THURSDAY 15 MAY 2025 www.thestatesman.com X.com/thestatesmanltd. Fb/thestatesman1875 SINCE 1818 Pages 16 |` 5.00|LC KOLKATA | NEW DELHI | SILIGURI | BHUBANESWAR PILOT DEMANDS FOR RE-ADOPTION OF POK RESOLUTION STALIN HINTS AT STRICT VERDICT IN KODANAD HEIST-MURDER CASE P5 SENSEX 81,330.56 p182.34 ASHWIN BACKS TRUMP TO GULF LEADERS: BUMRAH FOR TEST IRAN MUST END PROXY SUPPORT FOR NUCLEAR DEAL CAPTAINCY P6 NIFTY 24,666.90 p88.55 ` vs $ 85.46 P11 P16 SILVER `97,900 GOLD `96,685 RAINFALL: 00.0 mm ‘There is great demand for industrialisation in Bengal’ RELATIVE HUMIDITY BRENT CRUDE (IN $) 66.06 BSF soldier, detained by Pakistan Rangers on 23 April, handed over to India CM Mamata also announced special scheme for group-C and group-D workers WEATHER Partly cloudy sky. Possibility of thunderstorm with light to moderate rain towards afternoon . Max. 85% Min. 58% Today, many important decisions were taken in the Cabinet meeting. The CM said rapid industrialisation is the target, along with more and more job creation. TEMPERATURE Max: 35.3˚C (-0.5) Min: 28.8˚C (+1.8) SUN RISES 04:57 hrs MOON RISES 19:49 hrs SUN SETS 18:09 hrs MOON SETS 05:42 hrs New Moon on 27 May THUMBNAILS STATESMAN NEWS SERVICE KOLKATA, 14 MAY People hold the national flag aloft as they take part in a Tiranga Yatra (tricolour march) following Operation Sindoor, in Guwahati on Wednesday. nANI India, Austria express their firm opposition to nuclear blackmail: External Affairs Minister (EAM) S Jaishankar on Wednesday spoke with Austrian Foreign Minister Beate Meinl-Reisinger over phone and both the leaders expressed their firm opposition to nuclear blackmail. The External Affairs Minister also congratulated the Austrian Foreign Minister on her appointment. In a post on X, Jaishankar said, "Appreciated the conversation today with Austrian FM @BMeinl. Congratulated on her appointment. Agreed on zero tolerance of terrorism and firm opposition to nuclear blackmail." W est Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee on Wednesday said there is a strong demand for industrialisation in the state and announced plans to build a new International Information Technology Entertainment and Cultural Park (IITEC Park) in Kolkata. The project will be developed in partnership with the West Bengal Housing Infrastructure Development Corporation (HIDCO). She was speaking at a press briefing at Nabanna on Wednesday. The CM, Mamata Banerjee also announced special scheme for group-C and group-D workers. “Today, we are announcing, together with HIDCO, under a PPP model, we are making an International Information Technology Entertainment and Cultural Park (IITEC) on over 25 acres of land in New Town. Keep in mind, whether it is innovation, entertainment, creativity, cultural programmes or many other events, the concept of a concert economy is an innovative idea. We have the infrastructure here. 25 acres is a huge land area and this will be of international standard. Here, we can host international-level cultural events. People from across the country will also come. We have cleared the land today and this will be followed by a tendering process. This will be called ‘Biswa Angan' in Bengali,” she said. Today, many important decisions were taken in the Cabinet meeting. The CM said rapid industrialisation is the target, along with more and more job creation. “Today, we have decided to allot 10 industrial plots to different companies in the IT Parks located in Raghunathpur (Purulia), Mangapur (Durgapur), Panagarh (Bardhaman), among others, developed by WBIDC. The total land for these 10 plots is 2,515 acres. The companies are quite big. Investments of over Rs 25,000 crore will come and over 70,000 people will get direct or indirect employment through this. Most MP High Court orders FIR against BJP leader for targeting Col Sofiya Qureshi STATESMAN NEWS SERVICE NEW DELHI, 14 MAY Madhya Pradesh minister and BJP leader Kunwar Vijay Shah was on Wednesday booked for his alleged unsavoury remarks against Colonel Sofiya Qureshi, who led Operation Sindoor against Pakistan over the April 22 Pahalgam terror attack in Jammu and Kashmir. The development came after the High Court directed filing an FIR against the state tribal affairs minister. A nationwide controversy broke out following