kochi l monday l july 29, 2024 l `9.00 l PAGES 12 l late city EDITION Fears of Israel-lebanon war as 12 killed in israel-held golan Israel on Sunday vowed to ‘hit the enemy hard’ after rocket fire from Lebanon killed 12 youngsters in Israeli-annexed Golan Heights ‘Hezbollah has crossed all red lines’ Call for calm as Israel strikes lebanon A rocket strike Saturday at a football field killed at least 12 children and teens, Israeli authorities said. Israel blamed Hezbollah for the strike, but the Lebanese group said it has nothing to do with the attacks. “There is no doubt Hezbollah has crossed all the red lines here, and the response will reflect that,” Israel Foreign Minister Israel Katz told Israeli media | P9 ■ ■ Israel’s military said on Sunday it had hit Hezbollah targets “both deep inside Lebanese territory and in southern Lebanon” Iran warned Israel of “unforeseen consequences” if it attacks Lebanon. Western powers including France and Britain have called for calm. Those dead in Golan were aged between 10 and 16 22 Israeli soldiers killed near border with lebanon since OCtober last 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 karma, Bhagavad Gita Coaching centre owner and the legend of Manu Bhaker held for student deaths, sent to judicial custody I 5 NE Manu Bhaker is India’s first woman shooting medallist at the Games. It is also India’s first medal in the 10m air pistol event Overall, this is India’s fifth medal in shooting in the history of the Games and first since Gagan Narang in 2012. Others to have won include Rajyavardhan Singh Rathore, Abhinav Bindra and Vijay Kumar Woman shot at with air gun by female assailant in Tvm, injured E x p r e s s N e w s Se r v i c e @T’Puram In a shocking incident, a woman was shot at by an unidentified woman using an air gun at her house near Palkulangara in Thiruvananthapuram on Sunday morning, resulting in minor injuries. Shini, who worked as a public relations officer with the National Rural Health Mission, was attacked by a woman who entered the compound disguised as a courier delivery person. She had also covered her face. Police sources said the attacker wore jeans and a jacket and covered her face with its hood and a scarf. The woman first interacted with Shini’s father-in-law, saying she had a parcel for her. She asked him to call Shini as the parcel was booked ag ainst her name. When Shini was about to sign the documents to collect the parcel, the assailant pulled out the air gun and pointed it at Shini. She pulled the trigger twice, but the shot was not fired. It was the third attempt that injured Shini. She sustained injuries on her palm while trying to cover her face. Even after Shini was hit, the assailant fired a few more times and the pellets hit the wall. The assailant immediately fled the place in a car. According to Shini’s family the assailant was a tall wom, an, who spoke fluent Malay● More on P4 alam.  one Union Territory The President, following the recommendations from the Centre, on Saturday night appointed new governors for Telangana, Sikkim, Jharkhand, Chhattisgarh, Meghalaya, Maharashtra, Punjab and Assam and the Union Territory of Puducherry | P7 Karma is what she believes about how he knew how to get in, more so after the Tokyo in but not about getting out. Games where public criticism Use your information. Just do caused her to hit the nadir. “I it. Win or you die. So she won,” read a lot of Gita,” she said. Rana said. The training rituals, “One of the famous quotes is according to Manu, was even (Krishna’s advice to Arjuna) more challenging than the ackarma pe dhyan do, aur phal ke tual Olympics. “Perhaps, that chinta mat karo (focus has made me stronger,” on the work but don’t she said. One such ritual inworry about the reward). The same was TNIE @ olympics volves Manu meeting specific targets or payrunning through my ing a fine. “For exammind from last night ple, he sometimes sets a (Saturday). I told mytarget, and if you score self ‘whatever hapthat much, then fine. If pens, I’ll handle it’.” not, for the deficit in Manu and her coach Indraneel Das points (for example, if spoke about several Paris the target is 582 and you motivating parables, score 478), you have to anecdotes and stories. He doesn’t believe in getting an give 40 euros or 400 euros, deexternal psychologist. “My pending on the situation.” They coach is my psychologist,” she donate the entire proceeds or had said earlier. Just before the buy gifts and distribute it. One over, two to follow. She final, the duo were talking about Abhimanyu – Arjuna’s will pair with Sarabjot Singh in son. How he knew how to enter the mixed 10m air pistol event the chakravyuh but did not before the 25m event later on in P11 know how to exit. “So we talked the week.  