DAILY FROM: AHMEDABAD, CHANDIGARH, DELHI, JAIPUR, KOLKATA, LUCKNOW, MUMBAI, NAGPUR, PUNE, VADODARA JOURNALISM OF COURAGE WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 30, 2024, AHMEDABAD, LATE CITY, 18 PAGES BY UNNY No compromise on communal harmony: Nitish at NDA meet Allies resolved to fight 2025 Bihar polls under his leadership SANTOSH SINGH PATNA, OCTOBER 29 NEARLY NINE months after he switched and returned to the NDA camp, Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar held his first-ever meeting of the alliance Monday. Thetiming,aheadof bypollsand coinciding with the countdown for next year’s Assembly polls, wasasimportantasthemessage. As all NDA allies resolved to fight the 2025 Assembly polls under Nitish, the CM stressed thattherewouldbe“nocompromiseoncommunalharmony”,irrespective of “whether Muslims vote or not” for the alliance. The JD(U) supremo, seeking tounderlinehis“secular” credentials, his frequent dalliance with the BJP notwithstanding, made the statement in the presence of CONTINUED ON PAGE 2 AYUSHMAN BHARAT PRADHAN MANTRI JAN AROGYA YOJANA EXPANDED Govt rolls out health cover for all aged 70 years and above, 6 crore to benefit PM prod to Bengal, Delhi comes as key Opp states among top beneficiaries No income limit, annual cover of Rs 5 lakh per family; Rs 5 lakh top-up for poor ANONNA DUTT KAUNAIN SHERIFF M & ANONNA DUTT PRIME MINISTER Narendra Modi on Tuesday launched the expanded Ayushman Bharat Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana (AB PM-JAY) to provide health coverage to all senior citizens aged 70 years and above, irrespective of their income — a decision which is expected to LAUNCHING AYUSHMAN Bharat Pradhan MantriJanArogyaYojana (AB PM-JAY) for every citizen over the age of 70 years, regardless of income level, Prime Minister NarendraModiflaggedhowtwo Opposition-ruled states, West NEW DELHI, OCTOBER 29 NEW DELHI, OCTOBER 29 PM Narendra Modi hands over the Ayushman Vaya Vandana card to a beneficiary at an event in Delhi on Tuesday. ANI benefit about 6 crore people from 4.5 crore families. As announced earlier, Rs 5 lakh annual coverage per family will be provided to all citizens in CONTINUED ON PAGE 2 Bengal and Delhi, would not benefit as they had opted to stay out of the scheme. The PM’s message that politics had come in the way of welfare resonates with data from the ground. Indeed, a clear trend six years into the ● scheme’s rollout is that a substantialshareof theallocated funds has been utilised by Opposition-ruled states. E EXPLAINED BUSINESS AS USUAL `5.00 WWW.INDIANEXPRESS.COM SINCE 1932 CONTINUED ON PAGE 2 Soren ‘proposer’ meets Langa ‘cheated’ businessman, say BJP leaders, is chased & police in fourth case linked to him detained; CEC steps in Conductedaprofessionalprobe,saystopcopamidcriticism ABHISHEK ANGAD RANCHI, OCTOBER 29 ITISrarefora“proposer”, whose job ends with signing poll nomination papers, to overDECISION shadow a candi2024 date.Thatcameto JHARKHAND pass in Giridih, Jharkhand on Sunday afternoon, as the ruling JMM,apparentlyinpanicoverap- EXPRESS NEWS SERVICE Jharkhand CM Hemant Soren prehension that the proposer of ChiefMinisterHemantSorenwas hobnobbing with the BJP, set off a chain of events that saw the ChiefElectionCommissionerstep in on Tuesday. CONTINUED ON PAGE 2 AHMEDABAD, OCTOBER 29 WEEKS AFTER he was arrested in a Goods and Services Tax (GST) fraud case, the Ahmedabad Detection of Crime Branch (DCB) on Tuesday filed another case against Gujaratbased senior journalist Mahesh Langa for allegedly cheating a businessman of Rs 28.68 lakh. This is the fourth case involving Langa,aseniorassistanteditorat Gyanender Malik at a presser, on Tuesday. Express The Hindu, linked to the alleged GST scam to the tune of several crores. Addressing a press conference on Tuesday, Ahmedabad City Police Commissioner GyanenderSinghMaliksaidthat his personnel “have conducted the investigation in a professional manner”. His remarks cameatthefirstsuchpressbriefing since the alleged fraud was busted earlier this month followed by Langa’s arrest. Seventeen people have been arrested in the case so far, said Malik. “There are comments on X questioning the actions of the police. That is absolutely wrong. The Crime Branch is handling this case very professionally,” he said. CONTINUEDONPAGE2 REPORT AFTER NEET LEAK Panel after leak: Send test paper digitally, answers on OMR sheet RITIKA CHOPRA NEW DELHI, OCTOBER 29 HOLDINGENTRANCEexamsonline wherever possible and using a hybrid model, where question papers are transmitted digitally but answered on paper, if needed; conducting a multistage exam for medical aspirants; rationalising the choice of subjects under the Central UniversityEntranceTest(CUET); and staffing the National Testing Agency(NTA)withmorepermanent personnel to manage these changes effectively. Theseareamongthekeyrecommendations made by the seven-member committee, headed by former ISRO head Dr KRadhakrishnan,setupafterthe recent National Eligibility cum KEY PROPOSALS ■ All exams online but where not feasible, question papers sent digitally, answers on OMR sheet ■ Fewer subjects in CUET ■ More full-time NTA staff ■ Less outsourcing to private centres Entrance Test (NEET) paper leak that set off nationwide furore. The committee was tasked with suggesting reforms to strengthen data security protocols, improve the examination process,andreviewthestructure CONTINUED ON PAGE 2 Ahmedabad