DAILY FROM: AHMEDABAD, CHANDIGARH, DELHI, JAIPUR, KOLKATA, LUCKNOW, MUMBAI, NAGPUR, PUNE, VADODARA ● REG.NO. MCS/067/2018 - 20 RNI REGN. NO. 1543/57 JOURNALISM OF COURAGE SATURDAY, JUNE 7, 2025, MUMBAI, LATE CITY, 20 PAGES `5.00 ● WWW.INDIANEXPRESS.COM SINCE 1932 Respecting Every Grain, Rewarding Every Effort 01101/13/0009/2526 With a historic rise, MSP now 150% of the cost ₹18 lakh crore given to farmers for wheat and paddy procurement at MSP in the last decade; 3 times compared to 2004-2014 First thaw in chill: Canada’s Carney calls PM, invites him to G7 Summit Look forward to our meeting, will work together with renewed vigour: Modi SHUBHAJIT ROY Carney’s call comes days before start of summit on June 15 NEW DELHI, JUNE 6 INAdiplomaticoutreachtowards mendingbilateraltiesafterayearand-half of acrimony and hostility, Canadian Prime Minister MarkCarneyFridayinvitedPrime MinisterNarendraModitotheG7 Summit on June 15-17. Following a phone call from Carney,Modi,inapostonX,said, “GladtoreceiveacallfromPrime Minister Mark J Carney of Canada. Congratulated him on his recent election victory and thankedhimfortheinvitationto the G7 Summit in Kananaskis later this month.” “As vibrant democracies bound by deep people-to-people ties, India and Canada will work together with renewed vigour,guidedbymutualrespect and shared interests. Look forward to our meeting at the Summit,” he said. Carney said, “I spoke with @NarendraModi today on the longstanding relationship between Canada and India, includ- A Vande Bharat train crosses the newly inaugurated Chenab rail bridge in J&K’s Reasi district, Friday. This is the first rail link between the Valley and Jammu region. PTI Opening key rail bridge to Valley, PM targets Pak: Pahalgam terror was also attack on J&K livelihood Chenab bridge is all-weather link from Udhampur to Baramulla Srinagar QazigundBaramulla (118 km) Baramulla Qazigund BanihalQazigund (18 km) Banihal Katra-Banihal (111 km) CHENAB BRIDGE Udhampur -Katra (25 km) ShriMataVaishno DeviKatra Udhampur E Prime Minister Narendra Modi with the Tricolour on the Chenab bridge in Reasi district, Friday. PTI PAGE 8 as the country’s first cablestayed bridge of the Indian Railways over Anji Khad. The 272-km Udhampur-SrinagarBaramulla railway link (USBRL) Projectisdesignedtoprovideallweatherconnectivitybyeventually linking the Kashmir Valley CONTINUED ON PAGE 2 120 Integrated water transport terminal to come up at Targhar 148 ALOK DESHPANDE 07/06/2025 92 76 INSIDE STAMPEDE: RCB HEAD OF MARKETING AMONG 4 HELD, CM’S POLITICAL SECY SACKED PAGE 6 IN A DECADE, INDIA’S EXTREME POVERTY RATE FALLS TO 5.3% FROM 27.1% PAGE 12 EXPLAINED KATRA, JUNE 6 GOVT & POLITICS PAK WRITES AGAIN, OFFERS TO RENEW IWT TALKS; INDIA NOT READY YET MUMBAI, JUNE 6 IN A bid to promote water transport between Mumbai and Navi Mumbai, apart from improving the connectivity to the upcoming Navi Mumbai International Airport(NMIA),thestategovernment has prepared plans to set up an Integrated Inland Water Transport Terminal at Targhar village, which is at a distance of 1.2 kilometres from the upcoming airport at the southern bank of Panvelcreek.Theterminalwill not only facilitate movement of passengers,visitorsandemployees,butalsocargobetweensouth Mumbai and Navi Mumbai. Earlier this week, City and Industrial Development Corporation (CIDCO) made a presentationof thepossibleproject site to Maharashtra's ports department. As per the presentation, the access to nearly 5 to 7 acres of the site will be made through a proposed coastal road and it will cross Amra Marg (a roadneartheairport)throughan underpass and will reach via service road of Amra Marg. The projectwouldrequireCRZclearance. The said coastal road is 7km long (5.8 kilometres for the main alignment and 1.2 km for theairportlink)andconstruction workislikelytobecompletedby September 2026. CONTINUED ON PAGE 2 TRUMP-MUSK RELATIONSHIP FLAMES OUT PUBLICLY PAGE 16 STARLINK GETS SATCOM LICENCE FROM INDIA PAGE 17 NEW DELHI, JUNE 6 “INTHEbeginning,therewereno roads. We would go by foot, on mules and ponies, perch ourselves on a ledge and even camp on cliffs at night as we surveyed how we could build roads to move the equipment to the bridgesite.Iknew the Sahyadris. I was just a boy from Mysore and ● hereIwas,highon the Himalayas, so very different, terrifyingly high and so very alien.” The “boy from Mysore” is LPrakashwho,asChief Engineer of the Konkan Railways’ Udhampur-Srinagar-Baramulla RailLink(USBRL)project,wasresponsible for laying the roads. Now an Executive