coimbatore l tuesday l august 20, 2024 l `9.00 l PAGES 12 l late city EDITION Nepal to export close to 1,000 MW of power to India, says Jaishankar External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar called it a new milestone after holding talks with his Nepalese counterpart Arzu Rana Deuba in Delhi 251 MW to be sourced from 12 projects power exports to india grow 24 times Nepal was already exporting 690 megawatts (MW) of electricity from 16 hydropower projects to India. Now, an additional 251 MW of power, sourced from 12 hydropower projects, will be exported, taking the total power exports to India to 941 MW. Nepal exported electricity worth more than `10 billion to India in the last fiscal, a statement said ■ ■ Nepal’s electricity exports to India began in October 2021 when New Delhi approved the import of 39 MW. In less than three years, this figure has grown over 24 times, the Indian Embassy in Nepal said “Glad to note that Nepal will be exporting close to 1,000 MW of electricity to India, a new milestone,” Jaishankar wrote on X 10,000 MW of power to be exported by nepal over the next 10 years, as per an agreement 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 H e m a C o m m itt e e r e p o r t Rampant sexual abuse in Kerala film industry EXPRESS N E W S SERV I CE @ T’Puram Calcutta High Court lawyers stage a protest against the alleged sexual assault and murder of a trainee doctor at RG Kar College and Hospital, in Kolkata on Monday | PTI Intimidation steps up protests TMC MP seeks HC protection; top docs appear for police questioning after leading march E x p r e s s N e w s S e r v i c e @ Kolkata Transfer racket With the streets of Kolkata continuing to see protests by people from all walks of life against the horrific rape and murder of a PG student at RG Kar Medical College and Hospital, Trinamool Congress Rajya Sabha MP Sukhendu Sekhar Ray on Monday moved the Calcutta High Court fearing arrest, and two leading doctors faced police questioning for allegedly spreading misinformation on social media. The CBI continued interrogation of former RG Kar principal Sandip Ghosh for the fourth straight day and also prepared for a polygraph test on Sanjoy Roy a civic volunteer , arrested in the case. The CBI got a local court approval for the lie detector test, days after performing a psychoanalysis A senior CBI officer said, “a racket of transfer-posting of doctors was functioning at RG Kar. The going rate for each transfer was around `20-30 lakh. The victim protested against the illegal system in various forums.” RG Kar ex-principal Sandip Ghosh Prepare a module/scheme for protection of doctors and medical service personnel against any violence in the hospitals — Delhi Medical Association plea to SC, which will hear case the suo motu at 10.30 am today test on him. “I have moved Calcutta High Court against the illegal notice of the police, intimidation and high-handedness. The matter is likely to be heard on Tuesday the MP said. ,” On Sunday, the police summoned Ray a three-time mem, ber of the Upper House, for his post on X, which said: “CBI must act fairly Custodial inter. rogation of Ex Principal and Police Commissioner is a must to know who and why floated suicide story Why wall of hall . demolished, who patronised Roy to be so powerful, why snif fer do g used after 3 days.100s of such questions.” Senior doctors Kunal Sarkar and Subarna Goswami, responded to another crackdown attempt by the police for post- ing about the incident on social media. They led a march of hundreds of healthcare professionals from Calcutta Medical College to Kolkata Police headquarters, before they appeared for questioning. Doctors on strike tied black rakhis as a mark of protest. In various parts of the state, women tied black rakhis to their brothers. Artists gathered at the Academy of Fine Arts for a protest rally and lawyers of the Calcutta High Court joined them. Governor C V Ananda Bose said, “In West Bengal, democracy is degenerating… Today, we have to take a pledge to protect our daughters or sisters. This society should become a place where women feel happy and secure. We have failed in our mission to our sisters. This is the time for all men to correct themselves.” Coconut oil in No licensing regime for OTT apps: Govt ration shops: State govt starts survey RAKESH KU M AR @ New Delhi M S a r a v a n a n @ Coimbatore After repeated demands from farmers to distribute coconut oil through ration shops to ensure fair price for coconut and copra, the state civil supplies department has started a survey to find out if ration cardholders would be ready to buy half litre of coconut oil in the place of one litre of palmolein oil. According to sources, ration shop supervisors of several districts have been provided forms to record the feedback of cardholders. “The study will be conducted till the end of August. After collecting details, the district administrations will compile a report and send it to the state government,” said Coimbatore Collector Kranti Kumar Pati. Official sources from the food department said the government has also sought inputs from collectors of districts bordering Kerala, including Kanniyakumari and Tenkasi, regarding the proposal. An official said, “Some residents in these border districts may prefer using coconut oil for cooking. The collectors have been instructed to determine how many cardholders are interested in making the switch.” A senior official from the civil supplies department said, “Since this is a policy decision, the government will take the final call after reviewing the reports from the study .” Coconut growers, especially those from Coimbatore and Tiruppur, have been demanding that the state government sell coconut oil through ration shops to ensure a fair price for their produce.  