BHUBANESWAR THURSDAY OCTOBER 17, 2024 `9.00 PAGES 12 LATE CITY EDITION DIWALI BONANZA FOR CENTRAL GOVT STAFF/PENSIONERS AS DA/DR UP 3% The government’s decision is with effect from July 1 this year and will benefit more than 1 crore employees and pensioners ahead of Diwali DA/DR NOW AT 53% OF BASIC PAY/PENSION CABINET CLEARS HIGHER MSP FOR RABI CROPS Earlier, the Centre had hiked DA/DR by 4 percentage points to 50% from January 1 , 2024. With the latest hike, DA and DR are now 53% of the basic pay/pension of central government employees / pensioners. The DA hike is based on the 12-month average of All India Consumer Price Index-Industrial Workers, Union Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw said after the Cabinet meeting ■ ■ The Cabinet meeting, chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, also cleared the price hikes for six rabi crops, with increases ranging from `130 to `300 per quintal for 2025-26 marketing season beginning April 2025 The Minimum Support Price for wheat has been increased by `150 to `2,425 per quintal, a move that comes ahead of key state elections | P7 `9,448 crore ESTIMATED FINANCIAL IMPLICATION OF THE DA/DR HIKE ON THE CENTRAL GOVERNMENT 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 India violated sovereignty of Canada: Trudeau TERRORISM WON’T BOOST TRADE, JAISHANKAR’S VEILED DIG AT PAK Y E S H I S E L I @ New Delhi US, UK, and other members of the Five Eyes group ask India to probe Canadian charges of suspects. The RCMP felt it had reached the threshold as it CANADIAN Prime Minister was soon turning to be a threat Justin Trudeau on Wednesday to public safety, he added. said there were clear indicaTrudeau said that when he tions that India had violated apprised Prime Minister NarenCanadian sovereignty alluding dra Modi in September 2023 (on , to the murder of Khalistani the sidelines of the G20 Summit radical Hardeep Singh Nijjar in Delhi) about the information, in British Columbia last year. he said that there were CanadiHe was testifying before a ans who were involved in hate federal commission probing speeches and India would like into foreign interferthem arrested. “I told ence in the country. Modi that the people in Canada had freeTrudeau named dom of speech and gangster Lawrence we would work with Bishnoi jailed in InIndia if it came to dia, as one of the conterrorism.’’ duits for criminal acEarlier in the day, tivities in Canada at INDIA ASKED Canada’s allegations the alleged behest of FOR PROOF found resonance in t h e M o d i Trudeau said they the Five Eyes intelligovernment. gence alliance it is Trudeau said Indi- engaged with the part of. The grouping an diplomats were Modi govt as they includes the UK, the collecting informa- wanted to know if US, Australia, and tion of Canadians Indian agencies New Zealand. “When who were opponents were involved in of or in disagreement harming Canadians it comes to the Canadian matter, we have with the Modi gov- as they needed to made it clear that the e r n m e n t . T h e y be accountable. allegations are expassed the informa- But India sought tremely serious and tion to their govern- evidence, he said they need to be taken ment, which employed criminals like the seriously. And we wanted to Lawrence Bishnoi gang to see the government of India cooperate with Canada in its harm Canadians, he alleged. The Royal Canada Mounted investigation,” State DepartPolice (RCMP) wanted to dis- ment spokesman Matthew rupt this chain, which is why Miller told reporters. “Obvithey went public on Monday, he ously, they have not,” he said. said. “We wanted to question “They have chosen an alterthe Indian diplomats but since nate path.” they didn’t agree we asked them As for Britain, its Foreign to leave the country .’’ Commonwealth and DevelopTrudeau alleged that Indian ment Office said, “The Governdiplomats were involved in cov- ment of India’s cooperation ert, clandestine activities, and with Canada’s legal process is were withholding family visas the right next step.” Y E S H I S E L I @ New Delhi Pak PM Shehbaz Sharif (R) greets EAM S Jaishankar in Islamabad | PTI INFORMAL TALKS Foreign minister S Jaishankar and his Pakistani counterpart Ishaq Dar held casual talks on two occasions since Tuesday evening, sources said TAKING a jab at Pakistan’s policy of nurturing and exporting terror, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar said on Wednesday that three evils—terrorism, extremism, and separatism—are holding back regional cooperation initiatives. Speaking at the 23rd Shanghai Corporation Organisation (SCO) Summit in Islamabad, Jaishankar said these evils should be rooted out before any progress can be made on trade and people-topeople connect. “ O u r e n d e avo u r s w i l l progress only when our commitment to the SCO Charter remains firm… this means be- ing firm and uncompromising