The Editorial Page: SHANTI Bill is India’s second shot at nuclear energy leadership 10 WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 24, 2025 Journalism of Courage LUCKNOW, LATE CITY, 18 PAGES ₹6.00 l www.indianexpress.com DA I LY F R O M : A H M E DA B A D , C H A N D I GA R H , D E L H I , J A I P U R , KO L K ATA , L U C K N O W , M U M B A I , N AG P U R , PAT N A , P U N E , VA D O DA R A Happening today lIn A dedicated commercial mission, ISRO is scheduled to launch the Bluebird Block-2 spacecraft on board its heavy lift launch vehicle LVM3-M6 at 8.54 am. lWITH 50-OVER cricket their SC PAnEl BACKED FOREST SuRVEY’S BEnCHMARK TO PROTECT ARAVAllIS SC accepted govt’s 100-m Aravalli rule, its own panel had opposed it only focus now, Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma are set to make a rare appearance in the domestic circuit, in the Vijay Hazare Trophy which begins today. FSI’s 3-degree definition covers lower hills of Aravallis that are excluded by the ministry’s 100-metre yardstick TRACk THESE AND MORE ON WWW.INDIANExPRESS.COM Jay Mazoomdaar Business as Usual By EP UNNY NATION PAGE 8 New Delhi, December 23 ONOCTOBER13,theMinistryof Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEF & CC) proposed a new 100-metre definitionforAravallistotheSupreme Court. The very next day, the apexcourt’sCentralEmpowered Committee (CEC) wrote to the amicus curiae assisting the lAmicusmaptocourt:Zonebetweengreenand bluewouldloseprotectionunder100-mnorm Sikar district, Rajasthan benchthattheydidnotexamine or approve the recommendation. On November 20, the Supreme Court accepted the 100metre recommendation of the ministry. The CEC is a body set up by the SC in 2002 to monitor and ensurecomplianceofitsorders relatedtoenvironmentandforests. Aravalli foothill contour Aravalli boundary In its October 14 letter reviewed by The Indian Express, the CEC underlined that the definition formulated by the Forest Survey of India (FSI) should be “adopted in order to ensure the protection and conservation of the ecology of the Aravalli Hills and its range.” The FSI had mapped 40,481 sq km as Aravallis in 15 districts of Rajasthan as areas above the minimum elevation with a slope of at least 3 degrees. By this definition, even the lower hillswouldbeprotectedasAravallis. The FSI undertook the exercise after it was engaged by »COnTInuED On PAgE 2 SIR 2.0 draft rolls out in Delhi, Dhaka summon envoys 3 states, one UT: 3.68 cr as protests on both sides test ties voters deleted so far Divya A Express new Service New Delhi, December 23 WrItEr VINod KUmAr ShUKLA dIES At 88 DIRECTS uRgEnT DAIlY HEARIngS WITH THE publicationofdraft electoral rolls in Kerala, MadhyaPradesh,Chhattisgarh,and Andaman and Nicobar Islands on Tuesday, a total of 3.68 crore electors in 11 states/ Union Territorieshavebeendeletedinthe second round of the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of the rolls so far. Among these, Andaman & NicobarIslandshadthehighest deletions of all states and UTs so far at 21 per cent, including 16.72 per cent of electors marked as shifted or absent, 2.96 per cent as deceased and 0.94 per cent as enrolled at multiple places. The other deletions ranged »COnTInuED On PAgE 2 New Delhi, December 23 AS ESCALATING tensions in Bangladesh following the death of youth leader Sharif Osman Hadi and protests in IndiaoverthekillingofaHindu youth across the border continued to test bilateral ties, Delhi and Dhaka summoned eachother’senvoysonTuesday in a tit-for-tat move to express »COnTInuED On PAgE 2 Court rejects UP plea to withdraw charges against accused in Akhlaq murder case neetika Jha Greater Noida, December 23 A COURT in Surajpur on Tuesday rejected the Uttar Pradesh government’spleatowithdraw all charges against the accused inthe2015lynchingofMohammad Akhlaq, and instead fasttrackedthetrial,directingdaily hearings. “The prayer of the prosecutionisrejected,”AdditionalDistrict Judge Saurabh Dwivedi said in his order. He directed that the case be categorised as “most important” and be heard on a daily basis. The court also directed the prosecution to record the evidence in the case at the earliest. “AletterbesenttothePolice Commissioner of Gautam Buddh Nagar/ D C P Greater Noida to ensure that all evidence be provided at the earliest with full safety and secur- ity,” the order said. The case will be heard next on January 6. Akhlaq (50) was beaten to death by a mob over rumours that he had killed a cow and stored the meat in his home in BisadavillageinDadri,Gautam Buddh Nagar district. On October 15, the UP government had moved an applicationtowithdrawprosecution in the case, citing reasons that ranged from allegedly inconsistent statements made by Akhlaq’s kin in naming the accused and the fact that no firearmsorsharpweaponswererecovered from the accused, to theabsenceofpreviousenmity or hostility between the accused and the victim. The prosecution said that whileAkhlaq’swifeIkraman,in her statement, had put the number of accused at 10, Akhlaq’s daughter Shaistha »COnTInuED On PAgE 2 THE BIG PICTURE oNE LoNG NIGht IN GoA Police personnel stop protesters near the Bangladesh High Commission in New Delhi on Tuesday. PRAVEEN KHANNA PAGE 14 LARGE, MID YA SMALL? MULTI CAP FUND IS FOR ALL! Scan to learn more about Multi Cap Funds Zindagi ke liye SIP An open-ended equity scheme investing across large cap, mid cap & small cap stocks Exposure across many sectors/industries Suitable for long-term investors An Investor Education and Awareness Initiative SIP - Systematic Investment Plan | Visit https://www.hdfcfund.com/information/key-know-how to know more about the process to complete a one-time Know Your Customer (KYC) requirement to invest in Mutual Funds. Investors should only deal with registered Mutual Funds, details of which can be verified on the SEBI website (www.sebi.gov.in/intermediaries.html). 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