thrissur l wednesday l February 07, 2024 l `9.00 l PAGES 12 l city EDITION Eleven persons killed in MP explosion; 174 others injured The explosion at a crackers factory in Harda district in Madhya Pradesh triggered a massive blaze. Reasons for the fire are not known yet Hospitals on high alert for burn victims Fire brigade from Harda, adjoining districts and Indore were pressed into service to put out the blaze. Hospitals in Bhopal and Indore were put on heightened alert to deal with the sudden flow of critically injured persons from Harda. Besides fire brigades, ambulances, doctors, NDRF and SDRF teams were rushed from neighbouring districts to speed up rescue efforts ■ 11 am Factory in rubble; body parts scattered ■ A video shot from a helicopter, carrying cabinet minister Uday Pratap Singh showed the factory reduced to a rubble Videos on social media showed the intensity of the explosions was so high that the body parts of the victims were flung far off and people can be seen collecting what appeared like human remains | P8 fire broke out and the entire area felt tremors because of explosion 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 Uttarakhand’s UCC bill tabled, live-in registration mandatory Oppn seeks more time to study legislation; wants it sent to House panel for vetting N A R E N D R A S E T H I @ Dehradun Among the major talking points of the Uniform Civil Code bill that was tabled in Uttarakhand’s special assembly session on Tuesday, was the stipulation that live-in partners must register themselves within a month with district of ficials or face imprisonment. Anyone in a live-in relationship for more than a month without getting it registered could face up to three months in jail or a fine of up to `10,000 or both. Those providing false information could be asked to cough up `25,000. On the flip side, children born of such relationships will be considered legitimate and deserted women will be entitled to maintenance from their partners. Live-in partners cannot be under 18. If any one of them is under 21, the registrar would be mandated to in- CM Pushkar Singh Dhami holds a copy of the Constitution at Vidhan Sabha Bhawan form their parents or guardians, bill states. During the debate on the bill, the opposition Congress pressed for it to be sent to a House panel for review. The bill was originally stated for debate and passage on Tuesday. But since the opposition demanded more time to study it, Speaker Ritu Khanduri said the discussion will continue on Wednesday . The bill proposes a uniform process for the registration of marriage and divorce. Couples and officials have also been assigned responsibilities and accountability. Failing to register a marriage or not complying with the rules would attract a maximum fine of `25,000. Among the other significant recommendations made by the UCC panel were the prohibition of practices such as polygamy halala, iddat, , and child marriage, the establishment of a uniform age for marriage for girls regardless of religion, equal inheritance rights for all genders. Members of the ruling BJP referred to the Shah Bano case several times during the discussion, accusing the Congress of changing the law instead of respecting the Supreme Court’s verdict in the Shah Bano case. Scuba divers spot mystery ECI holds Ajit-led group as real NCP shipwreck off Varkala S hain u M o han @T’Puram A regular fun scuba diving expedition off Varkala has turned out to be a thrilling and memorable experience for a group of divers. Little did they expect that their marine exploration trip would lead them to the discovery of a shipwreck. The mystery shipwreck discovered 10km offshore of Nedunganda Beach, located between Varkala and Anchuthengu, is expected to transform Varkala into a sought-after international destination for scuba diving. Efforts are on to un- ravel the history of the sunken-wrecked ship, which is lying 45m deep in the sea. Multiple assumptions are doing the rounds about the story of the sunken ship. Some believe it could be a British cargo ship that was torpedoed by Japanese submarines during World War II. Another assumption is that it is the wreckage of a Dutch ship that was sunk centuries ago. A team of three divers from Varkala Watersports, a scuba diving club, had discovered the wreckage last week.  ● More on P4 Par v e z S u ltan & S u dhir S u r ya w anshi @ New Delhi/Mumbai IN a major setback to Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) founder Sharad Pawar, the Election Commission of India (ECI) on Tuesday recognised the faction led by his nephew Ajit Pawar as the real NCP and allowed it to use the party’s symbol Wall Clock. Sharad Pawar will have to apply for a new party and symbol by Wednesday 4.00 pm; otherwise, his MLAs will be recognised as independents. While adjudicating the matter in favour of the Ajit camp, the ECI said Sharad Pawar failed to prove he enjoys the support of a majority of NCP legislators. The ECI followed three tests — test of aims and objectives of party constitution, test of party constitution, and test of majority — to adjudicate the case. Foreign varsity campus plan opens cracks in CPM S o v i Vid yadharan / M P P rashanth @T’Puram/Kozhikode Differences within the CPM over allowing foreign universities to set up campuses in the state came to the fore on Tuesday with its student arm, SFI, objecting to , the proposal amid reports that the party has not yet discussed the matter that implies a major policy shift. Treading with caution, Higher Education Minister R Bindu clarified that the government has not taken a policy decision on the contentious issue. In his budget speech on Monday Finance Minister K , N Balagopal announced that the government will examine opportunities to establish foreign university campuses in the state. In a major embarrassment to the CPM and the LDF government, the SFI made it clear that it was against the proposal. “We are really concerned over the issue. SFI cannot agree with the concept. There is no need for foreign university campuses in Kerala,” SFI state president K Anushree told reporters in Kozhikode. SFI would take u p the matter with the government. The SFI had fiercely resisted moves to allow private and global players in the state’s higher education sector, especially during the tenure of the previous UDF government. CPM sources wondered how such an important policy shift be announced by the finance minister in the assembly without the party’s approval. “No decision has been taken on allowing foreign universities in the state. It may have found mention in the budget owing to the investment potential. Further discussions need to be held on the matter,” Bindu told TNIE. Senior functionaries of the state higher education council also admitted off the record that they were taken aback by the mention of foreign universities in the budget without even conducting preliminary discussions. Academics are of the view that setting up of foreign university campuses in the state may not entirely ad● More on P4 dress the migration of students abroad.  Hockey player Varun Kumar booked under POCSO Act E x press N e w s S er v i c e @ Bengaluru Bengaluru Police has booked feted hockey player Varun Kumar under the stringent Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act following a complaint by a 21-year-old woman, who accused the Arjuna awardee of sexually abusing her when she was a minor. The woman, who hails from Hyderabad and is currently working with an airline, said she met Kumar in 2018 when he was training at the Sports Authority of India in Bengaluru, where she was also training for volleyball. She said Kumar later contacted her through Instagram and insisted on meeting her. He then allegedly proposed to her and started physical relationship with her with the promise of marriage. S Girish, Deputy Commissioner of Police (West), said: “A case has been registered against the hockey player. At present, he is not in Karnataka.” Kerala sweats as blazing sun wreaks havoc M an o j Vis w anathan @ Kochi It is only the first week of February, but Kerala is reeling under a scorching sun. With meteorologists finding no possibility of rain for the next couple of weeks, Kerala is bracing for the hottest summer in a decade. Meanwhile, power consumption has started soaring, forcing the KSEB to purchase an additional 9 million units (MU) per day from the real-time market at a high rate. The state recorded a departure of 1.5 -3 degrees Celsius in daytime temperature during the past week. The scorching sun coupled with high humidity has left the state sweating. On Tuesday, Kannur recorded the highest temperature of 37.9 degrees Celsius followed by Thiruv a n a n t h ap u r a m c i t y, which recorded 36.2 degrees Celsius. Weather experts attributed the unusual rise in temperature to El Nino, which is at its ● More on P4 peak.  Maximum Temperature recorded on Feb 6 Kannur 37.9* T’Puram city 36.2 Vellanikara (Thrissur) 35.8 Punalur (Kollam) 35.2 Palakkad 34.8 * Degrees Celsius BISCUITS