eye THE SUNDAY EXPRESS MAGAZINE If Money Could Grow AHMEDABAD,LATECITY MAY18,2025 A generation of tech-savvy youngsters are brewing a revolution in stock market 18+4PAGES,`6.00 WWW.INDIANEXPRESS.COM DAILY FROM: AHMEDABAD, CHANDIGARH, DELHI, JAIPUR, KOLKATA, LUCKNOW, MUMBAI, NAGPUR, PUNE, VADODARA FOUR-PAGE PULLOUT TEAMS TO BRIEF COUNTRIES ON PAK TERROR, OPERATION SINDOOR Tomobiliseglobalsupport,Govtforms 7all-partyteams,3ledbyOppleaders 51 politicians will go to 32 countries, including P5 minus China EXPRESS NEWS SERVICE NEW DELHI, MAY 17 ISRO’S MISSION 101 TODAY ISRO will launch an earth observation satellite, EOS-09, onboard its workhorse PSLV from Sriharikota in Andhra Pradesh on Sunday. This is the space agency’s 101st mission. ANI AS PART of its efforts to rally global support for India’s war against terror emanating from Pakistan and moving to isolate Islamabad internationally, the government announced Saturday that seven multi-party delegationswouldvisitdifferent countries to convey India’s messagepostthePahalgamterrorattack and Operation Sindoor. Three of these delegations will be headed by Opposition leaders. The delegations will be headed by Congress’s Shashi Tharoor, BJP’s Ravi Shankar Prasad and Baijayant Panda, JD(U)’sSanjayKumarJha,DMK’s Kanimozhi, NCP (SP)’s Supriya Sule and Shiv Sena’s Shrikant Eknath Shinde. The leaders — four from the ruling NDA and three from the OppositionINDIAbloc—areseasoned lawmakers with long stints in public life. In all, 51 political leaders are part of the delegations which CONTINUED ON PAGE 2 Leaders of the delegations The teams will include MPs, prominent political personalities, and distinguished diplomats FULLLIST,PAGE12 SHASHI THAROOR Congress RAVI SHANKAR PRASAD BJP BAIJAYANT PANDA BJP Informing Pak: Rahul targets Jaishankar, Govt says his facts wrong EXPRESS NEWS SERVICE NEW DELHI, MAY 17 SANJAY KUMAR JHA JD(U) KANIMOZHI DMK SUPRIYA SULE NCP (SP) SHRIKANT EKNATH SHINDE Shiv Sena KANIMOZHI, SUPRIYA SULE SAY THEY ACCEPT INVITE, STAND UNITED Congress sulks over Govt choice of its 4 leaders, Tharoor as a team head Govtshouldhaveconsultedus...allleadersnamedwillgo:Jairam MANOJ C G NEW DELHI, MAY 17 ONCEAGAIN,theCongressstood isolated in the INDIA bloc and its frayedintra-partyequationssurfaced Saturday when the government announced the names of leaders to head all-party dele- gations to reinforce Delhi’s global diplomatic outreach under Operation Sindoor. The party distanced itself from the choice and made its resentment evident, saying the government “cannot announce names without consulting us”. Lateatnight,aftertheCentreannouncedthenamesof therestof the delegation members, the Congresssaid“mostregrettably” only one of the four names it suggested had been included in the seven groups. “This proves the complete insincerity of the Modi government and shows the cheap political games it always plays on serious national CONTINUED ON PAGE 2 IN HIS first remarks post Operation Sindoor and cessation of military action by India and Pakistan, Rahul Gandhi, Leader of the Opposition in Lok Sabha, Saturday targeted External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar for his remarks that India had informed Pakistan about targeting the terrorist infrastructure on its soil. Stating that it was “a crime” to inform Pakistan “at the start of our attack”, Gandhi sought to know how many aircraft did the IAF “lose as a result”. The Ministry of External Affairs (MEA), responding to Gandhi’s statement, called it a “misrepresentation of facts”. Speaking to reporters Thursday,Jaishankarhadsaid“at thestartof theoperation,wehad sent a message to Pakistan saying we are striking at terrorists’ CONTINUED ON PAGE 2 CURBS POST TRUMP TARIFFS Enrolment in Govt In reciprocal move, schools drops; Centre China curbs on rare earth magnets: Electric India places curbs Vehicle makers face asks states to probe, Beijing insists on undertakings on shortage, approach govt on Bangla exports Key to send remedial plans nature of use, endorsement of importer making ENROLMENT DIP: TOP 5 STATES STATE ENROLMENT DROP 2023-24 2024-25 UP 1.74 crore 1.52 crore 21.83 lakh Bihar 1.79 crore 1.73 crore 6.14 lakh Rajasthan 62.65 lakh 57.02 lakh 