in countering the ‘three evils’. If activities across borders are characterized by terrorism, extremism and separatism, they are hardly likely to encourage trade, energy flows, connectivity and people-topeople exchanges in parallel,” Jaishankar said in remarks that were seen as directed towards Pakistan. In a veiled reference to China, with which India has an ongoing border dispute, Jaishankar said that trade and connectivity initiatives must recognise territorial integrity and sovereignty, and it is essential to have an “honest conversation” on lack of trust. “If trust is lacking or coop- Odisha tops capital outlay-GSDP ratio, but reforms should continue: CEFT HEMANT KUMAR ROUT @ Bhubaneswar AS Odisha aspires to transition from a low middle-income economy to a developed state by 2047, a study reveals that it has the highest capital outlay to Gross State Domestic Product (GSDP) ratio among all major states. The state has one of the highest per capita capital outlays and share of capital outlays in the country The average capital . outlay to GSDP ratio that stood at 4.4 per cent during last decade is much higher than 18 major states, which have an average of 3.1 per cent. Odisha’s average of capital outlay stood at 2.8 from 2001-02 to 2022-23 as against 2.2 per cent for the average of 18 major states. It reached up to 5.1 per cent and 6.2 per cent of GSDP in 2022-23 and 2023-24, On an average, economic services have grown at 23.8 per cent annually between 2014-15 and 2023-24, while social services grew at 24.7 per cent. Education and health together account for 37 per cent Study report respectively . The study by the Centre of Excellence in Fiscal Policy and Taxation (CEFT) at XIM University found the coastal state has undertaken huge capital outlay for the creation of assets, which will ultimately lead to a high trajectory of growth. Capital outlay on development purposes accounts for around 95 per cent and covers social and economic services. The remaining was for non-developmental purposes. While the majority 68.7 per cent share of total outlay was allocated to- wards economic services in 2023-24, social services accounted for 26.3 per cent. “On an average, economic services have grown at 23.8 per cent annually between 2014-15 and 2023-24, while social services grew at 24.7 per cent. Education and health together account for 37 per cent of total social services capital outlay. However, economic services drove the pace of capital outlay with the provisioning of more than a third for roads and bridges,” the study said. The fiscal study analysed per capita capital outlay at constant prices and per capita GSDP at current prices of major states. It indicated that Odisha has spent 34 per cent of capital outlay on transport and communications in the last 10 years, as another special attention of the government to upgrade social infraCONTINUED ON P5 structure. EXPRESS READ Reshuffle of guvs likely after assembly polls Qana: Israeli airstrikes pounded areas across Lebanon, killing at least 25 people, officials said Wednesday, including more than a dozen in a southern town where Israeli bombardments in previous conflicts are seared into local memory. Elsewhere in the south, a city’s mayor was among the dead in a strike that Lebanese officials said targeted a meeting to coordinate relief efforts. The Israeli military said they were targeting a Hezbollah commander in the strikes late Tuesday on the southern town of Qana, where 15 people were killed. Associated Press photos and video of the scene showed several flattened buildings | P9 NEW BEGINNING Jammu and Kashmir Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha being greeted by Chief Ministerdesignate Omar Abdullah before the latter’s swearing-in, in Srinagar | PTI | P8 Boy held for hoax bomb threats to three flights SHEKHAR SINGH & UJWAL J A L A L I @ New Delhi Lebanon mayor among 25 dead in Israel strikes New Delhi: The Central government is likely to reshuffle gubernatorial positions in several states and Union Territories either by this month or next month. The buzz of reshuffle assumes significance as several governors and lieutenant governors have already served for over three to five years, especially in BJP-ruled Uttar Pradesh, Leftruled Kerala, Jammu and Kashmir and the Union Territories of Andaman and Nicobar Islands, and Dadar and Nagar Haveli and Daman Diu. In Jammu and Kashmir, where statehood is expected to be restored after the assembly elections, L-G Manoj Sinha has been in office for over four years | P7 eration inadequate, if friendship has fallen short and good neighbourliness is missing somewhere, there are surely reasons to introspect and causes to address,” he added in an indirect reference to China’s assertive behaviour. Jaishankar also emphasised the need for comprehensive reform of the UN Security Council to make