kozhikode l monday l SEPTEMBER 09, 2024 l `9.00 l PAGES 12 l city EDITION India reports 1st suspected case of deadlier mpox virus strain Suspected case of the new and deadlier strain of the virus in a man who arrived in India from a country experiencing mpox transmission Patient isolated, contact tracing on Samples have been collected and are being tested to confirm the presence of mpox, Union health ministry said. The patient has been isolated at a designated hospital and is currently stable. “The case is being managed in line with established protocols, and contact tracing is ongoing to identify potential sources and assess the impact within the country,” the health ministry said ■ 30 India well prepared, says health ministry ■ Urging the public not to panic, the government said the country is fully prepared to deal with such isolated travel-related cases of mpox The mpox virus is known to spread through skin-to-skin contact or sharing items like towels. As many as 15,600 cases and 537 deaths have been reported so far this year globally, according to the WHO | P7 cases of Mpox infections caused by older virus strain reported in India since 2022 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 Join us, Pak sees you as foreigners, Rajnath tells PoK Dialogue possible only if Pakistan stops terror, defence minister says during J&K election rally F aya z w a n i @ Srinagar DEFENCE Minister Rajnath Singh on Sunday asked the residents of Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK) to join India, saying “we consider you our own unlike Pakistan which treats you as foreigners”. He said after seeing the development in Jammu and Kashmir, PoK residents will themselves reject Pakistan and join India. “There will be so much development that the people in PoK would say that we do not want to live with Pakistan and instead will go to India,” the defence minister said while addressing an election rally in the Ramban assembly constituency in support of BJP candidate Rakesh Singh Thakur. The Union minister said there has been a sea change in the overall security situation in Jammu and Kashmir since the abrogation of Article 370 in August 2019. The Union minister said Pakistan’s top law officer recently filed an affidavit in court terming PoK a foreign land. “I want to tell PoK residents that people of India don’t treat you as foreign- Manipur CM seeks more powers to tackle violence ers... Come and join us,” he said. In June this year, Pakistan’s additional attorney general told the Islamabad High Court in a case related to illegal detention of PoK poet and journalist Ahmed Farhad that PoK is a foreign territory and “therefore not under the jurisdiction of the court”. Farhad was abducted by Pakistani intelligence agencies over some of his critical comments. He was produced in court after two weeks court and was released a few weeks later. On the campaign by Kashmir-based parties to restore Article 370, Rajnath said there has been a big change since the provision was scrapped. “After 2019, Modi gover nment spent `38,000 crore on J&K development. Earlier, pistols and revolvers used to be in hands of Kashmiri youth but now they are carrying laptops and computers,” he said. Rajnath added that talks with Pakistan will be possible only if Islamabad stops terrorism in J&K. “When Pakistan stops sponsoring terrorism in J&K, India will start dialogue with them,” he said. CPM unhappy with ADGP row, but won’t disown CM the CPM stands on the matter,” said Govindan. The CPM Wary of the political damage leader said the RSS was an orADGP M R Ajith Kumar’s ganisation that was responsimeeting with the RSS leader- ble for the deaths of hundreds ship would cause, the CPM has of CPM members, underscordistanced itself from the epi- ing the ideological opposition sode, calling it an issue that between the two groups. does not concern the party but Govindan also accused the the government. However, the UDF of forging ties with the CPM made it clear that it BJP and pointed out that the would resist attempts UDF votes had drifted by the Opposition to the BJP in ThrisUDF to derive politisur during the Lok cal mileage by allegSabha elections. He ing that the meeting also criticised the was held at the behest practice of exaggeratof Chief Minister Piing minor incidents, narayi Vijayan to using the phrase scuttle the Thrissur “turning a goat into a Pooram and give BJP dog” to describe the the advantage. Opposition’s tactics. M e a n wh i l e, t h e The stance of the Who someone home de par tment party was spelt out by meets is not our concern. The feels there is nothing CPM state secretary attempt to link unusual in ADGP’s M V Govindan, who ter med UDF’s at- this with the CPM personal meetings is baseless. with RSS leaders. tempts to