24012024-TTB-01.qxd 1/23/2024 11:50 PM Page 1 13 CHANDIGARH | GURUGRAM | JALANDHAR | BATHINDA | VOL. 144 NO. 24 | 18 PAGES | ~5.00 | REGD. NO. CHD/0006/2024-2026 ESTABLISHED IN 1881  HARYANA SECURITY BEEFED UP ON SRINAGAR-JAMMU HIGHWAY J&K 24 SOLDIERS KILLED IN WORST SINGLE-DAY LOSS FOR ISRAEL WORLD wednesday | 24 january 2024 /thetribunechd www.tribuneindia.com Modi Sarkar ki Guarantee e Government of india Prosperity of farmers Scan for more information Hamara Sankalp Viksit Bharat CBC 22201/13/0205/2324 PILES TREATMENT 1 lakh 25 thousand PM Kisan Samriddhi Kendras developed as one stop shop; Farmers are getting modern facilities and information close to home 98141-28667 Only for reference, actual schedule at appropriate time, clarify electoral authorities Italian Techniques SAME DAY DISCHARGE BDO Office Road, Sirhind (PUNJAB) Animesh Singh Tribune News Service Adani case not listed despite order, SC pulls up its Registry New Delhi, January 23 The Supreme Court on Tuesday pulled up its Registry for not listing a case related to Adani Power despite a judicial order to that effect. As a Bench of Justice Aniruddha Bose and Justice PV Sanjay Kumar assembled to commence the day’s proceedings, senior advocate Dushyant Dave, who represented Jaipur Vidyut Vitran Nigam Limited in the case, raised the issue. He said when lawyers associated with him approached the Supreme Court Registry in this regard, the officials said they had no instructions for listing the case. “If the government were to ignore the court’s orders, it would be treated as contempt (of court), but when the Registry defies the court’s orders, should it not be viewed seriously?” Dave wondered. “Why… at whose behest? Directed by whom?” the Bench sought to know and summoned a senior Registry official. The Bench discussed the matter with the Registry official in the chambers. Now, continued on page 10 Air surcharge: Leh and beyond Rs 2.00 New Delhi, January 23 A circular sent by the office of the Delhi Chief Electoral Officer to all district election officers created a flutter after it mentioned April 16 as the tentative date for the start of the Lok Sabha elections, forcing the authorities to issue a clarification that the date was only for reference purpose to plan future activities related to the polls and the actual schedule of the General Election would be announced at an appropriate time. The circular mentioned that the Election Commission of FILE RANA HOSPITAL LS elections from April 16? Delhi poll officer’s circular sets off buzz German/American IMAGINARY DATE In the run-up to the LS elections, many activities are required to be planned and completed. The Election Commission of India planner enlists the activities with reference to imaginary poll date. Office of Delhi CEO ❝ India (ECI) had given the tentative date for the elections as April 16, 2024, “for the purpose of reference and to calculate the start and end dates in the election planner”. The official X handle of the office of the Chief Electoral Officer, Delhi, posted that the date was only for officials’ “reference” to plan activities. “Some media queries are coming to clarify whether April 16 is the tentative day for the LS elections. It is clarified that this date was mentioned only for officials’ reference to plan activities as per the election planner of the ECI,” the post stated. Later, in a detailed clarifica- tion, which was tagged on its X handle, the office of the Delhi Chief Electoral Officer said, “It is clarified that in the run-up to the Lok Sabha elections, a large number of activities are required to be planned and completed. The ECI planner enlists all such important activities and provides the start and end dates with reference to an imaginary poll date as reference point to initiate and complete these activities.” “...It has no bearing on the actual schedule of the election, which shall be announced by the ECI at an appropriate time,” it said. DRUGS Ambika Sharma Tribune News Service Solan, January 23 More than 50 per cent of the drug samples declared substandard in the monthly alert issued by the national drugs regulator today pertain to pharmaceutical companies in Himachal. As many as 40 of the 78 drug samples in the list released by the Central Drugs Standard Control Organisation (CDSCO) pertain to firms in Kala Amb, Paonta Sahib, Baddi-Barotiwala-Nalagarh belt and Sansarpur Terrace in Kangra. Of the 1,008 drug samples tested