source: NASA kochi l saturday l January 10, 2026 l `9.00 l PAGES 16 l late city EDITION NASA cuts ISS mission short after astronaut takes ill The space agency said on Thursday a crew of four astronauts aboard the International Space Station will return to Earth earlier than planned no emergency, just being careful: nasa First-ever medical evacuation from ISS The crew included NASA’s Zena Cardman and Mike Fincke along with Japan’s Kimiya Yui and Russia’s Oleg Platonov. NASA did not identify the astronaut or the medical issue, citing privacy. The crew member with the ‘serious medical condition’ is stable. Dr James Polk, NASA’s chief health and medical officer, said it was not an emergency, but NASA being careful ■ ■ Two crew members, Fincke and Cardman, were to carry out a spacewalk for a rollout of solar panels. It was Fincke’s fourth visit to ISS and Yui’s second; and a first for Cardman and Platonov This was NASA’s first medical evacuation from ISS though astronauts have been treated aboard for things like toothaches and ear pain 2030 is time limit nasa has set to bring back the iss out of its orbit CHENNAI ■ MADURAI ■ VIJAYAWADA ■ BENGALURU ■ KOCHI ■ HYDERABAD ■ VISAKHAPATNAM ■ COIMBATORE ■ KOZHIKODE ■ THIRUVANANTHAPURAM ■ BELAGAVI ■ BHUBANESWAR ■ SHIVAMOgGA ■ MANGALURU ■ TIRUPATI ■ TIRUCHY ■ TIRUNELVELI ■ SAMBALPUR ■ HUBBALLI ■ DHARMAPURI ■ KOTTAYAM ■ KANNUR ■ VILLUPURAM ■ KOLLAM ■ TADEPALLIGUDEM ■ NAGAPATTINAM ■ THRISSUR ■ KALABURAGI ‘Not accurate’: Fall from grace: Sabarimala thantri India rejects Rajeevaru held in gold theft case U.S. charge on Modi no-call Remand report alleges Rajeevaru, arraigned as 13th accused, played a role in the conspiracy V A R S HA S O MA R A J @T’Puram J aya n t h J a cob @ New Delhi India on Friday rejected claims by US Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick that a long-pending India-US trade agreement collapsed because Prime Minister Narendra Modi did not place a phone call to President Donald Trump and termed the characterisation of events “not accurate”. Responding to Lutnick’s remarks, the External Affairs Ministry said New Delhi and Washington have been engaged in sustained, detailed negotiations on a bilateral trade pact for over a year and remain committed to concluding a “balanced and mutually beneficial” agreement. The MEA also highlighted that Prime Minister Modi and President Trump spoke to each other eight times in 2025, covering a wide range of issues. “We remain interested in a mutually beneficial trade deal between two complementary economies and look forward to concluding it,” MEA spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said. Lutnick, speaking on the All-In Podcast, had claimed that the Trump administration was keen to finalise an early trade agreement with India after concluding a deal with the UK in May 2025. According to him, India was offered a limited window, “three Fridays” to close the deal, with the incentive of Minneapolis killing matter of concern India voiced concern over the killing of a woman by a federal agent in Minneapolis in the US. “We are closely following it,” Jaiswal said. “We are concerned as we have a large Indian community in the US, including students, professionals and others.” lower tariffs for early signatories under what he described as a “staircase” tariff framework. “It was all set up. But you had to have Modi call President Trump. They were uncomfortable doing it. So Modi didn’t call,” Lutnick said. He further claimed that when India later indicated readiness to finalise a deal, it was too late. “Are you ready for the train that left the station three weeks ago?” he said, arguing that tariff terms had already hardened by then. Trade talks formally began in February 2025 and included several rounds of inperson discussions, including a visit by a US delegation led by Deputy US Trade Representative Rick Switzer in December. Trump imposed tariffs of up to 50% on Indian goods, including a 25% levy linked to India’s p u r c h a s e s o f Ru s s i a n energy . In a stunning, decisive move that has sent shock waves among Sabarimala devotees across the globe, the Special Investigation Team (SIT) probing the gold theft case arrested the temple’s thantri Kandararu Rajeevaru after hours of interrogation on Friday . He was later remanded to 14 days of judicial custody and sent to the special sub-jail, Thiruvananthapuram. The remand report alleged that the thantri played a role in the conspiracy stating that the , gold plates were removed from the temple premises and later brought back with his knowledge and “silent nod”. It said he was present throughout the procedure. Despite the removal of temple articles constituting a violation of rituals and established practices, the thantri failed to intervene. The report further noted that Rajeevaru had maintained close links with the prime accused, Unnikrishnan Potti, since 2004. Rajeevaru, who appeared before the SIT early on Friday morning, was interrogated at a ‘safe house’ in Attingal for hours before being taken to the Crime Branch office at Enchakkal where the arrest was formally recorded at around 2.30pm. ADGP H Venkatesh, who supervises the