21022023-TTC-01.qxd 2/21/2023 12:31 AM Page 1 13 CHANDIGARH | GURUGRAM | JALANDHAR | BATHINDA | VOL. 143 NO. 51 | 16 PAGES | ~5.00 | REGD. NO. CHD/0006/2021-2023 ESTABLISHED IN 1881 INDIA BEAT IRELAND, ENTER T20 WORLD CUP SEMIS SPORT /thetribunechd GIVE SUBSIDIES ONLY TO NEEDY, IMF TELLS PAKISTAN WORLD AVALANCHE DAMAGES NINE HOUSES IN SONAMARG J&K KUSHWAHA QUITS JD-U AGAIN, FLOATS PARTY BACK PAGE tuesday | 21 february 2023 /thetribunechd www.tribuneindia.com Support as long as needed: Biden in Kyiv Pledges $500-mn fresh military aid, tighter sanctions on Russia ahead of first war anniversary Sandeep Dikshit READY FOR DIFFICULT HISTORIC VISIT, SAYS DAYS, YEARS AHEAD ZELENSKYY Sacrifices have been The first in 15 years, far too great... We know it is the most important that there will be difficult visit in the entire history of days and weeks and years Ukraine-US ties. ahead. Joe Biden, US PRESIDENT Volodymyr Zelenskyy, UKRAINIAN PRESIDENT PUTIN’S MEETING WITH WANG ‘NOT RULED OUT’ TRIBUNE NEWS SERVICE New Delhi, February 20 The war for Ukraine shifted into a higher gear on the eve of its first anniversary with US President Joe Biden making an unannounced appearance in Kyiv even as Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi is heading for Moscow for consultations after warning Washington to stay away from the Sino-Russian partnership. Biden, in aviator sunglasses, walked along with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, in his usual green battle fatigues when he accompanies a western dignitary, through central Kyiv to a gold-domed cathedral that has been the bone of contention between the Ukrainian and Russian orthodox ❝ ❝ Moscow: Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters on Monday that “we don’t rule out” Russian President Vladimir Putin’s meeting with Wang Yi, the Chinese Communist Party’s most senior foreign policy official, who’s visiting the Russian capital. << President Joe Biden with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy in Kyiv, Ukraine, on Monday. UKRAINE PRESIDENTIAL PRESS OFFICE/REUTERS churches. Suggesting that Biden’s “sudden”’ trip was known at least to Kyiv, several gutted Russian tanks were brought to the cathedral for the occasion to denote a country at war. The visit was meant not only to upstage the Kremlin on the conflict’s first anniversary but to give an unmistakable signal that it was now a war between the West and Russia. After the American cut-andrun in Afghanistan, Biden also assured that the US was with Ukraine “as long as it takes”. The visit was meant to “reaffirm our unwavering continued on page 11 Uddhav group moves SC over EC decision IN BRIEF Want death for Godhra convicts: Gujarat to SC NEW DELHI: Gujarat on Monday told the SC that it wanted the death penalty for 11 convicts whose sentences in the 2002 Godhra train burning case were commuted to life imprisonment by the HC. BACK PAGE Andaman ex-Chief Secy gets bail in rape case PORT BLAIR: Ex-Chief Secretary of Andaman and Nicobar Islands Jitendra Narain was granted bail by the Port Blair Circuit Bench of the Calcutta HC on Monday in a rape case filed by a 21-year-old. PTI New Delhi, February 20 The fight for the Shiv Sena poll symbol reached the Supreme Court on Monday with the Uddhav Thackeray faction moving the Supreme Court challenging the Election Commission’s decision to recognise the Eknath Shinde-led faction as the real DISSOLVE EC: UDDHAV EC should be dissolved. Elections should be held for the EC too. Uddhav Thackeray Shiv Sena and allocating the “bow and arrow” symbol to it. The Thackery faction’s petition was mentioned by senior counsel Abhishek Manu Singhvi for urgent listing before a Bench led by Chief Justice of India DY Chandrachud which refused to pass any immediate order. “The rule applies equally to all, whether left, right or centre. continued on page 11 Uproar in Assembly, Cong legislators India, Singapore to link seek Sandeep’s ouster, stage walkout digital payment systems Inquiry underway, won’t remove him: Khattar HARYANA SESSION Geetanjali Gayatri Tribune News Service Chandigarh, February 20 Amid sloganeering, an aggressive Congress today staged a walkout demanding the resignation of state minister Sandeep Singh over a sexual harassment case even as CM Manohar Lal Khattar emphatically asserted that the minister won’t be asked to resign. The matter was raised by Congress MLA Geeta Bhukkal immediately after the obituary references on continued on page 11 Congress MLAs hold a protest during the Budget session. TRIBUNE PHOTO SLOGANEERING MARKS DAY 1 ■ Cong’s Geeta Bhukkal raises mat- sexual harassment case ter soon after obituary references ■ Led by BS Hooda, Cong MLAs ■ CM, Speaker reject demand raise anti-government slogans and stage a walkout for minister’s sacking over New Delhi, February 20 India and Singapore residents will be connected seamlessly through the Unified Payments Interface (UPI) of India and PayNow of Singapore from tomorrow. The linkage of these two payment systems will enable residents of both countries to carry out faster and cost-efficient transfer of cross-border remittances. It will also help the Indian diaspora in Singapore, especially migrant workers and students, with instantaneous and low-cost transfer of money from Singapore to India and vice-versa. Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Prime Minister of Singapore Lee Hsien Loong Punjab, UP among world’s 50 regions at high risk of damage to built environment Sukhu declares new freight rates, ops to resume today Solan, February 20 The 68-day deadlock between the two Adani Group-owned cement plants in Himachal Pradesh and truckers’ unions ended on Monday with the intervention of CM Sukhwinder Singh Sukhu who announced new freight rates of Rs 10.30 per tonne per km for single axle and Rs 9.30 for multi-axle vehicles. continued on page 11 Karam Prakash Tribune News Service New Delhi, February 20 Nine Indian states, including Punjab, Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan and Bihar, are among the world’s top 50 regions at a risk of damage to the built environment from extreme weather and climate change, according to new rankings of physical climate risk released today by XDI (The Cross Dependency Initiative). The XDI is viewed as a leader in physical climate risk analysis. Built environment compris- Built environment comprises man-made structures such as homes, roads, workplaces es man-made structures such as homes, roads, workplaces, and other facilities. China is the other country that has the most GRIM FUTURE STATE RANKING BIHAR 22 UTTAR PRADESH 25 ASSAM 28 RAJASTHAN 32 TAMIL NADU 36 MAHARASHTRA 38 GUJARAT 44 PUNJAB 48 KERALA 50 vulnerable regions. Among nine states, Bihar is ranked at continued on page 11 edit: temperature surge FASTER TRANSACTIONS ■ Faster & cost-efficient transfer of cross-border remittances ■ Instantaneous, low-cost mon- ey transfer to and from S’pore ■ Will help diaspora, especially migrant workers & students will witness the launch of the cross-border connectivity through video-conferencing tomorrow. The linkage will continued on page 11 Rajoana: Nothing to do with Qaumi Insaaf Morcha Patiala, February 20 Balwant Singh Rajoana, a convict on death row for the assassination of the then Punjab CM Beant Singh, today distanced himself from the Qaumi Insaaf Morcha, which is spearheading a protest for the release of “Bandi Singhs” in Mohali, and questioned the intention of the organisers. During a visit to the government hospital here for treatment, Rajoana said he had nothing to do with the morcha and he “is and will continued on page 11 ED raids in Chhattisgarh, days ahead of Congress plenary Searches at multiple sites as part of coal levy scam probe Tribune News Service New Delhi, February 20 The Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Monday conducted raids at over a dozen locations in Chhattisgarh, including premises linked to state Congress leaders, as part of an ongoing probe into the alleged coal levy scam, officials said. The raids held for over 12 hours come days before the three-day plenary session of the Congress which is in power in the state. The session begins on February 24 in Raipur. The Congress and state Chief Minister Bhupesh Baghel cried foul over the raids, calling it “vendetta politics” by the Centre, a charge rejected by Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman. The Congress also raised questions over the timing of the raids and termed them “third-rate politics of vengeance, vendetta and harassment”, inviting rebuttals from Sitharaman, who said the Congress should not speak on corruption as it had gone out of power on issues related to corruption. She asserted that the probe agencies investigated only when they had prima facie evi- Security personnel outside the residence of a Congress leader during an ED raid in connection with a mining case, in Raipur, on Monday. PTI VENDETTA TALK A SHAME The Congress which went out of power over corruption should not talk of vindictiveness. It’s a shame. Nirmala Sitharaman, FM ❝ BID TO TARGET PLENARY SESSION The intention is to impact the upcoming plenary session where a roadmap for 2024 election will be discussed. C’garh CM ❝ BREACH OF PRIVILEGE PROBE AGAINST 12 MPs Sanjay Singh | Sandeep Pathak | Raghav Chadha | Sushil Kumar Gupta | Kumar Ketkar | Phulo Devi Netam | Imran Pratapgarhi | Shakti Sinh Gohil | Narabhai Rathwa | L Hanumanthaiah | Ranjeet Ranjan | Nasir Hussain dence. “The Congress should not speak on corruption at all and then bring in the angle of vindictiveness. It’s a shame,” she told reporters in Jaipur. At a news conference in Delhi, senior Congress leaders Jairam Ramesh and Pawan Khera said the ED stood for “Exterminating Democracy” and “Eliminating Democracy”. “If anything, these raids have increased our determination. continued on page 11