tirupati l friday l june 14, 2024 l `9.00 l PAGES 12 l late city EDITION National interest: Germany primed for big Euro kick-off The three-time champions look to shake-off their listless recent tournament performances as the doors open for 2024 edition of Euros. A look France, Portugal start as favourites Holders Italy in the Group of Death Thanks to their depth, France, 2018 World Cup champions and 2022 runners-up, begin as favourites. The side is stacked with world-class performers, including Kylian Mbappe. Portugal, which is having a Golden Generation of sorts, rivals France in terms of squad depth. Can Cristiano Ronaldo, fresh of an underwhelming season in Saudi, win a second Euro? ■ ■ After failing to advance to the last WC, Italy, the defending European champs, enjoyed a serene qualifying campaign. However, they find themselves in a challenging group with Spain, Albania and Croatia Other teams that have a chance include England, who can lay claim to having the best players of Premier League, Bundesliga and La Liga 24 Number of teams in the 2024 event. The final is set for July 14 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 Naidu clears five crucial files on day 1 As promised, CM signs files for mega DSC exam to fill `16,347 posts, abolish Land Titling Act & conduct skill census E x p r ess Ne w s S e r v i c e @ Vijayawada Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu assumes office at the State Secretariat in Velagapudi on Thursday. Several Cabinet Ministers were also present | Express Non-bailable arrest warrant issued against ex-K’taka CM E XPR E S S N E W S S E RVIC E @ Bengaluru A POCSO trial court in Bengaluru on Thursday issued a non-bailable arrest warrant against for mer Kar nataka chief minister B S Yediyurappa. Judge N M Ramesh passed the order after hearing an application filed by the Criminal Investigation Department (CID), which is probing a POCSO case registered against the veteran BJP leader. In its plea, the CID stated that Yediyurappa, 81, did not appear before it despite summons. Special public prosecutor Ashok Naik said the accused is influential and is trying to cover up the case. Police booked Ye d i y u r a p p a under Section 8 of the POCSO Act and Section 354A of the IPC based on a complaint filed on March 14 by the mother of a 17year-old girl. The complaint alleged Yediyurappa sexually assaulted the minor girl on February 2 at his residence. The complainant, 54, was a cancer patient and she died at a private hospital last month. Earlier this week, the complainant’s son moved court alleging lack of progress in the case. Yediyurappa has denied the charge and filed a plea in the Karnataka High Court seeking the quashing of the case against him. He has also sought anticipatory bail. The HC is likely to take up both petitions on Friday . Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu took charge at the State secretariat at 4.41 pm on Thursday Soon after, he signed . five files related to the key promises made to the people during the elections. The 74year-old signed the files in the presence of the beneficiaries. However, an announcement on the allocation of portfolios is yet to be made. As promised, his first signature was for releasing a notification to conduct a mega DSC exam for recruiting 16,347 teachers. The second file he approved was to abolish the controversial AP Land Titling Act, brought by the previous YSRC regime. He also cleared the file for hiking monthly social security pensions to `4,000 from the existing `3,000. Additionally he , State Cabinet likely to meet on June 18 The State Cabinet is likely to meet on June 18. Subsequently, Assembly sessions may commence on June 19. After the swearing-in of MLAs, the House is likely to approve the Budget & repeal of AP Land Titling Act signed files to re-establish Anna Canteens and to conduct a Skill Census. Accusing the previous YSRC government of not filling even a single post through DSC, Naidu said the youth were deprived of government jobs as notifications were not released and that they could not even get private jobs because no industries were established. Stating that Andhra Pradesh has the highest unemployment rate of 24% in the country the , Chief Minister said the NDA JSP chief Pawan Kalyan took to X & congratulated the CM. “The NDA will rule with welfare and development as two eyes. The first steps have been taken to revive the state of Andhra Pradesh,” he said government decided to clear the DSC file on priority as several youth had raised concerns over unemployment. While signing the file to abolish the Land Titling Act, Naidu said his government took the decision after noting that there were several issues in the law. Further, he alleged that former CM YS Jagan Mohan Reddy intended to tamper with land records with the help of his henchmen and also made setP4 tlements. pep t a l k f o r m l c s Current phase, a movie interval: Jagan E x p r ess Ne w s S e r v i c e @ Vijayawada Noting that the NDA government in the State is still in its honeymoon period, YSRC chief YS Jagan