THIRUVANANTHAPURAM l friday l december 02, 2022 l `9.00 l PAGES 16 l LATE city EDITION November GST mop-up grows 11% year-on-year to `1.46 L cr This is the ninth month in a row that the indirect tax revenues have remained above the L1.4 lakh crore mark Collections 4% lower than October figure Manufacturing PMI AT THREE-MONTH HIGH However, this was 4% lower than October’s festival-driven GST mop-up of D1.52 lakh crore. The gross GST revenue collected in November 2022 is D1,45,867 cr, of which Central GST is D25,681 cr, State GST D32,651 cr, Integrated GST D77,103 cr (including D38,635 cr collected on import of goods) and Cess is D10,433 cr (including D817 cr on import of goods) | P10 ■ ■ Meanwhile, manufacturing activities in India touched a threemonth high in November as new orders and exports expanded, another set of data released on Thursday showed The S&P Global India Manufacturing Purchasing Managers’ Index stood at 55.7 in November, up from 55.3 in October A1.68 lakh cr The highest ever gst collection, recorded in April 2022 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 Won’t backtrack on Vizhinjam port project, asserts Pinarayi Charges agitators with bid to stall state’s progress, says police station attack pre-planned Clergymen led violence: Govt E x p r e s s N e w s Se r v i c e @T’Puram Mega Modi roadshow Prime Minister Narendra Modi during an election campaign roadshow in Ahmedabad on Thursday. Spanning over 30 km, it covered 13 constituencies in Ahmedabad city and Gandhinagar-South | pti District Narmada Navsari Porbandar Rajkot Surat Surendranagar Tapi Valsad Junagadh Kachchh Morbi Navsari Amreli Bharuch Bhavnagar Botad Dang Dwarka Gir Somnath Janmnagar Vote 73.02% 65.91% 53.84% 57.68% 59.55% 60.71% 72.32% 65.29% 56.95% 55.54% 67.65% 65.91% 57.06% 63.08% 57.81% 57.15% 64.84% 59.11% 60.46% 56.09% Asserting that his government will not backtrack on the Vizhinjam seaport project, Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan on Thursday accused the anti-port agitators of trying destroy the peace and stall the progress of the state. “It is not a protest against the government... It’s an attempt to halt the state’s development. In whatever garb they come, they will not be permitted to succeed,” Pinarayi said in his first public remark, three days after the agitators unleased largescale violence attacking a police station and injuring over 35 personnel in Vizhinjam. Alleging that the police station attack was executed after careful planning, he said “what was the provocation? They declare the attack in advance and implement it. A planned attack E x p r e s s N e w s Se r v i c e @Kochi Tourism director P B Nooh, who’s also LIFE Mission CEO, apprises Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan of the scheme’s progress during the inauguration of Income from Green Energy project. Transport Minister Antony Raju looks on | Vincent Pulickal with a specially selected crowd. They are trying to destroy the peace and harmony existing in the state.” He said the government will overcome all the challenges posed by vested interests acting against the state, and implement the seaport project in the same way as it executed the Gail pipeline, national highway and Edamon-Kochi power highway . “There were differences between UDF and LDF on Vizhinjam port. But we have decided to go ahead with the project which had already started,” Pinarayi said after inaugurating the Green Energy Income Scheme ● More on P4 by Anert.  Clergymen were at the forefront of the violence that wreaked havoc in Vizhinjam, the state government has informed the High Court. Blatantly violating the assurances to the court, around 500 agitators trespassed into the port area with an intention to obstruct the implementation of the court orders, said the affidavit filed by Thiruvananthapuram City Police Commissioner G Sparjan Kumar. “By ringing the bell of nearby churches, the protesters abetted devotees to gather. Over 2,000 people, including women and children, gathered at once, and indulged in violence,” ● More on P4 the affidavit said.  Pro-port stand sours Latin Church’s love for Tharoor 61% turnout in Gujarat first phase Sunanda Pushkar death: Delhi police move HC The first phase of Gujarat polls on Thursday witnessed 61% turnout, 7% less than in 2017 Average voter turnout 2002 2007 2012 2017 2022 Phase 1 seats 60.91% 60.62% 70.73% 66.95% 61% EVM snag in a few places Polling was largely peaceful across all 89 seats that went to polls in the first phase. Voting was halted in a few places due to malfunctioning of EVMs as well as control units and Voter Verifiable Paper Audit Trail (VVPATs) but the faulty units were replaced and the process resumed EXPRESS READ Vellappally first Guv Khan’s letter to accused in FIR CM goes viral Alappuzha: SNDP Yogam general secretary Vellappally Natesan has been made the first accused in the FIR registered in the suicide of the yogam’s Kanichukulangara union secretary. Vellappally’s aide K L Ashokan