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Humanity’s Moonshots: As India’s Chandrayaan-3 nears touchdown, here are previous moon landing missions accomplished by Russia, USA, and China

Siddhi Somani
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Humanity’s Moonshots: As India’s Chandrayaan-3 nears touchdown, here are previous moon landing missions accomplished by Russia, USA, and China

It is a proud moment for India as all the countrymen are looking forward to the successful landing of the Chandrayaan 3 which was launched from the Satish Dhawan Space Centre in Sriharikota on July 14 this year. Post-landing the Chandrayaan-3 is expected to investigate the elemental composition of the Earth’s only natural satellite, its surface plasma environment, lunar seismicity, and thermophysical features.

While this is India’s third lunar mission and second attempt at a soft landing on the moon, the mission entered the lunar orbit one month after launch and the lander and rover are scheduled to touch down on the lunar surface on August 23.

Earlier, India faced the partial failure of the Chandrayaan-2, whose lander Vikram and rover Pragyaan crashed on the Moon’s surface in the early hours of September 7, 2019. Vikram was about 335 meters (0.335 km) from the Moon’s surface on the day of the 2019 lunar landing when the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) lost communication with it. The issue occurred during the “Fine braking phase” of Vikram’s final approach (an altitude of 5 km to 400 m), which started while the lander was 5 km from the lunar surface, according to the preliminary data.

The lander’s green line began to deviate off course when it was just over 2 km in altitude and finally stopped at a location that was obviously below 1 km in altitude and somewhere around or below 500 m. 

Why Chandrayaan-2 failed?

Days before the launch of Chandrayaan 3, ISRO Chairman S Somanath had commented on the incident that happened in 2019 and had said, “The primary issues were, one, we had five engines which were used to give the reduction of the velocity, which is called the retardation. These engines developed higher thrust than what was expected.” He said that the additional thrust caused errors to build up, which in turn made the lander less stable during the ‘camera coasting phase’ of the soft landing.

This was an instance of the second problem. “All the errors got accumulated, which was on the higher side than what we had expected. The craft had to make very fast turns. When it started to turn very fast, its ability to turn was limited by the software because we never expected such high rates to come,” Somanath added.

The third issue arose when the lander increased its speed despite being near the surface because the landing place was far away. According to Somanath, this was partially caused by the landing spot’s relatively tiny size (500 m × 500 m). “In a nutshell, the problem in Chandrayaan-2 was that the ability to handle parameter dispersion was very limited,” he was quoted as saying.

However, India’s first deep space mission, Chandrayaan-1 played a crucial role in discovering the molecules of water on the moon. An Indian PSLV rocket carried the Chandrayaan-1 spacecraft into Earth orbit on October 22, 2008. On November 8 of that year, Chandrayaan-1 successfully entered orbit around the Moon after a series of orbit-raising maneuvers.

How India’s first deep space mission, Chandrayaan-1 discovered water

Chandrayaan-1 fired its engines several times at exact intervals over the following four days to achieve a circular orbit of 100 kilometers (62 miles), which would allow it to examine the Moon closely with its 11 instruments, about half of which were provided by NASA and European space agencies. On August 29, 2009, communication with the orbiter was lost, but the mission’s main goals, including finding water on the Moon, were accomplished.

In an interview, Srinivasa Hegde, the project’s director, recalled how Dr. K Kasturirangan was responsible for the mission’s conceptualization. Kasturirangan wanted the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO), which he led from 1994 to 2003, to play an insignificant role in India’s goal of becoming a superpower. This sowed the seeds for carrying out more challenging missions. Everyone seemed to agree with the proposal of a Moon orbiter when it was presented.

Chandrayaan-1 discovered molecules of water on Moon (Times Now)

At the time, ISRO already had satellites with geostationary orbits that could accommodate a large amount of fuel. The only modification needed was to adapt a geostationary satellite for the Moon because the fundamental infrastructure was already in place. The PSLV rocket from India, according to preliminary estimates, could launch an Earth-bound orbit beyond which the fuel on the spacecraft could potentially be utilized to travel to the Moon and perform orbital capture. Chandrayaan-1 was an all-around logical advancement of ISRO’s capabilities.

Finding water on the Moon was a primary scientific objective when ISRO was planning Chandrayaan-1. However, it was NASA’s Moon Mineralogical Mapper (M3) that helped the Chandrayaan-1 identify water and differentiate between ice, water, and vapor. The discovery that our Moon contains water was made definitively by M3, which also revealed that the majority of the water has been concentrated at the poles of the Earth’s natural satellite.

Earth to Moon: 146 missions so far, first began in 1958

Notably, though several missions led by India to the Moon have made the countrymen and the world altogether proud, many other countries and space organizations (chronologically) like the Soviet Union, the United States, Japan, the European Space Agency, China, Luxembourg, Israel, Italy, South Korea and the United Arab Emirate have also conducted Moon missions with specific objectives.

The urge to get connected to the Moon began in the year 1958 when the United States first sent spacecraft named Pioneer 0 beyond the Earth’s orbit. However, the mission which was launched in the month of August 1958 ie exactly 65 years ago today failed due to a gearbox malfunction resulting in a first-stage explosion. Since then the Earth has made 146 launches including the failed ones to the Moon. The number also includes flybys, impact probes, orbiters, landers, rovers, and crewed missions.

