Wednesday, July 9, 2025 | 30 Pages | `5 & for State (+4 pages) `6 Reg.No MCS/048/2021-23; RNI No. 1541/1957 M.p.c.s office Mumbai. PIN 400001 THE FREE PRESS JOURNAL Vol. 68 No. 237 | Leader in E-paper circulation l www.freepressjournal.in ● EDITIONS: ● MUMBAI ● INDORE ● PUNE ● BHOPAL ● NASHIK ● KONKAN ● E-paper ● Member: Audit Bureau of Circulation (July to December 2024) GAMES NATION Many of you can become astronauts, walk on Moon, Shukla tells students Briefs ICC targets Af Taliban The International Criminal Court (ICC) issued arrest warrants Tuesday for the Taliban's supreme leader Hibatullah Akhunzada and the head of Afghanistan's Supreme Court Abdul Hakim Haqqani on charges of persecuting women and girls since seizing power nearly four years ago. The warrants also accuse the leaders of persecuting "other persons non-conforming with the Taliban's policy on gender, gender identity or expression; and on political grounds against persons perceived as allies of girls and women." US resumes arming Kyiv In a swift U-turn, President Donald Trump announced the U.S. will resume sending defensive weapons to Ukraine, days after suspending shipments. The pause had halted critical deliveries, including air defence missiles and artillery, over concerns about U.S. stockpile levels.Citing intensified Russian attacks, Trump said Ukraine “must be able to defend themselves.”The Pentagon confirmed shipments would recommence immediately to bolster Ukraine’s frontline resistance. Russia said there were many contradictory statements about US help to Ukraine and it would take time to clarify what weapons Washington is supplying and will supply to Kyiv. Nationwide bandh today Over 250 million workers from key sectors will join a Bharat Bandh on Wednesday, protesting the Centre’s “anti-worker and pro-corporate” stance. Led by ten central trade unions, the strike includes participation from both organised and informal labour groups. Unions allege the government is ignoring workers’ rights and marginalising farmers. Organisers have called for mass support to make the protest a "grand success." Marathi protest MNS and Marathi groups staged a protest march in Mira-Bhayandar despite prohibitory orders under Section 144. Police detained several activists and used autos and a banquet hall to handle overcrowded custody. The march, halted mid-route near a Gujarati locality, sparked a sit-in by protesters. CM Fadnavis defended the crackdown, citing law and order, while MNS accused the government of muzzling dissent. SEE CITY India would be hoping Harmanpreet, Shafali come good in the fourth WT20I against England DEAL NEARLY DONE | US Prez sends missives to as many as 14 countries that will have to pay more. Some are America’s allies Agencies NEW YORK/WASHINGTON President Trump has said that the US is close to making a trade deal with India, as his administration started sending letters detailing the levies that Washington will impose on products from those countries entering America. “Now, we’ve made a deal with the United Kingdom, we’ve made a deal with China...We’re close to making a deal with India,” Trump said on Monday. “Others we met with and we don’t think we’re going to be able to make a deal, so we just send them a letter. If you want to play ball, this is what you have to pay.” His remarks came as the US extended the suspension of its April 2 reciprocal tariffs until August 1, providing a threeweek time for India and the US to resolve pending issues. Trump's remarks came as his administration sent out the first tranche of “letters” to various countries on Monday detailing the tariffs that the US will impose on products from those countries entering America. The countries that got these letters, signed by Trump, were Bangladesh, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Cambodia, Indonesia, Japan, Kazakhstan, Lao People’s Democratic Republic, Malaysia, Serbia, South Africa, South Korea, Thailand and Tunisia. He added that the countries were “ripping” the US and “were charging us tariffs at levels that nobody's ever seen before”. On tariff threats against BRICS countries, he repeated his claim that the bloc was created “to hurt us” and “degenerate our dollar”. “And that’s OK, if they want to play their game. But I can play that game too. So anybody that's in BRICS is getting a 10% charge,” he said. 4Contd on | nation ‘PEOPLE-CENTRIC’ BLOC: PM’S BRICS REFORMS PROMISE AI-171 CRASH AAIB submits preliminary probe report Agencies RIO DE JANEIRO/BRASILIA Agencies Prime Minister Narendra Modi placed a strong focus on environmental sustainability and global health during his address at the BRICS Summit in Rio de Janeiro, calling climate justice a “moral obligation” and outlining India’s future priorities as it prepares to chair the group next year. Looking ahead, PM Modi announced that India will chair BRICS in 2026, and said it would adopt a “people-centric” and “humanity-first” approach. Under its presidency, India will work to redefine BRICS as “Building Resilience and Innovation for Cooperation and Sustainability.” He also ex- NEW DELHI pressed India's intention to continue advocating for the Global South, just as it did during its G20 Presidency. Speaking at the BRICS session on “Environment, COP-30, and Global Health,” PM Modi said that issues like climate change and health security are crucial for the future of humanity. The Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau (AAIB) has submitted its preliminary report on the tragic Air India Flight AI-171 crash to the Ministry of Civil Aviation, according to official sources. The report is based on initial findings from the crash investigation and was shared with relevant authorities earlier this week. The Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner crashed on June 12 shortly after take-off from Ahmedabad’s Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel International Airport. 