P5 The government has decided not to bring popular over-thetop (OTT) apps such as WhatsApp, Skype, and Telegram under the licensing regime. According to sources, the exclusion of OTT apps from the consultation process during the formation of the Telecom Bill makes it impossible to subject them to any licensing. The Cellular Operators As- sociation of India, which represents Reliance Jio, Bharti Airtel, and Vodafone Idea, have been pushing for the inclusion of OTTs under the licensing regime, citing similarities in the services offered. However, everal industry bodies, including the Internet & Mobile Association of India, Nasscom, Broadband India Forum, and the US-India Strategic Partnership Forum have cautioned against this move. The Telecommunication Bill 2023, which proposed various changes in the telecom sector, was passed in both Houses of Oarliament in December 2023. However, there was confusion whether the bill would cover OTT services. Later, the then communication minister Ashwini Vaishnaw clarified that OTTs are regulated by the Information Technology Act, and the process will continue to stay that way . Casting couch, sexual harassment, blackmailing, unofficial ban, gender discrimination, lack of basic facilities including toilets and changing rooms, rampant alcohol and drug abuse, denial of remuneration, and lack of a proper legal system to address the problems are some of the key issues faced by women working in the Malayalam film industry According to the Justice . Hema Committee, constituted to look into harassment faced by women in the field, the industry is controlled by a group of 1015 men. This powerful lobby which the re, port terms ‘mafia’, can impose unofficial bans and banish anyone. Almost five years after the committee submitted it, the Kerala government released the report on Monday under the RTI Act, after a slew of legal battles before the State Information Commission and the Kerala High Court. The three-member panel, headed by Justice K Hema, had former IAS officer K B Valsalakumari and veteran actor Sarada as its members. The government released a 233-page report after removing close to 65 pages from the original document, which is based on testimonies of more than 50 professionals, including actors and technicians. The most important finding of the panel is about an all-male power group. It says these individuals are prominent persons who are at the forefront of the Malayalam film industry “Certain actors in cin. ema (some of them are also producers, distributors, exhibitor or directors) — all male — gained enormous fame and wealth and they are in full control the whole industry now,” the report said. At the behest of this group, many individuals, including famous actors, were banned from cinema. Offending any member of the group, even for a silly reason, could invite a ban. “If a member from the power group is not pleased with someone in cinema (be he/she an actor, producer, director or anyone in cinema, however efficient), because of even personal prejudice, all the members of the power group join hands, and such a person is prevented from working in cinema,” it added. The report noted that members of the Women in Cinema Collective (WCC) are being targeted for the simple reason that they protested against atrocities in the industry . The panel said there should be a forum to address the issues. Major findings 1 Sexual demands made to women for their very entry into cinema 2 Torture of women who refuse sexual demands 3 Silencing of women under threat of ban from work in cinema 4 Malayalam film industry is in the clutches of an all-male power group comprising 10-15 people 5 Cyber attacks unleashed by ‘fan clubs’ on those who draw the ire of the power group As long as the power structure exists Malayalam film industry... constitution of ICC (Internal Complaints Committee) will be of no use Justice K Hema committee report Now, CRPF officer killed in poll-bound Udhampur F aya z w a ni @ Srinagar A Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) inspector was killed in a terrorist attack in assembly election-bound Jammu and Kashmir’s Udhampur district on Monday . A police official said terrorists attacked an area domination patrol team comprising the local police and CRPF personnel at Chill in Dudu area of Udhampur. The security forces returned the fire, and in the ensuing gunfight CRPF inspector Kuldeep Kumar of the 187th battalion sustained bullet injuries, the official said. Kumar was rushed to a nearby hospital, where he succumbed to injuries. Udhampur will go to polls on October 1, the final phase of the three-phase elections. Soon after the attack, additional troops reached the area and a massive