5.63 lakh West Bengal 1.17 crore 1.13 crore 4.01 lakh Karnataka 43.49 lakh 41.33 lakh 2.15 lakh ABHINAYA HARIGOVIND NEW DELHI, MAY 17 A STEEP drop in government school enrolment at the primary and upper-primary levels across 23 States and UTs in 2024-25 has evokedconcernwithintheUnion government, prompting the Ministry of Education (MoE) to askforprobesandremedialaction plans from the states concerned. Minutes of meetings held by the MoE with 33 States and UTs in April to discuss performance, plan and budget under the PMPOSHAN scheme show that student enrolment dipped in 23 states,of whichatleasteightwitnessed declines exceeding 100,000: led by Uttar Pradesh (21.83 lakh), Bihar (6.14 lakh), Rajasthan (5.63 lakh) and West Bengal (4.01 lakh). PM-POSHAN — Pradhan Mantri Poshan Shakti Nirman, formerly the midday-meal scheme — covers students up to Class 8 in government and government-aided schools. Launched three decades ago, the scheme is a flagship nutritional supportprogrammeforchildren in pre-primary to Class 8 in governmentandgovernment-aided schools. Its cost is shared by the Centre and States on a 60:40 basis, with the Centre supplying foodgrains. Besides addressing CONTINUED ON PAGE 2 SOUMYARENDRA BARIK & ANIL SASI NEW DELHI, MAY 17 NEW RESTRICTIONS on rare earth magnets and related materials imposed by China, as a direct response to US imposing tariffs that kicked in from April 4, are beginning to impact automakers across the world, including electric vehicle manufacturers in India. EV makers here are staring at THE WORLD apotentialshortageofthecritical components, which raises concerns of price hikes and productiondelaysinanascent,cost-sensitivesegmentoftheautomarket. The Indian car industry is learnt to have initiated a conversation with the government to smoothen the process for procuring the rare earth magnets from Beijing. While the Chinesegovernmenthasnotimposed an outright ban on the export of rare earth magnets—a crucial element in making EVs— E EXPLAINED Officials point to removal of ghost entries, move back to private schools after Covid ● EVs RARE EARTH magnets provide the strong magnetic fields needed for efficient and powerful electric motors, including traction motors that drive EVs. The magnets also play a major role in other EV components like power steering systems, wiper motors, and braking systems. China dominates their market. CONTINUED ON PAGE 2 Minister Khabad’s son Balvantsinh held in Dahod MGNREGA ‘scam’ EXPRESS NEWS SERVICE VADODARA, MAY 17 GAZA TRUCE TALKS RESUME AS ISRAELI FORCES LAUNCH NEW GROUND OPS RUSSIA WANTED UKRAINE ‘TO CEDE MORE TERRITORY’ AT TALKS PAGE 16 the process has been made very difficult causing protracted delays and posing shortage risks. Rare earth magnets, especially neodymium-iron-boron (NdFeB) magnets, are crucial for EV manufacturing, particularly in electric motors. They provide the strong magnetic fields needed for efficient and powerful electric motors, including traction motors that drive EVs. These magnets also play a major roleinotherEVcomponentslike power steering systems, wiper motors, and braking systems. China has a near monopoly over these rare earth magnets. GUJARAT MINISTER Bachubhai Khabad’s son Balvantsinh was arrested by the Dahod police on Saturday in connection with an alleged Rs 75 crore Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA) scam in the Devgadh Baria and Dhanpur talukas of the district. Khabad is the Minister of State for Panchayat and Agriculture. Balvantsinh Khabad The arrest came days after Balvantsinh and his younger brotherKiranwithdrewtheiranticipatory bail pleas from the Dahod court. Calling government probe in thecasean“eyewash”,leadersof Opposition Congress have de- manded SIT probe in the matter. Speaking to The Indian Express, Jagdish Bhandari, Deputy Superintendent of Police, Dahod, said that Balvantsinh had been arrested after a primary investigation pointedtohisinvolvementinthe scam, as per the FIR of the District Rural Development Authority (DRDA). Along with Balvantinsh, the then Taluka Development Officer (TDO), DarshanPatel,wasalsoarrested. On Saturday evening, the Dahod to N-E and abroad Readymade garments to cotton yarn face