Mohan Reddy on Thursday said the party will give some time to the new regime before taking to the streets. Addressing YSRC MLCs (Members of Legislative Council)at his camp office, the former chief minister urged them to maintain morale despite recent electoral setbacks. Speaking of the challenges faced by the party , Jagan compared the current phase to an interval in a movie, asserting that their past achievements and credibility would pave way for their resurgence in due time. Further, Jagan asserted that he is ready to take up another ‘Padayatra’ in the State. Citing his previous experience of walking across the State for 14 months, he said he is still young and capable of doing it all over again. Jagan called on the MLCs to play an active role in the Legislative Council, emphasizing the significance of their position amidst ongoing political challenges. He encouraged them to uphold moral values even amidst adversity and to continue standing strongly by the people. Stating that the current political scenario at the Centre is unprecedented, Jagan said, “With the BJP confined to just 240 seats in the Lok Sabha, the TDP holds a significant position in the NDA coalition due to its strong performance in the State.” He opined that despite the pivotal position, Naidu’s failure to demand Special Category Status for Andhra Pradesh marks another misstep. “If Special Status is not pursued even under these circumstances, the youth of the Despite the pivotal position, Naidu’s failure to demand Special Category Status for Andhra Pradesh marks another misstep. Consequences of such missteps will soon become evident YS Jagan Mohan Reddy, YSRC president No interim bail for ex-APBCL MD E x p r ess Ne w s S e r v i c e @ Vijayawada The Andhra Pradesh High Court on Thursday refused to grant interim bail to former managing director of AP Beverages Corporation Limited (APBCL) Vasudeva Reddy in a case registered against him by the Crime Investigation Department (APCID). On June 6, the CID had registered a case against him following a complaint from Gadde Sivakrishna, a person from Kanchikacherla, stating that he had noticed the officer shifting important files and computer accessories belonging to the APBCL office in a car. The CID registered a case under various sections for alleged destruction of evidence, theft, and criminal conspiracy and subsequently conducted searches at his residence in Hyderabad. Vasudeva filed a petition seeking bail in the case. When the case came up for hearing before the bench of Justice Nyapathy Vijay senior counsel and , TDP legal cell president Posani Venkateswarlu said he would appear on behalf of the CID. He informed the court that the government had issued a GO appointing him as senior counsel and another advocate M Lakshminarayana as the CID special P4 public prosecutor. RA J E S H K U M AR THA K UR @New Delhi Ajit Doval (left) and P K Mishra They accompany Modi whenever he goes abroad, like he did on Thursday for the Group of Seven summit in Italy The ap. pointments indicate the PM’s trust in these top officers. After retirement as Intelligence Bureau director in 2005, Doval founded the Vivekanan- da International Foundation, a public policy thinktank. He worked with the IB for more than 33 years in different roles and in areas like the Northeast, Jammu and Kashmir, and Punjab. Modi picked him as the country’s fifth NSA in 2014. During his first tenure, Doval is believed to have played a pivotal role in the surgical strikes on terror launch pads in Pakistanoccupied Kashmir after the Uri terror attack. As for Mishra, he served as additional principal secretary in the PMO in Modi’s first term as prime minister. In September 2019, he was elevated as State will not forgive him. Had we been in power, aid under welfare schemes like Amma Vodi, Rythu Bharosa, Vidya Deevena, Vasati Deevena, and Matsyakara Bharosa would have already been released on schedule. Now, uncertainty looms over their implementation. The consequences of these missteps will soon become evident,” the YSRC chief said. “Until consequences of the g ove r n m e n t ’s m i s s t e p s emerge, we must maintain our resolve and continue to stand with the people to carry this struggle forward,” he told the MLCs. Elaborating on the achievements of the previous YSRC government, Jagan highlighted that they fulfilled 99% of the promises outlined in their P4 manifesto. Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu and his family members offered prayers at the Srivari temple in Tirumala on Thursday | Express Cleansing of official systems will begin from TTD, says CM Goutami, and CVSO Narasimha Kishore at the Mahadwar@ Tirumala am. Later, temple priests gave him the traditional Isthikapal Chief Minister N Chandraba- Swagatam amidst Vedic hymns bu Naidu has said the cleansing and Mangala Vaidyam. of governance will be started After offering prayers in the from the Tirumala Tirupati sanctum sanctorum, Naidu Devasthanams (TTD). “I will was presented with Sesha Vasensure that only Govinda Nama tram and Theertha Prasadams, (the chant of Govinda) is heard and later given Vedasirvachon the sacred hillanam in Ranganayock,’’ he said while akula Mandapam. speaking to mediaNaidu alleged that persons for the first the previous dispentime after assuming The previous regime sation had failed to charge. protect the sanctity commercialised the Naidu, who of Tirumala as it had TTD. Instead of reached Tirumala on become a hub of ganfocusing on crowd management, it Wednesday night afja, liquor and nonimposed curbs on ter being sworn in as ve getarian items. the Chief Minister of devotees, and erected The previous regime curtains on roads Andhra Pradesh, had had even commerOfficials are still in a darshan of Lord cialised the TTD. Instate of hangover Venkateswara, along stead of focusing on N Chandrababu Naidu with his wife Bhucrowd management, vaneswari, son it imposed restricLokesh, daughter-in-law Brah- tions on devotees, and started mani and grandson Devansh. erecting curtains on the roads. In his maiden visit to Tiru“Officials are still in a state mala after becoming the Chief of hangover,” he said, in a Minister, he paid obeisance in veiled warning to them to mend the sanctum sanctorum of the their ways. He also found fault temple. He reached the temple with the manner in which some through Vaikuntham Queue persons were nominated to the Complex, and was welcomed by posts in the TTD by the previP4 TTD JEOs Veerabrahmam and ous regime. E x p r ess Ne w s S e r v i c e Centre cancels grace marks awarded to students for NEET, offers retest S u c h i t r a K a lya n M o h a n t y @ New Delhi ‘imp documents seized from car’ Posani Venkateswarlu said important documents were seized from Vasudeva Reddy’s car. He added CID found bills pertaining to purchase of six kgs of gold worth `4 crore in 2023 Ajit Doval gets third consecutive term as NSA Spymaster Ajit Doval was reappointed National Security Advisor (NSA) for a third consecutive term and so was bureaucrat P K Mishra as the principal secretary to the prime minister with effect from June 10, the government said on Thursday . Their terms will be co-terminus with that of Prime Minister Narendra Modi or until further orders, whichever is earlier, a government statement said. Both will continue to hold the rank of cabinet minister in the table of precedence. Pawan Kalyan congratulates Naidu principal secretary to the prime minister. Mishra is a 1972 batch retired IAS officer of the Gujarat cadre. Besides, two other appointments of former IAS officers of Jharkhand and Himachal Pradesh cadres — Amit Khare and Tarun Kapoor —were made as advisors in the Prime Minister’s Office for two years. Khare, a 1985 batch retired IAS officer of Jharkhand cadre, was earlier appointed as adviser to Modi for two years. His tenure was extended last year on a co-terminus basis with the PM’s term. Kapoor was named the adviser in May 2022 for a two-year term. The Centre on Thursday cancelled the grace marks awarded to 1,563 students who took the NEET-UG entrance exam for medical courses following a national uproar and gave them the option of taking a retest on June 23. Those who take the retest will lose their pre-grace marks; those who don’t will get to retain their score minus the compensatory marks. The decision came after a four-member panel examined the controversy and suggested remedial measures to allay the fears of the students, the gover nment told the Supreme Court. The committee was of the view that the award of grace marks on grounds of loss of time while taking the test resulted in a skewed situation as it had to be limited to the questions that remained unattempted. The National Testing Agency (NTA) had earlier granted compensatory marks to students in six centres who had complained of loss of time. It created a furore amid allegations of paper leaks and other malpractices in some places. A vacation bench comprising justices Vikram Nath and Sandeep Mehta termed the NTA’s decision fairly reasonable and refused to stall the counselling for NEET-UG, scheduled to commence from July 6. They, Students shout slogans against the alleged irregularities in NEET-UG entrance exam, in Kolkata on Thursday | PTI however, said all the admissions will be subject to the outcome of the petitions that sought cancellation of the exam held on May 5 on the grounds of question paper leak and other malpractices. The bench also said it cannot expand the scope of the Centre’s decision to those students who had not approached the court yet. Advocate Kanu Agrawal, appearing for the Centre, said the retest results will be out on June 30, so those candidates too can appear for counselling. When the NEET-UG result was declared on June 4, as many as 67 students had a perfect score of 720. Thursday’s decision brought down that number to 61. The court ordered the NTA to file its reply by July 8 on the alle gations of malpractices adopted by some students who took the NEET-UG exam. Around 24 lakh candidates took the exam. Its result was expected on June 14 but was announced on June 4.
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