hubballi l Wednesday l July 08, 2026 l `9.00 l PAGES 16 l city EDITION Govt to ask refiners to cut lpg production to pre-war levels With the West Asia situation stabilising, the Centre is likely to direct oil companies to scale back domestic LPG production to pre-crisis levels move follows easing of supply pressures ceasefire helps restore lpg imports The move comes after supply concerns triggered by the conflict involving Iran, Israel and the US began to ease. According to sources, Indian refineries have started reducing domestic LPG production to 40,000 metric tonnes per day. During the peak of the crisis, both public and private refiners increased output to a record 54,000 metric tonnes per day ■ ■ Strait of Hormuz handles nearly 40% of India’s crude oil imports, 60% of its LNG imports and about 90% of its LPG imports LPG was the worst-hit fuel as India imports nearly 60% of its domestic requirement. With a ceasefire in place, shipping through the strategic waterway has resumed, restoring normal LPG imports | P12 33 crore households across the country use Domestic LPG 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 India, Indonesia expand strategic partnership Screengrabs from a CCTV footage showing people running for their lives as the landslide strikes Wayanad, Kerala | Express Landslip at Wayanad tunnel road site kills 3 Le s ly J o s e p h @ Meppadi a landslip at the twin-tunnel road project near Kalladi Meenakshi Bridge in Wayanad on Tuesday claimed three lives, left at least seven persons missing, and ignited a political and legal storm. While heavy monsoon rains triggered the initial slope instability, residents and local representatives termed it a “man-made disaster”, blaming corporate negligence and a complete failure of regulatory oversight. The victims have been iden- tified as Chandra Ban, an operator from Madhya Pradesh; Bikash Kumar, a civil foreman from Bihar; and Anmol, a worker from Jharkhand. The collapse occur red around 11 am, sending a massive torrent of liquefied mud, rocks and construction debris crashing onto the Meppadi– Chooralmala road. The deluge buried the Meenakshi Bridge, engulfed a private bus and flattened a roadside eatery where workers had gathered. Nine labourers were pulled from the sludge and rushed to hospital. Two of them are in critical condition. At the heart of the growing outrage is the dumping of tens of thousands of tonnes of excavated earth by the tunnel project’s contractor, Dilip Buildcon, operating under the supervision of the Konkan Railway Corporation. “I had a miraculous escape. I saw the massive soil sliding down and ran for my life,” said local resident Hamsa Manthikkara. “The company had piled up the excavated soil at the site. Though concrete retaining Jakarta to procure two batteries of BrahMos cruise missile system, Astra air-to-air missile A bus stuck in debris after falling into a rivulet near the Meppadi tunnel project site at Kalladi in Wayanad, where the massive landslide struck | Vincent Pulickal walls were built around the heaps, we had warned they were inadequate,” he said. Chief Minister V D Satheesan said a string of official warnings issued more than a fortnight before the landslip went unheeded. “On June 20, the district collector directed the contractor to remove the excavated soil. The disaster management authority issued a similar order, and the PWD minister also instructed the contractor to clear the soil. None of these directives was complied with,” the CM said. The Konkan Railway Corporation has ordered an inquiry but maintained that incessant rain triggered the collapse. Dilip Buildcon said the project complied with all engineering, safety and environmental norms, and protocols. Local leaders said the suspension of drilling work due to rains averted a bigger tragedy as more than 100 workers , were off the site. A 60-member team of NDRF, along with Fire Force personnel, is undertaking a block-by-block clearance of the mud. P7 Cristiano Ronaldo and Portugal’s WC quest ends at the hands of Spain while Belgium make lightwork of US. A look at what transpired in Monday’s games... HC upholds death for 38 in Ahmedabad serial blasts case Spain too good for Portugal @ Ahmedabad Ronaldo’s WC dream over as Spain, Belgium advance Spain hardly gave Portugal a sniff before scoring the game’s solitary goal in the stoppage time. Ronaldo, in his last World Cup, was hardly involved as the match appeared to pass him by without the 41-year-old influencing it in any way La Roja vs France in semis? If results hold, then the two European superpowers will face each other for a place in the final. But it won’t be straightforward for them as France face Morocco and Spain have to play Belgium in the last eight stages | P15 Belgium blow away US After a controversy over Folarin Balogun’s suspension of the red card, the 2018 semifinalists blew the co-hosts away 4-1 in a supreme show of strength. After the game, they also trolled FIFA for their role in the controversy. “Overturn this,” they posted on their socials express read Trust: Will overhaul Ram temple admin Lucknow: The Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Teerth Kshetra Trust is set to appoint a CEO to spruce up administrative oversight of Ram temple in Ayodhya. Trust