THIRUVANANTHAPURAM l monday l january 17, 2022 l `9.00 l PAGES 12 l LATE city EDITION djokovic loses case, deported from australia application ‘dismissed with costs’ Chief Justice James Allsop dismissed the amended application with costs. It finally ended a 10-day legal drama since the the 34-year-old announced on social media that he had secured a ‘medical exemption’ to enter Australia. Djokovic could have technically appealed the decision at the High Court but decided against doing so | P11 World No 1 leaves Melbourne after the Federal Court upholds government’s decision to cancel his visa for the second time 21 Serbian ‘disappointed’ ■ In a statement, the Serbian said he was disappointed. “I am uncomfortable that the focus of the past weeks has been on me." He also said he will now rest and recuperate ■ He had his visa cancelled as his presence could cause ‘civil unrest because he’s a talisman of anti-vaccination sentiment’ Djokovic was going for a men’s record 21st slam title 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 Though the sample size is small, the study by the Institute of Liver and Biliary Sciences is representative of the Omicron surge across India Hospitalisation under 4%, finds latest research S um i S u k a n ya D u t ta @ New Delhi express read Lata Mangeshkar still in ICU, says doctor Mumbai: Legendary singer Lata Mangeshkar continues to be under treatment in the Intensive Care Unit (ICU) of a city hospital here, the doctor treating her said on Sunday. The 92-year-old tested positive for Covid and admitted to hospital last week. Amid speculation that Mangeshkar’s condition was deteriorating, a spokesperson for the veteran singer denied media reports, calling them “false news”. West Bengal R-Day tableau too rejected Kolkata: West Bengal CM Mamata Banerjee expressed shock at the Centre’s decision to exclude the state’s R-Day tableau on Netaji and urged it to reconsider. There was similar criticism for rejecting Kerala’s tableau on Sree Narayana Guru. Interestingly, it came from a Congress leader in Karnataka | P7 Baseline characteristics of Omicron cases Male 57.3% Female 42.7% Vaccination status Vaccinated 87.8% Not Vaccinated 12.2% Travel history Yes 39.1% | No 60.9% Previous SARS-CoV-2 infection confirmed by RT-PCR Yes 17.1% | No 83.9% Clinical features Asymptomatic 61% Symptomatic 39% Comorbidities 18.3% No comorbidities 81.7% Hospitalisation 3.6% statewide jan 15 jan 16 Fresh cases 2,68,833 2,71,202 Recoveries 1,22,684 1,38,331 Deaths 402 314 statewide jan 15 jan 16 Fresh cases Recoveries Deaths 17,755 18,123 3,819 4,749 17 8 Full vaccination against Covid-19 or previous infection may not offer any substantial protection against the highly contagious Omicron variant of SARSCoV-2, but its hospitalisation rate is way low at less than 4%. These were the takeaways from India’s first epidemiological study on Omicron carried out by researchers associated with a leading government hospital. Their results, released on a pre-print repository of medical science, have also shown that Omicron was already in community circulation in Delhi in December and underlined the limited impact of airport screening or curtailing flights from other countries. Researchers associated with the Institute of Liver and Biliary Sciences in Delhi sequenced the genomes of 264 Covid positive samples from five districts across the national capital and found 82 of them had Omicron. The rest were infected with the Delta variant that had fueled the devastating second Covid wave in India last summer. Though the sample size is small, the study is being viewed as a representative analysis of Omicron-driven surge in many parts of India. The analysis of 264 patients who had tested positive between November 25 and December 23 last year found that 72 of the Omicron-infected patients had been fully vaccinated. Only three among the Omicron patients required hospitalisation. Worlds bronze-medallist beats world champion Loh Kean Yew in straight games to claim India Open title. A look at some of the talking points... The former junior World No 1 has always advertised his talents and he’s now making good on his promise. After reaching the final of the World Championships in December, he’s now won his first Super 500 crown 1.28% 31 Oct First dose to eligible population 7 Nov The 20-year-old, who is World No 17, has a definite chance of making a run for the top 10 spot soon. Covid cases notwithstanding, he will also take part at the Syed Modi meet, a Super 300 meet. Win there as well and it’s a possibility Satwik/Chirag make it a sweet double 17 Results (only Indians, all finals) Lakshya is currently No 17 in the world Lakshya bt Loh Kean Yew 24-22, 21-17 Satwiksairaj/Chirag bt Ahsan/ Satiawan 21-16, 26-24 The doubles duo of Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Chetty completed a sweet double from an Indian perspective with a fine win over Indonesia’s Hendra Setiawan and Mohammad Ahsan Lakshya Sen in action against Loh Kean Yew in the YonexSunrise India Open in New Delhi on Sunday | BAI Distress signs as expatriates dip into NR deposits in state’s banks