FP The publishers permit sharing of the e-paper's pdf on WhatsApp and other social media platforms FREE PRESS Vol. XLII No. 76 | INDORE | WEDNESDAY | AUGUST 27, 2025 | Pages 16 ` 3 | Regd. No. Indore MP/ICD 216/2024-2026 | RNI No. 38281/83 www.freepressjournal.in Sports SLI to build awareness, talent & fan base: Heena Sidhu P.14 ESTD-1983 iii QUALITY @ VALUE EDITIONS: INDORE UJJAIN NATION PUNE BHOPAL NASHIK ‘Exploration to continue’ The United States has issued a draft notice detailing plans to implement an additional 25 per cent tariff on Indian products from August 27, impacting more than USD 48 billion worth of India's exports to the US. The total tariff on Indian goods entering the American market, with certain exceptions, will now be 50 per cent. The US imposed a 25 per cent tariff on India on August 7 and had announced another 25 per cent duties from August 27 as a “penalty” for buying Russian oil and military equipment. The US Department of Homeland Security, in the draft order published on Monday, said the increased levies would hit Indian products that are "entered for consumption, or withdrawn from warehouse for consumption, on or after 12:01 am eastern daylight time on August 27, 2025". The sectors, which would bear the brunt of the high US import duties include lowmargin and labour-intensive goods ranging from textiles, clothing, gems and jewellery, shrimp, leather and footwear, animal products, chemicals, and electrical and mechanical machinery. Sectors such as pharma, energy products and elec- fp Briefs VISAKHAPATNAM India’s 2 new stealth frigates The Navy on Tuesday commissioned two multimission stealth frigates, INS Udaygiri and INS Himgiri, each equipped with eight BrahMos missiles. Udaygiri is the 100th ship designed by the Navy's Warship Design Bureau and was built by Mazagon Dock Shipbuilders Limited in Mumbai, while Himgiri was constructed by Garden Reach Shipbuilders & Engineers, Kolkata. NEW DELHI Af FM’s Delhi visit cancelled Afghanistan Foreign Minister Amir Khan Muttaqi’s visit to India, planned for later this week, has been cancelled. Sources in Kabul said that the visit got cancelled because Muttaqi failed to receive a travel ban exemption from the UNSC. CALL POLITICS AT PLAY AS REPORT CLAIMS PM IGNORED DON PM Narendra Modi on Tuesday said,"In the coming time, our focus will be on futuristic industries. The Indian government is also aware of the shortage of rare earth magnets for the auto industry. To increase the capacity of the industry in this direction, we have also launched the National Critical Mineral Mission. Under this, more exploration missions will be conducted at different places...” Sensex tumbles 849 points Exporters worried Sensex lost 849 points to slip below the 81,000 level on Tuesday due to widespread selling pressure after the US issued a draft notice over the implementation of an additional 25% tariff. The 30-share BSE Sensex tumbled 849.37 points to close at 80,786.54. During the day, the index fell 949.93 points, to hit a low of 80,685.98 The Federation of Indian Export Organisations on Thursday expressed grave concern over the additional tariff on Indian-origin goods. FIEO President S.C. Ralhan described the development as a "setback". Textiles and apparel manufacturers in Tiruppur, Noida, and Surat have halted production amid worsening cost competitiveness LATEST THREAT: US President Donald Trump has threatened to impose "substantial" new tariffs to restrict American chip exports to all countries that impose digital services taxes and related regulations on US tech firms. The US leader has been trying to pressure trade partners into dropping the taxes, which typically apply only to some of the largest and most established tech companies tronic goods are out of the ambit of these sweeping duties. With the new tariffs kicking in, India's competitors will be better placed in the US market due to lower duties. India's competitors include Myanmar (40 per cent US tariff), Thailand and Cambodia (both 36 per cent), Bangladesh (35 per cent), Indonesia (32 per cent), China and Sri Lanka (both 30 per cent), Malaysia (25 per cent), Philippines and Vietnam (both 20 per cent). The US draft order further stated that Indian products will be exempt from the new 50 per cent tariff if they were already loaded on a ship and in transit to the US before 12:01 am (EDT) on August 27, 2025, provided they are cleared for use in the President Trump is reportedly wondering why Prime Minister Modi won’t pick up his calls. According to a report in the German newspaper Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung, Prime Minister Modi has become highly irritated with the president’s recent actions and has refused to engage. “There are signs that Modi is offended. According to information from the Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung (FAZ) Trump has made four attempts in recent weeks to get the Indian Prime Minister on the phone. But he refuses to speak,” claims the article originally written in German. Both the US embassy in India and the MEA have not responded to requests for comment so far. country or taken out of a warehouse for consumption before 12:01 am (EDT) on September 17, 2025, and the importer certifies this to US Customs by declaring a special code. 4Continued on | P8 ‘Swift, decisive responses will win us future wars’ FPNS/Agencies MHOW Chief of Defence Staff Gen Anil Chauhan on