GDP growth projections WORLD WATCH 3.2% 3.2% July July 2024 2.7 (Values in per cent) April 2025 4.6 4.1 3.2 2.2 2.1 1.8 1.5 0.8 1.5 0.9 1 2.6 1.9 0.7 1.5 0.9 1.5 0.7 1 2.1 2.4 3.2 1.5 US HUBBALLI FRIDAY JULY 19, 2024 `9.00 PAGES 12 CITY EDITION REVIVAL IN RURAL SPENDING SPURRING GROWTH IN DEMAND, SAYS RBI REPORT The revival of rural spending has turned out to be a bright spot in the growth of demand, the Reserve Bank of India said in its bulletin 1.9 U.K. EU Japan Brazil Russia JUL 2025 APR 2025 7 6.5 5 4.5 0.9 1.2 0.9 1.2 0.5 ADVANCED ECONOMIES APR 2024 6.8 6.5 3.3% 3.2% April JUL 2024 India China S Africa EMERGING MARKET ECONOMIES GROWTH MOMENTUM QUICKENS IN Q2 OF 2024-25 FOOD INFLATION PERSISTENT, NOT TRANSITORY The second quarter of 2024-25 began with signs of a quickening momentum in economic growth, the central bank said. The economic activity is picking up pace across advanced and emerging market economies and international trade in goods and services is also gathering momentum, the Reserve Bank said in its monthly bulletin ■ ■ However, persistent inflation in the food basket remains a concern. Consumer price inflation ticked up in June after three consecutive months of moderation amid a broad flare-up in vegetable prices The food inflation has remained at elevated levels for too long a period to be called transitory, the central bank said | P10 $15.2 billion GROSS INWARD FDI DURING APRIL-MAY, UP FROM $12.3 BILLION DURING SAME PERIOD LAST YEAR 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 Ministers: ED trying to frame CM, DCM in ST Corpn scam EXPRESS NEWS SERVICE @ Bengaluru DHOTI ROW B’luru mall sealed over tax dues of `1.78 cr EXPRESS NEWS SERVICE @ Bengaluru Security personnel during an encounter with terrorists in a forest village in Doda district, Jammu and Kashmir, on Thursday | PTI Search Ops on in Doda region for terrorists Army rubbishes video of Monday’s attack Heavy forests and caves being used as hideouts Search operation are on in Doda following the killing of four soldiers. Despite poor weather and terrain, security forces are determined to eliminate the terrorists and restore peace Kashmir Tigers, a shadow group of Jaish-e-Mohammad, released a purported video of the Monday attack on an Army officer on social media. But the Army dismissed it as doctored Doda is one of the heavily forested hilly districts of Jammu region. According to security officials, militants are using the caves in the dense forest area and mountain ranges as hideouts PM chairs CCS amid spurt in terror attacks in Jammu RAJESH KUMAR THAKUR @ New Delhi AMID a spurt in terror attacks in the Jammu region, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday chaired a high-level meeting of the Cabinet Committee on Security (CCS) to assess the situation. Officials gave a comprehensive briefing on the measures taken so far to proactively eliminate the scattered roots of localised terror links and sympathisers. Though no official details of meeting were shared with the media, sources said the aim was to stratagise and bolster security measures in the conflict-torn state. Home minister Amit Shah, defence minister Rajnath Singh, National Security Advisor Ajit Doval, J&K’s Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha and other senior officials in-charge of the security grid were present at the meeting. The officers presented a detailed chart of tactical strategies being used for elimination of localised terror links and neutralising terrorists. “The presentations provided an overview of the current security scenario and focused on ongoing counter-terrorism operations by the armed forces,” an official said. Hours before the meeting, two soldiers were injured in an encounter in J&K’s Doda district. Elsewhere in the Keran sector along the Line of Control, the Army foiled an infiltration attempt and gunning down two militants. Modi is learnt to have directed officials to ramp up the deployment of armed forces in areas identified as vulnerable to terror activities. He also directed the intensification of counter-terror operations. Security forces along with The mortal remains of Captain Brijesh Thapa, who was killed while combating terrorists in Doda, were brought to his hometown in Darjeeling district’s Lebong on Thursday the J&K Police have launched comprehensive operations to curb the surge in terror across the region. As part of their intensified effort, many persons suspected of helping or aiding terrorists have been arrested in the last few days. The recent spate of terror attacks are also possibly timed to impact the assembly