KOZHIKODE l saturday l july 02, 2022 l `9.00 l PAGES 12 l city EDITION Ban on Single-use plastic items comes into effect The nationwide ban kicked in on July 1. Single-use plastic means items that are used only once before they are thrown away Plastic cutlery items proscribed Violators face up to 5-year jail term The banned plastic products include cutlery items such as plates, cups, glasses, forks, spoons, knives, trays, straws etc. The other products that come under the ban are earbuds, balloon sticks, cigarette packs, sweet boxes, candy and ice cream sticks, invitation cards, polystyrene used for decoration, and PVC banners measuring under 100 microns ■ ■ The Union environment ministry has asked states to close down units that produce, distribute, stock and sell such items People found flouting the ban can be fined under the Environment Protection Act 1986, which permits jail of up to five years, or a penalty of up to I1 lakh, or both 2.4 lakh tonnes Volume of single-use plastic items generated in India in a year currently 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 13-member team to identify, nab AKG Centre attacker anger, allegation The culprits and those behind them will be identified. AKG and the office named after him are close to people’s hearts. The attack is aimed to hurt this emotion and create provocation. Party workers should not fall into such traps — Pinarayi Vijayan, Chief Minister The attack was scripted by LDF convener E P Jayarajan and aimed at shifting focus from Rahul Gandhi’s Kerala visit. It is not the style of Congress to attack the offices of other parties — K Sudhakaran, Congress state president Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan on Friday checking the spot on the boundary wall of AKG Centre, where an explosive was thrown the previous night. Minister P A Mohamed Riyas and MLA T P Ramakrishnan are also seen | Vincent Pulickal E x p r e s s N e w s Se r v i c e @T’Puram A 13-member special team led by District Crime Records Bureau (DCRB) assistant commissioner J K Dinil has been formed to probe Thursday night’s attack on AKG Centre, the CPM state headquarters. The probe will be directly monitored by a senior officer and will be assisted by cyber experts as it warrants analysis of phone call details and retrieval of data from mobile towers located in the vicinity of AKG Centre. Meanwhile, Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan, CPM general secretary Sitaram Yechury and the LDF condemned the attack on Friday, with the CM vowing to bring those behind the incident to book. Protests were also held across the state against the incident. State Congress president K Sudhakaran, however, alleged SC tears into BJP’s Rahul forgives SFI, later attacks CPM Nupur for her hate speech & fallout E x p r e s s N e w s Se r v i c e @ Kalpetta Windfall tax Export levy up on transport fuel to increase domestic supply R a k e s h K u m a r @ New Delhi IN a bid to tax the windfall gains by domestic refiners who import cheap crude oil from Russia and export the refined product at much higher prices, the Centre on Friday imposed special additional excise duty on export of petrol, diesel and aviation turbine fuel (ATF) with effect from July 1. The cess for petrol and ATF is `6 per litre, while it is `13 for diesel. A cess of `23,250 per tonne has also been imposed on crude produced domestically . “Domestic crude producers sell crude to domestic refineries at international parity prices. As a result, the domestic crude producers are making windfall gains,” a finance ministry release said explaining the rationale behind the move. However, there will be no cess for import of crude, the ministry clarified. “Further, small producers, whose annual production of crude in the preceding financial year is less than 2 million barrels will be exempt from this cess,” it said, adding that the new cess will have no adverse impact on domestic fuel prices. The decision will directly impact domestic refiners Jio-BP, Nayara Energy and ONGC which, in turn, could tighten their global oil product supplies. Analysts believe the move to make export of fuel expensive is to ensure sufficient availability of petroleum products for domestic consumption but it may not achieve the desired result. “With product prices expected to stay elevated in the international market, we believe unless domestic retail prices are revised upwards, there exists substantial incentive for private players to export a larger share of their product, albeit at reduced margins,” Crisil said. the entire incident was scripted by LDF convener E P Jayarajan. Though the suspect who hurled the explosive that struck the gate of the building remains unidentified, the police said they have managed to trace the route he took after the attack, through Kunnukuzhy up to the Medical College junction. The suspect stuck mostly to sub routes, which, investigators felt, was aimed at avoiding the powerful surveillance cameras. One of the night vision cameras installed near Pottakkuzhi captured a vague image of the number plate of the suspect’s two-wheeler, it is learnt. Efforts are on to decipher it.  ● More on P4 Raps TV channel for holding the controversial debate, accuses it of promoting an agenda Pardiwala. One of the fallouts was the butchering of a tailor in The Supreme Court on Friday Udaipur, the bench said. lit into suspended BJP spokes“She actually has a loose person Nupur Sharma, saying tongue and has made all kinds of her “loose tongue” had “set the irresponsible statements on TV entire country on fire”, alluding and set the entire country on fire. to the riots that followed her hate Yet, she claims to be a lawyer. She speech against Islam should have immediateduring a TV debate. ly apologised for her While refusing to encomments to the whole tertain Sharma’s plea country,” the bench for clubbing of FIRs said. Senior advocate against her, the court alManinder Singh, aplowed her to withdraw pearing for Shar ma, the plea. It observed that said she had apologised her remark was made for her remarks. Nupur Sharma either for cheap publicOn this, the bench ity, political agenda or said, “Her apology came Political too late and that too consome nefarious activiclout ties. It was hearing her ditionally saying if relipetition for clubbing “When an FIR is gious sentiments are and transfer of all FIRs hurt and so on.” registered and registered against her The court said her peyou are not in various states followtition smacks of arroarrested, this ing her offensive re- shows your clout. g ance and that she mark, to Delhi. thinks that the magisShe thinks she “These remarks are trate of the country is has backup very disturbing and too small for her. “If you power and smack of arrogance. are a spokesperson of a makes What is her business to party, it is not a license irresponsible make such remarks? statements,” the to say things like this,” These remarks have led the judges said, adding, bench said to unfortunate incidents “if there was a misuse in the country These people are of the debate, the first thing she . not religious. They do not have should have done was to file an respect for other religions. These FIR against the anchor.” remarks were made for cheap Criticising the TV channel, it publicity or for political agenda said, “What is the business of the or some other nefarious activi- TV channel to discuss the matter ties,” said a vacation bench of which is sub-judice, except to justices Surya Kant and J B promote an agenda?” E x p r e s s N e w s Se r v i c e @New Delhi Taking the wind out of the Congress’ protests, Rahul Gandhi struck a high moral posture on Friday saying he had no hostility towards SFI workers who ransacked his MP office. But after a few hours, he launched a tirade against CPM for its faith in “violence”, apparently to assuage the hurt feelings of Congress workers. “It’s unfortunate...they are students and they had done this irresponsibly...my MP office is the office of the people...no issue can be resolved through violence,” he told reporters after visiting the office. However, at a public function later, he lashed out at the CPM and BJP, saying violence was deeply rooted in their ideology . “BJP and CPM believe in violence. It is deeply embedded in their ideology. They think they can change people’s behaviour by violence. While the Union government and PM think I will change my behaviour after sitting (through) five days of questioning before the Enforcement Directorate, CPM thinks by breaking my office, I will change my behaviour,” he said. Rahul was speaking at a massive UDF rally organised against the ecosensitive zone demarcation at Sulthan Bathery in Wayanad. He was accompanied by former CM Oommen Chandy, Leader of Opposition V D Satheeshan, state Congress chief K Sudhakaran, MP Benny Behnan and IUML leader M K Muneer during his visit to his office eight days after the attack. Medisep scheme comes into effect Medisep, the cashless health insurance scheme for Kerala government employees and pensioners came into effect on Friday. The scheme covers 11.34 lakh beneficiaries and their dependents, together 33-35 lakh people | P5 Manipur toll touches 20, 43 still missing circle of tradition A craftsman readying a traditional interior decor item out of reeds for a restaurant in Kozhikode to match the establishment’s aesthetics | E Gokul Imphal: Rescue teams on Friday recovered 12 more bodies from the debris at a railway construction site in