Pioneer 0 launched by the US (Image source- NASA)

Russia successfully made contact with the Moon in 1959

After repeated 10 attempts including 6 by Russia and 4 by the US, Russia became the first country to force a human-made object to make contact with another celestial body. Luna 2, also known as Lunik 2, was the sixth spacecraft in the Soviet Union’s Luna program to be launched to the Moon. Its original name was the Second Soviet Cosmic Rocket. It was the first spacecraft to touch down on the Moon’s surface on September 12, 1959, using a Luna 8K72 s/n I1-7B rocket. The said spacecraft emitted a sodium gas cloud so that the movement of the spacecraft could be seen visually in addition to the radio transmitters returning operational data to Earth.

Luna 2 spacecraft (TASS)

While Luna 2 was traveling to the Moon, it was equipped with five different types of instruments to perform a variety of tests. Determining the electron spectrum of the Van Allen radiation belt, a region composed of extremely charged particles, was the main scientific goal of Luna 2. The magnetometer and radiation detectors were looking for magnetic and radiation fields on the moon that resembled the Van Allen radiation belt that circles Earth. Although it confirmed earlier observations of the Van Allen radiation belts that were taken from Luna 1 around the Earth, Luna 2 was unable to detect any form of radiation belts circling the Moon.

The abrupt cessation of Luna 2’s radio transmissions on September 14 indicated that it had impacted on the Moon, making it the first spacecraft to make only one such contact with a solar system body.

The Soviet Union’s Luna 2 mission, the first of many deliberate Moon crashes was successful. Similar effects were experienced with the subsequent US-built Ranger missions. To note, while Luna 2 was the first to make contact with the other celestial body, Russia’s Luna 9 managed to be the first one to make a soft landing on the lunar surface.

Luna 3 returned the first image of the far side of the Moon

Out of 146, the next successful space mission to the Moon was also conducted by Russia Luna 3 Soviet spacecraft which was launched using a Luna 8K72 rocket in the year 1959. It was the third Soviet spacecraft to be sent out to the Moon’s proximity and the first mission to take pictures of the Moon’s far side. The historic, never-before-seen views of the far side of the Moon generated excitement and fascination when they were published around the world, despite the fact that they returned exceptionally poor-quality images. Only two dark, low-lying regions, later nicknamed as the Sea of Moscow and the Sea of Desire, could be seen in these views, which contrasted greatly with the adjacent side’s mountainous landscapes.

First ever image of Moon captured by Luna 3 (NASA)

29 photographs were captured in all by Luna 3, covering 70% of the far side of the Moon. The spacecraft started spinning once the photography was finished, flew above the Moon’s north pole, and then turned back towards Earth. A total of 17 watchable but substandard photos from Luna 3 were sent to the nation as it got closer to the Earth. These photos were ultimately made public all across the world.

Ranger 7 and Ranger 8 by the US managed to capture clearer images

In later years, the United States launched the Ranger series of spacecraft which carried television cameras with wide and lower angles to capture and transmit high-resolution photographs of the lunar surface to the Earth. Ranger 7 accomplished the goal by transmitting over 4,300 photographs while Ranger 8 transmitted 7,137 lunar surface photographs to the Earth before these crashed into space. The main objective of these space missions was only to get clear images of the Moon’s surface which helped the country select landing sites during the Apollo mission. The performance of these spacecraft was recorded to be excellent.

Ranger 7, Ranger 8 spacecraft (NASA)

Luna 9 by Russia first landed on the Moon

After the list of other successful Moon missions by the US (Ranger 3), and Russia (Zond 3), Luna 9 launched by Russia again became the first spacecraft to make a successful landing on the surface of the Moon. On February 3, 1966, Luna 9, a human-free space mission of the Soviet Union’s Luna program, touched down on the moon’s surface. Seven hours after landing, the spacecraft was able to capture up-close images of another celestial body from its surface. The photographs included a panoramic view of the lunar surface as well as views of the horizon and adjacent boulders. The spacecraft made its final known contact on February 6, 1966.

First picture of the Moon taken from the Moon by Luna 9 (Universe Today)

Luna 10 became the first one to orbit around the Moon

In March 1966, Russia launched another spacecraft named Luna 10 which became the first-ever spacecraft to orbit the Moon. It became the first artificial satellite of the only natural satellite of the Earth. Luna 10 conducted considerable research while in lunar orbit, acquiring crucial information on the density of micrometeoroids, the strength of the Moon’s magnetic field, its radiation bands, and the chemical composition of lunar rocks which were discovered to be similar to basalt rocks on Earth. The first indication of mass concentrations, which are dense regions below mare basins that modify lunar orbital patterns, was perhaps its most significant discovery. Luna 10 conducted 460 lunar orbits and revealed 219 active data transmissions before radio signals disconnected on May 30, 1966.

Apollo 11 by the US made humans walk on the Moon

Several space missions directed to the Moon continued to be undertaken by the US until Zond 5 launched by Russia made it the first Earth life to travel to and around the Moon in the year 1968. However, Apollo 11 spacecraft launched by the United States became the first one to make humans take a walk on the surface of the Moon.

On July 20, 1969, Commander Neil Armstrong and Lunar Module Eagle Pilot Buzz Aldrin successfully landed on the lunar surface, and six hours and 39 minutes afterwards, Armstrong made history by becoming the first person to walk on the Moon. Aldrin joined him around 19 minutes later and they spent roughly two and a half hours together exploring the location they had called Tranquilly Base upon landing.

