FP The publishers permit sharing of the e-paper's pdf on WhatsApp and other social media platforms FREE PRESS Vol. 14 No. 323 | BHOPAL | WEDNESDAY | MAY 7, 2025 | Pages 14 ` 3 | Regd. No. Indore MP/ICD 216/2024-2026 | RNI No. mpeng/2010/35815 www.freepressjournal.in Nation China will veto any resolution against Pakistan: Tharoor P.7 IAF’s 2-day wargame along frontier with Pakistan PTI ESTD-1983 iii QUALITY @ VALUE EDITIONS: BHOPAL UJJAIN WORLD PUNE INDORE NASHIK MUMBAI E-paper Edit Russia-India, a historical bond P.6 Merz magic works in 2nd vote Cinema Manisha’s mind map P.14 WAR PREPAREDNESS | Security drills in nearly 250 dists, including Bhopal, Indore, Gwalior, Jabalpur & Katni MEGA MOCK DRILL TODAY NEW DELHI The Indian Air Force will carry out a two-day mega military exercise along the border with Pakistan from Wednesday that will involve all the frontline fighter jets including Rafale, Su-30 and Jaguar aircraft, sources in the defence establishment said on Tuesday. The exercise is taking place amid heightened tensions between India and Pakistan over the April 22 Pahalgam terror attack that killed 26 people. India's civil aviation authorities have already issued a Notice to Airmen (NOTAM) for the major air exercise that will largely take place along the southern and western section of the IndoPakistan border. India's frontline fighter jets including the Rafale, Su30 MKI, MiG-29, Mirage2000, Tejas and AWACS (Airborne Warning and Control System) aircraft are set to feature in the exercise, the sources said. In the course of the exercise, the IAF will simulate enemy targets on ground and in the air with deadly precision, they said. 4Continued on | P8 Siren will be activated followed by blockade, rescue operation, etc Our Staff Reporter BHOPAL Amidst ongoing tension between India and Pakistan following the Pahalgam attack and adhering to instructions of the Union Home Ministry, the Madhya Pradesh government has decided to conduct civil defence mock drill in five cities vis Bhopal, Indore, Gwalior, Jabalpur and Katni at 4 pm on Wednesday. Before the start of the cabinet meeting, Chief Minister Mohan Yadav informed cabinet members about the proposed Civil Defence Mock Drill. A siren will be activated at 4 pm as a sign of warning. Various activities such as doing blackout, protecting main infrastructures and rescuing injured persons will be done under mock drill. In this regard, necessary directions have been given to Collectors, SPs of districts. Notably, on the directives BLACKOUT The training also includes crash Civil defence mock drill in five major cities: CM blackout measures, which refer to training on planned blackouts to guard against aerial attacks. As part of the drill, authorities may ask residents to switch off lights for a certain duration to mimic a blackout. The training will also include camouflaging of vital plants and installations. hief Minister Mohan Yadav said that a direction has come from the Union Home Minister and accordingly, civil defence mock drill will be conducted in five major cities of the state including Bhopal, Indore, Gwalior, Jabalpur and Katni on Wednesday evening. As part of future planning, preparations are being done in other districts as well. C of the Union Home Ministry, Civil Defence Mock Drill will be carried out in 244 districts of the country on Wednesday. Five districts of the state are part of the mock drill. Civil defence is an effort to protect citizens of the state from military attack. It uses the principles of emergency operations, prevention, mitigation, preparation, response, emergency evacuation and recovery. Chief Secretary Anurag Jain has given necessary directions to collectors of all five districts in connection with the civil defence mock drill. HOTLINE Hotline and radio communication lines with the Air Force will also be operational during this drill. It will also test the functionality of control rooms and shadow control rooms. T HE STAGE IS SET for a nationwide mock drill on Wednesday with all states and Union territories preparing to operationalise air-raid sirens and train people on evacuation protocols and cleaning of bunkers and trenches among other steps in the event of a "hostile attack". The emergency preparedness, the first perhaps since 1971, will be conducted by most states from 4 pm ACCORDING TO NOTIFICATION BY THE UNION HOME MINISTRY: n The drill will assess how effective air raid sirens are in alerting people about aerial threats. n It aims to train civilians to respond quickly and safely in case of an air strike. n Hotline and radio links between civil authorities and the Indian Air Force will be activated and tested. MPBSE RESULTS: Pass percentage highest in 15 yrs; girls outshine boys n 76% of Class 10, 74% of Class 12 candidates successful n Class 10 topper Pragya from Singrauli scores 100% Our Staff Reporter CLASS 10: Govt Schools shine BHOPAL Nearly 76.22% of students passed the MP Board high school exam, while 74.48% cleared the higher secondary exam. This is the highest pass percentage in both exams in recent years. Chief Minister Mohan Yadav released the results at his official residence on Tuesday. Girls out-performed boys in the exams. Pragya Jaiswal of Singrauli topped Class 10 with a perfect 500/500. Of the 212 students in Class 10 merit list, 144 are girls. In Class 12, 59 of the 159 merit list students are girls. Priyal Dwivedi of Satna led science-maths group with 492 marks. Ankur Yadav (Rewa) topped humanities with 489, Rimjhim Karothiya (Gwalior) led commerce with 491. 