the Madhya Pradesh tribal affairs minister making distasteful remarks about the army officer. The High Court directed the Director General of Police of the state to initiate action against the BJP leader by Wednesday evening, warning that failure to comply would lead to proceedings under the Contempt of Courts Act. During the court hearing, counsel for the minister argued that the order to file an FIR against the minister was based on newspaper reports, to which the court responded that it would now include video links in the official record. Shah lauds security forces for eliminating 31 Maoists AGENCIES NEW DELHI, 14 MAY Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Wednesday said that security forces killed 31 notorious Naxalites in the Kurraguttalu Hills (KGH) on the Chhattisgarh-Telangana border in the biggest ever operation against Naxalism. In a post on X, Shah said, "Achieving a historic breakthrough in the resolve of #NaxalFreeBharat security forces killed 31 notorious naxalites in the Kurraguttalu Hills (KGH) on the Chhattisgarh-Telangana border in the biggest ever operation against Naxalism." Congratulating the CRPF, STF and DRG soldiers on successfull completion of the operation, Home Minister Shah said that the security forces completed the biggest anti-Naxal operation in just 21 days. "The hill on which the red terror once reigned, today the tricolour is flying proudly. Kurraguttalu hill was the unified headquarters of big Naxal organisations like PLGA Battalion 1, DKSZC, TSC & CRC, where along with Naxal training, strategies and weapons were also developed. Our security forces completed this biggest anti-Naxal operation in just 21 days and I am extremely happy that there was not a single casualty in the security forces in this operation. I congratulate our CRPF, STF and DRG soldiers who faced the Naxalites with their bravery and courage even in bad weather and inaccessible mountainous area. The whole country is proud of you," Shah said. Justice Atul Sreedharan underscored urgency of the matter when the counsel sought more time on the issue, saying, “I may not be alive tomorrow”. Section 196 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), which penalises speeches or actions inciting enmity among different groups on the basis of religion, is prima facie applicable in this case, the MP High Court observed. The BJP leader made the controversial comment on Monday in Indore while addressing an event. He, however, following the widespread condemnation from the opposition political parties and the leaders of his own party, issued an apology on Tuesday, saying his remarks had been misconstrued. “Some people are taking my statement in a different context. I did not mean it that way. She (Col. Qureshi) is my sister and she has avenged the acts of the terrorists,” he said. Shah, in an apparent reference to Colonel Sofiya Qureshi, had remarked, “Those who widowed our daughters, we sent a sister of their own to teach them a lesson.” Meanwhile, Congress and the National Commission for Women (NCW) slammed the minister, with Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge terming the comments “shameful and vulgar.” The NCW strongly condemned the derogatory remarks of the BJP leader, and called on society to show respect and honour to women. Govt trashes China’s bid to rename some locations in Arunachal of these are steel industries,” she announced. Later, she added: “In 15 industrial estates, we have allotted plots to 43 MSMEs. This will be done in every district, leading to investment worth Rs 210 crore and around 4,000 job opportunities. As you know, we are No. 1 in MSME. In 90 lakh MSME units we have in Bengal, 1.40 crore people are employed. There are already over 660 clusters.” Regarding the group-C and group-D workers she said, “These group workers are struggling to manage family expenses as their salaries have been withheld due to the pending court case. We have filed a review application and will follow court orders accordingly. In the meanwhile, how will these households survive? This is why with the approval of the state cabinet today, we have formulated the West Bengal Livelihood and Social Security Interim Scheme under the West Bengal Labour Department. Through this, it has