cmyk cmyk

THE LARGEST CIRCULATED ENGLISH DAILY IN SOUTH INDIA

CHENNAI I WEDNESDAY 10 I MAY 2023

WEATHER FINANCIAL CHRONICLE | 10 SPORT | 12 TABLOID | 13

Max: 35 C O
India’s growth Messi set to leave PSG Prabhas greets fans
Min: 28OC with ‘Jai Shri Ram’
Rainfall: Nill outlook stable on a low note
ASTROGUIDE deccanchronicle.com, facebook.com/deccannews, twitter.com/deccanchronicle, google.com/+deccanchronicle Vol. 19 No. 44 Established 1938 | 20 PAGES| `3.00

Imran arrested, dragged CM Stalin to visit Singapore,

Subakrithu: Chithirai 27 WORLD INVESTORS’ CONFERENCE
Tithi: Panchami
Star: Pooradam
Rahukalam:

from court; protests erupt Japan to invite investment

12 noon to 1.30 pm
Yamagandam:
7.30 am to 9 am
PRAYERS
Fajar: 5.00 am
Zuhar: 1.00 am
Asar: 4.00 pm
Maghrib: 6.31 pm
Isha: 8.00 pm
Reshuffle tomorrow;
Rajaa in; Nasar out
Chennai: The much speculated
reshuffle of the state cabinet will
finally happen on Thursday, May 11,
with the induction of T.R.B. Rajaa,
Mannargudi MLA and son of DMK
treasurer T.R. Baalu, into the coun-
cil of ministers and the dropping of
milk and dairy development minis-
ter S.M. Nasar.
No politics in meet,
say Nitish, Patnaik
■ NAB takes Khan to Rawalpindi to grill him in graft case
Islamabad, May 9: Paki-
stan’s former prime minis-
ter Imran Khan was arre-
sted and dragged from co-
urt on Tuesday as he
appeared to face charges
in multiple graft cases, a
dramatic escalation of pol-
itical tensions that spar-
ked violent demonstra-
tions by his angry support-
ers across the country.
The arrest of Mr Khan,
who was ousted in a no-
confidence vote in April
2022 but remains the lead-
ing opposition figure, rep-
resented the latest con-
frontation to roil Pakistan,
which has seen former
prime ministers arrested
over the years and inter-
DC CORRESPONDENT
CHENNAI, MAY 9
Chief Minister M.K. Stalin
will be travelling abroad
on May 23 to invite compa-
nies in countries such as
Japan and Singapore to
participate in the World
Investors’ Conference, to
be organised by the state
government in January
2024, to attract global
Men on a bike ride past a burning police vehicle during a investments that would
protest by Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf party activists and strengthen the economy
supporters of former Pakistan's Prime Minister Imran and generate new jobs for Chief Minister M.K. Stalin, industries minister Thangam
against the arrest of their leader, in Quetta on Tuesday. the youth. Thennarasu, Mitsubishi Electric India managing director
Announcing the date of
Amid the violence, offi- Mr Khan was removed Kazuhiko Tamura, MEI group president Yasumichi
the military in Quetta, the his journey while speak-
capital of Baluchistan pro- cials at Pakistan’s teleco- from the Islamabad High ing at an event organised Tazunoki and Japanese consul general Masayuki Taga
after signing an MoU for setting up an air conditioner
vince, with another five
people wounded there,
mmunication authority
said regulators blocked
Court by security agents
from the National
by the industries, invest-
ment promotion and com- and compressor manufacturing unit in Tamil Nadu at a
while about 15 injuries
were reported amid simi-
social media, including
Twitter, and internet ser-
Accountability Bureau,
said Fawad Chaudhry, a
merce department in
Chennai to sign a memo-
function in Chennai on Tuesday. — E.K. Sanjay

Bhubaneswar: Odisha Chief ventions by its powerful lar violence in Karachi, vice was suspended in the senior official with his randum of understanding ing `1891 crore in the pre- Private Limited, the com-
Minister Naveen Patnaik and his military. Peshawar, Rawalpindi and capital of Islamabad and Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (MoU) with Mitsubishi sent project that would pany will manufacture
Bihar counterpart Nitish Kumar At least one person was Lahore. Police fired tear other cities. Classes at party, and then shoved Electric India Private open 2000 job opportuni- room air conditioners and
met here for more than an hour on reported killed in clashes gas to disperse demonstra- some private schools were into an armored car and Limited, Mr Stalin said ties. A subsidiary of the compressors in the plant.
Tuesday but later claimed that between protesters and tions. canceled for Wednesday. whisked away. ■ P8 the company was invest- Japanese Mitsubishi Asia ■ P7
there was no discussion on politics
or any alliance for the 2024 gener-
al election. Mr Kumar, also the
JD(U) supremo, callled on Mr
Patnaik, who is the BJD president,
at his residence ‘Navin Niwas’ here
amid speculation that the two non-
BJP wants to make K’taka NIA swoops down on PFI leaders
BJP and non-Congress leaders will
discuss the proposed partnership
among the non-BJP parties ahead
of the 2024 general election.
number 1 state: PM Modi DC CORRESPONDENT
CHENNAI, MAY 9

The National Investigation

bearers and members of
the banned Popular Front
of India (PFI) and of the
Social Democratic Party of
terrorist

were
organisations
and fund them. The raids
conducted
Chennai, Madurai, Theni,
in
house of Abdul Razaq (55),
former North Chennai dis-
trict secretary of PFI, at
Thiruvottiyur and Manna-
DC CORRESPONDENT Agency (NIA) on Tuesday India (SDPI) on the suspi- Dindigul and Tiruchi dis- dy while searched the ho u
Gaza flare-up has NEW DELHI, MAY 9 conducted raids in several
locations in the state and
cion that they indulge in
secret activities, maintain
tricts simultaneously.
In Chennai, NIA officials
se of Mohamad Kaizer (50),
who was the Madurai zo
Israel min return On the eve of the Karnataka
Assembly elections, Prime
arrested five former office- links with international conducted searches in the nal president of PFI. ■ P7

New Delhi: After a flareup in the Minister Narendra Modi

Gaza Strip as the Israeli military
killed three top Islamic Jihad com-
manders in airstrikes early on
Tuesday, amid rising tensions with
Palestinian militant groups, Israel’s
foreign minister Eli Cohen
announced he was cutting short his
three-day visit to India, soon after
landing in New Delhi. Israel said its
foreign minister will return after
calling on Prime Minister Narendra
Modi on Tuesday evening.
(Bureau)
claimed that Indians in the
“Azadi Ka Amrit Kaal” aim
to make their “beloved
country” a developed
nation and the poll-bound
state is “keen to lead the
movement”. In a video mes-
sage and an open letter to
Kannadigas on Tuesday, Polling officials collect electronic voting machines and
the Prime Minister made a other voting materials ahead of the Karnataka
strong pitch for the BJP to Assembly elections at a distribution centre in Bengaluru
retain power in the south- on Tuesday. — PTI
ern state.

22 killed as bus
falls off bridge
Khargone/Bhopal: Twenty two
people were killed and more than
20 others injured after a private
bus fell from a bridge on a dry river
bed in Madhya
Pradesh’s
Khargone district
on Tuesday
morning, home
minister
Narottam Mishra
said. The bus broke railings of
Dasanga bridge and fell on a dry
bed of the Borad river near
Dongargaon village, Mr Mishra said.
The vehicle was carrying around
50 passengers when it met with
the accident, a police official said.
Reaching out, Mr Modi
said the affection he has
received in the state over
the last few days has been
unparalleled and it has
strengthened his resolve to
make Karnataka number
one across all sectors.
“The dream of every citi-
zen of Karnataka is my
dream. Your resolve is my
resolve. When we come
together and set our minds
to a goal, no force in the
world can stop us,” he said.
Appealing to Kannadigas
to exercise their franchise
to “make Karnataka the
Number 1 state”, the PM
asserted that while India is
the world's fifth-largest
economy. ■ P4
Voting today; Congress
moves EC against PM
Bengaluru, May 9: The
BJP looks to script histo-
ry to retain its southern
citadel while a combative
Congress eyes a come-
back as Karnataka goes to
polls on Wednesday at the
end of a high octane cam-
paign that was marked by
a plummeting level of
public discourse and grew
increasingly shrill over
the Bajrang Dal issue.
State leaders and candi-
dates from different polit-
ical parties thronged tem-
ples on Tuesday to seek
blessings of god and good
fortune on the eve of vot-
ing for the 224 Assembly
constituencies.
The Congress petitioned
the Election Commission
seeking immediate action
against the Prime Minis
ter for his appeals to Kar
nataka voters “in viola-
tion” of the model code, and
said it was “a litmus test”
for the poll body’s capacity
and willingness to enforce
laws. Full story on ■ P4

COUNTER POINT Raje, not Sonia, is POLITICKING OVER

CM’s leader: Pilot
ASHHAR KHAN | DC
NEW DELHI/JAIPUR, MAY 9
The knives are out in the
Rajasthan Congress
again. A day after Chief
Minister Ashok Gehlot hit
out at his former deputy,
Sachin Pilot on Tuesday
said that the recent
speech by Mr Gehlot indi-
cated that his real leader
is BJP's Vasundhara Raje
and not Sonia Gandhi.
In an all-out attack on
Mr Gehlot, Mr Pilot said
he will not quit the
Congress as he did not
want to ruin party's
chances ahead of the
Rajasthan elections later
this year. Instead, he
announced a five day, 125-
km “Jan Sangharsh Yatra'
from May 11 over “corrup-
tion” and cases of leaking
of papers for state govern-
ment recruitment exams.
The Pilot-Gehlot flare-up
comes a day ahead of the
Karnataka polls.
Addressing a press con-
ference, Mr Pilot said, “He
(Mr Gehlot) alleges that
the BJP tried to topple his
government... then he
says a BJP leader helped
save his government. ■ P5
K’TAKA MUSLIM
QUOTA UPSETS SC
PUNEET DESHWAL | DC
NEW DELHI, MAY 9
The SC on Tuesday expre-
ssed displeasure over politi-
cal statements being made
during election campaigns
around scrapping of four
per cent reservation for Mu-
slims in Karnataka, when
the matter is pending adju-
dication before the top
court. A bench comprising
of Justices K.M. Joseph,
B.V. Nagarathna and
Ahsanuddin Amanullah
remarked that such state-
ments should not be made...
■ P4

None can break Indo-Bangladesh ties: Shah

RAJIB CHOWDHURI | DC
KOLKATA, MAY 9
Union home minister Amit
Shah asserted on Tuesday
that no one can “break” the
India-Bangladesh ties which
are on the path of growth.
He also underlined the
Union government’s focus
to boost border infrastruc-
ture in the country.
The Union home minister,
on a one-day visit to West
Bengal, was speaking at the
inauguration of a slew of
projects of the Land Ports
Authority of India (LPAI)
and Border Security Force
(BSF) at the integrated
checkpost-Petrapole in
North 24 Parganas on the
Indo-Bangla border.
Hailing poet Rabindranath
Tagore on his birth anniver-
sary for penning the nation-
al anthems of the two neigh-
bouring countries, Mr Shah
said, “We do not only share
deep relations with Bangla
desh, we also share a comm
on language, livelihood, arts
and culture. No one can bre
ak India-Bangladesh rela-
tions.”
He added, “Based on a
common culture, the two
countries have been coexist-
ing over decades. India has
also been playing a very
important and friendly role
with Bangladesh since its
birth. The BSF had a golden
contribution to the freedom
struggle of Bangladesh. Th
at is why the two countries
have a cordial and warm re
lationship which will get a
new speed boost from here.”
Mr Shah further praised
the LPAI in strengthening
relations with the neigh-
bouring countries. He
informed that land trade of
`18,000 crores in 2016-17 now
surpassed Rs 30,000 crores.
 CITY
DECCAN CHRONICLE | WEDNESDAY | 10 MAY 2023 | CHENNAI
SHORT TAKES
Kanchi town
residents protest to
stop water
inundation
DC CORRESPONDENT
CHENNAI, MAY 9:
The residents of Pallavamedu
in Kanchipuram town on
Tuesday held a road blockade
and besieged the vehicles of
the city corporation demand-
ing steps to solve inundation
of the area even during sum-
mer rains for an hour.
The people in
Arunthathiyar Palayam in
Pallavamedu complained that
rain water mixed with sewage
is flooding their area even if
it rained for one hour and the
corporation officials have not
taken steps despite their com-
plaints. All the streets are
flooded with a mix of rain and
sewage water adding to the
mosquito problem and other
health hazards in the residen-
tial area, they complained.
Though they complained to
the councillor of ward 15, no
action was taken to solve the
problem. The residents, who
were furious, blocked the cor-
poration vehicles demanding
action.
Police and corporation offi-
cials held negotiations with
the protesting people for a
long time and promised to
solve the problem. Following
the negotiations, the protest
was withdrawn.
Traffic diversions
for IPL matches
DC CORRESPONDENT
CHENNAI, MAY 9:
The Greater Chennai Traffic
Police announced traffic
diversions around MA
Chidambaram stadium in
Chepauk on all days when the
Indian Premier League will
be played in the city to regu-
late the flow of traffic.
The traffic regulations must
be followed on May 10, May 14
and May 23 and May 24 when
the IPL matches are played.
The traffic diversions will be
implemented half an hour
before completion of the
match.
All outgoing vehicles at War
Memorial will be diverted
towards Flag Staff Road
through Wallajah point to
reach their destination. All
the incoming vehicles will be
diverted at Gandhi Statue
towards RK Salai to reach
their destination.
At Labour Statue, vehicles
will not be allowed to proceed
towards Wallajah road and
will be diverted towards
Kannagi Statue. At Anna
Statue, Vehicles will not be
allowed to proceed towards
Wallajah road and will be
diverted towards Wellington
Point & Periyar Statue.
At Bharathi Salai X Bells
Road jn, vehicles will not be
allowed to proceed towards
Bells Road and will be divert-
ed towards Kannagi Statue
(or) Rathna Cafe junction. At
Bata point, outgoing vehicles
will not be allowed to take "U"
turns. Instead, vehicles will
be allowed to proceed till
Wellington point from where
the vehicles can take a right
turn towards Dams Road or
proceed straight towards
Spencer's Junction.
Girl commits
suicide for scoring
low marks in
plus-2
DC CORRESPONDENT
CHENNAI, MAY 9:
A girl committed suicide at
Padappai for scoring low
marks in the plus-2 public
examination by hanging her-
self.
The girl Keerthiga (17) was
living at Padappai in
Sriperumbudur and she was
studying in a nearby school.
When the plus-2 were results
were declared, she passed the
examination by scoring 285
marks.
Her parents scolded her for
scoring low marks and asked
how she would get a seat in
higher studies. Keerthiga,
who was under stress, com-
mitted suicide by hanging
herself in her room, when no
one was present in the house.
B.Com cut off to be
very high this year
N. RAVIKUMAR | DC
CHENNAI, MAY 9:
With the number of plus-2
students scoring centum
in Commerce and
Accountancy witnessing a
rise this year, the cut off
marks for B.Com in reput-
ed colleges will be very
high, while the engineer-
ing cut off marks will
come down by one or two
marks.
Though the number of
centums in subjects like
Physics and Chemistry
too has seen a rise, the stu-
dents have different
options like engineering
and science courses and
not all of them opt for BSc
(Physics) or BSc
(Chemistry). But, those
who took Commerce
group seek a B.Com seat
in a reputed institution
like the Loyola College
where the cut-off for
B.Com was 98 per cent last
year.
This year 5,678 students
have scored centum in
Pattalam clock tower may get facelift
T. SUDHEESH | DC
CHENNAI, MAY 9
The iconic clock tower
near Strahans Road in
Pattalam, constructed in
1948, which was crying for
the attention of authori-
ties for decades, may get a
facelift soon, after the
Greater Chennai
Corporation (GCC) admin-
istration has decided to
renovate the tower.
Murugan, zonal officer,
Thiru. Vi. Ka. Nagar, said
a decision had been taken
to renovate the Pattalam
Clock Tower and make it
functional soon. "A pro-
posal is under process,"
said the official.
The tower was built in
memory of Selvapathy
Chettiar, the co-founder of
the first labour union in
the country, and was last
restored in 2004
Chettiar and
Ramanujalu Naidu were
the founders of the
Madras Labour Union in
Binny Mills in 1918.
The four-faced clock
stopped ticking years ago,
and the dilapidated tower
is etched with black moss.
The dials are broken. The
bell attached to it rusted
and the tower is home for
birds, squirrels and rep-
tiles. Its surroundings are
strewn with bundles of
wastes. It has become a
dumpyard.
Gunasekaran, a local
activist, said that he had
submitted many com-
plaints with the GCC offi-
cials including zonal offi-
Commerce and 6,573 in
Accountancy. The number
of centum in Commerce
has gone up by 22 per cent
this year and this will also
reflect in the cut off marks
for B.Com.
Educationist Jaya
Prakash Gandhi said
“This time the cut off for
B.Com in reputed institu-
tions like Loyola College
and Stella Maris is expect-
ed to be between 99 and
100. Even in government
arts and science colleges
throughout Tamil Nadu,
the cut off marks for
B.Com will be high this
year. Most of the
Commerce group students
prefer B.Com”, he said.
The cut off marks for
BSc (Chemistry) in top
institutions like the
Loyola College, Madras
Christian College and
Stella Maris is expected to
go up since the number of
students who scored a cen-
tum in Chemistry has
more than doubled com-
pared to last year. The
CROWD-PULLER
Present condition of Clock tower in Pattalam
cer and Regional Deputy
Commissioner (Central)
since 2019.
However, they used to
reply that they would pre-
pare a proposal and reno-
number of students scor-
ing a centum in Chemistry
this year is 3,909 and it
was only 1,500 last year.
In Physics, the number
of centum scorers last
time was only 634 and this
time it has increased to
812. This will increase the
cut off marks in Physics
too. But, for the students
of Chemistry and Physics,
there are engineering
options too. The cut off
marks in engineering is
expected to come down
slightly as the scores in
Mathematics is lesser
than last year.
Most of the students who
wrote Mathematics said
the paper was tough while
the Commerce students
opined that the Commerce
paper was very easy. The
comments are reflected in
the marks also. A total of
18,322 students have
applied in Arts and
Science colleges on the
very first day and a higher
number of students are
expected to seek seats in
‘Chennai Vizha’ , a handicrafts, handloom and food festival hosted by Tamil
Nadu tourism department, witnesses huge crowds owing to summer vaca-
tion at Island Grounds in the city.
vate it soon. But nothing
has happened so far. They
had renovated other tow-
ers in Devton and Mint
several times in the last
few years, he said.
top colleges. However,
experts say studying a
particular degree
alone will not
ensure a great future for
students.
Jayaprakash Gandhi,
who is also a well-known
career consultant and ana-
lyst said “Studying
B.Com or any other
degree in demand alone
will not ensure a great
career for students.
W h a t e v e r
subject a student joins, he
should master it and
develop his skills in the
subject. This alone will
ensure a good career for
him. Whatever degree
he gets, the mastery
of the subject is more
important”.
This year 5,678
students have
scored centum in
Commerce and
6,573 in
Accountancy.
The towers in
Tondiarpet and Pattalam
had never got the due
attention of the authori-
ties. The GCC administra-
tion is spending crores of
rupees under Singara
Chennai 2.0 Scheme. For
GCC, it is easy to get it
done, he said.
If the authorities are
serious about the propos-
al, they have to appoint
people for post-renovation
maintenance. The author-
ities should replace the
clocks with advanced tech-
nologies instead of the old
manual clock system
which is very difficult to
maintain. These struc-
tures are symbols of
Chennai’s heritage. If you
don’t protect it, the pride
of the city will vanish, he
cautioned.
According to historians,
the clock tower and the
park around it were
named after Selvapthy
Chettiar and opened to the
public on August
4, 1948, by Dr. U. Krishna
Rao, the then Mayor of
Madras.
Set up by well-known
clockmakers Gani & Sons,
the four-faced and four-
feet clock working on a
Master and Slave system
was a landmark in
Choolai.
The tower also had a bell
in 1965. It was rung every
hour by the caretaker of
the park. People used to
come in the evenings to
relax and listen to the
municipal band playing in
the park.
IIT-M researchers study
on sensor technology
DC CORRESPONDENT,
CHENNAI, MAY 9
Indian Institute of
Technology Madras (IIT-
M) researchers has
launched a study in asso-
ciation with Defence
Research and
D e v e l o p m e n t
Organisation (DRDO) sci-
entists to develop cutting-
edge sensor technology
for underwater communi-
cations.
The study will be led by
a team including Prof.
Amitava Das Gupta and
Prof. Boby George along
with Dr. E. Varadarajan,
Scientist, and Dr. V.
Natarajan, Senior
Scientist of DRDO at the
DRDO Industry Academia
– Ramanujan Centre of
Excellence (DIA-RCoE),
IIT-M. The team has
worked with multiple
partners for the indige-
nous development of a
piezo MEMS (Micro
Electro Mechanical
System) process technolo-
gy to make ‘Thin film
membrane based Piezo
MEMS Acoustic sensors.’
—N Sampath
KANCHI SLIPS FROM BAD TO WORSE IN PLUS-2 RESULTS
N RAVIKUMAR &
P.A.JEBARAJ | DC
CHENNAI, MAY 9:
Kanchipuram district has
performed poorly in the
plus-2 examination this
year and it has fallen from
28th place in the State to
31 in the success rate of
students.
Kanchipuram finds
mention in ancient Tamil
and Sanskrit literature as
a centre of learning and
ancient travellers to India
including Yuan Chwang
had glorified the ancient
city as an international
educational centre. But,
the
Kanchipuram,
modern
despite
being close to the capital
city and having access to
HR&CE minister P K Sekar Babu, along with officials inspects Thiruvalluvar Temple in
Mylapore. on Tuesday.
Dr. O.R. Nandagopan,
Director, DRDO Industry
Academia- Ramanujan
Centre of Excellence’
(DIA-RCoE), IIT-M, said
that the technology was
matured enough to con-
vert it as a system with
the support of Indian
industry. This technology
will be a disruptive tech-
nology in this domain and
our country achieved
‘Aatma Nirbhar Bharat’ in
underwater materials and
micro device processing
technology.”
The study will focus on
the ‘Piezoelectric MEMS
technology’ which is
required to develop high-
performance thin films
and convert ‘piezo thin
film’ into state-of-the-art
futuristic Naval Sensors
and devices for underwa-
ter applications. The
Piezo Thin Films are one
of the vital components of
piezo MEMS devices and
are considered for
acoustics and vibration-
sensing applications.
Internationally, several
piezo MEMS foundries
are making various piezo
`288 cr stolen from
bank accts through
cybercrimes in a yr
DC CORRESPONDENT
CHENNAI, MAY 9:
A total of ` 288.38 crore
has been stolen from peo-
ple’s bank accounts in the
last financial year alone
as cybercrimes are
increasing at an alarming
rate in Chennai.
Police said most of the
people who lose their
money through cyber-
crimes do not give com-
plaints. As far as the num-
ber of complaints are
concerned, the Greater
Chennai police have
received over 12,000 com-
plaints in the last three
months alone for an
amount of `67 crore.
Through police action,
the accounts for `49 crore
had been frozen and `6
crore had been restored
in the last three months.
A total of 29 persons
involved in cybercrimes
have been arrested under
Goondas Act.
The police are taking
action to block SIM cards
used for online fraud
after the Union govern-
ment recommended the
blocking of 27,905 cards.
all modern facilities, is
falling behind other dis-
tricts in plus-2 results.
While the state average
is 94 and districts like
Virudhunagar and
Tiruppur have recorded
over 97 percent,
Kanchipuram district has
a pass percentage of 90.82
percent. A total of 13,141
students wrote the public
examinations from the
district and 11,935 stu-
dents have passed.
Last year too, the district
performed poorly by occu-
pying the 28th place and
the district officials prom-
ised to improve the per-
formance this year by tak-
ing various measures.
But, the district has fur-
ther slipped down to 31st
pg 2
MEMS devices for both
defence and civilian appli-
cations. Currently, the
piezo thin film-based
piezoelectric device mar-
ket is worth around USD 5
billion US and is estimat-
ed to grow at a Compound
Annual Growth Rate
(CAGR) of 12 percent in
the next 3 to 4 years.
Prof. Amitava Das
Gupta, Department of
Electrical Engineering,
IIT- M said that the facili-
ty for the fabrication was
established at IIT- Madras
and also at DRDO
Industry Academia -
Ramanujan Centre of
Excellence. The indige-
nous development of
Piezo MEMS technology
connects the technology
gaps leading to the devel-
opment of piezo MEMS
acoustic devices for
underwater applications.
Large dimension (100 mm
dia) Piezoelectric thin
films were fabricated by
both RF sputtering and
Sol-Gel technique with
good uniformity and high-
er piezoelectric proper-
ties’, he said.
So far, 22,240 SIM cards
used for online frauds
had been blocked by the
police.
Police officials includ-
ing Chennai
Commissioner of Police
Shankar Jiwal are issu-
ing frequent statements
about the new trends of
cybercrimes and alerting
the people. Police say the
best way to avoid online
fraud is prevention from
falling into the traps of
fraudulent persons.
People should not answer
calls from unknown per-
sons and should not click
unknown links sent
through SMS or
WhatsApp.
For illustrative purpose
place and only 7 districts
are below it.
Most of the places in the
district are very much
near to Chennai and the
students have access to all
the tools needed for quali-
ty education and they are
also in touch with the stu-
dents of the capital. In all
aspects of growth,
Kanchipuram resembles
Chennai, but when it
comes to education, the
district shares the poor
standard of other north-
ern districts
Villupuram. Parents and
like
educationists are seeking
serious steps to lift the
educational performance
of this district and hope
that it performs better
next year.
—DC
 STATE
DECCAN CHRONICLE | WEDNESDAY | 10 MAY 2023 | CHENNAI
pg 3

