FOLLOW US: @TheStatesmanLtd @thestatesmanltd thestatesman1875 www.thestatesman.com People’s Parliament, Always in Session India’s National Newspaper since 1818 BRIEFLY | Pages 12 | ` 5.00 | KOLKATA | NEW DELHI | MUMBAI | BHUBANESWAR | LUCKNOW | SILIGURI | Saturday, 13 June 2026 CM: Focus on ‘trident’ strategy for reviving Bengal’s industry MEA summons US envoy again over attacks on vessels with Indian mariners STATESMAN NEWS SERVICE Trump says US-Iran peace memorandum to be signed soon: For the second time in three days, India on Friday summoned US Charge d’Affaires Jason Meeks to lodge a strong protest against continuing attacks on commercial vessels off the coast of Oman, which recently claimed the lives of three Indian seafarers. New Delhi stated that such actions are “unacceptable and undermine the safety, security and stability of international maritime commerce in a sensitive region at a difficult time.” The development comes after another incident on Thursday, in which a commercial vessel with 20 Indian crew members on board reportedly came under attack in the region. Earlier, India on Wednesday had also lodged a strong protest over recent attacks on vessels operating near the Strait of Hormuz, including the commercial ship Settebello off the coast of Oman, where three Indian nationals were killed. It is centred on heavy industries, MSMEs, and food and horticulture processing. Kolkata, 12 June Washington: US President Donald Trump has claimed that a draft memorandum of understanding between the US and Iran for reopening the Strait of Hormuz without tolls, as well as ease sanctions on Tehran in stages, and further extend the current ceasefire for 60 days, will be signed soon. According to officials familiar with the discussions, the proposed agreement would create a framework for facilitating broader talks related to Iran’s nuclear programme while also seeking to stabilise regional flashpoints, including Lebanon. According to a diplomat from one of the mediating countries and a US official, the text, while agreed in principle by both sides still requires final approval, reports Axios. Page 9 C hief Minister Suvendu Adhikari on Friday unveiled an ambitious “tridentshaped” strategy for reviving industry in the state. Mr Adhikari said his government will revive manufacturing and attract investment to the state by focusing on a three-pronged strategy of promoting heavy industries, Micro Small and Medium Enterprise (MSME) and food and horticulture processing. Addressing a Press conference organised by the BJP to mark 12 years of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's government at the Centre, Mr Adhikari said restoring confidence among investors was essential to accelerating economic growth and creating employment opportunities. He said the state’s new BJP SUVENDU ADHIKARI CHIEF MINISTER government was working on what he described as a “tridentshaped” development model. “It is centred on heavy industries, MSMEs, and food and horticulture processing,” said the chief minister. The initiative would include the establishment of processing units and ancillary industries aimed at strengthening the rural and industrial economy. “We have formed a team and a minister is overseeing the preparations. We are receiving several proposals, but we do not want to make promises that cannot be fulfilled,” Mr Adhikari said. Highlighting the state’s industrial potential, he stressed the importance of railway-linked manufacturing and engineering sectors. Referring to the Kanchrapara Railway Workshop, he said its expansion, along with the development of rail-centric industries, could generate substantial employment opportunities. He also added that other railway workshops across the state will be revived and expanded. “The railway workshops have a tremendous potential to generate jobs. We will focus on expanding them,” Mr Adhikari said. He also revisited the issue of Singur, saying his government would seek to bring the Tata Group back to West Bengal. He noted that the land acquired for the abandoned Nano project was no longer under government control, having been returned to the original landowners. STATESMAN NEWS SERVICE New Delhi, 12 June The US Charge d’Affaires was summoned by the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) again on Friday, where India’s concerns over the incidents were formally conveyed to him. In a statement, the MEA said: “A strong protest was lodged with him (the US Charge d’Affaires) regarding the continuing attacks by US naval forces on commercial vessels carrying Indian mariners in the Gulf of Oman, which have already resulted in the tragic and avoidable loss of three Indian lives.” The MEA reiterated India’s deep concern over the use of lethal force against civilian shipping and stressed that such actions pose a threat to maritime safety and regional stability. “The Ministry once again conveyed its deep concern over the use of lethal force against civilian shipping. Such actions are unacceptable and undermine the safety, security and stability of international maritime commerce in a sensitive region at a difficult time,” the statement said. India also urged the USA to take immediate steps to ensure the safety of civilian vessels and to prevent any further loss of life. (Representational image) Indian shooting legend Jaspal Rana passes away at 49 EAM calls out West’s ‘double standards’ on oil purchases STATESMAN NEWS SERVICE STATESMAN NEWS