been decided that these workers will get a financial allowance, applicable from April 1, 2025. Group-C workers will get Rs 25,000 and Group-D workers will get Rs 20,000 till the time no (court) decision is finalised.” CHANDIGARH, 14 MAY In a significant development following the ceasefire agreement between India and Pakistan, Border Security Force (BSF) Constable Purnam Kumar Shaw was formally handed over by the Pakistan Rangers to Indian authorities at the Attari-Wagah border in Amritsar, Punjab, on Wednesday. Constable Shaw had been in the custody of the Pakistan Rangers since April 23, 2025, after he inadvertently crossed the International Border into Pakistani territory while on operational duty in the Ferozepur Sector of Punjab around 11:50 PM. Following his detention, sustained diplomatic and military-level efforts were initiated to secure his safe return. "Today, BSF Jawan Purnam Kumar Shaw, who had been in the custody of Pakistan Rangers since April 23, was repatriated to India at approximately 10:30 AM through the Joint Check Post at Attari, Amritsar. The handover was conducted peacefully and in accordance with established Justice BR Gavai sworn in as CJI STATESMAN NEWS SERVICE NEW DELHI, 14 MAY India on Wednesday sternly rejected China's latest bid to rename some locations in Arunachal Pradesh, saying such "preposterous" attempts will not alter the "undeniable" reality that the State "was, is, and will" always remain an integral part of India. "We have noticed that China has persisted with its vain and preposterous attempts to name places in the Indian state of Arunachal Pradesh," External Affairs Ministry Spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said in response to media queries on renaming places in Arunachal by China. STATESMAN NEWS SERVICE PARMOD KUMAR NEW DELHI, 14 MAY In a moment steeped in history and symbolism, Justice Bhushan Ramkrishna Gavai was on Wednesday sworn in as the 52nd Chief Justice of India (CJI) at a solemn ceremony at the Rashtrapati Bhavan. The oath of office was administered by President Droupadi Murmu. Justice Gavai’s elevation is momentous — he is the first Buddhist and only the second Dalit to hold the country’s highest judicial office, after Justice K.G. Balakrishnan, who served as CJI from 2007 to 2010. Justice Gavai will hold the office until his retirement on November 23, 2025, giving him a tenure of just over six months — 194 days to be precise. He succeeds Justice Sanjiv Khanna, who demitted office on May 13 after a distinguished career on the bench. Born on November 24, 1960, in Amravati, Maharashtra, Justice Gavai hails from a family deeply rooted in Ambedkarite values. His father, R.S. Gavai, was a veteran leader of the Republican Party of India (RPI), a former Lok Sabha MP, and Governor of Bihar, Sikkim, and Kerala. Operation Sindoor: India’s 23-minute precision strike redefines modern warfare PARWINDER SANDHU NEW DELHI, 14 MAY From being launched in the dead of the night to avenge the killings of 26 innocent tourists brutally shot dead by Pakistan sponsored terrorists, to become the ‘new normal of India’, Operation Sindoor has shown the country’s flex in terms of its air defence capabilities. Bypassing and jamming Pakistan’s Chinese-supplied air defence systems, the Indian Air Force completed the mission in barely 23 minutes, before returning safely to its base. India's offensive strikes targeted key Pakistani airbases- Noor Khan and Rahimyar Khan with surgical precision. Loitering munitions were used to devastating effect, each finding and destroying high-value targets, including enemy radar and missile systems. On the intervening night of May 6-7 Indian defence forces targeted nine terror breeding hubs, located in both Pakistan and Pakistan Occupied Jammu and Kashmir. Hours after that, Pakistan, while siding with terror, retaliated by targeting India’s military and civilian infrastructure in a series of attacks, both on land and in the air. Pakistan attempted to engage a number of military targets in Northern and Western India including Awantipura, Srinagar, Jammu, Pathankot, Amritsar, Kapurthala, Jalandhar, Ludhiana, Adampur, Bhatinda, Chandigarh, Nal, Phalodi, Uttarlai, and Bhuj, using drones and missiles. ‘ However, the attempts were rendered