THE SUNDAY Vol. 36 No. 35 | Sunday, May 25, 2025 28 Pages | `5 & for State `6 | Reg. No. MCS/048/2021-23; RNI No. 46955/1988 M.p.c.s. office Mumbai-400001 FREE PRESS JOURNAL Leader in E-paper circulation l www.freepressjournal.in ● EDITIONS: ● MUMBAI ● INDORE ● PUNE ● BHOPAL ● NASHIK ● KONKAN ● E-paper Weekend Dr Chetan Narake on how AI can boost milk production India world’s 4th economy India has become the fourth largest economy in the world, overtaking Japan, NITI Aayog CEO B V R Subrahmanyam said on Saturday. After the 10th Governing Council meeting of Niti Aayog, Subrahmanyam said overall geopolitical and economic environment is favourable to India. "We are the fourth largest economy as I speak. We are a USD 4 trillion economy as I speak," he said. Citing IMF data, Subrahmanyam said India today is larger than Japan. "Only US, China and Germany are larger than India. If we stick to what is being planned and thought through, in 2.5-3 years, we will be the third largest economy," he said. Warrant against Rahul A special MP-MLA court in Jharkhand’s Chaibasa has issued a non-bailable warrant against Congress MP Rahul Gandhi in a 2018 defamation case. Gandhi must appear in person on June 26. The court dismissed his lawyer’s request for exemption from personal appearance. The case, filed by BJP leader Pratap Katiyar, concerns Gandhi’s remark at a Congress plenary session, where he allegedly said that “even someone facing murder charges” could become BJP president—a reference to Amit Shah, who then held the post. Pak spy held Gujarat ATS has arrested Sahdevsinh Gohil, a 28year-old contractual health worker from Kutch, for spying for a Pakistani agent. Gohil allegedly shared sensitive photos and videos of BSF and Indian Navy establishments via WhatsApp since June 2023. The agent, posing as “Aditi Bharadwaj,” befriended him and solicited classified data. In January 2025, Gohil enabled her to access WhatsApp from Pakistan using an OTP. He also received ₹40,000 in cash. Forensic analysis confirmed the involvement of two Pakistanbased numbers. Shah’s visit Home Minister Amit Shah will undertake a 3-day visit to Maharashtra from May 25 to 27, covering key cities including Nagpur, Nanded and Mumbai. The itinerary features inaugurations, foundation-laying ceremonies, public addresses, and special lectures. On May 27, Shah will attend the 150th anniversary celebrations of the iconic Laxmi Narayan Temple at the Madhavbaug Complex in Mumbai. See Mumbai NITI AAYOG MEET | Modi urges all states, union territories to increase speed of development to achieve goal of developed India by 2047 Unity mantra for PM’s Team India Gaurav Vivek Bhatnagar NEW DELHI Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday stressed the need for the states to step up and increase the “speed of development” if the country was to achieve the goal of becoming a developed nation by 2047. Addressing the 10th Governing Council meeting of the Niti Aayog on the theme of `Viksit Rajya for Viksit Bharat 2047’ (Developed states for developed India 2047), the PM said, “Viksit Bharat (developed India) is the goal of every Indian” and that only when every state was developed will India become a developed nation. The Governing Council, headed by the PM, comprises all the chief ministers, lieutenant governors of states and some union ministers. The meeting was attended by most CMs and L-Gs while besides the PM, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh and Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman attended the meeting. Insisting that “this is the as- Good Life Explore biohacking for wellness Raj Kholsa’s birth centenary, a look at his cinematic journey If the Centre and all the states come together and work together like Team India, no goal is impossible. PM Narendra Modi piration of India’s 140 crore citizens,” Modi urged all the participants to increase the pace of development. He said, “If the Centre and all the states come together and work to- gether like Team India, no goal is impossible.” The PM said the idea of having developed states for a developed India required all the states to “craft bold, long-term, and inclusive vision documents aligned with national priorities that were grounded in local realities.” The PM also pitched the idea of each state developing at least one major tourist destination and coined the term for it – “one state, one global destination”. Sunday Read Keeravani shares his musical philosophy Monsoon arrives 8 days early in Kerala FPJ News Service MUMBAI The Southwest Monsoon arrived in Kerala on Saturday, eight days ahead of its usual onset date of June 1, according to the India Meteorological Department (IMD). It is the earliest it has arrived in 16 years since 2009 when it began on May 23. The early onset has triggered widespread rainfall and thunderstorm activity across the southern and western coastal states, bringing both relief and fresh weather warnings. The IMD forecast