and son Thushar Vellappally are the second and third accused, respectively | P4 T’Puram: Governor Arif Mohammed Khan’s letter to CM Pinarayi Vijayan for ‘appropriate consideration’ while forwarding a complaint by BJP state leaders, has gone viral on social media. The Raj Bhavan maintained that there was nothing unusual in the communication | P4 24 lakh HIV +ve people in India New Delhi: The number of people living with HIV in India is estimated to be around 24 lakh, with Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh, and Karnataka reporting the maximum numbers, says the India HIV Estimates 2021 report released on Thursday. Annual new infections in 2021 are estimated at around 63,000, a 46.3% decline since 2010 | P7 16 pages, including 4 pages of THIRUVANANTHAPURAM Express K S S r ee j i t h @T’Puram New Delhi: The Delhi police on Thursday approached the Delhi High Court challenging last year’s trial court order discharging Shashi Tharoor of all charges in the death of his wife Sunanda Pushkar in 2014. The court posted the matter to February 7, 2023 for further hearing | P5 Congress leader Shashi Tharoor may be gaining admirers across the state. However, it seems he has lost a crucial section of the mass base in his own constituency . His open support to the Vizhinjam seaport construction could prove costly for the Remember Ethan Hunt in the Mission Impossible series? He simply shows his face to get access to his high security office. You could soon have a similar feeling in select airports in India for your domestic flight. From now, three airports — Delhi, Bengaluru and Varanasi — will offer the Digi Yatra service that allows domestic fliers enter the departure zones by just looking into a lens. “A static stare into a digitally wired lens is required to pass the security check,” a ministry official said. The service was launched by Civil Aviation Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia, at Delhi’s Indira Gandhi International Airport How to go about it l Download Digi Yatra and Digi Locker Apps from Playstore l Register on Digi Yatra App using phone number and OTP l Link passenger Aadhaar using Digi Locker l Take selfie for validation Before every flight l Scan boarding pass (pre-requisite for check-in) l Share boarding pass data with the boarding airport FRT at Dubai Airport saves 40% of passenger time; and 9 mins per aircraft time at Atlanta Airport FRT pilot project launched at IGI Airport in August Church heads, including those whom Tharoor had met during his recent Malabar tour. The archdiocese has alleged that Tharoor’s support to the port’s construction has put it in a spot. It is learnt that the Vizhinjam issue and the ongoing protest, will be taken up in the meeting of the Kerala Regional Latin Catholic Council ● More on P4 on Sunday  . G20 presidency begins, to be consultative & decisive Y e s h i Se l i @ New Delhi India on Thursday assumed the G20 presidency with Exter, nal Affairs Minister S Jaishankar saying “it will be consultative, it will be collaborative and it will be decisive.” At a G20 University Connect event that drew students of 75 universities in an interactive session, he said, “Our G20 Presidency is taking place at a very critical moment in international affairs. It is particularly vital that world leaders focus on the right issues, especially those that affect the more vulnerable sections of the world.” As many as 100 monuments, including UNESCO world heritage sites, were lit up with the G20 logo to mark the start of India’s year-long presidency . The White House said the US is looking forward to support- ing India’s G20 presidency on a range of issues, including addressing the current food and energy security challenges. Jaishankar said G20 is not just the collective weight of the participants. “The world will get to know India better and our citizens will develop a sharper appreciation of it,” he added. The minister highlighted eight points saying India’s example is of increasing relevance to others. They include the country’s experience in last mile delivery using digital platforms, its way of responding to the Covid and indeed the transformation in clean energy he added. , Right through the year, India intends to host over 200 meetings in 50-plus cities across 32 different workstreams that would give G20 delegates and guests a glimpse of India’s rich cultural heritage. Now, show your face and catch your flight A M IT M U K H E RJ E E @ New Delhi Thiruvananthapuram MP as the Latin Catholic Archdiocese, a consistent vote bank of his, has urged various Church factions to join hands against him. The archdiocese, which is spearheading the anti-port protest, is learnt to have communicated its displeasure with Tharoor to other Catholic Terminal 3 on Thursday. Digi Yatra is an app-based service that has been designed to achieve contactless, seamless processing of passengers at airports, based on facial recognition technology (FRT). The system allows travellers to pass