FP The publishers permit sharing of the e-paper's pdf on WhatsApp and other social media platforms Vol. 15 No. 177 | BHOPAL | TUESDAY | DECEMBER 9, 2025 | Pages 14 ` 3 | Regd. No. Indore MP/ICD 216/2024-2026 | RNI No. mpeng/2010/35815 FREE www.freepressjournal.in Sports Gill, Hardik return as India begin WC prep P.12 ESTD-1983 iii QUALITY @ VALUE EDITIONS: BHOPAL UJJAIN MONEY PRESS PUNE INDORE NASHIK MUMBAI E-paper Edit An inferno foretold P.6 Costs of veg, non-veg thalis dip 13% in Nov Cinema BB 19 Winner Gaurav Khanna... P.14 17K SCHOOLS NEVER INSPECTED IN 8 MONTHS Our Staff Reporter BHOPAL There are 17,000 such schools in the state, which have not been inspected in this financial year. The School Education Department has prepared a report, according to which, out of 87,943 schools, 70,967 have been inspected at least once. On the other hand, there are 16,967 schools which are left to the mercy of God. Nobody has ever inspected these schools. Neither the collectors nor the district education of- fp Briefs RAJNANDGAON 12 Naxals surrender Maoist Central Committee (MCC) member Ramdher alias Deu Majji, his wife, and 10 other Naxalites surrendered in Chhattisgarh's Rajnandgaon district on Monday, officials said. The surrendered cadres, including six women, carried a collective bounty of Rs 2.95 crore. They handed over 10 weapons. TOKYO 7.6 quake in Japan A powerful 7.6-magnitude earthquake struck off northern Japan on Monday, triggering a tsunami of up to 40 centimetres in coastal communities in the region, the Japanese Meteorological Agency said. The agency said the magnitude quake struck just east of Aomori, the northernmost prefecture of Japan's main Honshu island, and just south of Hokkaido island. ficers have ever visited these schools. Nor have the other officials ever found time to go there. The Human Resources Minister, Dharmendra Pradhan, who was in Bhopal on Sunday, directed the state government to pay attention to the schools and children. In terms of inspection of the schools, Satna district is the worst of all other schools in the state. As many as 1,675 schools in the district have not been inspected. None of the officials have ever visited these schools to know how the children are The sky is not the limit; it's just the beginning, says Air India in a hiring advertisement calling pilots to apply for a career in the Tata group company. The airline that the Tata group bought back from the government in October 2021 said it is looking to hire pilots for its fleet of Airbus A320 and Boeing 737 - the backbone of the short- to medium-haul market. The otherwise vanilla hiring ad that would interest only genuine pilots received huge attention from users on social media. being taught there and in which condition the schools are functioning. In this regard, Chhatarpur comes next to Satna. There are CM: Bhopal Metro to be inaugurated on Dec 21 PM likely to attend programme virtually Our Staff Reporter BHOPAL Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Mohan Yadav on Monday announced that the Bhopal Metro would be inaugurated on December 21. The chief minister made the announcement while talking to reporters in Khajuraho.  Sources said that the Metro project will be inaugurated in the presence of Union Minister for Housing and Urban Affairs Manohar Lal Khattar. Prime Minister Narendra Modi would be attending the programme virtually.  A few days back, the Commissioner of Metro Railway Safety (CMRS) issued a ‘No Objection Certificate’ (NOC) for commercial operations  of Bhopal Metro’s priority corridor which comprises eight metro stations. ources in the Madhya Pradesh Metro Rail Corporation said that the Metro project will boost the city’s public transportation system and will save petrol and diesel worth Rs 1,200 crore per annum. The project would also help in reducing the city’s carbon footprint. S he Metro trains will ply between eight stations of the 7.5-kilometre priority corridor. These Metro stations are situated between Subash Nagar and All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS), Bhopal. T total of 27 Metro trains have been sanctioned for the Bhopal Metro project. Of these, nine Metro trains have arrived. Each train will comprise three coaches. Each coach can accommodate 300 passengers — 50 in seats and 250 standing. A NEW DELHI Air India begins hiring Representative pic SC orders 30% seats for women in state Bar councils PTI NEW DELHI The Supreme Court on Monday directed that 30 per cent seats in state Bar councils, where the election process has not been set in motion, be kept for women advocates. A bench of Chief Justice Surya Kant and Justice Joymalya Bagchi said for the current year, the state Bar councils where elections are yet to be held should fill 20 per cent seats with women candidates and 10 per cent by co-option if there are not many desirous lawyers to contest. The top court directed that a proposal for co-option shall be placed before the court in regard to the state Bar councils where the number of contesting women lawyers are inadequate. At the outset, senior advocate Manan Kumar Mishra, who is also the chairperson of the Bar Council of India, informed the bench that the election process has commenced in six Bar bodies. All schools in Harda and Vidisha have been checked, but in terms of inspection of schools, condition of Satna is worst 1,488 schools in Chhatarpur, which have never been inspected. In terms of inspection of schools, the situation in 150TH ANNIV OF NAT’L SONG | Modi highlights how Vande Mataram inspired nation, energised