29102024-TTC-01.qxd 10/29/2024 12:42 AM Page 1 13 CHANDIGARH | GURUGRAM | JALANDHAR | BATHINDA | VOL. 144 NO. 300 | 16 PAGES | ~5.00 | REGD. NO. CHD/0006/2024-2026 ESTABLISHED IN 1881 MP RASHID RETURNS TO TIHAR, BAIL PLEA TO BE HEARD ON NOV 13 J&K /thetribunechd 100 ‘MILITANTS’ HELD DURING GAZA HOSPITAL RAID: ISRAEL WORLD SWIGGY’S ~11,300-CR IPO LIKELY TO OPEN ON NOV 6 BUSINESS PRIYANKA KICKS OFF BYPOLL CAMPAIGN IN WAYANAD NATION tuesday | 29 october 2024 /thetribunechd www.tribuneindia.com More muscle to India’s air power, 1st Census likely to begin early next year, conclude by 2026 pvt military aircraft plant takes wings Due in 2021, delayed by Covid | No clarity on caste count PM, Spanish Prez open unit in Vadodara | Tata, Airbus to manufacture 40 C-295 planes Tribune News Service ~21,935 CR PROJECT New Delhi, October 28 India’s first private sector military aircraft making facility was jointly inaugurated by PM Narendra Modi and Spanish President Pedro Sanchez in Vadodara today. Termed the “final assembly line”, the Tata Advanced Systems Limited (TASL) and the Airbus plant will manufacture C-295 military aircraft. The plane is capable of carrying 9.5-tonne payload. In its troopcarrying configuration, the aircraft can transport 71 fully armed soldiers. It can land at remote, unpaved runways. PM Modi started off by remembering Ratan Tata, who died earlier this month. “India’s defence manufacturing is touching new heights. Had we not taken concrete steps 10 years ago, this plant would not have been possible,” he said while taking a dig at his predecessors. “Earlier, the priority and identity of defence manufacturing was about importing weapons and equipment,” said Modi. India has created a vibrant defence industry, said the Decide on Punjab’s ~1,200 cr demand to curb farm fires in 2 wks: SC to Centre ■ Tata, Airbus had inked deal to manufacture 56 aircraft at a cost of ~21,935 crore ■ 16 aircraft are being delivered by Airbus from Spain, remaining to be manufactured in India ■ First aircraft from the Vadodara facility to roll out in Sept 2026, the remaining by Aug 2031 ABOUT C-295 PLANES The plane is capable of carrying 9.5-tonne payload. In its troopcarrying configuration, the aircraft can transport 71 fully armed soldiers. It can land at remote, unpaved runways. PM Modi and Spanish President Pedro Sanchez in Vadodara. PTI PM, adding, “Our exports are up 30 times. We are exporting to more than 100 countries.” Though Modi did not give the figures, Ministry of Defence data says India’s military equipment exports stood at Rs 1,941 crore in 20132014 and rose to Rs 21,083 crore in 2023-24. Dwelling on GS Paul Tribune News Service Amritsar, October 28 Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) candidate Harjinder Singh Dhami was on Monday reelected the president of the Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (SGPC) for a fourth consecutive term. Dhami defeated his rival and former SGPC chief Bibi Jagir Kaur, who was fielded by the Shiromani Akali Dal Sudhar Lehar, a rebel faction of the SAD. A total of 142 votes were polled after a proposal by Dhami for completing the election process by “raising of hands” was turned down. While Dhami secured 107 votes, Bibi Jagir Kaur could get only 33. Two votes were declared invalid. Of 148 members, 142 turned up to participate in the election to the top post of the apex gurdwara body at Teja Singh Samundri Hall in the Golden Temple complex here. Dhami’s convincing win has once again cemented the SAD’s grip over the SGPC despite the party facing an existential crisis. In the last 15 years, this was the first SGPC elections where SAD As the Bench pulled up the governments of Punjab and Haryana for not prosecuting all errant farmers and letting them off with small fines, Punjab Advocate General Gurminder Singh emphasised that penalising farmers wasn’t a solution to the problem as most of them were marginal farmers who needed to be given incentives. Noting that paddy was grown on 32 lakh hectares in Punjab, the state government told the top court that an amount of Rs 2,000 crore was needed as crop residue management incentive payment (CRMIP) to dissuade farmers from stubble burning. While Rs 400 crore each is proposed to be shelled out by the governments of Punjab and Delhi, it wanted the Centre to provide Rs 1,200 crore. In an affidavit filed in the top court, the Punjab Government said continued on page 12 New Delhi, October 28 President Droupadi Murmu on Monday granted a twoyear extension to Census Commissioner and Registrar General of India (RGI) Mrityunjay Kumar Narayan. The development is likely to pave the way for the muchdelayed Census exercise. Narayan, a 1995-batch IAS officer of Uttar Pradesh cadre, was to demit office on December 6. A notification of the Ministry of Home Affairs said Narayan would be in office till August 4, 2026, or until further orders, whichever was earlier. He would be headquartered in New Delhi, the notification said. The extension signals that the Census would get underway soon. It was to be held in 2021, but was delayed due to Covid. Recently, Home Minister Amit Shah had also said the exercise would start soon. Top MHA sources said the exercise was expected to start early next