BHUBANESWAR l friday l march 13, 2026 l `9.00 l PaGES 12 l JEyPOrE EdiTiON GooGle overhaulS MapS app, introduceS More ai featureS overhaul designed by homegrown ai Google Maps will depend more on AI to help people figure out the best way to get somewhere as part of a major redesign unveiled on Thursday ask maps and immersive navigation The overhaul driven by Google’s Gemini technology will introduce two AI features into the digital mapping service. Gemini’s recommendations will draw upon a database spanning more than 300 million places and reviews from more than 500 million contributors that have been accumulated since Google Maps’ debut more than 20 years ago ■ ■ One tool called Ask Maps will expand upon conversational abilities that Google brought to the service last November Gemini has also created a new tool dubbed Immersive Navigation that will present a three-dimensional perspective designed to give users a better grasp of where they are at any moment in time 2 billion people uSe GooGle’S Map application Globally 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 Two oil shipmenTs arrive eports suggest two other oil tankers headed for India switched off the tracking system, crossed the Strait between March 5 and 10 iRan Liberia-flagged Shenlong, carrying around 1 mn barrels of Saudi Arabian crude oil, arrived at Mumbai. It’s is the first such carrier to reach India from West Asia since the war began Pakistan Strait of Hormuz Departure from Ras Tanura in Saudi Arabia india Arrival at Mumbai lpG rationing starts, kerosene back in mix r a K e S h K u M a r @ New Delhi AFTeR denying LPG shortage over the past few days, the government on Thursday acknowledged the pressure on supplies and introduced demand-management measures for both domestic and commercial consumers. The waiting period for booking a refill has been raised to 45 days in rural and remote areas and to 25 days in urban areas. Before the West Asia conflict triggered a supply disruption, the minimum booking interval across the country was 21 days. Meanwhile, officials said LPG bookings have surged from the normal level of 60 lakh cylinders per day to 80 lakh cylinders, which is overwhelming the system. In another key decision, the government said OMCs would allocate 20% of the average monthly commercial LPG requirement starting Thursday to ensure supply to businesses. The government had earlier directed oil companies to prioritise supplies to 33 crore domestic LPG consumers, prompting protests from res- taurants and other commercial users. Petroleum and Natural Gas Minister hardeep Singh Puri said commercial LPG is being regulated to prevent hoarding and black marketing. Puri added that LPG production has increased by 28% in the last five days and additional procurement is underway . Regarding natural gas availability, he said large LNG cargoes are arriving daily through alternative supply routes, adding that India has sufficient arrangements to maintain supply even if the conflict continues for a prolonged period. Notably, the government has also activated alternative fuel options to ease pressure on LPG and natural gas supplies. Kerosene is being made available through retail outlets and the public distribution system, while fuel oil is being supplied to industrial and commercial consumers. The Ministry of environment, Forest and Climate Change has advised State Pollution Control Boards to permit the temporary use of such fuels during the P8 crisis period. Indian killed in attack by Iran against US-owned oil tanker Safesea Vishnu in Iraqi waters Apart from Shenlong docked in Mumbai, an Indianflagged very large crude carrier with around 2 million barrels of Iraqi crude arrived in Indian waters. It is headed to Paradip in Odisha 28 Indian-flagged vessels on the east and 24 on the west of the Strait. Have 778 Indian sailors aboard 3 more cargo ships bombed in the Gulf. In all, Iran has attacked at least 16 ships in the Strait so far Some ships faking themselves as Chinese to avoid Iranian attacks India co-sponsors UNSC resolution condemning ‘egregious’ attacks by Iran against Gulf nations 1 S t S tat e m e n t b y n e w S u p r e m e l e a d e r clOSE all u.S. baSES iN wEST aSia Or facE aTTackS: mOJTaba a G e n c i e S @ Dubai We will extract compensation from the enemy, and if they refuse, we will seize as much of their assets as we deem appropriate, and if that is not possible, we will destroy an equivalent amount of their assets Mojtaba Khamenei, Iran’s newly appointed supreme leader, in his first statement released through state TV IRAN’s new supreme leader Mojtaba Khamenei on Thursday issued his first statement since succeeding his father Ali Khamenei, vowing to avenge the deaths of Iranian