FP The publishers permit sharing of the e-paper's pdf on WhatsApp and other social media platforms Vol. 15 No. 103 | BHOPAL | FRIDAY | SEPTEMBER 26, 2025 | Pages 14 ` 3 | Regd. No. Indore MP/ICD 216/2024-2026 | RNI No. mpeng/2010/35815 FREE www.freepressjournal.in Nation Focus on tribal dignity, self-respect: PM P.8 fp Briefs GUWAHATI SIT to probe Zubeen’s death In the wake of the demise of Assam’s cultural icon and popular singer Zubeen Garg, the state government has constituted a Special Investigation Team (SIT) to conduct a comprehensive and transparent probe into the circumstances of his death. Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma, who chaired a high-level review meeting with the Director General of Police, senior CID officials, and the Chief Secretary on Wednesday, announced that the SIT would comprise some of the “best officers of Assam Police” and would work independently with complete professional integrity. India is gearing up to make massive changes to the Indus River system to meet the water demands of the northern states. In a strategic move after suspending the Indus Water Treaty with Pakistan, the government is now trying to ensure that the project is ready ahead of the 2029 Lok Sabha elections. During a review meeting by senior ministers last Friday, it was stated that a detailed project report (DPR) is already being prepared to UJJAIN SPORTS PRESS PUNE INDORE NASHIK MUMBAI E-paper Edit Violence serves no cause P.6 Pak falter to 135/8 as Bangladesh bowlers dominate in T20 clash Cinema Rihanna, Rocky welcome third child P.14 construct a 14-km tunnel that would connect the Indus River with the Beas River, both part of the Indus system, according to people privy to the developments. Multinational construction firm L&T has been tasked with preparing the project report. It is expected to be ready by next year. The work on the proposed 113-km canal that would deliver the Indus water to the northern states was also reviewed at the meeting, sources added. The Indus Water Treaty was a landmark water-sharing deal signed in 1960 between India and Pakistan following an intervention by the World Bank. India suspended the treaty in the aftermath of the April 22 Pahalgam terror attack, with the government asserting Govt seals Rs 62,370 cr deal to buy 97 Tejas jets PTI The defence ministry on Thursday sealed a Rs 62,370 crore deal with the Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd (HAL) to procure 97 Tejas light combat aircraft for the Indian Air Force. The signing of the contract came over a month after the Cabinet Committee on Security (CCS) headed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi green-lighted the mega procurement. It is the second such contract awarded to the staterun aerospace behemoth. In February 2021, the defence ministry sealed a Rs 48,000 crore deal with HAL for procurement of 83 Tejas MK1A jets for the IAF. A contract was signed with the HAL for 97 Tejas Light Combat Aircraft- Mk1A with associated equipment for the IAF at a cost of Rs 62,370 crore (excluding taxes), the ministry said. The advanced jet will feature Swayam Raksha Kavach and control actuators, with Our Staff Reporter The Employee Selection Board (ESB) on Thursday announced the results of primary middle school teacher selection examination 2024. The examination was held to recruit 9,882 teachers for the School Education and Tribal Welfare Departments.Successful candidates can check their results on the official website: www.esb.mp.gov.in. As per official data, 1,85,065 candidates had applied for the exam, and 1,60,360 appeared.The examination was conducted between April 20 and April 29, 2024, across 11 cities— Bhopal, Indore, Jabalpur, Khandwa, Neemuch, Ratlam, Rewa, Sagar, Satna, Sidhi and Ujjain. BHOPAL MEGA DEFENCE PACT | Single-engine Tejas Light Combat Aircraft- Mk1A will be a replacement for IAF’s MiG-21 fighters NEW DELHI BHOPAL EDITIONS: Online Report Jaisinagar is now Jaishiv Nagar Results of primary middle school teacher selection exam 2024 out iii QUALITY @ VALUE Centre plans big Indus gift for north India BHOPAL Chief Minister Mohan Yadav on Thursday announced that Jaisinagar in Sagar district of the state will now be called Jaishiv Nagar. Jaisinagar is a tehsil in the Bundelkhand region of MP and a part of the Surkhi assembly seat. "I announce to change the name of Jaisinagar to Jaishiv Nagar," Yadav said during a food security resolution programme in the town on the occasion of the birth anniversary of Deendayal Upadhyaya, founder of the Jansangh, the BJP's erstwhile avatar. ESTD-1983 AGNI PRIME TEST-FIRED FROM RAIL-BASED PLATFORM India has successfully testfired the Agni-Prime missile with a range of 2,000 km from a rail-based mobile launcher system, demonstrating its capability to deploy the missile across the country. The Defence Research and Development Organisation, in collaboration with the Strategic Forces Command, carried out the "successful" launch of intermediate range AgniPrime missile under a full operational scenario over 64 per cent indigenous content and 67 new indigenous