OTHER
IS OPS SEEKING DIVINE
STORY All set for reshuffle tomorrow: CM’s instruction to ensure
INTERVENTION? T R B Rajaa in, S M Nasar out Tamils’ safety in Manipur
G. BABU JAYAKUMAR & G BABU JAYAKUMAR & even came up with the explain to the media per- State Finance Minister
P. A. JEBARAJ | DC D SEKAR | DC names of Ministers to be sons that cabinet reshuffle Palanivel Thiaga Rajan G. BABU JAYAKUMAR &
CHENNAI, MAY 9

Former Chief Minister and leader

CHENNAI, MAY 9

The much speculated

of an AIADMK faction, O
Panneerselvam, left for Kochi by
an Indigo Airlines flight on
Tuesday morning, triggering spec-
ulations of his seeking divine
intervention to solve the political
problems that he has been facing
with the rival group led by
Edappadi K Palaniswami refusing
to take him back.
While Palaniswami, who spoke
to media persons before embark-
ing on the flight, did not reply to
the question as to why he was mak-
ing the trip to Kerala, the specula-
tion was that he was going to visit
some temples and perform some
religious rituals, probably to gain
back his position in the AIADMK.
Some of his supporters also con-
firmed that their leader was on a
pilgrimage to some temples in
Kerala and that he would return
and resume his political work to
regain control of the AIADMK.
Palaniswami even refused to
answer some other questions relat-
ing to his returning to the
AIADMK or on the outcome of his
meeting with AMMK founder T T
V Dinakaran on Monday. However,
he said that he would be meeting
ousted AIADMK general secretary
reshuffle of the State
Cabinet will finally happen
on Thursday, May 11, with
the induction of T R B
Rajaa, Mannargudi MLA
and son of DMK treasurer
T R Baalu, into the council
of ministers and the drop-
ping of Milk and Dairy
Development Minister S M
Nasar.
An official press release
said on Tuesday that
Governor R N Ravi had
approved of the Chief
Minister M K Stalin’s rec-
ommendations and that the
swearing-in of Rajaa would
be held at the Durbar Hall
of the Raj Bhavan at 10.30
am.
Earlier in the day, conjec-
tures and rumours ruled
the roost at many news-
rooms as ‘breaking news’
on television channels and
social media speculated on
a Cabinet reshuffle and
RAIN DRIVES AWAY TRAFFIC COPS Pedestrian woes as rain hits Ooty
dropped, inducted and the
portfolios to be changed.
Though the induction of
Rajaa and the dropping of
Nasar were among the list
of changes that were antic-
ipated, none of the other
surmises came true, includ-
ing the one on senior DMK
leader and Minister for
Water Resources Duraim-
urugan leaving the min-
istry. Duraimurugan was
chased by a media contin-
gent even as he left Fort St
George after attending to
some work with the chan-
nels starting to flash the
news that he was headed to
Raj Bhavan to submit his
resignation.
When Duraimurugan
entered his house in
Kotturpuram, which was of
course on the way to Raj
Bhavan from the
Secretariat, the media that
was in hot pursuit sur-
prised him with the ques-
tion of his plan to meet the
Governor. He had to
was the prerogative of the
Chief Minister and that he
had no idea if anything was
in the offing. Since he had
some urgent work to attend
to at the Secretariat, he had
gone there straight on his
return to Chennai from
Tirunelveli in the morning.
But since the media
grapevine, particularly the
social media part, had been
going to town with a pletho-
ra of speculations on
impending changes in the
State cabinet for the last
few days, reporters mistook
his leaving the Secretariat
soon after reaching there
and triggered the rumour
that he was on his way out
to Raj Bhavan to put in his
papers, spinning a series of
stories on replacements
and new faces.
Such stories started mak-
ing their rounds since BJP
State President K ments on May 7, 8 and 9 – at
Annamalai leaked an audio
clip of what was purported
to be a conversation of
with an unknown person.
Though the Minister sum-
marily clarified that it was
a fabricated clip, the
rumour mill was abuzz
with the possibility of his
losing the finance portfolio.
What started with that
slowly assumed bigger pro-
portions suggesting that
more Ministers would be
getting dropped or losing
their portfolios and social
media too was awash with
many posts and tweets and
comments on the impend-
ing reshuffle though there
was no word or indication
of any move from the gov-
ernment.
Another reason for the
speculations to gain accept-
ability was Thiaga Rajan
not attending the DMK’s
meeting – the party held
1,222 meetings to explain
the government achieve-
Madurai though it was ear-
lier announced that he
would be a speaker.
D. SEKAR | DC
CHENNAI, MAY 9
Arrangements have been
made for the safe return of
five Tamil students want-
ing to leave strife-torn
Manipur by the State gov-
ernment that has estab-
lished contact with all
Tamil students and other
Tamil people in the North-
Eastern State and ensured
their safety.
Most of the students felt
secure living in their col-
lege hostels and were not
interested in leaving their
campuses now in view of
impending examinations,
an official press release
said on Tuesday, explain-
ing the efforts made by the
government to help the
Tamil people stuck in
Manipur, which is rocked
by clashes between the
majority Meiteis and trib-
al Kukis following a move
to provide Scheduled
Tribe status to the majori-
ty community.
The State government
had made arrangements
through the Manipur gov-
ernment and representa-
Stalin lauds plus-2
topper, assures help
Chennai, May 9: Chief
Minister M. K. Stalin on
Tuesday congratulated S
Nandini, who scored 600
out of 600 in the State
Higher Secondary Board
exams, and assured all
help for her higher stud-
ies. Lauding her for scor-
ing a centum in all six sub-
jects in the Class XII
exam, the results of which
were announced on May 8,
the Chief Minister said,
"We are proud of you. Ask
me if you want any help."
Accompanied by her
parents, younger brother,
school headmistress, and
education department
officials, Nandini called
on the Chief Minister at
his camp office here and
received a gift from him.
each from Virudhunagar,
Thoothukudi
Cuddalore districts and
and
An ecstatic Nandhini said
she wanted to become an
auditor. "I have always
been saying in many pro-
grammes that education
is an asset that none can
steal. I am proud to see
that Nandini, who
achieved a record scoring
full marks in her plus-2
exam, had said in an inter-
view that she studied
thinking that education is
an asset," the Chief
Minister said. He had
assured her of the State
government's assistance
for her higher education.
"People like Nandini with
a simple family back-
ground who come up by
their hard work are the
symbols of Tamil Nadu,"
he said in a tweet.
tion, Edappadi K

two from Thiruvallur dis-

V K Sasikala soon.
But Panneerselvam supporters
claimed that he had some plans up
his sleeves to bring together
Dinakaran and Sasikala and take
on Palaniswami unitedly. So after
completing his Kerala trip he
would meet Sasikala. Answering
questions of media persons,
Panneerselvam hit out at
AIADMK leader and former
Minister R B Udayakumar, who
had, reacting to his meeting with
Dinkaran, said that
Panneerselvam would meet any-
one for the welfare of his family,
saying that he was not bound to
reply to people like Udayakumar.
To another remark of
Udayakumar that Panneerselvam
was an ‘expired drug,’ he replied
that the comment revealed the
character of the man who said
that. Supporters of
Panneerselvam had arrived at the
airport to see him off with party
flags and some of them even raised
slogans in praise of him.
B. RAVICHANDRAN | DC summer traffic in the
OOTY, MAY 9 small ghat roads in the
hills.
Traffic management Now, a problem of sorts
goes awry during rain in began to surface as these
Ooty, a problem which cops on traffic regulation
the higher police offi- duty in vantage points in
cials need to look into to the town limits often
address this issue. vanish when there are
While the police heavy showers or down-
administration in the pour. This ultimately
Nilgiris attracted wide- would lead to traffic
spread criticism early snarls as many of the
this summer for its inept drivers of tourist vehi-
handling of increased cles are almost clueless
volume of traffic due to on which route they
huge influx of summer need to follow, especially
tourists to the hills, when they negotiate
things began to improve junctions such as
when the district admin- Missionary Hill Road
istration interfered and junction and College
made necessary Road-Anna stadium
arrangements to handle road-Kotagiri Road junc-
the summer traffic. tion, in the absence of
As a sequel, a good traffic cops
number of cops from there. It is better for the
neighbouring districts police administration in
were brought to the hills Ooty town limits to take
with a view to manage note of this.
B. RAVICHANDRAN | DC
OOTY, MAY 9
Poor storm water management
on National Highway (NH) in
tthe town limits here is adding to
the woes of the locals and sum-
mer tourists when it rains.
Though the NH had come in for
praise for its commendable
works in road strengthening,
improvement and widening
works in the Mysuru-Ooty-Coim-
batore NH, the lone NH in the
Nilgiris, the patches in the town
limits here is attracting the
wrath of the local residents and
all the summer tourists as things
get worse during heavy down-
pour due to poor stormwater
management in some spots along
the NH in Ooty town limits.
Pointing to such storm water
management near the SM
Hospital junction in Coonoor
Road area here, a cross-section of
the residents said though the NH
laid the underground stormwa-
ter drain works and completed
the pedestrian pavement above
the drain months ago in the
Coonoor area between Charring
Cross bus top and Aavin junc-
tion, the NH officials looking
after the road works in Ooty town
limits failed to complete the pave-
ment works as well as the
stormwater management works
in SM hospital junction and
Blindness Control Society build-
ing junction. During the time of
heavy downpour, which has
almost become the order of the
day this summer, the rainwater
floods the area and flows above
the road. This makes it difficult
for pedestrians who cannot walk
along the pavement, as connec-
tivity is lacking, or cross the road
as speeding vehicles splash the
dirty rainwater on both sides of
the road. The hill residents want
the Nilgiris district administra-
tion to goad the NH officials to
complete the pavement laying
and stormwater drains in the
Coonoor Road limits to make
commuting easy for pedestrians.
tives of Manipur Tamil
Sangam to provide food,
water and other basic
requirements to the Tamil
people living in the State,
ocked by ethnic violence
for the past few days, the
release said.
The efforts by officials of
the department of reha-
bilitation and welfare of
non-resident Tamils to
ensure the safety of Tamil
people caught in unsafe
conditions in the troubled
State began on May 5 at
the behest of Chief
Minister M K Stalin.
The five students who
had expressed a desire to
return home would be
back in Chennai by
Tuesday or Wednesday
and their tickets had been
paid for by the depart-
ment of rehabilitation
and welfare of non-resi-
dent Tamils, the release
said. The students, one
trict, would be sent back
to their homes by the gov-
ernment, the release
added.
Apart from contacting
the students studying in
medical colleges in
Manipur, the officials also
ensured the safety of the
Tamil community of
about 17,000 people living
in Moreh, a town in the
Myanmar border of
Manipur, for a long time,
through the government
and the Tamil Sangam,
the release said.
PMK president Anb-
umani Ramadoss, in a
statement, claimed that
the violence in Manipur
had spread to Moreh, too,
and many people were
affected due to it. He
demanded the interven-
tion of the State govern-
ment in providing safety
to the Tamil people.
Leader of the opposi-
Palaniswami, had raised
the issue of Tamils living
in unsafe conditions in
Manipur on Monday and
blamed the State govern-
ment for not doing any-
thing about it.
Though the Tamil com-
munity in Moreh had
been part of the Manipur
society playing a signifi-
cant role in that State’s
culture and economy ever
since they were prevented
from re-entering
Myanmar after fleeing
that country following a
strife during the rule of
General Ne Win, they had
faced discrimination ear-
lier.
Since life in the refugee
camps was difficult when
the Tamil people fled
Myanmar and entered
India, they wanted to
return to their homes and
were stopped at the border
town of Moreh, where
they settled down and
integrated themselves
with the local culture.
 NATION
DECCAN CHRONICLE | WEDNESDAY | 10 MAY 2023 | CHENNAI
pg 4

■ ‘Modi openly attempted to influence voters during prohibited silence period’

SHORT TAKES
Modi to launch
‘Y+’ cover for Punjab
neta after Brar threat Cong seeks EC action against PM projects worth
New Delhi: After a security
assessment by the intelli-
DC CORRESPONDENT
NEW DELHI, MAY 9 Sidda cries foul `5,500cr in Raj
over fake letter
gence agencies, the Union
home ministry has accorded The Congress on Tuesday
Y+ category of the Central complained to the Election

security to the Punjab
Congress leader Gursimarn
Singh Mand following the
death threat from gangster
Goldie Brar who is hiding in
Canada. According to the
sources, gangster Brar was
constantly threatening to kill
him as he kept raising his
voice against gangsters,
fanatics and Khalistanis.
Congress leader Mand is the
national coordinator of All
India Congress Committee
(Kisan Congress) in
Ludhiana. He was constantly
getting death threats from
gangster Goldie Brar on
phone and WhatsApp from
foreign mobile numbers. The
Congress leader had also
lodged a complaint about
this in the local police sta-
tion. In November last year
in Amritsar, Sudhir Suri,
leader of the political party
Shiv Sena (Taksali), was mur-
dered in broad daylight by
armed miscreants.
Commission (EC) over
Prime Minister Narendra
Modi’s appeal to
Karnataka’s voters after the
campaigning time was over.
The party demanded that
the EC take immediate
action against the PM and
several leaders of the BJP
for flagrantly violating the
Model Code of Conduct
(MCC) and the provisions of
the Representation of
People Act, 1951, ahead of
the Karnataka Assembly
elections.
In the complaint letter,
Congress general secretary
and MP Randeep Singh
Surjewala pointed to the
video message posted from
Mr Modi’s Twitter handle
and live interviews of other
BJP leaders aired on a TV
news channel after the
‘silence period.’
Sharing the complaint let-
ter on social media, Mr
Surjewala, in a strongly
worded statement, said the
in his name
DC CORRESPONDENT the public.
NEW DELHI, MAY 9 The PM will
also lay the
Bengaluru: Former Prime Minister foundation
Karnataka CM Narendra Modi will stone for the
Siddaramaiah on Tuesday launch development gauge con-
appealed to the people not to projects costing over Narendra version proj-
“take into account” a fake `5,500 crore in Rajasthan Modi ect and for
letter in his name, which is on Wednesday. Elections setting up of
being circulated on social in the desert state are a new line from
media. The Leader of scheduled in November- Nathdwara to
Opposition termed it a December this year. Nathdwara town in
“handiwork of mischief In a statement, the Rajsamand.
mongers of RSS”. PMO said that the focus The Prime Minster
Clarifying that the letter of these projects will be will dedicate three
was a fake one and not writ- on bolstering infrastruc- national highway proj-
ten by him, he said, “The ture and connectivity in ects to the nation,
mischief mongers of RSS the region. including 114-km long
have made it viral on the “The projects of the six lane Udaipur to
social media. I appeal to all road and railway sector Shamlaji section of NH-
the people to reject this let- will also facilitate the 48, 110-km long widening
ter.” — PTI movement of goods and and strengthening to 4
services, thereby boost- lane with paved shoul-
during the prohibited ing trade and commerce der of Bar-Bilara-
‘silence period,’ it is impera- and improving the socio- Jodhpur section of NH-
tive for the Election economic conditions of 25, and 47 km long two
Commission to fulfil its the people in the region.” lane with paved shoul-
constitutional duty under Mr Modi will lay the der section of NH 58E.
Article 324 of the foundation stone for The Prime Minister
Constitution of India. road construction proj- will visit the Shantivan

Mamata takes dig

at BJP over Tagore
Kolkata: Even as a controver-
sy broke out over what polit-
ical rivals saw as an attempt
to usurp the legacy of
national poet Rabindranath
poll body faces a “litmus
test” over the PM’s alleged
disregard for electoral laws
and code of conduct.
The Rajya Sabha member
emphasised that if the PM
can flout electoral laws with
impunity and openly
attempt to influence voters
Taking on the EC, Mr ects for the upgradation complex of Brahma
Surjewala asked whether to two lanes in Kumaris and will lay the
the laws apply to the Prime foundation stone of a
Rajsamand and Udaipur.
Minister and whether the He will lay the founda- super speciality charita-
poll panel has the capacity tion stone for the rede- ble global hospital, sec-
and willingness to enforce velopment of Udaipur ond phase of Shivmani
its mandates or if it will railway station for old age home and exten-
remain a helpless enhanced amenities for sion of nursing college.
bystander.

UP’s Swar, Chhanbey gear

Tagore by the BJP, West
Bengal chief minister Mamata
Banerjee in a speech here on
Tuesday to mark the Nobel
Laurette’s birth anniversary
pointedly spoke about his
secular vision and his use of
Raksha Bandhan to promote
Hindu-Muslim unity. Analysts
saw this as thinly veiled
attack on the BJP and Home
minister Amit Shah who is in
the city to pay homage to
the poet at a function organ-
ised by a BJP supported cul-
tural NGO. TMC has long
accused BJP and its top
leadership of promoting a
political ideology opposed to
the tenets of secularism. She
said that many things are
being bandied about for the
sake of electoral calculations
such as that “Tagore was
born in Santiniketan”. — PTI
Seizures in K’taka 4.5 times more than last polls
DC CORRESPONDENT
NEW DELHI, MAY 9
A day before Karnataka
goes for Assembly polls,
the Election Commission
(EC) disclosed that there
has been 4.5 times more
than what was recovered
during the last Assembly
election in the state.
The EC said seizures
totalling more than `375
crores have been recorded
so far and the Enforcement
Directorate (ED) has
attached assets worth `288
crores after the imposition
of the Model Code of
Conduct (MCC). EC offi-
cials said such high
seizures are due to an
increased focus on expen-
diture monitoring in poll-
going states.
The EC has deputed 146
expenditure observers in
the state for stricter vigil
and monitoring even as 81
Assembly constituencies
have been marked as
expenditure sensitive.
“The recorded seizures
in the state mark a signifi-
cant 4.5 times increase as
compared to Assembly
election in 2018. Strict
vigil, extensive monitor-
◗ THE EC said seizures
totalling more than `375
crores have been record-
ed so far and the ED has
attached assets worth
`288 crores
ing, coordination with
neighbouring states and
inter-agency coordination
has led to checking flow
and distribution of
inducements in Karnataka
this time,” EC officials
said.
Notable hauls include
seizure of `4.04 crores of
cash in Bangarapet
Assembly constituency in
Kolar district, raid of a lab
illegally manufacturing
Alprazolam in Hyderabad.
In addition, 100 kg ganja
was seized in Bidar dis-
trict and significant liquor
seizures were made in all
the districts, said EC offi-
cials.
Another striking feature
of expenditure monitoring
has been huge seizures of
freebies. Sarees and food
kits have been seized from
Kalburgi, Chimanglur and
other districts. A huge
number of pressure cook-
ers and kitchen appliances
were also seized from
Bailhongal and Kunigal
and other Assembly con-
stituencies.
The EC said it also
reviewed the law and order
situation and inter-state
vigil through border
checkposts of poll-going
Karnataka and neighbour-
ing states of Maharashtra,
Goa, Telangana, Andhra
Pradesh, Kerala and Tamil
Nadu on May 1. Chief
Election Commissioner
Rajiv Kumar stressed
proper manning and moni-
toring of the 185 check-
posts in border districts.
up for May 10 byelections
Rampur/Mirzapur (UP),
May 9: The byelection to
Swar and Chhanbey
Assembly constituencies
in Uttar Pradesh on
Wednesday will witness a
direct contest between the
ruling coalition and the
Opposition Samajwadi
Party with the victor get-
ting a moral boost before
next year’s Lok Sabha
polls.
The Mayawati-led BSP
has decided to sit out the
byelection, the Congress
has fielded its candidate
only in Chhanbey and the
political leaders are either
campaigning in
Karnataka or busy with
the urban local bodies
elections of Uttar Pradesh.
As such, the hustings for
bypolls to the two seats in
Rampur and Mirzapur dis-
tricts have been lacklustre.
The focus of the bypolls,
however, will be on Swar
which was previously rep-
resented by Abdullah
Azam Khan, the son of
senior SP leader Azam
Khan. — PTI

