her husband. Marriage means a marriage in the eye of law. Thus, without a legal marriage, if a man becomes a woman's partner, he will not be covered by the term 'husband' for the purpose of section 498A of IPC," Justice A Badharudeen said in his order of July 8. The order came on a man's plea to quash the proceedings initiated against him under section 498A of the IPC. According to the case against him, while he was in a live-in relationship with a woman, he had mentally and physically harassed her between March 2023 to August 2023 at his house. Seeking to quash the case against him, the man had contended that he was in a live-in relationship with the complainant-woman and there was no legal marriage between them and therefore, the offence under section 498A of the IPC was not made out. Agreeing with the petitioner, the HC said that as he was not E-paper Edit Bihar, a byword for corruption P.8 SC ON SUICIDE: Centre has four weeks to file reply on PIL Briefs MUMBAI wedded to the woman, he would not come within the purview of the definition of 'husband' provided in section 498A of the IPC. "Therefore, the cognizance taken by the magistrate acting on the final report filed in crime no. 939/2023 of Quilandy Police Station, alleging commission of offence punishable under section 498A of IPC by the petitioner herein is illegal and the same is liable to be quashed. Accordingly, this petition stands allowed. 4Continued on | P6 CM wants agro-related topics in state government schools Our Staff Reporter BHOPAL Chief Minister Mohan Yadav has emphasized introducing subjects such as agriculture, horticulture, fisheries, dairy, and animal husbandry in high school and higher secondary classes. CM said that most students in the state’s schools come from farming backgrounds, and the inclusion of these subjects will strengthen their connection with their schools, making their education more beneficial for their families. Yadav issued these directives during a meeting on the operation of CM Rise Schools held in Mantralaya on Thursday. He said that the subjects of agriculture should be prioritized in CM Rise Schools. He also said that instead of a rigid faculty system, students should be allowed to choose subjects based on their interests and preferences. To implement this at the school level, a task force comprising educationists, teachers, NGOs, and subject experts will be formed. CM also recommended the use of e-vehicles for transportation in CM Rise Schools and suggested utilizing urban municipal vehicles for the commute of students in municipal areas. In the first phase, 21 out of the 274 planned CM Rise School buildings are expected to be completed by August. One school building is already complete, and work is progressing on the remaining 249. Additionally, he said that an ITI (Industrial Training Institute) should be established in every development block. Interaction with industry captains tomorrow The state government has begun to prepare for the Global Investors’ Summit (GIS-2025). The preparations for it are going to start with an interactive session in Mumbai. Chief Minister Mohan Yadav will meet industrialists on Saturday when there will be round table meetings and oneto-one interactions. Yadav will also hold oneto-one meeting with industrialists and their representatives. The GIS2015 will be held in February next year. During the interaction with industrialists, Yadav will invite them to the GIS. 4Continued on | P6 ‘Rocky’, leak kingpin, held Dheeraj Kumar PATNA The Central Bureau of Investigation on Thursday arrested the alleged kingpin of the NEET paper leak, Rakesh Ranjan alias Rocky, from Bihar`s Nalanda district. He is an active member of the notorious Sanjeev Mukhiya gang. Rocky also happens to be Mukhiya’s nephew. Before he joined forces with his uncle, he ran a restaurant in Ranchi. Acting on a tip off, a CBI team raided different hideouts of Rocky in Nalanda and took him into custody. Rocky, who hails from Nawada district, has been under watch ever since Rocky and Mukhiya his name surfaced in connection with the paper leak. After his arrest, Rocky was produced before the special CBI court in the state capital which has given the agency 10day remand. During investigation, it turned out that Rocky had obtained the question paper from Jharkhand on his mobile phone, ahead of the examination on May 5. He immediately got the questions solved from experts in the state capital and sent them to an accused, Chintu, on his mobile phone for circulation among aspirants who had gathered in a private school to memorise the answers. Rocky’s name surfaced during Chintu's interrogation. Chintu also happens to be a close relative of Sanjeev Mukhiya. Three associates, including Mukesh, Manish and Ashutosh, were arrested from Jharkhand’s Deoghar district. 4Continued on | P6