Tuesday called for swift and decisive responses across domains to ensure victory in future wars as battlefields of tomorrow will not recognize service boundaries. Addressing 'Ran Samwad' -a tri-services seminar on war and warfighting -- Gen Chauhan described Aatmanirbharta in defence and integrated logistics as key to victory in the wars to come. He reaffirmed that RAN SAMWAD CDS Gen Anil Chauhan 'jointness' was foundational to India's transformation. He underscored the need to institutionalise joint training and absorb constantly-evolving technologies such as artificial intelligence, cyber and quantum to enhance operational capability. “Developing capabilities in multiple domains is central for attaining victory in future wars,” he declared. Citing Kautilya, he said India has been a fountainhead of ideas and knowledge since ancient times. Women consume most of liquor in state: Patwari Insult to Ladli Behnas: CM Our Staff Reporter BHOPAL A statement by MPCC president Jitu Patwari has stirred up a hornet’s nest in the state. He told media persons that the state got the tag that women in the state consumed most of the liquor. Most of the liquor is consumed in MP. The BJP that speaks about prosperous MP has brought the state to the present condition. After Patwari’s statement, many BJP leaders have become aggressive.  Reacting to the remark, Chief Minister Mohan Yadav said Patwari must tender an ‘Addiction, sale of liquor increasing’ Immediately after the criticism of his statement by the BJP, Jitu Patwari said in Jabalpur that drug addiction was growing in the state and that the sale of liquor was increasing. He will not retract from the statement, Patwari said. The BJP has turned the state into a place of drunkards and unemployed youths, and the Congress will raise its voice a hundred times, he said. apology to the women of the state. The Congress has insulted the Ladli Behnas on Hartalika Teej, Yadav said, adding that he should tender an apology to women. During its rule, the Congress did not run any scheme for the welfare of women, but now, the party is insulting half of the population, Yadav said. BJP’s state unit president, Hemant Khandelwal, said Patwari’s statement made it clear what the party was teaching to its leaders. Women should be honoured as much as possible, Khandelwal said, adding that the Congress and Patwari have the habit of insulting women. In charge of the BJP Mahendra Singh also took Patwari to task for his statement, saying his remark is condemnable and hideous. 4Continued on | P8 However, very little literature on scholarly analysis of Indian Wars or academic discourse on strategy exists. "Serious research needs to be done on various dimensions of war, leadership, motivation, morale and technology. India needs to be Sashakt, Surakshit, Aatmanirbhar and Viksit. This can only be achieved when all stakeholders participate collectively in the process of building future ready forces," he said. 4Continued on | P8 4Sudarshan Chakra | P5 Landslide on Vaishno Devi route kills 9 KATRA At least nine people were killed as heavy rains led to a landslide on the Vaishno Devi temple route in Jammu and Kashmir's (J-K) Katra on Tuesday, officials said. Rescue teams rushed to the spot soon after the incident. The bodies and the injured were shifted to the Community Health Centre (CHC) in Katra.The landslide that occurred near Inderprastha Bhojnalaya at Adhkwari cave temple, located on the route to the Vaishno Devi shrine in J-K's Katra, left some people trapped. Telecom services collapsed in large parts of the union territory, leading to millions being cut off from communication and escalating problems, officials said. offgrid Ketan Narottam Tanna There are many ways to describe Donald Trump. Americans have exhausted the thesaurus on this one— orange menace, walking tweetstorm, golf-course squatter, the Cheeto-in-Chief. But what he probably did not expect was to be crowned with India’s most versatile verbal jewel: Chu *ia. Yes, the exalted title has now been bestowed upon the sitting President of the United States by none other than Carol Christine Fair, an associate professor at Georgetown University, South Asia specialist, and clearly, a woman not afraid to dip into the subcontinent’s bottomless dictionary of abuse. The blessed occasion un- India, US set to sign $1 bn fighter jet engine deal NEW DELHI: Soon after the Centre cleared a Rs 62,000 crore deal to buy 97 more LCA Mark 1A fighter aircraft, India is close to signing a deal of around USD one billion with the American firm GE for supplying 113 more GE-404 engines for the indigenous combat aircraft. Indian stateowned firm Hindustan Aeronautics Limited has already inked a deal for 99 GE-404 engines with the American firm for the initial 83 LCA Mark 1A fighter jets ordered by the Indian Air Force and these 113 would be in addition to that. DMRC roped in for Ujjain, Indore, Pithampur Metro corridor DPR Cabinet approves consultancy fee of Rs 9L per km Our Staff Reporter BHOPAL The Cabinet on Tuesday approved the proposal to provide consultancy charges to Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC) for preparing a Detailed Project Report (DPR) of the Mahakaleshwar Ujjain, Indore, and Pithampur Metro corridor. The consultancy charge will be given at the rate of Rs 9 lakh per km. 25K tablets to speed up police investigation- In a move towards digitising law enforcement, the Cabinet