CASTE CENSUS: HC
REJECTS EARLY
HEARING PETITION
Patna: The Patna high court
on Tuesday rejected the
Bihar government’s plea,
seeking early hearing of its
interim stay on caste-based
survey in the state. The
court said the hearing will
take place on July 3, the
date fixed earlier, and the
stay will remain in effect till
then. It had on May 4 put a
stay on the caste-based sur-
vey in its interim order,
while hearing a batch of
petitions. The division
bench of Chief Justice K.
Vinod Chandran and Justice
Madhuresh Prasad had fixed
July 3 as the next date of
hearing. Later, an interlocu-
tory application was filed in
the high court on behalf of
the Bihar government, urg-
ing for an early hearing in
Pawar hits K’taka Muslim quota: SC takes
out against exception to political remarks
its alliance
partners
SONU SHRIVASTAVA
MUMBAI, MAY 9
Disharmony in the
Maha Vikas Aghadi
(MVA) continues
despite the claims by
Congress, NCP and Shiv
Sena (UBT) leaders
about their unity.
Nationalist Congress
Party chief Sharad
Pawar on Tuesday hit
hard to its alliance part-
ner Shiv Sena (UBT)
over its assertion that
Pawar failed to groom
new leadership in his
party. Mr Pawar also
questioned the stature
of former chief minis-
ter Prithviraj Chavan
FROM PG 1
After senior advocate
Dushyant Dave, appear-
ing for the petitioners,
said that the Union home
minister is consistently
making public statements
that the BJP-led govern-
ment in state has with-
drawn the quota for
Muslims.
“When the matter is
pending before the court
……then there should not
be any political state-
ments on the issue. It is
not appropriate. Some
sanctity needs to be main-
tained,” said the court.
The SC said that public
functionaries should
exercise caution in their
Nitish meets Naveen, says no talk on alliance
speeches, and should
avoid politicising issues
pending before it.
“In 1971, West Bengal
CM was held for contempt
for holding a press confer-
ence defending a ration
ing order that was the
subject matter of a chal-
lenge before the court,”
Justice K.M. Joseph told
the solicitor general.
The court has posted the
matter for hearing post
summer vacations on
July 25 after the state gov-
ernment sought an
adjournment due to
engagement of SG before
the constitution bench
hearing pleas relating to
same-sex marriage.
BJP wants to make K’taka
number 1 state: PM Modi
FROM PG 1
The government’s “next
aim is to reach the top
three,” which is “possible
only when Karnataka rap-
idly grows to become a $1
trillion economy.”
“In our Azadi Ka Amrit
Kaal, we Indians have
aimed to make our
beloved country a devel-
oped nation. Karnataka is
keen to lead the move-
ment to realise this
vision. India is the world's
fifth-largest economy. Our
next goal is to reach the
top three. This is possible
only when Karnataka rap-
idly grows to become a $1
trillion economy. You have
witnessed the work of the
'double engine' BJP gov-
ernment over the last 3.5
years. Our decisive,
focused and futuristic
policies are imparting
momentum to the growth
of Karnataka's economy,”
said the PM.
Claiming that the BJP
wants to “make
Karnataka the Number 1”
in investment, industry
innovation, education,
employment and entre-
preneurship,” the PM said
the BJP is also committed
Nath launches
‘Nari Samman
Yojana’ ahead
of polls in MP
to “making Karnataka the
number 1 in agriculture”.
“The decisions taken by RABINDRA NATH
the double engine govern- CHOUDHURY
ment to boost connectivi- BHOPAL, MAY 9
ty, ease of living and ease
of doing business have Congress veteran
built a strong foundation Kamal Nath, who has
for Karnataka to become been projected as
India's Number 1 state,” ‘would be chief minis-
said the PM. ter of Madhya Pradesh’
The BJP’s “star cam- by his followers, on
paigner”, who addressed Tuesday ‘launched’
19 public rallies, also ‘Nari Samman Yojana’,
noted that the cultural promising to grant
heritage of Karnataka incentives to women
has “always inspired our when he returns as CM
nation as well as me per- in the year-end
sonally”. Assembly polls in the
state.
Mr Nath unveiled the
scheme in his home
constituency
Chhindwara in the
state.
of

the matter. In its May 4
order, the court had termed
the caste-based survey as
virtually a census by anoth-
er name, and “prima facie
unconstitutional” as it
“impinges on the legislative
powers of Parliament”. “The
state government has no
right to conduct such a
caste census in Bihar,” the
HC said. The bench had
held that the Bihar govern-
ment’s “intention to share
data of a caste survey with
various political parties in
the state Assembly raises a
larger question of the
infringement of the funda-
mental right to privacy of
the people in general”.
— PTI
in the Congress.
Chavan has targeted the
Nationalist Congress
Party for fielding its
candidates in
Karnataka Assembly
election.
On Monday, an editori-
al in Saamana, mouth-
piece of Shiv Sena (UBT)
slammed Mr Pawar for
failing to ‘groom’ a suc-
cessor to take over reins
of his party. “Mr Pawar
is certainly a towering
leader at the national
level and his words are
respected in national
politics, but he has failed
to create a successor who
can take the party for-
ward,” the editorial said.
AKSHAYA KUMAR
SAHOO
BHUBANESWAR, MAY 9
Bihar chief minister
Nitish Kumar on Tuesday
met his Odisha counter-
part Naveen Patnaik here
amid speculation that
both the leaders would
talk politics and join
hands to raise a political
front against the BJP.
However, as both the
leaders told the media
after their one-hour meet-
ing, no such discussion on
forming an anti-BJP
alliance was held.
“There was no discus-
sion held on any alliance
today. I am delighted that
Nitish ji is in
Bhubaneswar. We are old
friends and colleagues
ever since the time we
served in Atal Bihari
Vajpayee’s Cabinet. We
had discussions for one
and half acres of land in
Puri. The land will be
given to Bihar govern-
ment free of cost for con-
struction of Bihar Bhavan
for the tourists coming to
Puri to have darshan of
Lord Jagannath,” said
Odisha CM Naveen
Patnaik
According to Mr
Patnaik, both he and
Nitish have shared a very
old friendship ever since
they served as Cabinet col-
leauges in Atal Bihari
Vajpayee government.
Bihar CM Nitish Kumar
said, “Our relation with
Biju Babu (Naveen
Patnaik’s father) and
Naveen Ji is very old. Due
to Covid, we could not
meet. No political discus-
sions were held. Our rela-
tionship is so strong that
there is no need to discuss
any politics.”
Contrary to the claim by
both the leaders, a tweet
by the Janata Dal (United)
official handle said, “CM
Nitish Kumar met Odisha
CM Naveen Patnaik today.
He has been selflessly try-
ing to unite the opposition
parties.”
Mr Nath promised to
grant a monthly incen-
tive of `1500 each to the
beneficiaries under the
scheme besides provid-
ing LPG cylinder at a
subsidised price of `500
to each of them when
Congress assumed
power in the upcoming
assembly elections in
the state, due in
November this year.
The BJP has taken a
jibe at Mr Nath for
unveiling a scheme
promising to give incen-
tives to the beneficiar-
ies if Congress returns
Bihar chief minister Nitish Kumar with his Odisha coun- to power in the state in
terpart Naveen Patnaik in Bhubaneswar on Tuesday. the ensuing Assembly
— PTI polls.

‘Mariupol assault severely hit our community’ Money laundering case: ED

SRIDHAR KUMARASWAMI
NEW DELHI, MAY 9
The destruction of the
Ukranian city of Mariupol
that saw a heavy Russian
military assault last year
was a disaster for the inhab-
itants of the city including
the large Greek community
that had settled there for
centuries, Greek ambassa-
dor to India Dimitrios
Ioannou has said.
Speaking at an event
organised by the Greek
embassy in the capital and
the European Union
National Institutes for
Culture, the Greek envoy
pointed out how the
Ukranian Greeks had set-
tled in Mariupol city that
was founded by the 18th cen-
tury Russian Empress
Catherine the Great. The
Ukranian Greeks, who fled
regions under the Ottoman
empire and settled in
Mariupol, flourished there
and created a rich cultural
legacy. After Ukraine
became part of the erstwhile
Soviet Union, the Greek
ambassador said that the
Ukranian Greeks suffered
during the rule of the Soviet
dictator Josef Stalin, adding
that the “nightmare” for
them returned with the start
of the Russian military
offensive against Ukraine in
◗ AFTER UKRAINE became
part of the erstwhile Soviet
Union, the Greek ambassa-
dor said that the Ukranian
Greeks suffered during the
rule of the Soviet dictator
Josef Stalin, adding that
the ‘nightmare’ for them
returned with the start of
the Russian military offen-
sive against Ukraine in
February last year
February last year.
The EUNIC festival that
encompasses events organ-
ised by different European
Embassies on the Capital
including the German,
Czech and Austrian
Embassies seeks to high-
light the rich cultural ethos
of Ukraine amid the great
tragedy that it has suffered.
According to some esti-
mates, there were about
75,000 Ukranian Greeks in
Mariupol but like almost the
whole population, they fled
amid the heavy fighting.
Some of the Ukranian
Greeks sought refuge in
Greece and Cyprus, while
others fled to Ukraine’s
western neighbouring
nations such as Poland and
Romania.
“It’s a big disaster for us.
Everything has been
destroyed in this beautiful
city,” Ukranian Greek Nina
Plechak told this newspaper.
Those who once inhabited
the city don’t know when
they will be able to return
and whether they will be able
to build their lives there once
again. Another Ukranian
Greek and accomplished
musician and singer
Ludmila Dolher recalled the
rich musical and cultural
traditions of the community
whose members have now
been scattered. Through cul-
tural performances, the com-
munity is now trying to
spread global awareness
about the immense suffering
that the people of Ukraine
have gone through.
raids Jaisinghani’s premises
BHAGWAN PARAB Gujarat ED. The case father-daughter duo seek-
MUMBAI, MAY 9 linked to alleged betting ing her ‘intervention’ in a
in IPL matches in 2015 criminal case.
The Enforcement pertains to busting of a Amruta had filed FIR on
Directorate (ED) on racket and subsequent February 20 at the
Tuesday conducted arrest of some bookies Malabar Hill police sta-
searches against suspect- from a farmhouse at tion against Aniksha and
ed bookie Anil Vadodara city in Gujarat her father alleging the
Jaisinghani at by the ED. designer tried to bribe her
Ulhasnagar in Thane in a Jaisinghani and his with Rs one crore to get
money laundering case fashion designer Aniksha her father off the hook in
linked to an alleged bet- Jaisinghani were arrested a police case.
ting racket in the Indian in connection with an FIR Jaisinghani, who was
Premier League (IPL) in filed by Amruta Fadnavis, lodged in the Taloja jail,
2015. the wife of Maharashtra was taken by the
A Prevention of Money deputy chief minister Enforcement Directorate
Laundering (PMLA) case Devendra Fadnavis, who into their custody in April
was lodged against alleged that Rs one-crore to question him in connec-
Jaisinghani in 2015 by the bribe was offered by the tion with the PMLA case.
 NATION
DECCAN CHRONICLE | WEDNESDAY | 10 MAY 2023 | CHENNAI
pg 5

■ Chouhan, PMO announce relief ■ Magisterial inquiry ordered

SHORT TAKES
2 militant aides of
LeT arrested in J&K
Srinagar: Security forces on
Tuesday arrested two mili-
tant associates of the
Lashkar-e-Tayyaba (LeT)
outfit in Jammu and
Kashmir’s Shopian district
and recovered arms and
ammunition, including an
IED, from them, police said.
During the course of an
investigation into a case,
security forces arrested two
terrorist associates linked
with proscribed terror outfit
LeT, a police spokesperson
said. The spokesperson iden-
tified them as Shahid Ahmad
Lone, a resident of
Chotipora Shopian, and
Waseem Ahmad Ganie, a
resident of Borihalan
Shopian, in south Kashmir.
Incriminating materials, arms
and ammunition including a
pistol, a pistol magazine,
four pistol rounds, a silencer,
an IED, a remote control,
two batteries, and an empty
magazine of AK 47 rifle,
were recovered on their dis-
closure, the spokesperson
said. He said one terror
associate has already been
arrested in the case. — PTI
24 die, 30 hurt as bus falls off
bridge in MP’s Khargone dist
RABINDRA NATH
CHOUDHURY
BHOPAL, MAY 9
At least 24 people, includ-
ing seven children and
eight women, were on
Tuesday killed and 30 oth-
ers injured when a private
bus in which they were
travelling fell off a bridge
in Khargone district in
Madhya Pradesh.
The death toll may
increase, officials feared.
The mishap occurred at
a place between Dongar-
gaon and Dasagaon at
around 8.40 am, the police
said.
Chief minister Shivraj
Singh Chouhan announc-
ed an ex-gratia of `4 lakhs
each to the next kin of the
deceased and `50,000 each
to the injured.
Prime Minister
Narendra Modi’s office
has also announced a com-
pensation of `2 lakhs each
Locals gather at the site after a bus fell from a bridge in
Madhya Pradesh’s Khargone district on Tuesday. — PTI
to the next kin of the
deceased.
According to inspector
general of police Rakesh
Gupta, the bus, travelling
from Bijapur in Khargone
district to Indore city in
Madhya Pradesh, rammed
into the railing of the
bridge and then plunged
50 metres down into the
dry rocky bed of the
Barod river. “Fifteen pas-
sengers died on the spot”,
he said.
Nine others succumbed
to injuries in the hospital.
State agriculture minis-
ter Kamal Patel, who visit-
ed the injured in the dis-
trict hospital in Khargone,
confirmed the death of 24
passengers in the inci-
dent.
The injured were first
admitted to the district
hospital in Khargone.
However, some of them
were shifted to a govern-
ment hospital in Indore
when their condition
worsened, police said.
Driver of the bus was
also injured in the inci-
dent. The bus was carry-
ing 50-60 passengers, the
police said. The front side
of the bus mangled under
the impact of the fall.
People in the nearby vil-
lage rushed to the spot and
removed the injured pas-
sengers out of the bus by
breaking the glass win-
dows of the vehicle, eye-
witness accounts said.
State home minister
Narottam Mishra said
that a magisterial probe
has been ordered into the
incident.
The state government
has placed the Khargone
district RTO Barkha Goud
under suspension follow-
ing the incident.

16 suspected cadre
of radical outfit held
Bhopal: Sixteen people, 11
from Madhya Pradesh and
five from Telangana, have
been detained following a
joint operation by the
Madhya Pradesh anti-terror
squad (ATS) and the Central
investigative agencies for
their alleged association
with Hizb-Ut-Tahrir (HuT), a
radical Islamic organisation,
sources said on Tuesday.
While 10 alleged activists of
HuT were picked up by the
joint team during raids at
several places in Bhopal on
Tuesday morning, another
man allegedly associated
with the group was held in
Chhindwara in MP, sources
said. Similarly, five alleged
activists of HuT were picked
from Hyderabad, sources
added. The three-month-
long operation has resulted
in zeroing on these alleged
HuT activists before picking
them by the agencies,
sources said.
Massive crackdown against
J&K terror, raids at 16 sites
AMRESH SRIVASTAVA,
NEW DELHI, MAY 9
In its second massive
crackdown against terror-
ists in J&K in a week, the
National Investigation
Agency on Tuesday car-
ried out raids at 16 loca-
tions in the Valley at the
premises of terror cadres,
hybrid terrorists and over-
ground workers linked to
the newly-formed off-
shoots and affiliates of
several major banned Pak-
backed terror outfits.
The raids continued till
late on Tuesday evening.
They were spread across
locations in Anantnag,
Srinagar, Budgam, Shop-
ian, Kulgam and Baram-
ulla districts of Kashmir,
as well as in Poonch,
G-20, Amarnath yatra: Home
secy, IB chief review security
DC CORRESPONDENT, reviewed the security
NEW DELHI, MAY 9 situation with the
chief secretary and
Union home secretary director general of
Ajay Kumar Bhalla police and other high
and Intelligence officials, along with
Bureau chief Tapan the Army’s top brass
Deka on Tuesday visit- in the Valley.
ed Kashmir to review The international
the security prepara- delegates will be in the
tion for a meeting of Valley from May 22 to
the G-20 later this 24 for the G-20 meeting.
month and also for the Security of the G20
upcoming Amarnath meeting is a top priori-
yatra. ty for the government
In the high-level for which all possible
meeting, the home sec- steps are being taken,
retary and IB chief the sources said.

‘Closely tracking’
Rajouri and Kishtwar dis-
tricts of Jammu.

Texas incident: EAM

New Delhi: External affairs
minister (EAM) S. Jaishankar
on Tuesday said he was
“closely tracking” the after-
math of a shooting incident
in Texas in the United States
in which several people,
including an Indian woman,
lost their lives while two
Indian nationals are also
among the injured persons.
The EAM said he was regu-
larly seeking updates from
Indian Ambassador to the
US Taranjit Sandhu. The EAM
tweeted, “Closely tracking
this and taking regular
updates from Ambassador
@SandhuTaranjitS. (The
Indian) Consulate (in Hou-
ston) is rendering all neces-
sary assistance to the berea-
ved family and to those
injured.” The Consulate stat-
ed, “Consulate is facilitating
completion of requisite for-
malities with regard to mor-
tal remains of the deceased.”
The NIA has been inves-
tigating the activities of
newly-floated terrorist
groups such as “The
Resistance Front (TRF),
United Liberation Front
Jammu and Kashmir (UL
J&K), Mujahideen Gazwat-
ul-Hind (MGH), Jammu
and Kashmir Freedom
Fighters (JKFF), Kashmir
Tigers, PAAF” and others.
These outfits are affiliated
to Lashkar-e-Tayyaba
(LeT), Jaish-e-Mohammed
(JeM), Hizb-ul-Mujahideen
(HM), Al-Badr and Al
Qaeda among others.
“Cadres and workers
have been found involved
in collection and distribu-
tion of sticky bombs/mag-
netic bombs, IEDs, cash,
drugs and small weapons,
as well as in spreading
activities relating to ter-
ror, violence and subver-
sion in J&K,” the NIA said
in a statement.

Raje, not Sonia, is

CM’s leader: Pilot
FROM PG 1
“He should explain the contra-
diction.” He further added:
“Some people want to weaken
the Cong ress... We will not let
them succeed. After listening to
Mr Gehlot's speech, I under-
stand why we could not act on
corruption cases in 4.5 years. No
leader is more important than
the public.”
Earlier, speaking at a pro-
gramme in Rajasthan's Dholpur
on Sunday, Mr Gehlot said Ms
Raje and two other BJP leaders -
- Shobha Rani and Kailash
Meghwal -- had “saved” his gov-
ernment by declining to take
advantage of the Congress'
infighting.
Mr Pilot accused Mr Gehlot of
insulting his own MLAs and
harming his own party ahead of
the elections. He said: “I now
understand why no action was
taken against corruption by the
Vasundhara Raje government
despite my repeated requests,”
accusing Mr Gehlot of going
soft on the BJP because of a
secret understanding.
The former deputy chief min-
ister said he had tolerated much
name-calling and attacks from
Mr Gehlot over the past two-
and-a-half years. “He called me
gaddar (traitor), nikamma (use-
less), corona… Many insinua-
tions and abuses were directed
at me. I didn't say anything, as I
didn't want to damage the
party,” he said.
Mr Pilot said the planned
yatra from Ajmer, where the
Rajasthan Public Service
Commission is headquartered,
is not against anyone. “This is
on the issue of corruption; this
is for the youth who are disap-
pointed due to repeated paper
leak cases,” he said.

HC’s order on Kerala Files: SC to

hear plea on May 15
PUNEET DESHWAL
NEW DELHI, MAY 9
The Supreme Court on Tuesday
agreed to hear on May 15 the
petition filed against the deci-
sion of the Kerala high court
refusing to stay the release of
the film The Kerala Story.
“We will keep it on Monday,”
said a bench comprising Chief
Justice D.Y. Chandrachud and
Justice P.S. Narasimha when
the special leave petition was
mentioned by senior advocate
Kapil Sibal for urgent listing .
“The high court has passed the
order and it has refused the
interim order. There is an ele-
ment of urgency,” he said.
 EDIT
DECCAN CHRONICLE | WEDNESDAY | 10 MAY 2023 | CHENNAI
pg 6

Subhani

10 MAY 2023

Art or propaganda? Real

‘Kerala Story’ is different
A
rticle 19 of the Constitution assures freedom of speech and expression
to all citizens. The arts exist and thrive on the strength and support of
this constitutional provision when they speak truth to power. The
Constitution also provides for restrictions so that this right is not mis-
used. It thus becomes imperative that both the citizen and the government be
reasonable in the exercise of their rights and powers.
The makers of the film, The Kerala Story, had claimed in their social media
promotion material that it was about the “heartbreaking and gut-wrenching
stories of 32,000 females in Kerala”, who converted to Islam and then left to join
the Islamic State. When challenged in court, they agreed to change the descrip-
tion of the movie as one “centred on the real-life stories of three young women
from different parts of the state”. This change in narrative the filmmakers
were forced to introduce reflects their less-than-artistic motive.
Artistes have every right to criticise religions and religious practices; and
terrorist organisations call for downright condemnation. It is important that
art asks the right questions about every system in society to make them better
and more humane. But attempts to spread hate under cover of artistic freedom
are unfair and unacceptable.
The film, of poor artistic quality and questionable factual backing, has now
become a political tool. Prime Minister Narendra Modi certified in an election
rally in Karnataka on the very day of its release that it “is trying to expose the
consequences of terrorism in a society”. The BJP government in Madhya
Pradesh, followed by the one in Uttar Pradesh, made its screening tax-free
while the West Bengal government has banned it. The movie hardly enthused
the Kerala audience.
Karnataka 2023: Why Modi LETTERS
FIGMENT OF IMAGINATION
Radicalisation of youth by Islamists is a fact across India and Kerala is no
exception. There indeed are people from the state who have joined interna-
tional Islamist organisations. It is also a fact that the traditional Sunni sects
which form the vast majority of Muslims in Kerala have for ages been battling
the radicals within the community.
Entities such as the Jama Ath-e-Islami, the now-banned Popular Front of
may face surprise this time In Karnataka, the he no longer remained an
The election season in
India seems to be a
free time for political
parties to indulge in all
India and its political arm Social Democratic Party of India (SDPI) have been PM is being MP. kinds of polemics, lob-
able to make little impact on the community in the state. In fact, the Sunni A further ignominy was
mocked. The bing accusations and
sects that have over the centuries perfected systems to live in a multi-cultural
society are fighting the radicals and radicalisation efforts tooth and nail. This
Sunil Gatade Congress shrewdly
that Rahul, who has now
become the face of the
counter accusations
story, the real Kerala story, is, however, hardly known outside, partially due latched on to his Opposition, was forced to
to the generally reticent nature of the moderates on one hand and, on the other, lament of facing ‘91 vacate his government and speaking lies and
the success of the Islamists, with their elaborate communication tools, in cre- bungalow soon after.
ating an impression that it is they who represent the community.
cases of abuse’ Everything could be said to transgressing all elec-
It will be better for our country to promote endeavours that seek to address from the Opposition be according to the rules toral laws. For exam-
the faultlines in our society in a constructive way. It will be dangerous to pro- party, which led to and procedures. But was it
ple, a Congress candi-

