KALABURAGI  SATURDAY  NOVEMBER 14, 2020  `7.00  PAGES 28  CITY EDITION INDIA’S EXPORTS DIP 5.12% IN OCT; TRADE DEFICIT NARROWS After recording positive growth in September, exports fell in October, dragged by petroleum products, gems & jewellery TRADE DEFICIT NARROWS TO $8.7 BILLION IMPORTS, TOO, DECLINE IN TANDEM Export commodities that recorded negative growth in October included petroleum products (-52%), cashew (-22%), gems and jewellery (-21%) and leather (-17%). Imports also fell by 11.53% to $33.6 billion on a yearon-year basis. According to government data released on Friday, trade deficit in October narrowed to $8.71 billion against $11.75 bn a year ago ■ ■ During April-October 2020, exports declined 19% to $150 billion, while imports fell 36% to $182 bn over same period a year ago. Oil imports dipped a whopping 38.52% to $5.98 billion in October After contracting for six straight months, India’s exports had risen by 5.99% to $27.58 billion in September |P18 114% YEAR-ON-YEAR PERCENTAGE CHANGE IN EXPORTS OF RICE IN OCTOBER 2020 CHENNAI ■ MADURAI ■ VIJAYAWADA ■ BENGALURU ■ KOCHI ■ HYDERABAD ■ VISAKHAPATNAM ■ COIMBATORE ■ KOZHIKODE ■ THIRUVANANTHAPURAM ■ BELAGAVI ■ BHUBANESWAR ■ SHIVAMOGGA ■ MANGALURU ■ TIRUPATI ■ TIRUCHY ■ TIRUNELVELI ■ SAMBALPUR ■ HUBBALLI ■ DHARMAPURI ■ KOTTAYAM ■ KANNUR ■ VILLUPURAM ■ KOLLAM ■ WARANGAL ■ TADEPALLIGUDEM ■ NAGAPATTINAM ■ THRISSUR ■ KALABURAGI Jawans among 11 killed in shelling on LoC Indian troops retaliate, kill 8 Pakistani soldiers, destroy bunkers and ammunition dumps in fierce confrontation F AYA Z W A N I @ Srinagar DISPELLING DARKNESS A woman arranges diyas in front of her house to mark Deepavali celebrations, in Bengaluru on Friday | ASHISHKRISHNA HP AHEAD of the onset of winter and forecast of two-day snowfall in the upper reaches of Jammu & Kashmir, the Line of Control witnessed heavy shelling on Friday as Pak troops violated the ceasefire agreement in multiple sectors, killing five Indian soldiers and 6 civilians and injuring a few others. Eight Pakistani soldiers were reportedly killed in retaliatory firing by Indian forces. The Army later released videos showing immense damage to Pakistani infrastructure along the LoC including bunkers, ammunition dumps and terrorists’ launch pads. Baramulla Deputy Commissioner Ghulam Nabi Itoo told TNIE that Pakistani troops breached ceasefire in the Uri sector in the afternoon and targeted Army positions and civilian areas. They resorted to heavy firing and mortar shelling in different sectors of Uri including Kamalkote, Charanda, Sultan Daki, Balakote, etc. Some of the shells landed in civilian areas, causing casualties Karnataka to receive Buzz on BJP naming `577.84 cr from NDRF Dalit leader as Dy CM for flood relief work R A J E S H K U M A R T H A K U R @ Patna EXPRESS NEWS SERVICE @ Bengaluru FOLLOWING Karnataka’s requests for Central aid towards flood relief, the High-Level Committee, chaired by Union Home Minister Amit Shah, on Friday approved `577.84 crore to the state. The funds are part of `4,381.88 crore approved as additional Central assistance to six states from the National Disaster Response Fund (NDRF). Following three spells of incessant rain which caused floods and landslides in many parts of the state since August this year, Kar nataka had sought `10,000 crore as relief from the Centre. The Rs 577.84 crore approved for Karnataka is towards relief for floods and landslides during the South-West monsoon. Amid the Covid-19 pandem- Hold GP polls within 3 weeks, HC tells poll panel EXPRESS NEWS SERVICE @ Bengaluru IN a setback to the State Gover nment, the Kar nataka High Court on Friday directed the State Election Commission (SEC) to announce the schedule for the Gram Panchayat (GP) elections within three weeks from the day of judgment. A division bench of Chief Justice Abhay Shreeniwas Oka and Justice Ashok S Kinagi pronounced the judgment while disposing of a petition filed by Congress MLC K C Kondaiah and others. Noting that the government is under obligation to provide necessary funds to the SEC for holding elections, the bench said that it is the duty of the SEC to complete elections before the term of a elected body ends, in view of Constitutional mandate under Article 243E (3). The state has absolutely no role to play in conducting elections, it said. It is only in very exceptional circumstances that the SEC can conduct elections after expiry of the term of a panchayat. Whether such exceptional circumstances exist or not is a matter in the exclusive domain of the SEC. Hence, the state plays no role in deciding whether such