BHUBANESWAR l friday l june 26, 2026 l `9.00 l PAGES 12 l late city EDITION Amazon CEO meets Modi; set to invest $13 bn more in cloud, aI Amazon will invest an additional $13 billion in India, taking its planned capital commitment to $48 billion between 2026 and 2030 india an important market for amazon Eyes $80 billion in e-commerce exports Chief Executive Officer Andy Jassy said on Thursday after meeting Prime Minister Narendra Modi that Amazon India’s business is seeing strong momentum, driven by robust customer demand across e-commerce and Amazon Web Services (AWS), its cloud-computing division. Jassy described India as one of their most important growth markets globally ■ ■ Amazon has invested heavily in India over the past decade, building out logistics networks, technology infrastructure and digital services as it seeks to deepen its presence in the country By 2030, Amazon plans to support 3.8 million jobs, enable $80 billion in e-commerce exports and bring AI’s benefits to 15 million businesses 100 last-mile delivery stations to be launched by amazon this year 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 Passport proof: Govt, Oppn spar Can be issued to non-citizens as well under certain situations, says govt in its pushback E x p r e s s N e w s Se r v i c e @ New Delhi The Centre on Thursday sought to defuse the controversy over whether an Indian passport can be treated as proof of citizenship, asserting that the position being cited in recent debates is neither new nor a policy shift. Government sources said there was no change in stance and rejected suggestions that the clarification issued by the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) marked a fresh interpretation of law. “It was not decided yesterday that a passport is not proof of citizenship. It was not even decided in the last 12 years. A passport has never been considered conclusive proof of citizenship,” a government source said. The clarification came after political criticism and an online debate over whether the government was diluting the evidentiary value of one of the country’s most trusted documents. In a post on X, Congress leader K C Venugopal said the government excels in creating panic and helplessness among ordinary citizens. “By declaring that even a Passport doesn’t certify one’s citizenship, they are laying the groundwork to arbitrarily deny citizenship rights to Indians who they disagree with,” he wrote. Echoing the concern, Rajya Sabha MP Kapil Sibal sought to know which document qualifies for the proof of citizenship. “A passport is a travel document, and not a document of citizenship. Which document then is proof of citizenship? BLO can doubt my citizenship. Deprive me of my vote. Result, BJP wins the election. Over to the Supreme Court!,” wrote Sibal on X. However, officials pointed to the legal framework governing issuance of passports. “The Passports Act, 1967 clearly provides that passports may be issued to non-citizens under certain circumstances,” a source said. The government further cited judicial precedents to back its position. “Judgments of the Bombay High Court since 2013 have also made it clear that a passport, by itself, is not proof of citizenship,” the source said. express read 50-yr-old businessman shot dead in Balasore Balasore : In a shocking incident, a 50-year-old businessman was shot dead by two unidentified assailants in Balasore’s Arad Bazaar area on Thursday afternoon. The deceased was identified as Sheikh Hamid who owned a car accessories showroom in Remuna. Police said the killers fired eight rounds at Hamid as he stepped out of his car. The miscreants, wearing helmets and masks fled on a bike | P4 Today's matches Group I (12.30 AM): Norway vs France; Senegal vs Iraq Group H (5.30 AM): Cape Verde vs Saudi Arabia, Uruguay vs Spain Group G (8.30 AM): NZ vs Belgium; Egypt vs Iran Live on United8 Sports & ZEE5 (*IST Saturday) VISA No change in position Govt sources said the interpretation was being misread, adding the position has remained unchanged for decades. “A passport is issued after due verification, but it is not, in law, a conclusive determination of citizenship,” a source said Pricey passport A fresh passport or its reissue for applicants aged 18 years and above will cost `2,500 under the normal category, up from `1,500. Corresponding Tatkal fee, inclusive of the normal fee is `5,000 | P7 CO of Rashtriya Rifles, other ranks booked for bashing cops f aya z w a n i @ Srinagar JAMMU and Kashmir police on Thursday booked 40 army men from 17 Rashtriya Rifles, including its Commanding Officer, a Major and a Naib Subedar for allegedly “assaulting police officers and damaging public property” in a police station in the mountainous Kishtwar district of Jammu and ‘Murderous Kashmir. The FIR names Com- intention’ manding Officer Colonel N SHO Inspector Amrit Arun Gandhi, Major Vikas Kotach of Atholi Shar ma, Naib Subedar police station, where Shankar Gurkhe, Sepoys the soldier’s car was Raj Kumar, Rahul Kumar, taken after Anoop Singh and Omkar confiscating it, said Ingale, and other unidenti- the “intention of RR fied Army personnel of 17 soldiers was to kill RR. Sources said the trou- police personnel” ble was caused after DC Kishtwar Pankaj Sharma’s Matter being convoy while passing probed: Army through a road for a public Jammu-based Army outreach programme en- PRO Lt Col Suneel countered a private car Bartwal said the driven by a soldier of RR. matter is being When the DC’s escort asked probed. “Appropriate the soldier, who was not in action will be taken uniform, to stop his vehicle based on the outcome and let the convoy pass, an of investigation” argument took place. Subsequently, police impounded the car and towed it to the Atholi police station. The FIR states that a group of about 30 to 40 army men from 17 RR Camp Kijaiyee led by Major Vikas Sharma and Naib Subedar Shankar Gurkhe under the command of Commanding Officer N Arun Gandhi entered the police station by scaling the main gate and boundary