R A J E S H A B R A H A M @Kochi NR deposits in Kerala banks Sept, 2021 J235,897 cr (-J593 cr) June, 2021 J236,490 cr (+J6,854 cr) Mar, 2021 J229,636 cr (+J2205 cr) Dec, 2020 J227,430 cr (+J5401 cr) cited “loss of job’’ as the reason for their return. NR deposits have been growing consistently in Kerala banks despite the recent shift in the pattern of the Malayali workforce in the Gulf countries, focusing more on whitecollar jobs, where the opportunities are less. The NR deposits have shot up by a whopping `54,867 crore from `181,623 crore in September 2018 to `236,490 crore in June 2021, be- fore declining for the first time in the September 2021 quarter. The NR deposits should not be confused with remittances, the experts said. NR remittances are foreign currency funds sent by the NRIs to their families and relatives for maintenance and upkeep while NR deposits are foreign currency deposits made in a bank in the country by a nonresident Indian, which can be repatriated on maturity . “The pandemic has disproportionately impacted Kerala migrants, especially those in the Gulf. This is evident from the remittance pattern since early 2020. Many lost jobs or suffered salary cuts and a substantial number, about 15 lakh, has returned to Kerala since the outbreak,” said Divya Balan, assistant professor and a migration expert at FLAME ● More on P4 University Pune.  , 13.69% (7 days moving average) 0.84% 14 Nov 21 Nov 28 Nov 5 Dec 12 Dec 19 Dec 26 Dec 59.9% Of world’s population has taken first shot 9.5% People in poor countries got their first does so far 2 Jan 9 Jan 16 Jan 90% 73.2% 75.9% 78.3% 84.7% Door-todoor drive in India since November enhanced single dose coverage by over 5%, full vax coverage by nearly 12% Omicron community spread on in state: Study tal Ltd (BMH), Kozhikode. The finding, even if conducted on a The Test positivity rate (TPR) small scale, is significant as it in the state crossed the 30% hints at community spread that mark on Sunday as health ex- calls for emergency measures perts linked the recent surge in to manage an impending peak Covid cases and cluster forma- of the third wave. tions to the presence of the fast “The tests prove that the spreading Omicron variant. surge we see around is due to Citing a sample study that Omicron. Hence there is an urfound the first evigent need to promote dence of community testing and self isola528 cases spread of the Omicron tion to delay the surge. so far virus in the state, the If it is not done the sitexperts said authori- Official records uation will move to a account for 528 major outbreak,” acties should stop targetconfirmed ing only the internacording to Dr Anoop Omicron cases tional travellers for Kumar A S, Chief of so far. The daily Critical Care Medicine, containing the number of variant. BMH. The daily posipositive cases However, of ficial tive cases are likely to has recorded a records account for cross 50,000 in three to only 528 confir med massive 600% f o u r w e e k s , h e increase since Omicron cases so far warned. January 1 even as the daily Fast spreading Ominumber of positive cron in the community cases has recorded a massive means that a lot of people 600% increase since January 1. would be experiencing throat As many as 18,123 persons test- pain and cold with fever someed positive for Covid on Sunday times. Unlike Delta, the Omiin the state with a TPR of cron variant does not cause 30.55%. loss of ability to sense smell The presence of Omicron has and taste. Experts want people been detected in 75% of the with mild symptoms and those samples tested among inpa- with multiple diseases to untients in Baby Memorial Hospi- dertake Covid test.  ● More on P2 U n n i k r i sh n a n S @ T’Puram 0.63% India US UK France Spain UP Police books Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Bhupesh Baghel for flouting Covid norms while on a door-to-door campaign for a Congress candidate in Noida Vax drive for children in schools from Wednesday Parveen Negi E x p ress Ne w s S er v i c e @ T’Puram Top 10 beckons youngster Bank deposits by non-resident Keralites have declined, perhaps for the first time ever, indicating a distress in the sizeable expatriate community in the state. The NR deposits in Kerala banks have declined by `593 crore to `235,897 crore for the quarter ending September 2021 from the previous quarter, as per the figures made available on Saturday . The decline indicates that expatriates are dipping into the reserves as a large number of them have returned to the state following job loss, mostly from West Asian countries, in the last two years, experts said. As of July last year, about 15 lakh Keralites have returned to the state from across the world since the first week of May 2020. Of this, 10.45 lakh have Case positivity trajectory CPM expresses regret over mega Thiruvathira First Super 500 title for Lakshya Big last few months 18% 16% 14% 12% 10% 8% 6% 4% 2% 0% 24 Oct After drawing severe criticism over the conduct of mega Thiruvathira at Parassala ahead of the Thiruvananthapuram district conference, the CPM local leadership has finally expressed regret. The programme was held flouting Covid restrictions and at a time when the slain SFI leader Dheeraj Rajendran’s mourning procession was proceeding to his hometown. To worsen matters, it literally turned into an event that blatantly extolled the virtues of CM Pinarayi Vijayan. In what could be termed as an apologetic act within the party forum, the local leadership said it was not meant to eulogise Pinarayi and the same should have been avoided. Meanwhile, criticising the CPM for conducting district conferences and other party programmes while the state faces the threat of a third wave of Covid, Leader of Opposition V D Satheesan on Sunday said people of Kerala would now have understood who the real ‘merchants of ● More on P4 death’ were.  