4Continued on | P8 GANDHINAGAR Heavy rain kills 14 in Guj At least 14 people lost their lives while 16 others were injured as unseasonal rain, fierce winds, and dust storms battered parts of Gujarat, disrupting daily life at the height of the summer season. Today in IPL MATCH NO. 57 KKR Vs CSK KOLKATA, 7.30 PM (DETAIL ON SPORTS PAGE) f 9.36 lakh students who took Class 10 MP Board exam, 8.05 lakh were regular and 1.31 lakh were private candidates. Government school students (4.82 lakh) outperformed private school students (3.27 lakh), with a 77.59% pass rate against 74.20%. The overall pass percentage for regular students was 76.22%—a sharp rise from 63.29% in 2023 and 59.54% in 2022. Girls again led with a 79.27% success rate versus 73.21% for boys. The merit list features 212 students: 144 girls and 68 boys. O CM Mohan Yadav releases MPBSE results on Tuesday. Minister for school education Rao Udai Pratap Singh was also present CLASS 12: GIRLS LEAD AGAIN f 6.97 lakh students who appeared in Class 12 exam, 6.03 lakh were regular and 94,000 private candidates. Girls (3.03 lakh) outnumbered boys (3 lakh) and performed better, with 1.77 lakh girls securing first division compared to 1.41 lakh boys. The overall pass percentage for regular students rose to 74.48%, up from 64.49% in 2023 and 55.28% in 2022. Private students lagged far behind with a 26.48% pass rate. Girls achieved 77% success rate—nearly 6% higher than boys. O SECOND CHANCE: MPBSE will conduct second examination instead of traditional supplementary exams, aligning with the New Education Policy 2020. Students who failed in one or more subjects or wish to improve their EVACUATION The drill will also check the pre- marks can apply for it. Class 10 exams will be held from June 17 to 26, and Class 12 exams from June 17 to July 5. Applications can be submitted online via the MP Online Portal from May 7 to midnight of May 21. n The drill will check how well control rooms and their backups (shadow rooms) perform during emergencies. n People, including students, will be trained to protect themselves during hostile attacks through basic civil defence techniques. WHAT WILL HAPPEN War with India is not Islamic: Pak cleric slams own govt C ontroversial Pakistan cleric Abdul Aziz Ghazi slammed the government of his own country amid rising tensions with India. During a sermon at Islamabad’s Lal Masjid, Ghazi said that the war with India is not Islamic. A video clip of the cleric's speech is going viral on social media. In the clip, Ghazi could be heard pointing towards an internal turmoil in Pakistan. He described the Pakistani government as oppressive. He even accused the Pakistani government of using violence against citizens of the country. Notably, when Ghazi asked his followers whether they would fight for Pakistan in case war broke out with India, there was a pin-drop silence and not a single hand was raised. "If a war breaks out between Pakistan and India, how many of you will support Pakistan? Raise your hands.” Ghazi said. 4Continued on | P8 UNSC blasts Police officers not taking effective Pak over action will not be seen in field: CM Pahalgam Our Staff Reporter Bhopal PTI NEW YORK UN Security Council member nations have posed tough questions to Pakistan while discussing the Pahalgam terror attack amid increasing global outrage over the dastardly strike that killed 26 civilians. The Security Council refused to issue a statement following the meeting which was held in a consultative room rather than the main hall, effectively dismissing Pakistan's attempt to get a favourable position from the Security Council. There was broad condemnation of the terrorist attack and the need to fix accountability for it, authoritative sources told PTI after an informal session of the top UN body. 4Continued on | P8 Chief Minister Mohan Yadav said that stern action shall be taken to contain crime, particularly against women. Police officers who fail to take effective action will not be seen in field. He was reviewing law and order situation of the state at Samatava Bhawan on Tuesday. In the light of Love-Jihad case which happened with girl students of a private college, he said that there is need to exercise special alertness at education centres. The teachers of schools and colleges shall question unwanted elements. There shall be some kind of control at the level of education centre as well. The eve-teasers shall not be spared at the level of educational institute. Along with this, information of eve-teasers shall be given to the nearest police station. Police, after registering the case and probe, shall take stern action against such elements. 