kannur l tuesday l june 21, 2022 l `9.00 l PAGES 12 l city EDITION gotabaya one step away from losing unfettered powers Sri Lankan cabinet on Monday passed the 21st Amendment to the Constitution to empower Parliament over the executive president Prez to be answerable to Parliament IMF begins talks to bail out colombo The latest amendment, which will soon be tabled in Parliament, seeks to annul the 20th Amendment to the Constitution, which gave unfettered powers to the President. Under the 21A, the President will be held accountable to Parliament. When passed by Parliament, the 21A will also bar dual citizens from contesting elections to hold public office ■ ■ The development comes on a day when the IMF began bailout talks with Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe The 21st amendment was supposed to be taken up in cabinet on June 6 but was delayed after President Gotabaya Rajapaksa reportedly asked the minister of justice not to take it up then $51 billion Sri Lanka’s total foreign debt. Of this, Colombo plans to repay $5 bn this year 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 Transplant patient dies, MCH faces delay charge E x p r e s s N e w s Se r v i c e @T’Puram Plus two results today Minister V Sivankutty will declare the higher secondary exam results at 11am | P2 The death of a patient in Thiruvananthapuram Medical College Hospital following a kidney transplantation on Monday kicked up a controversy after a section of people alleged medical negligence. They alleged that the transplantation procedure was delayed by three hours after the kidney harvested from a braindead youth in Kochi reached the hospital. After the incident became a row, Health Minister Veena George ordered the suspension of Dr Vasudevan Potti and Dr Jacob George, who head the nephrology and urology depart- ments, respectively, pending a detailed inquiry The Kerala State . Human Rights Commission also asked the director of medical education to probe the incident and file a report in four weeks. Suresh Kumar, 62-year-old resident of Karakonam, died after the kidney transplantation surgery The kidney of a youth who . was declared brain dead at Rajagiri Hospital in Ernakulam was brought in three hours to Thiruvananthapuram MCH by 5.30pm on Sunday It is alleged that there . was lack of coordination among departments in receiving the kidney at the super speciality block and a delay of three hours before starting the surgery The patient . Two docs suspended After the death of the kidney tranplant patient became a controversy, Health Minister Veena George ordered the suspension of Dr Vasudevan Potti and Dr Jacob George, who head the nephrology and urology departments, respectively, pending a detailed inquiry. died of a heart attack following the surgery according to the pre, liminary reports. “There shall be an impartial inquiry by the additional chief secretary The allegations on the . failure to follow the protocol dur- ing transplantation and lack of coordination shall be probed. The details of the death will be known after the postmortem report,” said the minister. Opposition Leader V D Satheesan alleged a major lack of coordination among departments and said the health minister could not absolve herself of her responsibility . However, doctors in the hospital dismissed the allegation and said the patient died due to postsurgical complications. “There were six patients on the probable list of kidney receivers. Tests were performed on three and Suresh Kumar was selected for the procedure,” said a senior ● More on P4 doctor.  Army issues recruitment notification for Agniveers PM: Any reform may seem unpleasant temporarily but will benefit in long run E x p r e s s N e w s Se r v i c e @ New Delhi/Bengaluru rice in unison! Workers prepare a field at Devaswom Padam at Varappuzha in Ernakulam district ahead of Pokkali rice cultivation | A Sanesh Staff at Advocate General’s office hurl casteist slurs at ST colleague A J AY K A N T H @Kochi The office of the top judicial officer in the state has been dragged into a controversy after two senior staff members assaulted and hurled casteist slurs at an ST youth working in the same office. A case was registered against the two officers at the Advocate General’s office on a complaint filed by an attendant there. But the complaint was later withdrawn at the insistence of the accused who allegedly put pressure on the complainant and his family members. express read CPM created ‘love jihad’ usage: IUML leader Malappuram: Muslim League leader K M Shaji on Monday alleged that it was the state CPM that had created ‘love jihad’ usage in India, not Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS). “A BJP member in Dakshina Kannada was the first one to mention ‘love jihad’. But