the global body more representative, transparent and efficient. “The SCO must be in the lead of advocating such change, not hold back on a matter of such importance,” he said. Ahead of the deliberations, Pakistan PM Shebaz Sharif shook hands with Jaishankar and received him. MOON IN BLOOM A man walks on a foot overbridge as the full moon rises on Kumar Purnima in Bhubaneswar on Wednesday | DEBADATTA MALLICK AT least 20 flights had to be grounded at different airports in and outside the country in the past 48 hours following hoax bomb threats, prompting the Ministry of Home Affairs to seek a report from the civil aviation ministry . Civil Aviation Minister Ram Mohan Naidu Kinjarapu on Wednesday chaired a high-level meeting of the Directorate General of Civil Aviation, Bureau of Civil Aviation Security and CISF. “I am deeply concerned over the recent disruptive acts targeting Indian airlines, affecting both domestic and international operations... our law enforcement agencies are pursuing all the cases,” he said. Senior aviation ministry officials said that the threats targeted four IndiGo flights, two SpiceJet, and one Akasa Air, causing disruption and concern among passengers. “Six hoax threats were received on Monday seven on Tuesday and , as many on Wednesday an of,” ficial told this newspaper. Multiple FIRs have been filed by law enforcement agencies of different states, which include three cases being registered by Mumbai Police and eight by Delhi Police. Meanwhile, the Mumbai Police has detained a 17-year-old boy from Chhattisgarh’s Rajnandgaon for allegedly sending threats to three flights. The boy reportedly created a social media account in his friend’s name to send the threats. Cong leader Ajoy Kumar, ex-OPCC boss Blindfold off from SC’s new Statue of Justice among 3 booked for cheating bizman COLONIAL LEGACY PURGED S U C H I T R A K A LYA N M O H A N T Y @ New Delhi A new Statue of Justice unveiled in the Supreme Court library for judges does not have the iconic blindfold and the sword. The new open-eyed statue instead holds a copy of the Constitution of India in the left hand. There, however, is no change in the scales of justice in her right hand. Commissioned by Chief Justice of India D Y Chandrachud, the idea behind removing the blindfold was to send a message that the law is not blind in the country The blindfold in the co. lonial era statue signified equality before the law. And the sword had represented authority and the power to punish injustice. A well placed source said Justice Chandrachud believes that India should move forward from the British legacy. According to the CJI, the law is never blind; it sees everyone equally . Quoting the CJI, the source said, “the statue should have the Constitution in one hand and not a sword, so that a message goes out to the country that she dispenses jus- tice according to the Constitution.” While the sword is a symbol of violence, courts deliver justice according to constitutional laws, Justice Chandrachud reasoned. The court complex already has a mural on the Lady of Justice in classical Indian attire with more or less the same theme. Holding the scales of justice in her right hand and looking upward at the scales, she stands atop a lotus. On the other hand is the Constitution of India. Murals of Mahatma Gandhi and the Chakra complete the iconography in that restricted section of the court. EXPRESS NEWS SERVICE @ Bhubaneswar AHEAD of the Jharkhand elections, Congress leader from the state and AICC’s Odisha incharge Ajoy Kumar has found himself in trouble as he along with for mer president of OPCC Sarat Pattanayak and senior leader Biswaranjan Mohanty have been booked by police for allegedly defrauding a businessman to the tune of around `1.4 crore. The businessman Asutosh Mohapatra of Bhubaneswar had lodged a complaint that the trio was refusing to pay his dues in lieu of providing vehicles and LED TVs for the party’s campaign in the recent Lok Sabha and Assembly elections in the state. Police has filed a case against them under Section 120-B, 420, 506 and 34 of IPC. Mohapatra has alleged that a deal of `1.5 crore was finalised for providing campaign services after discussion with Kumar and Pattanayak. He was reportedly given an advance of `8 lakh for fuel and allied expenses. The Congress leaders assured him that `1.42 crore will be paid to him after election. According to the FIR, when Mohapatra met the Congress leaders after elections and sought payment of his dues, they asked him to meet at their residence where the final amount would be finalised. However, the complainant demanded that money should be paid to him at the spot as they were not picking up his phone. Mohapatra alleged that when this discussion was going on, Kumar and Pattnayak threatCONTINUED ON P5 ened him.
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