SIT, was present during the interrogation. After the arrest, he was taken to the Thiruvananthapuram General Hospital for medical examination, and later produced before the Enquiry Com- ED initiates probe in gold theft case Kochi: The Kochi unit of the Directorate of Enforcement (ED) has registered an ECIR under the provisions of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act in the Sabarimala gold theft case. All those arrested in the cases registered by the Special Investigation Team may be arraigned as accused in the ED case. P4 Thantri Kandararu Rajeevaru being brought to the Thiruvananthapuram General Hospital for medical checkup on Friday | Vincent Pulickal SIT’s findings against Rajeevaru Complicity, criminal misappropriation of temple property, financial dealings and a role in the conspiracy No record of thantri informing TDB in writing if panels and other articles were removed without his nod Association between Rajeevaru and Unnikrishnan Potti dates back to 2004-08 No action was taken by the thantri against the alleged removal of temple articles, even though it amounted to a violation of rituals and temple practices Thantri was fully aware that the plates removed from the temple were goldcladded, yet chose to support Potti and other accused persons. Rajeevaru gave a “silent nod” to take the plates out in the name of repair work missioner and Special Judge, Vigilance in Kollam. While being escorted out of the hospital, the priest told the media that he had “done nothing wrong”. Statements by Potti and former Travancore Devaswom Board (TDB) president A Padmakumar, along with the thantri’s travels to Bengaluru and his dealings with sponsor Ramesh Rao and jeweler Gov- Thantri’s continued presence during removal and reinstallation of panels strengthens the allegation of his knowledge and consent ardhan, proved crucial to the investigation. The probe reportedly revealed financial transactions between the thantri and Potti and found that it was Rajeevaru who had facilitated Potti’s entry into Sabarimala as a sponsor. Statements from Sabarimala staff indicated that Potti’s influence at the hill shrine grew rbi cuts US treasury exposure for first time in four years JAPAN UK 800 877.9 688.7 600 CHINA 400 200 INDIA mega protest march 190.7 West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee leads a protest march against the ED’s searches linked to political consultancy firm I-PAC, in Kolkata on Friday | PTI | P8 0 October 2024 to October 2025 B E N N K O C H U V E E D A N @ Mumbai IN what may be a strategic shift towards foreign exchange reserve diversification and non-dollar assets amid rising global economic and geopolitical risks, the Reserve Bank of India has cut 21% of its holdings of US Treasury securities. According to the US Department of Treasury RBI’s holding , of US bonds dropped from $241.4 billion on October 31, 2024 to $190.7 billion on October 31, 2025, marking a shift in forex strategy towards better asset diversification. The US follows October-September as its fiscal year. According to a Bloomberg analysis, this is the first annual dip in US treasury investments by RBI in the past four years. The drawdown comes despite relatively attractive yields in US bonds. During the period, the yield on the benchmark 10-year US bonds traded in 4-4.8% range. Experts say this steep reduction is not driven by yield considerations but by a reassessment of the allocation of reserves, which hovered around $700 billion in October. As part of diversification, RBI has been building its gold reserves. After a record 64 tonnes of gold buy in 2024, the central bank has been going slow in adding the yellow metal in 2025, which as of September-end stood at 880.8 tonnes. Gold’s share in the total foreign exchange reserves shot up to 13.9% by September, up from 9% in the year-ago period. In 2025, RBI made only modest direct purchases of gold to the tune of 4 tonnes till September, but increased its domestically held reserves by repatriating over as much as 64 tonnes from overseas vaults. China, too, reduced its treasury holding by 9.3% to $688.7 billion during the year. due to his proximity to the thantri. Potti, who had served as an assistant priest in 2008 at Sabarimala, was later brought back with the influence of the thantri. Although Rajeevaru’s role had been under a cloud of suspicion from the early stages of the investigation, the SIT proceeded against him with discre● More on P4 tion.  S h ya m P V @Palakkad 1200 1000 Arrest brings disgrace to Thazhamon family Kochi: The arrest of thantri Kandararu Rajeevaru, considered venerable by lakhs of devotees of Sabarimala, has brought disgrace to the Chengannur-based Thazhamon family, that holds the traditional right to oversee the rituals and practices of the hill shrine. P4 E X P R E S S N E W S S E R V I C E @ New Delhi THE Budget session of Parliament is likely to commence on January 28 with the Union Budget possibly being tabled on February 1, a Sunday . Officials, citing the tentative schedule finalised by the Cabinet Committee on Parliamentary Affairs, said on Friday that President Droupadi Murmu will address a joint sitting of the two Houses on January 28. The customary address of the President takes place on the first day of the first Parliament session of a year. The two Houses will not meet on January 29 due to Beating Retreat ceremony . Parliament will sit on January 30 when the Economic Survey is expected to be tabled. On January 31, the Lok Sabha and the Rajya Sabha will not meet. The Union Budget is set to be tabled on February 1. After discussions on the Motion of Thanks on the President’s address and Union Budget, Parliament will adjourn for a month-long recess on February 13. 