polls that are due in September in J&K, throwing a challenge to the administration. On June 13, Modi had chaired a high level review meeting on J&K after four encounters were reported between security forces and militants. At that meeting, he had directed the security officials as well those at the helm of anti-terror operations to ensure the “full spectrum of counter terror capabilities” are deployed in the region. Since 2021, as many as 34 soldiers have been killed in J&K while security forces neutralised 40 terrorists during antiterror operations during the same period. The toll of security personnel laying down their lives in the line of duty in J&K since May this year stands at 13 — nine Army personnel and one each from the IAF, CRPF, BSF and J&K Police. EXPRESS READ Infosys profit rises 7% to D6,368 cr in April-June Bengaluru: Infosys on Thursday reported a 7% rise in consolidated net profit at Rs 6,368 crore in the April-June quarter and raised its growth outlook for the current fiscal, signalling an improvement in the IT segment. In the year-ago period, it clocked a profit of Rs 5,945 crore, said a BSE filing. Ursula is European Commission prez again Strasbourg: Lawmakers at the European Parliament on Thursday reelected Ursula von der Leyen to a second 5-year term as president of the European Union’s executive commission, giving her a comfortable majority and heading off a possible leadership vacuum. Parliament President Roberta Metsola read out the result. Woman Naxalite killed in encounter in C’garh Raipur: A woman Naxalite was killed in an encounter with security personnel in Dantewada on Thursday. A gunfight took place in a forest located between Purangel and Iralgudem. “After the gunfight, the body of a woman Naxalite along with a weapon was found,” an official said. Anti-quota protesters clash with police in Dhaka on Thursday | AFP B’desh unrest: Avoid local travel, India tells citizens Y E S H I S E L I @ New Delhi WITH student protests snowballing in Bangladesh, leaving at least 32 people dead so far, India on Thursday advised its citizens there to avoid local travel. “In view of the ongoing situation in Bangladesh, the Indian community members and the Indian students residing in Bangladesh are advised to avoid local travel and minimise their movement outside their living premises,” an advisory issued by the Indian High Commission in Bangladesh said. Indians living in Bangladesh were advised to reach out to the High Commission in Dhaka and the Assistant High Commissions in Chittagong, Rajshahi, Sylhet and Khulna through their 24-hour emergency helpline numbers. About 7,000 Indians are esti- mated to be living in Bangladesh at present. Bangladesh cut off internet and mobile services as violence continued on the streets. Metro rail services, tto, were suspended and all universities and colleges shut down. Protests erupted following a June 5 ruling by Bangladesh High Court reinstating 30% quota for freedom fighters and their descendants in government jobs, which was repealed i n 2 0 1 8 a f t e r a m a s s ive agitation. Army units have been deployed across Dhaka to bring the situation under control. “Security has been beefed up around Gonabhawan (Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina’s residence) to keep off protesters. Army is said to have been deployed in Dhaka and Chittagong where the situation is most volP9 atile,” a source said. SENIOR ministers in the Siddaramaiah Cabinet on Thursday accused the Enforcement Directorate (ED) of pressuring and threatening those under investigation in the Valmiki ST Corporation scam to name the CM and Deputy CM DK Shivakumar as accused in the case to destabilise the Congress government in Karnataka. Cabinet ministers Krishna Byre Gowda, KJ George, Dinesh Gundurao, Santosh Lad and Priyank Kharge along with CM’s legal advisor AS Ponnanna addressed a press conference in Vidhana Soudha. Byre Gowda alleged that ED was sent not to probe the alleged scam, but to destabilise the Congress government. “We are not going to succumb to such threats,” he said. He alleged that the ED officials granted immunity to (From left) Ministers Santosh Lad, KJ George, Dinesh Gundu Rao, Priyank Kharge, and Krishna Byre Gowda address the media in Bengaluru on Thursday | NAGARAJA GADEKAL those who cooperated with them. “They are misusing their power,” he said. Opposition BJP and JDS want Siddaramaiah to resign as CM over the alleged irregularities in the ST corporation. The issue led to heated exchanges between ruling and opposition members in both Houses on Thursday The BJP . leaders and