Treasurer Govind Dev Giri Maharaj said absence of supervision contributed to the lapses | P10 Siya, Chetan had already married before murder Mumbai: In a twist in the Lohagad Fort murder case, chat history between accused Siya Goyal and her boyfriend Chetan Chaudhary revealed that they secretly married before Siya’s engagement to developer Ketan Agarwal. The marriage took place nearly four months prior to Ketan’s death | P10 Meta blog on child abuse after govt slaps notice New Delhi: Meta on Tuesday published a detailed blog outlining measures it has taken to combat child sexual abuse material across its apps, after the government slapped a notice on it over reports of Instagram ads promoting such content. stake sale by centre expedited The government will raise `2,000 crore following its 5% minority stake sale in Cochin Shipyard. It’s the latest disinvestment process for the current financial year | P13 DILIP SI N G H KSHATRIYA THE Gujarat High Court on Tuesday upheld the Ahmedabad Sessions Court’s ruling in the 2008 serial bomb blasts case, confirming the death sentence for 38 members of the banned Indian Mujahideen and life imprisonment for 11 others. A division bench of Justices A Y Kogje and Samir Dave rejected the appeals filed by the convicts against the capital punishment awarded by the lower court in February 2022. The HC directed the Gujarat government to pay `10 lakh to the family of every deceased victim, `5 lakh to each seriously injured survivor, and `1 lakh to those who suffered minor injuries. The compensation must be paid before March 31, 2027. The verdict comes 18 years after 21 coordinated blasts at 20 locations ripped through Ahmedabad on July 26, 2008, killing 56 and injuring more than 200 people. The case remains one of India’s biggest criminal prosecutions. Out of 78 accused who faced trial, the trial court convicted 49 persons, acquitted 29, sentenced 38 to death, and awarded life imprisonment till natural death to 11 convicts. The probe into the serial blasts was unprecedented in scale. Police registered 35 FIRs, filed 548 charge sheets, produced around 6,000 documentary and material exhibits, and examined 1,163 witnesses. The Sessions Court’s judgment ran into nearly 7,000 pages, while the complete paper book exceeded 7.88 lakh pages, making it one of the larg est criminal case records in India. Lawyers representing the accused said they would challenge the HC’s decision in the Supreme Court after reviewing the full judgment. J aya n t h J a c o b @ New Delhi India and Indonesia on Tuesday significantly expanded their strategic partnership, with Jakarta agreeing to procure two batteries of India’s BrahMos supersonic cruise missile system in a deal worth about $200 million, alongside Astra air-to-air missile systems, as the two countries unveiled an ambitious roadmap covering defence, maritime security, critical minerals, technology digital connectivity and , resilient supply chains. The agreements were announced after talks between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto at the Merdeka Palace in Jakarta during the first leg of Modi’s three-nation Indo-Pacific tour, which will also take him to Australia and New Zealand. The defence component marks another milestone in India’s push to become a major exporter of indigenous military hardware. A BrahMos battery typically comprises four launchers and 12 ready-to-fire missiles, along with commandand-control systems, support equipment and specialised vehicles, though configurations vary depending on whether the system is deployed for land attack or coastal defence. Sources said Indonesia has also decided to procure India’s Astra beyond-visual-range airto-air missiles following their operational performance during Operation Sindoor. The agreements also envisage wider collaboration in defence manufacturing and technology transfers, reflecting a shift from a buyerseller relationship towards long- 3 held after viral road rage assault on car driver E x p r e s s N e w s Se r v i c e @ Mysuru Five persons were booked and three arrested after a brutal road rage assault on a driver in front of his wife and family near the Maddur stretch on Mysuru-Bengaluru Expressway in Mandya district. The incident came to light after dashcam footage of the attack went viral on social media, prompting swift police action. The Maddur police arrested three of the accused, seized two vehicles allegedly used in the assault and launched a search for the remaining two suspects. According to a complaint filed by M Sagar Kumar (37), the victim, the violence stemmed from a mi- A video grab of the accused assaulting a car driver on the Mysuru-Bengaluru Expressway nor collision between two cars near the Srirangapatna toll plaza. Though the dispute initially appeared to have been resolved, the accused allegedly tailed the complainant’s vehicle and intercepted it near Madduramma Temple on the Expressway . T h e i n c i d e n t o c c u r re d around 10 pm on Sunday within the jurisdiction of the Maddur police station on the Expressway . Sagar stated in his complaint that he was returning with his family after attending the funeral of his father’s nephew. He was travelling in his car when the other vehicle allegedly came in contact with his car while