year, followed by the publication of data by 2026. While one of the 31 questions drafted by the office of the RGI for the Census relates to whether the head of the household and ONE QUESTION ON SC/ST CATEGORIES ■ One of the 31 questions draft- ed for the Census relates to households hailing from the SC/ST categories ■ But no decision has been taken yet on whether a caste census will also be carried out CONG POSERS TO GOVT Congress leader Jairam Ramesh on Monday asked the Centre, “Will caste Census be held? Will Census data be used for delimitation to redraw Lok Sabha constituencies across states?” other family members hail from the Scheduled Caste or the Scheduled Tribe category, there is no question yet on the enumeration of other castes or the caste census. INDIA bloc parties, led by the Congress, have been pressing for the enumeration of all castes, including Other Backward Classes, an exercise last done in 1931. With the prospects of a Census exercise commencing any time now, the Congress on Monday posed two questions to the government. “Will this new Census include a detailed enumeration of all castes in Our Correspondent Tribune News Service STATE WANTS TO PAY INCENTIVES TO FARMERS by TASL and Airbus earlier, 56 aircraft are to be produced at a cost of Rs 21,935 crore. Sixteen of the planes are being delivered by Airbus from Spain, and the remaining 40 will be manufactured in India. Airbus, which delivered the first plane in September 2023, Tribune News Service SAD’s Dhami elected Army ambulance attacked in Akhnoor SGPC chief 4th time Satya Prakash New Delhi, October 28 The Supreme Court has asked the Centre to take an “appropriate decision” in two weeks on the Punjab Government’s demand for Rs 1,200 crore for payment of incentives to farmers to dissuade them from stubble burning that turns Delhi-NCR into a virtual gas chamber between October and December. “We direct the Centre to immediately look into the proposal submitted by Punjab for the release of additional funds so that provisions for making available tractors with drivers and diesel can be made to those farmers whose holding is less than 10 hectares,” a three-judge Bench led by Justice AS Oka said in its October 23 order. India and Spain’s multifaceted partnership, Modi said, “Whether it is food, films, or football, our strong people-topeople connect has always strengthened our ties.” He also spoke about the recent football match between Real Madrid and Barcelona. According to a deal inked will complete the supply by August 2025. So far, six planes have been delivered to India. The first plane from the Vadodara facility will roll out in September 2026 and the remaining by August 2031. The project will also give a boost to aerospace ecosystem in India under its ‘Make in India’ initiative. For the 40 aircraft to be made by the TASL, a substantial proportion of C295 components, sub-assemblies and major component assemblies of aero structure are planned to be manufactured in India. Other than the aero engine and avionics, which are sourced by Airbus, 13,000 small and big parts needed in the C-295 will be produced in India. Of the 37 companies identified by Airbus for manufacturing parts, 33 are MSMEs. All 56 aircraft will be equipped with an electronic warfare suite that will be indigenously manufactured by Bharat Electronics Limited and Bharat Dynamics Limited. The indigenous content will rise steadily and is to reach 75 per cent for the last two dozen planes being made in India. Aditi Tandon Polls 107 of 142 votes, Bibi Jagir Kaur gets 33 SHOT IN ARM FOR SAD ■ The convincing victory of Harjinder Singh Dhami has again cemented the SAD’s grip over the SGPC despite the party facing existential crisis ■ Party spokesperson DS Cheema said those who conspired against the SAD and SGPC got a befitting reply ■ “It is a clear message that the Panthic mandate is still in favour of the SAD,” he claimed president Sukhbir Singh Badal was not directly involved as he was barred from participating in any poll activity by Akal Takht after declaring him a “tankhaiah” continued on page 12 Jammu, October 28 A terrorist was gunned down when a group of armed ultras targeted an ambulance, which was part of an Army convoy, in the Khour area of the Akhnoor sector in Jammu district on Monday. A group of at least three terrorists opened fire at the convoy, hitting the ambulance. At least two soldiers were sitting inside the vehicle when bullets were fired from the roadside. The bullets did not hit anyone but only damaged the ambulance. The soldiers immediately retaliated, forcing the terrorists to flee from the area, which is close to the Line of Control. Later, the Army mobilised special forces to launch an operation against the terrorists who went into hiding in the nearby thick foliage. In a statement, the Nagrota-based White Knight Corps said, “The body of one terrorist along with a weapon has been recovered. An operation is under progress.” “Swift retaliation by troops foiled the attack, ensuring no injuries. The area has been cordoned off and a search operation to neutralise the terrorists is going on,” the Army said. continued on page 12 addition to that of the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes that has been