circumstances exist, the bench noted. CONTINUED ON: P4 ic, Karnataka witnessed flash floods thrice. The first spell of heavy rainfall and flood from August to September 15 caused losses estimated at `9,441 crore. The second spell of rain and flooding during the second fortnight of September is estimated to have caused damage of `5,668 crore and after the heavy rainfall and extensive flooding, starting October 10, the initial estimates of the damage have been pegged at `6,500 crore. Chief Minister B S Yediyurappa, in October, had written to the Centre seeking relief of `10,000 crore, given the financial crunch in the state. The overall loss estimated due to floods and rainfall in Karnataka till October stood at `21,609 crore, according to the Chief Minister. CONTINUED ON: P5 AMID buzz that the BJP may opt for veteran Dalit leader Kameshwar Chaupal as the new deputy chief minister instead of incumbent Sushil Kumar Modi, the Bihar NDA held its first meeting after the elections on Friday . Kameshwar Chaupal The speculation strengthened after hundreds of supporters of Chaupal raised slogans demanding his elevation as deputy CM, upon his arrival at the Patna airport. Chaupal is one of the 15 members of a trust set up on the directions of the Supreme Court to construct a Ram temple at Ayodhya. He was also accorded the rare honour of performing the first Shilanyas — laying the first brick in the foundation for the construction of a Ram temple in Ayodhya on November 9, 1989. However, Nitish Kumar may not be comfortable with a new deputy “Sushil Modi may not have a . wide vote bank but he is well experienced in running ministries like finance,” some NDA leaders opined. As for Sushil Modi, the speculation is he could be sent to the Rajya Sabha. Later in the day Nitish submitted his resigna, tion. An NDA meeting on Sunday will take the process of government formation forward. THE FLARE-UP Gurez PAKISTAN OCCUPIED KASHMIR Keran Sultan Daki Uri Balkote Haji Peer SRINAGAR LoC J&K and damage to property . “This was the worst shelling in the Uri sector in the last five EXPRESS READ Kodiyeri quits from CPI(M) post Thiruvananthapuram: Days after the arrest of his son Bineesh in an alleged money laundering case by the ED in Bengaluru, senior CPI(M) leader Kodiyeri Balakrishnan on Friday stepped aside from the post of party secretary in Kerala. A statement said Balakrishnan had sought leave for further treatment | P5 WHO plans centre of medicine New Delhi: The World Health Organisation on Friday announced that it will set up a global centre for traditional medicine in India, with PM Narendra Modi expressing confidence that just like the country has emerged as the ‘pharmacy of the world’, the WHO institution will become a centre for global wellness. A 14-page Deepavali supplement with this issue to six years,” the DC said. Pak troops resorted to intense shelling on Friday morning after Indian soldiers foiled an infiltration attempt of militants in the Keran sector. This was the second infiltration attempt by militants at the LoC within a week. On Sunday , three army men were killed in action in the Machil sector. Friday’s intense artillery firing caused panic among border residents and many fled to safer places to escape shells. Apart from the Uri sector, Pakistan troops breached border ceasefire in Dawar, Keran, and Naugam sectors, too. Defence spokesman Colonel Rajesh Kalia said Pakistani troops used mortars and other weapons and deliberately targeted civilian areas. “Our troops also gave a befitting response. We caused substantial damage to Pakistan Army’s infrastructure and inflicted heavy casualties on them,” Colonel Kalia said. An army official said Pakistan is attempting to push as many as militants into J&K beP7 fore snowfall in winter Medical, dental colleges to open from December 1 EXPRESS NEWS SERVICE @ Bengaluru THE State Government has decided to reopen all medical, dental, AYUSH, paramedical, nursing and pharmacy colleges, affiliated to Rajiv Gandhi University of Health Sciences, from December 1, Health and Medical Education Minister Dr K Sudhakar tweeted on Friday . He also requested the college administration and students to strictly adhere to government guidelines in light of Covid-19. The announcement comes days after Deputy CM Dr C N Ashwath Narayan announced that the government has decided to begin offline classes in higher education institutions from November 17. However, students will have the option of attending the classes physically or online. But for practical sessions, it will be mandatory for students to attend classes physically .