restrictions, fish, edible oil spared SHUBHAJIT ROY NEW DELHI, MAY 17 INDIA DECIDED Saturday to placerestrictionsonBangladeshi products being exported to North-East India and overseas. This appeared to be a reciprocal movegiventhatDhakahadbeen imposing non-tariff barriers on Indian exports to Bangladesh. The Directorate General of Foreign Trade, under the Ministry of Commerce, issued a notification Saturday. It said the restrictions will not apply to import of fish, LPG, edible oil and crushed stone to India from Bangladesh.Therestrictionswill also not apply to Bangladesh exportstoNepal/Bhutantransiting through India, it said. The curbs come a monthand-a-half after Bangladesh interim government chief adviser Muhammad Yunus said in Beijing that North-East India is “landlocked” and Dhaka is the “only guardian of the ocean for allthisregion”—hemadetheremark while seeking “extension of the Chinese economy”. India decided to impose port restrictions on specified Bangladesh exports to India across all land customs stations (LCSs) or integrated check posts (ICPs) in Assam, Meghalaya, Tripura and Mizoram and through Changrabandha and Fulbari in north Bengal. The products include CONTINUED ON PAGE 2 GUJARAT HARDLOOK HOW RATIONALISING BOUNDARIES HAS HELPED SOLVE JURISDICTIONAL PUZZLE P10 CONTINUEDONPAGE2 Machine moves fast but your brain must be faster: Gaganyaan astronaut PAGE 1 ANCHOR ANONNA DUTT NEW DELHI, MAY 17 FROM HIS training and selection to the moment his terminally ill mother met the Prime Minister months before she passed away, oneof India’sfourastronaut-designates, Angad Pratap, talks abouthisjourneysincebeingselectedforGaganyaan—thecountry’sfirstcrewedspaceflightmis- sion scheduled for 2027. Pratap (43), an IAF test pilot whobelievesspaceshouldbeaccessibletoall,spoketoTheIndian Express during an ISRO-backed event in the national capital. At the venue, he patiently clicked photographs with all those who approachedhim,askedstudents about their studies, reassured a shy child by saying he looked “very handsome” — and eventually had to remove his astronaut jacket to leave without further delay. Edited excerpts from the interview: What is the training process for becoming an astronaut? How does it differ from the training you received as a test pilot for the IAF? There are definitely certain parallels between the two domains — while saying this, I do not want to imply that piloting is essential for becoming an astronaut. Astronautics is all about doing science in space; it should be accessible to one and all. We need people from all communities — scientists, doctors, engineers, philosophers, those from theartsandcommerceworld,as Astronaut Angad Pratap (centre) clicks photographs with people at an event in New Delhi last week. Anonna Dutt well as pilots. When space becomes accessible to everyone — more and more human beings sent from across the world — we will start thinking of ourselves as representatives of our planet. That is when we will grow beyond the smaller issues we are embroiling ourselves in. It just so happens that space travel is all about aviating: if you want to go to space, you need to traverse the atmosphere, and when you come back, you again needtotraversetheatmosphere. Whatthisrequiresisalotof quick decision-making and staying aheadof avery,veryfast-moving machine.Thespeedatwhichthe machineismovingrequiresyour brain to function even faster... A lot of these things are experienced by pilots here on Earth. Experientially, piloting is very close to being an astronaut. It’s not that others aren’t capable; they’re simply not trained for it. So, test pilots — by virtue of their academic prowess and their experience aviating inside fast-movingvehicles—aremore suitable and more easily trainable, and thus are given prefer- ence whenever a prototype spaceflight starts. Can you describe the selection process for Gaganyaan? Anyone who had cleared the test pilot examination -- the mostdifficultexaminationinthe Indian Air Force -- was consideredeligible.TherewereIQtests, flying-skills assessments, and stress-tolerance evaluations. Intheprocess,whatIrealised was that your knowledge can always be prepared. I’ll draw an CONTINUED ON PAGE 2 Ahmedabad