COIMBATORE l Tuesday l July 09, 2024 l `9.00 l PAGES 12 l LATE city EDITION Employment in 27 industries rises 3.31% in 2022-23, says new RBI data The number of persons employed in these 27 industries comprising the entire Indian economy increased by 3.31% year-on-year to 59.66 crore Agri sector employed 25 crore people Govt rebuffs citigroup’s report on jobs The 27 industries are aggregated to form six broad sectors. ‘Agriculture, hunting, forestry and fishing’, one of the six sectors, employed 25.3 crore people, up from 24.82 crore in 2021-22. The other five sectors are mining and quarrying, manufacturing, electricity, gas and water supply, construction, and service. In 2021-22, the six sectors employed 57.75 crore people ■ ■ The new RBI data shows India created more than 8 crore employment opportunities from 2017-18 to 2021-22. The data’s release comes days after Citigroup said India will struggle to create jobs even with a 7% GDP growth Rebutting Citigroup’s reports, the Union labour ministry said it did not analyse all official data sources available in the public domain 57.9% India’s labour force participation rate in 2022-23, according to govt data CHENNAI ■ MADURAI ■ VIJAYAWADA ■ BENGALURU ■ KOCHI ■ HYDERABAD ■ VISAKHAPATNAM ■ COIMBATORE ■ KOZHIKODE ■ THIRUVANANTHAPURAM ■ BELAGAVI ■ BHUBANESWAR ■ SHIVAMOgGA ■ MANGALURU ■ TIRUPATI ■ TIRUCHY ■ TIRUNELVELI ■ SAMBALPUR ■ HUBBALLI ■ DHARMAPURI ■ KOTTAYAM ■ KANNUR ■ VILLUPURAM ■ KOLLAM ■ TADEPALLIGUDEM ■ NAGAPATTINAM ■ THRISSUR ■ KALABURAGI 4 jawans killed in Army convoy ambush in Jammu’s Kathua F aya z W a n i @ Srinagar Terrorists ambushed an Army convoy on Monday in Jammu and Kashmir’s Kathua district, killing four soldiers and injuring six others. It comes after the two-daylong twin encounters in Kulgam in south Kashmir ended on Sunday night in which eight people, including six terrorists and two soldiers, were killed. Sources said a band of heavily armed terrorists ambushed the convoy on Machedi KindliMalhar road near Badnote village in Kathua district around 3.30 pm. The terrorists fired automatic guns and lobbed grenades towards the army vehicles. “In the attack, four soldiers including a Junior Commissioned Officer were killed and six sustained injuries,” an official said. After the ambush, there was a brief exchange of gunfire before the terrorists slipped into a nearby forest. The injured were rushed to a military hospital. Doctors said the condition of three of them are critical. The Army, local police and the Central Reserve Police Chak Sajjan Patyari Saniyari Chak Charuhn Kharote Sicop Units kathua Chak Desa Parliwand Chak Bhaga Badian Pattan Force have launched a massive search operation to track down the terrorists. The team of elite para commandos rushed to the area to assist the security forces in the hunt for the terrorists. The security forces were using drones and other surveillance equipment to track down the terrorists, who are suspected to be part of a group whose two members were killed in an encounter by security forces in Kathua last week. Two terrorists and a CRPF jawan were killed in that attack. Immediately after the Monday’s attack, senior officers visited the area to take stock of the situation. “The officials are probing what kind of rifles and ammunition was used by the Rahul meets violence victims Modi, Putin hold in Manipur, urges PM to visit Peace pitch Prime Minister Narendra Modi welcomed by Russian President Vladimir Putin at his official residence at Novo-Ogaryovo, in Moscow on Monday | PTI informal talks ahead of summit Yes h i S e l i @ New Delhi Russian President Vladimir Putin congratulated visiting Prime Minister Narendra Modi for winning a third consecutive term in office, as the two leaders hugged when they met in Moscow on Monday and spoke over a round of tea. “Welcome to Russia, my dear friend, very happy to see you,” said Putin. “Tomorrow we will have official talks, but today we will have an informal round like one does at home,” said Putin, who hosted a dinner in the prime minister’s honour. Modi thanked Putin for inviting him to his house. “I am happy to be at your house where we can sit and chit-chat. Thank you,’’ said Modi. The PM was received at the Moscow airport by Russia’s Deputy Prime Minister Dennis Manturov. While driving through Moscow, members of the Indian community waved at him, chanting ‘Modi, Modi’. This is Modi’s first visit to Moscow in five years (the last time was in 2019 when he visited Vladivostok). Modi and Putin will take part in the 22nd India Russia Summit on Tuesday . “Looking forward to further deepening the special and privileged strategic partnership between our nations, especially in futuristic areas of cooperation,” Modi posted on X after reaching Moscow. “The focus of the visit is the economic agenda, which includes energy, trade, manufacturing and fertilisers. Besides, Modi will reiterate that a solution to the Ukrainian war cannot be found on the battlefield,’’ according to a source. On Tuesday, Modi will lay a wreath on the ‘Tomb of the Unknown Soldier’ followed by a visit to the Rosatom Pavilion. He will have a restricted meeting with Putin in the afternoon before delegation-level talks. The two leaders, however, will not make any statements