KOCHI l wednesday l February 21, 2024 l `9.00 l PAGES 18 l LATE city EDITION Neuralink patient can control Mouse through thought: Musk Neuralink’s first human patient with a brain chip is able to control a computer mouse using thoughts, founder Elon Musk said on Tuesday Patient recovers with no ill effects “Progress is good, and the patient seems to have made a full recovery, with no ill effects that we are aware of,” Musk said in a Space event on X. “Patient is able to move a mouse around the screen by just thinking,” he added. Last month, Neuralink’s implant was given to the first human patient and initial results showed promising neuron spike detection ■ $5 bn Aim to restore capabilities in patients ■ Neuralink’s implant is designed to help humans use their neural signals to control external technologies and its longterm vision is to restore lost capabilities such as vision, motor function, and speech Neuralink uses a robot to surgically place a brain-computer interface implant in a region of the brain that controls the intention to move was the valuation of Neuralink in June 2023 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 Protest to resume today; Court says tractor trolleys can’t run on highways as per MV Act Farmer build-up begins; HC says ‘no’ to tractors H a r p r e e t B a j w a @ Chandigarh Battle lines were drawn along the Punjab-Haryana border with farmers bringing in heavy machinery including hy, draulic cranes and earth movers, to break the police barricades as they resume their Dilli Chalo march on Wednesday, a day after they rejected a formula floated by the Centre. In a new twist later in the day, the Punjab and Haryana High Court said tractor trolleys cannot run on highways as per the Motor Vehicles Act. It advised farmers to use buses or public transport to go to Delhi instead. A bench of Acting Chief Justice G S Sandhawalia and Justice Lapita Banerji also orally directed the Punjab government to ensure that farmers do not gather in large numbers. Briefing the media on the talks with the Centre, farmer leaders said they had suggested a special session of Parliament to pass a legislation on legal guarantees to the minimum support price (MSP) mechanism for crops. Sarwan Singh Pandher, general secretary of the Kisan Mazdoor Sangharsh Committee, said: “We have three major demands: legal guarantee on MSP for all crops; the implementation of the C2+50% formula as recommended by the Swaminathan Commission; and loan waiver.’’ He said as per government reports, farmers have a total debt of `18.5 lakh crore. “Prime Minister Narendra Modi could make a pre-poll announcement that all farm loans would be waived; a mechanism to do so could be worked out later,” he suggested. At the Shambhu inter-state border, sources said the number of agitators is swelling. There is heavy police deployment in and around Rajpura to manage traffic movement as hundreds of tractor trolleys are rolling towards Shambhu. Cynthia Chandran & Vishnuprasad K P @T’Puram/Malappuram Farmers with an excavator modified to shield the agitators from police rubber bullets, at the Punjab-Haryana Shambhu border in Patiala district on Tuesday. Their Dilli Chalo agitation will resume on Wednesday | PTI Both BJP & Akalis blame it on Mann Food for thought 1 Proposal: Farmers demand guaranteed MSP for all 23 crops; implementation of C2+50% formula as recommended by the Swaminathan panel; and loan waiver estimated at D18.5 lakh cr 3 2 Counter-proposal: Both the Punjab unit of the BJP and the Shiromani Akali Dal blamed Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann for breakdown of talks. Punjab BJP president Sunil Jakhar said, “Since Mann acted as the lawyer for farmers during the talks, the negotiations were destined to fail.” Senior SAD leader Prof Prem Singh Chandumajra said Mann’s double-speak during negotiations failed the farming community and forced them on the path of agitation Govt offers MSP guarantee on 5 crops — tur, urad, masoor, cotton and maize — for five years. Farmers reject it Cost of guaranteed MSP to all crops: Govt will get in only when mandi price is below MSP. So, real cost to govt will be MSP minus mandi price, which is about D21,000 crore for marketing year 2023, as per CRISIL Market Intelligence & Analytics 4 Expert take: Govt proposal is a diversionary tactic to buy time, says Devinder Sharma. If govt can waive off D15,000 lakh crore of corporate loans, why can’t it do so for farmers, he asks Minister trio visits Wayanad, but farmers not enthused Maha nod to 10% Maratha reservation S u d h i r S u r ya w a n s h i @ Mumbai THE Maharashtra assembly on Tuesday unanimously passed a bill providing 10% reservation to the Maratha community in education and government jobs under a separate category This . is the third attempt to provide reservation benefits to the community on grounds of social, economic, and educational backwardness. Marathas constitute 28%of the state’s population. Ahead of the Lok Sabha and state Assembly elections in 2014, the then CM Prithviraj Chavan had promulgated an ordinance approving a 16% reservation for Marathas. But the Bombay High Court stayed it, and the decision was upheld by the Supreme Court. In 2018, the