indicates heavy to very heavy rainfall along the west coast, including Kerala, coastal Karnataka, Maharashtra, and Goa over the next week. Particularly intense showers are expected in Kerala from May 24–26, while coastal Maharashtra and Goa brace for a deluge on May 24. The ghat regions of Karnataka and Tamil MUMBAI In a stunning revelation that redefines the legacy of one of rock music’s greatest icons, a new biography claims that Freddie Mercury, the legendary frontman of Queen, had a daughter—now a 48-yearold medical professional living in Europe. According to Love, Freddie: Freddie Mercury’s Secret Life and Love, the child was born in 1976, the result of an affair with the wife of a close friend. Despite the unconventional be- Nadu are also likely to be lashed by extremely heavy rainfall until May 27. A depression over the East Central Arabian Sea, near the south Konkan coast, is driving much of this activity. The system is expected to move eastwards and cross into south coastal Maharashtra by midday on May 24. In Odisha, IMD Bhubaneswar Director Manorama Mohanty confirmed that widespread rainfall, thunderstorms, and gusty winds will persist from May 24 to 30. She Gill, who will be India’s fifth youngest Test captain at 25, will be leading by and large a group of youthful, fearless, gogetters who have traded barbs with the best in the business in the world of the Indian Premier League (IPL) but are fairly alien to challenging overseas tours such as England. The Ajit Agarkar-led senior Haridev Pushparaj MUMBAI It’s officially the start of the Shubman Gill era in India’s Test cricket arena as the Fazilka-born 25-year-old will be at the helm of affairs heralding a transition beginning with the gruelling five-match Test series in England in June. 4Contd on | Nation 4See also | Nation ‘Pakistan has taken Canada fell short of values, rues Carney more than 20,000 Indian lives’ KOMAGATA MARU INCIDENT Agencies Yoshita Singh OTTAWA UNITED NATIONS India ripped through Pakistan's "disinformation" at the UN on the Indus Waters Treaty, asserting that Islamabad violated its spirit by inflicting three wars and thousands of terror attacks on India that seek to hold hostage lives of civilians, religious harmony and economic prosperity. "We are constrained to respond to the disinformation being carried out by the delegation of Pakistan with regard to the Indus Waters Treaty. India has always acted in a responsible manner as an upper riparian state," India's Permanent Representative to UN Ambassador Parvathaneni Harish said on Friday. More than 20,000 Indian lives have been lost in terror attacks, the most recent being Pahalgam, he declared. He told the UN Security Council that Pakistan has repeatedly used civilian cover to advance the cause of terrorism, PTI reports. Harish was addressing the UN Security Council Arria Formula meeting organised by the Permanent Mission of Slovenia on 'Protecting Water in Armed Conflict - Protecting Civilian Lives.' Harish highlighted four India tells UN that Pakistan repeatedly uses civilian cover to advance terrorism aspects to expose the "disinformation" by Pakistan, which spoke about India's decision to suspend the Indus Waters Treaty. In the wake of the horrific April 22 Pahalgam attack in Jammu and Kashmir in which 26 civilians were killed, India had decided that the Indus Waters Treaty of 1960 would be held in abeyance with immediate effect until Pakistan credibly and irrevocably abjures its support for crossborder terrorism. 4Contd on | Nation Prime Minister Mark Carney said the 1914 Komagata Maru incident in which 376 Indian immigrants were refused entry by Canada is a "stark reminder" of how the country fell short of its values and asked the countrymen to ensure that such injustices are never repeated and build a future where inclusion is not a slogan, but a reality. In 1914, the Komagata Maru, a Japanese steamship, anchored in Vancouver's harbour after a long journey across the Pacific. The 376 people aboard, of Sikh, Muslim, and Hindu faiths, arrived seeking refuge and dignity, Carney said. "Canadian authorities, however, using exclusionary and discriminatory laws, refused them entry," he said in a statement commemorating the Ko- ginnings, Mercury, along with the child’s mother and her husband, made the rare choice to co-parent in total secrecy. Only a handful within Mercury’s inner circle knew of the child’s existence—his bandmates, parents, sister, and Mary Austin, the woman he once called the love of his life. The daughter, referred to as “B” in the book, says she and Mercury shared a close and loving relationship from the day she was born until his death in 1991. "He was a hands-on, de- 4See also | World FPJ News Service A 21-year-old man, Wasim Fahim Sayyed from Mumbra, died on Saturday due to complications arising from comorbidities, even as the city reported eight new COVID-19 infections, according to the Thane Municipal Corporation (TMC). Sayyed