Neil Armstrong became the first person to walk on the Moon (Image- Media Village)

21.5 kg of lunar material was recovered by Armstrong and Aldrin back then as they returned to Earth. The fifth crewed mission of NASA’s Apollo program, Apollo 11 was launched by a Saturn V rocket from Kennedy Space Centre on Merritt Island, Florida, on July 16.

First Robotic probe to land on the Moon

While the US later carried out several crewed landing missions, Russia in the year 1970 launched Luna 16 to establish its first mechanized probe on the surface of the Moon. Luna 16 was the first robot to land on the Moon and bring back lunar soil for analysis on Earth. The sample, weighing 101 grams (3.56 ounces), had been brought back from Mare Fecunditatis, a region on Moon renamed. It was the third mission overall to return lunar samples, and it was the Soviet Union’s first mission to do so successfully.

In 1993, three extremely small (0.2 gram) samples of Luna 16 soil were sold at auction by Sotheby’s for USD 442,500. On November 29, 2018, Sotheby’s resold the samples for USD 855,000. Sotheby’s is an American multinational corporation having its headquarters in New York City. It is one of the world’s largest brokers of fine and decorative art, jewellery, and collectables.

Japan’s first space mission to the Moon

In the year 1990, the Institute of Space and Astronautical Science of Japan launched its Hiten named spacecraft to carry out its first robotic lunar probe after Russia and the US. Developed largely to test and validate technologies for upcoming lunar and planetary missions, Hiten was Japan’s Earth-orbiting satellite. The spacecraft was launched near the Moon with the small satellite it was carrying by the name of Hagoromo.

Illustration of Hiten spacecraft (Image NASA)

Before being purposefully crashed onto the Moon on April 10, 1993, Hiten was placed into a highly elliptical Earth orbit and traveled over the Moon ten times. This Japanese spacecraft with two modules was intended to fly by the Moon and release an orbiter. It was the first lunar mission undertaken by Japan and the first robotic lunar probe since the Soviet Luna 24’s flight in 1976.

Europe Space Agency in the year 2003 joined the race

The European Space Agency (ESA) developed the Small Missions for Advanced Research in Technology (SMART-1) spacecraft as a scientific demonstrator for a mission to the Moon to test solar-electric propulsion and other deep space capabilities.

It became the first European spacecraft to orbit the Moon. 

The study of permanently lit polar mountain summits and potentially ice-containing dark regions of the lunar surface comprised the mission’s second phase. It was launched on September 27, 2003, and in September 2006, it was intentionally crashed onto the Moon.

China’s Chang’e mission, named after the Moon goddess in Chinese mythology

In the year 2007, China also joined the world’s efforts to study the moon by sending its first ever uncrewed Chinese lunar-orbiting spacecraft Chang’e 1. The spacecraft was launched on October 24, 2007, from Xichang Satellite Launch Center. The spacecraft entered the lunar orbit on November 5 and sent the first snap of the natural satellite on November 26 that year.

The mission’s main technical goals were to build a basic engineering system for lunar exploration, launch China’s first lunar orbiter, validate the technology required to fly lunar missions, begin scientific exploration of the Moon, and gain experience for future missions. Obtaining three-dimensional stereo images of the lunar surface, examining the distribution and abundance of elements there, measuring the thickness of the lunar soil, assessing its resources for helium-3 and other elements, and investigating the environment between the Moon and Earth were additional scientific goals.

As a result, the spacecraft obtained information that was eventually utilized to produce an exact and detailed 3-D map of the lunar surface. Additionally, Chang’e 1 made history as the first lunar mission to use a microwave radiometer to do passive, multi-channel, remote sensing of the moon.

First Lunar Image obtained by Chang’e 1 (NASA)

The spacecraft operated until March 1, 2009, after which it was removed from orbit. After Chang’e 1, China continued to send 4 more spacecraft to the moon all of which successfully attained the slated objectives. China recently in the year 2020 sent its fifth lunar exploration mission making history by becoming the third country to recover samples from the Moon after the United States and Russia.

On January 3, 2019, China’s Chang’e-4 spacecraft successfully landed on the far side of the moon and started sending images. Chang’e-4 became the world’s first to land on the lunar far side, which faces away from the earth. The landing site was in the Von Kármán crater in the South Pole-Aitken Basin. China’s previous mission, Chang’e 3, had landed on the near side of the Moon. Chang’e is named after the Moon goddess in Chinese mythology. Its rover, named Yutu, continues to study the lunar far side.

In 2020, China’s Chang’e 5 mission returned to Earth with samples from the Moon. The spacecraft is now on an extended lunar orbit to test technologies.

Chandrayaan-1 by India discovered water molecules on the Earth

The Chandrayaan-1 spacecraft from India was a key component in the discovery of water molecules on the Moon. It was sent into orbit around the Moon with the intention of sending an impactor there.

The study of the Moon’s chemical, mineralogical, and photogeologic mapping was one of the goals of the research. The spacecraft also carried scientific instruments from the United States, the United Kingdom, Germany, Sweden, and Bulgaria in addition to the five Indian tests.