to the press afterwards. “No joint communication with the media is foreseen. But we expect an extended exchange of views at both the private and extended sessions, which will largely compensate for the lack of statements to the media,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov was quoted as saying by the state-owned TASS. Modi will leave for Vienna later in the evening. express read Vengaivayal case: HC slams CB-CID for delay Chennai: The Madras High Court, on Monday, pulled up the CB-CID for not apprehending those responsible for the Vengaivayal incident even after two years. The court made the observation while hearing a bunch of PILs seeking the investigation to be transferred to the CBI | P2 Kovai woman, her two kids found dead in sump Coimbatore: A woman and her two daughters, aged 3 and 9, were found dead in the 10-footdeep drinking water sump of their house in Singanallur on Monday morning. Police have detained the woman’s husband, and have registered a case of suspicious death | P4 days after armstrong murder Chennai’s top cop shunted out, Arun new commissioner E X PR E S S N E W S S E RVIC E @ Chennai Three days after Tamil Nadu BSP president K Armstrong was hacked to death in Chennai, the state government on Monday transferred city police commissioner Sandeep Rai Rathore and brought in ADGP (law and order) A Arun to replace him. Rathore has been posted as DGP (training) at the Police Training College, Chennai. He will also hold the additional charge of director of the Tamil Nadu Police Academy Davidson Devasir. vatham will be the new ADGP (L&O). Devasirvatham had earlier served as ADGP (headquarters) and chief of the state intelligence unit. The order was issued by Home Secretary P Amudha. In a press conference on Saturday Rathore had stated that the , murder could not be termed an intelligence failure as the police did not have any prior intelligence of a possible attack as there were no active cases against Armstrong. Speaking to reporters after taking charge as commissioner, Arun said his main objectives will be maintaining law and order in the city and controlling rowdyism. “We will teach rowdies a lesson in a language they understand,” he said.  P5 P r a s a n ta M a z u m d a r @ Guwahati Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi on Monday met displaced Meiteis and Kukis at relief camps in Manipur, and urged Prime Minister Narendra Modi to visit the state and try to understand the situation there. “It is important that the PM comes to Manipur, listens to the people, to try and understand what is going on here. After all, Manipur is a proud state of the Indian Union,” he told the media in Imphal. “…I request him to take one day, two days of his time and just come and listen to the people. It will comfort them. They all want him to come. Perhaps, the entire country wants him to visit Manipur,” he added. Stating that he was expecting some improvement in the situation but was quite disappointed to see it nowhere near what it should be, he said he came to the state to listen to the people, build confidence in them and try and put pressure on the government so it acts. “The need of the hour is peace. Violence is hurting everybody Thousands of families . were harmed, properties destroyed and family members killed. I have never seen anywhere in India what is going on here. The state is completely split in two,” Rahul said. “I want to tell all the people of Manipur that I came here as your brother, as somebody who wants to help you, work with militants. They are also probing whether armour-piercing bullets were used to pierce the bullet-proof vests of the Army men,” sources said. In the twin encounters in Madergam and Chinigam villages in Kulgam district that began on July 6 and ended on Sunday, six terrorists of Hizbul Mujahideen and two soldiers, including a para commando, were killed. As per sources, terrorists are shifting their focus to the Jammu region after facing the heat of “Operation All Out” launched by security forces in the Valley . “I don’t want to go further into politicising this issue. It’s not my intention. I understand that entire Manipur is in pain, suffering and it needs to get out of it as soon as possible. I would request everybody to think about peace and brotherhood,” Rahul said you to bring back peace. I am ready to do whatever I can. The Congress is ready to do whatever it can to bring back peace,” he said. Later he met Governor Anusuiya Uikey. He told her the Congress was not happy with the “progress that has taken place here”. At the press meet, he said, “Violence and hatred are not going to get any solution. The Indian government and everybody, who considers himself a patriot, must reach out and embrace the people of Manipur and bring peace.” This was Rahul’s third visit to the state since the violence broke out on May 3 last year. It left at least 219 people dead and over 60,000 others displaced. Congress leader Rahul Gandhi during his visit to the Churachandpur relief camp, in Manipur on Monday | PTI Make NEET disclosure on leak: SC to NTA, CBI nary team comprising renowned experts to ensure measures are taken to obviate The Supreme Court on Mon- any further breach in NEET. day directed the CBI to file a “The court