leaders and civilians, including the 165 killed in the airstrike on a school, and threatening to step up Tehran’s attacks against US assets in the region. In his hard line message, he asked his neighbouring countries to close US bases in their territory telling them that the promise of US protection is a myth. he also announced that the Strait of hormuz would remain closed and ships that try to pass without permission would be destroyed. Mojtaba’s statement, released through the state TV declared that revenge against US and Israel is , his priority “A limited amount of this revenge has . so far taken concrete form, but until it is fully achieved, this will remain among our priorities,” it said. Notably he did not appear on TV or release , a video or audio message. The text of the written statement was read out by a newsreader. According to reports, Mojtaba, 56, was injured in the joint US-Israel strike on February 28 which killed his father Ali Khamenei. So far, more than 1,200 people had been reportedly killed in the war. Seafood exporters take big hit as supply routes cut, trade down by 30% SudarSan Maharana @ Bhubaneswar The escalating conflict in West Asia has pushed seafood exporters in the state to the edge, with many facing order cancellation and loss owing to supply chain disruptions and higher freight costs. ies until the situation stabilises, The tension in the Middle while in some cases, especially east has shrunk seafood exports where goods are time-sensitive, from Odisha in some of the Gulf orders have been cancelled midtrade routes by 30 per cent, way or shipments remain stuck prompting suppliers to explore at ports.” diversification plans Odisha exports to reduce dependence around 92,169 tonne of on the affected seafood annually. The markets. value of exports stood Owing to the In view of the loomat about `4,668 crore in escalating ing crisis, the Seafood 2024-25. In the Gulf retension, freight exporters’ Associagion, UAe is the largcost has already tion of India (SeAI), est importer, followed increased and if Odisha Chapter has the war continues by S a u d i A r a b i a , also sought financial beyond March 15, Oman, Qatar, Kuwait assistance and policy and Bahrain. shipping lines relief along with infra- have warned that The SeAI Odisha freight charges structure and valuepresident said shipwould go up addition support from ments across Indian further by about the gover nment ports, including nearly 30 per cent through dif ferent $300 million worth of schemes to navigate seafood exports are Sangram Das, SEAI Odisha president this uncertainty and awaiting transport due prevent losses. to uncertainty in shipSeAI, Odisha chapping lanes. “Freight ter president Sangram Das said, cost has already increased and “In several sectors, shipments if the war continues beyond are being delayed or temporar- March 15, shipping lines have ily halted because vessels are warned that charges would go avoiding the affected sea routes up further by about 30 per cent. and taking longer alternatives. The container price, which was Some exporters have even re- around $2,600 to $2,800, has alported buyers asking to hold ready surged to around $3,000,” Continued on P5 shipments or postpone deliver- he said. US heat on big manufacturing fOur NEw SPl dEf ENTiTiES iN ViSiON 2047 economies, exporters wary J a v a r i a r a n a @ New Delhi p u S h p i ta d e y @ New Delhi WITh the Trump administration invoking Section 301 of the Trade Act against major economies, including India, the government will take a wait and watch stance till the US prepares the final report, said an official source in the know. Through 301, the US is trying to offset revenue loss after its Supreme Court struck down Trump’s global tariffs. In India, the probe triggered uncertainty among exporters in manufacturing sectors like steel, electrical goods, textile etc. The Office of the United States Trade Representative (USTR) initiated a probe into manufacturing practices in several economies, including India, under Section 301 of the Trade Act of 1974, citing concerns over structural excess section 301 probe A Section 301 trade probe allows the office of USTR to examine and potentially punish (by imposing higher tariffs) foreign trade practices deemed unfair, discriminatory, or restrictive to US commerce capacity. The investigation will assess whether such policies distort markets or restrict US commerce by driving overproduction, trade surpluses and underutilised industrial capacity across key sectors. “India is adopting a waitand-watch stance on the Section 301 investigation by the USTR. New Delhi will evaluate the report once released before deciding on any next steps,” said the government official. A