workers staged a protest at Freedom Park in Bengaluru. Byre Gowda said BJP is trying to get a backdoor entry us- ing ED. “BJP always makes such anti-democratic efforts, including Operation Kamala. BJP has been using ED, CBI and I-T Department to attack opposition parties. The NDA government led by BJP at the Centre is trying to destabilise the Congress government in the state using ED just as they did in 2009 through Operation Kamala. Cases are filed against those in the opposition, but everything is cleared as soon as they join BJP he alleged. ,” CONTINUED ON: P4 A day after members of various organisations and Kannada activists protested against the authorities of GT Mall on Magadi Road in the city for allegedly denying entry to a farmer wearing a dhoti and turban, officials of the Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike’s (BBMP) South Zone sealed the mall for pending tax dues of Rs 1.78 crore. South Zone Commissioner Vinoth Priya said the mall authorities failed to pay property tax for 2023-2024. Hence, the palike sealed it. BBMP Chief Commissioner Tushar Girinath issued a directive to seal the mall. Earlier, Mantri Mall in Malleswaram was sealed by palike’s West Zone officials for tax dues. However, the mall authorities managed to get a stay order against the palkie’s P5 action. SC directs NTA to publish centre-wise NEET scores 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 Thursday directed the National Testing Agency (NTA) to publish the marks obtained by students in the controversy-ridden NEET-UG 2024. A bench headed by Chief Justice D Y Chandrachud said the centre- and citywise results should be declared by Saturday 12 noon so that the hearing on the matter can be concluded on Monday the apex , court said. The bench said it wanted to ascertain whether candidates appearing at alleg- edly tainted centres scored more marks than those elsewhere, adding the identities of candidates must be masked. The bench, also comprising Justices JB Pardiwala and Manoj Misra, initially ordered the testing agency to release the results by Friday 5 pm but granted time till Saturday after NTA sought more time. On the petitioners’ plea for a retest, the bench said it can’t issue such an order without concrete evidence that the alleged leak was systemic and the sanctity of the entire process was affected. “The fact that there was a leak at least in Patna and Hazaribag is (made out)... The question papers have been disseminated before the exam, that is undoubted. The question is whether this is only con- CBI arrests four ‘paper solvers’ CBI on Thursday arrested four MBBS students of AIIMS Patna, alleged to be part of the ‘solver module’ working with an accused in the NEETUG paper leak case. Officials said the four students were working in Pankaj Kumar, who allegedly stole the papers gave it to the solvers 2 dead as express train derails in UP’s Gonda N A M I TA B A J PA I @ Lucknow AT least two persons were killed and 35 injured when eight coaches of the Chandigarh-Dibrugarh Express train derailed between Motiganj and Jhilahi railway stations near Gonda in Uttar Pradesh on Thursday The accident site is about 150 km . from Lucknow. According to senior officials, the loco pilot of the 23-coach train heard the sound of a blast before the derailment. The Railway Ministry has ordered a high level inquiry into the cause of the accident. Of the two casualties, officials said one person, identified as Saroj Kumar Singh (31), a resident of Araria in Bihar, died on the spot; the second person, Rahul (38) from Chandigarh, succumbed to injuries on the way to a Lucknow hospital after being referred from the Gonda district hospital. Ambulances and medical teams were rushed to the spot as news of the derailment came in. Inclement weather hampered the rescue operation initially but the police and SDRF teams completed the task in a few hours. Rescue operations underway after several coaches of Chandigarh-Dibrugarh Express derailed near Gonda in Uttar Pradesh on Thursday | ANI fined to these centres—in which case there is no question of a retest—or whether this is more widespread,” it said. While refusing to hear a plea by Narinder Hooda, lawyer for one of the petitioners, requesting to stay the counselling of the exam, the bench said: “We will hear it on July 22, as the counselling is starting from July 24 and might go on for more than a month or more.” During the hearing, NTA denied the allegations that there was a systemic failure and widespread irregularities in conducting the exam.
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