overtaking. The occupants of the other vehicle, along with another car chased them, blocked their path and forced them to stop. The accused allegedly abused Sagar in filthy language, assaulted him, threatened his family and damaged his vehicle. The viral dashcam footage, recorded by another passing car, captures several men surrounding the victim’s blue car before dragging him out of the driver’s seat. CONTINUED ON: P7 J’khand bank’s KYC delay kills 75-yr-old K’taka AIB policy boosts beer sales by 19.5% in Q1 MUK E SH RA N J A N @ Ranchi IN a tragic incident that has s p a rk e d o u t r a g e a c r o s s Jharkhand, a 75-year-old ailing man died after being repeatedly denied access to his own pension money due to pending KYC formalities at a rural bank. Ratan Lakra, a resident of Bargarh village in Garhwa district, passed away on Monday after struggling for months to withdraw funds from his account at the Bargarh branch of Jharkhand Gramin Bank. The money, primarily his govern- ment pension, was needed for urgent medical treatment. His family maintained Lakra had been making repeated trips to the bank for three months at the manager’s insistence to complete the KYC process. Even after he was brought to the branch in an auto-rickshaw, officials allegedly turned them away. His daughter-in-law, Phoolmani Lakra, said that on one occasion, the manager ordered a peon to drag them out. “My father-in-law was ill and could not get the required treatment because the bank didn’t give him his own money she said. ,” Heartbroken family members and villagers staged a protest by placing Lakra’s body at the rural bank’s entrance, refusing to cremate him until action was taken. Chief Minister Hemant Soren promptly ordered an investigation. In a post on X, he directed the Garhwa Deputy Commissioner to “promptly investigate the matter, take strict action, and inform.” DC Pashupati Nath Mishra directed the Sub-Divisional Magistrate to conduct a detailed probe, and warned of action against those found guilty . B a l a C h a u h a n @Bengaluru The state government’s newly introduced Alcohol In Beverage (AIB) taxation policy is yielding high revenue results for the excise department, while also changing drinking patterns; with people switching from higher alcohol content liquor to milder ones. The AIB policy implemented on May 11 taxes beverages with liquor on the content of alcohol and has led to drastic price reduction in premium beer brands with alcohol content less than 5% volume/volume. The revision on the maximum retail price (MRP) on some premium Indian Made Liquor (IML) brands has also led to an increase in the sale of some premium Scotch whiskeys. According to official statistics, beer sales have ticked up excise revenue in the state by Rs 312.67 crore in the first quarter (April to June) logging in a growth of 19.52% in comparison to last year for the corresponding period.  P7 Pic: PTI Prime Minister Narendra Modi being conferred Indonesia’s highest civilian honour by President Prabowo Subianto term industrial ties. Addressing a joint media interaction, Modi described the outcomes as a golden chapter in bilateral ties. “The growing trust between our two countries has strengthened cooperation in defence, security and the maritime domain,” he said. The two leaders also reaffirmed their commitment to a free, open and rules-based IndoPacific. President Prabowo echoed the sentiment. A major economic outcome was an agreement to deepen cooperation in critical minerals, with India set to invest in Indonesia’s steel, nickel and rare earth magnet manufacturing ecosystems, as New Delhi seeks to diversify strategic mineral supply chains. The two countries also agreed to jointly develop the strategically located Sabang Port near the Strait of Malacca and expand cooperation in the blue economy and maritime infrastructure. Modi announced that IIM Bangalore would establish a campus in Indonesia, while UPI will be integrated with Indonesia’s payment system to facilitate crossborder transactions.  P12 Housing fraud CBI charges builders, banks, finance firms E x p r e s s N e w s Se r v i c e @ Bengaluru In another significant development in the ongoing investigation into large-scale cheating of homebuyers, the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) has filed chargesheets against Ithaca Estate Pvt Ltd, its director, officials of HDFC Bank, ICICI Bank, Indiabulls Housing Finance, LGCL Urban Homes (India) LLP and its director in connection with alleged fraudulent activities in a housing project in Bengaluru. The chargesheets were filed in the CBI court in the city . “Investigation has revealed that the accused builder company and its directors, in conspiracy with bank officials and other private persons, allegedly induced homebuyers/investors through false assurances and fraudulent representations and obtained financial benefits by resorting to illegal and deceptive means,” the CBI stated in an official release on Tuesday . “The chargesheet was filed before the competent court under relevant provisions of the IPC pertaining to criminal conspiracy, abuse of official position, cheating and criminal breach of trust along with provisions under the Prevention of Corruption Act (PCA),” added the anti-corruption agency .