through checkpoints via a paperless and contactless process using facial features, captured in the form of digital contours and structure, to establish the identity, which is linked to the boarding pass. To use this facility a one-time reg, istration on the Digi Yatra app is required, using Aadhaarbased validation and a self-image capture. The data, Scindia said, is saved in an encrypted format at the airport using blockchain technology. Information sourced from passengers’ phones and stored at the airport will be purged 24 hours after the journey he added. , Allaying data security concerns, the ministry said, “There is no central storage of Personally Identifiable Information. Passenger’s ID and travel credentials are stored in a secure wallet in the passenger’s smartphone itself.” The service is at present being rolled out for domestic flights. In the first phase, it will be launched at seven airports, including the three where it began on Thursday. The other four are Hyderabad, Kolkata, Pune and Vijayawada where the launch is expected by March next year. Argentina go over Pole Argentina keep alive their hopes of claiming a third World Cup while Belgium’s Golden Generation are ousted Morocco players toss head coach Walid Regragui into the air to celebrate their win against Canada on Thursday. The team qualified for the last 16 for first time since 1986 | AP | P11 Next generation come alive Forward Julian Alvarez, part of La Albiceleste’s next generation, scored on a night Messi missed his penalty. Midfielder Alexis Mac Allister had scored the opener Poland go through on night of drama Poland may have lost but they still went through on account of a better goal difference compared to Mexico, who beat Saudi Arabia Belgium eliminated The Red Lions, who reached the semifinals in 2018, were ousted by Croatia. They needed a win to give their ageing golden generation another chance but only drew Today’s 8.30pm: South Korea vs Portugal, Ghana vs Uruguay matches 12.30 am (Sat): Serbia vs Switzerland, Cameroon vs Brazil Duo molests livestreaming South Korean YouTuber, held E x p r e ss N e ws Se r v i c e @ Mumbai THE Mumbai Police on Thursday arrested two men for allegedly molesting a South Korean YouTuber while she was livestreaming from Khar area of Mumbai. Police swung into action after a Twitter user shared the video of the disturbing incident. The two accused, Mobeen Shaikh (19) and Naqeeb Ansari (21), were produced before a court, which sent them to one-day police custody . The video shows a man trying to forcefully kiss the woman, who protests and walks away. Later, the man along with his friend on a bike can be seen approaching her again. The Twitter user who shared the video tweeted, “A streamer from Korea was harassed by these boys while she was livestreaming in front of a 1000+ people. This is disgusting and some action needs to be taken against them.” Responding to the tweet, the YouTuber said, “Last night on stream, there was a guy who harassed me. I tried my best not to escalate the situation and leave because he was with his friend. And some people said that it was initiated by me being too friendly and engaging the conversation. Makes me think again about streaming.” Shafi in trouble Qatar WC tour Puts him at odds with YC leaders in Kerala Peeved that their state president is enjoying football while workers are in jail following T’Puram corp stir, some YC leaders in Kerala have filed complaints against Shafi with the national leadership | P4 pocso case accused forced to serve Jain, says probe Panel legedly gave a massage to ed confession. After the video Jain whose videos created a of Jain getting a massage in AT least five Tihar political storm re- jail was circulated on social jail inmates, two of cently “I provided the media, the AAP claimed he . them accused in Pocmassage to him (Jain) was actually receiving physiso cases, were presat the instructions of otherapy as part of treatsured by the jail adjail officials. Now I ment. However, Rinku clariministration to am being threatened. fied that he never got any provide “special servI have not even taken training in physiotherapy . ices” to jailed AAP a drop of water from Another Pocso accused, minister Satyendra Jain’s cell for giving Manish, was found to be inSatyendra Jain Jain, said an inquiry the massage,” the re- volved in providing fruits panel that is looking into al- port said, quoting his record- and outside food to Jain. legations of VVIP treatment given to Jain in jail. The committee underlined Ready to face ed probe, says Kavitha that a retinue of jail officials TRS MLC K Kavitha, whose name figured in ED’s remand report in the Delhi liquor scam case, said she is ready to face any probe. “If was involved in the service of Jain. Tihar inmate Rinku, ac- agencies ask us questions, we will answer. But tarnishing leaders’ cused of raping a minor, al- images through leaks to the media, people will refute it,” she said. A s h i s h S r i va stava @ New Delhi