the freedom struggle PM: Nehru echoed Jinnah, betrayed Vande Mataram PTI Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday said first PM Jawaharlal Nehru betrayed Vande Mataram by echoing Muhammad Ali Jinnah's communal concerns and fragmenting the national song that put India on the path of politics of appeasement, leading to its Partition. Initiating a debate on the '150th anniversary of national song Vande Mataram', Modi highlighted how Vande Mataram inspired the nation, energised the freedom struggle and became a symbol of national resolve which prompted Mahatma Gandhi to liken it to the national anthem. Penned by Bankim Chandra Chatterjee in 1875, Modi said Vande Mataram challenged the British Empire that was unsettled by the freedom struggle of 1857 and heaping injustices upon India Our Staff Reporter BHOPAL/SATNA Satna police have arrested Anil Bagri, brother of Urban Development and Housing Minister of State Pratima Bagri, in connection with a ganja smuggling case late Sunday night, officials said on Monday. Earlier, on December 3, minister’s brother-in-law, Shailendra Singh, was also arrested by Uttar Pradesh police in a similar case. Rampur Bhaghelan police station in-charge Sandeep Chaturvedi said the police received a tip-off that Pankaj Baghel, from a nearby village, was in possession of a large quantity of ganja. Acting on the information, police raided his house on Sunday and re- ‘Why are you talking nonsense?’ Minister Pratima Bagri, who was in Khajuraho to attend official programmes, lost her cool when media persons asked about her brother’s arrest in a ganja smuggling case. “Why are you people talking nonsense?” she said before walking away. Journalists continued to seek her reaction, but she did not respond ACTRESS SEXUAL ASSAULT CASE Court acquits actor Dileep, convicts six PTI KOCHI covered 46 kilogrammes of ganja. When asked about the source, Pankaj revealed that the consignment had been delivered by Anil Bagri in his SUV. Police seized the vehicle and arrested Anil under the NDPS Act. Anil told police that his brother-in-law, Shailendra Singh, had instructed him to deliver the consignment to Pankaj. A Kerala court on Monday acquitted Malayalam cinema star Dileep in the sensational 2017 actress sexual assault case, in which six people, including the main accused charged with committing the crime, were pronounced guilty. In a case that made national headlines while sending shockwaves over the top actor's alleged involvement in the matter, three others, including Dileep's close friend Sarath, were also acquitted. Dileep, whose real name is P Gopalakrishnan, claimed there was a "real conspiracy" by some police officials and a section of media to implicate him in the case earlier with an eye on destroying his career. 4Continued on | P8 4Continued on | P8 Indian-origin nurse convicted for Aus woman’s murder An Indian-origin former hospital nurse was found guilty of murdering an Australian woman, nearly seven years after her body was found on an isolated beach in Queensland. Toyah Cordingley's body was discovered half-buried in an isolated section of sand dunes at Wangetti Beach on October 22, 2018. According to officials, the accused, Rajwinder Singh, had gone to the beach after a fight with his wife. He was allegedly carrying some fruits and a kitchen knife. Cordingley, a pharmacy worker, was walking her dog at the beach. When Cordingley's dog started barking at Singh, the two argued. Angered by this, Singh stabbed her and buried the body in the sand. He also tied her dog to a tree. As a jury in the Cairns Supreme Court delivered the verdict, Cordingley's father yelled at the accused, "Rot in hell, you bas****". Singh, however, remained seemingly calm. Singh had fled Australia two days after the murder, leaving behind his job, wife and three children - claiming that his grandfather was ill. He remained on the run for four years, and he did not even contact his family during this time. Within three weeks of the murder, police suspected Singh as his car's movements were matched with Cordingley's mobile phone location. The Queensland Police 4Continued on | P8 Priyanka Gandhi Vadra accused the government of highlighting the matter in view of the coming assembly election in Bengal and evading the real issues. She also accused PM Narendra Modi of "selectively" quoting Jawaharlal Nehru, and suggested that the BJP list out the insults for Nehru, set aside a time to debate it, and close the chapter. "Let us use the precious time of this Parliament for the job people have elected us for," she said. The Wayanad MP also questioned why parliament should have a debate on Vande Mataram. There is no scope for a debate on the issue, since the song is "alive in every part of the country," she asserted offgrid Online Report 4Continued on | P8 Understand chronology: Priyanka had offered a reward of a million Australian dollars the largest ever offered by the department - for information leading to Singh's arrest. In November 2022, the Special Cell of Delhi Police arrested him from a gurdwara in Delhi. He was extradited from India to Australia in 2023. The trial in the case was to begin in 2024, but was postponed due to the delays in receiving documents. 