FOLLOW US: @TheStatesmanLtd @thestatesmanltd thestatesman1875 www.thestatesman.com People’s Parliament, Always in Session India’s National Newspaper since 1818 | Pages 12 | ` 5.00 | KOLKATA | NEW DELHI | SILIGURI | BHUBANESWAR | Tuesday, 23 September 2025 SPORTS WORLD NATION PM changed speech timing so that BJP members could watch cricket BUSINESS Piyush Goyal in Washington for India-US trade talks Page 11 Page 10 Page 9 BRIEFLY Israel evacuates Gaza hospital amid UN summit SHAHID K ABBAS P rime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday launched a series of initiatives in Arunachal Pradesh and Tripura, marking the first day of Navratri with development and devotion. In Itanagar, Modi accused the Congress of neglecting Arunachal and the Northeast because of its limited electoral weight, while asserting that the BJP had placed the region firmly at the centre of India’s growth story. Calling Arunachal Pradesh the “land of peace and patriotism,” he unveiled projects worth over Rs 5,100 crore, including foundation stones for two major hydropower projects—the 240 MW Heo and 186 MW Tato-I plants in Defence minister: PoK belongs to India, day of reunification close PM Modi calls for collective efforts towards self-reliant India Itanagar/Agartala, 22 september New Delhi: The combined Index of Eight Core Industries rose by 6.3% in August on a year-on-year basis, according to government data. The production of steel, coal, cement, fertilizers, electricity, and petroleum refinery products recorded positive growth. Coal production registered strong growth of 11.4% in August 2025 compared to (P 11) August 2024. Page 12 PM unveils projects worth `5,100 crore in North-East STATESMAN NEWS SERVICE Eight core industries register 6.3 pc growth in August: Suryakumar analyses Abhishek, Gill’s fiery partnership New Delhi, 22 September PM Narendra Modi performs puja and darshan during the inauguration of the development work of 'Mata Tripura Sundari Temple', in Gomati, on Monday ANI Shi Yomi district worth over Rs 3,700 crore. He also announced the Tawang Convention Centre, besides projects on connectivity, health care, fire safety, and women’s hostels. Launching the next generation of GST reforms as a “GST Bachat Utsav,” Modi said the move would lower costs of essentials, benefit small businesses and artisans, and strengthen the “vocal for local” push. “Ease of living, ease of health, ease of education, ease of travel and ease of doing business—these are our guiding principles,” he said, adding that the reforms align with the vision of making India a developed nation by 2047. Prime Minister Narendra Modi Monday extended wa r m g re e t i n g s t o t h e nation on the occasion of Navratri, emphasizing the significance of collective efforts towards building a self-reliant India. In a letter to "Fellow Indians" shared on social media platform X, PM Modi urged citizens to support the goal of a d e ve l o p e d and Atmanirbhar Bharat, highlighting the importance of buying indigenous pro ducts and re ducing dep endence on foreign goods. "We have to make every home a symbol of swadeshi. We have to decorate every shop with swadeshi goods," PM Modi said, encouraging people to promote self-reliance during the festive season. He likened the recent GST rate cuts to a "savings festival" that would empower the country's prosperity. PM M o d i ' s c a l l f o r self-reliance is part of a broader vision to make India a developed nation by 2047. He emphasized that dep endence on foreign countries compromises national self-respect and hinders progress. "The greater the foreign dependence, the greater the country's failure," he said, adding that self-reliance is the only solution to India's problems. STATESMAN NEWS SERVICE New Delhi, 22 September In a strongly-worded message to Islamabad, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh stated that India will take back the control of Pakistan occupied Kashmir (PoK) as the demands for the same are being raised by the people from the region. The defence minister was speaking with the Indian diaspora in Rabat, Morocco, on Monday. “PoK will be ours on its own. Demands have started being made in PoK, you must have heard sloganeering,” he said. Speaking about his statement from five years ago, the defence minister said, “I was addressing the Indian Army at a program in Kashmir Valley five years ago, I had then said that we will not need to attack and capture PoK, it is anyway ours; PoK itself will say, ‘Main bhi Bharat Hoon’. That day will come.” Stating that Operation Sindoor was still ongoing, the defence minister said it was undertaken by the country’s armed forces to execute the terrorists and terror hubs behind the brutal killings in Pahalgam.