walls and launched a “pre-planned attack”. “The army men armed with lathis, iron rods and weapons attacked policemen at the station. “Government property, main gate of the police station were damaged by the army men.” Sujata joins BJD; Naveen says he will lead party in 2029 polls E x p r e s s N e w s Se r v i c e @ Bhubaneswar Putting an end to the long-standing speculation over her entry into active politics, former IAS officer Sujata Rout Karthikeyan, wife of Naveen Patnaik’s trusted aide and former bureaucrat VK Pandian, formally joined the BJD on Thursday . She was inducted into the party in a grand ceremony at Sankha Bhawan in presence Naveen, senior leaders, MPs, MLAs and workers from all districts of the state. Addressing a joint press conference with Sujata after her induction, the BJD chief said she has joined as an ordinary member of the party “I would . like to welcome Sujata Rout to the BJD. She will be joining the party as a simple member. She has been an IAS officer and held several important positions, including her last assignment where she looked after many women of our state. I am sure, as time passes, she will get used to her new position. She will learn to lead people, particularly women,” he said. Naveen also dismissed all talks about BJD president Naveen Patnaik speaks to media after ex-IAS officer Sujata Rout Karthikeyan joins the party in Bhubaneswar | DEBADATTA MALLICK a succession plan behind her joining the BJD. “I would like to repeat again for the information of the media and all other people that I will be leading BJD in the upcoming elections. I want to make this very clear,” he said. Stating that she had held several important positions during her career as an IAS officer, including her last assignment relating to women’s welfare, the former chief minister said she would adapt to her new role in Continued on P5 politics.  25-yr-old Belpahar theatre actor gets NSD call, first Odisha woman to achieve feat M AYA N K B H U SA N PA N I @ Jharsuguda Over a decade ago, Sonia Behera was among the audience at a school function in Belpahar, captivated by a stage performance she had never imagined would one day shape her life as the fascination turned into an historic achievement. On Thursday the , 25-year-old became the first woman from Odisha to secure admission to the prestigious three-year Diploma in Dramatics programme at the National School of Drama (NSD), New Delhi. Securing 80.05 percentile after Venezuela quake: 185 dead, 24,000 missing clearing a multi-stage selecI had never imagined that tion process, Sonia secured I would one day make it to the eighth rank in All India NSD. It still feels unreal,” merit list of NSD. The seshe said. The eldest among five lection process included siblings, Sonia’s interest in preliminary screening, thetheatre was sparked in 2015 atre workshops, practical after she watched Lal Paen exercises and personal inbeing staged during a terviews held at the NSD school programme by the campus in New Delhi beSonia Behera Mirror Theatre Group in tween June 14 and 19. Jharsuguda. She was not Speaking to TNIE, Sonia said the achievement was beyond part of the troupe then, but the perwhat she had imagined when she formance left a lasting impression first stepped into theatre. “I feel very and motivated her to join the group Continued on P5 proud. When I started doing theatre, later that year.  A heavily damaged apartment building following an earthquake in Catia La Mar, La Guaira state, about 30 km northwest of Venezuela capital Caracas | AFP A g en c i e s @ Caracas At least 185 people were killed and over 1,000 injured after two powerful earthquakes ripped through Venezuela in the wee hours on Thursday The quakes, with . magnitudes of 7.2 and 7.5, hit a minute apart on Wednesday around 6 pm local time (Thursday 3.30 am IST). The second tremor was the strongest to hit Venezuela since 1900. “At the moment, the figure we have registered is 185 deaths, 1,520 injured,” Acting President Delcy Rodriguez was quoted as saying by El Nacional newspaper, adding that there were as many as 30 aftershocks. A website set up by leaders from the country’s opposition parties to track the missing people showed more than 24,000 people as unaccounted for, a Reuters report said. Local media said frantic rescue efforts were on in the state of La Guaira, near capital Caracas and home to the city’s airport. Visuals showed panic all around as ceilings came down in the airport and rubble from destroyed buildings along the seafront. “Dozens of buildings have collapsed, and we are currently carrying out very intense rescue efforts to save as many lives as God allows us to save,” Rodriguez said on state television. According to the US Geological Survey’s predictive modelling to estimate the death toll, the total casualties could run into thousands, with a substantial probability of exceeding P9 10,000 fatalities.  FIR against 8 in Ram temple scam, 2 held N A M I TA B A J PAI @ Lucknow TWO days after the SIT submitted its preliminary probe report on alleged swindling of Ram temple donation funds and valuables, an FIR was lodged against eight persons on Thursday . The FIR named key a ccused Ramshankar Yadav alias Tinnu, Lavkush Mishra, Anukalp Mishra, Avinash Shukla, Mani s h Ya d av, R a m a s h a n k a r Mishra, Subhash Chandra Srivastava, and Karunesh Pandey. The charges include theft, criminal breach of trust, cheating and criminal conspiracy . The names of temple Trust general secretary Champat Rai, Trust member Anil Mishra, and temple construction in-charge Gopal Rao do not figure in the FIR, lodged by Ayodhya police based on a complaint by Krishna Mohan, a member of Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Teerth Kshetra Trust. Two of the accused in the FIR—Anukalp and Lavkush, who were involved in counting the cash and valuables received as donations—have been reportedly arrested after money was recovered from them, while the others are being questioned. Officials indicated that more arrests would be made.