FP The publishers permit sharing of the e-paper's pdf on WhatsApp and other social media platforms FREE PRESS Vol. 15 No. 162 | BHOPAL | DAY | MONDAY | NOVEMBER 24, 2025 | PAGES 12 ` 3 | Regd. No. Indore MP/ICD 216/2024-2026 | RNI No. mpeng/2010/35815 www.freepressjournal.in World At G20, Modi pitches for AI misuse curbs P.9 fp Briefs NEW DELHI Justice Kant to take oath as CJI Justice Surya Kant, who has been part of several landmark verdicts and orders on abrogation of Article 370 removing Jammu and Kashmir's special status, Bihar electoral rolls revision and Pegasus spyware case, will on Monday take oath as the 53rd Chief Justice of India. He will succeed Justice B R Gavai, who demits office this evening. Justice Kant was appointed as the next CJI on October 30 and will remain in the post for nearly 15 months. He will demit office on February 9, 2027 on attaining the age of 65 years. NEW DELHI/JAMMU 10 all-women ITBP outposts The Indo-Tibetan Border Police force, which guards the 3,488 km-long IndiaChina LAC, is establishing 10 all-women border posts along this arduous and icy frontier, the director general of the paramilitary said. The force, as part of its ambitious "forwardisation" plan, initiated post the 2020 military clash in Ladakh, has also moved its 215 border posts forward along the front on India's north and eastern flank so far. Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP) DG Praveen Kumar said this during the 64th Raising Day parade of the force held in Jammu on Saturday. UJJAIN PUNE MONEY INDORE NASHIK PTI JOHANNESBURG Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday said the reform of the UN Security Council was no longer an option, but a necessity and asserted that the India-Brazil-South Africa troika should send a clear message for changes to institutions of global governance. Addressing the India-BrazilSouth Africa (IBSA) leaders summit here, Modi said that at a time when the world appears fragmented and divided, IBSA can provide a message of unity, cooperation, and humanity. He also proposed institutionalising the IBSA NSA-level meeting to strengthen security cooperation among the three countries. "In the fight against terrorism, we must move forward in close coordination. There is no place for any double standards on such a serious issue," Modi said at the meeting attended by South African President Cyril Ramaphosa and Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva. PM Narendra Modi with South African President Cyril Ramaphosa and Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva Call for global compact on AI misuse Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday called for a global compact to prevent misuse of artificial intelligence and made a strong pitch for critical technologies to be human-centric, instead of finance-centric. Addressing the third session of the G20 summit here, Modi also said technology applications should be 'global' rather than 'national', and based on 'open source' rather than 'exclusive models' Highlighting technology's crucial role in ensuring human-centric development, the Prime Minister also proposed establishing an 'IBSA Malwa dominates BJP, Cong; Bundelkhand loses political grip T he Malwa region has gained remarkable dominance in both the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and the Congress. In the recent appointments within the BJP organization, leaders from Malwa have secured the highest number of positions. The government already has the maximum representation from Malwa. The situation is similar within the Congress, where both the Leader of Opposition and the State President belong to Malwa. In the BJP’s latest appointments, the State President of the Yuva Morcha, Shyam Taylor, is from Shajapur, which falls in the Malwa region. Previously, organizational positions were also awarded to leaders from Malwa, including State Vice President Nishant Khare, Prabhulal Jatav, and State General Secretaries Gaurav Randive and Sumer Singh Solanki. Apart from these, several other organizational leaders represent Malwa and Nimar. In the BJP-led government, Chief Minister Mohan Yadav, Deputy Chief Minister Jagdish Devda, and Ministers Kailash Vijayvargiya, Tulsi Silawat, Nirmala Bhuria, Nagar Singh Chauhan, Chaitanya Kashyap, and Inder Singh Parmar are all from the Malwa region. In the Congress too, Leader of