Chandrayaan-1’s instruments found small amounts of water and hydroxyl (blue) on the surface of the Moon (NASA)

The first private lunar probe was led by Luxembourg

The first privately funded lunar probe to successfully fly by the Moon was Manfred Memorial Moon Mission (4M). It was administered by LuxSpace, a subsidiary of the German multinational corporation OHB System, and was dedicated to the late Manfred Fuchs, the founder of OHB Systems, who passed away in 2014. On October 23, 2014, it was launched in conjunction with the Chinese Chang’e 5-T1 test spacecraft.

After the October 28, 2014 moon flyby, the spacecraft entered an elliptical Earth orbit and continued communicating until 11 November 2014, surviving four times more than it was intended to.

After its orbit dropped on March 4, 2022, the spacecraft and the rocket stage to which it was attached most certainly collided with the Moon’s surface. Thereby, Luxembourg became the eighth country to reach the surface of the Moon.

And, now this year in July, India launched the Chandrayaan-3 spacecraft which is scheduled to make a successful landing on August 23. As reported earlier, The Chandrayaan-3 mission will send scientific equipment to the moon in order to investigate its elemental composition, surface plasma environment, lunar seismicity, and thermophysical features. 

ISRO has identified three key goals for the Chandrayaan-3 mission. These goals include accomplishing a safe and gentle landing on the Moon, displaying the rover’s mobility on the lunar surface, and performing on-site scientific studies.

Notably, India’s third lunar mission managed to capture stunning lunar surface images after entering the Moon’s orbit on August 7 this year. “The Moon, as viewed by Chandrayaan-3 spacecraft during Lunar Orbit Insertion (LOI) on August 5, 2023,” tweeted the Mission’s official Twitter handle.

The spacecraft also captured crucial images of the Moon on August 20, the video of which was shared by the ISRO from its official handle.

The spacecraft, mounted on GSLV Mark 3 (LVM 3) heavy-lift launch vehicle, successfully lifted off from the Satish Dhawan Space Centre in Andhra Pradesh’s Sriharikota on July 14.

Conclusion

In addition to being India’s ambitious lunar mission, Chandrayaan 3 represents a fantastic chance for the country to engage in international cooperation. Several nations and space agencies have expressed an interest in working with India to exchange knowledge, materials, and goals in the said research. This collaborative project will encourage knowledge exchange and hasten the development of lunar science.

India continues to strive for scientific excellence in space exploration, and this mission is an example of that commitment. The project’s objectives, which center on lunar exploration, technological advancements, and international cooperation, hold considerable promise for increasing our understanding of the Moon and beyond. The world is eagerly anticipating the discoveries and revelations that Chandrayaan-3 will make as it makes a safe landing scheduled on August 23 on the lunar surface. 

123 Waqf Board properties takeover: Central government notice for inspection of New Delhi Jama Masjid near parliament

OpIndia Staff
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123 Waqf Board properties takeover: Central government notice for inspection of New Delhi Jama Masjid near parliament

The Land and Office of the Union Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs issued a notice to the Jama Masjid in the national capital opposite the Parliament. The notice states that the Masjid would be inspected on Monday, in accordance with a Delhi High Court order.

Reportedly, a notice was affixed to the New Delhi Jama Masjid’s wall on Friday evening directing the “occupant of the property to maintain preparedness and submit documents/maps to substantiate their claims during the inspection.

On the basis of the recommendation of a two-member committee on denotified Waqf properties, the Ministry decided to assume control of 123 properties owned by the Delhi Waqf Board, including mosques, dargahs, and graveyards. Amanatullah Khan, the board’s chairman, had received a letter from the Ministry notifying him about the decision.

Meanwhile, the Imam of Jama Masjid Muhibullah Nadwi has claimed that there is no threat to the mosque adding that there are valid documents. Nadwi also invited the media to be present during the inspection of the mosque.

It is pertinent to recall that in May this year, the Delhi High Court refused to put a stay on the inspection of 123 Delhi Waqf Board properties by the Central government. The decision came after a petition was filed to stop the inspection challenging the central government’s decision to absolve the Waqf Board from matters pertaining to the concerned 123 properties.

On February 17, 2023, the Union Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs posted notices outside 123 properties in Delhi, stating that they are no longer considered properties of the Delhi Waqf Board.

As reported earlier, the said properties include mosques, dargahs, and a cemetery. Prior to the 2014 Lok Sabha elections, these properties were given to the Delhi Waqf Board by the Congress-led UPA government. The Vishwa Hindu Parishad raised concerns about the prominent locations of these properties and approached the court.

A one-member committee and a two-member committee comprising a retired SDM and a former Delhi High Court judge were formed to hear from the affected parties. The committee had recommended a physical inspection of the said 123 properties.

Taking time off from BRICS Summit, PM Modi to watch live telecast of Chandrayaan-3 landing from South Africa

OpIndia Staff
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Taking time off from BRICS Summit, PM Modi to watch live telecast of Chandrayaan-3 landing from South Africa

Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who is in South Africa to attend the 15th BRICS Summit, will virtually witness the historic landing attempt on the lunar surface as part of the country’s third lunar mission, Chandrayaan-3.

According to Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO), Chandrayaan-3 is all set to create history by landing on the uncharted south pole of the moon. The attempted soft-landing has been scheduled at 18:04 hrs IST.

Wishes have been pouring in from across the world ahead of the attempted moon landing on Wednesday.

