vijayawada l tuesday l august 11, 2026 l `9.00 l PAGES 14 l late city EDITION new u.s. visa rules: firms to pay a bomb for extending l-1s, h1bs Large employers now have to pay a fee of $4,000 for H-1B and $4,500 for L-1 applications for extension of visas of their employees takes effect from september 9 rocky road ahead for indian it firms Earlier, these fees were applicable only for initial H-1B and L-1 petitions or if the applicants changed jobs. The 9-11 Response and Biometric Entry-Exit Fee, applicable to employers with 50 or more employees in the US if more than 50 per cent are in H-1B or L-1 nonimmigrant status, takes effect from September 9, as per the Department of Homeland Security ■ ■ Organisations filing routine extension requests for same employee will now face additional filing costs. Amended petitions not needing an extension of status are exempt from the expanded fee For an IT services firm managing several thousand onshore Indian engineers on H-1B or L-1 status, the new rule hands a huge expense $157.3 mn is the annual revenue that the fee hike will generate for the u.s. 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 Currency-like security for land: Naidu S Guru Srikanth @ Kaikaluru (Eluru district) Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu on Monday said the government was incorporating currency note-like security features into Pattadar Passbooks (land documents). Addressing a public meeting at Kalidindi in Eluru district as part of the ‘Mee Bhumi– Mee Hakku’ (Your Land, Your Right) programme, the CM said tamper-proof blockchain technology was being incorporated into the passbooks to guarantee total protection for Batons, tear gas mark march of Ranchi students AT LEAST four students and one policemen were injured during a clash near the Jharkhand Assembly on Monday, when police used water cannons, tear gas and batons to stop students protesting against alleged irregularities in recruitment examinations, officials said. The clash took place after the protesters breached multiple barricades near the Vidhan Sabha. This is for the first time in the history of Jharkhand that protesting students reached so close to the state assembly . Though the administration had erected multiple barricades and deployed a large police contingent to stop the protesters from reaching the Assembly, the students waded through the barriers. They dismantled seven to eight barricades near Jagannath Temple before resuming their march. Ranchi Rural SP Gaurav Goswami said police had to use batons after some protesters at- tempted to reach the final barricading, where prohibitory orders under Section 163 were already in force. The students are adamant on their demands of cancellation of the 14th Jharkhand Public Service Commission (JPSC) (Preliminary) Group 1 examination and a CBI inquiry into the Jharkhand Staff Selection Commission Combined Graduate Level (JSSC CGL) examination. Student leader Devendra Nath Mahto, who has been on a hunger strike for nine days, reached the protest site in an ambulance and participated in the march on a stretcher. “The reverse of the word ‘yuva’ (youth) is ‘vayu’ (air), and no one can stop the air,” Mahto said. “The government is trying to suppress our voice by using water cannons and tear gas shells. This is reprehensible,” Mahto said. Congress leader Rahul Gandhi condemned the use of force against students protesting in Jharkhand and called on the state government, of which Exclusive for CBI, NIA cases Set up 2 spl courts for Manipur violence: SC UDAYA N KISHOR E @ New Delhi THE Supreme Court on Monday asked authorities concerned to consider setting up two trial courts to exclusively deal with cases arising out of the 2023 Manipur violence. A bench of Chief Justice Surya Kant and justices Joymalya Bagchi and V Mohana said that one court will be for CBI cases, while another will try cases lodged by NIA. “Our concern is whether these courts are dealing exclusively with CBI and NIA cases arising out of the Manipur violence, or whether they are also dealing with other cases,” the bench said. It directed the state and Central security agencies to ensure that probe agencies carry out their investigations without interruption. “With respect to law and order, the CBI and NIA shall be facilitated so that they are able to carry out investigation uninterruptedly said CJI Surya Kant. Before this or,” der, cases of the 2023 Manipur violence were being heard in the SC, the HC bench at Gauhati and local courts in the state. The bench took note of Centre’s submission that the CBI filed final reports in 27 of 31 Manipur violence cases, while NIA filed chargesheets in 15 of 30 cases. The Supreme Court took suo motu cognisance of the issue after a video of two women being paraded without clothes amid the violence went viral. Meeting with UNC Manipur CM Yumnam Khemchand Singh on Monday reviewed security situation along the National Highways, even as a state government delegation held a meeting with the United Naga Council (UNC) to cajole it to lift “economic blockade” for resumption of bus services E x p r e s s Re a d CM to launch Seed Road, MLA quarters on Aug 13 Vijayawada: CM N Chandrababu Naidu will inaugurate Amaravati’s 21.77-km Seed Access Road and hand over MLA/MLC Housing Towers on August 13. The project