12082024-TT-01.qxd 8/11/2024 11:09 PM Page 1 13 CHANDIGARH | GURUGRAM | JALANDHAR | BATHINDA | VOL. 144 NO. 223 | 14 PAGES | ~5.00 | REGD. NO. CHD/0006/2024-2026 ESTABLISHED IN 1881  HIMACHAL PRADESH UKRAINE INTENSIFIES FIGHT, TAKES WAR TO RUSSIAN SOIL WORLD /thetribunechd CIVILIAN DEATH TAKES ANANTNAG GUNFIGHT TOLL TO THREE J&K JUDGE-LESS COURTS NOT FEASIBLE, SAYS JUSTICE KANT NATION EX-FOREIGN MINISTER NATWAR SINGH DIES AT 93 BACK PAGE monday | 12 august 2024 /thetribunechd www.tribuneindia.com Attack on Sebi’s integrity, bid to malign me: Buch junks charge GOLDEN MOMENT Hindenburg reportRegulator gives chief clean chit Tribune News Service Members of the Indian hockey team that won the Olympic bronze pay obeisance at the Golden Temple in Amritsar on Sunday. VISHAL KUMAR New Delhi, Aug 11 Dismissing allegations made by US-based short-seller Hindenburg Research, Madhabi Puri Buch, Chairperson of the Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi), on Sunday denied any wrongdoing. Hindenburg had, in a report released on Saturday, made serious allegations regarding the involvement of Buch and her husband Dhaval Buch, a senior adviser with Blackstone, in a Mauritius-based offshore fund, IPE Plus Fund 1, which allegedly received investments from a Bermudabased fund tied to Vinod Adani, the elder brother of billionaire Gautam Adani. In a two-page statement, the Madhabi Puri Buch Gautam Adani IRRELEVANT DEALS Buch clarifies their investment in fund flagged by Hindenburg was made in 2015 when she was residing in Singapore, nearly two years before joining Sebi Buchs clarified on the raft of allegations. “They have chosen to attack the credibility of Sebi and attempt character assassination of the Sebi Chairperson,” the statement read. In its first comments following the new report by Hindenburg, Sebi said allega- Militant, 3 village guards killed in Manipur gunfight PM unveils 109 high-yield, resilient crop varieties Imphal, August 11 A militant belonging to the United Kuki Liberation Front (UKLF) and three village volunteers of the same community were killed in a fratricidal shootout in Manipur’s Tengnoupal district, the police said. The incident took place in the Molnom area on Friday. In retaliation to the killings, village volunteers set ablaze the residence of UKLF self-styled chairman SS Haokip. Control over levy in the Pallel area is suspected to be behind the gunfight, officials said. New Delhi, August 11 Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday released 109 highyielding, climate-resilient and biofortified varieties of crops at an event at India Agricultural Research Institute here. The Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) said in a statement, “The Prime Minister interacted with farmers and scientists on the occasion. Discussing the importance of these new crop varieties, the PM stressed the significance of value addition in agriculture. The farmers said these new varieties would be highly beneficial as these would help reduce their expenditure and also have a positive impact on the environment.” Stressing the importance of millets, Modi said people were moving towards nutritious food. He spoke about the benefits of natural farming and the increasing faith of the common man in organic farming, adding that people had started consuming and demanding organic foods. BLAST KILLS WIFE OF FORMER MLA OF KUKI COMMUNITY In another incident, a former MLA’s wife was killed in a bomb blast in Kangpokpi district, officials said, adding the blast was triggered at a house adjacent to that of former Saikul MLA Yamthong Haokip, who belongs to the Kuki community, on Saturday evening. Sapam Charubala, the second wife of Haokip, was injured in the blast, but later succumbed to her injuries. Haokip was also in his house, but escaped unhurt— PTI Tribune News Service The farmers also lauded the role played by Krishi Vigyan Kendras (KVKs) in creating awareness. The PM suggested that the KVKs should proactively inform farmers about the benefits of the new varieties being developed every month. The PM lauded the scientists for the development of these new crop varieties. “Scientists said they had been working in line with the suggestion given by the PM to bring unutilised crops into the mainstream,” the PMO said. The 109 varieties of 61 crops released include 34 field crops and 27 horticultural crops. Among the field crops, seeds of various cereals, including millets, forage crops, oilseeds, pulses, sugarcane, cotton, fibre and other potential crops, were released. Among the horticultural crops, different varieties of fruits, vegetable crops, plantation crops, tuber crops, spices, flowers and medicinal crops were released. Union Minister for Agriculture, Farmers’ Welfare and Rural continued on page 9 Aksheev Thakur Tribune News Service New Delhi, August 11 The Congress on Sunday reiterated its demand for a Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC) probe into the Hindenburg row and said the Centre must act to eliminate all conflicts of interest in the regulator’s investigation into the Adani Group. Congress chief Mallikarjun Kharge said a JPC inquiry is imperative to investigate this massive “scandal”. “Sebi had previously cleared Adani, a close associate of PM Modi, before the SC after the January 2023 revelations. However, new allegations have surfaced continued on page 9 70K BSF personnel on standby to thwart influx of Bangladesh refugees Animesh Singh Tribune News Service PM Modi, along with Union Agriculture Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan, interacts with farmers in New Delhi. ANI Karnal scientists behind barley variety Parveen Arora Tribune News Service Karnal, August 11 The Indian Institute of Wheat and Barley Research (IIWBR) here took nine years to