Indian students and research scholars in Uxbridge, London organised a special prayer at the Adya Shakti Mataji Temple for the successful landing of Chandrayaan-3 on the Moon. Meanwhile, the members of the Indian diaspora performed a havan at a temple in Virginia, US for the successful landing of Chandrayaan-3 on the Moon.

While anticipation around the ISRO’s attempted moon landing is building up across the world, prayers are being held across the country ahead of the historic moment.

A Ganga Aarti was performed at Parmarth Niketan Ghat in Rishikesh ahead of the crowning moment of India’s third lunar mission. A group of people in Bhubaneswar, Varanasi and Prayagraj performed ‘havan’ and offered prayers for the successful landing of the Chandrayaan-3 lander. 

A group of children from Vadodara also offered prayers for the safe landing of Chandrayaan-3. 

In Lucknow, people offered namaz at the Islamic Center of India for the successful landing of Chandrayaan-3.

The live telecast of the landing operations will begin at 5:20 PM IST on Wednesday. Live actions of landing will be available on the ISRO website, its YouTube channel, Facebook, and public broadcaster DD National TV from 5:27 PM IST on Aug 23, 2023.

India will be the fourth country in the world to achieve this feat after the United States, Russia, and China, but India will be the only country in the world to land on the lunar south pole.

Chandrayaan-3’s Lander Module (LM) – lander Vikram and rover Pragyan – is scheduled to make a touchdown near the lunar south pole.

(This news report is published from a syndicated feed. Except for the headline, the content has not been written or edited by OpIndia staff)

Indian Economy to grow at 8.3% in the first quarter and 6.7% in FY24: What the SBI research says

OpIndia Staff
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Indian Economy to grow at 8.3% in the first quarter and 6.7% in FY24: What the SBI research says

The Indian economy is expected to have grown at 8.3% during the first quarter of the current Financial Year 2024 (Q1 of FY24), i.e. between April-June, as per the latest report by SBI’s Economic Research Department (SBI Ecowrap). 

SBI’s Chief Economic Advisor, Soumya Kanti Ghosh has authored this report. In a report on the 22nd of August, Ghosh said, “At SBI, we have developed an Artificial Neural Network (ANN) model with 30 high-frequency indicators. On the basis of the ANN model, we forecast that the quarterly GDP growth for the Q1FY24 (April-June 2023) would be at 8.3 percent.” 

Various forecasts regarding the growth story of the Indian Economy

The latest SBI report has predicted a higher GDP growth rate as compared to other predictions made by national and International Economic agencies. For example, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) pegged India’s GDP growth at 6.1% in 2023. Whereas the RBI in its latest forecast, predicted that the nation’s GDP may have risen by 8% in Q1 FY24 and for the full year, it predicted a growth rate of 6.5%.  

However, in the SBI report, Ghosh asserted that the GDP growth for FY24 will exceed the 6.5 percent forecast given by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI). He predicted that the growth in FY2023-24 as a whole would stand at 6.7 percent.

Double-digit growth in Capital expenditure

SBI’s Chief Economic Advisor, Ghosh added that the first quarter of 2023-24 saw a huge increase in capital expenditure both by the centre and the states. 

In Q1 (April-June period), the Centre’s capex stood at Rs 2.78 lakh crore. This is a 63 percent year-on-year increase in June. Similarly, states like Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, and Madhya Pradesh have registered capex growth of up to 41 percent.

The SBI report highlighted that in Q1 of FY24, EBITDA, and PAT (profit after tax) grew by more than 30 percent, as compared to the Q1 of FY23. According to the report, the sectors that performed well were banks, auto, IT, Pharma, FMCG, refineries, etc. 

The report asserted, “In Q1 FY24, manufacturing is sustained as reflected in IIP, automobile sales, and PMI data. Further, agriculture sales have been strong along with a high power supply. On the service side, passenger traffic picked up in Q4 FY23 has sustained, Air cargo traffic increased.”  

Further, the SBI Ecowrap report noted that the banking sector has shown strong performance and credit growth has continued to grow in double digits. It has become broad-based across sectors.

According to Ghosh, the corporate margin is reflecting clear signs of improvement since Q4 FY23. 

He said, “Further, it is pertinent to mention that corporate margin, which was under pressure for the last few quarters, has shown signs of improvement since Q4FY23 (January-March 2023). EBIDTA margin, on an aggregate basis of more than 3,000 companies, improved by 274 basis points to 15.81 percent in Q1FY24 as compared to 13.07 percent in Q4FY23 and 12.60 percent in Q1FY23 (April-June 2022), contributed by low input prices.” 

This latest SBI report has come days ahead of official data which will be reported by the government on the 31st of August at around 5:30 PM.

Gujarat: Court sentences pastor Gulaban Parikhan Masih to three years in jail for forceful conversion of a minor

OpIndia Staff
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Gujarat: Court sentences pastor Gulaban Parikhan Masih to three years in jail for forceful conversion of a minor

In a major development on forced conversion, a Gujarat court sentenced a Christian pastor to 3 years imprisonment in a case related to forceful conversion. It is alleged that the pastor forced the 17-year-old minor girl and her family to convert to Christianity by blackmailing her to make her obscene photos viral. 

Apparently, this is the first time in Gujarat that a pastor has been sentenced for forceful conversion. Apart from 3 years imprisonment, the court also imposed a fine of Rs 10,000 on the pastor. 