features nine high-rise towers with 216 units and modern amenities. The Seed Road, a 60-metre-wide spine, connects N1-N17 roads and links the capital with NH-16 had already been distributed to farmers and property owners, while a comprehensive land resurvey across 9,365 villages will be completed over the next seven months to enable the distribution of another 68.64 lakh passbooks. The entire State-wide resurvey exercise and passbook issuance programme is targeted for full completion by 2027. The CM asserted that the Revenue Records Reforms 2026 were introduced with the explicit objective of cleansing and Parliament deadlock Shah ready to debate students’ stir; Cong adds temple theft to demand Police use water cannons on agitators, CM appeals to resolve issue with dialogue M u k e s h r a n j a n @ Ranchi landowners across the State. “We are implementing currency note-like security features in Pattadar Passbooks. Through blockchain technology we have extended tamper, proof security to these assets,” Naidu said, adding that QR codes, embedded digital safeguards, and the official state emblem had also been incorporated to prevent any unauthorised alterations or fraudulent claims. According to Naidu, more than 32.22 lakh Pattadar Passbooks Student leader Devendra Nath Mahto (above) during the march towards the Jharkhand assembly; and police personnel deploy water cannons (top) to disperse student protesters | PTI Deepti Gaur Mukerjee new higher edu secy Senior bureaucrat Deepti Gaur Mukerjee was on Monday appointed the new Higher Education Secretary. She succeeds Vineet Joshi, who was appointed last month as the Secretary in the Ministry of Panchayati Raj | P7 Congress is a part, to hear the protesters out and resolve their issues immediately . Meanwhile, the state CID on Monday arrested former JPSC Chairman L Khiangte in connection with alleged irregularities in 14th Combined Civil Services Examination. Chief Minister Hemant Soren in a late night post on X said, “I assure you (protesters) that action will be taken on your demands with utmost seriousness and sensitivity... let us resolve this issue together through dialogue.” PR E E THA N AIR @ New Delhi THE Parliament stand-off continued on Monday even after the government offered a debate and Home Minister Amit Shah’s reply on the student protests and police action, with the Congress insisting that Prime Minister Narendra Modi reply to a discussion on the donation theft at the Ayodhya Ram temple. While Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi demanded that Shah disclose who authorised the use of pellet guns against the protesters, Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju hit back saying Shah will give a proper reply but the Opposition should not try to run away from the discussion by disrupting House proceedings. Speaking to reporters after the Business Advisory Committee meeting, Rijiju said the government is ready for a full-fledged discussion in the Lok Sabha on the student protests and police action across the country and Shah will reply to the debate, provided the Opposition promises to listen peacefully . Congress is shifting goalposts: Nadda Responding to Rahul Gandhi’s charges, Union Health Minister JP Nadda said the Congress is repeatedly shifting goalposts to disrupt Parliament. He said the Opposition party’s demand moved from a debate on NEET paper leak, a statement from Home Minister Amit Shah on the student protests, and then to the Ram temple trust issue Shah has not been seen in the House in the ongoing session even though he has been regularly coming to Parliament House complex. On a question whether the issue of alleged theft of donation will also be discussed, he said the Uttar Pradesh government’s probe through a special investigation team and several other steps are going on. Responding to the government’s offer that Shah will speak in Parliament, Rahul said the question was never about whether Shah can give a speech in Parliament on ‘general issues’. “The question was that Home Minister Shah has to make it clear who authorised the shooting of our children in Delhi. He is the home minister; pellet guns were fired,” Rahul said, asking Shah to come clean on whether he gave the firing orders or not. Talking to the media alongside party chief Mallikarjun Kharge, Rahul said if Shah ordered it, he is culpable; if he didn’t know, he is incompetent, adding Shah “should go” either way . Rahul added that Modi must apologise for the police action during the protests. The third issue, he said, is the Ayodhya donation theft. Kharge said the Opposition wanted a discussion on these issues but the government did not say anything for 15 days, which shows it did not want a discussion. Govt willing to consider JPC route for FCRA bill PR E E THA N AIR @ New Delhi Facing mounting opposition from political parties, church leaders and civil society organisations, the government may consider referring the contentious Foreign Contribution (Regulation) Amendment Bill, 2026, to a Joint Parliamentary Committee for detailed scrutiny before taking it up in Parliament, sources said. Neither the FCRA Bill nor the proposed Delimitation Bill figured in Monday’s Business Advisory Committee (BAC) meeting despite speculation that the government could DMK calls for