items, it said. The deliveries will start in 2027-28, it said. The single-engine Mk-1A will be a replacement for the IAF's MiG-21 fighters. The IAF is looking at inducting the warplanes as the number of its fighter squadrons have gone down to 31 from officially sanctioned strength of 42. Tejas is a multi-role fighter aircraft capable of operating in high-threat air environments. It has been designed to undertake air defence, maritime reconnaissance and strike roles. MiG-21 to fly into history today Six decades after they were inducted into the force, Indian Air Force's workhorse, the legendary Russian-origin MiG-21 fighter jets, will finally retire from the IAF at a mega event to be held here on Friday. Air Chief Marshal A P Singh, will fly the last sortie of the MiG-21 Bison aircraft. The last of the MiG-21 jets, belonging to number 23 Squadron nicknamed "Panthers", will be given a farewell at the Chandigarh Air Force station in which chief guest will be Defence Minister Rajnath Singh. FLYING INTO HISTORY... ON PG-9 that "water and blood can't flow together". The government had since been working on a detailed plan to utilize India's share of the Indus water. To make this a reality, an ambitious project has been conceived under the Inter-Basin Indus Water Transfer Scheme and is being monitored at the highest levels of the government. The most challenging part of this project is the construction of the 14-km tunnel, say sources. 4Continued on | P8 US seeks deeper trade, energy ties with India: Energy Secy PTI NEW YORK The US seeks greater trade and energy cooperation with its "awesome ally" India, Energy Secretary Chris Wright has said, while acknowledging"friction" between the countries over New Delhi's import of discounted Russian oil under sanctions. Wright made the remarks at a press conference organised at the New York Foreign Press Centre on Wednesday on the sidelines of the highlevel United Nations General Assembly session. "A lot of my early time when I arrived in my position was dealing with India -- the world's largest democracy, an awesome ally of the United States, a fast-growing economy, a truly dynamic society," he said in response to a question by PTI. Wright said India has a rapidly growing energy demand because of increasing prosperity and opportunity among its people. "I'm a huge fan of India; we love India. We look forward to more energy trade, more interactions back and forth with India," he said. 4Continued on | P8 Nitendra Sharma Calls for self-reliance during 'Swadeshi' Awakening Week BHOPAL There will be none in the MP Human Rights Commission to hear the public grievances on Saturday because the tenure of service of the acting MPHRC chairman Rajiv Tandon is ending on Friday. The post of the chairman of the HRC has been lying vacant for a long time. As Tan- Our Staff Reporter BHOPAL Chief Minister Mohan Yadav on Thursday said that in every era, India has overcome challenges through the power of Swadeshi and self-reliance. He said that it was through Swadeshi that Mahatma Gandhi led the country to independence. Yadav was addressing the state-level inauguration of Swadeshi Awakening Week, organised by Madhya Pradesh Jan Abhiyan Parishad and Swadeshi Jagran Manch on the birth anniversary of Pandit Deendayal Upadhyaya. On the occasion, several social organisations handed over pledge letters to CM, expressing their commitment to promoting Swadeshi values. Later, Yadav participated in Rajiv Tandon AP Singh don’s tenure in office will end, and as there are no members in the commission, the public complaints will go unheard. Because there is no member in the commission, the government has decided to hold a meeting for new appointments in the commission at 4pm on September 29. A committee, consisting of the Chief Minister, Home Minister, Leader of the Opposition and Speaker, appoints the members of the HR Commission. 4Continued on | P8 Utsav Gupta In a pioneering step towards environmental transpar- PTI NEW DELHI The Union Home Ministry on Thursday cancelled the FCRA licence of Students' Educational and Cultural Movement of Ladakh (SECMOL) founded by climate activist Sonam Wangchuk with "immediate effect", a government order said. The action of the ministry was based on several alleged discrepancies detected in the accounts of the organisation including a fund transfer from Sweden which the ministry found was against "national interest". The development comes a day after four persons were killed in widespread clashes between protesters supporting the movement for statehood to Ladakh and security personnel amid a shutdown in Leh. The government blamed Wangchuk for the mob violence. The Wangchuk-led organisation was granted the licence to accept foreign contribution for undertaking cultural and ency, the Urban Administration Department (UAD) is preparing a proposal to upload comprehensive data on both tree plantation and tree cutting activities on the MeriLiFEportal, a first-of-itskind initiative in India. The MeriLiFE portal, developed under the Mission LiFE (Lifestyle for Environment), currently hosts