nationally, 930 were found of standard quality while 78 failed to adhere to the quality parameters. The failed samples included eight samples of various batches of heparin sodium injections manufactured by Baddi- New Delhi: Nearly 3 lakh devotees visited Ram Temple in Ayodhya a day after the consecration and an equal number of people have been waiting, said Shishir Singh, Director, Information & Public Relations, UP. Over 8,000 police personnel have been deployed to control the crowd. BACK PAGE Bharat Ratna for late Bihar CM Karpoori Thakur BJP govt fetes socialist stalwart on LS poll eve Aditi Tandon Tribune News Service On Assam CM’s orders, Rahul booked for ‘provoking supporters to break barricades’ Neeraj Mohan TRIBUNE NEWS SERVICE Guwahati, January 23 The ongoing Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra led by Rahul Gandhi took a tumultuous turn in Assam on Tuesday as an FIR was lodged against him and other Congress leaders on the orders of CM Himanta Biswa Sarma, who accused Rahul of provoking party workers to break barricades in a peaceful state. The allegation evoked a sharp response from the Congress leader, who accused Sarma of adopting “intimidating tactics” at the behest of Union Home Minister Amit Shah. Rahul Gandhi addresses supporters in Guwahati on Tuesday. PTI their style, intimidation ❝ Stopping the march here isby these people, we are tactics. We are not intimidated not afraid of them. Rahul Gandhi, CONG LEADER This is the sixth day of the party’s Nyay Yatra in Assam. “With reference to wanton acts of violence, provocation, damage to public property and assault on police person- nel today by Congress members, an FIR has been registered against Rahul Gandhi, KC Venugopal, Kanhaiya Kumar and other individuals,” the CM posted on X. The yatra witnessed a clash between Congress workers and Assam Police personnel near the Meghalaya-Assam border. A confrontation resulted as the Congress workers, led by Rahul, broke the barricades set up by the police to prevent the yatra from entering Guwahati. The police resorted to a lathi-charge, injuring several Congress workers, including Assam continued on page 10 ED raids in Baddi, P’kulain~70crore HUDA refund case Chandigarh, January 23 The ED today raided multiple locations in Chandigarh, Mohali and Panchkula and Himachal’s Solan as part of a money laundering probe linked to an alleged fake refund scam in the Haryana Urban Development Authority (HUDA), official sources said. Eighteen premises in these cities were searched by the officials of the federal probe agency, they said. Baddi in Himachal’s Solan is also being covered. The probe pertains to an ED case, registered under the PMLA, linked to an alleged Rs 70 crore fake refund scam in HUDA, the sources said. — PTI 78 drugs fail safety test, Indian stock market now fourth largest in world Overtakes Hong Kong’s bourse in share value 40 manufactured in HP SPURIOUS DAY LATER, 3L TURN UP AT RAM TEMPLE ANI /thetribunechd SENSEX DIPS 1,000 ‘SABKA SAATH…’ MANTRA OUR CONSTANT GUIDE: POINTS TO CLOSE BELOW 71K BUSINESS PM TO PREZ BACK PAGE DRUG CONTROLLER’S POST VACANT IN STATE ■ HP Govt hasn’t appointed a new drugs controller after the incumbent retired on Dec 31 ■ As a result, regulatory works are suffering and instructions issued by CDSCO haven’t been communicated to firms FIRMS TO FACE ACTION ■ Manish Kapoor, Deputy Drugs Controller, said the firms in the list of failed drug samples would be examined for shortcomings and action would be taken New Delhi, January 23 The Indian stock market has overtaken Hong Kong’s bourse in terms of combined value of shares listed on the two exchanges. Tuesday’s 1,000-point slide by the Sensex is unlikely to disturb the ranking. The combined value of shares listed on Indian exchanges reached $4.33 trillion as of Monday’s close, versus $4.29 trillion for Hong Kong, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. $4.29 trillion value of Hong Kong’s shares IMPORT DUTY ON GOLD, SILVER COINS HIKED TO 15% ■ Import duty on gold and silver ■ 4.35% cess also levied on findings & coins hiked to 15% by imposing a 5% Agriculture Infra Development Cess ‘spent catalyst or ash containing precious metals’, said the Central Board Of Indirect Taxes That makes India the fourth-biggest equity market globally. Its stock market cap- italisation crossed $4 trillion for the first time on December 5, with about half of that CHALLENGED UPPER CASTE