Opposition Umang Singhar and State President Jitu Patwari belong to Malwa. Once politically influential, the regions of Gwalior–Chambal and Bundelkhand now appear to be losing their strength in state politics. From Bundelkhand, only one cabinet minister Govind Singh Rajput  is part of the government. Besides him, two Ministers of State (Independent Charge) Lakhan Patel and Dharmendra Lodhi and Minister of State Dilip Ahirwar represent the region. Bundelkhand has also received the least representation in the party organization. Similarly, the influence of Gwalior–Chambal and Central India in the government and party organization has declined compared to earlier times. Earlier, powerful leaders like Kaptan Singh Solanki, Narendra Singh Tomar, Narottam Mishra, Anoop 4Continued on | P8 Agencies PARIS tan's air superiority and that Indian Rafale jets were shot down during the border skirmishes The Navy said the report not only misquoted French officers but even published the wrong name, referring to the officer as "Jacques Launay" instead of his real name, Captain Yvan Launay. In a statement released on its official X account, the Mar- ine Nationale said all the remarks attributed to Captain Launay were fabricated. "These statements were attributed to Captain Launay, who never gave his consent for any form of publication. The article contains extensive misinformation and disinformation," it said. The disputed article had sensationally claimed that a French commander told an Indo-Pacific conference that the Pakistan Air Force performed "much better" during the May 6-7 confrontation involving over 140 fighter jets. 4Continued on | P8 Digital Innovation Alliance' to facilitate the sharing of Digital Public Infrastructure like UPI, health platforms like CoWIN, cybersecurity frameworks and MUMBAI E-paper Edit Nitish, perform or perish P.6 FinMin renews merger proposal of state-owned general insurance cos French Navy slams Pak media for ‘misinformation’ over Rafale The French Navy has sharply criticised a Pakistan-based media outlet for publishing "misinformation and disinformation" about India's Operation Sindoor on Pakistan-sponsored terrorist sites in the wake of the Pahalgam terror attack in Jammu Kashmir in April this year, which killed 26 civilians. The clarification came after Islamabad's Geo TV outlet published on its website an article on November 21 claiming that a French naval commander had confirmed Pakis- BHOPAL Brand Sutra COMMUNITY GAINS P.12 UNSC reforms no longer option, but necessity: PM Nitendra Sharma A Gulf Air flight from Bahrain to Hyderabad was diverted to Mumbai after a bomb threat was received at the Rajiv Gandhi International Airport here on Sunday. Flight GF274 with 154 passengers on board was diverted to Mumbai Airport after an email was received at Hyderabad Airport that a bomb has been planted on the aircraft.According to sources at Hyderabad Airport, the bomb threat email was received on customer support id at 3 a.m.In view of this, the flight, which had taken off from Bahrain at 10:20 p.m. on Saturday and was scheduled to land at Hyderabad Airport at 4.55 a.m. on Sunday, was diverted to Mumbai. iii QUALITY @ VALUE IBSA MEET | Modi says at a time when world appears divided, IBSA can provide message of unity, cooperation and humanity HYDERABAD Bahrain flight gets bomb threat EDITIONS: ESTD-1983 SA refuses to hand over G20 presidency to jr US official Mercury below 10°C in 7 dists AP JOHANNESBURG women-led tech initiatives among the three countries. Appreciating the IBSA Fund's work in supporting projects across 40 countries in sectors like education, health, women empowerment and solar energy, he proposed the IBSA Fund for Climate Resilient Agriculture to further advance South-South cooperation. Modi called the IBSA meeting as timely as it coincided with the first G20 Summit on African soil and marked the culmination of four consecutive G20 presidencies by Global South countries, out of which the last three were by the IBSA members. This has resulted in several important initiatives focused on humancentric development, multilateral reform and sustainable growth, he said. The Prime Minister said IBSA was not just a group of three countries but an important platform connecting three continents, three major democratic nations, and three major economies. The Group of 20 summit in South Africa is