had been admitted to the hospital on Thursday and tested positive for the virus on Friday night. Health experts and authorities say the situation is under control; most patients recovering at home. Thane reports one death and new infections. He passed away early Saturday morning, TMC officials confirmed. Sayyed, who tested positive for COVID-19, was also suffering from type 1 diabetes and severe ketoacidosis — a lifethreatening condition in which voted dad," Jones told the Daily Mail. "He described fatherhood as the fulfillent of his most cherished ambition and as the greatest blessing of his life." At the heart of this revelation lies an extraordinary archive: seventeen volumes of Mercury’s handwritten journals, entrusted to B before his death. Spanning over 550,000 words, these diaries capture the full arc of his life—from his birth in Zanzibar to his final moments in London. 4Contd on | Nation magata Maru incident on Friday. Recalling their ordeal, Carney said for two months, passengers were detained on the ship and denied access to food, water, and medical care. "When they were forced to return to India, many were imprisoned or killed there," he said. "The Komagata Maru tragedy is a stark reminder of how, in moments of our history, Canada fell short of the values we hold dear," the Canadian Prime Minister said. "We cannot rewrite the past, but we must confront it; to act with purpose, to ensure that such injustices are never repeated, and to build a stronger future where inclusion is not a slogan, but a reality - lived, practised, and defended. "Let this solemn anniversary serve as a call of remembrance and conscience. To honour the past is to learn from it, and to learn from it is to act," Carney added. SPIKE IN COVID CASES: ONE DEAD IN THANE MUMBAI warned of thunderstorms with lightning and wind speeds of 40–50 kmph, likely to affect districts including Mayurbhanj, Keonjhargarh, Balasore, Bhadrak, and Kendrapara. 4Contd on | Nation Gill being tested as Captain Freddie Mercury’s secret love child FPJ News Service Fire and Rescue Services personnel clear a tree that was uprooted after heavy rainfall in Thiruvananthapuram on Saturday. –PTI library and archives Canada Briefs PLAY & PAUSE the body produces excessive blood acids. Dr Rakesh Barot, Dean of the hospital, said Sayyed was admitted in an unconscious state and was immediately shifted to the 4Contd on | Nation 4Contd on | Nation 4See also | Games FLUX IN BANGLADESH ‘Yunus not quitting as interim head’ Agencies DHAKA Muhammad Yunus will remain as the head of Bangladesh's interim government, an adviser in his cabinet said on Saturday, two days after a key ally said he mulled resignation. "He (Yunus) didn't say he will leave. He said that while we face many obstacles in carrying out the work and responsibilities assigned to us, we are overcoming them," Planning Adviser Wahiduddin Mahmud clarified to reporters after an unscheduled meeting of the advisory council. Mahmud added: "He (Yunus) is definitely staying." He added that none of the advisers were going anywhere as "the responsibility entrusted to us is a significant one; we cannot abandon this duty". The chief adviser's decision to stay in office came two days after he told student-led National Citizen Party (NCP) leaders that he was mulling resignation as he felt "the situation is such that he cannot work", 4Contd on | Nation Tailpiece All in a day’s work: LIC issues record 5,88,107 policies PTI NEW DELHI (L) Freddie at St. Peter’s and (R) his picture in his nephew’s Parsi colony residence selection committee probably had no other choice but go in with a young squad barring a few seniors with the monumental retirements of the likes of Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli and Ravichandran Ashwin, a little earlier, Life Insurance Corporation of India on Saturday said it has earned a Guinness World Record title for most life insurance policies sold in 24 hours. This historic achievement, verified by Guinness World Records, recognises the extraordinary performance of the corporation's dedicated agency network on January 20, 2025, LIC said. On January 20, a total of 4,52,839 agents of LIC successfully completed and issued an astounding 5,88,107 life insurance policies across India, it noted. The monumental effort established a new global benchmark for agent productivity in the life insurance industry within 24 hours, it said. “It is a powerful validation of the relentless dedication, skill, and tireless work ethics of our agents. This achievement reflects our deep commitment towards our mission to provide vital financial protection to our customers and their families,” it said. The record attempt was the culmination of an initiative by LIC MD and CEO Siddhartha Mohanty, appealing to every agent to complete at least one policy on 'Mad Million Day' on January 20, 2025. Mohanty thanked all customers, agents and employees for making 'Mad Million Day' historic.