4Contd on | nation 4Contd on | nation New Carnac bridge renamed ‘Sindoor’ Devashri Bhujbal MUMBAI The Carnac bridge in South Mumbai connecting P D'mello Road to Masjid Bunder will open for traffic movement on Thursday, with a new name - 'Sindoor', after Operation Sindoor. The inauguration will be done at 10 am by Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis and both the for traffic, questionDeputy Chief Mining the delay in inisters Eknath Shinde auguration when and Ajit Pawar. the crucial South I M PAC T Mumbai's Guardian Mumbai connector ministers Ashish Shehad been ready for a lar and MP Lodha, and asmonth. This newspaper sembly speaker Rahul Narvekar was first to report on July 1 that will also be present, along with the BMC administration is all BMC chief Bhushan Gagrani. set to throw open the bridge The Free Press Journal had for traffic movement but was campaigned demanding the only waiting for a formal nod government open the bridge from the Chief Minister's office. FPJ It will be finally open for traffic from July 10, Thursday The FPJ had also reported on Monday, July 6 that the delay has been due to finalisation and administrative procedures to rename the bridge. 4Contd on | nation TRUMP SAYS “WE’RE CLOSE TO MAKING A DEAL WITH INDIA” An MIT study has raised concerns about the impact of AI tools like ChatGPT on brain development and learning, especially among young users. The research done in January this year and published in June as pre-print, led by Nataliya Kosmyna, a full-time scientist at the MIT Media Lab, involved 54 participants aged 18 to 39 from Trump repeats claim on India, Pak hostilities the Boston area. These subjects were divided into three groups and asked to write SAT-style essays using either OpenAI’s ChatGPT, Google Search, or no digital assistance at all. There has been concern that using AI will lead to a widespread “dumbing down”, or decline in the ability to think critically. ChatGPT is a computer program that can understand and answer questions, FPJ News Service MUMBAI help you write essays, stories, emails, and even explain things like a smart friend. You just have to type what you want to ask or say, and ChatGPT replies in seconds. 4Contd on | nation Only 55% of Class 3 students in the country can arrange numbers up to 99 in order, and a mere 53% of Class 6 students know their multiplication tables up to 10, a nationwide survey by the Ministry of Education has revealed—painting a sobering picture of foundational learning. The Performance Assess- ven as Israeli President Bejamin Netanyahu revealed he had written proposing the name of US President Donald Trump for the Nobel Peace prize, Trump repeated the claim that he stopped the war between India and Pakistan by telling the two neighbours that Washington would not do trade with them if they continued the fighting. He has made the claim over two dozen times now, a claim that New Delhi refutes. "We did a job with India and Pakistan, Serbia, Kosovo, Rwanda and the Congo, and this was all over the last three weeks or so. and others that were ready to fight," Trump said. 4Contd on | nation Oppn takes LoP issue to CJI Ravikiran Deshmukh MUMBAI In an unusual political move, the Maha Vikas Aghadi — comprising Shiv Sena (UBT), Congress, and NCP (Sharad Pawar faction) — on Tuesday chose to present its case to CJI Bhushan Gavai during his visit to the Vidhan Bhavan, where he was being fel- icitated by the legislature. In a memorandum submitted to the CJI, the MVA underlined that the post of Leader of the Opposition (LoP) in the Maharashtra Assembly is a constitutional position, on par with that of the Chief Minister. 4Contd on | nation 4See also | city India skips UNGA vote on Afghanistan Vidhi Santosh Mehta MUMBAI The UN General Assembly has overwhelmingly adopted a resolution urging the Taliban to reverse repressive policies and ensure inclusive governance, amid growing global concern over Afghanistan’s deteriorating humanitarian, economic, and human rights situation. The resolution was passed on Monday with 116 votes in favour, 12 abstentions, including India, and 2 against, from the US and Israel. It highlighted the deepening crises in Afghanistan nearly four years after the Taliban’s return to power, pointing to widespread poverty, systematic oppression of women and girls, escalating security threats, and a collapsing economy. It called for greater accountability from the Taliban. The General Assembly condemned the “grave, worsening, widespread and systematic oppression” of Afghan women and girls, and demanded a reversal of Taliban policies excluding them from education, employment, and public life. 4Contd on | nation Bihar limits 35% job quota to local women Dheeraj Kumar PATNA Ahead of the upcoming Bihar assembly elections, the state cabinet on Tuesday approved a proposal making it mandatory for women to be permanent residents of Bihar in order to avail the existing 35% reservation in all state Sunak back in Goldman Sachs F ormer British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak is set to return to Goldman Sachs in an advisory role, the Wall Street giant announced on Tuesday. The move comes a year after Sunak's Conservative Party suffered a resounding electoral defeat. "I am excited to welcome Rishi back to Goldman Sachs," said CEO David Solomon. "In this role, he will collaborate with leaders across the firm to advise our global clients on key issues, offering his unique insights into the macroeconomic and geopolitical landscape." Sunak previously worked at Goldman before entering politics. The Conservative exPM will be restricted from lobbying the government on behalf of the bank for another year and will give his salary from the role to the Richmond Project, a charity he set up to encourage numeracy. Half the children can’t count right ChatGPT can rot your brain: MIT Deeksha Pandey Edit It’s not revision, but exclusion US TARIFFS DEADLINE STRETCHED TO AUG 1 E hard lessons MUMBAI Cinema Meet Guru Dutt... on his 100th birthday ment, Review and Analysis of Knowledge for Holistic Development (PARAKH) Rashtriya Sarvekshan, previously known as the National Achievement Survey (NAS), was conducted on December 4 last year. It assessed over 21.15 lakh students from Grades 3, 6, and 9 across 74,229 schools in 781 districts, spanning all 36 states and Union Territories. 4Contd on | nation Nitish govt mandates domicile for women’s job quota, forms youth commission and launches scheme for differently-abled government jobs. The decision, taken at a cabinet meeting chaired by Chief Minister Nitish Kumar, follows a proposal moved by the General Administration Department. Under the new policy, only women who are permanent residents of Bihar will be eli- gible for the 35% job reservation quota. Women from other states applying for state government jobs will be treated as general category candidates and will no longer receive the benefit of the quota. 4Contd on | nation 4See also | nation