bhubaneswar l saturday l june 06, 2026 l `9.00 l PAGES 12 l jeypore EDITION Worried anthropic suggests global freeze on ai development The largest AI company by market capialisation warned that the technology is improving so quickly there’s a risk humans would lose control recursive self-improvement a threat pause to enable alignment research Given enough computing power, an AI system could be able to design and develop its own successor, known as “recursive self-improvement”. Self-building AI would be a major technological milestone that would bring benefits in science, healthcare and other areas, Anthropic said, but it “also might increase the risks of humans losing control over AI systems” ■ ■ Anthropic’s post comes after a warning this week from researchers at University of Toronto who showed how AI tools could be used to create a new kind of AI “worm” that adapts its hacking strategy Anthropic researchers said the pause would enable “societal structures and alignment research” to keep up with AI advances $ 1 trillion could be anthropic’s worth after its forthcoming ipo 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 8.3 Rollicking GDP before war pain 7.6 7.5 Q1 6.6 GDP Growth Rate (%) Q2 Q3 2023-24 7.8% Economy expansion in January-March quarter, exceeding forecasts Q4 8% Growth in third quarter in FY26 Q1 8.0 7.4 7.1 6.6 Data shows better than expected expansion of the economy in the last financial year. Economic strain expected to be captured in Q1, FY27 Real GDP estimated to reach `323.12 lakh crore in 2025-26, against the First Revised Estimate of GDP for 2024-25 of `299.89 lakh crore 7.5 Q2 Q3 2024-25 7% Expansion of the economy a year ago 7.0 Q4 7.7% 6.8 Q1 Full-year growth, up from 7.1% in FY25 Impact of Iran war to be visible in the current April-June quarter Nominal GDP or GDP at current prices is estimated at `346.36 lakh crore in 2025-26, against `318.07 lakh crore in 2024-25. Growth rate: 8.9% 7.8 Q2 Q3 2025-26 Q4 7.9% Growth in gross value added (GVA) in Q4. GVA removes volatile components like indirect taxes and subsidies to capture economic activity Even if the growth were to slip below 7% as the RBI forecast suggests... macro stability measures and supply assurances will bring us back to a 7%-plus growth track in FY28 or as soon as external conditions improve — V Anantha Nageswaran, Chief Economic Advisor tax axe to heal Capital gains levy chucked RBI expects 5.1% inflation, to draw foreign investors keeps rates unchanged D i pa k M o n d a l @ New Delhi D i pa k M o n d a l @ New Delhi After days of speculation, the government on Friday bit the bullet and announced tax relief for foreign investors. It took the ordinance route to grant exemptions on interest income and capital gains earned from investments in government securities by Foreign Institutional Investors (FIIs). However, no relief was extended to investments in equities. Hours later, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) unveiled a slew of measures aimed at attracting foreign capital. Together, these steps are expected to support the rupee, which has been under pressure in recent months. The ordinance amends the Income-tax Act, 2025 to exempt interest earned on government securities, as well as capital gains arising from their sale, exchange or transfer, from income tax for FIIs, subject to the furnishing of prescribed information to tax authorities. It takes effect retrospectively from April 1, 2026. At present, FIIs or Foreign Portfolio Investors (FPIs) face a 20% withholding tax on interest income earned from Indian debt securities, including government bonds and rupee-denominated bonds. Long-term capital gains on government securities are currently taxed at 12.5%, while short-term capital gains attract a 20% tax. The tax relief is expected to make government bonds attractive for foreign investors at a time when India is seeking deeper integration with global debt markets. Rajesh H Gandhi, Partner, Deloitte India, said the tax exemption would increase returns for FPIs investing in Indian government securities by 15-20% and improve the return differential between Indian sovereign bonds and those of other countries, making India more attractive to global investors. As for the RBI, it expanded the universe of securities eligible under the Fully Accessible Route (FAR) by including all new issuances of 15-year, 30-year and 40-year government bonds. In another significant relaxation, it increased investment limits for Non-Resident Indians (NRIs) and Overseas Citizens of India (OCIs) in listed equity instruments without requiring registration with the Securities and Exchange Board of India. The same facility has now been extended to all Persons Resident Outside India (PROIs) as well. The central bank also unveiled a scheme under which it will bear the full hedging cost on fresh Foreign Currency Non-Resident [FCNR(B)] deposits with maturities of three to five years mobilised up to September 30. Further, the RBI restored the time limit for the realisation of export proceeds to nine months, so as to supporting exporters and improve foreign exchange inflows. The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) on Friday sprung no surprises, keeping the repo rate unchanged at 5.25%, even as it acknowledged that global economic conditions had deteriorated amid the continuing conflict in West Asia. The central bank lowered its growth forecast for FY27 to 6.6% from 6.9% and raised its inflation projection to 5.1% from 4.6%, citing rising energy prices, supply-chain disruptions and heightened geopolitical uncertainty . Announcing the Monetary Policy Committee’s (MPC) decision, RBI Governor Sanjay Malhotra said the global environment had worsened since the previous policy review, with the ongoing conflict exerting pressure on commodity prices and disrupting supply chains. The RBI now expects India’s GDP growth to moderate to 6.6% during