N
mote the agenda of haters who seek to deepen them and make the presence of arendra Modi
the moderates on all sides untenable. is a tireless
campaigner. It
made him
Make India EV-ready quickly Prime Minister
of India nine years ago. As
he seeks a third term in
2024, he is trying to use the
T
he buzz around is unmistakable — electric vehicles (EVs) are coming Karnataka Assembly polls
and taking over. In the next two years, there are over 40 new models of to sharpen his skills for the
automobiles set to be launched that will be powered by electricity. A few “big battle” that is just ten
others are moving to hybrid mode. The two-wheeler segment is afire with months away.
excitement and several logistics and delivery companies are placing en masse But his firepower is not
orders, building their fleets in green mode. Some reports say a total of over one working as effectively as it
crore vehicles powered by electricity are expected to be sold by the end of the used to. The problem
decade. which Mr Modi is facing
At the same time, a Central government oil ministry panel has a unique pro- this time is that he has not
posal for cities with over a million populations — impose a ban on all diesel- been able to make a splash.
powered four-wheelers in four years, by 2027, and allow sale and registration He is virtually the
of only EVs in the urban centres. The panel wants to enforce a regulatory and “monarch of all he sur-
policy drive to catalyse faster adoption of EVs by commercial entities in logis- veys” as he campaigns in
tics, supply, courier and cargo.
“By 2030, all city buses should be electric. Diesel buses for city transport
North India or in his native
Gujarat. But not in
should not be added from next year,” the panel recommended. Karnataka.
Almost on divine cue, the country reported that after lithium reserves were This is compounded by
first found in Kashmir earlier this year, new and higher reserves were found the fact that chief minister
in Rajasthan’s Degana subdivision. As the world moves to electricity-powered Basavaraj Bommai’s gov-
devices across the spectrum of industry and life, the newly discovered reserves ernment is facing a lot of
can, as per reported estimates, power a large chunk of the country’s needs. anti-incumbency. The BJP
But even as rising fuel prices and environment awareness drives up the is finding it hard to shake
demand for electric vehicles, at least in the direct passenger category, India thisoff. The issue of corrup-
must focus on readiness beyond manufacturing of vehicles to ensure that the tion through commissions
“charging ecosystem” is ready. India needs a public charging station network refuses to die down.
that can act as the equivalent of our CNG and petrol pump chains in order to In the Uttar Pradesh
mobilise growth in EV usage. Assembly polls last year,
The fusion of EV technology and innovation, policy and fiscal incentives, pri- despite a dominant Yogi
vate investments and a larger infrastructural overhaul will decide to what Adityanath being the chief
level India would achieve its goals of reducing carbon emissions, decreasing minister, Mr Modi had car-
petroleum imports and usage and also correspondingly augmenting its green ried the day in the most
energy producing capability. politically crucial state. It
Let India become EV-ready. signalled he was the undis-
puted boss. There should
be no doubt about that.
DECCAN CHRONICLE Against this, in
Karnataka, Mr Modi’s
KAUSHIK MITTER K. SUDHAKAR
Editor Printer & Publisher campaign looks like ram-
R. MOHAN ming something down peo-
Resident Editor ple’s throats. The absence
DECCAN CHRONICLE offices are located at: of local issues and the focus
Chennai: SP 3 Developed Plot, Industrial Estate, Guindy, Chennai 600032. Phones: (044) 22254750,
222547451 on national matters, ridi-
Coimbatore: No. 2/22 Sengalipalayam Road, N.G.G.O. Colony Post, Kurudampalayam Village, culing the Congress and
Coimbatore-641022. Phone: (0422) 2231255, 2231256 speaking on issues that
Hyderabad: 36, Sarojini Devi Road, Secunderabad 500 003. Phone: (040) 27803930-4. Fax: (040) polarise, is itself the first
27805256.
Visakhapatnam: Survey No. 1/3A Beach Road, Near Kailasagiri Ropeway, Sector-9 MVP Colony, admission that something
Visakhapatnam - 530 017. Phones: (0891) 2552333/2552334, Fax (0891) 2755285 is wrong and that you want
Vijayawada: No. C 3 & 4, Patamata, Industrial Estate, Auto Nagar, Vijayawada (A.P.). Phones: (0866) to camouflage that.
2555284/ 2555287, Fax (0866) 2555234 The strength and weak-
Rajahmundry: Vemagiri, Dhawleswaram Rd, Rajahmundry 533125. Phones: (0883) 2417208, 2417618
Anantapur: Thapovan Colony, Bangalore Bye-Pass Road, Anantapur 515004. Phones: (08554) 276903, nesses of Mr Modi are
Fax: 08554-276904 unmistakably clear. They
Nellore: Survey No. 527/2, Burranpur Village, Venkatachalam (M), Chemudugunta Panchayat, Nellore. are remaining constantly
Phone: (0861) 2348581/ 82, Telefax (0861) 2348580 in election mode. The per-
Karimnagar: H .No. 1-21-12/1, Cheralabhutkur Road, Mugudhumpur Village, Karim Nagar - 505186
Phone : 9121181123 ception that has grown is
that it does not matter
much to him how gover-
nance is carried out effec-
tively. He is busy with his
slogans, his song. His
“Mann Ki Baat”, which
just completed its hun-
dredth edition.
As of now, the Aam
Aadmi Party’s campaign
against the PM over his
lack of educational
degrees, thereby implying
that he is less educated,
might not be having much
of an impact. But a wound-
ed Arvind Kejriwal is
bound to heat it in the com-
ing months, much to the
Congress’ delight.
If Prime Minister Modi
was serious about gover-
nance issues, he would
have promptly called the
agitating women wrestlers
and doused the fires before
it became a conflagration.
A notorious Brij Bhushan
Sharan Singh has single-
handedly pulled down his
“Beti Bachao, Beti Padhao”
plank.
Similarly, during the
farmers’ agitation too, it
was made known that the
PM was only a phone call
away. But the PM on his
own never called up any-
body. That ultimately led
to his unilateral announce-
ment on the withdrawal of
the three controversial
farm laws in November
2021. This was egg all over
his face.
In Karnataka, the PM is
being mocked. The
Congress shrewdly latched
on to his lament of facing
“91 cases of abuse” from
the Opposition party,
which led to the unique
sobriquet “CryPM”. He
would be much better off
without such an epithet,
which shows that he is on
slippery ground.
The “PayCM”, “CryPM”
campaign shows that the
Congress is back in its ele-
ment after a long time. The
slogan itself is the unadul-
the unique sobriquet
‘CryPM’.
terated message, delivered
with a punch at a time
when the issue of corrup-
tion in the BJP administra-
tion is the talk of the town.
Reports speak of a sense
of unease among the pow-
erful mutts that have a lot
of influence on people.
While the politics of con-
trol through Hindutva is
best suited for Uttar
Pradesh, whether it is
equally true for the South
is being hotly contested.
Whatever may be the
result on Saturday,
Karnataka is important
because the Opposition has
found the line and length
during the campaign
which is so crucial for stay-
ing on the pitch, so far the
exclusive preserve of Mr
Modi and the BJP.
May 13 will decide which
way the wind is blowing
when the results are out,
but it looks like Rahul
Gandhi will become the
“man of the match” if the
current trends continue.
The world knows that in
the Gujarat polls in 2017,
Rahul became the “man of
the match” despite the BJP
retaining power on the
home turf of Mr Modi and
home minister Amit Shah,
who were given a run for
their money.
The Karnataka election
should also be seen from
the national angle. It is the
first poll after Mr Modi
handed the “victim card”
to Rahul Gandhi, showing
that he remained central to
the mighty BJP’s ire day
and night. He was project-
ed as the villain of the
piece. Rahul was not only
not allowed to defend him-
self in Parliament despite
being targeted by three
senior Union ministers
and others, but circum-
stances were created that
according to the spirit of
the world’s largest democ-
racy? This is for everyone
to judge. The message that
has gone out is that the
powers that be will go to
any length to undermine
the Opposition and will
attempt to use every insti-
tution for this purpose. The
means don’t matter, only
the ends do. Mr Modi had
long ago proclaimed his
desire for a “Congress-mukt
Bharat”. There was noth-
ing unofficial about it.
Karnataka may be the
first election in recent
years where the Oppos-
ition seems to be in the dri-
ver’s seat in a BJP-ruled
state in the run-up despite
the high-pitched campaign
led by none other than the
Prime Minister.
The BJP’s drum-beaters
are insisting that the PM
has campaigned in some of
the difficult seats, giving
the BJP a fighting chance
there. “This is how a true
leader fights in Opposition
territory,” they feel.
What has become inter-
esting is that in this hour of
crisis, the PM as well as the
state BJP leaders have
started chanting the name
of Bajrangbali. The recita-
tions of the Hanuman Cha-
lisa have begun. The talk of
“double-engine sarkar” is
disappearing in thin air
and “sankat mochak” is
being looked upon as the
only saviour as the pre-poll
surveys start projecting a
not-so-rosy picture.
The Prime Minister has
little to offer on the devel-
opment front and looks
hell-bent on polarisation.
May 13 will reveal how
much people will bite the
bait or will look for new
promises and a new tomor-
row. Karnataka has at
times come up with
surprises.
The writer is a journalist
based in New Delhi
date in Karnataka has
alleged that BJP is
plotting to assassinate
Malikarjun Kharge and
his family. People
know that this is noth-
ing but a figment of
imagination
Marudamalaiyan
Coimbatore
COMPETITION ENSURES
QUALITY
Competition among producers of com-
modities is a must to safeguard the inter-
ests of consumers. In that way, Open
Network for Digital Commerce (ONDC),
which is supported by the GoI in food
delivery services, is welcome. This
would have surely upset the applecart of
dominant players in the market, Swiggy
and Zomato. After all, consumption is the
beginning and end of all economic activi-
ties, and the producers should direct
their efforts to the optimum satisfaction
(in terms of prices, quality of goods/ser-
vices, etc) of consumers.
S.Ramakrishnasayee
Chennai
YOUNG GUNS SHINE IN IPL
Young guns like Yesaswi Jaiswal, Rinku
Singh, Jithin Sharma, are time and again
proving to be the heroes for their fran-
chise. Even the 5-times Champion team
Mumbai Indians seem to be struggling to
put up a winning combination and
‘Hitman’ Rohit Sharma is struggling to
score and seems to be not cent percent fit.
He could be rested for at least a couple of
matches to regain his confidence.
Spectators are in for interesting tussles
between teams fighting for places in the
playoffs.
N.Mahadevan
Chennai
Mail your letters to
chennaidesk@deccanmail.com

L
ast week’s talks between the coalition gov-
ernment and the opposition took place in
an atmosphere unfortunately vitiated by
the exchange of inflammatory rhetoric
between the two sides. PML-N leaders set a more
Maleeha belligerent tone this time, with defence minister
The PTI side proposed dissolving the Sindh and
Balochistan assemblies in May for elections to be
fixed for some time in mid-July. This was rejected
by the government. Thus the ‘final’ round of talks
ended inconclusively with no indication that
negotiations will resume.
‘clarified’ that its order remained “unchanged”.
One of the reasons cited by representatives of the
ruling coalition for not conceding on the election
date is that the government has a trade policy to
announce and a budget to present. Whether or not
this was an excuse there is no getting away from
tainable basis and not by band-aid measures.
This is especially so as the coalition government,
instead of steering the shipwrecked economy to
safer shores, seems to be expending more time and
energy on political battles and power tussles.
It has now declared war on the Supreme Court.

Lodhi
Khawaja Asif calling the talks an “exercise in
futility”, while Javed Latif declared that negotia-
tions with “a terrorist party” were impossible.
This prompted PTI leaders to question the gov-
ernment’s seriousness to engage in result-oriented
talks. Moreover, government actions, notably the
police raid on former Punjab chief minister
Pervez Elahi’s Lahore residence, made the politi-
Considering the government only has four
months left in its term, offering to hold elections,
say a month or two earlier, could have forged a
national consensus to end the political deadlock,
ease political tensions and create a peaceful path-
way to the polls. But the ruling coalition squan-
dered this opportunity by not opting for this
course. Its obduracy on the election date is only
the fact that the government’s political distrac-
tions, tardy decisions and mismanagement have
left the economy teetering on the brink of a break-
down. The bailout deal with the IMF remains elu-
sive for several reasons. The last sticking points
include the Fund’s insistence that Pakistan fully
fund the external financing gap for the remaining
part of this fiscal year.
Ruling coalition ministers have been lashing out
against court orders, exploiting divisions among
its judges and characterising their confrontation
with the SC as one designed to assert parliament’s
supremacy.
At times their aggressive statements seem to
suggest they are deliberately provoking the court
to take action against them. This conduct seems

Mess growing cal atmosphere more tense and hardly propitious

for negotiations.
Nevertheless, at one point in the government-
explicable by its desire to delay the polls as long as
possible out of fear that the electoral outcome will
not be in its favour.
The gap is estimated to be around $3 billion after
$2bn was apparently committed by Saudi Arabia
and $1bn by UAE. Before concluding the agree-
aimed at discrediting the court to justify the gov-
ernment’s defiance of its order to hold provincial
elections in Punjab.

in Pakistan as opposition parleys it seemed some headway was

made when the two sides agreed national and
provincial elections should be held on the same
day. This resulted from a show of flexibility by
What kind of difference a few months will make
to the political fortunes of coalition parties is
beyond comprehension. If anything, time has
been working against them, with PML-N steadily
ment, the Fund also wants to evaluate the budget
plans prepared by the government, with whom it
has an obvious trust deficit.
The IMF deal has been delayed since November.
Meanwhile, the Election Commission has filed a
petition for a review of the court’s order on the
Punjab polls claiming the SC exceeded its consti-
tutional jurisdiction in fixing a date, which it
parties wrangle Imran Khan’s PTI, whose negotiators led by Shah
Mahmood Qureshi, also agreed to neutral caretak-
er administrations to oversee the polls.
losing political ground.
Failure to reach an agreement means confronta-
tion between the government and opposition will
This delay is continuing to impose a heavy cost on
the economy. This is reflected in depleting foreign
exchange reserves, tumbling exports and the vir-
lacked the authority to do. These clashes between
state institutions have left the governance system
in disarray and on the verge of collapse.