POLITICS ■ Born in 1924 in a community of barbers, one of the most backward sections of society ■ Challenged upper caste politics by mooting idea of quota for backward classes ■ Influential Lohiaite socialist, led anti-Cong politics; was Dy CM once, CM twice OPED: PM Modi’s tribute to Jan Nayak Karpoori Thakur 1970 to June 1971 and again from June 1977 to April 1979 — endearing all sections gradually even as he pioneered social justice through radical reservation plans. Though the caste he represented made up just 1.6 per cent of the state’s continued on page 10 IN BRIEF Namibian cheetah gives birth to 3 cubs at Kuno NEW DELHI: A Namibian cheetah, Jwala, has given birth to three cubs at MP’s Kuno National Park. In May 2023, two cubs born to Jwala died due to extreme weather conditions and dehydration. TNS To Kill a Tiger, shot in India, nominated for Oscars NEW DELHI: ‘To Kill a Tiger’, set in a small Indian village, has been nominated for the best documentary at the 2024 Academy Awards. It’s directed by Delhi-born Nisha Pahuja, who is based in Toronto. PTI Elon Musk backs India for permanent UNSC seat NEW DELHI: US billionaire Elon Musk has batted for India being given a permanent UNSC seat. “There needs to be a revision of UN bodies.... Africa collectively should also get one,” the X owner said. INSIDE Cold wave snuffs out four lives in a week at Amritsar railway stations Neeraj Bagga Tribune News Service based Alliance Biotech. The presence of particulate matter was cited as the key reason. Five samples of the Kanha Biogenetic firm at Baddi also figure in the list. All samples pertain to calcium carbonate with vitamin D3 tablet where the continued on page 10 $4.33 trillion combined value of Indian shares coming in the past four years. Barring the recent slump of three days last week and this week on Tuesday, the Indian equity market has experienced an unstoppable bull run for the entire year that has pushed Sensex and Nifty to all-time highs. But its surpassing of the Hong Kong market has also been helped by a major slump there, mainly due to a slide in the value of shares of Chinese firms listed there. — TNS New Delhi, January 23 President Droupadi Murmu on Wednesday awarded India’s highest civilian honour, the Bharat Ratna, to late Bihar Chief Minister Karpoori Thakur on the eve of the socialist stalwart’s birth centenary. Born in 1924 in a community of barbers, one of the most backward sections of society, Thakur rose to challenge Bihar’s upper caste/class politics by first mooting the idea of reservation for backward classes in government jobs. An influential Lohiaite socialist who led anti-Congress politics in his times, Thakur went on to get elected as the Bihar CM by defeating Satyendra Narayan Singh, a veteran upper caste leader of the state. Thakur was the Deputy CM once and became the Bihar CM twice — from December Amritsar, January 23 Four persons, three of them unidentified, have died due to intense cold conditions at three railway stations in Amritsar district within a week. While two persons died at the Amritsar railway station, one each was found dead at the Verka and Kathunangal railway stations between January 15 and 21. The deaths point to severe HARYANA SCHOOLS SHUT TILL JAN 28 DAY’S TEMPERATURES STAY BELOW NORMAL DATE Jan 18 Jan 19 Jan 20 Jan 21 Chandigarh: The Haryana School Education Department has decided to close schools up to Class V till January 28 owing to intense cold wave. The order is applicable to private schools. Teaching and non-teaching staff will attend schools as usual. TNS cold conditions in the district during the week as also failure of the Railways and MAX 16°C 12.5°C 12.6°C 9.5°C NORMAL 18.1°C 18.1°C 18.1°C 18.7°C << A thick blanket of fog envelops a railway station in Amritsar. FILE the Government Railway Police in preventing unwanted people from entering rail- c m y b way stations and shifting them to shelter homes. The average maximum temperatures in the district have remained below normal during the past one week. On January 18, the maximum temperature stood at 16°C, two degrees below normal, while the next day it dipped to 12.5°C, over five notches below normal. On January 20, it stood at 12.6°C, against the normal of 18.1°C, while on January 21, the maximum temperature plunged to 9.5°C, against the normal of 18.7°C, a deviation of over 9 degrees. The body of an unidentified male, aged between 55 and 60 continued on page 10