it was former chief minister V S Achuthanandan who had lent credence to the usage. He had also said Kerala was going to be an Islamic state and children in Malappuram were passing the exams by cheating,” Shaji said. ED to quiz Rahul Gandhi for fifth day today New Delhi: The Enforcement Directorate has asked Congress leader Rahul Gandhi to join investigation for the fifth day on Tuesday and record his statement in the National Herald money laundering case. Rahul has spent around 38 hours at the ED HQ over four sittings since June 13. Party president Sonia Gandhi has also been summoned for questioning on Thursday | P7 There was an issue between two staff members at the office and they had settled it. A departmental inquiry is on and necessary action will be taken in due course K Gopalakrishna Kurup, Advocate General Advocate General K Gopalakrishna Kurup said there was an issue between two staff members at the office and they had settled it. “A departmental inquiry is on and the necessary action will be taken in due course,” he told TNIE. Police said the two staff members at the AG’s office, Section Officer Ajesh P B and PRO Dayal K K, were charged under IPC sections 341, 323 and various sections of the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, 1989 (Amendment Act 2015). As per the complaint, Ajesh threatened and intimidated complainant Nandu K on on May 21 for failure to attend to his phone calls. Ajesh also slapped him, and Nandu fell down. He was taken to General Hospital, Er nakulam and later to the Medical Trust Hos● More on P4 pital.  800MW Idukki project gets Centre’s first phase environment clearance E x p r e s s N e w s Se r v i c e @ Kochi In a big boost to KSEB, which depends on the national power grid to meet 65% of its power requirement, the Centre has has accorded preliminary environmental clearance for the 800MW Idukki Hydro Electric Extension project. The estimated `2,669.67-crore project envisages to utilise water from Idukki reservoir, which has a gross storage capacity of 1,996.3 MCM. When completed, it will be operated for four hours daily to meet the peak-hour requirement. The existing Idukki Hydro Electric project has a capacity of 780 MW with six turbines of 130MW each while the extension project will have an installed capacity of 800MW with four turbines of 200MW capacity each. The KSEB aims to complete the project by 2026, which is the golden jubilee year of the existing project. “The phase I clearance from the Expert Appraisal Commit- Extension project Powerhouse near Moolamattom Installed capacity 800MW Sinha’s name in Prez play after Gandhi too opts out E x p r e s s N e w s Se r v i c e @ New Delhi/Kolkata A day before the second meeting of the Opposition over the upcoming Presidential poll, attention turned towards ex-finance minister Yashwant Sinha possibly entering the ring after retired diplomat and ex-West Bengal governor Gopalkrishna Gandhi declined to be their candidate for the polls. Trinamool Congress chief Mamata Banerjee had tossed up the names of National Conference’s Farooq Abdullah and Gandhi for the high post after NCP leader Sharad Pawar opted out last week. But Abdullah threw in the towel a couple of days ago. With Gandhi, too, conveying his disinclination, the Trinamool quietly injected the name of Sinha, who has been ascerbic about the Modi government’s functioning. For the record though, Mamata’s nephew Abhishek Banerjee said, “Decision on who will be the candidate of Opposition parties will be taken unanimously in Tuesday’s meeting.’’ The government remained unperturbed by the protests raging in many parts of the country against the newly announced Agnipath recruitment scheme with the Army on Monday issuing the notification for induction of soldiers under the scheme and Prime Minister Narendra Modi saying any reform may seem unpleasant temporarily but will benefit the country Rlys cancels in the long term . In its notification, the Army said more than those joining under the scheme will 600 trains be called ‘Agniveers’. The registra- Anticipating tion for candidates will be opened trouble amid a call from July by respective Army Recru- for Bharat Bandh, timent Offices (AROs). more than 600 Online registration is a must for trains were all candidates using the Indian Army cancelled on website for the registration and recruit- nationwide ment process, it said, adding ‘Ag- protests against niveers’ would form a distinct rank Agnipath scheme in the army, which would be different from any other existing ranks. “Personnel enrolled through Agniveer scheme will be required to undergo periodical medical check-ups and physical/ written/ field tests as governed by orders issued. The performance so demonstrated would be considered for subsequent offer for