As per media reports, the minor victim lives in the Amraiwadi area of Ahmedabad and is studying in class 11th. A woman living in her neighbourhood introduced the victim to the pastor. After developing an acquaintance, the minor went to church once along with the pastor. 

Subsequently, the accused pastor Gulaban Parikhan Masih started brainwashing her. He used to tell the minor that there is no religion other than Christianity. He also started pressurising the minor to convert to Christianity. But this didn’t go well with the minor victim and she discontinued going to church.

Obscene photos were taken to blackmail her

Even after the victim stopped visiting the church, the accused pastor did not stop pursuing his evil intentions of forced conversion. He used to do video calls with the minor over her father’s phone. It was alleged that over the video call, the pastor used to blackmail the minor and ask her to take off her clothes and take obscene photos of herself. He was also forcing her to read the Bible.

It is alleged that the accused pastor Gulaban Masih used to send messages like ‘I love you’ to the minor victim. But when the minor refused to convert, he started threatening her. He used to blackmail her claiming to make her obscene photos viral. 

The accused pastor also forced the family of the minor to convert by showing these indecent photos.

It was further alleged that pastor Masih sent 2 of his men to the victim’s house when she discontinued going to church. When his men saw the temple in the victim’s house, they said ‘There is Satan in it’. Subsequently, they took the temple out of the house along with the idol of God and broke it.

In its judgement, the court noted that in this case, the pastor has threatened to convert the minor girl by force. The court added that this criminal-minded pastor who misled society should be punished as an example.

Afterwards, the Ahmedabad Sessions Court sentenced the pastor Gulaban Masih to 3 years of rigorous imprisonment and a fine of 10 thousand rupees.

Mamata Banerjee sends Muslim leader to Nuh out of concern for Muslims ‘spending sleepless nights’ after Hindu religious procession came under attack

OpIndia Staff
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Mamata Banerjee sends Muslim leader to Nuh out of concern for Muslims ‘spending sleepless nights’ after Hindu religious procession came under attack

Following the occurrence of deplorable anti-Hindu Nuh violence on 31st July, TMC Supremo Mamata Banerjee has been trying to shift the focus away from the dilapidated Law and Order situation in West Bengal. As part of a larger scheme of things, she recently sent her party’s new Rajya Sabha member Samirul Islam to Haryana’s Nuh district. 

It was presented as an attempt to assuage the plight of local people especially the Muslim community who have been spending “sleepless nights” following the unbridled violence in Haryana’s Nuh. 

TMC’s new Rajya Sabha pick Samirul Islam also chairs the West Bengal Migrant Workers’ Welfare Board. Regarding his visit, he claimed that he met with at least 100 people, including Muslim clerics, and migrant workers from various states. He also added that he visited multiple places in Nuh. 

Islam asserted that he came to Nuh at the dictate of Bengal CM Mamata Banerjee who according to him is concerned about the plight of the local Muslim community living in distress and spending sleepless nights.  

He said, “I came to Nuh following an instruction from our chief minister Mamata Banerjee, who is really concerned about the plight of the migrant labourers, especially Muslims, who are spending sleepless nights. The migrant community is still in a panic. Through me, they sent a request to the chief minister urging her to stand by them.”

Following his Nuh visit, he was directed to submit a detailed report to Mamata Banerjee shortly after his return from Delhi where he took the oath of Rajya Sabha on the 21st of August. 

As per a report in Telegraph, a Trinamool representative argued that sending Samirul to Nuh was part of a larger strategy of Mamata Banerjee to send out a comforting message to the minority communities, who predominantly are considered as their vote bank. 

The underlying message of these visits to riot-hit areas and presenting a superficial villain is to absolve, trivialise, and deflect the criminality of the incident so as to keep the flock of their voter base intact. 

There are well-documented instances that highlight that prior to the so-called sporadic/reactionary occurrence of Nuh violence, several Islamist social media handles had hatched riot-like conspiracy weeks in advance of the said violent incident. 

However, to suit a vote bank-friendly narrative, a completely sanitised version of the pandemonium is being peddled and the said visits to assuage the local Muslim community fall in that bracket and are seemingly aimed to alter the victim-perpetrator ground reality.

Nuh Shobhayatra attack

On 31st July, a mob of hundreds of Muslim rioters attacked Hindu devotees participating in the Brijmandal Jalabhishek Yatra in Nuh, Mewat of Haryana. At least six people were killed as a result of the riots.

During the investigation into the riots, OpIndia accessed over 25 FIRs and complaints that provided a clearer picture of what happened during the violence. Based on information available via FIRs, complaints and witnesses, the attack appeared pre-planned. OpIndia came across several videos posted two days before the Jalabhishek Yatra instigating Muslims against Hindus.

Muslims have claimed the riots happened because of Bajrang Dal activist and Gau Rakshak Monu Manesar. Old videos of Manesar were circulated to instigate Muslims saying he was going to Nuh that day. The video that was mostly circulated was from October 2022. Detailed reports can be checked here.

Furthermore, a cyber crime police station was attacked in Nuh. Police officials were injured. Home guards were killed. The rioters first shot one of the Bajrang Dal activists Abhishek, then his throat was slit and his head was crushed leading to his death.

Click here to read how it is gradually getting clear that the Nuh violence could have been another manufactured Islamist riot that initiated and was fueled through social media prior to the actual event.  

