express illustration BHUBANESWAR l thursday l august 27, 2026 l `9.00 l PAGES 12 l JEYPORE EDITION Meta reaches $17 billion deal with U.S. on teen social media addiction Meta will pay $17 billion to US to end a landmark trial on Wednesday over teen social media addiction and settle claims filed by 47 states payout one of the biggest in history ‘caused mental health crisis in youths’ California, Colorado, Kentucky and New Jersey were among 29 states that sued the tech giant in 2023, but the deal cuts short the trial, which was expected to see CEO Mark Zuckerberg take the stand before a jury in federal court in California. The agreement is worth $353 million in Virginia alone and one of the biggest in consumer protection history ■ ■ The lawsuit accused Meta of contributing to the youth mental health crisis by deliberately designing features that addict children to its platforms and hiding them from the public The lawsuit argued that Meta violated federal laws by routinely collecting data on children under 13 without their parents’ consent $201 bn was meta’s 2025 revenue, and the lawsuit is a small part of it 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 95 dead, at least 133 Indian tourists, 37 NRIs among 750 missing after flash floods hit Nepal’s Rasuwa, Dhading; India steps up relief op, Isha Foundation says 77 members untraceable Gyirong County Landslide site r S U C H I T R A K A LYA N M O H A N T Y ive Tr i s hu li r nepal SC judge asks CJI to replace Raj HC acting chief justice @ New Delhi Rasuwa District Kathmandu Map not to scale How the flood originated 1 An ice-rock avalanche originating in a high-altitude area likely triggered the devastating flash floods that hurtled down from Tibet across central Nepal districts on Wednesday, experts at ICIMOD said 2 Researchers said the large volume of ice and rock debris may have entered the Lende Khola, a tributary of the Bhote Koshi river 3 The event could have generated a sudden surge that carried water, sediment and large boulders downstream Bihar, UP on alert after floods in Nepal Bihar and Uttar Pradesh were on high alert on Wednesday after several districts in neighbouring Nepal were devastated by flash floods in the Gandak river system. Union Home Minister Amit Shah spoke to Bihar CM Samrat Choudhary and Uttar Pradesh CM Yogi Adityanath on the flood situation | P8 A screengrab of a massive mudslide caused by flash floods at Rasuwagadhi border point on the Nepal-Tibet border | X Killer Nepal water wall washes away hundreds in a flash e x p r e s s ne w s s e r v i c e @ New Delhi AT least 170 Indians are among 750 tourists and travellers whose whereabouts remain unconfirmed after devastating flash floods swept through Nepal near the Tibet border, killing at least 95 people and leaving a trail of destruction across several of its districts on Wednesday . The Nepal Tourism Board said its preliminary list includes 291 foreign nationals and 93 Nepali nationals, with Indians constituting the largest identified group of foreign nationals. Another 37 non-resident Indians have also been listed separately as authorities , continue efforts to verify their whereabouts and safety. The flash floods struck the Bhote Koshi River in Nepal’s Rasuwa district on Wednesday sending , torrents of water, mud and de- bris through settlements near the China border. The floodwaters also affected parts of Rasuwa, Nuwakot and Dhading districts. Visuals from the affected areas showed powerful walls of muddy water sweeping through villages, engulfing buildings and carrying away vehicles and debris. Rescue and search operations are continuing, with authorities warning that the casualty figures could rise as teams reach more affected areas. The large number of Indians caught up in the disaster has prompted an immediate response from New Delhi. Prime Minister Narendra Modi spoke to his Nepal counterpart Balendra Shah and offered condolences over the loss of life, while assuring India’s support. “People of India stand in solidarity with their sisters and brothers in Nepal at this difficult time,” Modi said, adding that India was ready to provide “all possible humanitarian assistance.” The Indian Air Force has dispatched a C-130J aircraft carrying 10 tonnes of humanitarian assistance and essential medicines, the MEA said. The floods have also affected pilgrims travelling through the region towards Tibet. Isha Foundation chief Sadhguru said 77 members of the organisation were caught in the flash floods and their whereabouts remained unknown. “A terrible and tragic flash flood has taken place at Gyirong in Tibet, one of our Kailash groups was caught in it,” Sadhguru said. The other missing tourists were from US, Malaysia, the UK, South Africa, Australia and the Netherlands. Odisha activates control room after Nepal flashfloods E x p r e s s N e w s Se r v i c e @ Bhubaneswar With hundreds of people missing in Nepal following deadly flash floods, the Odisha government on Wednesday activated a 24x7 control room at Odisha Niwas in New Delhi to assist people from the state. There is, however, no offi- cial information yet on whether any person from Odisha has been affected by the disaster. Additional Chief Secretary of the Home and Information & Public Relations