over poll dates They went further, offering to help the govern-
ment, which lacks a two-thirds parliamentary
majority, to secure a one-time constitutional cover
to shift the election date beyond the constitution-
ally stipulated 90-day period through an amend-
ment. But the talks broke down on lack of agree-
ment on a common date for elections. Government
representatives didn’t budge from their position of
holding elections after parliament completed its
full term in August, which meant not before
October.
intensify with the risk of greater political turmoil
ahead. Khan had warned that in the absence of an
accord his party will go back to the Supreme Court
and he will direct his followers to agitate in the
streets.
PTI then submitted a letter to the apex court
informing it that “a solution within the
Constitution” could not be achieved in talks with
the government. It also asked the court to imple-
ment “in letter and spirit” its earlier order to hold
elections in Punjab on May 14. For its part, the SC
tual collapse of business confidence. The economy
is, in fact, precariously poised with the fall in
exports, decline in overseas remittances, inflation
at a 60-year high and the rupee losing record value
against the dollar.
Further delay in the Fund programme could
plunge the precarious economy into a graver cri-
sis. If anything, the dire economic situation makes
elections necessary sooner rather than later, so
that a government with a fresh mandate can deal
with Pakistan’s worst economic crisis on a sus-
There may still be a slim chance for government-
opposition talks to be revived. Otherwise, the rul-
ing coalition’s desire to cling to power as long as it
can and delay elections will keep the country in a
state of limbo and only kick the can down the road.
Far from ending the ongoing political crisis, it
will set the stage for an even bigger one later with
more profound consequences for the country’s
economic and political stability.
By arrangement with Dawn
 NATION
DECCAN CHRONICLE | WEDNESDAY | 10 MAY 2023 | CHENNAI
BRIEF
IN
Imposter nabbed for
bogus ads on Google
New Delhi: A 25-year-old
man impersonating as a
dealer was arrested from
Thane, Maharashtra, for
defrauding people by creat-
ing counterfeit Google
advertisements for ‘OLA
electric scooty’, an official
said on Tuesday. The
accused was identified as
Rajendra Shivram Panda, a
resident of Dombivali East
in Thane. The DCP (Dwarka)
said that an FIR was regis-
tered at the cyber police
station Dwarka after the
complainant alleged that he
was in search of electric
scooty and on Google
search he found one con-
tact of Raghav Sharma, Ola
electric scooty dealer. The
complainant reached out to
the accused on his mobile
number. The alleged person
requested a payment of
`499 for booking and sub-
sequently demanded an
additional sum of `80,999
to receive the scooty within
a week. “The complainant
made a payment of `80,999
into a bank account provid-
ed by the accused. When
the complainant asked for a
receipt of payment, the
alleged person insisted on
transferring an additional
`20,000 to his bank
account.
38-yr-old held for
molesting teen girl
New Delhi: A 12-year-old
girl was allegedly molested
by a 38-year-old shopkeep-
er in north east Delhi’s Nand
Nagri area. The arrested
was identified as
Mohammad Imam alias
Imamuddin, a resident of
Nand Nagri. According to
police, the incident took
place on Saturday, however,
it came to light on Monday
when the victim revealed
about the incident, police
said. A senior police official
said that a complaint was
received from the victim’s
family where it was alleged
that she was molested. “A
case under relevant sections
of the Indian Penal Code
was registered and
Imamuddin was arrested,”
said the official. As per
police record, Imamuddin is
a ‘bad character’ of Nand
Nagri police station and he
has 18 criminal cases, includ-
ing Arms Act, robbery, crim-
inal assault, burglary regis-
tered against him.
Sarai Kale Khan
killing: Cabbie held
New Delhi: A 31-year-old taxi
driver was arrested for
allegedly killing a youth dur-
ing a fight near Sarai Kale
Khan in southeast Delhi,
police said on Tuesday. The
incident took place on
Thursday when police
received a call that a person
was stabbed in the stomach
near Sarai Kale Khan bus
stand, they said. Police
rushed to the spot and found
that the quarrel took place
between some people who
live in rain basera, Sarai Kale
Khan and a taxi driver, police
said. The cause of quarrel
was that three minors and
deceased Akash (18) were
going to their home from
Gurudwara Bala Sahib. In
their way near Sarai Kale
AAP GOVT’S FOOD
TRUCK POLICY
SOON: OFFICIALS
New Delhi: The Delhi govern-
ment is working on its food
truck policy which will be
finalised within the next cou-
ple of months and put up for
public feedback, officials
said. According to officials,
meetings have been planned
with different stakeholders
to discuss the various
aspects of the policy. The
stakeholders include the
MCD, DMRC, traffic police
and the transport depart-
ment, they said. “We have
identified metro stations and
parking sites as hubs for set-
ting up food trucks. But it
will have to be seen under
which category these trucks
can be placed by the trans-
port department and also
the rules governing their ply-
ing in Delhi,” the official said.
“We will also need the Delhi
Metro and the MCD to be on
board since we plan to sta-
tion these food trucks at
metro stations and parking
sites,” he said. Explaining
how the framework is likely
to be, the official said that
the food trucks will come
and go from the site where
they will be stationed. They
will operate in the night
hours — between 8 pm to 2
am. The Tourism department
plans to finalise the policy
within the next couple of
months, he said.
■ Victim’s father demands trial to start as soon as possible
Shraddha murder: Charges
framed against Poonawala
BHASKAR HARI SHARMA
NEW DELHI, MAY 9
Finalising the trial in the
Shradha Walkar case, a
Delhi court on Tuesday
framed charges of murder
and disappearance of evi-
dence against Aaftab Amin
Poonawala. The matter has
been posted for further
proceedings on June 1.
Additional sessions
judge Manisha Khurana
Kakkar said the prosecu-
tion had placed on record
“sufficient material” and
prima facie a case was
made out against the
accused.
The court, however, said
whether Poonawala could
be convicted for both
offences was a matter of
trial and could not be
decided at the present
stage.
“...Sufficient material
has been placed on record
by the prosecution which
warrants trial of the
accused for both the
offences. From the afore-
said material placed on
record by the prosecution,
Wrestlers’ stir: Notice to police Hostel visit: DU to send notice to Rahul
over failure to arrest WFI chief
DC CORRESPONDENT
NEW DELHI, MAY 9
Delhi Commission for
Women (DCW) has issued
summons to deputy com-
missioner of police (New
Delhi) Pranav Tayal for
failing to arrest the
accused persons in con-
nection with sexual
harassment of women
wrestlers allegedly by
Wrestling Federation of
India (WFI) chief Brij
Bhushan Sharan Singh.
In a statement issued on
Tuesday, the commission
stated that it has received
a complaint regarding
sexual harassment of
women wrestlers by Mr
Singh.
“The complainant has
informed the commission
that several women
wrestlers, including a
minor, have alleged that
the accused person has
indulged in the crime of
sexual harassment
against them during his
tenure at the WFI,” it said.
“The commission has
learnt that no accused has
been arrested in the mat-
ter till date. It is also
learnt that statements of
survivors including the
minor girl, under 164
CrPC have not been
recorded till date, despite
the passage of 10 days
since the registration of
FIRs,” it said.
DCW chief Swati
Maliwal has issued sum-
LSR College asks students
to vacate hostel for repairs
New Delhi, May 9: Lady
Shri Ram (LSR) College
for women has asked the
residents of its hostel to
vacate the 260-room facili-
ty which will be tem-
porarily closed for repair
work, students said on
Wednesday. The decision
was taken after one resi-
dent suffered injuries
recently following the col-
lapse of a bathroom cubi-
cle roof in the hostel.
“A student suffered
injuries in the roof col-
lapse incident. We have
been asked to vacate the
hostel rooms so that the
repair work could be ini-
tiated. Students are fine
with it because the hostel
needs repairs,” Kritika, a
first-year student, said.
However, no deadline
has been given to the hos-
NIA swoops down on PFI
leaders in Tamil Nadu
FROM PG 1
Kaizer, belonging to
Netaji Nagar in Palani,
runs a tea shop in the
town. He was arrested at
Palani and brought to
Chennai for further
enquiries, amidst
protests and slogan
shouting of the local
people.
In Madurai, NIA
arrested Abbas at Nelpet
and seized documents,
mobile phones and lap-
tops from his house.
judge added.
ASJ Kakkar noted the
“circumstantial and cor-
roborative evidence”
relied upon by the prose-
cution, including the
recovery of bones, a
bunch of hair, and the jaw
of the deceased which
Poonawala was accused
of strangling his live-in
partner Shraddha to death
Aaftab Amin Poonawala and then chopping her
a prima facie case for the body into pieces and had
offences under sections allegedly disposed of to
302 (murder) and 201 conceal the murder along
(causing disappearance of with the last seen evi-
evidence of offence) of the dence and digital trails.
Indian Penal Code is made Other evidence included
out against the accused,” blood stains in the fridge
the judge said. and kitchen shelves, DNA
“Accordingly, charges for profiling report, voice
the offences under sec- recording on Dr Practo
tions 302 and 201 of the app, previous complaint
IPC are framed against the given by the deceased in
accused. The charge is Mumbai, postmortem
read over and explained to report, call detail records
the accused in the pres- and statements of several
ence of his counsel and witnesses, the judge noted.
the accused has submitted “Thus, in light of the
that he has understood the aforesaid material placed
charge and thereafter, the on record, the contention
accused has stated he does raised by the counsel for
not plead guilty and he the accused that no sub-
has claimed trial,” the stantive material has been
Wrestlers Bajrang Punia and Satyawart Kadian with
supporters during their protest against WFI chief Brij
Bhushan Sharan Singh at Jantar Mantar in New Delhi on
Tuesday. — PTI
mons to DCP New Delhi report,” it added.
district and has sought an “It is very unfortunate
explanation in the matter. that no accused in the
“The Commission has matter has been arrested
sought details of arrests till date. Also, the Delhi
made in the matter and police has failed to record
has asked for reasons for statements of survivors
non-arrest of accused per- under 164 CrPC even after
sons. Further, the com- passing over 10 days of
mission has asked for rea- registration of FIR. This
sons for failing to record is very serious. The
statements of survivors accused should be arrest-
under 164 CrPC along ed immediately and the
with details of action statement of survivors
taken against concerned should be registered. Also,
police officers for failing action should be taken
to record statements. The against concerned police
commission has asked officers for failing to
DCP to appear before the record their statement
commission on May 12 under 164 CrPC,” said Ms
with an action taken Maliwal.
Even his accountability can be fixed:
AAP on L-G being refused immunity
tel residents. “A meeting
has been called for today
to discuss the matter by DC CORRESPONDENT
the warden. After which
things will be more clear,”
NEW DELHI, MAY 9
said another student. Hitting out at the lieu-
The hostel authorities tenant-governor, the AAP
have informed the stu- on Tuesday cited a
dents that the security
deposit of the students
Gujarat court decision
refusing Delhi L-G V.K.
will be refunded along Saxena immunity from
with the remaining fee. criminal trial in a 2002
The hostel residents case to claim that this
said no alternative shows even his accounta-
accommodation has been bility can be fixed.
provided to them. AAP chief spokesperson
When asked, LSR and minister Saurabh
College principal Suman Bharadwaj while address-
Sharma refused to com- ing a press conference
ment on the matter. said that Mr Saxena, who
In an undated notice, the is accused of assaulting
hostel warden said that activist Medha Patkar in
the college invited a struc- 2002 at Sabarmati Ashram
tural engineer to give his in Gujarat, had filed the
observations on the state application.
of the building. — PTI The AAP leader said that
At Kamam Mettu of Madurai zonal presi-
Colony in Theni district, dent of SDPI Yaser
the NIA arrested SDPI Arafat in Theni district.
district secretary Sadiq In Tiruchi, the officials
Ali and seized his stopped Mohammad
mobile phone, laptop Hasab, who arrived in
and other belongings. Tiruchi airport from
A large number of Sharjah and questioned
SDPI members gathered him. The officials were
before his house, on making the searches to
hearing about the raids, know the nexus between
and raised slogans con- the arrested members
demning his arrest. A with international ter-
few months ago, a team rorist organisations and
of NIA officers conduct- whether they are fund-
ed searches in the house ing such organisations.
placed on record by the
prosecution to frame
charges... is without any
merits,” the judge said.
“The stage of leading
evidence cannot be
trumped and the matter
cannot be prejudged. In
fact, if there is sufficient
material placed on record
by the prosecution qua
both the offences, there
seems to be no bar in fram-
ing charges for both the
offences...,” the judge said.
Meanwhile, Vikas
Walkar father of Shraddha
Walkar demanded that the
trial should start as early
as possible and also hoped
that the accused should be
sentenced to death.
“June 1 might be a little
late, I will be requesting
the court to start the trial
as soon as possible and we
feel that he should be
hanged to death. We wel-
come the court’s deci-
sion,” he said.
He also said that on May
17, he will hold a one-day
protest in Mumbai to
demand a speedy trial in
the case.
SUPRIYA SINGH
NEW DELHI, MAY 9
Days after Congress
leader Rahul Gandhi visit-
ed the Delhi University,
the varsity on Tuesday
said it will issue a notice
to Mr Gandhi cautioning
him against making any
“unauthorised” visit to
the campus in future.
The notice will be sent
either on Tuesday or
Wednesday, Delhi
University registrar Vikas
Gupta said.
He mentioned that the
university will tell the
leader that this kind of
visit “jeopardise” the safe-
President Droupadi Murmu presents Shaurya Chakra (posthumous) to Rifleman
Aurangzeb during the Defence Investiture Ceremony at Rashtrapati Bhavan in New
Delhi on Tuesday. His parents received the award from the President.
Delhi health minister and AAP leader Saurabh Bhara-
dwaj addresses a press conference in New Delhi. — PTI
Mr Saxena’s application
had cited Article 361(2) of
the Constitution which
says “no criminal proceed-
ings whatsoever shall be
instituted or continued
against the President, or
the governor of a state, in
CM Stalin to visit Singapore, Japan
FROM PG 1
Apart from the signing of
the MoU for providing a
structured package of
assistance to the investing
company, the event also
saw the Chief Minister lay-
ing the foundation for the
new factory at Peruvayal
village in Thiruvallur dis-
trict through video confer-
ence.
He said Tamil Nadu had
been a favourite invest-
ment destination for
Japanese companies and of
the 12 Japanese industrial
L-G asks chief secy to report
on CM’s residence in 7 days
AVINASH PRABHAKAR
NEW DELHI, MAY 9
Delhi lieutenant-governor
V.K. Saxena has sought a
detailed report from the
chief secretary within
seven days after Congress
leader Ajay Maken sent a
letter to him demanding a
probe into the “extrava-
gant” expenditure in the
renovation of the Delhi
chief minister’s resi-
V.K. Saxena
dence.
In the letter to the L-G, the new CM house has
Congress senior cost the exchequer
spokesperson Ajay Maken around `171 crore, with
has claimed that the 15 out of 22 officers’ hous-
amount spent on Arvind es adjacent to the CM’s
Kejriwal’s residence was house at Flagstaff Road
not `45 crore but `171 being demolished or
crore and that too during vacated. This figure (`171
the time of the Covid pan- crore) includes around
demic when people were `126 crore spent on pur-
running around for hospi- chasing 21 new Type-5
tal beds and lack of oxy- flats in the CWG village
gen. to compensate for the
The former Delhi housing shortage,” Mr
Congress chief has also Maken has said in the let-
expressed his deep con- ter.
cern and disappointment Claiming that the reno-
regarding the “extrava- vation of the chief minis-
gant” expenditure, envi- ter’s house has violated
ronmental damage, and the Master Plan Delhi
violation of the heritage (MPD), 2021, Mr Maken
protection and zonal plans alleged that it has been
in the construction of the constructed in the Civil
chief minister’s residence Lines Old Bungalow Zone,
in Delhi. an area protected under
“The construction of the MPD 2021.
ty of students and that
proper protocol needs to
be followed for any such
interaction.
Mr Gandhi visited a
postgraduate men’s hos-
tel of the university on
Friday, where he interact-
ed with some students
and had lunch with
them.
Rahul Gandhi
“It was an unauthorised
visit. Many students safety of students,” the
were having lunch when registrar said.
he barged in. We cannot Meanwhile, the National
tolerate this on our cam- Students’ Union of India
pus. We will send a notice (NSUI), the student wing
to Rahul Gandhi, telling of the Congress, has
him that he should not alleged that the adminis-
repeat such action and tration was under pres-
should not jeopardise the sure to take action against
appointed by the President.
“L-G overturned the
Constitution itself. His
application in the court
said that he is above the
governor and below the
President. But the court
has rejected his applica-
tion saying that the L-G
does not get any immuni-
ty. Every day he issues
orders to government
departments to get work
done that is not in his
domain. This shows that
even his accountability
any court during his term can be fixed,” Mr
of office.” Bharadwaj said.
He had submitted that Delhi BJP spokesperson
governors are selected by Praveen Shankar Kapoor
the Central government said it is regrettable to see
and are appointed by the Mr Bhardwaj speak
President of India while against the L-G with polit-
the L-G is selected and ical bias.
townships in India three
were located in the state,
women. As the government
was working towards
which is also home for women’s development, the
many Japanese profession- move to employ more
als. women would only
The company would have strengthen the govern-
a separate research and ment’s efforts, he said.
development facility and He said that after his gov-
its launch would pave the ernment released the
way for more global invest- research and development
ments to be made in the policy in July 2022, over 50
state, thus bringing down companies had set up R&D
the need for imports, he facilities or expanded exist-
said. ing ones thus generating
Mr Stalin said he was par- 1,22,000 jobs.
ticularly happy that the Ahead of his trip abroad,
new company would give 60 the electronics department
per cent of its jobs to had managed to hold the
pg 7
Mr Maken further said,
“I thus request you to
conduct an inquiry into
the matter. If found
guilty, grant sanction for
prosecution of the prin-
cipal beneficiary, the
chief minister, and the
principal perpetrator,
the PWD minister of
GNCTD.”
After receiving the let-
ter, the L-G, in a commu-
nication to the chief sec-
retary on Tuesday, direct-
ed that a report be sub-
mitted to him within
seven days.
“Hon’ble L-G has
desired that a detailed
report on each of the
issues raised in the afore-
said representation be
furnished within seven
days,” reads the letter to
the chief secretary.
To this, the AAP
responded, “Everyone
knows that this is a false
case meant to tarnish the
image of Kejriwal. Ajay
Maken’s complaint shows
that BJP and Congress are
both together and work-
ing against AAP. Ajay
Maken is a puppet of the
BJP in Delhi. What does
Congress have to say
about the `2,000 crore
liquor scam in
Chhattisgarh?”
Mr Gandhi.
The registrar refuted the
allegation and said,
“There is no such pres-
sure. It is a matter of dis-
cipline.”
A day after Mr Gandhi’s
visit, the Delhi University
issued a statement, saying
the “sudden and unautho-
rised” entry raised seri-
ous security concerns for
the hostel inmates and the
leader.
“University authorities
will take necessary steps
to avoid such incidents of
this trespassing and will
ensure that this does not
happen in future again,” it
had said.
Woman kills
mother-in-law
by hitting her
with frying pan
DC CORRESPONDENT
NEW DELHI, MAY 9
An 86-year-old woman
has died after she was
attacked with frying
pan/cooker by her
daughter-in-law in south
Delhi’s Neb Sarai area,
police said on Tuesday.
As of now, there seems
no immediate trigger
behind the incident. A
long standing frustra-
tion of taking care of
her, cooking for her, giv-
ing her food on time and
helping her with daily
routine things have
emerged as the reason
behind the incident, the
police said.
On April 28, a person
informed police that his
friend’s mother fell in
her flat and blood was
coming out, police said.
Surjit Som (51) lives
with his wife Sarmishta
Som (48) and 16-year-old
daughter in Swastik
Residency, Neb Sarai
since 2014. The family
hails from Kolkata, West
Bengal. His mother was
living alone there till
March 2022. He took his
mother to Delhi to take
care of her. He kept his
mother in a rented flat in
front of his flat, a senior
police officer said.
When police reached
the spot, they found one
Hasi Som was lying in
the kitchen having mul-
tiple injuries on face and
skull, police said.
Surjit stated that his
mother was suffering
from arthritis from a
long time.
MoU signing ceremony
with Mitsubishi, which
was a milestone in the
state’s journey towards
achieving the goal of
becoming a $1 trillion econ-
omy by 2030, he said adding
that in the past years he
had attended more indus-
try related events.
The state had so far
attracted investments to
the tune of Rs 2,73,448
crore through 224 compa-
nies that would create
employment opportunities
to 4,10,561 persons in the
state, he said.
 WORLD
DECCAN CHRONICLE | CHENNAI | WEDNESDAY | 10 MAY 2023
SHORT TAKES
Aishwarya Thatikonda
PROCESS TO SEND
AISHWARYA’S
BODY BEGINS
Houston: The Indian
Consulate here has said it is
helping the family of 26-year-
old Aishwarya Thatikonda,
who was killed in a mass
shooting incident at a mall in
Dallas, in facilitating the com-
pletion of requisite formalities
to take her mortal remains
home and also confirmed that
two Indians were injured.
Aishwarya, of McKinney,
was shopping with a friend
when they were shot by gun-
man Mauricio Garcia at in
Dallas.
The shooting erupted around
3.30 pm on Saturday as throngs
of shoppers filled the outdoor
mall. The shooting killed at
least eight people before
Mauricio Garcia, a 33-year-old
gunman, was shot dead by a
police officer. Aishwarya, the
daughter of a district judge in
Ranga Reddy district court in
India, worked as a project engi-
neer at Perfect General Cont-
ractors LLC. Indian Consulate
in Houston has contacted the
family of Aishwarya.
ISRAELI STRIKES
IN GAZA KILL
THREE MILITANTS
Gaza City: Israel carried out a
series of targeted airstrikes in
densely populated areas of the
Gaza Strip early on Tuesday,
killing three senior command-
ers of the Islamic Jihad mili-
tant group and at least 10 civil-
ians, Palestinian health offi-
cials said.
Two of the commanders’
wives, several of their chil-
dren and other bystanders
were among the dead.
The attacks set the stage for
what is likely to be a new
round of heavy fighting.
The airstrikes hit the top
floor of an apartment build-
ing, a house in Gaza City and a
third house in the southern
town of Rafah.
The Palestinian Health
Ministry said 20 people were
wounded, and some were in
serious or critical condition.
Israel said it targeted several
militant training sites as well.
At midday, tens of thousands
of people took part in two
funerals, with at least 10 bod-
ies being mourned.
TRUSS HEADS TO
TAIWAN TO SHOW
‘SOLIDARITY’
London: British former prime
minister Liz Truss said on
Tuesday she would head to
Taiwan next week to support
the island democracy against
what she said was China’s
“increasingly aggressive
behaviour”. The announce-
ment coincided with the first
visit by a British minister to
Hong Kong since 2018, before
China dismantled the former
UK colony’s democracy move-
ment in a crackdown that has
sent thousands
Hongkongers leaving for new
lives in Britain.
of
Prime Minister Rishi
Sunak’s spokesman denied
that the government was kow-
towing to China, insisting the
visit by investment minister
Dominic Johnson was “com-
pletely appropriate” to support
UK jobs.
REFUGEE SCAM:
NEPAL LAWMAKER
STRIPS IN HOUSE
Kathmandu: An agitated
Nepalese lawmaker took off
his shirt in the House of
Representatives for not being
allowed to speak, amidst a
heated discussion over the
fake refugee scam that appar-
ently involves top former
home ministry officials.
Nepal Police are investigat-
ing the scam related to the
trafficking of Nepalese nation-
als as Bhutanese refugees
abroad.
Amaresh Singh, an inde-
pendent member of the House
of Representatives, took off
his shirt as Speaker Devraj
Ghimire did not allot a slot for
him to speak at the beginning
of the meeting. As Singh took
off the clothes and exposed the
upper parts of his body, speak-
er Ghimire warned him of
action according to parliamen-
tary rules if he did not behave
politely in the House.
Following the speaker’s
warning, Singh put on the
clothes.
Cops, protesters clash
over Imran’s arrest
Videos show Khan manhandled by paramilitary rangers
FROM PG 1
Mr Chaudhry denounced
the arrest of the 71-year-
old former cricket star as
“an abduction.” Pakista
n’s independent GEO TV
broadcast video of Mr
Khan being hauled away.
A scuffle broke out
between Mr Khan’s sup-
porters and police outside
the court. Some of Mr
Khan’s lawyers and sup-
porters were injured in
the melee, as were several
police, Mr Chaudhry said.
Mr Khan was taken to
the garrison city of
Rawalpindi, near
Islamabad, for question-
ing at the offices of the
National Accountability
Bureau, according to
police and government
officials. He also was to
undergo a routine medical
checkup, police said.
Mr Khan had arrived at
the Islamabad High Court
from nearby Lahore,
where he lives, to face
charges in the graft cases.
He has denounced the
cases against him, which
include terrorism char
ges, as a politically moti-
vated plot by his succes-
sor, Prime Minister
Shahbaz Sharif, saying his
ouster was illegal and a
western conspiracy. Mr
Khan has campaigned
against Mr Sharif and
demanded early elections.
Tuesday’s arrest was
based on a new warrant
from the National
Accountability Bureau
obtained last week in a
separate graft case for
which Mr Khan had not
been granted bail. His
lawyers challenged the
legality of the arrest, but
the court upheld it,
although it added that Mr
Khan should not have
been forcibly removed
from the courtroom. Mr
LANKA DISALLOWS Migration surge across border
EVENTS TO MARK
ANNIVERSARY OF
RAJAPAKSA’S EXIT
Colombo, May 9: A Sri
Lankan court on
Tuesday accepted a
request by the police to
curb the commemora-
tion of the events which
led to the resignation of
the bankrupt govern-
ment of president
Gotabaya Rajapaksa a
year ago.
On May 9 last year, Sri
Lankan Prime Minister
Mahinda Rajapaksa
resigned, hours after his
supporters attacked
anti-government pro-
testers outside embat-
tled President Gotabaya
Rajapaksa’s office.
Last year, thousands of
demonstrators protested
across Sri Lanka seek-
ing the resignation of
President Gotabaya and
Prime Minister
Mahinda, as the Sri
Lankan government ran
out of money for vital
imports; prices
essential commodities
of
have skyrocketed and
there are acute short-
ages in fuel, medicines,
and electricity
supply.
Police on Tuesday said
the Colombo Fort magis-
trate has issued a
restraining order on
commemoration of the
protest preventing them
from entering key instal-
lations such as the presi-
dent’s house, presiden-
tial secretariat, finance
ministry, and the prime
minister’s official resi-
dence. — PTI
TECHNOLOGY | TAKES OVER
AI to replace 80% of jobs soon: Expert
Rio De Janeiro, May 9:
Artificial intelligence
could replace 80 per cent of
human jobs in the coming
years — but that’s a good
thing, says US-Brazilian
researcher Ben Goertzel, a
leading AI expert.
Mathematician, cogni-
tive scientist and famed
robot-creator Goertzel, 56,
is founder and chief exec-
utive of a research group
aimed at creating “Artifi-
cial General Intelligence,”
or AGI — artificial intelli-
gence with human cogni-
tive abilities.
NO RESPITE FOR IMRAN KHAN
Pakistan’s former prime
minister Imran Khan,
who was arrested by
paramilitary Rangers on
Tuesday, is facing 121
cases across the country.
SERIOUS CHARGES
● The charges include
committing treason and
blasphemy and inciting
violence and terrorism.
31 cases have been reg-
istered against Khan in
the federal capital
30 cases and call-up
notices have been issued
in Lahore, the capital of
Punjab province
12 cases of terrorism
have been registered
against Imran in Lahore
● An Islamabad court is set to
indict him on May 10 in a case in
which he allegedly hid the pro-
ceeds from the sale of state gifts.
Khan is scheduled to
appear at an anti-graft tri-
bunal on Wednesday, offi-
cials said.
“Imran Khan has been
arrested because he was
being sought in a graft
case,” interior minister
Rana Sanaullah Khan told
a news conference. He
alleged Pakistan’s treas-
ury had lost millions of
dollars while Mr Khan
was in office due to illegal
purchases of lands from a
business tycoon.
The National
Accountability Bureau is
Pakistan’s powerful anti-
corruption organisation
that has detained and
investigated former offi-
Migrants cross the banks of Rio Grande river to enter the US through the El Paso
Sector in Texas. Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador is set to discuss
migration policy with his US counterpart Joe Biden on Tuesday, as the US plans to lift
pandemic-era border restrictions this week. The video call will cover the issues of
migration, fentanyl-drug crisis and development cooperation.
US’ strength is diversity: Biden
Washington, May 9:
America’s strength is its
diversity, President Joe
Biden has said, as he host-
ed one of the largest gath-
erings of Asian Americ-
ans at the White House
attended by several promi-
nent Indian-Americans.
The gathering
Monday was organised for
on
screening of the “Ameri-
can Born Chinese” movie
as part of a celebration of
Asian American, Native
Hawaiian, and Pacific
Islander (AANHPI) Herit-
age Month.“You embody
Researcher explains it should be seen as a benefit rather than a threat
During an interview on
the sidelines of the Web
Summit in Rio de Janeiro,
the world’s biggest
annual technology confer-
ence, Goertzel said that
AGI is just years away and
spoke out against recent
efforts to curb
artificial intelligence
research.
When asked how far is
the future for artificial
intelligence with human
cognitive abilities, he said
“If we want machines to
really be as smart as peo-
ple and to be as agile in
Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf party activists and supporters
of former prime minister Imran Khan protest against
the arrest of their leader in Multan on Tuesday. — AFP
14 cases have 22 terrorism cases have been
been registered registered against Imran Khan
in Faisalabad across Pakistan
MORE TROUBLE ON THE ANVIL
● Pakistan’s military warned former prime
minister Imran Khan against making
“baseless allegations” after he again accused
a senior officer of plotting to kill him.
cials, including prime
ministers, politicians and
retired military officers.
But some view the NAB as
a tool used by those in
power, especially the mili-
tary, to crack down on
political opponents. When
Mr Khan was in power, his
government arrested Mr
Sharif, then the opposi-
tion leader, through the
NAB.
At a news conference,
law minister Azam Tarar
said Mr Khan was arrest-
ed because he was not
cooperating with the
investigations. He also
denounced the violence by
Mr Khan supporters, say-
ing that protests must
Joe Biden
the truth that our diversi-
ty is our strength as a
nation. That’s not hyper-
bole. That’s a fact. That’s
why we rebuild our econo-
my, invest in America,”
Biden told a packed gath-
dealing with the unknown,
then they need to be able
to take big leaps beyond
their training and pro-
gramming. And we're not
there yet. But I think
there’s reason to believe
we’re years rather than
decades from getting
there.”
Speaking on the debate
around AI such as
ChatGPT and its risks and
the need for a six-month
research pause, Goertzel
said “I don’t think we
should pause it because
it's like a dangerous super-
remain peaceful.
“It should have not hap-
pened,” he said, shortly
after TV video emerged of
burning vehicles and dam-
aged public property in
parts of the country.
Authorities said they
have banned rallies in the
eastern province of
Punjab.
As the news of the arrest
spread, about 4,000 of Mr
Khan’s supporters
stormed the official resi-
dence of the top regional
commander in Lahore,
smashing windows and
doors, damaging furniture
and staging a sit-in as
troops there retreated to
avoid violence.
— AFP
ering of the AANHPI com-
munity from various
parts of the country
including several Indian-
Americans in the East
Room of the White House.
Biden said the AANHPI
represents diverse com-
munity culture that is
reflected in every part of
American life, including
in the government.
“I’m determined to
remind everyone and
we're doing it again
tonight that our strength
lies in our diversity," he
said. — AFP
human AI... These are
very interesting AI sys-
tems, but they’re not capa-
ble of becoming like
human level general intel-
ligences, because they
can’t do complex multi-
stage reasoning, like you
need to do science. They
can’t invent wild new
things outside the scope of
their training data. They
can also spread misinfor-
mation, and people are
saying we should pause
them because of this.
That’s very weird to me,”
he added. — AFP
Russian sailors march during the Victory Day military parade in the Black Sea port of
Novorossiysk on Tuesday. Russia celebrates the 78th anniversary of the victory over
Nazi Germany during World War II.
Putin: West is waging
real war against Russia
Moscow, May 9:
President Vladimir Putin
declared on Tuesday that
the West has unleashed a
real war against Russia,
reprising a familiar
refrain at scaled-down
Victory Day celebrations
that may reflect the toll
the Ukraine conflict is
taking on his forces.
Putin’s remarks came
just hours after the Mo-
scow fired its latest bar-
rage of cruise missiles at
targets in Ukraine, which
Russia invaded more than
14 months ago. Ukrainian
authorities said air
defences destroyed 23 of
25 missiles launched.
The Russian leader has
repeatedly sought to paint
his invasion of Ukraine as
necessary to defend aga-
inst a threat. Kyiv and its
Western allies say they
pose no such threat and
that Moscow’s war is
meant to deter Western
influence in a country
that Russia considers part
of its sphere of influence.
Today civilisation is
once again at a decisive
turning point, Putin said
at the annual commemo-
rations celebrating the
defeat of Nazi Germany
in World War II. A real
war has been unleashed
against our motherland.
Putin has often used
patriotic rhetoric that
harkens back to the earli-
er war in an effort to rally
his citizens and forces and
May 9 is one of the most
Canada, China
expel diplomats
Shanghai, May 9: China
said on Tuesday it was
expelling Canada’s consul
in Shanghai, in a tit-for-
tat move after Ottawa
announced it was sending
home a Chinese diplomat
accused of trying to
intimidate a lawmaker.
The expulsions have pl-
unged the two nations in-
to a diplomatic row after
years of souring rela-
tions. They follow an out-
cry in Canada over allega-
tions that Chinese intelli-
gence had planned to tar-
get MP Michael Chong
and his relatives in Hong
Kong with sanctions for
sponsoring a motion con-
demning Beijing’s con-
duct in the Xinjiang
region as genocide.
In response, Canadian
Foreign Minister Melanie
Joly said Toronto-based
Chinese diplomat Zhao
Wei — who allegedly
played a role in the
scheme — would have to
leave the country.
Canada, she said, would
“not tolerate any form of
‘CLAIMS’ DEBUNKED
AI is presently not
When it comes
as smart as to regulations
humans. But, needed for AI,
Goertzel believes Goertzel pitch-
that stage of es for society
development can to be the
be attended in watchdog to
“years rather than ensure these
decades”.
technologies are used for good.
The cognitive scientist counters the risk of AI, saying
“AI can't invent wild new things outside the scope of
their training data”.
WAR INTENSIFIES
EU PROPOSES ACT TO
BOOST AMMUNITION
PRODUCTION IN EUROPE
● EU lawmakers on
Tuesday voted to speed up
consideration of a law to
boost ammunition
production in
Europe to the
tune of 500
million euros, due
to efforts to
supply Ukraine.
● The decision
should see the new
legislation — termed the
Act in Support of
Ammunition Production
(ASAP) — in place by the
end of the year.
● The spending proposal
comes as the bloc seeks to
supply a million shells to
Ukraine in next 12 months.
important dates in the
Russian political calen-
dar. But this year’s cele-
brations were markedly
smaller, at least partially
because of security con-
cerns after several drone
attacks have been report-
ed inside Russia.
Some 8,000 troops took
part in the parade in
Moscow’s Red Square on
Tuesday the lowest num-
ber since 2008. Even the
procession in 2020, the
year of the Covid-19 pan-
foreign interference in
our internal affairs”.
The Chinese foreign
ministry on Tuesday con-
demned the decision to
expel Zhao, and said it
had ordered Canadian
consul Jennifer Lynn
Lalonde to leave the coun-
try by May 13.
“As a reciprocal coun-
termeasure in reaction to
Canada's unscrupulous
move, China decides to
declare Jennifer Lynn
Lalonde, consul of the
Consulate General of
Canada in Shanghai per-
sona non grata,” the min-
istry said in a statement.
And foreign ministry
spokesman Wang Wenbin
urged Canada to stop
“unreasonable provoca-
tions”.
“If the Canadian side
doesn’t listen to this
advice and acts recklessly,
(China) will take resolute
and forceful retaliatory
measures, and all conse-
quences will be borne by
the Canadian side,” Wang
said. AFP
pg 8
— AFP
RUSSIA RAINS MISSILES
ON UKRAINE
● Russia unleashed a
barrage of cruise
missiles on Ukraine
overnight into Tuesday,
hours before the
start of Moscow’s
annual
commemorations
celebrating the
defeat of Nazi
Germany in World
War II.
● The Kremlin’s forces
launched 25 missiles
overnight in a wave of
attacks across Ukraine,
the Ukrainian air force
said, adding that air
defense had successfully
destroyed 23 of them.
● 8 Kalibr cruise missiles
were also launched.
demic, featured some
13,000 soldiers, and last
year, 11,000 troops took
part. There was no fly-
over of military jets, and
the event lasted less than
the usual hour.
This is weak. There are
no tanks, said Yelena
Orlova, watching the vehi-
cles rumble
Moscow’s Novy Arbat
down
avenue after leaving Red
Square. We're upset, but
that's all right; it will be
better in the future. — AP
Donald Trump
TRUMP TRIAL
HEARS CLOSING
ARGUMENTS
New York, May 9: A US
court heard closing
arguments Monday in a
closely watched civil
trial that accuses ex-
president Donald Trump
of raping and defaming
an American former
magazine columnist.
Lawyers for accuser E.
Jean Carroll urged the
nine-person jury to find
Trump liable for
the alleged sexual
assault in a New York
department store in the
mid-1990s.
“No one, not even a for-
mer president, is above
the law,” attorney
Roberta Kaplan told the
Manhattan federal
court.
Carroll, 79, sued
Trump last year, alleg-
ing that he raped her in
the changing room of
the luxury Bergdorf
Goodman store on Fifth
Avenue in either late
1995 or early 1996.
The former columnist
for Elle magazine also
claims that Trump
defamed her when he
called her “a complete
con job” after she went
public with the allega-
tion in 2019.
Trump has not been
criminally prosecuted
and has repeatedly
denied the allegations,
often referring to
Carroll as “not my type.”
“The truth is,” Carroll
“was exactly his
type,” Kaplan said to the
jurors who will begin
deliberating on Tuesday.
— AFP
 SPECIAL
DECCAN CHRONICLE | CHENNAI | WEDNESDAY | 10 MAY 2023
pg 9