enrolment in the regular cadre,” the Army said. Meanwhile, Modi, without mentioning ‘Agnipath’, said “the path of startup and innovation is not the one with ease, and taking the country on this path for the last eight years was also not easy Several decisions and re. forms may be unpleasant temporarily, but with time their benefits can be experienced by the country .” Coaching centres in state quick to grab opportunity P o o ja N a i r @Kozhikode Even as the police and administration across the country suspect the role of coaching centres behind the violent protests against the Agnipath shortterm recruitment in the armed forces, such centres are now tweaking their training modules to prepare aspirants for the scheme’s entrance examination. Besides, the centres hitherto offering coaching for PSC and other competitive exams have also started offering training for the scheme’s test. However, admissions are open only for the youngsters who have not participated in the protest against Agnipath. More than 200 coaching centres have already released their advertisements on social media and other platforms announcing the coaching classes. Some of these advertisements have also gone viral as these specifically ask the protesters to not apply for courses. It is expected that thousands of youngsters from Kerala will be trying their luck in the examina● More on P4 tion.  ED cautious, further probe only if Swapna gives concrete proof T o b y A nt o ny @ Kochi The enforcement directorate (ED) is proceeding cautiously in the money laundering case linked to the 2020 gold smuggling incident involving Swapna Suresh who recently levelled serious allegations against Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan and his family members. Top sources said ED will seek concrete evidence from Swapna substantiating her allegations when she appears before the agency on Wednesday. ED officials have gone though her CrPC Section 164 statement given before the magistrate recently However, . they maintain that a further investigation cannot be launched solely based on this statement. “Swapna has claimed that there is evidence to substantiate the involvement of CM, his family members and bureaucrats regarding money laundering. We will look into the evidence she presents before the investigation team. After interviewing her on Wednesday and based on the evidence she presents, we will decide on the further investigation,” a source said. The ED maintains that Swapna and Sarith P S are still accused in the case, and ● More on P4 not witnesses.  No of turbines: 4 Capacity of each turbine 200MW Estimated cost L2,669.67 cr Adverse shocks India faces $100 billion capital outflow, says RBI Project to be completed 2026-27 E x p r e ss N e ws Se r v i c e @ New Delhi tee (EAC) of the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change for the project is a big relief for the KSEB. The Idukki powerhouse was constructed in 1976 and the six turbines will complete 50 years in 2026. The machines will need rehabilitation in 2026, which will make the state to depend heavily on thermal power,” KSEB chairman B Ashok told ● More on P4 TNIE.  INDIA may witness $100 billion worth of foreign portfolio investment (FPI) outflows in the event of extreme adverse shocks, a recent research paper by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) shows. According to the paper, there is a 5% chance of capital outflows from India of the order of 3.2% of GDP or $100.6 billion in a year, owing to extreme adverse shocks such as a Covidtype contraction in real GDP growth or in a global financial crisis situation such as in 2008. The RBI research paper, coauthored by RBI Deputy Governor Michael Debabrata Patra, also warns that in a very extreme risk scenario or in a black swan event (in which there is a combination of all these shocks), the capital outflow could be as high as $240 billion, or 7.7% of the GDP. The research paper says that these estimates are significant given the fact that India’s total stock of portfolio investment and short-term trade credit stand at $288 billion and $110.5 billion, respectively at the end of Decem, ber 2021. When the interest rate differential between India and the US decreases, Indian papers become less attractive for foreign investors, who shift out their portfolio investments to developed economies. Foreign portfolio investors are also sensitive to risks and higher volatility shown in the emerging markets drives outflow of capital from these markets to safer developed economies. India has been witnessing major outflow of foreign capital since the beginning of 2022. In the current calendar year alone, FPIs have taken out $28 billion from the country as the US increased policy interest rates due to 41-year high inflation.