DAILY FROM: AHMEDABAD, CHANDIGARH, DELHI, JAIPUR, KOLKATA, LUCKNOW, MUMBAI, NAGPUR, PUNE, VADODARA JOURNALISM OF COURAGE TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 19, 2024, AHMEDABAD, LATE CITY, 16 PAGES WORST AIR QUALITY SINCE 2019, TOP COURT SAYS DON’T LIFT CURBS UNTIL ORDERS Delhi breathes poison AQI at 494, city braces for tough days as weather conditions stay unfavourable NEW DELHI, NOVEMBER 18 CONTINUED ON PAGE 2 MORECENTRALFORCESONWAY Manipur CM Biren, MLAs to Centre: Go after Kuki militants, review AFSPA CM-led meet warns: If demands not met, NDA MLAs and people will decide the future course of action SOPHIYA MATHEW JIMMY LEIVON, SUKRITA BARUAH & MAHENDER SINGH MANRAL IMPHAL, SILCHAR, NEW DELHI, NOVEMBER 18 Students walk to their school on a gloomy Monday morning in Delhi. Praveen Khanna E EXPLAINED DELHI’S AIR, already at toxic levels, turned worse on Monday, turning the city into a gas chamber. The Air Quality Index (AQI) deteriorated from 441 on Sunday to 494, its worst-ever — on a par with the city’s most polluted day recorded in 2019. Since 2015, when the Central Pollution Control Board started maintaining air quality data, the AQI has deteriorated to this level only once before, on November 2, 2019. Now,fiveyearsanddozensof Supreme Court orders later — and despite stringent measures on days when the AQI is in the severe and severe+ zone — Delhi appearstobebacktosquareone. Nudged by the Supreme Court, which on Monday said physical classes in schools should be suspended, the Delhi government announced that classes for Class X and XII students would move online. The administration in Gurgaon and Faridabad also issued orders to suspend physical classes up to Class XII until November 23. The Delhi University declared that classes in all colleges will move online, at least until Saturday. The day started with dense smog, leading to delays for several flights, 15 diversions and 21 `5.00 WWW.INDIANEXPRESS.COM SINCE 1932 Why air quality is ● dipping A COMBINATION of meteorological factors, high emission load from Delhi’s own sources as well as stubble burning has led to a drastic increase in the AQI. With the temperatures dipping, but winds remaining calm, pollutant concentration has only gone up over the past three days. A slight respite is only expected after Thursday, when the wind speed will pick up. SC orders GRAP-4 curbs even if AQI falls below 450, flags delay in action ANANTHAKRISHNAN G NEW DELHI, NOVEMBER 18 POINTING TO a delay in implementing strict measures despite theworseningairqualityinDelhi and the National Capital Region (NCR), the Supreme Court Monday directed that curbs under Stage 4 of the Graded Response Action Plan (GRAP) to deal with the situation will remaininforceuntilfurtherorders. “We make it clear that until further orders are passed by this court, implementation of Stage 4 will continue even if AQI level drops below 450,” a bench of Justices A S Oka and A G Masih ordered. Directing all NCR governments to strictly implement Stage 4 of GRAP, the court said, “Allstateswillimmediatelyconstitute teams for monitoring implementation of actions which are required to be taken under Stage 4.” The court also asked states in the NCR area to take an immediate call on stopping physical classes of all standards up to 12. “It is the constitutional obligationof thecentralgovernment andstategovernmentstoensure that citizens live pollution free. Therefore, in addition to the actions which are proposed under Stage3and4,allpossibleactions shall be taken at the level of these governments to ensure that the AQI is brought down,” the bench said. The bench, which was hearing a plea seeking directions to enforce measures to check the CONTINUED ON PAGE 2 FAREED ZAKARIA AT ADDA BUSINESS AS USUAL BY UNNY HOURS AFTER the Centre ordered an additional 70 companies of paramilitary forces to Manipur in the wake of a new wave of killings and protests there, the state’s ruling alliance MLAs, at a meeting chaired by Chief Minister N Biren Singh, passed a resolution Monday, urging the Centre to “review the imposition of AFSPA” in six police stations areas of the valley. The MLAs demanded “mass operationsagainstKukimilitants