Director, he recalled the early days when INSIDE PAGES 7, 13, 14 TISS pro-VC told to step down after complaint with vigilance panel PALLAVI SMART MUMBAI, JUNE 6 THE TATA Institute of Social Sciences (TISS) has relieved its Pro-Vice Chancellor Professor Shankar Das of his administrative responsibilities with immediate effect, following an alleged complaintof financialmisappropriation lodged with the Central Vigilance Commission (CVC). He will, however, continue as professor until final inquiry report. According to a notice issued by TISS Registrar Narendra Mishra on June 5, “Consequent uponapprovalof theCompetent CONTINUED ON PAGE 2 Konkan Rly CMD S K Jha; (right) its ED L Prakash BUSINESS AS USUAL BY UNNY CONTINUED ON PAGE 2 INSIDE RINKU GHOSH ARUN SHARMA ACCUSING PAKISTAN of attacking“insaaniyatandKashmiriyat” bytargetingtouristsinPahalgam, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said Friday that the intention of theattackwas“toengineercommunalclashesacrossthecountry anddeprivepeopleof Kashmirof their livelihood”. Modi was speaking after he flagged off two Vande Bharat trains between Katra and Srinagar and inaugurated the world’s highest railway arch bridge over the Chenab as well How it was done: ‘For 12 years, we ate, lived, breathed the Chenab’ ing deep people-to-people ties andsignificantcommerciallinks. Importantly, we agreed to continued law enforcement dialogue and discussions addressing security concerns.” The invitation, less than 10 days before the Summit, is a major breakthrough after the chill in ties. The two countries downgraded diplomatic ties after Justin Trudeau, the then Canadian Prime Minister, set off a political storm in 2023 when he alleged “potential” involvement of Indian government agents in the killing of a Canadabased Khalistan separatist, Hardeep Singh Nijjar. India rejected the charges as “absurd” and “motivated”. India has been invited to every G7 Summit since 2019. RBI surprises with 50 bps cut in key rate to boost growth CRR slashed by 100 bps for liquidity; interest rates on loans, deposits to fall CONTINUED ON PAGE 2 What Maharashtra wants will happen, says Uddhav, confirms talks with MNS HITESH VYAS VALLABH OZARKAR MUMBAI, JUNE 6 MUMBAI, JUNE 6 AMID GROWING talks over a possible reconciliation with cousin Raj Thackeray, Shiv Sena (UBT) president Uddhav Thackeray on Friday confirmed that discussions—at least informally—are underway with the Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS), saying that the party is now looking into “minute details” of a potential alliance. “There is no confusion in my mind or that of my Shiv Sainiks. Even MNS workers are in touch with us, and there is no confusion in their minds either,” Uddhav told reporters at his residence, Matoshree. RBI Governor Sanjay Malhotra with Deputy Governors Poonam Gupta, M Rajeshwar Rao, T Rabi Sankar and Swaminathan Janakiraman in Mumbai, Friday. Amit Chakravarty Uddhav Thackeray and Raj Thackeray When asked directly about thestatusof thetalks,hereplied, “Let us contemplate some minutedetails.”Headded,“Iwill not give a message—I will give news. And what is in the hearts of the people of Maharashtra— that will happen.” Uddhav’sremarkscomeaday afterRaj’ssonAmithitoutatShiv Sena (UBT) leaders for giving CONTINUED ON PAGE 2 THE RESERVE Bank of India’s Monetary Policy Committee delivered a frontloaded rate cut Fridaybycuttingthereporateby 50 basis points to 5.50 per cent in a move aimed at propelling economicgrowth.Alongsidethe steeper than expected rate cut, the RBI also announced a staggered reduction in the cash reserve ratio by 100 basis points, startingSeptember6,2025,tofacilitate faster monetary policy transmission. Borrowers,particularlythose with home loans, will benefit from the rate cut, with lending rates expected to decrease by 50 basis points immediately. However, depositors and savers canexpectlowerreturnsontheir bank deposits in the coming months as banks revise their deposit and savings bank rates. The 50 bps reduction in the policy repo rate, taken in a 5:1 majority,wasagainstthemarket consensus of a 25 bps cut and marks the third consecutive rate cut and a total reduction of 100 bps since February 2025. One basis point (bps) is one-hundredth of a percentage point. The reduction in the CRR — the percentage of a bank’s total deposits that it is required to maintain in liquid cash with the RBI as a reserve — would release primary liquidity of about Rs 2.5 lakh crore to the banking system by December 2025. The cut in CONTINUED ON PAGE 2