OTHER STORY
Undergrad claims
place in Indian book
of world records
Chennai: Lingam Sai
Charan, an undergraduate
student at Saveetha Dental
College, made history in
becoming the first under-
graduate to successfully
perform a Guided
Endodontic Access
Opening using a Dynamic
Navigation System. The
achievement has earned
him a place in the Indian
Book of World Records.
He was guided by Dr. A.
Hima Sandeep, associate
professor in Conservative
Dentistry and Endodontics,
and co-guided by Dr.
S.Sahana, Senior Lecturer.
Using the NaviDent
Dynamic Navigation
System, the student per-
formed a 3 Dimensional
Guided Endodontic Access
Preparation on a full mouth
rehabilitation case. The
NaviDent system uses real-
time verification with
CBCT data to ensure posi-
tional accuracy.
The award was presented
by Dr. K.Sadham Hussain,
Director of the India Book
of World Records, in the
presence of Dr. N.M.
Veeraiyan, Founder and
Chancellor of Saveetha
Institute of Medical and
Technical Sciences
(SIMATS).
iPhone maker Foxconn
buys big site in Bengaluru
Representative image of a Foxconn building. The company is set to expand manufacturing facilities in India in a
very big way with purchase of land in Bengaluru and in Telangana.
Bengaluru: Taiwanese
electronics giant Foxconn
has bought a huge tract of
land on the outskirts of
tech hub Bengaluru, the
key Apple supplier said in
a filing Tuesday as it looks
to diversify production
away from China.
Also known by its offi-
cial name, Hon Hai
Precision Industry,
Foxconn is the world's
biggest contract electron-
ics manufacturer and a
principal assembler of
Apple iPhones.
Both companies are
seeking to shift manufac-
turing away from China
after strict Covid policies,
a bout of industrial unrest
and ongoing diplomatic
tensions with the United
States hurt production.
The 1.2 million-sq-metre
acquisition in
Devanahalli, near the air-
port, was announced in a
statement to the London
Stock Exchange. It said
that subsidiary Foxconn
Hon Hai Technology India
Mega Development was
paying $37 mn for the site,
the size of more than 50
Manhattan city blocks.
Another Foxconn unit
was acquiring land use
rights to a 4,80,000-sq-m
site in Vietnam's Nghe An
province, it added.
Karnataka Chief
Minister Basavaraj S.
Bommai said in March
that Apple would "soon"
manufacture iPhones at a
new plant in the state, cre-
ating "about 100,000 jobs".
Bloomberg News report-
ed that month that
Foxconn was planning to
invest $700 million in a
new factory in Karnataka,
citing unnamed sources.
Foxconn chairman
Young Liu visited the state
then to "deepen partner-
ships... and seek coopera-
tion in new areas such as
semiconductor develop-
ment and electric vehi-
cles", he said in a state-
ment. He also met with
Prime Minister Narendra
Modi, who said the pair's
"discussions covered vari-
ous topics aimed at
enhancing India's tech and
innovation eco-system".
Foxconn has manufac-
tured Apple handsets in
India since 2019 at its plant
in Tamil Nadu. The com-
pany is expected to break
ground on a new facility in
Telangana state next
week, local media report-
ed. Two other Taiwanese
suppliers, Wistron and
Pegatron, also manufac-
ture and assemble Apple
devices in India.
New territory : Apple
has been making its own
push into India and chief
executive Tim Cook last
month opened its first two
retail stores in the world's
most populous country.
The California-based
firm is betting big on 1.4
bn people who live in a
country with the second-
highest number of smart-
phone users in the world,
after China.
The world's biggest com-
pany in terms of market
value is also expanding its
manufacturing footprint
in India. Apple said last
September it would manu-
facture its latest iPhone 14
in India, just weeks after
launching the flagship
model.
The country last year
accounted for seven per-
cent of Apple's iPhone pro-
duction, according to
Bloomberg, lagging
behind the United States,
China, Japan and other
countries.
China, by far the leading
producer of Apple prod-
ucts, saw production dis-
rupted by violent protests
last November at the coun-
try's largest iPhone facto-
ry, also owned by Foxconn.
Hundreds of employees
protested over conditions
and pay at the plant in the
central city of Zhengzhou,
spurred in part by public
frustration over the gov-
ernment's zero-tolerance
approach to Covid during
the pandemic.
Apple's expanding manu-
facturing in India is a
boost to Modi's "Make in
India" strategy, under
which he has urged for-
eign businesses to manu-
facture goods in the South
Asian nation.
—AFP
Elon Musk
Musk says inactive
Twitter accounts
being purged
San Francisco (US):
Elon Musk has
announced that Twitter is
cancelling accounts that
haven't been used for a
long time.
The move comes as
Musk tries to ramp up
engagement, and oppor-
tunities to make money,
at the online platform he
bought for $44 bn last
year.
"We're purging accounts
that have had no activity
at all for several years, so
you will probably see fol-
lower count drop," Musk
said in a tweet.
Musk-mandated
changes at Twitter from
slashing staff to doing
away with free verifica-
tion check marks seen as
stamps of authenticity
have alienated users and
advertisers.
Twitter's blue ticks were
reinstated on some
media, celebrity, and
other high profile
accounts late in April -- a
move protested by many
of the recipients.
Musk tweeted at the
time that he was "paying
for a few (subscriptions)
personally."
Many official media
accounts regained a tick,
including AFP, which has
not subscribed to Twitter
Blue.
The reinstated ticks did
not lure back US public
radio NPR, which in mid-
April suspended activity
on its accounts.
The broadcaster was
among those to protest
the "state-affiliated" and
" g o ve r n m e n t - f u n d e d "
labels Twitter attached to
them, which were previ-
ously reserved for non-
independent media fund-
ed by autocratic govern-
ments.
Since Musk bought
Twitter, the company has
relaxed the moderation of
content on the network,
letting back many users
banned because of mes-
sages inciting hatred or
spreading misinforma-
tion.
Market trackers say
Twitter revenues have
fallen as advertisers have
begun to avoid the plat-
form. – AFP

Disney updates lawsuit vs Royal Mail CEO Ex-PM Shinwantra seeks

Florida Governor DeSantis set to depart to return to Thailand
Orlando (US): Disney on
Monday amended its free
speech lawsuit against Gov.
Ron DeSantis to add recent
developments in the tit-for-tat
fight between the entertain-
ment giant and the Florida
governor, such as a new law
granting the state unprece-
dented authority to inspect a
monorail system at Disney
World.
Disney’s amended com-
plaint filed in federal court in
Tallahassee is updated with
developments since the enter-
tainment giant almost two
weeks ago sued DeSantis and
an oversight board for the
Disney World governing dis-
trict that is made up of mem-
bers newly appointed by the
governor.
The new complaint refer-
ences legislation passed last
week by Florida lawmakers
that rescinds agreements that
Disney and a previous over-
sight board consisting of
Disney supporters made ear-
lier this year, giving the
entertainment giant control
over design and construction
at Disney World. The amend-
ed lawsuit also includes the
new measure passed last
week by Florida lawmakers
giving the state authority to
inspect Disney World’s mono-
rail system, which previously
had been conducted in-house.
Disney is the only company
impacted by the new measure
and it “was precision-engi-
neered to target Disney alone,
just as Governor DeSantis
intended and previewed,”
said the amended lawsuit.
The Disney lawsuit asks a
federal judge to void the gov-
ernor’s takeover of the theme
park district, as well as the
oversight board’s actions, on
the grounds that they were
violations of company’s free
speech rights.
Almost a week after Disney
filed its lawsuit, members of
the oversight board sued
Disney last week in state
court in an effort to maintain
its control of construction
and design at Disney World. It
claimed the agreements
between the company and
previous board members
“reek of a backroom deal.”
Disney and DeSantis have
been engaged in a tug-of-war
for more than a year that has
engulfed the governor in crit-
icism as he prepares to
launch an expected presiden-
tial bid in the coming weeks.
The fight began last year
after Disney, beset by signifi-
cant pressure both internally
and externally, publicly
opposed a state law that bans
classroom lessons on sexual
orientation and gender iden-
tity in early grades, a policy
critics call “Don’t Say Gay.”
— AP
London (UK): The boss
of Royal Mail is set to
leave his post after law-
makers criticised the for-
mer state-monopoly's per-
formance, which has been
hit by mass strikes, Sky
News reported Tuesday.
Chief executive Simon
Thompson is in advanced
talks to leave one of
Britain's largest private-
sector companies after a
turbulent two years at the
helm, it said.
Royal Mail parent
I n t e r n a t i o n a l
Distributions Services
could confirm his depar-
ture this week, Sky added.
It comes after UK law-
makers in March conclud-
ed that Royal Mail has
"systemically failed" to
meet its postal-delivery
requirement.
The company is obliged
to deliver letters six days
a week across Britain in a
one-price-goes-anywhere
postal service.
Set up more than 500
years ago, Royal Mail has
experienced much turbu-
lence since its privatisa-
tion in 2013. It was boost-
ed during the pandemic
lockdowns by a high vol-
ume of parcel orders but
this has since fallen
sharply.
The company has mean-
while been blighted by
recent industrial action
with thousands of work-
ers protesting over wages
failing to keep pace with
soaring inflation.
Royal Mail finally
agreed a deal with union
bosses in April, which
includes a 10-percent pay
rise for staff over three
years.
Britain's annual infla-
tion rate remains stub-
bornly above 10 percent,
prolonging a cost-of-living
crisis for millions of peo-
ple.
I n t e r n a t i o n a l
Distributions Services
suffered an operating loss
of 300 mn pounds in the
nine months to December,
after taking a vast hit
from the strikes.
Last month saw Royal
Mail's launch of postage
stamps featuring the
image of King Charles III,
following his ascension to
the throne in September
and ahead of his corona-
tion at the weekend.
– AFP
Bangkok (Thailand):
Thailand's billionaire for-
mer PM, Thaksin
Shinawatra, said Tuesday
he wants to return from
self-exile before his July
26 birthday, in a tweet he
posted just days before a
general election.
The 73-year-old police-
man turned telecoms
tycoon, twice elected pre-
mier but ousted by a mili-
tary coup in 2006, said he
was ready to face justice
after spending the past 15 Former Thai PM Thaksin Shinwantra
years outside the kingdom
to avoid corruption to her second child -- his charges - and faces numer-
charges he long main- seventh grandchild -- on ous other cases as well -
tained were politically May 1. "I have lived away but on Tuesday said he
motivated. from my family for almost was ready to face the
The opposition Pheu 17 years. I am an old man," courts. "I will enter the
Thai party, fronted by he tweeted. legal process and the day I
Thaksin's daughter Thaksin is still idolised return, the country will
Paetongtarn, is ahead in by millions of poor rural still be under the caretak-
most opinion polls for Thais who benefited from er government of General
Sunday's vote, increasing his welfare policies, but Prayut," he tweeted.
speculation that he may loathed by the kingdom's Prime Minister Prayut
finally make good on royalist-military elite. Chan-O-Cha, the former
repeated promises to Parties linked to army chief who ousted
return to Thailand. Thaksin have won most Thaksin's sister Yingluck
"I have decided to return seats at every Thai elec- as premier to seize power
home to raise my grand- tion since 2001, but lost in a 2014 coup, will formal-
children in July, before two prime ministers to ly remain in charge of the
my birthday," he wrote on military coups and anoth- country until a new leader
his @ThaksinLive Twitter er to a court ruling. is sworn in, most likely in
account. Thaksin was convicted August.
Paetongtarn gave birth in absentia on corruption – AFP