Devendra Fadnavis-led government passed the Maharashtra State Reservation for Socially and Educationally Backward Classes bill to provide quota for Marathas. The Supreme Court struck it down. The latest move is based on the recommendation of the Maharasthra Backward Classes Commission headed by retired judge Sunil Shukre. According to the panel, the Maratha community is economically backward with 21.22% living below poverty line depending on free rations given by the government. “In total farmer suicides, 94% of the deceased farmers belong to Maratha community . Marathas engaged in agriculture are finding their traditional trade unprofitable... There is high illiteracy and Marathas are deprived of government jobs and better life,” the report said. Article 370 stymied J&K’s devpt: Modi M a n o j V i s w a n at h a n Maharashtra CM Eknath Shinde arrives to attend the one-day special session of the state assembly on Tuesday | PTI FAYA Z WANI @ Srinagar @Mananthavady The visit by three Kerala ministers to Mananthavady in Wayanad to pacify farmers unnerved by the spike in humanwildlife conflicts did more harm than good on Tuesday . Specifically, it was the proposal by Local Self-Government Minister M B Rajesh — who visited the high ranges with Forest Minister A K Saseendran and Revenue Minister K Rajan — to put restrictions on cattle rearing along forest fringes that irked farmers, who alleged the move will rob them of livelihood. Rajesh, who made the announcement at an all-party meeting in Sultan Bathery, was reiterating the forest department’s argument that cattle rearing is a major reason behind tigers straying into human habitats. Aged tigers and leopards move to forest fringes after losing territory to young blood. And since they cannot chase and catch deer, wild boar, gaurs or other prey due to their age, the cattle prove easy targets. However, cattle rearing is the main source of income for farmers in the high ranges. Despite being a small district with 37% forest cover, Wayanad is one of the leading districts in Kerala in milk production, with dairy cooperatives there pro- No 3rd Lok Sabha seat, says Cong, but League remains optimistic The BJP-led government at the Centre removed Article 370 because it was the biggest hurdle to the development of Jammu and Kashmir, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said on Tuesday as he launched multiple development projects worth over `32,000 crore related to health, education, rail, road, aviation, petroleum, and civic infrastructure sectors. The PM also opened the longest transportation tunnel of the country on the Udhampur-Srinagar-Baramulla Rail Link and flagged off the first electric train in Kashmir. “J&K has suffered a lot due to dynastic politics for decades. They are only concerned about their families and their own interests and not about the interests of people. The youth are the bigger losers in dynastic politics,” PM Modi said while addressing a public rally at Maulana Azad Stadium in Jammu. Modi said after Article 370 was read down, there is widespread enthusiasm about the development of Jammu and Kashmir. People from all over the world want to visit the region to enjoy its scenic beauty he added. , Ministers K Rajan, M B Rajesh and A K Saseendran consoling Kunjumon, father of Ajeesh who was killed by a wild elephant last week, in Wayanad on Tuesday Family expresses angst Union min in state today The minister trio visited houses of wildlife conflict victims. They included Prajeesh of Vakery, who was killed by a tiger, and Paul of Pakkam, Ajeesh of Padamala, Lakshmanan of Thirunelly and Thakachan of Vellamunda who were killed by wild jumbos. Ajeesh’s family expressed angst over forest officials’ attitude and demanded demarcating forest boundary and steps to protect life and property of farmers. Union Minister for Environment, Forest and Climate Change Bhupender Yadav will arrive in Wayanad on a two-day visit on Wednesday and visit houses of wildlife conflict victims from 6.30pm to 8.30pm. On Thursday, he will chair hi ministry’s meeting via videoconferencing from 9am to 10am and later chair a high-level meeting with the local administration and forest officials. curing an average of around 4,750 litres daily, against the state average of 635 litres. Hence, for farmers, cattle rearing provides steady income. UDF representatives walked out of the meet in protest against the proposal. Kerala Independent Farmers Associa- tion chairman Alex Ozhukayil alleged the ministers were unaware of the ground realities in Wayanad. “As wild animals destroy crops, people rely on cattle rearing. If you ban it, they will have no option but to leave Wayanad or end their ● More on P4 lives,” he said. The Congress has officially informed the IUML of its inability to give a third seat to the influential UDF ally in the upcoming Lok Sabha elections, top party sources said on condition of anonymity . However, Muslim League national general secretary P K Kunhalikutty refuted the reports and maintained that talks are still on and no final decision has been taken yet. The Congress has also declined to give IUML any assurance on a second Rajya Sabha seat. Congress sources said the party leadership has