T’Puram: Covid vaccination for children in the age group of 15 to 17 years will be given through schools from Wednesday. The health and education departments on Sunday decided to start the campaign. Those who were born in 2007 or before will be eligible. P2 Closer Ec watch on muscle power in election fray Kumar V i k ram @ New Delhi THE Election Commission has created a separate cell dedicated to deal with matters pertaining to the criminal antecedents of candidates, in compliance with the Supreme Court’s order on the issue. The poll panel has mandated that candidates as well as the concerned political parties issue a declaration in the media about their criminal background. The poll panel has come up with a mobile application named ‘Know Your Candidate’, containing information regarding the criminal backgrounds as declared by candidates. Moreover, a dedicated fund has been created for voters’ awareness campaigns and to make available the criminal history of the contesting candidates to the general public. Any fine imposed by the apex court on political parties regarding non-compliance of its orders will be deposited to Pressure to postpone Punjab polls Both the Congress and the BJP have urged the EC to postpone the Punjab Assembly polls slated for February 14 in view of the Guru Ravidas Jayanti on February 16. The Congress suggested that the polls be held six days later the above fund. Earlier, on August 10, the Supreme Court had said that parties will have to publish information regarding the criminal antecedents of candidates—including detailed information on the nature of the offences, relevant particulars such as whether charges have been framed, the concerned court, the case number, etc.—on the homepage of their websites, along with the reasons for their selection and why other individuals could not be given tickets instead. They also need to write to the EC within 48 hours of selection of such a candidate. Denied ticket, Channi sibling to contest as independent E x p ress Ne ws S er v i c e @ Chandigarh REVOLTS by netas denied poll tickets are no big deal, but when the brother of a chief minister throws a fit, it is bound to catch attention. Punjab Chief Minister Charanjit Singh Channi’s brother Dr Manohar Singh, who was denied a ticket to contest the elections, will fight as an independent against the Congress candidate for the Bassi Pathana seat. Channi had unsuccessfully lobbied for his brother as the Congress refused to budge on the ‘one ticket one family’ formula. However, the party gave tickets to the relatives of a few leaders. For example, Kamil Amar Singh, son of Fatehgarh Sahib MP Dr Amar Singh, has been fielde d f ro m R a j ko t wh i l e Vikramjit Singh Chaudhary , son of Jalandhar MP Santokh Singh Chaudhary was , given the Phillaur ticket. Woman, son nabbed for 75-yr-old’s murder had killed teen girl in 2020 E x p ress Ne w s S er v i c e @ T’Puram A day after the arrest of three people, including a woman and her son, for murdering an elderly woman and stealing her ornaments at M u l l o o r h e re, t h e Vi z h i n j a m p o l i c e claimed that the mother-son duo was also involved in the murder of a 14-year-old girl in 2020. The police said the suspects — Rafeeqa Beevi, 50, and her son, Shafeeq, 23 — confessed to the crime during questioning and they killed the girl to prevent her from revealing that Shafeeq had sexually assaulted her. The girl, a native of Muttakkadu, was found unconscious at her house on December 13, 2020, and she died on the way to the hospital. Rafeeqa said they were residing near the girl’s house at that time. On the day of the incident, Rafeeqa and Shafeeq strangled the girl as they feared that she might tell the sexual assault incident to her parents. The girl fell unconscious and they hit her head with a hammer, the police said. When the girl’s parents reached the house and found her lying unconscious on the floor, they alerted the neighbours. Rafeeqa rushed to the spot and she accompanied the girl to the hospital in the ambulance to avoid suspicion. ● More on P4 No more Alleppey Ranganath passes away at 73 The veteran music director, who has composed several evergreen devotional and film songs, died on Sunday. He was undergoing treatment at the Kottayam MCH after contracting Covid. Last week, he was presented with the ‘Harivarasanam’ award by the state government. P5