Goldman Sachs to Tiger Woods’ lawyers try to stop ex-girlfriend’s lawsuit

pay $215 mn
New York (US): Goldman
Sachs has said it will pay $215
mn to settle a long-running
lawsuit against the investment
bank, accused by current and
former employees of gender
bias and sexual harassment.
Charges in the suit included
75 cases of misconduct in the
workplace - such as touching,
inappropriate comments and
requests for sex - as well as
wage discrimination or denial
of promotion to women
employees on the basis of gen-
der.
The settlement covers about
2,800 women employed in spec-
ified banking, management
and securities divisions from
the early 2000s until March
this year, according to a joint
statement released by the bank
and the plaintiffs' lawyers on
Monday.
"As one of the original plain-
tiffs, I have been proud to sup-
port this case without hesita-
tion over the last nearly thir-
teen years and believe this set-
tlement will help the women I
had in mind when I filed the
case," plaintiff Shanna Orlich
said in the statement.
A class action lawsuit,
launched in 2010, was sched-
uled to begin on June 5 in New
York.
"After more than a decade of
vigorous litigation, both par-
ties have agreed to resolve this
matter," said Jacqueline
Arthur, the company's global
head of human capital man-
agement. As part of the settle-
ment, an independent expert
will analyze performance eval-
uations and pay equity at
Goldman Sachs for three years.
– AFP
Florida (US): Attorneys
for golf superstar Tiger
Woods are expected to
argue Tuesday during a
court hearing that his ex-
girlfriend’s lawsuit
against him should be
halted because she signed
a nondisclosure agree-
ment requiring that any
disagreements between
them be settled in private
by an arbitrator.
Erica Herman, 39, is
suing Woods to get out of
the agreement, saying she
was the victim of his sexu-
al harassment. She has
also filed a separate $30
million illegal eviction
lawsuit against the trust
that owns his $54 million
Florida mansion.
Herman, who managed
Woods’ Palm Beach
County restaurant before
and during the first years
of their romantic relation-
ship, argues that the
nondisclosure agreement
is unenforceable under a
new federal law that says
such contracts can be
voided when sexual abuse
or sexual harassment
occurred. Her attorney,
Benjamin Hodas, contends
Tiger Woods, right, with his girlfriend Erica Herman and his daughter Sam Alexis
Woods (left), in a file picture when he was awarded the Presidential Medal of
Freedom at the White House in 2019.
that Woods’ alleged threat Woods’ attorney, J.B.
to fire her if she didn’t Murray, denies that the 47-
sign the contract was year-old golfer ever sexu-
harassment. ally assaulted or harassed
“A boss imposing differ- Herman, calling her accu-
ent work conditions on his sations in court docu-
employee because of their ments “utterly meritless.”
sexual relationship is sex- It is unknown if Woods
ual harassment,” Hodas will attend the hearing
said. before Circuit Judge
—AP
Elizabeth Metzger, the
first in what could be a
lengthy court battle.
In Herman’s lawsuit
against Woods, she wants
Metzger to either void the
nondisclosure agreement
or at least give her guid-
ance about what she can
say publicly. For example,
can she discuss events
that happened before their
agreement or after their
breakup? What about the
information she learned
about Woods from others?
She is also arguing that
the contract covers only
her work relationship
with Woods, not their per-
sonal matters.
In her unlawful eviction
lawsuit against the trust,
she is basing her $30 mil-
lion claim on how much it
would cost to rent a prop-
erty like Woods’ beach-
front mansion north of
Palm Beach for six years
of residence she was
allegedly promised by the
golfer and then denied.
Before they dated, Woods
hired Herman in 2014 to
help develop and then
operate the golfer’s The
Woods sports bar and
restaurant in nearby
Jupiter — but they do not
agree when their romantic
relationship and cohabita-
tion began.
Herman says in her
court filings that their
romantic relationship
began in 2015 and that in
late 2016 she moved into
Woods’ nearly 30,000-
square-foot (2,800-square-
meter) mansion in the
ritzy Hobe Sound commu-
nity. She says that in 2017,
Woods verbally promised
she could live there at
least 11 more years.
Herman says Woods
evicted her through
“trickery.” She says Woods
told her they were going
on a weekend trip to the
Bahamas, so she packed a
small bag and he drove her
to the airport, where they
parked near a private
plane. But instead of
boarding, Woods told
Herman to talk to his
lawyer and left, she says.
“Out of the blue,” the
lawyer told her the rela-
tionship was over and that
she was being evicted, she
says. She says she refused
to sign another nondisclo-
sure agreement the lawyer
tried to force upon her.
When Woods’ lawyers
returned her personal
belongings, they kept
$40,000 in cash, “making
scurrilous and defamato-
ry allegations” about how
she obtained it, she
alleges. – AP
 CHENNAI | WEDNESDAY | 10 MAY 2023
quick India’s growth
BITES outlook stable
INDICATORS % New Delhi, May 9: Fitch
Sensex 61,761.33 0.01
Nifty 50
S&P 500*
18,266.00 0.00
4,122.57 -0.38
Dollar (`)
Pound Sterling (`)
82.04 0.28
103.57 0.15
Euro (`)
Gold (10gm)* (`)
90.11 0.19
61,225▲298 0.49
Brent crude ($/bbl)* 76.06 -1.23
IN 10-Yr bond yield 7.045 -0.002
US 10-Yr T-bill yield* 3.486 -0.033
* As of 8:30 PM IST
Stride Ventures
raises $100 mn
for onlending
Stride Ventures, which pro-
vides debt capital to new-age
companies, on Tuesday said it
has raised $ 100 million (about
Rs 820 crore) for onlending.
This is the first close of the
third venture debt fund by the
firm, and the company is tar-
geting to raise another USD
100 million as part of the fund,
as per a statement. The first
close was achieved within four
months of getting a license for
the third fund, it said.
Raymond Q4
profit falls 26%
to `196.5 crore
Diversified group Raymond Ltd
reported a 25.8 per cent
decline in its consolidated net
profit at Rs 196.48 crore in the
fourth quarter ended on March
31, 2023, on account of excep-
tional items. It had posted a
net profit of Rs 264.97 crore
during the same period a year
ago. Its revenue from opera-
tions was up 9.8 per cent to Rs
2,150.18 crore during the quar-
ter under review, as against Rs
1,958.1 crore a year-ago.
Rukart ties up
with SBI for loans
to customers
Agritech firm Rukart, which
sells 'Subjee Cooler' to
enhance shelf life of fruits and
vegetables, has tied up with
SBI to help potential customers
in getting easy loan options to
buy the product. Founded in
May 2019, Rukart manufactures
Subjee Cooler, a cold chain
storage system that requires
only 20 liters of water a day to
function. It increases the shelf
life of fruits, flowers and veg-
etables by 4-6 days.
Anti-dumping
duty on import-
ed optic fibres
The Directorate General of
Trade Remedies (DGTR) has
recommended imposition of
anti-dumping duty on imports
of a certain type of optical
fibres from China, Korea and
Indonesia to protect the
domestic industry from cheap
inbound shipments. It recom-
mended the duty after con-
ducting an investigation on the
dumped imports of 'Dispersion
Unshifted Single-mode Optical
Fiber' from these countries.
Printed & Published by
K Sudhakar on behalf of Deccan
Chronicle Holdings Limited. Printed &
Published at Deccan Chronicle Presses
situated at SP-3 Developed Plot,
Industrial Estate, Guindy, Chennai.
Editor: Kaushik Mitter, RNI Reg. No.
TNENG/2008/25473 Air surcharge Re 1.
© All rights reserved. Reproduction in
whole or in part without written per-
mission of The Editor, Financial
Chronicle ® is prohibited.
Fitch sees India growing at 6% in FY24
on Tuesday affirmed
India's sovereign rating at
'BBB-' with a stable out-
look, on robust growth
and resilient external
finances, but said weak
public finances remain a
challenge.
India's rating has been
unchanged at 'BBB-',
which is the lowest invest-
ment grade, since August
2006.
“Fitch Ratings has
affirmed India's Long-
Term Foreign-Currency
Issuer Default Rating
(IDR) at 'BBB-' with a
Stable Outlook,” it said in
a statement, adding strong
growth potential is a key
supporting factor for the
sovereign rating.
It forecasts India to be
one of the fastest-growing
sovereigns globally clock-
ing 6 per cent growth in
the current fiscal (April
2023-March 2024) support-
ed by resilient investment
prospects.
“India's rating reflects
strengths from a robust
growth outlook compared
with peers and resilient
external finances, which
have supported India in
navigating the large exter-
nal shocks over the past
year.
“These are offset by
India's weak public
finances, illustrated by
high deficits and debt rela-
tive to peers, as well as
lagging structural indica-
tors, including World
Bank governance indica-
tors and GDP per capita,”
Fitch said.
All the three global rat-
ing agency -- Fitch, S&P
and Moody's -- have the
lowest investment grade
BSNL gearing up Import duties hurt MSMEs
to offer 4G services
New Delhi, May 9: State-
owned Bharat Sanchar
Nigam Ltd (BSNL) is gear-
ing up to offer 4G services,
and work is on in full
swing to bring these serv-
ices to consumers soon,
Minister of State for
Communications
Devusinh Chauhan said
on Tuesday.
The minister further
said that India Post is
looking at partnership
with government-backed
Open Network for Digital
Commerce (ONDC) as a
logistics service provider.
On pesky calls, the min-
ister said that the unwant-
ed calls are a “problem”,
and added that a lot of
work is going into
addressing the issue.
With Group of Ministers
(GoM's) approving the
deployment of 1 lakh
BSNL 4G sites, the minis-
ter said that 4G work is
Gabriel India to
make car sunroofs
MICHAEL GONSALVES
PUNE, MAY 9
Gabriel India, the BSE-
listed auto component
manufacture, on Tuesday
signed a technical collabo-
ration with the $1.5 billion
(Rs 12,370 crore) Dutch-
based Inalfa Roof Systems
(Inalfa) to manufacture
sunroofs for the fast-grow-
ing Indian automotive
market with an initial
investment of Rs 180 crore
($22 million).
The newly formed Inalfa
Gabriel Sunroof Systems
(IGSS), which will initial-
ly be a wholly owned sub-
sidiary of Gabriel India,
will manufacture sun-
roofs for passenger vehi-
cles at a new plant near
Chennai that will start
operations in the Q1 of CY
2024 at a projected $22 mil-
lion investment.
The IGSS will be con-
verted into a joint venture
between Inalfa and
Gabriel India, with Inalfa
holding 51 per cent share-
holding.
The new company will
create over 250 direct and
indirect jobs in India.
“Gabriel’s alliance with
Inalfa, Netherlands,
rating on India, with a sta-
ble outlook. The ratings
are looked at by investors
as a barometer of a coun-
try's credit worthiness
and impacts borrowing
cost.
Fitch said India will face
headwinds from elevated
inflation, high interest
rates and subdued global
demand, along with fad-
ing pandemic-induced
pent-up demand.
Fitch said growth
prospects have brightened
as the private sector
appears poised for str-
onger investment growth
following the improve-
ment of corporate and
bank balance sheets in the
past few years, supported
by the government's infra-
structure drive.
Still, risks remain given
low labour force participa-
tion rates and an uneven
reform implementation
record. “India's large
domestic market makes it
an attractive destination
for foreign firms.
However, it is unclear
whether India will be able
to realise sufficient
reforms to allow the econ-
omy to benefit substan-
underway and various
sites have been identified.
The government is keen
that the services should
start soon, he said.
BSNL is coming with
indigenous 4G technology,
which took some time, but
now the telecom corpora-
tion is aggressively work-
ing on bringing these
services to consumers, he
said on the sidelines of an
event to announce a mem-
orandum of understand-
ing among India Post,
CAIT and Tripta
Technologies for logistics
services.
Chauhan also expressed
satisfaction with the pace
of 5G roll-outs in the
country. “If you see glob-
ally, no other country has
achieved such a speedy 5G
roll-out. Today 5G roll-
outs have touched over 800
districts,” the minister
said. — PTI
known for its pioneering
and high-quality roof sys-
tems, is a winner for both
Gabriel and Inalfa in mul-
tiple ways,” said Anjali
Singh, Executive
Chairperson of the $2-bil-
lion Aanand Group,
whose range of auto com-
ponents and systems are
present in more than 99
per cent of passenger
vehicles on Indian roads.
Interestingly, some
OEMs including Gabriel
customers are seeing
close to around 40 per cent
of their passenger vehicle
sales come with models
equipped with sunroofs.
The partners say indus-
try assessments project
that automotive sunroof
sales in India could cross
well over 7 lakh units this
calendar year as against 5
lakh units in 2022.
tially from opportunities
offered by the deeper inte-
gration in global manufac-
turing supply chains, incl-
uding China+1 corporate
strategies that encourage
diversification in invest-
ment destinations,” Fitch
said.
It said service sector
exports are likely to
remain a bright spot and
banks appear well-posi-
tioned to support sustai-
ned credit growth if capi-
talisation is well-man-
aged.
Fitch estimates inflation
to remain near the upper-
end of the Reserve Bank's
2 per cent-6 per cent target
band, averaging 5.8 per
cent this fiscal, against 6.7
per cent last year.
Fitch estimates inflation
to remain near the upper-
end of the Reserve Bank's
2 per cent-6 per cent target
band, averaging 5.8 per
cent this fiscal, against 6.7
per cent last year.
It said that the fiscal con-
solidation path, under
which the centre's fiscal
deficit is to be brought
down to 4.5 per cent of
GDP by 2025-26, remains
challenging.
SANGEETHA G
CHENNAI, MAY 9
Though the new Foreign
Trade Policy envisages
growth of e-commerce
exports, import duty on
returns is affecting the e-
commerce exports by
micro, small and medium
enterprises.
According to Federation
of Indian Small and
Medium Enterprises, over
90 per cent of e-commerce
exporters in India are
MITSUBISHI ARM
TO SET UP NEW
FACTORY IN TN
Chennai, May 9:
Electronic equipment
manufacturer Mitsubishi
Electric India has decided
to set up a new manufac-
turing unit in Tamil Nadu
at an investment of about
Rs 1,891 crore and the
foundation stone was laid
by Chief Minister M K
Stalin here on Tuesday.
The manufacturing
facility is expected to
come up on a 52 acre land
in Thiruvallur district.
Mitsubishi Electric
India shall be investing
Rs 1,891 crore via FDI. It
would create over 2,000
jobs of which 60% would
for women.
Rising premiums a big concern
New Delhi, May 9: The
rise in premium amount
for life insurance is the
biggest concern for con-
sumers, and affordability
has become a more press-
ing issue, according to a
survey released on
Tuesday.
The report identifies
three major barriers to
customers' life insurance
purchasing decisions --
behavioural biases/ per-
ceived need, economic
constraints/affordability
and perceived difficulty in
Mankind
makes a
strong debut
on markets
RAVI RANJAN PRASAD
MUMBAI, MAY 9
Mankind Pharma made a
strong listing on bourses
with shares up 31.86 per
cent at market close and
the market cap of the
company rising to Rs
57,045.80 crore.
Mankind Pharma has
become the fifth largest
pharma company by mar-
ket capitalisation after
Sun Pharma,Divi's Lab,
Dr Reddys Laboratories
and Cipla.
Mankind Pharma's ini-
tial public offering raised
Rs 4,326 crore in the price
band of Rs 1026 to Rs 1080
per equity share.
Mankind shares closed
at Rs 1424.05 on BSE after
listing at Rs1,300 com-
pared to public issue
price of Rs 1080 per share.
On both NSE and BSE
Mankind shares touched
an intra-day high of
Rs 1430 Brokerage firm
Macquarie in a note said,
"Mankind Pharma, the
second-largest domestic
pharma company in
terms of volume, appears
to be well positioned to
double its profit after tax
by FY26E. We believe con-
tinued sales outperfor-
mance to the India mar-
ket, focus on chronic ther-
apies and improved sales-
force productivity are
growth drivers."
MSMEs. E-commerce
exports face high return
rates as customers are
unable to examine prod-
ucts beforehand. Returns
are treated as imports and
face import duties, result-
ing in high logistics costs
and product disposal.
“In e-commerce sector,
returns are as high as 30
per cent. When a product
is returned, the exporter
loses the business as well
as the cost of logistics and
shipping. However, the
Ban on diesel vehicles:
No decision taken yet
MADHUSUDAN SAHOO
NEW DELHI, MAY 9
Day after the move to ban
diesel four-wheelers by
2027, the oil ministry on
Tuesday said that the rec-
ommendation is yet to be
accepted by the govern-
ment. However, the sug-
gestions relate to multiple
ministries and a range of
stakeholders and consul-
tations with various
stakeholders on the report
are yet to be initiated, the
ministry said.
Focussing on clean ener-
gy, an oil ministry panel
— the energy transition
advisory committee
(ETAC) — on Monday had
suggested that India
should ban the use of
diesel-powered four-
wheeler vehicles by 2027
and shift to electric and
gas-fuelled vehicles in
cities with more than a
million people and pollut-
ed towns.
a purchase.
The survey done by
Hansa Research includes
the response of about 3,300
life insurance policyhold-
ers across India.
Respondents were asked a
series of questions relat-
ing to their experience as
a policyholder.
Another key finding of
the report is that 22 per
cent of customers cited
'Company does not keep in
touch' as a potential rea-
son for leaving.
In addition, 8 out of 10
Social security schemes
protect underprivileged
New Delhi, May 9:
Finance minister Nirmala
Sitharaman on Tuesday
said three social security
schemes, including PMJJ-
BY and PMSBY, aim to
provide essential finan-
cial services to citizens
especially underprivi-
leged and safeguard them
against unforeseen risks,
losses, and financial
uncertainties.
Three social security
(Jan Suraksha) schemes --
Pradhan Mantri Jeevan
Jyoti Bima Yojana (PMJJ-
BY), Pradhan Mantri
Suraksha Bima Yojana
(PMSBY) and Atal Pension
Yojana (APY) -- were
launched on May 9, 2015.
The three schemes are
dedicated to the welfare of
the citizens, recognising
the need for securing
EU, US subsidies to hit
Indian hydrogen market
SANGEETHA G
CHENNAI, MAY 9
India has the potential to
emerge as the most com-
petitive source for green
hydrogen and green
hydrogen embedded prod-
ucts. However subsidies
by Europe and the US
could impact India’s com-
petitiveness.
The global hydrogen
demand is expected to
increase from 116 MT per
annum in 2019 to 500 -800
MT per annum in 2050, out
of which 85 per cent will
be contributed by green
hydrogen. Cost competi-
tiveness for green hydro-
gen remains contingent
upon several factors,
including reduction in
import duty on returns is
an additional cost. We
have asked the govern-
ment to scrap import duty
for returns and use tech-
nology to identify returns.
A subsidised agency in
lines of Return USA can
be created to handle the
operational and regulato-
ry issues related to
returns,”
Bhardwaj,
said
General, FISME.
Anil
Secretary
They want a green chan-
nel for e-comerce exports.
The ETAC, headed by
former petroleum secre-
tary Tarun Kapoor, said
that India should ban the
use of diesel-powered
four-wheelers by 2027 in
cities with over 10-lakh
population and switch to
electric and gas-fuelled
vehicles. “The sugges-
tions by the panel relate to
multiple ministries and a
range of stakeholders and
consultations with vari-
ous stakeholders on the
report are yet to be initiat-
ed,” the ministry said in a
tweet.
The panel suggested
phasing out motorcycles,
scooters, and three-wheel-
ers with internal combus-
tion engines by 2035. “The
new registrations of only
electric-powered city
delivery vehicles must be
allowed from 2024 and
there should be higher use
of railways and gas-pow-
ered trucks for the move-
ment of cargo.
● DIGITAL BEHAVIOUR
is also rising across the
customer journey, be it
for pre-purchase infor-
mation on the compa-
ny website serving as
the first frontier or
service communication
like payment rem-
inders, it said.
customers would like the
bank RM/agent to
call/meet them after pur-
chase at least once every
human life from unfore-
seen eventualisation and
financial uncertainties.
In order to ensure that
the people from the unor-
ganised section of the
country are financially
secure, the government
launched two insurance
schemes -- PMJJBY and
PMSBY; and also intro-
duced APY to cover the
exigencies in the old age.
Speaking on the 8th
anniversary of Jan
Suraksha schemes, the
finance minister said,
these schemes aim to pro-
vide essential financial
services to individuals
from underprivileged
backgrounds, thereby
reducing their financial
vulnerability.
Citing data on the three
schemes, Sitharaman said
● DUE TO one of the
lowest costs of
renewable power
generation, India can
emerge as one of the
most competitive
sources for green
hydrogen
capital cost for the elec-
trolyser, cost of renewable
energy procurement, effi-
ciency of electrolysers
and viability of storage
and availability of bank-
ing for round-the-clock
supply from renewable
energy sources.
Due to one of the lowest
costs of renewable power
generation in the world,
India can emerge as one of
Nexus REIT
IPO subscribed
28 per cent
RAVI RANJAN PRASAD
MUMBAI, MAY 9
Blackstone Group spon-
sored Nexus Select
Trust's Rs 3200 crore REIT
public issue got 28 per
cent subscription on the
first day of bidding.
Earlier on Monday Nexus
Select Trust REIT raised
Rs 1440 crore from 20
anchor investors ahead of
the initial public offering
that opened on May 9.
Non-institutional
investor portion got sub-
scribed 42 per cent while
qualified institutional
buyer portion post anchor
allotment got subscribed
17 per cent, said sources
close to the merchant
bankers. Nexus REIT pub-
lic issue closes on May 11,
2023.
Indian institutions in
the anchor book category
with allotments made
included HDFC Trustee
Company which included
HDFC Focused 30 Fund
(Rs 78 cr); HDFC Flexi cap
fund (Rs 171.99 cr), HDFC
Infrastructure Fund (Rs
15 cr) and HDFC Housing
Opportunities Fund
(Rs.15 cr), HDFC Life
Insurance Company (Rs
174.6 cr), SBI Life
Insurance (Rs 143.99 cr),
SBI Dividend Yield Fund
(Rs 99.99 cr) and others.
six months, it said.
Digital behaviour is also
rising across the customer
journey, be it for pre-pur-
chase information on the
company website serving
as the first frontier or
service communication
like payment reminders, it
said.
Brand perception of dig-
ital service is another
extremely critical aspect
for the online buyer, along
with customer support,
the survey added.
— PTI
pg 10
that 16.2 crore, 34.2 crore
and 5.2 crore enrolments
have been done under
PMJJBY, PMSBY and
APY, respectively, till
April 26 2023.
On PMJJBY scheme, the
finance minister said that
it has provided crucial
support to 6.64 lakh fami-
lies who have received
claims for Rs 13,290 crore.
Under the PMSBY
scheme, finance minister
Sitharaman said that
more than 1.15 lakh fami-
lies have received claims
for `2,302 crore. For both
Pradhan Mantri Jeevan
Jyoti Bima Yojana and
Pradhan Mantri Suraksha
Bima Yojana schemes,
simplification of the
claim process has resulted
in speedier settlement of
claims.
the most competitive
sources for green hydro-
gen and green hydrogen-
embedded products such
as green steel and green
ammonia globally.
The European Hydrogen
Bank (EHB) and the
Inflation Reduction Act of
the US provide subsidies
and could adversely
impact the competitive-
ness of Indian GH2 indus-
try, finds ICRA.
In order to cover and
lower the cost gap with
fossil fuels, EHB plans an
auction system for renew-
able hydrogen production
to support producers
through a fixed price pay-
ment per kg of hydrogen
produced for a maximum
of 10 years of operation.
FADA FLAGS
VEHICLE SALES
BY MULTI-BRAND
OUTLETS
New Delhi, May 9:
Automobile dealers' body
FADA on Tuesday said
the illegal practice of
unauthorised multi-
brand outlets selling two-
wheelers is making legiti-
mate dealerships lose
business and turn unvi-
able.
The Federation of
Automobile Dealers
Associations (FADA) said
it has approached various
authorities to take strict
action against the prac-
tice.
The multi-brand outlets
(MBOs) are acquiring
unregistered vehicles in
bulk from dealers and
reselling them to cus-
tomers at discounted
rates, higher than the
prices offered by original
equipment manufactur-
ers (OEMs) through
authorised dealers, with-
out any commitment to
after-sales service, FADA
said in a statement.
This has not only
impacted the legitimate
dealerships but has also
shaken customers' confi-
dence in the brand and
dealer partners, it added.
Furthermore, the out-
lets indulge in evasion of
GST, income tax, issuance
of fake/ undervalued
insurance policies, deliv-
ery of vehicles without
registration/ HSRP and
helmets, resulting in rev-
enue loss on various
fronts, FADA stated.
“We have raised the
issue of unauthorised
MBOs in the two-wheeler
industry, which are not
certified as bona fide
dealers and sell unregis-
tered vehicles without
any trade certificates or
after-sales services,”
FADA President Manish
Raj Singhania stated.
This has caused many
legitimate two-wheeler
dealerships to shut down,
making their businesses
unviable, he added.
“The dealership busi-
ness is dynamic and con-
tributes to the economic
development of the
nation, generating signifi-
cant employment oppor-
tunities in the sector.
Practices such as this
cause massive losses to
the government and
society,” Singhania said.
— PTI

ORANGE
Faf du
Plessis, RCB 576
Yashasvi
Jaiswal, RR 477
Shubman
469
Gill, GT
PURPLE
Mohammed
Shami, GT 19
Rashid Khan,
19
GT
Tushar
D’pande, CSK 19
Short Takes
Rana fined `12 lakh
for slow over-rate
K olkata Knight Riders cap-
tain Nitish Rana has been
fined Rs 12 lakh after his team
maintained a slow over-rate
during their Indian Premier
League match against Punjab
Kings at the Eden Gardens. As it
was his team’s first offence of
the season under the IPL’s code
of conduct relating to minimum
over-rate offences, Rana was
fined `12 lakh, the league said
in a statement.
On Monday night, Rinku
Singh added to his reputation of
being an expert finisher with a
last-ball boundary as Kolkata
Knight Riders beat Punjab
Kings by five wickets to keep
their IPL play-off hopes alive.
Skipper Rana’s half-century
and Andre Russell’s exploits
were followed by Rinku’s 10-ball
21 not out, as KKR managed to
complete a chase of 180 at their
home ground.
Varun Chakravarthy spear-
headed their bowling depart-
ment to grab 3 for 26 as KKR put
up a tidy bowling show to
restrict PBKS to a below-par 179
for seven after the visitors opted
to bat on a slow wicket.
Russell‘s message to
Rinku: Stay humble
K olkata Knight Riders’ pre-
mier all-rounder Andre
Russell is happy that Rinku
Singh has become the team’s lat-
est heartthrob and his only
advice to his “brother” is to
“stay humble”. Having grabbed
headlines by smashing five
sixes in a row to seal an incredi-
ble victory over reigning cham-
pions Gujarat Titans, the 25-
year-old pulled off a dramatic
win with a last-ball four against
Punjab Kings, amid boisterous
chants of ‘Rinku, Rinku’ in the
IPL here on Monday.
“I’m very happy for him and
he is a good friend of mine, a
very funny guy. I love him as a
brother. I just want him to keep
doing what he is doing, and
keep being consistent,” player
of the match Russell said.
There was a sense of deja vu
for Russell who has gone
through similar situations as
Rinku. “It’s been going good for
him so I’ve been encouraging
whenever I get a chance to talk
to him I tell him to stay humble.
It does not matter how many
people are shouting Russell,
Russell, Russell, I always stayed
humble because when it gets
into your head, that’s when you
start to lose it,” he said.
WFI’S AD-HOC PANEL
TO WORK WITH JUST 1
MEMBER FOR A WEEK
New Delhi, May 9: The three-
member ad-hoc committee, tasked
to hold Wrestling Federation of
India (WFI) elections, will likely to
work with just one member for at
least one more week as one of the
representatives, Suma Shirur is
away with the national shooting
team in Baku, while a retired high
court judge is yet to be appointed.
Shirur could not attend the first
meeting of the ad-hoc panel on
Monday as she is the national
coach for rifle shooting and is cur-
rently in the Azerbaijan capital
with the Indian contingent for the
ISSF World Cup for pistol and rifle.
A senior National Rifle
Association of India (NRAI) offi-
cial confirmed the World Cup will
conclude on May 15 and only then
will she be available in person to
attend the meetings. With Shirur
away, Bajwa will likely have to
chair a few crucial meetings all by
himself till the ace former rifle
shooter returns. — PTI
SEASON-16
SUMMER BALL
MUMBHIGH!
Mumbai leap from 8th to 3rd with huge win
Mumbai, May 9: Mumbai
Indians beat Royal
Challengers Bangalore by
six wickets in an Indian
Premier League match here
on Tuesday. Chasing 200, MI
rode on Suryakumar
Yadav’s 35-ball 83, ably sup-
ported by young Nehal
Wadhera’s unbeaten 34-ball
52, to chase down the target
in 16.3 overs.
Earlier, a fourth century
stand of the season between
Faf du Plessis and Glenn
Maxwell took Royal
Challengers Bangalore to
199 for five against Mumbai.
After RCB were rocked
early by Jason Behrendorff
(4-0-36-3) who struck twice
in the powerplay, du Plessis
(65 off 41) and Maxwell (68
off 33) teamed up to expose
MI’s bowling troubles once
again while making the
most of the perfect batting
conditions at the Wankhede
Stadium.
Du Plessis and Maxwell
added 120 runs for the
fourth wicket off just 62
balls, powering RCB’s
charge after Mumbai
Indians made early inroads
with Virat Kohli (1) and
Anuj Rawat (6) falling early.
Maxwell was in his ele-
ment as he played some out-
SCORECARD
Royal Challengers Bangalore: Virat Kohli c Ishan Kishan b
Behrendorff 1, Faf du Plessis (c) c sub (Vishnu Vinod) b Green 65,
Anuj Rawat c Green b Behrendorff 6, Glenn Maxwell c Wadhera b
Behrendorff 68, Mahipal Lomror b Kartikeya 1, Dinesh Karthik c
Wadhera b Jordan 30, Kedar Jadhav not out 12, Wanindu Hasaranga
de Silva not out 12. Extras (lb-1, nb-1, w-2) 4. Total (for 6 wickets in
20 overs) 199.
FoW: 1-2, 2-16, 3-136, 4-143, 5-146, 6-185.
Bowling: Jason Behrendorff 4-0-36-3, Piyush Chawla 4-0-41-0,
Cameron Green 2-0-15-1, Chris Jordan 4-0-48-1, Kumar Kartikeya 4-
0-35-1, Akash Madhwal 2-0-23-0.
Mumbai Indians: Ishan Kishan c Anuj Rawat b de Silva 42, Rohit
Sharma lbw b de Silva 7, Suryakumar Yadav c Jadhav b Vyshak 83,
Nehal Wadhera not out 52, Tim David c Maxwell b Vyshak 0,
Cameron Green not out 2, Extras (lb-6, nb-2, w-6) 14. Total (for 4
wkts in 16.3 overs) 200.
FoW: 1-51, 2-52, 3-192, 4-192.
Bowling: Mohammed Siraj 3-0-31-0, Josh Hazlewood 3-0-32-0,
Wanindu Hasaranga 4-0-53-2, Vijaykumar Vyshak 3-0-37-2, Harshal
Patel 3.3-0-41-0.
Rohit’s struggle with bat
is mental, feels Sehwag
New Delhi, May 9:
Mumbai Indians skipper
Rohit Sharma is suffering
from a “mental block” and
there is no technical prob-
lem with his batting, said
former India opener
Virender Sehwag. Rohit
has been struggling for
runs this IPL season, hav-
ing scored just 184 runs at
18.39 and a strike rate of
126.89. In the last two
games, he couldn’t open
his account.
In fact, Rohit got his 16th
duck, the most in IPL his-
tory, during the last match
against Chennai Super
Kings.
“Rohit Sharma is not
battling with the bowlers
but with himself. There is
Sam reveals battle with skin cancer Deepak, Nishant are into
London, May 9: England
wicketkeeper batter Sam
Billings has revealed his
battle with skin cancer
and now wants to create
awareness among fellow
players on the dangers of
being exposed to the
sun.Billings underwent
two operations last year to
remove a malignant
melanoma on his chest, he
informed on his social
media handles on Tuesday.
He was diagnosed with
skin cancer following a
routing screening at his
county Kent.
“I had a melanoma that
was 0.6mm (deep). The
threshold of when it gets
really serious is 0.7mm, so
really close.
“If I had left that screen-
ing to go to the meeting,
and waited until my next
one six months down the
line it could have been far,
far more serious. The mar-
gins are so small but can
WEDNESDAY | 10 MAY 2023 | CHENNAI | DECCAN CHRONICLE
standing strokes, hitting
four sixes and eight fours to
record his fourth half-centu-
ry this season.
On the other hand, du
Plessis, dropped by Nehal
Wadhera in the first over
when he was yet to open his
account, was equally
impressive with his stroke-
play, attacking fast bowlers
and spinners alike to get to
his sixth half-century.
Du Plessis also extended
his lead at the top of the list
for the highest run-getters
this year, reaching 576 runs
in 11 matches at an average
of 64.
But to their credit, MI
fought back in the second
half to dismiss Maxwell,
Mahipal Lomror (1) and du
Plessis in quick succession,
which halted RCB’s charge
as they could not go beyond
the 200-run mark, which at
one stage looked probable.
Mumbai Indians’ bowlers
did well to allow only 68
runs in the last seven overs,
putting up a far improved
performance with the ball.
RCB slipped from 131/2
after 13 overs to 146/5 in the
15th before Dinesh Karthik
(30 off 18 balls) did well to
banish his ordinary run
with the bat. —PTI
● Rohit got his 16th
duck, the most in IPL
history, during the last
match against Chennai
Super Kings.
a mental block,” Sehwag
said on on Star Sports’
Cricket Live.
“There’s no problem
with his batting tech-
nique. Some confusion is
going on in his mind. But
the day he gets going, we
will make up for all the
previous matches.”
They suffered a six-
wicket loss to CSK in their
last match after a poor
start saw them managing
just 139 for eight, a target
overhauled by their oppo-
quarterfinals at Worlds
have massive conse-
quences,” the 31-year-old
told the Telegraph.
Billings has played three
Tests, 28 ODIs and 37 T20s
for England. He is current-
ly playing county cricket.
He said his battle with
the dreaded disease has
put things in perspective
for him.
Mumbai Indians batter Suryakumar Yadav celebrates his half-century against
Royal Challengers Bangalore during an IPL match at the Wankhede Stadium in
Mumbai on Tuesday.
nents in 17.4 overs.
Opening the innings,
Cameron Green and Ishan
Kishan scored just 6 and 7
respectively and former
Australia batter Aaron
Finch said the Mumbai
openers look confused and
they should learn from
the way CSK’s Ruturaj
Gaikwad goes about his
business.
“MI’s opening combina-
tion looks confused they
are taking a lot of risk.
They were looking to hit
all the balls. They should
learn from Ruturaj
Gaikwad, he remains so
calm in the middle and
hits the loose balls,” Finch
said.
— PTI
Sam Billings
“It did give me the clari-
ty of making decisions
based on what I want to do
rather than maybe just
toeing the line and being
seen to do the right thing.
“I have tried to do that
over the years and it’s
sometimes resulted in car-
rying drinks. You realise
that cricket isn’t the be all
INJURED ARCHER RULED OUT, MI
NAME JORDAN AS REPLACEMENT
New Delhi, May 9:
Struggling with fitness,
England pacer Jofra
Archer was on Tuesday
ruled out of the IPL, forc-
ing Mumbai Indians to
name fast bowler Chris
Jordan as his replace-
ment for the remainder of
the T20 event.Archer, who
was picked by five-time
champions MI for `8
crore in the auction, has
played just five games
this season and taken two
wickets. He has been out
of international cricket
for close to two years due
to a back injury and did-
n’t feature in IPL last
year.
Archer’s recovery and
fitness will be monitored
by the England and Wales
Cricket Board (ECB) as he
returns home to focus on
and end all. It’s hugely
important but you need to
put things in perspective.
It’s also made me much
more empathetic.”
He warned fellow play-
ers and fans against dan-
gers of spending too much
time in the sun.
“I’m not just talking
about the pro game. It’s
club cricketers, people
who watch the game. I
played at Lord’s recently
and the sun was out, even
if it wasn’t 25 degrees. It
might only have been 18
but you can still get sun-
burnt.
“We treat it (applying
suncream) like a bit of a
chore, because the educa-
tion around it isn’t as good
as in countries like
Australia. I’d like to see
everyone in cricket work-
ing together: the sun is
out, so let’s protect our-
selves,” he added.
— PTI
— DEBASISH DEY
his rehabilitation.
“Archer has been recov-
ering from right elbow
surgery. However, push-
ing through the discom-
fort whilst recently play-
ing, hoping it will settle,
has proven challenging,”
ECB said in a statement.
“Therefore, it has been
agreed for him to return
to the UK for a period of
rest and rehabilitation to
give him the best opportu-
nity for a full recovery.”
His replacement,
Jordan, made his IPL
debut in 2016. He has so
far played 28 IPL matches
and has 27 wickets
against his name. He has
played for RCB, Sunrisers
Hyderabad, Punjab Kings
and Chennai Super Kings
in the past.
— PTI
Tashkent, May 9: Indian
boxers Deepak Bhoria
(51kg) and Nishant Dev
(71kg) notched dominat-
ing wins to cruise to the
quarterfinals of the men’s
World Championships
here on Tuesday.
Continuing his good run
in the tournament,
Deepak brushed aside
China’s Zhangh Jiamao
by a 5-0 unanimous ver-
dict in the 51kg round of
16 bout.
Nishant, on the other
hand, hardly broke a
sweat as he registered a
first-round RSC (referee
stops the contest) win
against Palestine’s
Foqahaa Nidal in his 71kg
last 16 contest.
Such was Nishant’s dom-
ination that he spent less
than two minutes in the
● Chennai Super Kings
● Delhi Capitals
● Gujarat Titans
● Kolkata Knight Riders
● Lucknow Super Giants
● Mumbai Indians
● Punjab Kings
● Rajasthan Royals
● Royal Challengers Bangalore
● Sunrisers Hyderabad
POINTS TABLE
Teams P W L N/R
GT 11 8 3
CSK
MI
11
11
6
6
4
5
LSG 11 5 5
RR
KKR
11
11
5
5
6
6
RCB 11 5 6
PBKS 11 5 6
SRH 10 4 6
DC 10 4 6
Chennai take on
resurgent Delhi
NEHA SURANA | DC
CHENNAI, MAY 9
A resurgent Delhi
Capitals will look to halt
Chennai Super Kings’
bullish run when the two
teams with contrasting
fortunes meet here at the
M.A. Chidambaram
Stadium on Wednesday.
Placed second on the
table with 13 points in 11
games, Chennai are rid-
ing on a crest of a wave
after securing the ‘El
Clasico’ bragging rights
against rivals Mumbai
Indians. M.S. Dhoni’s
team performed like a
well-oiled unit as the
bowlers rose to the occa-
sion and batters made
short work of the chase. A
victory against bottom-
dwellers Delhi will help
Super Kings put a foot in
the playoffs.
Delhi, who are languish-
ing at the bottom of the
table with eight points in
10 games, had a horrible
start to their campaign
with a five-match losing
streak. They have, howev-
er, managed to revive
their campaign by win-
ning four of their last five
games. They may be a lit-
tle late to the party, but
they are still in with a
mathematical chance of
making it to the playoffs.
Their victories against
table toppers Gujarat
Titans and Royal
Challenger Bangalore
changed the complexion
of the playoff race.
After trying out differ-
ent combinations, Delhi
Chennai Super Kings skipper M. S. Dhoni during a
training session in Chennai on Tuesday. — E. K. SANJAY
ring before being declared
the winner.
The Indian southpaw
resorted to body blows
before striking Nidal with
a powerful right hook that
compelled the referee to
give the Palestinian his
first standing count.
A few seconds later
Nishant unleashed a com-
bination of left-right-left
hooks as Nidal fell on the
canvas, forcing the referee
to give him his second
count before stopping the
contest.
Competing in the 51kg
Olympic category, Deepak
put up a brilliant display
once again.
While the first round
was neck and neck, with
both boxers exchanging
blows, the 25-year-old
Indian managed to take a
PAGE
11
Points Net RR
0 16 +0.951
1
0
13
12
+0.409
-0.255
1 11 +0.294
0
0
10
10
+0.388
-0.079
0 10 -0.345
0 10 -0.441
0 8 -0.472
0 8 -0.529
ACTION TODAY
CSK VS DC
FROM 7.30 PM,
LIVE ON STAR SPORTS
finally found a trump
card in keeper-batter Phil
Salt, who produced a
remarkable knock of 87
against RCB. Delhi have
to play out of their skin to
upstage Super Kings at
their fortress. Chennai
batting line-up should be
wary of the Delhi tweak-
ers Kuldeep Yadav and
Axar Patel, who will look
to take advantage of the
spin-friendly wicket at
Chepauk.
Chennai’s Matheesha
Pathirana with a slinging
action has proved to be a
nightmare for batters.
With Dhoni using him as
a death bowler, Pathirana
has taken 10 wickets in
seven matches with an
impressive economy of
7.6.
CSK opener Ruturaj
Gaikwad said they don’t
mind playing on any sur-
face. “The two games we
lost here, they were
almost close games, not
much of a difference, just
one or two hits away. So, I
think there is not much
difference. We would like
to play on any surface
given because of the
home advantage,” said
Gaikwad.
slender 3-2 lead.
The Haryana boxer
ramped up the tempo in
the next six minutes.
Deepak used his nimble
foot to move around the
ring, landing a combina-
tion of punches while also
ducking away from his
opponent’s attacks rather
effortlessly.
On Sunday, Deepak
pulled off one of the
biggest upsets of the tour-
nament when he upstaged
Tokyo Olympics bronze
medallist and 2021 world
champion Saken
Bibossinov of
Kazakhstan. Deepak was
selected ahead of Amit
Panghal and the 25-year-
old has put up impressive
performances in all the
three bouts he has played
so far. — PTI
 GAMES
DECCAN CHRONICLE | WEDNESDAY | 10 MAY 2023 | CHENNAI
pg 12

