FP The publishers permit sharing of the e-paper's pdf on WhatsApp and other social media platforms FREE PRESS Vol. XLI No. 53 | INDORE | WEDNESDAY | JULY 31, 2024 | Pages 16 ` 3 | Regd. No. Indore MP/ICD 216/2024-2026 | RNI No. 38281/83 www.freepressjournal.com Sports Meet India’s first double Olympic medallist P.15 Bronze Age Joe Williams MUMBAI In an exhilarating showcasing of precision and perseverance, Indian shooters Manu Bhaker and Sarabjot Singh secured India’s second bronze medal at the Paris Olympics, dominating the 10-meter Air Pistol Mixed Team event on Day 4 of the games. While it was Sarabjot Singh’s first Olympic medal, Manu Bhaker has etched her name in history as the first Indian woman to win multiple medals at a single Olympic Games. Bhaker previously earned a bronze in the women’s 10m air pistol event, which was India’s first medal at the 2024 Paris Olympics. Bhaker now joins an elite group of three other Indians— Norman Pritchard (athletics), Sushil Kumar (wrestling), and PV Sindhu (badminton)—who have won multiple medals for India at a Summer Games. Remarkably, Bhaker is the first Indian to achieve multiple medals at a single Olympic edition. She will now compete in the 25m sports pistol qualifications on August 2. Bhaker and Sarabjot Singh, who is also 22-years-old, made easy work of the Korean challenge in the mixed team event. They secured third place with a total of 580 points and 20 perfect shots. They triumphed over the South Korean duo of Xue Li and Wonho Lee, who finished fourth with 579 points and 18 perfect shots. 4Continued on | P6 ESTD-1983 iii QUALITY @ VALUE EDITIONS: INDORE MONEY 56 madarsas’ recognition cancelled in Sheopur Our Staff Reporter Trainee IAS officer Puja Khedkar has approached the Delhi's Patiala House Court for anticipatory bail after she was booked for allegedly faking her identity to avail of attempts at UPSC exams beyond permissible limit. Nawab Malik bail absolute The Supreme Court on Tuesday made absolute its order granting interim medical bail to former Maharashtra Cabinet Minister and NCP leader Nawab Malik in connection with a money-laundering case pending against him. To ensure that Ladli Behnas get gas cylinder at the subsidized rate of Rs 450, Cabinet approved two schemes for payment of subsidy amount on gas cylinder refill to all gas connection holders under Pradhan Mantri Ujwala Yojana (PMUY) and gas connection holder Ladli Behana under non PMUY on Tuesday. An expenditure of Rs 160 crore will be borne by the state government in this regard. In his statement, Chief Minister Mohan Yadav said that Raksha Bandhan festival is on the cards. On August 1, Rs 250 will be transferred into the accounts of Ladli Behnas for Rakhi. Along with E-paper Nation NATURE UNLEASHES FURY P.7 Cinema Training and shooting P.16 Case against Cong MLA for beating women As many as 56 madarsas were found not fully operational in Sheopur. On the basis of the report of the District Education Officer Sheopur, Madhya Pradesh Madarsa Board has issued orders to cancel the recognition of these madarsas. It was reported that 80 recognized madarsas are operating in Sheopur district. Among these, there are 54 such madarsas which are getting grants from the state government. Secretary Madhya Pradesh Madarsa Board Nitin Saxena said that in the surprise inspection of District Education Officer, 56 Madarsas were found non operational in Sheopur and their recognition have been cancelled. Madarsa Board asked all District Education Officers across to do physical inspection of the madarsas operating in their area. If any Madarsa is not functioning as per the rules of the government then a proposal, requesting to cancel its recognition, shall be sent to the Madhya Pradesh Madarsa Board. The help given by school department to such madarsas will be stopped immediately. In a replay of the August 2018 floods that claimed over 500 lives in south and central Kerala, massive landslides wreaked havoc in the picturesque Wayanad district in north Kerala leaving at least 125 people, including children, dead and over 100 missing. Several villages vanished without trace as the landslides struck at 1am when many were asleep. The landslides left a trail of destruction, even as the water bodies kept changing their paths resulting in more destruction. Huge boulders rolled down the hills and hindered the path of rescue workers. Chooralmala, Mundakkai, Attamala, and Noolpuzha villages were the worst areas hit and cut off by the landslides. Mundakkai town was completely swept away. Only 50 bodies had been identified when late night reports trickled in and rescue workers could only salvage mutilated body parts in many areas of Meppadi. At least 17 bodies, swept away by the gushing water, were recovered several kilometres away from the Chaliyar River in Malappuram. According to Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan, 18 Our Staff Reporter BHOPAL WAYANAD 4Continued on | P6 4Continued on | P6 Cabinet decided to provide special ex gratia of Rs 90 lakh to the family of deceased ASI Naresh Kumar Sharma (district Chhindwara). As