set to end Sunday with another diplomatic spat involving the United States after the host country refused to hand over the rotating presidency of the bloc to what it described as a junior US official. The US boycotted the twoday meeting of leaders from rich and emerging economies in Johannesburg over the Trump administration's claims that South Africa is violently persecuting its Afrikaner white minority. The US is due to take over as G20 president for 2026, and says it will host its summit at President Donald Trump's golf club in Doral, Florida. But South Africa insisted that a traditional handover ceremony at the end of this summit likely won't happen because the US only wanted to send a diplomatic official from its embassy, calling it an insult to South African President Cyril Ramaphosa. "The United States is a member of the G20, and if they want to be represented, they can still send anyone at the right level," South African Foreign Minister Ronald Lamola said. 4Continued on | P8 4Continued on | P8 Migratory birds, brown-headed gull, at Bhadbhada(Upper Lake) on Sunday. Haze reduces visibility in Bhopal Our Staff Reporter BHOPAL The mercury dived below 10 degrees Celsius in seven districts of the state, including Bhopal, on Sunday, increasing the cold spell. The other districts are Narmadapuram (Pachmarhi), Mandsaur, Narsingpur, Rajgarh, Shajapur and Chhatarpur (Nowgong). As per the weatherman, dry weather with partially cloudy sky is likely in the state for the next five days. Meanwhile, the mornings are hazy, with low visibility. The state capital recorded 1-2 kilometre visibility on Sunday. The same condition will prevail here for the next couple of days. Bhopal recorded day tem- Cities Min temp (Deg/Cel) Pachmarhi Nowgong Mandsaur Narsinghpur Shajapur Rajgarh Bhopal 5.6 8.2 8.6 8.6 8.8 9.0 9.4 perature at 27.4 degrees Celsius and night temperature at 9.4 degrees Celsius, which was 4.2 degrees Celsius below normal. Indore recorded day temperature at 29.4 degrees Celsius and night temperature at 11.7 degrees Celsius, which was 1.7 degrees below normal. However, a few districts, particularly those in the eastern region of the state, have recorded above normal temperature. 4Continued on | P8 Sindh may return to India: Rajnath Agencies NEW DELHI 4 from Khandwa killed as MUV rams into truck in Andhra Our Staff Reporter INDORE Four people were killed and six others injured when an MUV rammed into a stationary truck in Andhra Pradesh's Srikakulam district in the wee hours of Sunday. The accident occurred on the national highway near Yetturallapadu village in Kotabommali mandal. According to police, the vehicle carrying pilgrims from MP rammed into the stationary truck from behind. Police and the patrolling staff of the highway rushed to the spot and launched rescue and relief operations. The pilgrims were heading to the Srisailam temple for darshan. The deceased were identified as Vijay Singh Tomar (65), Singh Pawar (60), Kusal Singh (62) and Santoshi Bai (62). 4Continued on | P8 Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, on Sunday, referring to a quote of former Deputy Prime Minister Lal Krishna Advani, said that the border can change and "who knows, tomorrow Sindh may return to India again" Sindh region, known as the homeland of the Sindhi people, has been a significant part of India's civilisa- tion. It was also the centre of the Indus Valley Civilisation. The region became part of Pakistan with the partition in 1947. Addressing the Sindhi Samaj Sammelan Program in the national capital, Rajnath Singh said, "This is Advani's (Lal Krishna Advani) quote. Today, the land of Sindh may not be a part of India, but civilisationally, Sindh will always be a part of India. And as far as land is concerned, borders can change. Who knows, tomorrow Sindh may return to India again." Defence Minister Rajnath Singh also highlighted the cultural significance of the Sindh region in Indian civilisa- Eyewitness identifies Yasin as main shooter in 1990 IAF killings IANS The attack killed four IAF personnel and injured several others in Rawalpora Srinagar, on January 25, 1990 JAMMU In a breakthrough during the trial of banned Jammu and Kashmir Liberation Front (JKLF) chief, Yasin Malik, for the killings of four IAF officials in Rawalpora area of Jammu and Kashmir's Srinagar city on January 25, 1990, a key eyewitness