Bangladesh braces for more youth protests Ye s h i Se l i @ New Delhi Mobile internet restored Even as the authorities in Bangladesh maintain that the law and order is under control, the country remains tense with the student groups warning that they are preparing to resume protests over the arrests of their leaders who spearheaded the quota agitation. Some analysts have gone as far as suggesting that what began as a student protest is turning into a revolution. Students Against Discrimination, the student group that has led the protests, said on Sunday they would end their week-long protest moratorium. The group is demanding that the police free all student lead- The mobile internet connection was restored in Bangladesh on Sunday, 10 days after it was restricted by the authorities across the country to stop the spread of fake news. The mobile internet connectivity was restored around 3pm local time ers arrested over protests. However, sources say the police are pressing with covert action against protest leaders. Block raids are reportedly happening on a daily basis and youngsters are being rounded up and put in detention. “The situation is tense even now as on the pretext of ‘block raids’ young people are being rounded up and put under detention in cells,” Professor Nazmul Ahsan Kalimullah, a politi- E X P R ESS R EA D Search ops halted at Shirur temporarily ‘No need for CM to change his style’ Shirur: The Uttara Kannada district administration has temporarily suspended the search operations for lorry driver Arjun and others who went missing in the landslide at Shirur, considering the downpour and high river current in the Gangavalli. Expressing disappointment over the decision, state Tourism Minister P A Mohamed Riyas urged the Karnataka government to reconsider its stance. Arjun’s mother Sheela too pleaded for the continuation of the search and rescue efforts. P5 Kochi: Not much water has flown under the bridge since SNDP Yogam general secretary Vellappally Natesan flayed the LDF for having supposedly adopted a policy of minority appeasement. Seemingly making an about-turn, Vellappally on Sunday endorsed CPM and Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan for a possible third successive term in office after the next elections. ”Everyone is saying that Pinarayi should change his style (of governance), but there is no need for that,” Vellappally said on Sunday. P4 cal commentator in Bangladesh, told this newspaper. Reports said fully armed police are knocking at the doors in random order to arrest those considered as troublemakers. “For the first time in the history of Bangladesh, there were helicopters used during the protests,’’ Kalimullah said. However, the protesters are staying firm with their demands, one of which is that “visible actions” be taken against government ministers and police officers responsible for the deaths of protesters. “From being a mere student protest, this is soon turning into a revolution against the government,” Pinaki Bhattacharya, exiled Bangladesh rights activist, told this newspaper. “Our statistics confirm 266 people have died. (The government) is maintaining power through brutal force,” he added. At least 9,000 people have been arrested nationwide since the unrest began, Bangaldesh daily Prothom Alo reported. Bangladesh home minister Asaduzzaman Kha on Sunday said 147 people had been killed in clashes. Bangladesh officials in Delhi did not immediately respond. U JWAL JALALI @ New Delhi Nevin’s death shocks Kalady A day after three young IAS aspirants were killed after they got trapped in a pool of water that entered the basement of a civil service coaching centre in central Delhi following heavy rains, the police on Sunday arrested the owner Abhishek Gupta and coordinator Deshpal Singh. The accused were produced before a local court, which sent them to 14 days of judicial custody . The three IAS aspirants who lost their lives in the tragedy are Shreya Yadav of Ambedkar Nagar in Uttar Pradesh, Tanya Soni from Telangana, and Navin Dalwin from Ernakulam in Kerala. Initial police investigation revealed that the coaching institute was illegally operating a library in the basement area. A case has been registered under relevant provisions of the BNS, including culpable homicide. Police said the owner was at the spot at the time of the incident. DCP (central) M Harsh Vardhan said they received information around 7 pm that the basement of a UPSC coaching institute in Rajender Nagar had been flooded with the possibility of some students trapped inside. “Immediately the local police reached the spot,” the DCP said. The en- Kochi: Shock and disbelief were writ large on the faces of the relatives and neighbours of Nevin Dalvin, 28, a Kalady native, who was among the three civil services aspirants who drowned in the flood at Delhi coaching institute. They are unable to accept that Nevin, a brilliant student and researcher who aspired to be an IAS officer, is dead. P4 Identify those leaking confidential info, Cong nat’l leadership tells state unit C y n t h i a C h a n d r a n @ T’Puram Amid the ongoing tiff between Congress state president K Sudhakaran and Leader of Opposition V D Satheesan, the party national leadership has asked the state unit to probe the leaking of information to media about critically sensitive matters discussed in confidential meetings. Deepa Dasmunshi, AICC general secretary in-charge of Ker- ala, has directed KPCC disciplinary committee chair man Thiruvanchur Radhakrishnan to identify those behind the episode so that disciplinary action can be taken against them. The note issued by Deepa Dasmunshi has ter med the current controversy as a “disturbing trend” within the state Congress which needs to be investigated and addressed with immediate effect. “I have been noticing a very disturbing trend wherein some individual or individuals from within the party on many occasions seem to be leaking (information),” she stated in the note. The national leadership’s move has brought relief to both the warring leaders, who had apprised Deepa Dasmunshi about their grievances against each other. However, Sudhakaran has an edge as the high command’s intervention reportedly vindictaes his complaint regarding “fake stories against him and ● More on P4 Indira Bhavan”.  