26042022-TTC-01.qxd 4/26/2022 1:10 AM Page 1 13 CHANDIGARH | GURUGRAM | JALANDHAR | BATHINDA | VOL. 6 NO.114 | 18 PAGES | ~5.00 | REGD. NO. CHD/0006/2021-2023 ESTABLISHED IN 1881 BLINKEN, AUSTIN PLEDGE MORE MILITARY SUPPORT TO UKRAINE WORLD /thetribunechd ISI, HAQQANI NETWORK MAY BE BEHIND JAMMU ATTACK: INTEL J&K AI LOSES PREFERENTIAL CONGRESS TO FORM STATUS FOR FOREIGN ‘EMPOWERED ACTION GROUP’ FLIGHTS BUSINESS FOR ’24 POLLS BACK PAGE tuesday | 26 april 2022 /thetribunechd www.tribuneindia.com 16 more YouTube channels blocked New Delhi, April 25 The Centre today blocked 16 YouTube channels, including six operating from Pakistan, and a Facebook account for spreading disinformation related to India’s national security, foreign relations and public order, according to an official statement. 6 OPERATING FROM PAK The blocked channels, six operating from Pakistan, have a cumulative viewership of over 68 crore The blocked YouTube channels and the Facebook account had a cumulative viewership of over 68 crore and were spreading “false, unverified information to create panic, continued on page 11 IN BRIEF 205 kg heroin seized in Guj, 1 held in Amritsar NEW DELHI: Nearly 205 kg of heroin was seized from a container near Kandla Port in Gujarat. An importer was held from Amritsar in the case. TNS Granted bail in Twitter row, Mevani rearrested KOKRAJHAR: After given bail in a case over a tweet, Gujarat’s Independent MLA Jignesh Mevani was rearrested for ‘assaulting’ a woman police officer. PTI India, EU agree to broaden ties, China’s military spend exceeds India, Oz, Japan, Korea’s jointly launch trade, technology council Ajay Banerjee Tribune News Service Tribune News Service New Delhi, April 25 Despite not being on the same page regarding Russia’s aggression against Ukraine, India and the European Union (EU) on Monday decided to step up their ties by agreeing to launch a joint trade and technology council. It will be the second such council involving the 27nation EU after its first one with the US. The EU-India body will be a strategic coordination mechanism to tackle challenges at the nexus of trade, trusted technology and security, said External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar at the opening session of the Raisina Dialogue, following a meeting between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and visiting European Union Commission President Ursula von der Leyen. The EU has already announced that it would begin negotiations for comprehensive trade and investment agreements. The two leaders deliberated on several key issues, including the situation in Ukraine. The visiting EU leader also called on President Ram Nath Kovind. Second such pact for bloc after one with US Prime Minister Narendra Modi with President of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen during a meeting in Delhi. PTI BANKING ON POTENTIAL FOCUS ON CLEAN ENERGY ❝ India is technologically a powerhouse and in the trade sector, we need to unleash an enormous amount of untapped potential. Ursula von der Leyen, EU COMMISSION PREZ PM Modi said he was delighted to hold talks with Ursula von der Leyen and that both sides reviewed the “full range of India-EU ties, Studying ‘Delhi model’ Haryana to offer free booster shots; masks back in Chandigarh Four months on, report on Dadam landslide awaited Chandigarh, April 25 The Haryana Government on Monday announced free Covid vaccine booster shots for beneficiaries in the age group of 18 to 59 years. There are about 1.2 crore such beneficiaries in the state. The Chandigarh Administration, meanwhile, has made masks compulsory in closed environment such as offices and educational institutions. — TNS Geetanjali Gayatri Tamil Nadu passes Bill allowing state govt to appoint VCs Chennai, April 25 The Tamil Nadu Assembly today adopted a Bill empowering the state government to appoint Vice-Chancellors to various universities in the state, in an apparent bid to clip the wings of the Governor. Chief Minister MK Stalin recalled that the Punchhi Commission on Centre-state relations had, while dealing with the subject of VC appointments, said “there would be a clash of functions and powers”, if the authority to choose the top academician continued on page 11 Chandigarh, April 25 Four months after five labourers lost their lives and three others sustained injuries in a landslide at the Dadam mines in Bhiwani, the report of a nine-member committee constituted by the Haryana Government to look into the reasons is still awaited. Sources said the committee headed by former bureaucrat SS Prasad was awaiting the reports of the Directorate General of Mines Safety and the Geological Survey of India (GSI) to proceed with the including economic and cultural linkages”. Speaking at the Raisina Dialogue and earlier at the headquarters of the International Solar HP CM: Examining Uniform Civil Code option, won’t rush Punjab CM Bhagwant Mann and AAP convener Arvind Kejriwal during their visit to a school in New Delhi. Mann is on a two-day tour of the Capital to understand the ‘Delhi model’ of education and replicate it in Punjab. PHOTO: TWITTER INSIDE Tribune News Service Amid Ukraine conflict, EU says dependency on Russian fossil fuels is not sustainable. It is looking to diversify away from fossil fuels and invest heavily in clean renewable energy. Europe thus wants cooperation with India not only on solar, but also on green hydrogen. MINING ZONE CASUALTY ■ The state set up a panel on Jan 17 to look into the reasons for the Jan 1 landslide that claimed five lives ■ Panel is awaiting reports of the Directorate