per the policy of government, the amount would be split in two equal parts. Rs 45 lakh will be given to the parents and Rs 45 lakh will be given to the wife of deceased. Why it happened Warming of the Arabian Sea is allowing the formation of deep cloud systems, leading to extremely heavy rainfall in Kerala in a shorter period and increasing the possibility of landslides, Abhilash, the director of the Advanced Centre for Atmospheric Radar Research at Cochin University of Science and Technology (CUSAT) said on Tuesday. bodies have been handed over to the families. DNA tests are being conducted on the unidentifiable remains. RESCUED FROM RESORTS: In a daring operation, the Army and NDRF were able to rescue over 150 people trapped in resorts in the hilly regions in the area. The landslide exposed the poor health infrastructure in Wayanad as the injured had to be shifted to far off places for treatment. Many hospitals ran short of blood. Several injured people trapped in Mundakkai have been rescued, Kerala CM later told media persons. Though the IMD had issued a red alert, the scale and intensity of the rain was massive. Prime Minister Narendra Modi spoke with Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan and assured him of all help. The PM has announced Rs 2 lakh for the dead and Rs 50,000 for the injured. In a post on X, Rahul Gandhi, who won and vacated his Lok Sabha seat in Wayand, said he was deeply anguished by the landslides and the loss of lives. It is understood that he has left for Karnataka from where he will proceed to Wayanad. A Congress MLA from Gwalior Rural Assembly Constituency, Sahab Singh Gurjar, and several others were booked for allegedly assaulting women in Gwalior district, police said on Tuesday. The incident occurred at MLA Gurjar's residence in the Ohadpur, Mahalgaon locality on Monday when a group of women, along with men, went to meet the MLA regarding their electricity issues. After the incident, they approached the SP office to lodge a complaint, the police said. SP Dharmaveer Singh said that a written complaint was made by Munni Lodhi, a resident of Mau Pahari locality. Taking cognizance of her complaint, prima facie, an FIR has been registered against Congress MLA Sahab Singh Gurjar and a few unknown persons. The case has been registered under sections 115 (2), 296, 3(5) of the Bhartiya Nyay Sahita (BNS), 2023, and further investigation is underway, he added. The complainant told the police that the matter was related to an electric transformer. Before the elections, they were promised the installation of the transformer and had met with the MLA several times in the past. 4Continued on | P6 Pay more for living in Indore this, government will provide gas cylinder at the rate of Rs 450 to 40 lakh Ujwala Gas connection-holder Ladli Behnas. The remaining amount of gas cylinder refilling will be paid by the state government. Rs 90L ex-gratia (T) A damaged car at the landslide site in Wayanad (R) Rescue operation underway Strict UP bill on ‘love jihad’ mandates life Highlights taxes hiked imprisonment n PropertyRs 3/sqft for by maximum resiThe BJP-led Yogi Adityanath government has introduced the UP Prohibition of Unlawful Religious Conversion (Amendment) Bill in the Assembly, which mandates life imprisonment for “love jihad” offenses in the state. The bill significantly increases the punishment for previously defined crimes and broadens the definition of “love jihad” to encompass additional offenses, all of which could now result in life imprisonment. The amended bill is expected to be passed in the assembly by voice vote on August 2. The existing law provides for punishment ranging from one to 10 years. Under this law, conversions conducted solely for marriage are deemed invalid, and those achieved through lying and cheating are considered criminal acts. Individuals wishing to voluntarily convert must inform a magistrate two months in advance. CM Mohan Yadav presides over the cabinet meeting at Mantralaya on Tuesday Our Staff Reporter MUMBAI Shankar Raj BHOPAL Briefs BHOPAL NASHIK DREAMS IN DEBRIS LUCKNOW IAS trainee moves court BHOPAL LANDSLIDE HAVOC | 125 dead and over 100 missing in hilly Wayanad; two-day mourning in Kerala; distress calls from stranded and trapped Biswajeet Banerjee MUMBAI PUNE India updates trade advisory for its SMEs doing biz with China Cabinet okays funds to give cylinder at Rs 450 to ladli behnas fp UJJAIN dential bldgs & Rs 7 for commercial bldgs n Property tax payers to pay 2% green cess for greener city n Red zone of 108 colonies upgraded as they were declared developed n Parking charges paid at time of vehicle purchase hiked n No hike for door-to-door garbage collection, but extra charge for over 5 kg of waste n Charges hiked for those who use water for commercial purposes n Rs 1800 crore for Narmada Phase-4: 35 new overhead tanks, new sump wells, new pipeline n 23 new roads to be built at an outlay of Rs 468 cr in 8 months n Under Waste to Energy scheme, a plant to be set up with Rs 200 crore to dispose 500 tonnes of waste and make 6MW power n One Indore, One Tax plan