4Continued on | P8 n The drill will include blackout exercises, where residents may be asked to switch off lights to simulate conditions during an air raid. n Authorities will practice shielding critical infrastructure like airfields, refineries and rail yards paredness of rescue teams and firefighters and evacuation measures. The evacuation drills will be rehearsals for moving civilians from vulnerable areas to safe zones. from aerial detection or attack. n The preparedness of rescue teams and firefighters will be tested. Evacuation plans will also be rehearsed to move people from danger zones to safer areas. n Civilians will receive hands-on training in providing basic first aid, handling fire fighting equipment, and taking shelter during emergencies. SANCHI MILK TO BE COSTLIER BY `2 PER LITRE FROM TODAY Our Staff Reporter BHOPAL Sanchi milk price has been increased by Rs 2 per litre on Tuesday. It will be effective from May 7. Only price of DTM (180ML) variant price has not been increased. For monthly card Variants Full cream (Gold) Full cream(Gold) Standard(Shakti) Toned (Taja) Double Toned(Smart) Chai Quantity Old rate Hiked rate 500ml Rs 33 Rs 34 1 litre Rs 65 Rs 67 500ml Rs 30 Rs 31 500ml Rs 27 Rs28 500ml Rs 25 Rs 26 1 litre Rs 58 Rs 60 holders, old price will be valid till May 15. For card PM got intel before attack, dropped J&K visit: Kharge PTI RANCHI Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge on Tuesday claimed that Prime Minister Narendra Modi had cancelled his Kashmir visit after "receiving an intelligence report three days before" the Pahalgam terror attack last month. Noting that during an allparty meeting, the Centre accepted "intelligence failure" in the Pahalgam carnage, Kharge said the union government should be held accountable for "not reinforcing" security arrangements in Kashmir to protect people, even after such inputs. Addressing a 'Samvidhan Bachao' rally in Jharkhand's capital, Ranchi, the Congress chief claimed that he "got information that three days before the attack, an intelligence report was sent to Modi ji, and that is why Modi ji cancelled his visit to Kashmir". "When an intelligence report Parts of the Chenab river started to dry up as India closed up all the gates of the Baglihar Hydroelectric Power Project Dam and Salal dam, regulating water flow to Pakistan. The move comes as India takes multiple diplomatic steps against Paistan in response to the Pahalgam attack. India has also held the Indus Water treaty in abeyance. Chenab is also part of the treaty. 21% WATER SHORTAGE DURING KHARIF SEASON Pakistan' Indus River System Authority (IRSA) has issued a warning of an expected 21 per cent shortage of water availability in the country during the Kharif season amid block- ade of water supplies from India. IRSA said that after India blocked water supply to Pakistan, River Chenab has witnessed a sudden decrease in water inflow. The advisory was issued after IRSA' Advisory Committee (IAC) meeting during which anticipated water availability criteria for the remaining Kharif season was approved. PTI NEW DELHI says that it is not proper to visit there for your security, why did you not inform your security, intelligence, local police, and border force to protect people," the Congress chief asked. 4Continued on | P8 4Continued on | P8 eacting to Kharge's allegation, the BJP claimed that the Congress president's criticism of PM Modi over alleged intelligence failure in the Pahalgam terror attack was intended to "lower the morale of security forces". Jharkhand BJP chief Babulal Marandi said that Kharge's comment at a critical time when the "fight against terrorism and Pakistan was at a decisive juncture" was "uncalled for". R Chenab runs dry as country turns the taps off ANI SC compares reservation to rly, says those inside don't want others to come in The Supreme Court on Tuesday compared reservation in the country with "a railway" or a train and said those who enter the compartment "don't want others to come in". A bench of Justices Surya Kant and N Kotiswar Singh made the remarks while hearing a plea opposing the other backward class (OBC) reservation in Maharashtra local body elections. Senior advocate Gopal Sankaranarayanan, appearing for petitioner Mangesh Shankar Sasane, submitted that Maharashtra government's Jayant Kumar Banthia-led commission gave 27 per cent reservation to OBCs in the local body elections without actually ascertaining if they were politically backward. UNCALLED FOR: BJP water blockade REASI holders, hiked rates will be effective from May 16. People are seen walking across midstream of the Chenab in Akhnoor due to a significant reduction in water flow Earlier, even the water that was India's right was flowing out of the country. Now, India's water will flow for India's benefit, it will be conserved for India's benefit, and it will be used for India's progress n PM Narendra Modi