FP The publishers permit sharing of the e-paper's pdf on WhatsApp and other social media platforms Vol. 15 No. 173 | BHOPAL | FRIDAY | DECEMBER 5, 2025 | Pages 18 | ` 3 | Regd. No. Indore MP/ICD 216/2024-2026 | RNI No. mpeng/2010/35815 FREE www.freepressjournal.in Sports Meet Deeya Yadav, a 16-year-old prodigy ready to light up the WPL P.16 fp Briefs NEW DELHI Cooperation in agri sector India and Russia on Thursday discussed ways to boost bilateral cooperation in the agriculture sector to strengthen farm trade and tap modern farming opportunities. Ahead of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin, India's Agriculture Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan met his Russian counterpart Okasa Lut in the national capital. Expanding meat, dairy trade India and Russia on Thursday held discussions on expanding bilateral trade of fisheries, meat and dairy products as well as address market access issues. According to an official statement, Russia expressed willingness to import fishery and meat products from India. ESTD-1983 iii QUALITY @ VALUE EDITIONS: BHOPAL MONEY Fitch raises India FY’26 growth forecast to 7.4% on GST reforms UJJAIN PRESS PUNE INDORE NASHIK Cinema Gulshan joins Samantha P.18 PM Modi breaks protocol, welcomes Putin at airport Delighted to welcome my friend: PM NEW DELHI Russian President Vladimir Putin arrived in New Delhi on a two-day State Visit to India with Prime Minister Narendra Modi, in a special gesture, receiving him at the airport. The two leaders warmly hugged and greeted each other at the tarmac before leaving the airport together in the same vehicle.They also briefly watched and applauded a cultural performance as part of the welcome ceremony. New Delhi has been lined with banners welcoming the Russian leader, marking the beginning of an engagement that carries significant diplomatic weight.Later in the evening, PM Modi will host Putin for a private dinner at his residence, mirroring the gesture the Russian President made when he hosted PM Modi during the latter's visit to Moscow last year. This marks Putin's first trip to India since Russia's war with Ukraine started in 2022. The 23rd India-Russia Annual Summit, scheduled for Friday, comes at a time when the US has imposed punitive sanctions on New Delhi, and will focus on strengthening defence cooperation, along with discussions on trade and energy partnerships. Soon after travelling to the airport and receiving Russian President Vladimir Putin at the tarmac in a special gesture, Prime Minister Narendra Modi, posted on X: "Delighted to welcome my friend, President Putin to India. Looking forward to our interactions later this evening and tomorrow. India-Russia friendship is a time tested one that has greatly benefitted our people." the formal talks that will take place at the Hyderabad House. Putin will also lay a wreath at the Mahatma Gandhi memorial.Leading to the visit, Russian Presidential Aide Yuri Ushakov called the upcoming meeting during a private dinner between Putin and PM Modi as "one of the key points of the Russian leader's visit," Russian state-run news agency TASS reported on Wednesday. According to Ushakov, Putin will discuss important issues of bilateral ties and international situation with PM Modi. On Friday, the Russian President will be accorded a ceremonial welcome at the Rashtrapati Bhavan ahead of E-paper Edit Justice restores teachers’ dignity P.8 RUSSIAN PREZ IN INDIA | This marks Putin’s first trip to India since Russia’s war with Ukraine started in 2022 IANS MUMBAI 4Continued on | P10 ‘Modi not one to give in to pressure’ Online Report MOSCOW Russian President Vladimir Putin on Thursday praised Prime Minister Narendra Modi as a leader who “is not one to give in to pressure”, responding to a question on whether the US is trying to push India with tariff tactics. Putin made the remarks ahead of his two-day visit to India. Putin said the world has witnessed India’s firm international stance and that the country can be proud of its leadership. He also noted that more than 90 per cent of financial transactions between the two countries have been successfully completed. The Russian President said he was “very happy” to travel to meet his “friend, Prime Minister Modi” in Delhi. “There is a lot to discuss,” he said, referring to the wide scope of cooperation between the two countries. Putin spoke of the “unique” history of India Russia relations and praised India’s development since 1947, calling its achievements in just 77 years “remarkable”. Defence, trade and energy talks Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov had earlier indicated that the two sides might discuss the potential supply of Russia's Su-57 fighter jets to India. The visit is expected to yield multiple agreements, including one to facilitate the movement of Indian workers to Russia. The two governments may also deliberate on India's proposed free trade agreement with the Eurasian Economic Union, which New Delhi has been pursuing to enhance strategic and economic cooperation. Aarti performed for Russian prez FP Online VARANASI As India prepared to host Russian President Vladimir Putin for a two-day state visit beginning Thursday evening, unusual scenes from Varanasi have taken over the internet. Locals performed aarti and held a welcome march ahead of the Russian leader’s arrival, inviting a flood of amused and exasperated reactions from netizens who questioned the spectacle. Clips of the ceremony quickly grabbed the internet's attention. Visuals from the march were edited and circulated widely, including a cheeky post that labelled it “Varahamitr Punit.” PUTIN TRAVELS IN MODI’S CAR NEW DELHI: Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Russian President Vladimir Putin travelled in the same official car as they came out of the airport in Delhi. Before Putin's aircraft landed, the website Flight Radar 24 said it was the most tracked flight in the world. PM Modi and Putin had also travelled in the same vehicle to the destination of their bilateral meeting after the proceedings at the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) summit venue in China's Tianjin in September 2025. The car ride together at the SCO was a visual statement at a time when US President Donald Trump announced a tariff onslaught against New Delhi's oil trade with Moscow. 4Continued on | P10