departments Hemant Sharma said the control room was set up on the advice of the Minis- try of External Affairs (MEA) and a helpline has also been issued. “The state government is waiting for more details and by Thursday morning, there will be more information. It is not officially known as yet whether any tourist from Odisha has been affected in the floods,” he said. Pritish Panda, Officer on Special Duty at the Directorate of Odisha Parivar, has been appointed nodal officer. He said he was in touch with the MEA to ascertain whether any people from Odisha had been affected. “The Nepal government has not released any state-wise data as yet,” Panda said. CHIEF Justice of India Surya Kant on Wednesday said that the Collegium is examining Justice Sandeep Mehta’s allegations against Rajasthan High Court Acting Chief Justice Sanjeev Prakash Sharma. The CJI’s statement came hours after reports said Justice Mehta has shot off three letters to the CJI this month, levelling serious allegations against Justice Sharma. In a press statement issued in the evening, the CJI said the contents of the letters cannot be adjudicated in the public domain and that Justice Sharma must be given a fair opportunity to place his response before any conclusion is reached. Justice Sandeep Mehta Justice Sanjeev Prakash Sharma The fact that allegations have been made cannot by itself be treated as a finding against the judge, he added. The CJI emphasised that the Supreme Court cannot allow individual complaints concerning judges to be determined through competing claims in the media. Earlier in the day, reports said Justice Mehta wrote to the CJI on August 2, 10 and 17, seek- HAL, France’s Safran seal deal on multi-role combat helicopters The signing marks the start of the engine’s developSTATE-RUN Hindustan Aer- ment and production phase, onautics Ltd (HAL) and with work to be shared France’s Safran Helicopter equally between the two parEngines on Wednesday ent companies. HAL is both inked a contract to a shareholder in jointly develop a SAFHAL and the 3,500 to 4,000 shaft customer for the enhorse power-class gine as the helicop‘Aravalli’ copter enter manufacturer. gine, which will However, the two power HA L ’ s helicopter proplanned 13-tonne Ingrammes are yet to Beyond dian Multi-Role Helreceive acceptance Mi-17s icopter (IMRH) and of necessity and apThe IMRH is its naval variant, the proval from the Cabintended to 12.5-tonne Deckinet Committee on eventually Based Multi-Role Security, with HAL replace the Helicopter. funding preparatory Indian The contract covwork from its own ers the engine’s de- military’s fleet resources. of over 240 sign, development, HAL chair man manufacture, supply Russian-origin and managing direcMi-17 and lifecycle suptor Ravi K said the helicopters. port. The ‘Aravalli’ contract marked a The first will be developed by “significant step forSAFHAL Helicopter prototype will ward” in India’s purEngines Pvt Ltd, a be out in 2028. suit of self-reliance 50:50 joint venture in aero-engine techbetween HAL and Safran nology. Safran Helicopter Helicopter Engines, the ro- Engines CEO Olivier Antorcraft engine arm of Sa- dries said the programme fran, with the production represented a new chapter planned at HAL’s facility in in the strategic relationship Tumakuru, Karnataka. between India and France. J a v a r i a Rana @ New Delhi ing the immediate replacement of Justice Sharma with a chief justice from another HC. According to reports, the letters alleged that Justice Sharma, who has been serving as the acting chief justice for the past 10 months, manipulated case listings and misused his administrative powers. “There are innumerable instances of Justice Sharma, exercising powers as the Acting Chief Justice in a manner unbecoming of the leader of the institution,” Justice Mehta wrote in one of his letters. He said that during his visits to Rajasthan, numerous judges met him and expressed anguish over Justice Shar ma’s behaviour. Justice Sharma is due to retire on September 26. express read Ex-Orissa HC CJ is BCA administrator New Delhi: Taking note of the continued infighting and maladministration in Bihar Cricket Association (BCA), the Supreme Court on Tuesday appointed former Chief Justice of Orissa High Court Justice Chakradhari Sharan Singh as administrator of the association. A bench of Justices JB Pardiwala and KV Viswanathan took note of the report filed by former SC judge Justice L Nageswara Rao, appointed as ombudsman of BCA in August 2024 to sort out disputes. Trinamool rebels get notice from Lok Sabha secretariat The Lok Sabha secretariat has given 20 rebel TMC MPs, who merged with the Tripura-based Nationalist Citizens Party of India in June, seven days to reply to a petition seeking their disqualification on grounds of defection | P7 Govt says speedy relief, 18-year-old orphan caught in identity SC issues directions to restoration is priority as crisis maze as OHRC orders probe fast-track dowry cases flood situation improves M AYA N K B H U S A N PA N I @ Sambalpur E x p r e s s N e w s Se r v i c e @ Bhubaneswar O d i s h a g ove r n m e n t o n Wednesday said it is ensuring speedy relief and assistance to flood-hit people even as rains subsided and normalcy began returning