approved a proposal to purchase South Asia erupts in laughter as Georgetown academic Christine Fair gifts US president the ultimate desi title during an online interview folded during an interview with Moeed Pirzada, a Pakistan-origin British journalist who, for once, didn’t have to fish for ratings—Fair handed it to him on a silver platter. When asked about US policy towards India and China, Fair launched into a sober, academic dissection of American bureaucracies. Then came the bombshell: “The pessimist in me says this is six months and we’ve got four years of this Chu*ia.” Pirzada, suppressing the kind of laughter usually reserved for WhatsApp forwards, admitted sheepishly, 4Continued on | P8 25,000 tablets for the police. These tablets will come equipped with applications such as e-Vivechana, designed to streamline the investigative process by allowing officers to document crime scenes with photos and videos, record statements, and update case diaries in real-time. In the first phase, 1,732 tablets will be given to investigating officers of urban police stations. The tablets will be purchased for Rs 75 crore under the Crime and Criminal Tracking Network & Systems (CCTNS) project worth Rs 102.88 crore. This approval has hiked the sum of the amended CCTNS scheme to over 177 crore.  4Continued on | P8 Next civic body election to see voters pick Chairman: CM BHOPAL: Addressing his ministers before the Cabinet meeting on Tuesday, Chief Minister Mohan Yadav said Declares holiday for Ganesh Chaturthi that in the 2027 election for civic bodies, voters will directly elect the Chairman. Announcing a holiday on Wednesday, for Ganesh Chaturthi, the CM said that this festive season, including the coming Navratri, indigenous materials must be promoted.  4Continued on | P8 Centre cuts wheat stock limit for traders to keep prices in check IANS NEW DELHI As part of continuous efforts to moderate prices of wheat before the upcoming festive season, the Central Government has decided to reduce the wheat stock limit applicable to wholesale and retail traders as well as processors in all States and Union Territories until March 31, 2026. The stock limit of wheat for wholesalers has been reduced to 2,000 metric tonnes (MT) from 3,000 MT earlier, while in the case of retailers, the stock limit has been cut to 8 MT for each retail outlet from 10 MT earlier, according to a statement issued by the Ministry of Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution on Tuesday. Similarly, for wheat processors, the wheat stock limit has been scaled down to 60 per cent of the monthly installed capacity 4Continued on | P8 divine splendour On the occasion of Ganesh Chaturthi, Khajrana Ganesh was offered one lakh modaks and adorned with a golden crown. Pic by Pintu Namdev Decide reserved rulings in three months: SC to HCs FP News Service NEW DELHI The Supreme Court on Monday directed High Courts to pronounce judgements within three months, in case the matter is reserved, expressing serious concern over inordinate delays in pronouncing judgements after hearings, and warning that such delays undermine public faith in the judicial process. 4Continued on | P8 Blackmailed by woman, liquor contractor ends life She took Rs 25L and threatened me with rape case, he wrote in 5-page suicide note Our Staff Reporter Fair & Surly: Trump Crowned Chu*ia MUMBAI E-paper Cinema Cinema joins Ganpati celebrations P.13 US TARIFF @50% SET TO HIT INDIAN EXPORTS TODAY FP Desk CHATURTHI Edit Don’t politicise a verdict P.6 ‘Big’ fight escalates over voter fraud row between SP-BJP ORDER NOTIFIED | Vulnerable sectors – textiles, gems and jewellery, shrimp, leather, chemicals, electrical and mechanical machinery – brace for impact INDORE MUMBAI GANESH INDORE Liquor contractor Bhupendra alias Pintu Raghuvanshi (46) allegedly consumed liquor, a poisonous substance and even injected a substance to end his life at his home in Annapurna police circle on Monday night. Before taking the extreme step, Pintupenned a five-page suicide note blaming one Iti Tiwari of blackmail and extortion.Claiming that they were in a relationship for the last two years, Pintu requested police not to harass his family and friends, he wrote that Iti was threatening to frame him in a rape case and had even extorted Rs 25 lakh. His driver Shubham told Free Press that Pintu had returned home in Bhawanipur Colony after midnight. He was found unconscious by his wife on the ground floor and rushed to a private hospital, where he breathed his last. Suspecting honeytrap, family members claimed that Iti could be a part of larger racket involved in extortion through blackmail. The autopsy revealed that Pintuhad consumed alcohol before taking some poisonous substance. He later injected another substance subcutaneously on one of his arms. The police said that Pintuof Bhawanipur Colony was into liquor business. A year ago he had closed Shosha, Pitchers and Skull pubs and started Kahani Restaurant at Apollo Tower. However, the restaurant was recently shut down owing to financial strain. Some of his properties were rented out. He had been avoiding friends and relatives for the last few months, claimed family members. Pintuis survived by his wife Aarti, a son, a daughter and elderly parents. His daughter works with an IT firm in the United States of America (USA). The last rites will be performed after her arrival on Thursday. 4Continued on | P8