responsible for” the November 11 abduction and killing of six Meitei women and children from Jiribam, and to declare theman“unlawfulorganisation” within seven days. The resolution stated that if these were “not implemented within the specified period, the NDA legislators will decide the futurecourseof actioninconsultation with the people of the state”. It also stated that legal actionwouldbetakenagainstpeople who had vandalised the homes of legislators during the protests. The Centre had reimposed the Disturbed Areas status CONTINUEDONPAGE2 Manipur minister Govindas Konthoujam’s residence, which was set on fire, in Bishnupur district, Monday. PTI Centre, state have failed to ensure safety, resolve sincerely: RSS & ABVP DEEPTIMAN TIWARY NEW DELHI, NOVEMBER 18 WITH THE situation in Manipur deteriorating, the state unit of the RSS Monday urged the Centreandthestategovernment to “sincerely” resolve the ongoing ethnic conflict at the earliest. The Sangh student wing ABVP went a step further, saying IN MAJOR SHIFT, BIDEN ALLOWS UKRAINETO USE U.S. ARMS TO STRIKE INSIDE RUSSIA PAGE 13 LIZ MATHEW THE SECOND largest ally of the BJP-led Manipur government, National People’s Party (NPP), Sunday withdrew support to it, citing its failure to “restore normalcy” in the state and expressing “deep concern”. NPP leader and Meghalaya Chief Minister Conrad Sangma speaks to The IndianExpressonthereasonsbehindwithdrawingsupporttothe N Biren Singh government and the way forward. Excerpts: Foreign policy expert, author and CNN news host Fareed Zakaria in conversation with Anant Goenka, Executive Director, The Indian Express Group, and Shubhajit Roy, Diplomatic Editor, at the Express Adda in Mumbai on Monday. Sankhadeep Banerjee Surat hospital sealed for want of fire NOC, a day after inauguration EXPRESS NEWS SERVICE SURAT, NOVEMBER 18 A DAY after it was inaugurated by a Joint Commissioner of Police, a Multispeciality private hospital was sealed by the Surat fire department on the grounds that the premises neither had a fire NOC (No-objection certificate) nor fire safety equipment in working condition. The hospital is also being probed by teams from the office of Chief District Health Officer PAGE 1 ANCHOR (CDHO) following information that all three owners had been to jail in connection with different cases. ThehospitalisownedbyDrB RShukla,DrGPMishra,andDrR K Dubey. Talking to The Indian Express, Pandesara police inspector H M Gadhvi said, “Surat police had registered cases against Dr Shukla and Dr Dubey as they were running their clinics in Bamroli area without showing valid degrees. Dr Mishra has three prohibition cases filed against him in 2020 – one each in Surat City, Surat Rural and Navsari police station. All three are out on bail.” The hospital management had extended invitation cards to Surat Municipal Commissioner Shalini Agrawal, requesting her to be the chief guest, and Surat Police Commissioner Anupam Singh Gahlaut and Joint Police Commissioner, Traffic and Crime,RaghvendraVatsa,asking them to be guests of honour. WhileAgrawalandGahlautgave CONTINUED ON PAGE 2 Why has the NPP accused the THE EXPRESS INTERVIEW CONRAD SANGMA NPP LEADER & MEGHALAYA CM BJP government of failure in Manipur? The Manipur issue is a complicated issue and, because of historical reasons, things there As campaign ends, Rahul targets PM, BJP: ‘Real poll issue Adani, Dharavi’ Thestategoestothepolls on Wednesday. MUMBAI, NOV 18 Gandhi, the Leader of the Opposition in the CONGRESS LEADER Lok Sabha, drew a link Rahul Gandhi on between the BJP's alDECISION leged proximity to inMonday targeted Prime 2024 MinisterNarendraModi dustrialist Gautam MAHARASHTRA over his “ek hain toh safe Adani and the projects hain (together, we are allottedtohiscompany, safe)” poll slogan as the includingtheDharaviredevelopMaharashtra Assembly election mentprojectinMumbai.Hitting campaigndrewtoaclosewithpo- back,therulingpartysaidAdani’s litical parties making a last- growth began when minute push to convince voters. CONTINUED ON PAGE 2 CONTINUED ON PAGE 2 Sangma: No effective step possible in Manipur without change of guard NEW DELHI, NOVEMBER 18 THE WORLD “the state and Central governments have