SERVICE New Delhi, 12 June Indian shooting great Jaspal Rana, a multiple Asian Games and Commonwealth Games gold medallist, passed away on Thursday night at the age of 49. The news was confirmed by National Rifle Association of India (NRAI) President Kalikesh Narayan Singh Deo, who stated that Rana breathed his last at a hospital in Delhi. Rana’s demise comes as a major shock to the Indian sporting fraternity. He had recently undergone a medical procedure after falling ill during the Indian contingent’s return flight from the ISSF World Cup in Munich, Germany. Serving as the highperformance coach for Indian pistol shooters, Rana reportedly began feeling unwell during the journey and was rushed to a hospital immediately after landing in Delhi last week. One of the most influential figures in Indian shooting, Rana not only excelled as an athlete but also played a transformative role as a coach and mentor. He guided several young shooters, including Manu Bhaker, helping her achieve a historic double bronze-medal finish at the Paris Olympics in 2024. His coaching tenure also saw him nurture talents such as Saurabh Chaudhary, Anish Bhanwala and Chinki Yadav. In February 2025, the NRAI appointed him as the highperformance coach for the 25m pistol discipline. Recognising his immense contribution to the sport as a coach, the Government of India honoured him with the Dronacharya Award in 2020. Prime Minister Narendra Modi expressed deep grief over Rana’s passing. “Deeply saddened by the passing of Shri Jaspal Rana Ji. His passing is a profound loss to the world of Indian sports. He brought immense glory to the nation through his extraordinary achievements in shooting. Equally remarkable was his contribution as a mentor, shaping and guiding young athletes with great dedication. His unwavering commitment to excellence, discipline and service to the sporting world earned him immense admiration”. “My thoughts are with his Modi, Macron to jointly inaugurate Bharat Innovates 2026 on 14 June in Nice, France STATESMAN NEWS SERVICE New Delhi, 12 June Prime Minister Narendra Modi, along with French President Emmanuel Macron, is scheduled to jointly inaugurate Bharat Innovates 2026 on 14 June at Palais des Expositions de Nice, France. Being organised by the Government of India, Bharat Innovates 2026 is an initiative of the Union Ministry of Education. It will feature 120 Indian innovators, 15 odd Higher Education Institutions (HEIs) and over 500 investors, including leading corporates and venture capital firms, along with global CEOs and industry leaders. The event will cover 13 key sectors such as advanced computing, semiconductors, space technology, biotechnology, energy, healthcare, and manufacturing, highlighting India’s growing innovation and Deep Tech ecosystem. PM Modi is expected to be accompanied by External Affairs Minister, Dr S Jaishankar and Union Minister for Commerce and Industry, Piyush Goyal. Principal Scientific Advisor to the Government of India, Ajay Kumar Sood, who headed the Technical Oversight Committee to select the 120 start-ups from India for Bharat Innovates 2026, is also expected to be present. The maiden edition of Bharat Innovates 2026 will showcase India’s deep tech innovators and start-ups to the global investors and industry in Nice. The event is expected to serve as a high-impact platform for advancing innovation-led partnerships between India and global stakeholders. Several key announcements and outcomes are expected during the event, including strengthened collaboration frameworks in Deep Tech, research and development, start-up scaling, and cross-border investment facilitation. The event will also highlight new avenues for institutional partnerships between Indian and French innovation ecosystems, with a focus on co-development, technology exchange, and acceleration of emerging technologies. family, friends and the entire sporting fraternity in this hour of grief. Om Shanti,” PM Modi wrote. Born in Uttarakhand on 28 June 1976, Rana emerged as a shooting prodigy at a young age. At just 12 years old, he won a silver medal on his national championship debut in Ahmedabad in 1988. Six years later, he achieved his first major international success by winning the World Shooting Championship (Junior) in Italy with a world-record score. Competing primarily in pistol events, Rana enjoyed a glittering international career between 1994 and 2006, winning 15 gold medals in major competitions. His medal haul included four Asian Games gold medals, nine Commonwealth Games gold medals, one Asian Championships gold medal and one World Junior Championships gold medal. New Delhi, 12 June Without directly attacking the United States, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar has strongly defended India’s sovereign energy purchases, saying New Delhi’s strategic procurement of Russian crude oil since 2022 was actually aligned with explicit requests from Washington to stabilise global markets and prevent a phenomenal surge in global prices. Speaking at the Kultaranta Talks in Finland during a session titled ‘Emerging Powers and the New Geopolitical Competition,’ he spoke at length on what prompted India to increase oil purchases from Russia following the Russia-Ukraine conflict. He explained that following Western sanctions on Moscow, European nations started looking for alternative oil supplies from West Asian nations which have traditionally been India's primary energy