MADURAI l saturday l december 10, 2022 l `9.00 l PAGES 12 l LATE city EDITION Sushmita Shukla APPOINTED nO 2 OF NY Federal Reserve Did engg from mumbai, mba from new york The Indian-origin insurance sector veteran, 54, has been named First Vice-President and Chief Operating Officer of New York Fed To take charge in March 2023 Shukla has an MBA from New York University and a bachelor’s degree in electrical engineering from the University of Mumbai. She has served in leadership roles in insurance industry for nearly 20 years and has extensive experience leading large-scale enterprise transformation initiatives, as well as in-depth knowledge of technology and Agile innovation methods ■ ■ The Federal Reserve Bank of New York is one of 12 regional Reserve Banks which, together with the Board of Governors in Washington, DC, make up the United States’ Federal Reserve System Sushmita Shukla will take over as the second ranking officer with effect from March 2023, the New York Fed said in a statement Largest tHE NY fed is the BIGGEST reserve bank in terms of assets and volume of activity 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 Mandous makes landfall near Mamallapuram around 9.30pm; Chennai receives 10 cm rain from Thursday night Mandous to batter North TN DISTRICTS E x p r e ss N e ws Se r v i c e @ Chennai As cyclonic storm ‘Mandous’ began its landfall near Mahabalipuram around 9.30 pm and was expected to cross the shore in two to three hours, several north Tamil Nadu districts were expected to receive heavy to very heavy rainfall on Saturday, the Indian Meteorological Department (IMD) said on Friday . The weather system will lose stream as the wind speed will drop substantially by Saturday evening and rainfall will subside from Sunday . Chennai and neighbouring districts received heavy rainfall from Thursday night till late on Friday, with the Nungambakkam and Meenambakkam weather stations recording over 10 cm rainfall for the period. The actual cyclone onslaught will begin hours before the landfall and may extend till Saturday noon, IMD officials said. An official release issued on Friday said through the Common Alert Protocol system, 58.47 lakh people have been sent SMSs on precautions to be taken. Fourteen teams of NDRF and SDRF comprising 476 personnel have been stationed in 20 districts. Of this, three teams comprising 121 personnel are stationed in Chengalpattu district alone since the cyclone may cause more damage in the district. According to S Balachandran, deputy director general of meteorology Regional Mete, orological Centre, at 6 pm on Friday, the cyclone lay centered about 135 km southeast of Mahabalipuram and about 170 km off Chennai over southwest Bay of Bengal. The cyclone was being continuously monitored by doppler weather radar located in Karaikal and Chennai, he said. The weather system will cross the coast as a cyclonic storm with a maximum sustained wind speed of 65-75 kmph gusting to 85 kmph from Friday midnight to Saturday morning. It is likely to reduce gradually thereafter with a wind speed of 30-40 kmph gusting to 50 kmph by Saturday evening, he said. H a r p r ee t B a j w a @ Chandigarh Strong tides hitting the shores at a sea resort in Thevaneri near Mahabalipuram on Friday | Ashwin prasath 28 flights cancelled, Hyd, Marina ramp for disabled B’luru airports kept ready damaged by Mandous 16K cops, 1.5K home guards on standby Chennai: More than 25 domestic flights and three international flights were cancelled as part of Chennai airport’s contingency plan. Bangalore and Hyderabad Airports have been contacted to allot bays, in case flights are getting diverted from Chennai. P2 Chennai: About 16,000 police personnel and 1,500 home guards deployed for security, relief and rescue, and a 40-member team of TN State Disaster Response Force, in addition to 12 District Disaster Response Force teams, are on standby in Chennai, police said. ALERT INSIDE Chennai: Strong waves triggered by the cyclone has damaged the wooden ramp built for disabled at Marina Beach on Friday. The `1.14 crore ramp was inaugurated on November 27 by ChepaukTriplicane MLA Udhayanidhi Stalin on his birthday. P2 District administrations of Chennai, Chengalpattu, Kancheepuram, Tiruvallur, Villupuram, Cuddalore, Kallakurichi, Vellore, Ranipet, Dharmapuri, Tirupattur, Tiruvannamalai and Krishnagiri have declared holiday on Saturday for schools and colleges. Storm to become deep depression and later a depression on Dec 10 11,000 SPL staff to ensure uninterrupted power I P4 A day after wresting power in Himachal Pradesh, newly elected Congress MLAs on Friday passed a typical one-line resolution authorising party president Mallikarjun Kharge to name their chief minister. Himachal Congress president Pratibha Singh leads the race for the hot seat followed by former state unit chief Sukhiwnder Singh Sukhu and outgoing Congress legislature party leader Mukesh Agnihotri. The first meeting of the legislature party at Shimla had to be postponed thrice before it began late in the evening. The resolution authorising Kharge to name the new CM was moved by Agnihotri and seconded by Sukhu. After the meeting, AICC’s