shall decide if somestatus report on the probe into one else needs to be added to the NEET-UG paper leak case, the committee to ensure it has sharply observing the sanctity a diverse pool of domain experof the examination process has tise and data analytics.” been breached. The bench pose a volley of A three-judge bench led by questions to the NTA and CenChief Justice of India tre as to when were the D Y Chandrachud said questions were framed, if the segregation bewhen were they printtween the beneficiared, when were they Let us not be in ies of the fraud and transported and how self-denial. Selfuntainted candidates were they stored prior denial is only is not possible, then a to exams. “If the leak adding to the retest has to be held. was on social media problem... That It directed the Na- the sanctity of the like Telegram, Whatexam has been tional Testing Agency sApp, it would spread breached is (NTA) that conducted like wildfire. So, we the test, to make full beyond doubt. The also have to see the balquestion is how disclosures on the naance with the time of widespread is ture of the leak, the leak like if it was May the leak places where the paper 5 morning before stuwas leaked, and the Supreme Court bench dents went for exam... time lag between the After all we are dealleak and the conduct of the ing with the lives and careers exam. The next date of hearing of 23 lakh students,” CJI Chanis July 11, Thursday . drachud said. “If we come to the conclusion The court said it will scrutithat the time lag between the nise whether the breach took leak and the actual exam is lim- place at a systemic level, whethited, that will be a circumstance er it affected the integrity of which will militate against the the exam process and whether retest,” the CJI said. it was possible to segregate the The bench proposed the con- beneficiaries from the untaintstitution of a multi-discipli- ed candidates. S u c h i t r a K a lya n M o h a n t y @ New Delhi People wait to catch trains at a railway station in Mumbai on Monday. The tracks are covered by flood water | PTI heavy pre-dawn rains drown Mumbai, red alert issued S u d h i r S u r ya w a n s h i @ Mumbai Heavy rains lashed Mumbai during the early hours of Monday causing severe flood, ing in many areas of the financial capital that disrupted flight and suburban rail operations and prompted the closure of schools and colleges. Some areas recorded over 300 mm of rainfall within six hours from 1 am to 7 am on Monday, the India Meteorological Department (IMD) said. Powai area in Mumbai suburb recorded the highest rainfall over 24 hours at more than 315 mm. People were seen wading through waistdeep flood water in many parts of the city. There was heavy traffic congestion in some areas and suburban rail operations were suspended along some routes. The weather office issued a red alert for Mumbai. Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde appealed to people to stay indoors and come out only if it is neces- sary “There was heavy rain, . and therefore, the situation at some places got worsened. However, the state machinery is working to ensure those stranded get all the help needed,” Shinde said. He added the Brihanmumbai Municipal Cor poration has started draining out excess water from lowlying areas. Around 50 flights were cancelled. Airlines took to X to ask passengers to check flight status before leaving for the airport. TN forms panel to review new criminal laws, suggest changes T M u r u g a n a n d h a m @ Chennai Chief Minister M K Stalin on Monday constituted a one-man committee led by retired judge of the Madras High Court, M Satyanarayanan, to study the three new criminal laws brought into force by the union government from July 1 and recommend amendments that need to be effected at the statelevel, including a change in the nomenclature of the titles. The one-man committee will hold consultations with bar associations and other stakeholders, and submit its report to the state government within a month. An official release said that CM Stalin, on June 17, strongly objected to the NDA government’s decision to enforce Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), 2023; Bharatiya Nagrik Suraksha Sanhita (BNSS), 2023, and Bharatiya Sakshya Adhiniyam (BSA), 2023, from July 1 by repealing the Indian Penal Code (IPC), 1860, Code of CrimThe centre passed these three legislations in haste, without any discussion and by suspending 146 MPs in the Parliament in December last year Official release inal Procedure (CrPC), 1973, and the Indian Evidence Act, 1872. He had urged the centre to withhold the new legislations until the views of all state governments and other stakeholders have been considered. “The union gover nment passed these three legislations in haste, without any discussion and by suspending 146 MPs in the Parliament in December last year. Since these legislations have been named in Sanskrit, in violation of constitutional provisions, and enacted without hearing the views of the Members of Parliament, there have been protests across the country against various clauses of these laws,” the release added. The decision to form a oneman committee was taken at a high-level meeting chaired by the CM at the secretariat.  P5