General of Mines Safety and the GSI FIR AGAINST MINING FIRM INSIDE inquiry into the landslide. Last week, a reminder was sent to the two agencies to submit their reports at the earliest. When contacted, Prasad said, “We are likely to receive the reports of other agencies continued on page 11 New Delhi, April 25 Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister Jai Ram Thakur today said the state government would not rush into implementing the Uniform Civil Code, but it was actively examining the issue. Terming the neighbouring BJP-led Uttarakhand Government’s decision to go ahead with the UCC as a “good step and a good start”, Thakur said he had instructed state officials to study the subject and see if it could be implemented keeping Himachal’s nuances in mind. “We will not rush. It’s (UCC) a good step and we are examining it. Its implementation is not ruled out before the November elections. The matter is under our active consideration,” said Thakur speaking to The Tribune on the sidelines of an event in New Delhi where he inaugurated a media centre at Himachal Bhavan. Thakur downplayed the challenge from the Arvind Kejriwal-led AAP saying the state had “never accepted a third alternative”. They (AAP) can try their prospects in democracy, but they won’t succeed, the CM said. He added that AAP was banking on “imported leaders”, which continued on page 11 Road mishaps cost Punjab ~15K cr in 2020 Vishav Bharti Tribune News Service Chandigarh, April 25 Punjab lost over Rs 15,000 crore due to road accidents in 2020, a soon-to-bereleased report of the state government has found. As per the socio-economic cost analysis of road accidents in “Punjab Road Accidents & Traffic, 2020” report, the loss due to road accidents in 2020 was around Rs 15,176 SOCIO-ECONOMIC COST ANALYSIS OF ACCIDENTS LEADING CAUSES ■ Overspeeding and driving on the wrong side are the main causes of deaths in roads mishaps ■ 72% of those involved in fatal road accidents were in the 18-45 age group crore. The report noted that the amount was 3 per cent of the state’s gross domestic Today’s issue is of 18 pages, including four-page Jalandhar Tribune. product (GDP). In 2020, on an average 11 persons lost their lives in road accidents every day. There were 5,203 road accidents that left 3,898 dead and 1,737 seriously injured during the year. As per the report, 2.28 per cent of the country’s population lives in Punjab, but its share in road accident deaths ranged from 3.3 to 3.5 per cent over the past five years. continued on page 11 Alliance (ISA), von der Leyen brought Russia into the conversation, saying Europe will ensure that Russia’s “unprovoked and unjustified” aggression against Ukraine “will be a strategic failure”. “The world’s response to Russia’s aggression will decide the future of both the international system and global economy,” she said at the Raisina Dialogue. At the ISA headquarters, she said Russia’s war in Ukraine was a stark reminder that the dependency on Russian fossil fuels was not sustainable and pitched for a deeper cooperation between India and the EU to expand the use of clean energy. The EU Commission President also referred to the “nolimits” friendship between Russia and China. “Russia and China have forged a seemingly unrestrained pact. They have declared that the friendship between them has no limits,” she said. On India, she described the relationship as more important than ever. “For the EU, the partnership with India is one of our most important relationships for the coming decade and strengthening this partnership is a priority,” she said. New Delhi, April 25 In what outlines a growing militarisation in Asia and China’s rapidly expanding prowess, Beijing is spending more on its military than what India, Japan, South Korea and Australia collectively spend on their forces. China’s defence expenditure reached $293 billion in 2021, much greater than the collective expenditure of $212.7 billion by India ($76.6 billion), Japan ($54.1 billion), South Korea ($50.2 billion) and Australia ($31.8 billion). A report released on Monday by Swedish think-tank Stockholm International Peace continued on page 11 DEFENCE OUTGO: INDIA AT 3RD SPOT CHINA US BILLION INDIA UK RUSSIA $76.6 $68.4 $65.9 BILLION $293 BILLION BILLION $801 BILLION BEIJING’S MULTIPLE TERRITORIAL DISPUTES ■ Beijing has boundary disputes with Japan and India, besides overlapping territorial claims with six countries in hydrocarbon-rich South China Sea ■ It claims 90 per cent of 3.5 mn sq km of South China Sea while the Philippines, Indonesia, Vietnam, Malaysia, Brunei and Taiwan claim parts of those waters Musk acquires Twitter for ~44 bn New York, April 25 Elon Musk clinched a deal to buy Twitter Inc for $44 billion in cash on Monday in a transaction that will shift control of the social media platform populated by millions of users and global leaders to the world's richest person. It is a seminal moment for the 16-year-old company that emerged as one of the world's most influential public Twitter is digital town square where matters vital to future of humanity are debated. — Elon Musk squares. Discussions over the deal, which last week appeared uncertain, accelerated over the weekend after Musk wooed Twitter shareholders with financing details of his offer. Under pressure, Twitter started negotiating with Musk to buy the firm at the proposed $54.20 per share price. "Free speech is the bedrock of a functioning democracy, and Twitter is the digital town square where matters vital to the future of humanity are debated," Musk said in a statement. — Reuters