Himachal Congress in-charge Rajeev Shukla flanked by Pratibha, Sukhu and two party observers — Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Bhupesh Baghel and former Haryana CM Bhupinder Singh Hooda — made the announcement about the resolution. “Both our observers will give their report to the high command in a day or so. Then the decision on the new CM will be made,’’ he said. Shukla claimed that no MLA proposed any name and it is for Kharge to take the call. How- ever, sources claimed that all MLAs were told to give two names for CMship along with their merits and demerits. Right through the day, both Pratibha and Sukhu were lobbying will party MLAs seeking their support. While Pratibha met Baghel, Hooda and Shukla, Pratibha Singh’s loyalists raise slogans demanding her selection as CM before Bhupesh Baghel’s vehicle, in Shimla | PTI Sukhu remained elusive during the day amidst speculation that he was keeping his flock of MLAs intact. Before the CLP meeting, Pratibha’s supporters raised slogans outside Congress Bhawan in Shimla, demanding that she be made the CM. Pratibha did not contest the Assembly election as he represents mandi in Parliament. However, she campaigned extensively across the state and sought votes in the name of her late husband Virbhadra Singh’s legacy . `1,000cr TN green fund to mitigate climate impact No disclosure RTI Act not applicable to Collegium discussions: SC Va i t h ee swa r a n B @ Chennai SHRUTI K A K K AR @ New Delhi THE Supreme Court on Friday rejected a plea seeking full details of the Collegium meeting that took place on December 12, 2018 under the RTI Act, saying the discussions and consultations among Collegium members can’t be disclosed as they are not final decisions. A bench of judges M R Shah and C T Ravikumar said a decision is termed final only after it is formally drawn and signed by all Collegium members. Till then, it can only be considered a “tentative decision”, which can’t be put in public domain. “During the consultation if some discussion takes place but no final decision is taken and no resolution is drawn, it cannot be said that any final decision is taken by the Collegium,” the court explained. The SC’s order came on a plea filed by RTI activist Anjali Bharadwaj seeking the agenda, minutes and resolution of the 2018 Collegium meeting. According to the autobiography of former CJI Ranjan Gogoi, the 2018 meet had agreed to elevate the then Rajasthan High Court Chief Justice Pradeep Nandrajog and the then Delhi High Court Chief Justice Rajendra Menon to the SC. However, the decision was kept in abeyance after the news of their elevation was leaked. The petitioner also cited an article written by a former Collegium member expressing disappointment over the SC’s failure to upload the decision taken at the December 2018 meeting. While dismissing the plea, the bench cited a subsequent resolution passed by the Collegium on January 10, 2019, indicating that no final decision on elevating the two judges was taken in the 2018 meeting. Himachal Congress authorises Kharge to decide CM pick brazil pay in penalty Brazil players in tears after their agonising defeat in the penalty shootout against Croatia in the quarterfinals. Both teams scored one goal each in extra time before Croatia won the shootout 4-2 | AP Super Saturday Defending champs, France, seek to move past England while Portugal face Morocco test. A look... Mbappe main man Kylian Mabppe has scored five goals and will like the chance of running at an England defence. It’s no surprise that most of the focus is on him. But England will know they possess the tools to upset defending champions. Situation surrounding Portugal They were at the attacking best in their 6-1 dismantling of Switzerland, largely due to the absence of Cristiano Ronaldo. However, they will find Morocco a tough nut to crack. Today Matches Portugal vs Morocco 8.30 PM | France vs England 12.30 AM (on Sunday) express read Priya death: DME issues notices to five doctors Online gambling: Kovai youth dies by suicide Chennai: Directorate of Medical Education has issued notices to five doctors, including two already suspended, and a nurse in connection with the death of 17-year-old footballer R Priya in a botched surgery | P2 Coimbatore: A 22-year-old youth died by suicide on Wednesday night in Coimbatore allegedly after he lost several lakhs of rupees in online gambling. S Salman (22) was working as service person at an agro firm Amid heavy rain and stormy weather, Chief Minister MK Stalin on Friday announced a raft of measures, including setting up of `1,000 crore Green Fund, to finance projects to mitigate climate change impact. Speaking at Tamil Nadu Climate Summit 2022 held in Chennai, the CM said the fund will invest in circular economy renewable , energy, and other projects aimed at mitigating climate change impact. Stalin also announced setting up of 25 model green schools and 10 smart climate villages and two green monuments across the state. “Tamil Nadu government will announce new schemes for entrepreneurs working in areas such as climate change, renewable energy, and sustainable development. Tamil Nadu will not only