SHORT TAKES
Nantes sack
coach Antoine
Nantes: Relegation-threat-
ened Nantes sacked coach
Antoine Kombouare on
Tuesday with just four
matches remaining of the
Ligue 1 campaign. The club
have tasked the coach of the
under-19 team, Pierre
Aristouy, with the job of
retaining their place among
the French elite. Kombouare,
59, leaves with the Canaries
in the relegation places,
third from bottom of the
table after a catastrophic
week of results. A 5-1 thrash-
ing by Toulouse in the
French Cup final — a trophy
they lifted under Kombouare
in 2022 — was followed by
2-0 defeats by fellow relega-
tion rivals Brest and
Strasbourg. It left Nantes
two points adrift of Auxerre
and three shy of both Brest
and Strasbourg. Nantes
president Waldemar Kita,
who has never been shy of
firing coaches, decided
enough was enough and
called on former Nantes for-
ward Aristouy. He has
achieved some good results
with the Under-19 side since
he returned to the club in
2017. He will be assisted by
former Venezuelan interna-
tional and ex-Nantes player
Oswaldo Vizcarrondo, who
has been coaching the
women’s team since last
October. — AFP
MESSY MOVE
CHAMPIONS | LEAGUE
Milan gear up
for local derby
Lionel, the ‘greatest’, set to leave PSG on a low note Milan, May 9: Milan is change your season.
Paris, May 9: Lionel gearing up for its biggest “You kind of go back to
Messi’s uninspiring two-
year stint at Paris Saint-
MESSI FUTURE local derby in a genera-
tion as two of Europe’s
being a kid scoring a goal
in the playground. You
Germain is set to come to
an acrimonious end with a UNDECIDED, SAYS grand old clubs face off
on Thursday in a block-
put all that in the
Champions League and I
move to join long-time buster Champions can’t imagine what these
rival Cristiano Ronaldo in
Saudi Arabia, just months
FATHER JORGE League semi-final.
Two clashes full of
matches will be like.”
Both team’s seasons
after his crowning glory at Riyadh, May 9: colour, noise and drama hinge of the result of the
the 2022 World Cup. Argentine superstar await in one of the conti- all-Italian tie, with quali-
For his legions of admir- Lionel Messi will play in nent’s football capitals, fication for next year’s
ers, the debate about Saudi Arabia next season AC Milan and Inter Milan competition far from cer-
Messi’s right to be regard- under a blockbuster deal, battling at the San Siro tain thanks to disappoint-
ed as the greatest foot- a source close to the nego- for the chance to take the ing league campaigns
baller in history was offi- tiations in the kingdom Italian city’s European which left last season’s
cially put to bed when he told on Tuesday. trophy tally to 22. main Serie A title chal-
led Argentina to the title There was no confirma- Milan and Inter are no lengers miles behind
in Qatar in December. But tion from Messi’s current longer true giants like the newly-crowned champi-
his career at the highest club Paris Saint-Germain, other semi-final’s con- ons Napoli.
level in Europe appears to who noted simply that he tenders Real Madrid and Inter, though, come into
have finished on a low was under contract until Man City but Thursday’s the match in blistering
note. Messi was suspended June 30 when contacted. match will be unbeatable form and with a previous-
by PSG last week for mak- The source said Messi for atmosphere and ly misfiring attack sud-
ing an unauthorised trip will sign a “huge” deal played in one of football’s denly banging in the
to Saudi Arabia. with an as-yet-unnamed most evocative arenas. goals left and right.
He has scored 31 goals in Saudi club just months “The atmosphere at the Simone Inzaghi’s side
71 appearances for the after the 35-year-old lifted stadium is incredible... have won five on the
French champions and is the World Cup in neigh- Everyone here is a fan, bounce, scoring 14 times
likely to win a second con- bouring Qatar in men and women alike. in that run. Of those
secutive Ligue 1 title later December. “Messi is a The pressure is there all goals 10 have been scored
this month, but failed in done deal. He will play in the time,” said AC Milan by the forwards, with
his mission to help PSG to Saudi Arabia next sea- defender Pierre. Romelu Lukaku in partic-
a maiden Champions son,” said the source, who “When you first arrive ular suddenly finding
League triumph, suffering is not authorised to speak here you don’t feel all that some form towards the
back-to-back last-16 to media and spoke on con- involved, but after a while end of what has been a
defeats. dition of anonymity. you begin to feel that pas- largely dismal return on
Barcelona had been “The contract is excep- sion. You can feel that it’s loan from Chelsea.

Nuggets’ Jokic
hopeful of bringing the 35- tional. It’s huge. We are a match which can — AFP
year-old back to the Camp just finalising some small

escapes ban
Nou, where he won 10 La details,” added the source.

Los Angeles: Denver

Nuggets star Nikola Jokic
Liga titles and four
Champions League
crowns before a tearful
departure in 2021.
has escaped suspension
after his off-court tussle with
Phoenix Suns owner Mat
Instead though, Saudi
Arabia, regularly accused
of sportswashing, or host-
Ishbia, the NBA announced ing the biggest names in
in a statement on Monday. sport to deflect attention
Jokic has been fined from its human rights
$25,000 for making record, will be able to
“improper contact with a boast having arguably the
spectactor” during the two greatest players of the
Nuggets’ game-four defeat modern era in their
to the Suns in Phoenix on unheralded domestic
Sunday in their Western league.
Conference playoff series. Ronaldo is playing for Al
Jokic clashed with Ishbia as Nassr, while a source close
he attempted to grab a to the negotiations who
loose ball from the Suns told AFP that Messi’s
owner in the second quarter move to Saudi Arabia was
of Sunday’s game. a “done deal”, stopped
As the ball flew back into short of saying which club
the crowd, Jokic’s elbow the Argentine will join.
appeared to knock Ishbia The absence of a World
backwards. Jokic, who Cup winners’ medal had
scored a career-high 53 long been Exhibit A in the
points in the loss, later argument about why
defended his actions and Messi did not rank above
said he was only responding Pele and Diego Maradona
because Ishbia made con- in football’s pantheon.
tact with him first. Ishbia But with Argentina’s vic-
had sought to damp down tory over France in last
the controversy earlier year’s jaw-dropping World
Monday by saying he did not Cup final in Doha, the case
want to see the two-time was surely closed.
NBA Most Valuable Player In a glittering career that
hit with a suspension. has spanned three
“Great win for the Suns last decades, Messi has won 37
night in an amazing series so club trophies, seven
far! That should be and is Ballon d’Or awards and
the only story,” Ishbia wrote six European Golden
on Twitter. “Suspending or Boots. There has been a
fining anyone over last Copa America title, an
night’s incident would not
be right.” — AFP
Lionel Messi
Olympic gold medal and a
list of scoring and statisti-
cal records that may never
be beaten.
In his final World Cup
appearance, Messi scored
twice as Argentina battled
to a 3-3 draw in extra time
before prevailing on penal-
ties. Not even Kylian
Mbappe’s hat-trick for
France could upset
Messi’s appointment with
destiny on a night that
seemed pre-ordained.
Whether Messi really is
the ‘greatest ever’ is a
question, of course, that is
as futile as the answer is
subjective.
What is undeniable
though is that by sheer
volume and range of sil-
verware, Messi has won
more than the other seri-
ous rivals to his “G.O.A.T”
status: Pele and
Maradona. While Pele’s
three World Cup triumphs
remain unrivalled, the
Brazilian icon’s club
career pales in compari-
son to Messi’s.
In his peak years with
Barcelona, the
Argentinian regularly
scaled the pinnacle of
European club football in
the Champions League —
arguably a technically
superior arena than inter-
national football.
Messi’s father and agent
Jorge insisted Tuesday his
son has not decided where
he will play next season.
“There is absolutely
nothing agreed with any
club for next year,”
Messi’s father wrote on
Instagram. “The decision
will not be made before
Lionel finishes the league
with PSG. Once the season
is over, it will be time to
analyse and see what’s out
there and then make a
decision.”
“There are always
rumours and many use
Lionel’s name to gain
notoriety, but the truth is
only one and we can
assure you that there is
nothing agreed with any-
one,” continued Jorge
Messi. “Neither verbal,
nor signed nor agreed.
And there won’t be until
the end of the season.”
— AFP
Maradona meanwhile
won only one World Cup,
and never lifted a talking about. At that
European Cup during a
club career in Europe
remembered mostly for
spells with Barcelona and
Napoli. The counter-argu-
ment of course is that Pele
and Maradona played in
an era where players were
offered far less protection
than the likes of Messi
and Ronaldo. — AFP
VETERAN GIROUD HUNGRY
FOR SUCCESS WITH MILAN
Milan, May 9: Olivier
Giroud said on Tuesday
that he has a young man’s
hunger for European suc-
cess ahead of AC Milan’s
all-Italian Champions
League semi-final with
Inter Milan.
Veteran France striker
Giroud won the competi-
tion with Chelsea in 2021
and wants to continue his
Indian summer at Milan
with another triumph
after winning the Serie A
Olivier Giroud
title last season.
“I’m motivated more four.
than ever. For me it’s a big He scored the decisive
opportunity to win it goal which sent Milan
again. Almost 37 years old through at the expense of
but still hungry like a Napoli, who last week
young boy,” Giroud said. dethroned the seven-time
“In football it’s never kings of Europe as cham-
good to underestimate the pions of Italy.
others. I know what I’m “We are focused on Inter
and we just want to
level every single game is dream,” added Giroud.
very tough and it’s on “This club is special...
small margins, small Last year I couldn’t hope
details, that you win it.” for better than to win the
Giroud was a key figure Scudetto first year and in
in Milan’s league title win the second year still be in
this time last year and the race for the top four
this season has netted five and in a semi-final of the
times in his team’s Champions League. I’m
impressive run to a block- very proud of this team.”
buster derby in the last — AFP

Lakers rally as
Warriors wobble
STATE LEVEL | BALL BADMINTON INDIA COLTS
GEAR UP FOR
Everton & Forest rise
Miami: Unheralded bench
player Lonnie Walker led a
fourth-quarter rally as the
Los Angeles Lakers defeated
GETAFE CLASH
New Delhi, May 9: The
out of relegation zone
the Golden State Warriors to India U-17 men’s football London, May 9: Everton Everton side that had not 0. Alexis Mac Allister
leave the NBA champions on team is set to face Getafe moved out of the Premier won away since October. pulled a goal back after
the brink of elimination from CF U-18 in Otero de League relegation zone The Toffees had the Kaoru Mitoma’s initial
the playoffs on Monday. Herreros, Segovia, in its with a ruthless 5-1 win at dream start as Abdoulaye effort came off the post.
The 24-year-old Walker fifth practice game on Brighton on Monday, Doucoure opened the scor- But McNeil had the final
erupted for 15 fourth-quarter Wednesday. while Leicester’s hopes of ing after just 34 seconds. say as he rounded off a
points as the Lakers com- The Blue Colts have survival are hanging by a Doucoure’s brilliant vol- dazzling performance by
pleted a dramatic 104-101 been training in Spain thread after a 5-3 defeat at ley from Dwight McNeil’s smashing into the top cor-
victory to put them one win over the last few weeks Fulham. cross doubled Everton’s ner in stoppage time.
away from clinching the as part of their prepara- Nottingham Forest also lead before Brighton goal- Leicester boss Dean
best-of-seven Western tion for the AFC U-17 pulled themselves clear of keeper Jason Steele Smith admitted his play-
Conference second-round Asian Cup, which is set the bottom three as they deflected McNeil’s cross ers are struggling with
series. Walker, who has to take place in Thailand beat fellow strugglers into his own net. the pressures of a relega-
struggled to establish him- next month. Southampton 4-3. De Zerbi responded by tion battle after a disas-
self since joining the Lakers India, who have been Brighton are in the hunt making four half-time trous defensive display at
on a one-year contract last placed in Group D of the to qualify for Europe for substitutions and Craven Cottage.
year after battling a series of SRM Institute of Science and Technology, winners of the fifth state level ball Asian Cup, will face the first time in the club’s Brighton peppered the The Foxes, who won the
injuries, was mobbed by badminton tournament held at OBBC Ground, Srirangam, Trichy. Vietnam (June 17), history, but a heavy sched- Everton goal but were Premier League in stun-
LeBron James and other Uzbekistan (June 20), ule appeared to have caught out on the counter- ning fashion in 2016 and
Lakers teammates after the and Japan (June 23) in taken its toll on Roberto attack when McNeil lifted the FA Cup two
victory. James, who scored
27 points in the victory, said
he had urged Walker before
the game to be ready to
SRM emerge champions Pathum
Bangkok.
Thani and
— AFP
De Zerbi’s men as they
were torn apart by an
showed great poise to
round Steele to make it 4-
years ago, are staring rele-
gation in the face. — AFP

Madras Cricket Club reign supreme

help out. “I’ve been telling DC CORRESPONDENT 33-35, 35-26 to win the fifth Savakkattupalayam 35-
him ‘Lonnie you stay ready. CHENNAI, MAY 9 state level ball badminton 25, 33-35, 35-26.
We’re going to need you at tournament held at OBBC Special Awards: Best
some point’,” James said. SRM Institute of Science Ground, Srirangam, Player: A. Adhithiyan.
“For him to be as young as and Technology edged out Trichy. Star of The Tournament:
he is, to have that profes- Savakkattupalayam 35-25, Results: Final: SRM IST bt S. Harish Kumar DC CORRESPONDENT
sionalism, to come out and CHENNAI, MAY 9
stay ready when his number
Hosts Madras Cricket

KOVALAM SET TO CONDUCT ALL-INDIA

was called — we don’t win
this game without Lonnie Club defeated the defend-
Walker tonight, that’s for ing champions

WINDSURFING & KITEBOARDING C’SHIP

sure.” Lakers will take a 3-1 Nungambakkam Tennis
series lead to San Francisco Club ‘B’ 2-1 to reign
for game five with the supreme in the SANMAR-
Warriors needing to win to TNTA A Zone tennis
keep the series alive. — AFP DC CORRESPONDENT and kiteboarders from that are debuting in the league.
CHENNAI, MAY 9 across the country, hail- Paris Olympics 2024. Former Indian star
Regd. No. TNENG/2010/35692 ing from over 16 states, This championship will Somdev Dev Varman and
The Chennai Sailing representing 14 clubs conduct them along with Elwin Antony eased past
Printed & Published by K. Sudhakar on Academy will conduct including the Indian other classes of boards Guhan Rajan and S. Gokul
behalf of Deccan Chronicle Holdings Limited the all-India ranking Army and Indian Navy and sails. The event will 6-1, 6-1 to give MCC 1-0
and Printed at Deccan Chronicle Presses windsurfing and kite- Sailing Clubs will be tak- play a role in determin- lead. On the adjacent
situated at SP 3, Developed Plot, Madras Cricket Club, winners of the SANMAR-TNTA A Zone tennis league.
Industrial Estate, boarding championship ing part. The iQFOiL is a ing the surfers, who will court, Nungambakkam’s
Guindy, Chennai - 600 032. for the first time at the foiling windsurfer board represent India in the Ojes Theyjo and Manish Suresh Kumar Results: Madras Cricket Club bt Hande lost to Ojes
RNI Registration No: TN ENG/2005/14987
Ph Nos: 22254747, 22254748, 22254750, Surf Turf in Kovalam and the IKA Formula Asian Games 2023 and Madankumar got the bet- and Prithvi Sekhar Nungambakkam Tennis Club 2-1 Theyjo/Madankumar 6-1, 3-6, 7-
22254751 from May 11 to 14. Kite is a Foiling other International com- ter of MCC duo Mohd drubbed R. Krishna Teja (Somdev Dev Varman/Elwin 5; Manish Suresh Kumar/Prithvi
Editor: KAUSHIK MITTER Around 48 windsurfers Kiteboarding discipline petitions this season. Fariz and Siddarth Hande Raja and D. Vimal Raj 6-0, Antony bt Guhan Rajan/S. Gokul Sekhar bt R. Krishna Teja Raja/D.
to level at 1-1. Later, 6-2 to give MCC a 2-1 win. 6-1, 6-1; Mohd Fariz/Siddarth Vimal Raj 6-0, 6-2.