categorically told IUML state president Sadiq Ali Shihab Thangal that it was not in a position to part with an additional LS seat. On directions from the party high command, the leadership contacted Thangal over phone, and passed on the message, before the party’s outreach programme, sources said. “The Congress cannot part with its lone Rajya Sabha seat either. One RS seat was allotted to Kerala Congres (Mani) under exceptional circumstances when both K M Mani and Oommen Chandy were alive. Such a situation doesn’t exist now,” a top Congress leader said. Kunhalikutty said in Malappuram that discussions on the third LS seat were far from over. “They are still continuing,” he said. He, however, declined to divulge further details. Senior IUML leader K P A Majeed told TNIE that there was no official communication from the Congress state leadership on the ● More on P4 third Lok Sabha seat. “Good morning, how was your experience visiting our police station? Please rate from 0-10.” Don’t be surprised if you get such a call seeking your feedback shortly after your visit to a police station. The Ernakulam Rural Police, in a first-of-its-kind initiative in the state, has set up a special desk on the lines of customer care desks to collect feedback from the public visit- tion in providing services to people. Explaining the initiative, Ernakulam Rural police chief Vaibhav Saxena said: “Usually, after visiting a hotel, shop or service centre, we get a call from a customer care representative seeking feedback. The same concept has been applied here. After all, police are also service providers who function on taxpayers’ support.” He said eight officers have been appointed at the desk to contact petitioners turning up at the 34 police stations under the Ernakulam Rural police limit. At present, each officer at the Usually, after visiting a hotel, shop or service centre, we get a call from a customer care representative seeking feedback. The same concept has been applied here — Vaibhav Saxena, Ekm Rural police chief IUML deserves a third LS seat. Without IUML’s support, it will be challenging for Congress to win. Party workers feel the IUML leadership is not sufficiently championing for party’s interests An IUML leader Reliefoffor Jyoti assured piece land for new house Hours after this daily reported hockey player Jyoti Chhetri’s ordeal, local government officials visited her home, which is likely to be demolished, in Rourkela & offered her a piece of land to get a new house constructed | P13 EXPRESS READ Exalogic accumulated G67.27L deficit in 8 yrs Kochi: Exalogic Solutions Pvt Ltd, the firm established by CM’s daughter Veena Thaikkandiy, had a relatively short and uneventful journey. As per documents, it accumulated revenue deficit of D67.27 lakh from its eight years of operations between 2014 and 2022. P4 Top French civilian honour for Tharoor Congress MP Shashi Tharoor was on Tuesday conferred with the highest French civilian award, Chevalier de la Légion d’Honneur (Knight of the Legion of Honour). The award was presented by Gérard Larcher, chairman of French Senate. P9 18 pages, including 4 pages of KOCHI Express Good, bad or average? Rate your police station visit ing any of the 34 stations under it for various needs. The initiative follows a direction of state police chief S h e i k h Darvesh Sahib on the effective functioning of public relations officers (PROs) in each police sta- A Cong leader press impact c o ps i n v i t e f eed b a c k T o b y A n t o n y @Kochi Congress cannot part with its lone Rajya Sabha seat. One RS seat was allotted to KC(M) under exceptional circumstances when both K M Mani and Oommen Chandy were alive desk is making over 500 calls daily . So, how does it work? People approach police stations for various purposes, like lodging complaints, filing requests for police and passport verifications, among others. These petitions are uploaded to the Kerala Police’s iCops software by the stations concerned. From there, the officers in the newlyformed desk retrieve the contact number of the petitioners and contact them. ● More on P4 AAP’s Kuldeep Kumar after the SC declared him Mayor | PTI SC overturns C’garh Mayoral election verdict s u c h i t r a k a lya n m o h a n t y @ New Delhi The Supreme Court on Tuesday declared AAP candidate Kuldeep Kumar the winner of the Chandigarh Mayoral polls, setting aside the January 30 poll verdict on the BJP victory . The bench of Chief Justice D Y Chandrachud and justices J B Pardiwala and Manoj Misra found presiding officer Anil Masih guilty of defacing eight ballots, which were cast in favour of Kuldeep. The court considered those ballots valid and transferred them to Kuldeep. The judges ordered Masih’s prosecution for making a false statement in court. The bench said setting aside the election process itself wouldn’t be proper as the issue arose only when Masih made the counting. The SC said Masih’s conduct has to be deprecated at two levels. One, he altered the course of mayoral poll. Two, he made a statement before the court on February 19, which was a lie. Senior advocate Mukul Rohatgi argued it was wrong to call his client Masih a thief.
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