the current financial year - down from 7.7% in FY26 - reflecting the impact of higher input costs and weaker global demand. “The rise in prices of energy and other inputs, coupled with supply disruptions, is likely to weigh on economic activity the governor said, adding that prolonged geopolitical ,” uncertainty could delay supply-chain normalisation and increase costs for businesses. Despite the downward revision, the RBI maintained that the domestic economy remains resilient. Private consumption continues to be supported by discretionary spending, investment activity has retained momentum, and both manufacturing and services sectors continue to expand. Merchandise exports recorded robust growth in April despite elevated freight and insurance costs, while services exports remained strong. The central bank, however, cautioned that downside risks to growth remain significant due to volatile commodity prices, financial market uncertainty, supplychain disruptions and weather-related factors. At the same time, the RBI raised its inflation forecast for FY27 to 5.1% from 4.6%, reflecting the sharp increase in global crude oil and other commodity prices. Malhotra noted that international crude oil prices have averaged around $110 per barrel in recent months, significantly higher than the $85 per barrel assumption used in the previous policy review. The RBI has now revised that assumption to $95 per barrel. Despite mounting inflation concerns, Malhotra refrained from offering any forward guidance on interest rates. He said every MPC meeting evaluates all available options—including a rate hike, a pause, or a rate cut—before arriving at a decision. Govt doubles rice milling charges E x p r e s s Ne w s Se r v i c e @ Bhubaneswar Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi on Friday approved a steep hike in rice milling charges to ensure smooth procurement of paddy from farmers across the state. The milling charge for parboiled rice was doubled from `20 per quintal to `40 per quintal. Similarly, the milling charge for raw rice was increased from `10 per quintal to `20 per quintal. The chief minister said the hike will resolve problems of millers, enable smooth paddy procurement from farmers and strengthen the state’s food security system. Officials said in the recent years, labour wages and fuel prices along with costs of other milling inputs have gone up significantly Despite this, milling . rates in the state had remained unchanged. Other states have much higher milling rates compared to Odisha. The revision will resolve the long-pending demands from rice millers as the old rates were unviable due to rising operational costs. The revised rates will be implemented with immediate effect amid the ongoing procurement season, they said. Annamalai quits BJP, joins 2031 TN poll race E x p r e s s Ne w s Se r v i c e @ Chennai The BJP on Friday announced the resignation of former Tamil Nadu BJP president K Annamalai — well-known for his aggressive style and fierce antiDravidian politics — from its primary membership. The ex-IPS officer also converted ‘We The Leaders’, a youth-based volunteer outfit launched by him in 2020, into a political movement and declared his intention to fight the 2031 Assembly polls in the state. Annamalai also launched the ‘APJ Abdul Kalam Centre for Ethics and Politics’ in Coimbatore with the motto “let us be the change to bring change” to train aspiring leaders for public life and electoral politics. His 25-minute online announcement on Friday afternoon gained the attention of more than 55 lakh people across multiple social media platforms. Positioning his movement as a platform to groom a new generation of political leaders, Annamalai said it would eventually evolve into a full-fledged political party after building and training a cadre base. He also said that those trained at the new centre will be fielded in the next local body elections. The movement, he added, would embrace the “politics of the soil” and bring people from all walks of life, particularly technocrats, into politics. It would be rooted in Tamil identity with a national outlook, he said. Projecting himself as a common man’s politician, Annamalai, in an apparent reference to Vijay-led TVK, said TN must move away from cult politics. “We should ensure honest, efficient and capable leadership from the ward level upwards to deliver clean politics and governance.” Annamalai also took aim at dynastic politics, and advocated term limits for elected representatives, arguing that no individual should remain a permanent MLA, MP or a minister. Referring to former president APJ Abdul Kalam as his guiding influence, Annamalai said Kalam embodied the idea of being “a proud Tamil with a national identity”.  We should ensure honest, efficient and capable leadership from the ward level upwards to deliver clean politics and governance. No one should remain a permanent MLA, MP or a minister K Annamalai ‘Nat’l parties didn’t speak TN language’ Annamalai, in his resignation letter to BJP president Nitin Nabin, had pointed out that national parties never spoke the language of TN people which limited their ability to connect with them. In the June 2 letter, Annamalai said the views of the BJP’s leadership do not align with the need for a “growth-oriented and culturally-rooted politics” in Tamil Nadu putin pitches stealth jet to India Russian President offered the fifth-generation stealth aircraft Sukhoi Su-57 to India, and said the stateof-art combat jet could be jointly manufactured, boosting bilateral strategic relations | P9 E x p r e s s Re a d First trouble: K’taka minister quits in a huff Bengaluru: In a major embarrassment for the new Congress government, Water Resources Minister Ramalinga Reddy resigned Friday, less than 24 hours after portfolios were allocated, upset at not receiving the Bengaluru Development portfolio he says he was twice promised | P5