futile by the Integrated Counter UAS (Unmanned Aerial Systems) Grid and Air Defence systems, which stood the test of time by detecting, tracking, and neutralising threats using a network of radars, control centres, artillery, and both aircraft- and ground-based missiles. India, answered back by targeted the Air Defence Radars and systems at a number of locations in Pakistan, including Lahore where an Air Defence system was neutralised Operation Sindoor saw battle-proven AD (Air Defence) systems like the Pechora, OSAAK and LLAD guns (Low-level air defence guns), and indigenous systems such as the Akash, which demonstrated stellar performance, in action. Akash, a Short Range Surface to Air Missile system to protect vulnerable areas and vulnerable points from air attacks, simultaneously engaged Multiple Targets in Group Mode or Autonomous Mode. Combining assets from the Army, Navy, and primarily the Air Force, India’s air defence systems performed with exceptional synergy, creating an impenetrable wall, foiling mul- tiple attempts by Pakistan to retaliate. The Integrated Air Command and Control System (IACCS) of the Indian Air Force brought all these elements together, providing the netcentric operational capability vital for modern warfare. Operation Sindoor also produced concrete evidence of hostiletechnologiesneutralized by Indian systems including pieces of PL-15 missiles (of Chinese origin), Turkish-origin UAVs, named "Yiha" or "YEEHAW", and long-range rockets, quadcopters and commercial drones. Further, the ISRO too contributedlargelytotheOperation. Followingtheceasefirebetween the two countries, ISRO Chairman V Narayanan mentioned that at least 10 satellites are continuously working roundthe-clockforthestrategicpurpose to ensure the safety and security of the citizens of the country. protocols," the BSF said in an official statement. Constable Shaw hails from the Hooghly district in West Bengal. He is reportedly in good health and will undergo routine debriefing and medical examination as per BSF procedures before rejoining his unit. CM Mamata heaves a sigh of relief: West Bengal Chief Minister and Trinamool Congress chief Mamata Banerjee on Wednesday heaved a sigh of relief after India’s Border Security Force Constable Purnam Kumar Shaw was repatriated by the Pakistan government. "I am happy to receive the information that our Purnam Kumar Shaw, the BSF jawan, has been released. I had all along been in touch with his family and spoke thrice with his wife here at Rishra, Hugli, " Ms Banerjee said in a statement shared on her WhatsApp channel. "Today also I called her. All the very best wishes for my brother-like jawan, his entire family including his wife Rajni Shaw, " the CM said. Government successfully tests ‘Bhargavastra’ counter-drone system STATESMAN NEWS SERVICE NEW DELHI, 14 MAY The Solar Defence and Aerospace Limited (SDAL) on Wednesday conducted a successful trial of a Counter Drone System in Hard Kill mode – Bhargavastra. The new lowcost counter-drone system can effectively destroy the enemy’s drone swarms. During the trials, the micro rockets used in this counterdrone system underwent rigorous testing at the Seaward Firing Range, Gopalpur, achieving all designated objectives, the SDAL said in a statement. “Three trials were conducted for the rocket at Gopalpur on 13th May 2025 in the presence of senior officials of the Indian Army. Two trials were conducted by firing one rocket each. One trial was conducted by firing two rockets in salvo mode within 2 seconds. All four rockets performed as expected and achieved the required launch parameters, underscoring its pioneering technology in mitigating large-scale drone attacks,” the statement read. The trial of the counterdrone system comes days after India and Pakistan came on the brink of an all-out war. During the standoff, Pakistan launched a massive drone attack on India. However, the attack was effectively neutralised by India’s strong air defences. In return, India is also believed to have used several drones, destroying a number of Pakistani military establishments. In modern warfare, drones are an effective and low-cost weapon against the enemy. Drones are highly effective in conducting successful reconnaissance missions and military strikes.