failed to ensure safety and normalcy in Manipur”. It also said that authorities be held accountable for their failure to protect lives. The Manipur Prant of the RSS, in a statement to the press, said, “It is unfortunate that 19 months of violence in Manipur starting from May 3, 2023 has have always been complicated. Obviously,thingsthathappened in the past have complicated it further. In this violence and law andordersituationlastingabout a year-and-a-half, multiple factors have led to the current situation.Certainactionsandcertain non-actions have aggravated it… of course, you cannot have thecorrectsolutionatthatpoint. It’s very easy to look back and say, ‘You should have done this’. Some efforts were there, but somehow things kept slipping. Nowwehavereachedapoint where things are really out of control. We continue to see law CONTINUED ON PAGE 2 DECISION 2024 ALOK DESHPANDE ● Nagpur South West seat contest: No cakewalk but ‘aayega toh Deva bhau hi’ ● Jharkhand: Poll promises flash in pan, it is always dark in ‘coal capital’ Congress leader Rahul Gandhi at a press conference in Mumbai on Monday. Ganesh Shirsekar PAGES 11 ‘Ragging’ death: Village to medical college, 18-yr-old’s dream cut short RITU SHARMA JESADA (SURENDRANAGAR), NOVEMBER 18 AN INCONSOLABLE mother and a sister who had to be rushed to a hospital due to low blood pressure — similar heartbreaking scenes were witnessed at the Methaniya house on Monday morninginJesada,oneof thelast villages along the Little Rann of Kutch in Gujarat. An eerie silence gripped the house as relatives gathered to mourn the death of 18-year-old Anil Methaniya, a first-year student at Gujarat Medical Education and Research Society (GMERS) Medical College at Dharpur in Patan. Anil had joinedthecollegeonOctober14, barely a month before his death. Thestudent—whohadscored 550 in NEET without taking any coaching classes — died after he was allegedly ragged by his seniors in his hostel on the interveningnightofNovember16-17.Anil reportedlyfellunconsciouslateon November 16, after he was made to stand for nearly four hours. Besidesbeingbookedforcul- pablehomicidenotamountingto murder, 15 of Anil’s seniors have been suspended by the medical college following a report by its anti-ragging committee. Inspector P J Solanki of Balisana police station told The IndianExpress,“All15second-year students have been arrested.” BackattheMethaniyahouse, the family says Anil was the only student from Jesada, a small village with an estimated population of 5,000 in Dhrangadhra taluka of Surendranagar, who had cracked the tough all-India pre-medical entrance exam. At the home of Anil Methaniya in Gujarat’s Jesada village on Monday. Ritu Sharma The youngest among three siblings, Anil was the only son of Natwarbhai, 56, a farmer, and Gitaben, 53, a home-maker. Anil’selderSheetal,whogotmarriedin2019,completedhergraduation in science and education, while Nidhi is a physiotherapist. “Anil was very excited about Nidhi’s February wedding. He hadpromisedtohelpwithallthe preparations,” says Sheetal, 28. After he finished his primary educationfromaprivateschoolin Dhrangadhra,20kmfromJesada, Anil’s father shifted him to the Vivekananda Science Academy Sadhana Vidyalaya in Halvad, nearly 50 km from the village. In Class 9 and 10, Anil lived with his sister Sheetal and brother-in-law Hirenbhai in Dhrangadhra. “He stayed with us for nearly two years. In all that time, he never asked for anything. However, we knew that he was fondoftravellingandlovedpizza. His last trip was to Shimla — the schooltookhimthereinClass11,” says Hirenbhai. While in Class 10, Anil had made up his mind that he wanted to become a doctor, says Gautam Methaniya, 23, his cousin who is an IT professional based in Ahmedabad. “He was a brilliant student. He did not take any coaching classes but he still managed to crack NEET. He scored 550 in NEET and 90.57 percentile in GUJCET (Gujarat Common Entrance Test),” says Gautam. Anil’s father says his hardworking son had just one dream — “to make his family proud”. Natwarbhai says, “If fulfilling his dreamwouldhaverequiredmeto sell my land, I would have done it in a heartbeat. He was absolutely CONTINUED ON PAGE 2 Ahmedabad