FOLLOW US: @TheStatesmanLtd @thestatesmanltd thestatesman1875 www.thestatesman.com People’s Parliament, Always in Session India’s National Newspaper since 1818 | Pages 12 | ` 5.00 | KOLKATA | NEW DELHI | SILIGURI | BHUBANESWAR | SPORTS WORLD EDITORIAL PAGE Emperor and The Raja Zelenskyy rejects US-backed Donbas withdrawal plan SATURDAY INTERVIEW ‘Safeguarding India’s interests vital’ Page 9 Page 6 Page 7 Cabinet clears proposal to conduct Census 2027 NIKHIL VYAS New Delhi, 12 December T he Union Cabinet, chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, on Friday approved the proposal for conducting Census of India 2027 at a cost of Rs 11,718.24 crore. Briefing mediapersons here about the cabinet decision, Information and Broadcasting Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw (photo) said the 2027 Census will cover the entire population in the country. “The Census of India is the largest administrative and statistical exercise in the world, and Census 2027 will continue this legacy with modern digital tools to ensure accuracy and efficiency,” he said. Mr Vaishnaw said the Census of India would be conducted in two phases: Houselisting and Housing Census – April to September, 2026 and Population Enumeration (PE) ~ February 2027. For the UT of Ladakh and snowbound non-synchronous areas Jammu & Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh and Uttarakhand, PE will be conducted in September, 2026. The Union Cabinet has also approved a major change in India’s insurance regulations by clearing the proposal to allow 100 per cent foreign direct investment in insurance companies. The decision is part of the Insurance Amendment Bill, 2025, which will be introduced in Parliament during the ongoing session. The approval lifts the existing 74 per cent cap on foreign ownership and opens the sector to complete foreign control under regulatory supervision. The new framework enables fully foreign-owned insurers to operate in India, subject to compliance with solvency norms, investment rules and policyholder protection standards. The measure is expected to encourage technology-driven expansion, product diversification and stronger risk management practices. The Union Cabinet is also learnt to have approved the Sustainable Harnessing and Advancement of Nuclear Energy for Transforming India (SHANTI) Bill, which seeks to open up the tightly-controlled civil nuclear power sector for private participation as India eyes 100 GW atomic energy capacity by 2047. Kerala actress assault case: All six accused sentenced to imprisonment PM to kick off Bengal campaign from Matua-dominated Ranaghat on 20 Dec STATESMAN NEWS SERVICE Kolkata, 12 December Thiruvananthapuram, 12 December The Ernakulam Principal Sessions Court on Friday sentenced Sunil NS alias Pulsar Suni, the main accused in the 2017 actress sexual assault case, and five others who were convicted for the crime along with him, to twenty years of rigorous imprisonment The Ernakulam District and Sessions Court judge Honey M Varghese pronounced the sentence at 4.40 p.m. on Friday. The convicted men are Sunil NS alias Pulsar Suni (37), a history-sheeter who allegedly had close links to the film industry; Martin Antony (33), a driver with a studio in Kochi; B Manikandan (37), also a driver; Vijeesh V P, (38), an electrician; and Salim H (30), and Pradeep, (31), who were members of a bus crew. STATESMAN NEWS SERVICE As the political temperature climbs ahead of next year’s Assembly elections, Prime Minister Narendra Modi is set to launch the BJP’s Bengal campaign soon after the conclusion of the Winter session of Parliament. According to party sources, Mr Modi will address a major public rally on 20 December at Ranaghat in Nadia district ~ a region considered a stronghold of the Matua community, whose support has become crucial in Bengal’s electoral calculations. The rally is planned at Taherpur, an area with a significant population of refugees and Matua voters. Preparations at the designated ground have already begun, local sources confirmed. BJP leaders say the event will also see the inauguration of several government projects. Jagannath Chattopadhyay, the BJP’s state general secretary, said on Friday: “The Prime Minister will be coming on the 20 December. His rally will be held at the Taherpur ground. A few government schemes will be inaugurated. After the Bihar victory, he had said that the Ganga flows through Bengal as well. We believe the wave of change seen in Bihar will be reflected here too.” Mr Modi is expected to hold around ten rallies across Bengal during the election season, of which three ~ in Alipurduar, Dum Dum and Durgapur ~ are already over. The remaining seven will be held over the next few months, beginning with Ranaghat. Political observers believe the choice of Ranaghat is strategic. Along with Thakurnagar, Ranaghat