partner. “At that time, the US specifically asked India to buy Russian oil to stabilise the oil market,” the minister claimed, decoding India’s strategy to deal with the energy crisis in the wake of the conflict in Europe. Mr Jaishankar rejected the notion that Western pressure was built on core values, criticising the shifting policies where the US initially requested India’s market intervention, subsequently introduced tariffs, and later rescinded them. He stressed that India has successfully diversified its energy basket, with Russia remaining a steady partner for crude imports while the US stands as its top supplier of natural gas. Mr Jaishankar’s unambiguous remarks come days before Prime Minister Narendra Modi travels to France for the G7 Summit next week. There is a possibility of a bilateral meeting between the PM and US President Donald Trump. Responding to a journalist’s accusation that India was “too sympathetic to Russia,” Mr Jaishankar asserted that market circumstances dictated New Delhi’s shift. With Europe consuming West Asian oil, the bulk of the available global supply was Russian. India's decision to buy based on cost and availability not only protected domestic consumers from soaring inflation but also functioned as a critical stabilising force for the global economy, he added. What options remain for TMC chieftain Mamata Banerjee? JAYANTA ROY CHOWDHURY New Delhi, 12 June For nearly three decades, Mamata Banerjee has built her political identity around a simple proposition, that Trinamul Congress is the real Congress in Bengal and that she represents the Trinamul or grassroot level Congress worker. Rivals came and went, dissidents emerged and disappeared, but the party remained inseparable from its founder and it occupied and expanded the space left behind by Congress party which in the 1970s was led by the formidable Sidhartha Shankar Ray or ‘Manu-da’ in Bengal. Today, however, Mamata faces perhaps the gravest challenge of her political career, not from the BJP, not from the Left, and not even from Congress, but from within her own movement. Following the Trinamul Congress’s electoral defeat in West Bengal, a substantial section of the party’s legislators has reportedly revolted against the growing influence of her nephew and heir apparent, Abhishek Banerjee. Significantly, the rebellion is directed not at Mamata herself but at the succession structure she has built around him and the alleged corrupt practices she has allowed partymen to indulge in. “The distinction does give Mamata Banerjee room to manoeuvre,” said a party lieutenant, close to the former chief minister. However, he pointed out, it also forces her to confront a question she has spent years postponing ~ can the Trinamul Congress survive as a family-centred political project or does it go back to its ideological roots which were those of the Congress and in that process draw close, if not merge with the ‘Grand Old Party’? While dissidents who have split open her party such as Ritabrata Banerjee and Kakoli Ghosh Dastidar are unlikely to come back to her, the rump of the party along with its formidable cadre remain personally loyal to her. However, even loyalists like advocate-turned politician Kalyan Banerjee have started questioning the decision to shield Abhishek whom they blame for the rout of the party at the electoral hustings. Will Mamata Banerjee reposition herself above the factional battle and quietly ask Abhishek to face the lions alone? Such a move would allow her to present herself as the guardian of party unity rather than the defender of dynastic succession. It would also reassure many legislators who believe that the concentration of power around Abhishek contributed to the party’s electoral setbacks. However, it would also mean curtailing the authority of the man she spent years promoting as the future face of the Trinamul Congress. “Historically, Mamata’s preferred style of politics has been to ride the storm. She has rarely tolerated internal dissent and has often emerged stronger after confronting challengers,” said Prof Ranabir Samaddar, former head of the Maulana Abul Kalam Azad Institute of Asian Studies. However, this time round the scale of the revolt suggests dissatisfaction is no longer confined to a handful of disgruntled leaders. Samaddar pointed out that when the Communist party of India broke up there were questions about office space and party coffers. "There will be parallels here too ... the way the TMC office space is being moved in Delhi points towards that." Removing Abhishek, Mamata Banerjee’s designated political lieutenant would be humiliating. But protecting him at all costs could prove equally damaging to the organisation which depends on the loyalty of the worker on the streets. This is why observers view a complete break with Abhishek as unlikely, even as pressure mounts on “Didi” to dilute his influence. The crisis has also revived speculation about Mamata Banerjee’s relationship with the Congress and the broader opposition alliance. Both Congress and the Trinamul have categorically denied rumours of a merger. Such a merger would be politically difficult for both. The Trinamul was born out of a rebellion against Congress, and the two parties continue to compete for much of the same political space in Bengal. Nevertheless, a weakened Trinamul may find value in rebuilding bridges with Congress and strengthening the INDIA alliance at the national level.