eye THE SUNDAY EXPRESS MAGAZINE MALABAR RAP KOLKATA,LATECITY NOVEMBER3,2024 After taking over Kerala, Malayalam rap is now going global 14+4PAGES,`7.00 (`12 IN NORTH EAST STATES & `17 IN ANDAMAN) DAILY FROM: AHMEDABAD, CHANDIGARH, DELHI, JAIPUR, KOLKATA, LUCKNOW, MUMBAI, NAGPUR, PUNE, VADODARA THE WORLD TRUMP AND HARRIS HEAD TO N CAROLINA IN FINAL WEEKEND OF POLL CAMPAIGN KHAMENEI WARNS OF ‘CRUSHING RESPONSE’ PAGE 10 Rural Development Dept keen to rationalise pay for its 250 consultants SUMMONS OTTAWA DIPLOMAT, LODGES PROTEST Ourconsularofficialsundersurveillance,theircommunicationsintercepted...facingharassment:MEA SHUBHAJIT ROY NEW DELHI, NOVEMBER 2 DAYS AFTER senior members of the Trudeau administration alleged that Union Home Minister Amit Shah was behind a campaign to target Khalistan separatistsbasedinCanada,Indiahas lodgedaprotest“inthestrongest terms” through diplomatic channels, calling the allegations “absurd and baseless”. And in remarks suggesting further strain in relations, New Delhi has warned Ottawa that “such irresponsible actions will have serious consequences for bilateral ties”. Responding to questions at a media briefing Saturday, Randhir Jaiswal, spokesperson for the Ministry of External Affairs, said, “We had summoned the representative of the CanadianHighCommissionyesterday. A Diplomatic Note was handed over in reference to the proceedings of the Standing Committee on Public Safety and National Security in Ottawa on October 29, 2024.” “It was conveyed in the Note that the Government of India protestsinthestrongesttermsto Canadian PM Justin Trudeau at a Diwali event in Ontario. PTI EXPLAINED E Govt eye on pay, ● capacity THE GOVT wants to be sure rules are followed while paying top salaries to consultants from external agencies. At another level, the government is also keen to build human resource capacities within. The committee was set up following a report submitted by the Indian Institute of Public Administration(IIPA)lastyearto the Department of Rural Development. An academician involved in the IIPA said, “We havesuggestedfollowingcertain SOPs (Standard Operating Procedure)whilehiringconsultants and that the hiring should be in compliance with the GFR CONTINUED ON PAGE 2 the absurd and baseless references made to the Union Home Minister of India before the Committee by Deputy Minister David Morrison,” he said. “In fact, the revelation that high Canadian officials deliberately leak unfounded insinuations to the international media as part of a conscious strategy to discredit India and influence other nations only confirms the view the Government of India has long held about the current Canadian Government’s political agenda and behavioural pattern. Such irresponsible actions CONTINUED ON PAGE 2 13-MTH LOW IN OCT, SET TO PICK UP IN NOV Crude imports fall amid refinery shutdowns and West Asia tension NEW DELHI, NOVEMBER 2 SUKALP SHARMA NEW DELHI, NOVEMBER 2 During a gunfight between security forces and militants in Khanyar area of downtown Srinagar on Saturday. Shuaib Masoodi INDIA’S CRUDE oil imports in October declined to a 13-month low amid maintenance-related shutdowns at some refineries and the geopolitical crisis in West Asia which led to fears of highvolatilityininternationaloil prices.Consequently,importvol- FOUR-PAGE PULLOUT ALONG LAC IN EASTERN LADAKH IndiaslamsCanadachargeagainstShah, warnsof‘seriousconsequences’forties SHYAMLAL YADAV THE DEPARTMENT of Rural Development, which has taken over 250 consultants on contract, has set up a committee to suggest “measures for rationalisation” of emoluments being paid to them. The committee, chaired by Additional Secretary T K Anil Kumar is expected to submit its report in November, sources told The Indian Express. It will “examine the present emoluments being paid to consultants in different program divisionsandsuggestmeasuresfor rationalisation of such emoluments for the department”, the sources said. WWW.INDIANEXPRESS.COM umes from the top five suppliers — Russia, Iraq, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, and the United States — declined sequentially, according to ship tracking data. InOctober,Indianrefinerscumulativelyimported4.35million barrels per day (bpd) of crude, down 7.6 per cent month-onmonth, according to provisional CONTINUED ON PAGE 2 Govt: Patrolling has commenced on agreed terms in Depsang, Demchok Dialogue mechanisms will be used