DAILY FROM: AHMEDABAD, CHANDIGARH, DELHI, JAIPUR, KOLKATA, LUCKNOW, MUMBAI, NAGPUR, PUNE, VADODARA JOURNALISM OF COURAGE WEDNESDAY, MARCH 12, 2025, NEW DELHI, LATE CITY, 20 PAGES BUSINESS AS USUAL BY UNNY SINCE 1932 `7.00 (`8 BIHAR & RAIPUR, `15 SRINAGAR) WWW.INDIANEXPRESS.COM India continues to engage US: Govt to House amid fears of reciprocal tariff TRAIN TRAPPED IN TUNNEL Baloch rebels hijack Pak train, say 30 killed, 100 are hostage Prasada: Focus to be on increasing market access, reducing tariff, non-tariff barriers EXPRESS NEWS SERVICE NEW DELHI, MARCH 11 NEW DELHI continues to be the world’s most polluted capital while Meghalaya’s Byrnihat is the world’s most polluted metropolitan area, according to the 2024 World Air Quality Report released on Tuesday. With an average annual PM 2.5 concentration of 91.8 µg/m3, New Delhi remained the most polluted capital city followed by Chad’s N’Djamena (91.6) and Dhaka (78). In fact, between 2018 and 2024, New Delhi has topped the list — except in 2022 when N’Djamena edged past it. PM (Particulate Matter) 2.5, whichremainssuspendedinthe air,hassignificantadverseeffects on health, causing and worsening respiratory illnesses as well as leading to an increased risk of cardiovascular diseases. While the World Health Organization (WHO) annual guideline for PM 2.5 is 5 micrograms per cubic metre (µg/m3), CONTINUED ON PAGE 2 WORLD AIR QUALITY REPORT 2024 TOP POLLUTED CAPITALS New Delhi N’Djamena Dhaka Kinshasa Islamabad 91.8* 91.6 78 58.2 52.4 TOP POLLUTED COUNTRIES Chad 91.8 Bangladesh 78 Pakistan 73.7 DR Congo India 58.2 50.6 *Annual average PM 2.5 concentration in µg/m3 RAVI DUTTA MISHRA NEW DELHI, MARCH 11 AMIDFEARSamongexportersof higher tariffs in the lucrative US market from April 2 when reciprocal tariffs are set to come into effect,theMinistryof Commerce and Industry told Lok Sabha Tuesday that the government is engaging with the US to eliminate tariffs and non-tariff barriers and improve trade. Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal concluded his US visit last Saturday and the Ministry plans consultations with exporters this week. Representativesfromsectors including automobiles, leather, textiles,electronicsandpharmaceuticals, among others, are expectedtopresenttheirstanceon tariff concessionsthatmaybeoffered to the US during trade negotiations,TheIndianExpresshas learnt. Concerns over concessions grew after US President Donald Trump said last Friday that India had agreed to cut tariffs after be- E E X P L A I NE D New Delhi is most polluted capital, Byrnihat in Meghalaya tops list of cities Tough talks ● ahead OFFICIALS IN Delhi have indicated that the grounds are being prepared for negotiations on an early bilateral trade agreement with the US. While the hope is to finalise a pact by autumn this year, there will be no short-cuts at these talks, and each product, sector and concern will be weighed before a decision is taken. ing “exposed” for being restrictivefromatradeperspectiveand making it difficult for American companies to do business in India.USSecretaryof Commerce CONTINUED ON PAGE 2 IN PARLIAMENT PAGE 8 THE WORLD IN TALKS WITH U.S., UKRAINE AGREES TO CEASEFIRE WITH RUSSIA FOR 30 DAYS PAGE 14 Demand release of Baloch prisoners within 48 hrs, threaten to kill hostages Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his Mauritius counterpart Navin Ramgoolam arrive to lay a wreath and plant a tree at the Sir Seewoosagur Ramgoolam Botanical Garden in Pamplemousses, Mauritius, on Tuesday. Reuters For us, Mauritius is family: PM meets country’s new leadership Modi will be chief guest at Mauritius national day today SHUBHAJIT ROY NEW DELHI, MARCH 11 IN A strategic outreach to the new leadership in Mauritius, Prime Minister Narendra Modi met newly-elected Prime Minister Navin Ramgoolam and President Dharam Gokhool Tuesday as he began a two-day visit to the island nation. The engagement with the new leadership is important in thecontextof theIndiangovernment’s involvement in developing infrastructure in Mauritius under the governments led by Anerood and Pravind Jugnauth. Thedecisiontodevelopinfrastructure in Agalega islands was taken during the tenure of the Infant’s death during a police raid rocks Alwar village, probe begins PARUL KULSHRESTHA ALWAR, MARCH 11 THE ANGER is palpable at a sitin protest organised by local residents outside the house of Razeeda (26) and Imran Meo (27), whose 25-day-old child died, allegedly during an early morning police search at their home in Raghunathgarh village in Rajasthan’s Alwar district earlier this month. Thefamilyandtheprotesters blame police for the infant’s death, alleging that she was trampledonbypolicepersonnel A protest has been going on since March 5. Parul Kulshrestha while they entered the house and dragged Imran out. The action was part of a series of raids conducted by police on March 2 in connection with their CONTINUED ON PAGE 2 Switching bibs, Rly athlete Airtel inks pact with Elon ran marathon for doctor’s