Rajkot: Arif, Raheel, Shakeel, and Armaan kill Vijay for stopping them from lighting marijuana with a temple lamp, arrested

OpIndia Staff
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Rajkot: Arif, Raheel, Shakeel, and Armaan kill Vijay for stopping them from lighting marijuana with a temple lamp, arrested

In the past week, Gujarat’s Rajkot was convulsed by a total of three homicide cases. Particularly alarming is the unfolding information regarding the killing of a Hindu shopkeeper on August 16th. According to emerging reports, it is alleged that the perpetrators attempted to use a temple lamp to ignite marijuana within the shop belonging to Vijay Babaria, the shopkeeper. Tragically, this act resulted in a dispute that ultimately led to his untimely death.

As per Desh Gujarat’s account, during the encounter involving Arif Solanki, Armaan Salim Bloch, Rahil Sharif Sandh, and Shakeel Imtiaz Parmar, they allegedly tried to use the lamp within Rela Mandir, located in the vicinity, to lit their marijuana-laden cigarettes. Vijay Babariya, however, opposed this action. Tragically, the confrontation over this incident is believed to have played a role in the accused’s decision to murder Vijay on the following day.

The OpIndia group reached out to the Thorala police station in an attempt to gather additional details about the incident. However, the officials declined to provide further information, citing the sensitivity of the case and the ongoing nature of the investigation.

In the preceding week, an instance of murder surfaced in Rajkot. In this incident, a young Hindu individual engaged in selling leaves was tragically murdered by four individuals after he declined their request to smoke marijuana in the vicinity of his shop. The identified perpetrators, in this case, are Ayan Arif Solanki, Armaan Salim Bloch, Raheel Sharif Sandh, and Shakeel Imtiaz Parmar. All four individuals have since been apprehended and taken into custody.

The departed soul feverishly implored the accused to abstain from indulging in the inhalation of marijuana in close proximity to his establishment, as well as asked them to refrain from loitering around. Simultaneously, he voiced his profound disapproval of the notion that the sacred flame adorning the temple lamp within his shop should be employed to ignite a cigarette brimming with the forbidden substance. These admonitions, delivered with a heavy heart, seemed to kindle an unexpected fervour within the accused.

Their emotions stirred, and the implicated individuals departed that day, leaving behind a cloud of veiled threats that hung in the air like unspoken riddles. Yet, the sun’s relentless passage brought another dawn, accompanied by a sinister twist. On this fateful morrow, the accused returned not with mere words, but with a glinting knife clutched tightly in their grasp. The blade, an instrument of cold malice, became their retort—a retort etched in steel—a chilling response that shattered the tranquillity of the unassuming establishment.

The late young individual was recognized as Vijaybhai Babaria, aged 30. He resided on Dudhsagar Road and managed a paper mill in close proximity to his residence. During the evening of August 15, 2023 (which happened to be a Tuesday), while he was seated on the veranda, a group of four individuals arrived. These individuals were found to be in possession of marijuana.

The perpetrators attempted to ignite marijuana using the temple lamp situated in the Galla area. When Vijay declined their offer to consume the marijuana, their frustration escalated. They departed after issuing a threat, stating, “I’ll deal with you tomorrow.” Following this incident, Vijay Babaria returned home. Tragically, the following day (Wednesday, August 16) at approximately 11 am, a group of four men arrived and assaulted Vijay with a knife, resulting in the tragic demise of the shopkeeper.

Presently, law enforcement has apprehended all the suspects, and the investigation into the case is ongoing. The incident has also sparked significant outrage among local Hindu organizations.

Bangladeshi national Sonia Akhtar lands up in India to meet ‘husband’ Saurabh Tiwari, claims he embraced Islam, married her in Dhaka and fled

OpIndia Staff
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Bangladeshi national Sonia Akhtar lands up in India to meet ‘husband’ Saurabh Tiwari, claims he embraced Islam, married her in Dhaka and fled

In a repeat of the Seema Haider saga, a Bangladeshi woman named Sonia Akhtar has reached Noida with her one-year-old infant alleging a Noida resident, Saurabh Kant Tiwari, performed ‘Nikah’ with her in 2021 after embracing Islam in Dhaka, Bangladesh and later deserted her.

The woman reportedly approached the Noida police on Monday (August 21), seeking help from the authorities to reunite with her ‘husband’.

In a video that has surfaced, the Bangladeshi woman can be heard telling the media, “He is not agreeing now, he is not taking me with him to his home. I am a Bangladeshi. We got married almost three years ago. I only want to stay with my husband along with our child.”

The Bangladeshi woman, in her complaint, alleged that she met Saurabh Kant Tiwari during his stay in Bangladesh from 4 January 2017 to 24 December 2021. He used to work in Culti Max Energy Pvt Ltd in Dhaka.

She claimed that she got married to Saurabh Kant Tiwari, who lives in the Surajpur area in Noida, as per Islamic rituals in Dhaka on April 24, 2021, after the latter converted to Islam. Later, when a baby boy was born to them, Tiwari deserted her and came back to India, she said, adding that she later came to know that he was already married to an Indian woman and had two children with her.

Speaking about the case, Additional DCP (Central Noida) Rajiv Dixit said that prima facie it appears that Akhtar and Tiwari got married in Bangladesh. The investigation has been handed over to ACP (Women and Child Safety) and all details of the case are seen. Further action will be taken accordingly, he said.