Section 301 trade probe al- lows the office of USTR to examine and potentially punish (by imposing higher tariffs) foreign trade practices deemed unfair, discriminatory, or restrictive to US commerce. “evidence suggests the solar module sector is plagued by excess capacity, including that India’s current module manufacturing is nearly triple the annual domestic demand. India also has created significant excess capacity in petrochemicals, steel, and other industries,” stated USTR. Confederation of Indian Textile Industry (CITI) sought government intervention to safeguard the interests of the textiles and apparel sector, as the USTR announcement brings more uncertainty . According to steel exporters, with many duties like anti-dumping duty already in place, the sector is grappling with multiple challenges. The Centre plans to create specialised new entities for data, drones and cognitive warfare while expanding missile defence capabilities to protect critical national assets, according to a long-term roadmap for the armed forces published on Thursday . The roadmap titled ‘Defence Forces Vision 2047’, was uploaded on the headquarters Integrated Defence Staff web- site, laying out a blueprint for the organisational and technological evolution of the milit a r y ove r t h e n e x t t wo decades. It proposes the creation of four new tri-service entities — a Defence Geo-Spatial Agency , Data Force, Drone Force and Cognitive Warfare Action Force — which reflect the growing centrality of data, unmanned systems and perception warfare in contemporary conflicts. These formations are in- firST day, firST ShOw West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee greets newly appointed Governor R N Ravi during his swearing-in ceremony at Lok Bhavan in Kolkata on Thursday SunriSerS in focuS IPL-linked team signs Pak’s Abrar in Hundred e x p r e S S n e w S S e r v i c e @ Chennai JUST after noon on Thursday at Piccadilly Lights in London, there was a landmark moment in the world of franchise cricket. An Indian Premier League (IPL) linked team signed a Pakistan player at auction in the hundred. Sunrisers Leeds, who also own the hyderabad side, raised the paddle for Pakistan’s Abrar Ahmed to spark a bidding war. In the end, Sun TV the Indian me, dia giant, ended up buying the mystery spinner for over $250,000. It’s the first time a mystery spinner tariq bought by non-ipl franchise Apart from Ahmed, the only other Pakistan cricketer to have been bought in auction was Usman Tariq. Birmingham Phoenix, who has American ownership, signed him for £140,000. There were 13 Pak players in the men’s auction after pacer Shaheen Shah Afridi withdrew. None of them attracted bids when they were made available for sale, though they could re-enter the auction again. side with direct links to the IPL has bought a Pakistan player in the league’s history. Three other sides in the hundred have investors who have stakes in the IPL. It’s significant because a few weeks ago, a report did the rounds saying IPL-linked teams were planning on not signing any Pakistan players. It prompted the england and Wales Cricket Board (eCB) to remind all the teams of consequences if there was discrimination based on nationality. Last year, there were no men’s players in any of the hundred teams, exactly at a time when the eCB opened it up to Indian investment. It’s also important to keep in mind that no teams in the SA20 — all six teams are owned by investors who also have significant IPL stakes — have purchased a Pakistan cricketer in three years. Sun TV inter, estingly, also own a team there (eastern Cape). But Pakistan players have previously featured in IPL’s sister teams. Sun TV’s acquisition of Ahmed, who has a steller record in international cricket, has invited some vitriol on social media, with several Indian fans upset with it. tended to support the armed forces’ shift towards data-centric and multi-domain warfare, where emerging technolo g i e s s u ch a s a r t i f i c i a l intelligence, robotics, autonomous systems and advanced analytics are expected to increasingly shape battlefield outcomes. The plan also divides the military’s transformation into three phases leading up to the centenary of India’s independence in 2047. The first phase till 2030 will focus on transition, including organisational restructuring, strengthening deterrence, building indigenous capabilities, enhancing border control, improving maritime and air domain awareness and integrating emerging tech into combat operations. The 2030-40 phase will focus on consolidation. From 2040 to 2047, a world-class military capable of operating seamlessly across land, air, maritime, cyber, space and cognitive domains will be developed.