withdrawal of the bill The bill has drawn strong pushback from DMK, whose support is crucial for the government for the Delimitation Bill. A delegation led by DMK MP P Wilson met Home Minister Amit Shah and urged him to withdraw the bill and repeal Section 15 of the existing law take up the legislation in the remaining days of the Monsoon Session. This newspaper reported on Saturday that the government had not listed the two bills for the BAC meeting on Monday . Opposition sources told this paper that the government has proposed referring the bill to a JPC but they will insist that the legislation be withdrawn altogether. On Saturday NCP (SP) work, ing president Supriya Sule said foreign funding can’t always be viewed with suspicion, and urged the Centre to withdraw the bill or refer it to a JPC. She said her party opposes it in its present form. A delegation of eight NCP (SP) MPs met Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday, but it was not clear whether they raised the FCRA issue. The FCRA Amendment Bill, 2026, was introduced in the Lok Sabha on March 25 this year; however, it was put on hold after strong pushback from various stakeholders. On Sunday, Mizoram Chief Minister Lalduhoma and leading Christian organisations urged the Centre to refer the bill to a JPC. The Congress and other opposition parties said they will strongly oppose the bill if the government takes it up in Parliament. streamlining land registries severely damaged during YSRCP rule from 2019 to 2024. “During the previous YSRCP tenure, revenue records were systematically disrupted, and properties belonging to innocent citizens and political opponents were arbitrarily locked under Section 22A to create artificial disputes,” Naidu stated, noting that former servicemen who fought in World War II had also seen their allotted lands entangled in 22A restrictions before the present government stepped P4 in to resolve them. TDP-JSP brass steps in to warn Ongole leaders over public feud IV N P P r a s a d B a b u @ Ongole The NDA alliance coordination committee and the high commands of the Telugu Desam Party (TDP) and Jana Sena Party (JSP) stepped in on Monday to defuse a growing political rift between Ongole MLA Damacharla Janardhana Rao (TDP) and former minister Balineni Srinivasa Reddy (JSP). Taking a serious view of the recent public feud between the two leaders, the coalition leadership warned them against making impulsive statements on public platforms and directed them to resolve any differences strictly through internal alliance coordination meetings. The intervention followed a teleconference held in Amaravati by members of the State NDA Alliance Coordination Committee, including TDP State President Palla Srinivasa Rao, Minister Dr Nimmala Ramanaidu, JSP Minister Nadendla Manohar and MLC Hari Prasad. Warning that public confrontations could damage coalition harmony, the committee instructed both leaders to refrain from making further controversial remarks. Agriculture Minister K Atchannaidu subsequently communicated the directives to MLA Damacharla, while the Jana Sena leadership advised Balineni to remain calm and composed. The escalating dispute spilled into the open on Sunday when Balineni Srinivasa Reddy held a press conference in Ongole, alleging that MLA Damacharla was wrongfully targeting him and his supporters over a pamphlet circulating allegations of corruption. Denying any involvement in releasing the pamphlet, Balineni claimed that the MLA’s faction was booking false cases P4 against his followers. Artisan lifeline Wood banks in the offing to keep traditional crafts alive E x p r e s s N e w s Se r v i c e @ Vijayawada To ensure a steady supply of raw material to traditional artisans while promoting sustainable forest conservation, the State government is planning to establish craft wood banks in six clusters in the first phase, with plans for statewide expansion later. The initiative has been taken on the directions of Deputy Chief Minister and Forest and Environment Minister Pawan Kalyan and the Forest department is preparing warehouses to store adequate quantities of wood required by traditional artisans. According to an official release on Monday the craft wood , banks will be established across six artisan clusters Kondapalli, Etikoppaka, Shettigunta, Madhavmala, Udayagiri and Bobbili. Officials have begun identifying warehouses and procuring wood. A central wood bank is also being developed at a sawmill near Dhavaleswaram in Rajamahendravaram to support the cluster-level facilities. At Kondapalli in NTR district, Forest Beat Officers’ quarters have been converted Artisans work with intense focus as they carefully shape and craft their products from softwood using traditional tools and technique | Express into a wood bank, while procurement of white poniki wood used by Kondapalli toy makers has begun. Alternative softwood varieties are also being identified to ensure uninterrupted supplies. A private commercial building has been taken on rent at Etikoppaka, with 1.5 cubic metres of ‘ankudu’ wood readied for artisans. At Shettigunta in Annamayya district, a Common Facility Centre of the Lepakshi Handicrafts Society has been identified as a wood bank. Officials have stocked 50 cubic metres of teak and 150 cubic metres of non-teak wood. P4