guide the country in social justice but also in climate justice. While focusing on industrial develop- ment we will also focus on protecting the environment,” the CM said. Speaking on the Tamil Nadu Green Fund initiative, finance secretary Muruganandham told TNIE that the idea is to offer low-cost funds for climate ‘Will achieve net-zero emission before 2070’ CM also said single-window clearance will be offered for implementing green projects and a green corridor will be established for increasing renewable energy generation. Pvt member UCC bill introduced in RS Rajesh Kumar Thakur @ New Delhi A massive uproar erupted in the Rajya Sabha during Zero Hour on Friday after BJP member Kirodi Lal Meena sought permission to introduce a private member bill on the uniform civil code (UCC). The proposed Uniform Civil Code of India Bill 2020 drew stiff opposition from various parties, which feared that it could result in national disintegration. However, Leader of the House Piyush Goyal (BJP) stood by Meena’s ‘legitimate right’ to raise an issue that comes under the directive principles of the Constitution. The bill seeks to set up a national inspection and probe panel for preparation of the UCC. Members of the Congress, CPI, CPI (M) and Trinamool Congress were vocal in their opposition, saying it will destroy India’s social fabric. When Rajya Sabha Chairman Jagdeep Dhankhar put the motion to vote, it was passed with 63 ayes against 23 nays. CPI (M)’s John Brittas said the UCC is neither necessary nor desirable in the country. Santosh Kumar (CPI) called it a dangerous bill. Tiruchi Siva (DMK) said that the proposed legislation carries an idea that is totally contrary to the country’s fabric of secularism. While UCC is an article of faith for the BJP the party , line is it will be done through legislation in BJP-ruled states and not via a Central law. Soft power Taste of India at G20 events with bit of Yoga, sip of herbal tea K AVITA B AJ E LI - D ATT @ New Delhi The Centre plans to use the G20 events spread across the country during India’s presidency to promote India’s tradi, tional medicine, indigenous products like herbal tea, and recipes based on Ayurveda. To boot, traditional medicine experts will be around to share personalised diet and well-being tips to foreign delegates, said Vaidya Rajesh Kotecha, secretary, Ministry of Ayush. “We have proposed that in all the meetings, there should be yoga sessions for which we will be the knowledge partners,” he told this newspaper. Kotecha added that the ministry has already successfully tried it at the recent SCO meeting held at a five-star hotel in Goa. “We coordinated with the chef on some recipes based on Ayurveda, to be served to the delegates. The recipes were sourav roy highly appreciated,” he said. For G20 events, the plan is to organise a full-fledged yoga session, a five-minute yoga break or both, along with promotion of traditional medicine through different activities such as prakriti pariksha (Ayurveda’s unique way of determining the body type of an individual). Explaining the five-minute yoga break concept, the official said it’s a short routine in which meditation and stretch- ing can be done in sitting and standing positions. “All these are science-based, which our experts will help the delegates with,” Kotecha said. A scientific software will be used for prakriti pariksha. “We will inform the delegates how they can become healthy without consulting a doctor. They can achieve it by changing their diet, exercise, and sleep pattern. These are customised recommendations,” he added. change mitigation projects. “The state has already committed `100 crore for the fund. We’re going to register the fund with the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) as it is an alternative investment option and the process will be complete in two to three months. Through this, we could get funds from global markets where there is appetite for these initiatives,” he said. The state can tap into global green-labeled fund market as many of those investors have obligations to invest in g reen projects. Man slashes girl’s neck after she turns him down G a u t h a m Se lv a r a j a n @ Chennai The Avadi city police on Thursday arrested a 24-year-old man for attempt to murder and under Pocso Act for allegedly attacking a minor girl with a broken liquor bottle for rejecting his “love”. The victim suffered minor injuries to her neck and she is out of danger, police said. The incident took place around 9 am on Thursday in full public view at Pattaravakkam railway station outside the city . According to police, the accused, Ayyappan of Villupuram district, worked and stayed in an eatery on the outskirts of the city. Ayyapan and the 16year-old girl got acquainted through social media a few months ago. Ayyappan used to talk to her on mobile phone and last month he proposed his love to her. The girl rejected his proposal and stopped talking to him, police said. Under the pretext of consoling her, Ayyapapan convinced the girl to meet him at the railway station on Thursday morning. During the meeting, Ayyappan again forced the girl to accept his “love”, but the girl refused.