afoot and may come into force after launch of IMC’s revenue collection portal n E-rickshaws can charge vehicles for free from IMC charging station for a year IMC hikes water cess by 50%, property tax by ` 3-7/sqft after 15 years as Mayor tables `8,302 crore budget Our Staff Reporter INDORE After a gap of 15 years, Indore Municipal Corporation (IMC) gave a financial blow to residents by increasing water cess by 50 per cent and property tax by Rs 3 to Rs 7 per square feet through its budget for financial year 2024-25. Though there is no increase in door-to-door garbage collection charges from residential and commercial buildings, a hike ranging from 14 per cent to 22 per cent is done in bulk collection of garbage from institutions. Besides, parking charges realised at the time of purchase of vehicles have also been increased of all vehicles valued above Rs 50k. Likewise, the IMC will also charge two per cent green cess from now. Amidst speculation of hike in civil taxes, Mayor Pushyamitra Bhargav on Tuesday presented his second budget of Rs 8,302 crore, with a deficit of Rs 200 crore including 5 per cent reserved funds, for 202425 fiscal at Atal Parisar at IMC headquarters. In his budget speech titled Atmanirbhar Nagar Nigam aur Samagra Vikas , Bhargav This is your new property Student discount While Usha, Asha and tax for 1000 sq ft area Rate Zone 1 2 3 4 5 Old Tax 2673 2316 1872 1605 1425 New Tax 3624 3183 2044 1782 1605 Hike said, “While there has been no increase in taxes in the last 10 to 15 years, 29 villages had come under IMC’s purview (increasing the burden on the exchequer). For the future of Indore, there is need to increase some taxes. I propose to increase maximum Rs 3 for 951 867 172 177 180 other women supervisors will get 75 per cent discount in city bus travel, students coming from others cities to Indore for studying in coaching centres will get a flat 25 per cent discount in city bus fare. residential and maximum Rs 7 per square feet for commercial buildings. I also propose to increase monthly water cess by flat Rs 100. It costs Rs 1k per house every month to IMC which charges a mere Rs 200 from households in return.” Also see page 3 offgrid J’khand train mishap: 2 dead, over 22 hurt Cartoonists entitled to freedom of expression: Ker HC Court quashes case against Malayala Manorama over ‘insulting’ National Flag Dheeraj Kumar Aritra Singha Agencies RANCHI/ KOLKATA THIRUVANANTHAPURAM At least two people were killed and about 22 others injured when 18 coaches of 1280 Howrah-Mumbai passenger train derailed in Jharkhand at around 3.45 am on Tuesday. Railway sources said that the incident took place after a goods train, on its way to Raipur from Tatanagar, derailed. One wagon of the derailed goods train collapsed on another track on which the The Kerala High Court has held that cartoonists, being a part and parcel of the Press and Media, are entitled to Freedom of Expression guaranteed by Article 19 (1) (a) of the Constitution of India. The Court thus quashed proceedings initiated against the Printer and Publisher, Editorial Director, Managing Editor, Editor and Chief Edi- Howrah-Mumbai Mail was coming; the passenger train hit the wagon, resulting in the derailment of 18 coaches. Of these, 16 were passenger coaches, one power car and one pantry car. 4Continued on | P6 tor of Kerala news daily 'Malayala Manorama', under Section 2 of Prevention of Insult To National Honour Act, 1971 for allegedly insulting the National Flag. The specific case was that Malayala Manorama, in connection with the 70th Independence Day celebrations, published a caricature depicting Mahatma Gandhi and the Indian flag, with the top side of saffron portion of the flag outlined with a black line. Justice PV Kunhikrishnan observed that the small picturization of a cartoonist creates powerful visual commentary that engages, provokes and inspires the audience. The Court said: The complaint was filed by the Area Committee General Secretary of the Bharatiya Janata Party. The petitioners had approached the High Court seeking quashing of FIR and Final Report. Petitioners submitted that Malayala Manorama has a tradition and they would never disrespect or dishonour the National Flag or Mahatma Gandhi. It was stated that the cartoonist was expressing his freedom as an artist to celebrate Indepen- dence Day by using a caricature. The Court found that a caricature involves exaggerating or distorting the physical features, personalities, or characteristics of individuals to create humorous, satirical, or critical effects. The Court noted that a cartoonist has the power to speak volumes through a small caricature. The Court stated that the term “insult” is an essential ingredient to attract an of- fence punishable under Section 2 of the Prevention of Insult To National Honour Act. Section 2 prescribes punishment of up to 3 years imprisonment with a fine or both for causing Insult to the Indian National Flag and Constitution. The Court noted that since the term 'insult' was not defined in the Act, the Court must refer to its ordinary meaning. 4Continued on | P6