manhunt was launched to track down the terrorists with the help of drones and sniffer dogs. Monday’s attack comes five days after terrorists and security forces engaged in a series of gun battles in a day-long encounter in the dense Akar forest area of the neighbouring Doda district during which an Army captain was killed. Earlier, on August 11, two soldiers and a civilian were killed in an encounter in a remote area in south Kashmir’s Anantnag district. On July 16, four Army personnel, including a captain, died after being injured in a gunfight with heavily armed terrorists in a forest area of the Doda district of J&K. There has been a sudden surge in terror attacks in the Jammu region in which over a dozen security personnel, mostly from the Army were killed. The militants have changed their strategy and are resorting to jungle warfare and hit and run attacks along forest areas. About 4000 more troops including 500 elite para commandos have been deployed. Medical rank list out; cut-offs may go up Transwoman from Erode makes it to rank list E x p r e s s n e w s s e r v i c e @ Chennai bonds of unity A student ties a ‘rakhi’ to Prime Minister Narendra Modi during Raksha Bandhan celebrations with school children in New Delhi on Monday | PTI Modi to visit war-hit Ukraine on August 23 Y e s h i s e l i @ New Delhi Narendra Modi will travel to Kyiv and hold talks with President Vlodomyr Zelenskyy on August 23, in the first visit by an Indian prime minister to Ukraine since 1992. Modi’s visit comes a day ahead of the Ukraine National Day, which falls on August 24. It also comes weeks after he visited Russia and held talks with President Vladimir Putin, drawing criticism from Zelenskyy . “Prime Minister’s engagements in Kyiv will touch a range of aspects of bilateral ties,” a statement by the Ministry of External Affairs said. The two leaders are also likely to discuss the ongoing war between Russia and Ukraine. India has always been advocating diplomacy and dialogue to resolve the conflict, Tanmaya Lal, Secretary (West), the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA), said. Before visiting Ukraine, Modi will travel to Poland and hold talks with Prime Minister Donald Tusk. Modi is also expected to interact with the Indian community in Poland. The visit, the first by an Indian PM in 45 years, comes as Poland and India mark 70 years since the establishment of diplomatic relations. Health Minister Ma Subramanian released the rank list for MBBS, BDS, and paramedical admissions 2024-25 on Monday Counselling for the courses . will begin on August 21. With more students securing high scores this year, experts said the cut-off is likely to go up for all categories. The general category merit list shows 90 students have scored above 700 this year, while the number stood at 39 last year. Similarly, last year, only 379 students scored 650 and above, but the figure has increased to 1,356 this year. This jump in numbers can also Chennai: The health minister on Monday said that this year a lone transwoman has also made it to the rank list. Officials said she hails from Erode, completed class 12 in 2021 and cleared NEET Health Minister Ma Subramanian releasing the rank list on Monday | p ravikumar be seen in the merit list for the 7.5% quota (for government school students). The top score under 7.5% quota, which was 569 last year, has shot up to 669 this year. According to officials from the selection committee, of the 28,819 applicants for government quota seats, 7,791 were freshers and 21,028 were NEET repeaters. Notably, all top 10 candidates on the merit list for the 7.5% quota are NEET repeaters, and four of them attended the Centre of Academic Excellence, Saidapet, a staterun NEET coaching centre. Last year, the NEET cut-off mark for MBBS seats in government medical colleges for the open category (OC) was 602 and the general rank was 1,442; for the BC category the cut-off , was 551 and general rank was 3,539, and for the SC category it , was 448 and 9,431.  P5 Pit dug up for bridge kills two in Theni chief secy Express news service @ Virudhunagar Two youngsters from Theni district, who were on their way to Vembakottai from Badhrakalipuram, died early on Monday after their twowheeler hit a mound of soil dumped around a pit dug up for the construction of a bridge near Nathampatti. While T Krishnamoorthi (21), who was riding the bike, fell into the pit filled with rainwater and drowned, K Jeyaprakash (22), riding pillion, was thrown off the bike, hit the road, and died, sources said. Police said workers had placed barricades, stones and rods tied with rope at three different spots ahead of the construction site to prevent entry of vehicles but a small gap was left for workers to access the area. “The two youngsters had driven through this gap,” sources said. According to Nathampatti police, the two left their homes on Sunday night to attend a relative’s housewarming event in Vembakottai. The victims were spotted by the construction workers who arrived for work hours later.  P5 Muruganandam takes charge Senior IAS officer N Muruganandam, who served earlier as secretary to the chief minister, assumed office as the 50th chief secretary to the Tamil Nadu government on Monday at 9.40 am | P4