to stabilise, rebuild ties, says MEA THE DEPSANG PATROLLING POINTS 11 Limitof PP10 Raki Nala Roadto DBO Daulat Beg Oldie Depsang Plains Ladakh Galwan Hot Springs Patrolling 11A 12 Burtse Dharti Leh Darbuk 13 Chushul Demchok JivanNala Bottleneck (Y-junction) LineofActualControl(LAC) SHUBHAJIT ROY NEW DELHI, NOVEMBER 2 THE GOVERNMENT Saturday confirmed “verification patrolling has commenced on mutually agreed terms in Demchok and Depsang” along the Line of ActualControl in eastern Ladakh aspartof anagreementbetween India and China to reduce tensions in the region while they look to repair bilateral ties. The agreement restores Indian access to its patrolling points in the Depsang Plains not farfromDaulatBegOldie,India’s northern outpost near the Karakoram Pass, and Demchok in the southeast of Ladakh. The announcement on re- INSIDE NEPAL PM PICKS CHINA FOR FIRST BILATERAL VISIT P 8 sumption of patrolling in the Depsang Plains came a day after Indian Army sources confirmed that “coordinated patrolling” had begun in the Demchok area where the Chinese had been squatting at Charding Nullah. In the Depsang Plains, the PLA had cut off Indian access to five patrolling points — PP 10, 11, 11A, 12, 13. Randhir Jaiswal, spokesperson for the Ministry of External CONTINUED ON PAGE 2 FOUR CRPF, POLICE PERSONNEL INJURED Lashkar commander among 3 killed in Srinagar, Anantnag gunbattles Foreign militant was involved in killing of inspector in 2023 NAVEED IQBAL SRINAGAR, NOVEMBER 2 A LASHKAR-E-TAIBA commander, who the police have identified as Usman Lashkari, was killed in an encounter that broke out in Srinagar’s Khanyar area early Friday morning. Inspector General, J&K Police (Kashmir Zone), V K Birdi said that four security personnel — twoeachfromtheJ&KPoliceand the CRPF — were injured in the day-long encounter. They were admitted to Army's 92 Base Hospital and are stable, officials said. According to the police, the foreign militant killed in the encounter, Usman, had been active in Srinagar for the last few months.TheIGPsaidthathewas involved in the killing of inspector Masroor Wani, who was shot in the Eidgah area of Srinagar while playing cricket on October 29 last year. He died at AIIMS, Delhi in December. In a statement earlier in the day,theJammuandKashmirpolice said that “a cordon and search operation in Khanyar has resulted in an exchange of fire”, and that “police and security forces are on the job”. In a separate encounter, two CONTINUED ON PAGE 2 ‘Parking row’ leads to clash in Kolkata, police resort to lathicharge, use teargas DECISION RAVIK BHATTACHARYA ● Rebel woes: BJP worst hit, parties rush to pacify leaders WHAT ALLEGEDLY began as an argumentoverparkingescalated into a full-blown clash between two groups in north Kolkata’s Narkeldanga on Friday night, prompting the police and the Rapid Action Force (RAF) to resort to lathicharge and use of tear gas. According to police sources, it started as an argument between two youngsters over the parking of a motorcycle in Rajabazar area under Narkeldanga police station 2024 ● Cong-BJP direct fights in 76 seats hold key to next Maharashtra govt PAGE 7 KOLKATA, NOVEMBER 2 In Kolkata’s Narkeldanga area on Friday. Partha Paul around 9:30 pm. Soon, more people gathered and stones and glass bottles were pelted. Although the incident occurred around the time of CONTINUED ON PAGE 2 Private, not Govt, is primary school for children in Haryana, Manipur, Telangana PAGE 1 ANCHOR BUCKING THE ENROLMENT TREND ■ Govt schools ■ Pvt schools ■ Pvt-aided schools ■ Others ABHINAYA HARIGOVIND NEW DELHI, NOVEMBER 2 WHILE GOVERNMENT schools continue to enrol the majority of school-going children nationwide, the most recent data from the National Sample Survey Office (NSSO) on primary school enrolment reveals that three 66.7% Haryana 23.4% National Average Manipur 8.7% Telangana 1.2% Source: MoSPI’s Comprehensive Annual Modular Survey 2022-23 Puducherry 45.6% 40.2% 73.5% 21% 57.5% 30.5% 63% 26.7% Pangong Tso statescontinuetobuckthistrend. In Classes 1 to 5, Haryana, Manipur, Telangana, and Puducherry (Union Territory) have more children studying in private schools than in government ones, according to the ComprehensiveAnnualModular Survey (CAMS) 2022-23, released last month. This survey, the first of its kind, confirms findings of the 2021-22 UDISE survey (Unified District Information System for CONTINUED ON PAGE 2 Kolkata