data Over 4,600 complaints are pending before the MPHRC. After the tenure of Manohar Mamtani as chairman of the MPHRC ended, nobody was appointed in his place. A member of the commission, Rajiv Tandon, was appointed its acting chairman. The number of pending cases has increased because Tandon is alone in the commission. Cong councillor booked, over 50 arrested In the aftermath of Wednesday's violence in Leh, around 50 people have been arrested in predawn raids, following strong action vowed by Lieutenant Governor Kavinder Gupta. The police have registered an FIR and formally charged Congress Councillor Phuntsog Stanzin for his alleged role in the unrest. The crackdown signals a tough stance by authorities as the region remains tense. educational programme, the order said. 4Continued on | P8 US biz lobby mulls legal action against H-1B fee hike WASHINGTON: America’s largest business lobby, the US Chamber of Commerce, is considering legal action against the Trump administration’s move to impose a $100,000 fee on new H-1B visa applications, Bloomberg reported. The decision has reignited debate over the role of Indian professionals in the US economy. SC raps MP govt, CBI for delay in PM: Tax burden to ease further as economy suspension of absconding cops gains more strength PTI NEW DELHI a foot rally that started from Manas Bhavan and concluded at Ravindra Bhavan.He announced that during Swadeshi Awakening Week, Swadeshi products would be promoted and encouraged across the state. The Supreme Court on Thursday slammed the Madhya Pradesh government and the CBI for the delay in suspending absconding police officials accused in a custodial death case and warned of contempt action. A bench of Justices B V Na- CUSTODIAL DEATH garathna and R Mahadevan said the police officials have been absconding since April but have not been suspended. The top court was hearing a contempt plea of the mother of the 24-year-old victim alleging non-compliance of the top court's May 15 order, transfer- ring the investigation from Madhya Pradesh Police to the CBI. The local police was observed to have attempted a cover up besides influencing the probe into his death. The counsel for the CBI informed the apex court that the two officers were suspended on Wednesday. 4Continued on | P8 Govt to track tree felling, plantation on MeriLiFE portal BHOPAL Centre cancels FCRA licence of Wangchuk’s org Faced every challenge MPHRC will be empty from tomorrow with Swadeshi spirit: CM Meeting to appoint new members on Monday; PS Vidhan Sabha ahead in race 4,600+ PLAINTS PENDING offgrid First initiative in India; UAD to prepare proposal soon LADAKH VIOLENCE on plantation activities from 4,852 Urban Local Bodies (ULBs) across the country. However, it lacks a mechanism to track the number of trees felled or the status of compensatory plantation. According to UAD officials, over 31 lakh saplings have been planted this year across 416 ULBs in Madhya Pradesh. The data, updated daily, has already been uploaded on the portal up to September 25. Despite these efforts, the state still lacks a system to monitor tree felling, its exact locations and whether required compensatory plantation has been carried out. The proposed upgrade to the portal will position Madhya Pradesh as the first state in India to maintain official and transparent records of tree cutting alongside plantation. The system will also track the location and survival status of each planted sapling, providing authorities with a reliable, realtime picture of ecological progress on the ground. NO VERIFIED DATA SO FAR: Currently, no verified data exists on how many trees are cut in Madhya Pradesh annually. Once integrated with the MeriLiFE portal, the new system will allow authorities to track tree loss, verify compensatory plantation and assess ecological balance with greater accuracy. 4Continued on | P8 PTI GREATER NOIDA Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday said the reforms in GST will continue and the tax burden on citizens will further ease as the economy gains more strength. Modi emphasised that the nation currently possesses strong willpower for reforms, backed by democratic and political stability, along with policy predictability. Earlier this month, India effected next-generation reforms in GST. Modi said the structural reforms in Goods and Services Tax (GST) are set to give new wings to country's growth story. Addressing the gathering after inaugurating the Uttar Pradesh International Trade Show 2025 here, Modi said his government has significantly reduced taxes, curbed infla- tion, and increased both income and savings for the people. He said that by making income up to Rs 12 lakh tax-free and implementing new GST reforms, citizens are set to save Rs 2.5 lakh crore this year alone. The Prime Minister said the government introduced reforms in the indirect tax regime by implementing GST in 2017, a significant step towards strengthening the economy, followed by further reforms in September of this year. "Today, the country is proudly celebrating 'GST Bachat Utsav'. 4Continued on | P8