is now regarded as another key Matua belt in the state. With concerns brewing within the community over the ongoing intensive revision of electoral rolls, the BJP’s outreach aims to reassure them. The Matua community has expressed anxiety about potential deletions from the voters’ list. Recently, Modi is learnt to have cautioned Bengali BJP MPs to handle the issue sensitively and ensure that no fear is created, particularly among Matua voters. Security forces scan high ranges across Jammu region SP SHARMA Jammu, 12 December In a bid to flush out the Pakistani terrorists from the mountains of the Jammu region, the security forces have launched a massive Operation like the ‘Operation Sarpvinash’ that was launched 22 years ago on the high passes of the Poonch district. Men of the Indian Army, Central Paramilitary Forces (CAPFs) and the Special Operations Group (SOG) of the J&K Police have taken positions at the high reaches of the Poonch, Rajouri, Kathua, Udhampur, Doda, Kishtwar and Reasi districts to target the terrorists that are armed with sophisticated weapons, including M-4 Rifles and night vision devices, sources said. The Intelligence Bureau (IB) and other intelligence agencies are also coordinating the Operation. Northern Army Commander, Lt. General Pratik Sharma, is personally supervising the operation Saturday, 13 December 2025 and has been flying to different locations to oversee the developments. The exercise is being undertaken after a series of brief gunfights with terrorists in these regions. The Basantgarh area, which is the tri-junction of the Kathua, Udhampur and Doda districts, has witnessed several terror strikes in recent months. The terrorists, who are believed to be trained in jungle warfare, managed to flee after brief encounters with security forces. It was also said that some regulars and retired soldiers of the Pakistan Army had infiltrated in these areas. Army soldiers were earlier ambushed in the frontier areas of Rajouri, Poonch and the hinterland of Kathua and Doda districts. Reports say that the security forces have taken up positions in the mountainous areas to track down the Pakistani terrorists who might move to lower places because of snowfall and chilling cold at the high reaches. The ration supplies for terrorists have already been blocked by arresting several overground workers (OGWs) operating with various terrorist outfits. Lt General Pratik Sharma, visited Kishtwar earlier this week to review the counter terrorism grid and held a detailed interaction with J&K Police, CRPF, IB and Army formations deployed in the region. He underlined that in a demanding security environment, countering emerging threats rests on the strength of unified structures, seamless intelligence sharing and synergised response across all agencies. He called for integrated planning, real-time flow of information and a resolute, joint posture to keep Jammu & Kashmir terror-free. Suryakumar admits tactical failures as India fall short in second T20I Page 12 Four DGCA officials fired over IndiGo chaos UNITED NEWS OF INDIA New Delhi, 12 December The Directorate General of Civil Aviation has dismissed four flight operation inspectors in connection with the recent IndiGo crisis, which led to massive flight disruptions earlier this month. In an order issued on Thursday, the aviation regulator said the officers had been released from service with immediate effect and would return to their parent organisations. The crisis erupted in the first week of December, when thousands of IndiGo flights were cancelled, severely inconveniencing passengers across the country. 5 December marked the peak of the disruption, with more than 1,500 IndiGo flights cancelled in a single day. In response, the government has set up a four-member committee to investigate the matter and has ordered IndiGo to trim 10 per cent of its winter schedule operations. Meanwhile, the airline on Friday announced that its board has approved the appointment of Chief Aviation Advisors LLC, led by veteran aviation expert Captain John Illson, to conduct an independent review and root cause analysis of the disruption. Captain Illson, who has over four decades of experience with global aviation bodies such as the FAA, ICAO, and IATA, as well as major international carriers, will spearhead the assessment. Former Union home minister Shivraj Patil dead Latur: Senior Congress leader and former Home Minister of the country Shivraj Vishwanath Patil passed away in the early hours of Friday, 12 December 2025, at his residence ‘Devghar’ in Latur. Patil, who served as the tenth Speaker of the Lok Sabha and held several key union portfolios, died after a brief illness. He was 90. Patil had a long, illustrious career, serving as Union Home Minister from 2004 to 2008 and as Speaker of the Lok Sabha from 1991 to 1996. Page 5