Manipur’s Noney district, which was hit by a massive landslide, pushing the toll to 20, officials said. Forty-three people are still missing, officials said | P8 Deaths post jabs put rabies vaccine under cloud Now, Pawar’s election affidavits under I-T lens Year Rabies deaths 2022 June- 14 2021 11 2020 5 2019 8 2018 9 2017 3 2016 2 2015 7 Rise in dog bite cases due to: Uncontrolled growth in stray dog population Poor vaccination of pets Unn i k r i s h n a n S @T’Puram The death of a college girl in Palakkad from rabies despite taking the full course of the anti-rabies vaccine has triggered concerns as cases of dog bites are being reported in the state regularly . Though vaccines available in the market have saved thousands from catching the infec- tion, a few odd deaths this year have sparked doubts regarding their quality and effectiveness of their administration. The state has reported 14 deaths due to rabies this year. What is concerning that three of them had completed their vaccination schedule. Its very high fatality rate and the fact that rabies infection can manifest even six years after a dog bite have people worried too. The health department has vouched for the quality of vaccines and immunoglobulin given to Sreelakshmi, 19, who died on Thursday. Palakkad district medical officer K P Reetha said proper cold chain storage was maintained and doses from the same batch of vaccines were given to others ● More on P4 without issues.  Separated at 6, a lost son longs to meet his biological mother After working for two years in Sharjah, Hashim T E, 23, is back home for a vacation. His umma Razia feels he should build a house and get married. But Hashim has never been more unsettled. He has to return to Sharjah in a month. However, on his mind is plotting another jour- They (BJP and CPM) lack courage. Hence they believe they can shape people’s behaviour through fear. They cannot change my behaviour as it is shaped by the affection towards the people of this country — Rahul Gandhi EXPRESS READ long wait G e o r ge P o i k ay i l @Kasaragod MP Rahul Gandhi at his office in Wayanad. Former chief minister Oommen Chandy, Leader of Opposition V D Satheesan and other Congress leaders are also seen | Express ney to plug the hole in his life. Hashim wants to find his biological mother and sisters, says Razia, who found him as a sixyear-old Hindi-speaking boy . “Whenever he thinks of her, his hands start trembling and he shuts us out,” says the homemaker. “We do not know how to help him.” Seventeen years ago, on November 1, 2005, Hashim got Hashim when he was six (L) and now down from a private bus at Moonam Mile near Ambalathara, 9km from Kan- hangad. He had a note in Malayalam that read: ‘He is an orphan. Please take him to the orphanage.’ Near the stop is Parappally Valiyullahi Memorial Orphanage, run by Parappally Jama-ath Committee. But Hashim got down in front of Razia’s eldest son Shajeer Palat, then 14. It was raining and Shajeer brought him home. “He wore black shirt and black jeans. I had never seen such a well-dressed boy here,” says Razia. Hashim spoke only Hindi. None could get any details out of him. Hashim says he cannot remember where he came from. “Someone put me on a train during a riot or disturbance. There was a mosque, a temple and railway tracks near my ● More on P4 house,” he says.  E x p r e s s N e w s Se r v i c e @ Mumbai Aarey row back New CM Eknath Shinde is already stepping on predecessor Uddhav’s toes. He has directed the advocate general to inform the court that the Metro car shed project will be implemented at Aarey Colony as planned in 2019 by the then BJP govt. Days after the Maha Vikas Aghadi government collapsed in Maharashtra, the man who was instrumental in keeping it afloat, NCP patriarch Sharad Pawar, got what he called was a love letter from a Central enforcement agency The income tax department, he said, . had issued him a notice in connection with his 2004, 2009, 2014 and 2019 Lok Sabha elections affidavits. “I am surprised that Central agencies are sifting through old records and sending notices now. It shows how these agencies are working overtime to target political opponents. They want to suppress dissent. The same strategy was used against Shiv Sena MLAs, forcing them to revolt against their leadership,” Pawar alleged. He sarcastically said before the BJP came to power at the Centre, no one knew about the ED (Enforcement Directorate). “Now, ED has become a family name,” Pawar said. It was the ED that got two NCP MLAs Nawab Malik and Anil Deshmukh arrested earlier on money laundering charges. Meanwhile, Sanjay Raut, a Thackeray faction leader, was questioned by the ED on Friday for over 10 hours in another money laundering case. P7