done in every Census since 1951? According to the Constitution, such a Caste Census is the sole responsibility of the Centre,” said Congress general secretary Jairam Ramesh. He also asked whether the Census would be used for determining the strength of each state in the Lok Sabha as provided for in Article 82 of the Constitution, which says, “Until the relevant figures for the first Census taken after 2026 have been published, it shall not be necessary to readjust the allocation of seats in the House of the people to the states as readjusted on the basis of the 1971 census.” Official sources said if the Census exercise was held in 2025 and statistics published in 2026, a delimitation exercise on the basis of that data could not be held as per Article 82. If at all a delimitation has to be done, it would require an amendment to this article. Southern states have been fearing loss of Lok Sabha seats after the next delimitation exercise whereas northern states like UP and MP tend to gain. 62 more flights get hoax bomb threats NEW DELHI: As many as 62 flights of Indian carriers — 21 each of Air India and IndiGo, and 20 of Vistara — received bomb threats on Monday, sources said. In 15 days, over 410 domestic and international flights have received hoax bomb threats. Most of the threats were issued through social media. BACK PAGE Fadnavis’ PA enters Maha poll fray too Infantry combat vehicles take position during a search operation in Jammu’s Akhnoor sector on Monday. PTI Army’s Phantom falls to enemy bullet, but after getting 1 militant eliminated Arjun Sharma Jammu, October 28 Phantom, a male Belgian Malinois, was killed this afternoon during the Army search operation in Akhnoor, when ultras opened fire on him. The assault dog joins Kent, Axel and Zoom in canine heaven today — all four animals, trained by Army units to sniff out armed terrorists, have fallen to terrorists’ bullets in the last two years. The Army, keenly aware that Phantom’s death was unusual, said in a statement, “We MUMBAI: The BJP on Monday released its third list of 25 candidates for the Maharashtra Assembly polls, giving tickets to two Congress turncoats and the personal assistant of Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis. The BJP so far has announced candidates for 146 seats. NATION Verbal duel at Waqf Billpanelmeetagain NEW DELHI: Phantom’s courage & dedication will never be forgotten, the Army said. salute the supreme sacrifice of our true hero — a valiant Indian Army dog, Phantom. As our troops were closing in on the trapped terrorists, Phantom drew enemy fire, sustaining fatal injuries. His courage, loyalty and dedication will never be forgotten.” This is how it all unfolded, Army sources told The Tribune. Soon after the terrorists in the Akhnoor sector fired continued on page 12 Members of ruling and opposition parties engaged in a verbal clash as former judges and Waqf administrators of states appeared before the Parliament panel on the Waqf Bill that met for the first time after TMC MP Kalyan Banerjee's suspension over unruly conduct. BACK PAGE Cong pitches Vinesh as ‘face of anti-BJP protest’ over women harassment Pradeep Sharma Tribune News Service Vinesh Phogat at a press meet in New Delhi. PHOTO: MANAS RANJAN BHUI Chandigarh, October 28 The Congress has pitched wrestler-turned-politician and newly elected MLA from Julana Vinesh Phogat as the “face of anti-BJP protest” over alleged women harassment cases. Vinesh had led the wrestlers’ protest against former Wrestling Federation of India (WFI) chief and senior BJP leader Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh. She shared the stage with All India Mahila Congress chief Alka Lamba in New Delhi today to raise the issue of the Uttar Pradesh Police allegedly targeting Youth Congress leader Roshni Jaiswal after she slapped a BJP worker over alleged “rape threats” issued by him. A senior Congress leader told The Tribune that the party wanted to use Vinesh’s image as a youth icon to put the BJP on the mat as the saf- c m y b fron party allegedly tries to suppress cases of injustice against women. “As she is the face of the women wrestlers’ protest against a powerful six-time MP her voice carries a lot of , credibility. On becoming MLA, Vinesh will get a chance to raise cases of women harassment both inside and outside the Haryana Assembly,” he asserted. The Congress leader said that given her celebrity status, Vinesh would be a perfect antidote to the BJP’s “misinformation” about all it has done for women empowerment. Incidentally, besides Sirsa MP Kumari Selja, not many prominent women politicians from the Haryana Congress are active at the national level. “A role for Vinesh at the national level could go a long way in bringing back women and youth to the Congress,” the leader contended. While Vinesh highlighted the sexual harassment cases involving BJP leaders in other states, she made a special mention of such cases in her home state. The case involving former minister Sandeep Singh and the recent one related to seven women police constables alleging sexual harassment by an IPS officer were raised by her. Vinesh reiterated she would be always available to take up the cases of women harassment anywhere in the country.