The New Indian Express Wishes its readers a Our offices and press will remain closed today and there will be no issue of the paper on Tuesday BENGALURU  MONDAY  NOVEMBER 16, 2020  `7.00  PAGES 32  LATE CITY EDITION HAMILTON EQUALS F1 LEGEND SCHUMACHER’S WORLD MARK Briton enters league of all-time greats across sports with seventh World Championship win in Turkish Grand Prix CHILDHOOD DREAM COMES TRUE Lewis Hamilton, who had earlier this year overtaken Michael Schumacher’s world record of most individual races won, had claimed his first world title in 2008. “We dreamed of this when I was young. I remember watching Michael win those World Championships... Seven is unimaginable,” said the Mercedes driver. The 35-year-old has won 10 of 14 races this season ■ 4 INCREDIBLE JOURNEY OF MILESTONE MAN ■ Hamilton also holds the world records for most wins (94), most pole positions (97) and most podium finishes (163) Hamilton came home over half-a-minute clear of Racing Point’s Sergio Perez and sealed the World Championship with three races still to be held in a season cut short by the Covid-19 pandemic | P11 THIS IS HAMILTON’S FOURTH CONSECUTIVE WORLD TITLE WIN 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 RCEP is a deal! The world’s biggest free trade deal is finally here. Fifteen countries on Sunday signed the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP), with China expected to be the Big Daddy. A look: SHARE IN GLOBAL GDP OF THE 30% 210 cr FIFTEEN SIGNATORIES OF RCEP People covered by the deal DOOR STILL OPEN FOR NEW DELHI India can join RCEP anytime in future after submitting a formal request India can also participate in RCEP meetings as an observer India can also take part in economic cooperation activities undertaken by the signatory states, on terms and conditions to be jointly decided by RCEP Chinese Minister of Commerce Zhong Shan holds up the RCEP agreement | AFP WIN FOR CHINA WHAT NEXT Being China’s brainchild, RCEP is seen as its tool to draft the rules of trade in the region All signatories need to ratify the deal within two years for it to come into force COMMON RULES, LOWER TARIFFS The RCEP is a trade pact first proposed in 2012 and includes China, Japan, South Korea, New Zealand, Australia, and 10 ASEAN economies - Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, Brunei, Vietnam, Laos, Myanmar and Cambodia The agreement is expected to lower or eliminate a range of tariffs within 20 years of it taking effect It will also lead to the creation of common rules of origin. This will help companies save cost and time by allowing them to export a product anywhere within the bloc without meeting separate requirements for each country INDIAN PULLOUT India pulled out of the RCEP talks last year over concerns that tariff reductions will lead to dumping of Chinese goods in the domestic market. It would also worsen India’s trade deficit According to the Centre for Strategic and International Studies, India has trade deficits with 11 of the 15 RCEP signatories While RCEP would open up India’s market to Chinese goods, India got no assurances that its companies would get meaningful access to Chinese markets Target bypolls? Govt OKs irrigation project EXPRESS NEWS SERVICE @Bengaluru AHEAD of the bypolls to Maski and Basavakalyan Assembly segments, and Belagavi Lok Sabha constituency the State Gov, ernment has given administrative approval for the Rs 52.54 crore Maski irrigation project in Raichur district, and has also set up the Maratha Development Authority with a Rs 50 crore grant. Belagavi and Basavakalayan in Bidar district have sub- EXPRESS READ GP member sets pregnant wife ablaze Mysuru: A gram panchayat (GP) member allegedly killed his pregnant wife by pouring kerosene over her and setting her ablaze on Saturday. Shanthamma, was the wife of Ramesh, a member of Doddamulagodu Gram Panchayat in Mysuru district. The victim’s father alleged that Ramesh was harassing her to get Rs5 lakh from her parents as he wanted to contest the upcoming GP election. | P5 WITH THIS ISSUE THE ESSENTIAL CAMPUS DIGEST 32 PAGES, INCLUDING 16 OF edex (TABLOID) & 4 of CITY EXPRESS YOUR LIFE COACH stantial Maratha population. The Government Order (dated Nov 13) stated that the administrative approval has been given for the project for remodelling of left bank, right bank canals and other works. The canals under the Maski irrigation project that supply water to 7,416 acres were built in 2006 and modernisation works are required to avoid wastage of water. The Karnataka Neeravari Nigam, responsible for the operation and maintenance of the dam, had prepared a detailed project report in 2019 and sought the government approval to take up the works. Meanwhile, Chief Minister B S Yediyurappa said that the Maratha Development Authority will help in the social, economic, academic and religious development of Marathas in the state. Congress sources said they are not against the government taking initiatives to help people, but the timing of such decisions made it clear that it is done keeping the by-polls in mind. But, BJP general secretary N Ravi Kumar denied that the government decisions had anything to do with the bypolls. The bypoll in Maski is necessitated as Congress MLA Prathap Gowda Patil joined BJP with other rebels and in Basavakalyan, it is because of the demise of Congress MLA B Narayan Rao. The Belagavi LS seat fell vacant after the death of BJP MP and Union Minister Suresh Angadi. Nitish to begin seventh term as Bihar CM today R A J E S H K U M A R T H A K U R @ Patna A day after being unanimously elected leader of the Bihar NDA, JD(U) president Nitish Kumar will on Monday be sworn-in as the state’s chief minister for his seventh term. The swearing-in ceremony will begin at 4.30 pm. On Sunday Nitish staked his , claim to form the new government after handing the letter of support of 126 lawmakers to Governor Phagu Chauhan. The NDA meeting was held in the presence of BJP’s central observer and Defence Minister Rajnath Singh. Nitish later said: “I did not want to be the CM, but only after the request and instructions of BJP leaders, I accepted the post.” Within BJP Katihar MLA Tar , Kishor Prasad was elected its legislature party leader, which suggested he could be made the deputy CM. Perhaps to acknowledge the role of women as silent voters in the NDA victory, the BJP elected Bettiah MLA Renu Devi as deputy leader of the legislature party . Team Nitish could have 15 representatives from the BJP 12 , JD(U) and two each from the Hindustani Awam Morcha and the Vikassheel Insaan Party P8 . SOUMITRA CHATTERJEE DIES AT 85 The Iconic Bengali actor strode Bengali cinema like a colossus and took it to the world. The thespian’s collaboration with Ray led to 14 cinematic gems, including ‘Apur Sansar’ and ‘Charulata’ — among the more than 300 films he acted in his more than six-decade career. | P7 BR Shetty not allowed to board flight from KIA EXPRESS NEWS SERVICE @Bengaluru IMMIGRATION officials at Bengaluru’s Kempegowda International Airport (KIA) stopped NMC Health founder BR Shetty from flying to Abu Dhabi on board an Etihad flight scheduled to depart at 2.45 am on Saturday . A source privy to the incident and its background confirmed that the businessman was “not allowed” to board the flight after a Central agency alerted the immigration officials about his departure, and that “he was not detained, but only asked not to board the flight”. The source said it is likely that Shetty figured in alerts issued to the immigration officials here for them to stop the entrepreneur from boarding the flight. Shetty’s current whereabouts, however, have not been disclosed, and immigration officials were not available to separately confirm this. Shetty reportedly owes $250 million to Bank of Baroda and varying amounts to P5 other banks.