The police officer added the woman has provided the visa and passport details of herself and her child along with her Bangladeshi citizenship card.

The incident has come to the fore a month-and-a-half after the Noida Police arrested Pakistani national Seema Haider who had illegally entered India through Nepal to live with her lover Sachin Meena who stays in Greater Noida.

The Uttar Pradesh Anti-Terror Squad (ATS) recovered five Pakistan-authorised passports, an unused passport, an identity card, four mobile phones, and two video cassettes from Pakistani woman Seema Haider. The unused passport has incomplete details of name and address.

West Bengal: Police arrest one Mohammed Abbas for brutal murder of minor girl in Siliguri, accused remanded to police custody

OpIndia Staff
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West Bengal: Police arrest one Mohammed Abbas for brutal murder of minor girl in Siliguri, accused remanded to police custody

On Monday (August 11), the police arrested a 22 year-old-man named Mohammed Abbas in connection to the gruesome murder of a minor girl. The incident took place in Matigara in the Siliguri subdivision of West Bengal.

As per reports, the victim (name withheld) was attacked by Abbas while she was returning home from school. The accused took the underage girl inside an abandoned house at Rabindrapally and allegedly attempted to rape her.

When she resisted, he smashed her face with a brick. The locals heard her screams and found the victim, lying in a pool of blood, wearing the school uniform. She breathed her last soon after. The victim was a student of Class 11 at a Nepali medium school.

“This afternoon, when a girl was passing through the area, she heard someone screaming and informed her family. Her family members along with her neighbours rushed to the spot to investigate when they saw the body of the girl,” a local resident named Raju Bose said.

On receiving information about the matter, ACP Rajen Chhetri, DCP Abhishek Gupta and other police officials reached the spot. The body of the victim was sent to the North Bengal Medical College and Hospital for autopsy. In the meantime, the cops began analysing CCTV footage and talking to the local residents.

They were able to ascertain the identity of the accused. The Matigara police and the Special Operations Group (SOG) launched a manhunt and arrested Mohammed Abbas from his hideout in the Lenin Colony of Siliguri.

He has reportedly confessed to committing the heinous crime. The cops are now investigation the sexual assault angle. On Tuesday (August 22), Abbas was produced before a local court and remanded to 10 days in police custody.

Members of local, voluntary organisations protested against the gruesome killing of the minor girl outside the court premises. They also pelted stones at the police.

Nagpanchami procession attacked in Bagaha when it reached a mosque, reports media; Bihar police say situation peaceful, no mosque attacked as claimed

OpIndia Staff
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Nagpanchami procession attacked in Bagaha when it reached a mosque, reports media; Bihar police say situation peaceful, no mosque attacked as claimed

On Monday, August 21, on the occasion of Nagpanchami, Hindu religious processions taken out by the Mahaviri Akhada came under vicious attacks in Bihar’s Bagaha, Motihari and other districts. As per reports, severe stone pelting, vandalism, and clashes have been reported in these areas. Videos of the incident showed mobs, standing on rooftops and in the middle of the road, pelting stones at the procession. 

At least a dozen people, including three policemen and a journalist, were injured alone in the clash that occurred in Bihar’s Bagaha district.

Now, according to the latest information that has emerged, the religious procession in the Bagaha district had come under brutal attack, when it reached a mosque in the Ratanmela area.

According to a Bhaskar report, (an archive version of the report can be viewed here) the procession was heading along its scheduled path. Muslims in the neighbourhood of Ratanmela began to outrage as the procession passed by a mosque. They said that the Mahaviri flag cannot pass through the area. This enraged the Hindus and an altercation broke out between the two sides. Soon thereafter, stones started raining at the procession from the roofs and across the road.

Meanwhile, the Bagaha police took to X, formally Twitter to issue a statement on the incident on August 21. It confirmed that the situation in the area has returned to normalcy. They added that neither any mosque nor any member belonging to the particular community had been attacked in this clash. “Bagaha police appeals to all of you not to pay attention to all the rumours,” the post read.

To delve further into the details of the incident, OpIndia spoke to a Bajrang Dal activist from Bagaha in Bihar. Speaking on condition of anonymity, he also confirmed that the procession being taken out by the Hindu outfit was attacked when it was passing the mosque in the Ratanmela area in the Bagaha district.

Stone pelting in Bihar on Hindus during religious procession from OpIndia Videos on Vimeo.

Sharing a video of the incident, the Bajrang Dal activist said that though the procession was taken out with prior police approval the frenzied mob brutally attacked the Hindus participating in the procession.

Other videos of the incident that emerged on social media showed mobs standing on rooftops and pelting stones at the procession. Even police personnel can be seen running here and there to save themselves from the onslaught of stones from adjacent rooftops.

A Zee News report has stated that despite adequate police presence, the stone pelting attack was so severe that even police personnel scattered to save their own lives. Incidents of vandalism and arson have been reported too.

In the Motihari district, similar incidents of clashes were reported from 3 different places. In Mehsi, Kalyanpur and Darpa, religious processions by Hindus were attacked by stone pelters. As per a report by Jagran, when policemen tried to control the situation by lathi charge, they were attacked too. Several policemen have been injured.

In Darpa, a procession in Pipra was attacked by some elements in Pachiyari Tola. Bricks and stones were hurled between two groups. Darpa SHO Dharmendra Yadav was reportedly injured in the incident.

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