to most affected areas. The gover nment, meanehile, continued to closely monitor Kendrapara, Bhadrak and Jajpur, where 80,284 people in nine blocks remain affected. The chief minister’s office (CMO) said the safety of people and quick assistance were being accorded the highest priority, with focus on reaching relief materials, food, drinking water and essential health services to affected areas. Communication has been restored to 775 affected villages, while 57 rescue teams have evacuated 76,051 people to safer places using boats. More than 5.25 lakh people are being provided cooked food through 87 free kitchens, it added. Special relief commissioner (SRC) Rajesh Prabhakar Patil said there was no shortage of rescue forces, food, safe drinking water, medicines or relief materials anywhere in the state. The administration, he said, was prepared to mobilise additional resources according to requirements. The administration has now shifted its focus to restoration work. The SRC said breaches on the left bank of the Baitarani at Anandapur in Keonjhar and the right bank of the Baitarani-Kani river system at Tarapada gram panchayat in Jajpur were being closely monitored.  Continued on P5 The Odisha Human Rights Commission (OHRC) has ordered an inquiry into discrepancies in the identity and parentage records of 18-year-old Gangadhar Meher University student Karan Ekka since the inconsistencies may have deprived the orphan of scholars h i p s a n d o t h e r we l f a re benefits. Acting on Karan’s complaint, the commission has directed the Sundargarh collector to conduct a detailed inquiry through the district child protection officer (DCPO) and submit a report by September 1. The OHRC has sought an explanation for how Karan’s identity came to be recorded differently in various of ficial documents and whether lapses in record-keeping by child-care institutions and authorities resulted in denial of his entitlements. The inquiry will examine his tails and whether any inquiry was conducted to establish his biological parentage or legal status as an orphan or child without known parents. The probe will also examine Karan’s exit from the child-care institution after Class X, the OHRC failure to issue him an orphan original admission records, case certificate and the authority history and institutional docu- competent to issue one. The ments, besides the cirOHRC has sought decumstances of his adtails of his Green Pasmission to and transfer sage/Green Pass cerbetween child-care intificate and benefits, as stitutions. The adminwell as his disability istration has also been certificate and eligibilasked to ascertain how ity for educational, hosMuna/Munna Ekka tel, scholarship and Karan Ekka and Kan Ekka came to other welfare schemes. Importantly, the combe recorded as his parents in school and child-care mission has asked whether the discrepancies in his records led records. The commission has specifi- to denial of any statutory or welcally sought details of how the fare benefit and what corrective name of P K Senapati, then su- measures have been taken to enperintendent of CCI Sishubha- sure that Karan does not lose wan, came to be recorded as Ka- entitlements because of errors ran’s father in his Aadhaar. It in records maintained by govhas asked whether any author- ernment agencies or child-care ity furnished or certified the de- institutions.  Continued on P5 Has any authority furnished or certified the details and conducted any inquiry to establish his biological parentage or legal status as an orphan or child without known parents S U C H I T R A K A LYA N M O H A N T Y @ New Delhi THE Supreme Court has issued a slew of directions to fasttrack the prosecution of cases under Sections 304-B (dowry death) and 498-A (dowry harassment) of the Indian Penal Code, which correspond to Sections 80 and 85 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023. A bench of Justice Sanjay Karol (now retired) and Justice Augustine George Masih issued these directions on August 20 after considering compliance with its judgment of December 15, 2025, in State of Uttar Pradesh versus Ajmal Beg case. “The concerned District Judiciary shall identify cases pending beyond three years, particularly those pending at the stage of framing of charge or recording of evidence, and undertake periodic monitoring thereof through monthly or quarterly review mechanisms,” the bench said. The SC directed all high courts, states and Union territories to file status and compliance reports on January 15, May 15 and September 15 each year until there is a substantial reduction in the pendency of dowry cases. The top court called for use of technology to track progress of dowry-related cases. High courts were asked to track s t a g e - w i s e p e n d e n cy through digital dashboards. “Many, who openly seek and give dowry go , scot-free. It has been noted time and again, in various judicial pronouncements that Dowry Prohibition Act, 1961 suffers from various difficulties in its implementation,” the court observed, while acknowledging that the practice of giving and accepting dowry has deep roots in society and therefore no swift change is expected. “A concentrated effort is needed on the part of all the involved parties,” it added.