Musk’s SpaceX to offer wife, another; all 3 banned Starlink internet services SHYAMLAL YADAV & NIHAL KOSHIE NEW DELHI, MARCH 11 ACASEof impersonationvia“bib switch” has led to the banning of three runners who took part in theAthleticsFederationof IndiaapprovedApolloTyresNewDelhi Marathon held here last month. Theallegationof cheatinghas beenmadeagainstasportsquota railway employee who purport- edly ran for the wife of a railway doctor and another participant. TheorganisersoftheFebruary 23 event, NEB Sports, in a communication accessed by The IndianExpress,saidthat“running for someone else amounts to cheating”andthe“racemanagementteamhastakenstrictaction against them,” banning them for twoyears.Itsaidthattheywould make this decision public by “postingonsocialmedia,tobring CONTINUED ON PAGE 2 SOUMYARENDRA BARIK NEW DELHI, MARCH 11 BHARTI AIRTEL has signed an agreement with billionaire Elon Musk’s satellite company SpaceX to bring Starlink’s satellite internet services to people in India. This is the first such agreement to be signed in India, althoughit is subject to SpaceX receivingitsown authorisations to sell Starlink in India. SpaceX has applied for security clearance with the Indian government, and it is understood that its application is undergoing review at the Ministry of Home Affairs. Industryexpertssaidthereason behind Airtel and SpaceX’s alliance is so that the former can offer consumer satellite services inthecountry,asitsownsatellite service, OneWeb, is focused more towards the business end. CONTINUED ON PAGE 2 When Dangal star Aamir met his wrestling heroes on home ground PAGE 1 ANCHOR SHIVANI NAIK MUMBAI, MARCH 11 A SURPRISE move caught wrestling coach Kripa Shankar Bishnoi off guard as soon as he entered the residence of his most famous pupil in suburban Mumbai on Monday afternoon. Aamir Khan, for whom Bishnoi had choreographed sequences in the runaway hit, Dangal, jokingly greeted him with a leg hold as soon as he stepped inside the star’s house. “Paer pe lapak gaye. Lekin maine khoobsurati se defend kiya (hehadmeinaleghold,butIdefended beautifully),” the wrestling coach, who was roped in to guide actors in wrestling techniquesforthe2016NiteshTiwari film, told The Indian Express. During 90 minutes of starry magic that followed, over cups of teaandsnacks,Aamir,Bishnoi, and a dozen wrestlers and coaches talked about wrestling, movies and how Dangal had helped bust their rowdy image, among other filmy stereotypes, besidesbringingwrestlersglobal respectability. Aamir Khan, Kripa Shankar Bishnoi on Monday. Express A proud Bishnoi recollected how the actor told everyone about how he had helped him kick an old habit. “Aamir told everyone how I got him to quit smoking.Iusedtogetveryangry with him for smoking and told himthatIwouldnotcoachhimif hedidnotstopsmoking,”hesays. The wrestlers, who were in Mumbai for an Indian Railways preparatory camp, had come from all over India. While some were armed with rehearsed birthdaywishes,conveyedshyly in stuttered Urdu ahead of Aamir’s 60th birthday on March 14, the others recalled watching CONTINUED ON PAGE 2 Jugnauths. Delhi is now making an effort to reach out to the new regime led by Ramgoolam. Mauritius has been ruled by the Ramgoolams and the Jugnauths ever since the country became independent in 1968. Speaking at an event for the Indian diaspora in Port Louis, which was also attended by Ramgoolam, Modi underlined India’s role as a “trusted ally in combating illegal fishing, piracy, and maritime crimes”. “As a reliable friend, India works with Mauritius to protect its national interests and secure the Indian Ocean region,” he said. HesaidMauritiusisnotjusta partner country. “For us, Mauritius is family,” he said. “This bond is deep and strongly rooted in history, heritage and the human spirit.” And, he described Mauritius asavitalbridgeconnectingIndia to the Global South, a relationship reinforcedbyIndia’s SAGAR (Security And Growth for All in the Region) vision, first announced during his 2015 visit to the island nation. “A decade ago, I shared the SAGAR vision here. Today, Mauritius remains at its heart,” Modi said. Ramgoolam acknowledged the contributions of the Indian diaspora: “Your participation is vital for the economic growth of Mauritius.Whenyoucomehere, you enrich our country as well.” CONTINUED ON PAGE 2 Relatives of the train passengers collect information from a special counter at a railway station in Quetta, Tuesday. AP PRESS TRUST OF INDIA KARACHI, ISLAMABAD, MARCH 11 SUSPECTED BALOCH gunmen opened fire at a passenger train in Pakistan’s restive Balochistan onTuesday,injuringseveralpassengers, and claimed to have taken over 100 people hostage. Late at night, a government spokespersonsaid80passengers had been rescued but around 400othersremainedonthetrain. (A Reuters report quoted local police as saying that 35 CONTINUED ON PAGE 2 ATTACK ON JAFFAR EXPRESS Peshawar AFGHANISTAN PAKISTAN Quetta BetweenPehro Kunriand GadalarStation Lahore INDIA EXPLAINED PAGE 13