16 pages, including 4 pages of kochi Express Cong may not field its MPs in assembly polls Country-wise US treasury holding ($ Bn) 1200 LDF hopes thantri’s arrest will end row T’Puram: The political game over the Sabarimala gold theft row has taken a decisive turn with the arrest of the thantri. While the LDF hopes the arrest would finally put a lid on a row that cost it heavily in the recentlyconcluded local body polls, both the UDF and BJP are determined to keep the pot boiling. P4 Parliament from Jan 28, Budget Feb 1 E X P R ESS R EA D CPM set to drop two-term norm T’Puram: The CPM is set to change its two-term norm for contesting elections, signalling a possible shift in the party’s organisational and leadership policy. The move is expected to allow the continuation of senior leaders in key positions and influence candidate selection for assembly polls. P5 Language bill: Siddu warns Pinarayi Bengaluru: Karnataka CM Siddaramaiah has written a letter to his Kerala counterpart Pinarayi Vijayan, warning him that if the Malayalam Language Bill is passed, Karnataka will oppose it by exercising every constitutional right available, in defence of linguistic minorities and the plural spirit of the Republic. P5 The Congress leadership is unlikely to allow sitting MPs to contest in the coming assembly elections, despite several of them expressing interest following the party’s strong showing in the recent local body elections, AICC sources said. According to sources, most Congress MPs conveyed their willingness to shift to the assembly arena after the local body results, viewing the improved performance as a morale booster. However, the leadership has taken a firm view that MPs will be fully deployed for campaigning in what is being seen as a do-ordie election, rather than being considered for candidature. “The party is not inclined to consider any sitting MP for the assembly polls,” a senior AICC source said. According to sources, at least eight of the 14 Congress MPs had informally expressed interest in contesting the assembly elections even before the party’s Lakshya Summit in Wayanad. Some MPs, including younger parliamentarians, are learnt to have made efforts to build pressure for candidature. Senior leaders, however, have conveyed that such ambitions would not be entertained. At the same time, party sources said there is a clear strategic decision to keep MPs focused on campaign responsibilities across the state. “The leadership wants all MPs on the ground, fully engaged in the election campaign, rather than diverting attention to individual aspirations,” a senior leader said. In a parallel development, internal discussions are under way on strengthening the UDF’s leadership structure, with a view to ensuring tighter coordination for the assembly ● More on P5 battle.  s t a t e t o ti g h t e n l a w s Jail term, fine await owners abandoning their pet dogs S h a i nu Mo h a n @ T’Puram Beware! Abandoning pet dogs will cost you dearly. In a major step towards ensuring responsible pet ownership, the local self-government department (LSGD) and the State Animal Welfare Board have initiated amendments to strengthen dog licensing and curb abandoning of pets. The move follows recent directives from the Supreme Court to states to implement stricter regulations to manage s t r ay d o g p o p u l at i o n s humanely . Under the proposal, pet owners who abandon their animals will face a fine of `5,000 and imprisonment of up to six months. As part of this, a new ‘responsible pet ownership’ clause will be incorporated into the Panchayat Raj Act and the Kerala Municipality Act. Section 291 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhi- freepik ta (BNS), which deals with negligent conduct with respect to animals, will also be adopted. Violations may result in a fine, imprisonment, or both. State Animal Welfare Board member R Venugopal said the amendments have been drafted and will be implemented soon. “Abandoning of pet dogs is a major challenge in the state and one of the reasons behind the rising stray dog crisis. Licensing and anti-rabies vaccination will be mandatory, and all pets will be microchipped. This will help us trace owners of abandoned dogs and take le- gal action,” Venugopal said. The state is also planning to make licensing and registration mandatory for pet shops and breeders. “The Animal Welfare Board has decided to implement the central rules, and they have been officially notified. Application forms for registration and licensing are available on the animal husbandry department’s website,” Venugopal ● More on P5 said.