4Continued on | P8 overshadowed the sentiments expressed by Mahatma Gandhi and dragged the sacred inspiration into controversy," the prime minister said. Modi said Muslim League leader Muhammad Ali Jinnah first stepped up his opposition to Vande Mataram on October 15, 1937, from Lucknow. Agencies NEW DELHI Nehru wrote to Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose five days later, sharing Jinnah's sentiments and observing that Vande Mataram's 'Anandmath' background had the potential to "irritate the Muslims", Modi said. Defence Minister Rajnath Singh on Monday said the time had come for an unbiased evaluation of "Vande Mataram" and asserted that the entire song and the "Anand Math" book were never anti-Islam, but reflected the popular sentiments against the Nawab of Bengal and British imperialism and forcing its people into submission. "Vande Mataram, which was a source of immense strength for every Indian both within the country and abroad, suffered grave injustice in the last century. I wonder why Vande Mataram was betrayed and what forces Assure Indian travellers won’t be harassed: MEA to China The Ministry of External Affairs on Monday sought "assurances" from China that Indian citizens transiting through Chinese airports will not be "selectively targeted, arbitrarily detained or harassed" and that Beijing will "respect" regulations governing international air travel. Addressing the weekly press briefing, MEA Spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal also issued a travel advisory warning Indians travelling to or transiting through China to "exercise due discretion." Jaiswal was responding to media queries when asked what the MEA recommends for Indian nationals travelling to or through China after an Indian woman from Arunachal Pradesh, Pema Wangjom Thongdok, was detained at Shanghai Airport for 18 hours last month, with Chinese officials claiming her Indian passport was invalid since Arunachal Pradesh is part of China. It was never anti-Islam: Rajnath NEW DELHI MoS Bagri’s bro in jail for ganja smuggling Brother-in-law was held by UP police on similar charges Sidhi, Chhindwara, Sagar, Shahdol, Rewa, Dhar, and Alirajpur is not better than other districts. But in terms of inspection of schools, the situation in Harda district is the best of all other places in the state because the number of schools in the district is less than that of other areas. There are 661 schools in Harda, which have been inspected either by the collector or any other officer. Although the number of schools in Vidisha and Gwalior is more than that of other schools, in terms of inspection, the performance of these districts has been better than other places. Vidisha has 1,983 schools, all of which have been inspected. Similarly, all 1,441 schools in Gwalior have been checked. Will set example: Aviation min assures action over IndiGo crisis PTI 250 flights cancelled NEW DELHI Aviation Minister K Rammohan Naidu said in the Rajya Sabha on Monday that the government has initiated an inquiry into Indigo's mass flight cancellations and will take strict action against the operator to set an example for other airlines. Blaming the airlines for its failure to manage the crew and duty roster through its day-today operations, Naidu said, "We are not taking this situation easily. We are doing an inquiry. We will take very, very strict action not only for this situation but also as an example." To the questions Over 250 IndiGo flights were cancelled from Delhi and Bengaluru airports on Monday as the disruptions in the crisis-hit airline's flight operations entered the seventh day Serious matter: SC Woes of flyers hit by mass flight cancellations by IndiGo found a compassionate ear in the Delhi High Court, which agreed to hear one of the pleas on December 10, while the Supreme Court termed the consequent chaos a "serious matter", but stopped short of intervening raised by Congress MP Pramod Tiwari, who wanted to know whether the Indigo crisis was caused by a fault in the Automatic Message Switching Bhavna to receive Vikram Award as HC lifts stay System (AMSS), a technical issue that disrupted flight services in early November 2025. 4Continued on | P8 Thailand launches airstrikes along Cambodia border Our Staff Reporter AP BHOPAL BANGKOK Mountaineer Bhavna Dehariya will soon be honoured with Vikram Award at an official ceremony, after the Madhya Pradesh High Court on Monday dismissed a petition challenging her selection and upheld the state government’s decision. Justice Pranay Verma said the state government’s choice for 2023 Adventure Sports category was in accordance with rules and contained no errors. Advocate Anunay Srivastava, representing Bhavna, shared this information, while Deputy Advocate General Shrey Raj Saxena argued the case on behalf of the state. The petition had been filed by Madhusudan Patidar, who Thailand launched airstrikes along the disputed border with Cambodia on Monday as both sides accused the other of breaking a ceasefire that halted fighting earlier this year. Longstanding border disputes erupted into five days of combat in July that killed dozens of soldiers and civilians. US President Donald Trump pushed the Southeast Asian neighbours to sign a truce agreement in October, but tensions have continued to simmer. The Thai army said that more than 50,000 people have left areas near the border for claimed he was senior to Bhavna and deserved the award. However, the court noted that Patidar’s Everest ascent in 2017 fell outside the five-year eligibility period specified in the Madhya Pradesh Awards Rules, 2021. Rule 5 states that only achievements from the previous five years are considered valid in the adventure sports category. Speaking to Free Press, Bhavna said she had faith in judiciary. “Finally, I got justice. I am elated,” she said, adding, “It is victory of truth.” 4Continued on | P8