develop a new barley variety, DWRB-219, which was officially released by PM Narendra Modi, along with 108 other seed varieties, at the Indian Agricultural Took them nearly nine years to develop crop Research Institute (IARI) in New Delhi today. Designed for both irrigated and limited irrigation conditions, scientists claim that the new barley variety will enhance productivity in several regions, particularly the North-Western Plains Zone (NWPZ). The zone includes Punjab, Haryana, Delhi, Rajasthan (excluding Kota and Udaipur divisions), Western UP (except Jhansi division), Jammu and Kathua districts, Paonta valley and Una districts of Himachal Pradesh, and the Terai region of Uttarakhand, said continued on page 9 New Delhi, August 11 Amid attempts by Bangladeshi nationals, most of them from minority communities, to enter the Indian territory over the past one week, government sources say reinforcements are in place to help security personnel along the border to deal with any emergency situation. Top sources have told The Tribune around 70,000 BSF personnel are available as reinforcements on short notice and will be optimally used if required, adding so far, only three major incidents of movement near the border have occurred and these have been dealt with peacefully. After the formation of a central committee headed by the ADG of BSF’s Eastern Command, communication channels have been opened with the Border Guard Bangladesh (BGB) to ensure Ready to use force if infiltration bid takes place, says top official 11 HELD INFILTRATING INTO INDIA Eleven Bangladesh nationals have been apprehended while trying to infiltrate into India through the international border in West Bengal, Tripura and Meghalaya, the BSF said on Sunday. They are being questioned and will be handed over to the respective state police for further legal action. incidents of crossover are prevented and the safety of Hindus and other minority communities is ensured, they say. “We are opening communication channels with the BGB after the formation of the committee and the communication impasse is being removed,” a top official says. continued on page 9 PHOTO: KAMALJEET SINGH 1 Una family swept away in flashflood,bodies of9 recovered 1of Tribune News Service Six hurt as Haryana dera factions clash over land dispute SIRSA: A violent clash erupted on Sunday between two factions over a land dispute at the Namdhari dera at Rania in Sirsa. The clash, which involved gunfire, resulted in six persons getting seriously injured. The conflict arose when followers of Satguru Uday Singh attempted to take control of 12 acres adjoining the dera. The land is also claimed by Thakur Dalip Singh, brother of Uday Singh, who manages the dera. INSIDE tions against the Adani Group had been "duly investigated" and Chairperson Buch disclosed and recused herself from time to time when dealing with matters. The regulator said the investigation in only one of the 26 aspects it was probing was pending and the same was close to completion. Buch has made "relevant disclosures" from time to time, and also recused herself in matters involving potential conflicts of interest, Sebi said. Separately, the Adani Group, in a filing to the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE) and the National Stock Exchange (NSE), said “The latest allegations by Hindenburg are malicious, mischievous and manipulative selections of publicly continued on page 9 edit: Hindenburg at itagain Oppn demands JPC probe; bid to create financial chaos: BJP Raging rivulet kills 5 migrants in Una DHARAMSALA: The Bathu Bathri industrial area in Una district suffered a damage of over ~100 crore due to a flashflood in a rivulet on Sunday. Five migrant labourers living in a slum near the rivulet were killed after being trapped in the flashflood. INSIDE Hoshiarpur/ Dharamsala, Aug 11 As many as 12 persons, including 11 members of a family, travelling from Dehlan village in Una district of Himachal Pradesh to attend a wedding at Nawanshahr in an Innova car were swept away in a flashflood in Jejon Doaba Choe this morning. While one person was rescued, nine bodies have been recovered. Efforts are on to trace the two missing persons. After crossing the Himachal border, they were passing through the choe when suddenly it was flooded and their vehicle got stuck in the mud. Within seconds, it was swept away by the strong current. One person, Deepak, was rescued by some people nearby. Deputy Commissioner Komal Mittal said a National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) team was called immediately for a search and rescue operation. Sources said despite warning from locals, the driver tried to cross the swollen choe. The vehicle was washed away hundreds of metres from the culvert and a JCB machine was deployed by the administration to retrieve it. As per information, Deepak Bhatia of Dehlan near Mehatpur in Una, along with 11 rela- c m y b Nawanshahr-bound Innova gets stuck in choe The Innova that was washed away in a flashflood at Jejon. KAMALJEET SINGH tives and family members, had left in an Innova to attend a wedding ceremony at Nehrowal village in Nawan- shahr. The car was being driven by Binda, son of Hukam Chand of the same village. The other occupants were Deepak’s father Surjit (55), mother Paramjit Kaur (50), Sarup Chand (49), Binder (Sarup Chand’s wife), Shino (wife of Amrik Singh), her daughter Bhavna (18), son Harshit (12), Anku (20) and two others. DSP Jagir Singh said the search operation was still on and Deepak, whose condition was stable, had been admitted to a hospital at Garhshankar. Himachal Chief Minister Sukhwinder Singh Sukhu and Deputy CM Mukesh Agnihotri have condoled the deaths and said all possible assistance would be provided to the bereaved families by the government.