has identified the separatist leader as the main shooter in the TADA court. Officials said on Sunday that a key eyewitness has identified Yasin Malik as the main shooter in the 1990 Indian Air Force (IAF) personnel massacre case. "The identification was made before a special TADA court in Jammu, where Malik is on trial for the attack that killed four IAF personnel and injured several others in Rawalpora Srinagar, on January 25, 1990. The witness, an IAF personnel and a colleague of the victims, confirmed Malik's role in the attack, which is a major breakthrough in the 35-year-old case," the officials said. 4Continued on | P8 ‘Docs’ radicalisation began on social media in 2019’ PTI NEW DELHI The radicalisation of the doctors involved in the recent 'white-collar' terror module that came to light with the November 10 Red Fort area bombing began as early as 2019 on social media platforms, officials said on Sunday. WHITE-COLLAR TERROR PROBE The investigation so far indicated a concerning shift in cross-border terror strategy, where highly educated professionals were groomed entirely through digital means by handlers operating from Pakistan and other parts of the world, the officials fam- iliar with the probe said. The members of the terror cell, which included Dr Muzammil Ganaie, Dr Adeel Rather, Dr Muzzafar Rather and Dr Umar-un-Nabi, who drove the explosive-laden car on November 10, were initially spotted by handlers across the border while active on social media platforms like Facebook and discussion spaces on X (formerly known as Twitter). They were immediately shifted to private groups on 'Telegram', they said, adding that actual brainwashing started from here. 4Continued on | P8 tion. He also added that Many Muslims in Sindh believed that the water of the Indus was no less sacred than the Aab-eZamzam of Mecca "I'd also like to mention the Lal Krishna Advani here. He wrote in one of his books that Sindhi Hindus, especially those of his generation, still haven't accepted the separation of Sindh from India. 4Continued on | P8 Speeding bus crushes four teenagers to death in Sagar Our Staff Reporter BHOPAL A speeding bus killed four bike-borne teenagers near Anantpura village in the Rehli area of Sagar district on Sunday morning. Police have registered a case against the bus driver. MLA Brijbihari Pateria remained at hospital until the post-mortem of the teenagers and consoled the grieving family members. The deceased were identified as Satyanarayan Pal (17), Satyam (15), Prashant (15) and Umesh (16). The victims were standing on a turn after parking the two-wheeler when the bus hit. Former Congress state president Arun Yadav demanded compensation for the families of the victims. It is learnt that two victims were brothers. The impact was such that they were thrown off several metres away, other villagers said. offgrid Uranium found in breastmilk in Bihar dists Agencies NEW DELHI A recent study has revealed alarming levels of uranium (U238) in the breastmilk of lactating mothers across sevarl districts in Bihar, raising serious health concerns for their infants. Researchers from multiple institutions have found that uranium expo- sure through breastmilk could pose significant noncarcinogenic health risks to infants. Dr Ashok Sharma of AIIMS Delhi, who is a coauthor of the study, said, "The study analysed breast milk from 40 lactating mothers and found uranium (U-238) in all samples. Although 70% of infants showed potential non-carci- Researchers found uranium exposure could pose significant non-carcinogenic health risks to infants nogenic health risk, the overall uranium levels were below permissible limits and are expected to have minimal actual health impact on both mothers and infants. The highest average contamination occurred in Khagaria district and the highest individual value in Katihar district. While uranium exposure may pose risks such as impaired neurological development and reduced IQ, breastfeeding should not be discontinued and remains the most beneficial source of infant nutrition unless clini- cally indicated." "The study showed that: 70% of the infants had HQ > 1, indicating possible non-carcinogenic health risks from uranium exposure through breast milk. Uranium exposure in infants may affect: Kidney development, Neurological development, Cognitive and mental health outcomes 4Continued on | P8