Did Freud share a mystic link with Tripunithura temple? Is there a connection between Sigmund Freud, the founder of psychoanalysis, and the Sree Poornathrayeesa Temple in Tripunithura? Apparently so. An iconic statuette of Vishnu that adorned Freud’s desk — currently preserved at the Freud Museum in London — may have been modelled after the Kochi temple’s deity . This white ivory carving of Vishnu seated beneath the fiveheaded serpentine demigod Ananta Shesha was gifted to Freud by the Indian Psychoanalytical Society in 1931. The move came following the Society’s meeting at the University College of Science in Kolkata on May 6 that year “to celebrate the 75th birthday of the Vienna professor.” A brass plaque at its base bears birthday greetings in Sanskrit, while the sandalwood base has inscriptions dedicated to Freud. Since F reud’s passing in September 1939, the statuette has sparked the curiosity of many leading , to several books and academic papers exploring its significance. Alfred John Hiltebeitel, a professor of religion, history, and human sciences at George Washington University , has had several correspondences with Vasudha Narayanan, a scholar of Hinduism, and T P Mahadevan, an Indian writer and philosopher, to iden- The statuette gifted to Sigmund Freud tify the provenance of the ‘Vishnu Ananta Deva’ statuette. However, their efforts were inconclusive. A similar curiosity led Keerthik Sasidharan, a New York-based writer, to trace its history, leading him to research various temples in Kerala’s Travancore region, including the Sree Poornathrayeesa Temple. While previous researchers had considered two candidates for the statuette’s model — the Paravasudeva idol in the Bada- The likelihood of Freud’s ‘Vishnu’ being inspired by the deity at Sree Poornathrayeesa temple is very high given all the circumstantial evidence. However, more study is needed to ascertain the provenance — Keerthik Sasidharan tire road outside the Rau Coaching Centre was submerged in at least 2 feet deep water. The Fire Brigade was also alerted, which rushed 7 rescue vehicles and began pumping out the water. But as the street was already waterlogged, the basement was getting flooded fast. The NDRF was then intimated which dispatched its divers after which they retrieved the first body of a woman at 10.40 pm, the second at 11.10 pm, and the third around 1 am. The tragedy left the student community in a state of shock. They staged protests against the Municipal Corporation of Delhi and the coaching institute’s management for their alleged negligence. Students protesting over the deaths of 3 IAS aspirants, in Delhi | Parveen Negi statuette of Vishnu R a j e s h R a v i @ Kochi New Guvs for eight states and T is perhaps more than just providence that Manu Bhaker won a medal in the town of Chateauroux, where a river named Indre flows. After all, religion, spirituality and philosophy were all vital ingredients in this story It is difficult to not . be a touch philosophical when talking about the 22-year-old’s bronze in the women’s 10m air pistol final. She had secured a quota in the 25m pistol event and qualified for the 10m event only through trials. On Sunday , she won India’s first shooting Olympic medal since 2012 (London). Fittingly, Manu kept speaking about inspiration after her feat. Much of that inspiration came from that profound book of 700 verses – The Gita. In the final, Manu was calm. There were also occasional glances at Jaspal Rana, her coach sitting among the audience. “One look at him and that gives me courage,” she said. mi Caves in Karnataka and a Ravi Varma painting depicting Vishnu under Ananta in a relaxed pose — Keerthik’s research added another possibility. Keerthik pointed out that the Vishnu idol at the Poornathrayeesa Temple fulfils three necessary conditions: Vishnu seated under Ananta, seated in a ‘Lalitasana’ (relaxed pose), and originating from the Travancore region. Keerthik, the author of ‘The Dharma Forest’, mentions records indicating the Society had secured a single-piece ivory statuette of Vishnu Ananta Deva from Travancore, South India, to back ● More on P4 his theory  . Green signal UltraTech board clears acquisition of India Cements A r s h a d K h a n @ New Delhi THE board of directors of India’s largest cement maker UltraTech Cement on Sunday approved the purchase of 32.72% equity stake held by the promoters and their associates in Chennai-based India Cements Limited (ICL). UltraTech, an Aditya Birla group firm, will pay `3,954 crore at `390 a share to buy the entire 28.42% stake of ICL promoters — Srinivasan N, Chitra Srinivasan, Rupa Gurunath, and S K Asokh Baalaje—and 4.3% stake from Sri Saradha Logistics. This share purchase will trigger a mandatory open offer at `390 a share. The open offer, which will allow UltraTech to add another 26% stake, will be done subsequently after obtaining regulatory approvals. UltraTech had made a financial investment in ICL to acquire 22.77% equity at `268 per share in June 2024. Billionaire investor Radhakishan Damani and his associates had offloaded shares worth `1,889 crore in the deal. “Post this financial investment, the promoter group approached us as they wanted to sell their holding in the company UtraTech said. ,”