drag the CM Everyone knows However, considering into the controversy where the CPM the sentiments within as “absurd”. Speakstands on the the CPM, the governing to reporters in matter ment is weighing its Kasaragod on Sunday , M V Govindan, CPM options on the next Govindan expressed, state secretary possible course of acthough indirectly the , tion, including movparty’s displeasure over the controversy “Do you ing the ADGP out of his cur. think I am pleased?” he shot rent position. The government back when reporters asked is also likely to come out with him about the LDF ally CPI’s an explanation on the whole displeasure over the senior po- controversy surrounding Ajith lice officer’s meeting with the Kumar. Leader of the Opposition V RSS functionaries. “Who someone meets is not D Satheesan alleged that Ajith our concern. The attempt to Kumar met Sangh Parivar link this with the CPM is base- leaders as an emissary of the ● More on P4 less. Everyone knows where CM.  E x p r e s s N e w s Se r v i c e @T’Puram E x p r e s s N e w s Se r v i c e @ Malappuram LDF MLA P V Anvar seems to be in no mood for a ceasefire. On Sunday, he launched a scathing attack on ADGP Ajith Kumar, raising suspicion over the his involvement in the disappearance of Mohammad Attur (Mami), a real estate businessman. He also trained guns on former Malappuram SP Sujith Das, accusing him of corruption and other crimes. The Nilambur MLA alleged that Ajith Kumar is going on a four-day leave to tamper with evidence in criminal activities connected to him. “You have heard my phone conversation with Sujith Das. In that conversation, he revealed that Ajith Kumar is controlling the quotation deals in Malappuram. Ajith Kumar is now using his time to destroy evidence to protect himself from these cases,” Anvar added, asserting that both Ajith Kumar and Sujith Das will end up in jail for their il● More on P4 legal activities.  Taps remain dry for 4 days in Tvm; holiday for edu institutions today E x p r e s s N e w s Se r v i c e @ T ’ p u r a m TMC’s Rajya Sabha MP Jawahar Sircar quits over RG Kar horror P r a s a nta M a z u m d a r @ Guwahati Amid speculations that he may quit amid raging ethnic violence in the state, Manipur Chief Minister N Biren Singh on Sunday met Governor Lakshman Prasad Acharya for the second time in 24 hours and submitted a memorandum, demanding protection of the state’s territorial integrity and abrogation of the Suspension of Operation (SoO) agreement. The SoO pact was signed by the Centre and the Man i p u r g ov ernment with two umbrella organisations of Kuki insurgent groups in 2008. Since then, it has been extended periodically . The Raj Bhawan said the CM and his cabinet colleagues met the governor. But neither the Raj Bhawan nor the CM’s office shared content of the memorandum. According to sources, Singh has sought more powers to the state government to deal with insurgency The memoran. dum sought handing over the Unified Command to the state and rejection of Kukis’ demand for a ‘separate administration’. Meanwhile, the Assam Rifles on Sunday deployed anti-drone systems in the fringe areas to repel any rogue drones. “CRPF has also tested one anti-drone system and given it to the force deployed in the state. Some more anti-drone guns are being brought to the state by CRPF shortly,” the Manipur Police said, adding: “The police have started procuring anti-drone system to enhance its security measures.”. ADGP going on leave to destroy evidence: Anvar People take part in a protest march over the rape-murder of a doctor at RG Kar hospital, in Kolkata on Sunday. (Inset) Jawahar Sircar | PTI S u l a g n a Sen g u p ta @ Kolkata PUTTING pressure on the Mamata Banerjee-led Trinamool Congress, the party’s Rajya Sabha member Jawhar Sircar said he was resigning from Parliament and quitting politics altogether, terming the steps taken by the state government in handling the rape and murder of the doctor at RG Kar hospital “too little and quite late”. In a letter addressed to West Bengal CM Mamata Banerjee, Sircar said he was aghast at the state government’s apathy to- wards cor ruption and the “strong-arm tactics” of a section of party leaders. “Though I carried on my task in Parliament with fervour, I became increasingly disillusioned as the state government seemed quite unconcerned about corruption and the increasing strongarm tactics of a section of leaders,” he said. Sircar said that in 2022, a year after he joined the TMC, he was shocked to see the ‘open corruption’ that former education minister Partha Chatterjee had indulged in. Terming the protests over the doctor’s death spontaneous, the former chief of Prasar Bharti said he had not seen “such angst and total no-confidence” against a government. He said the public outrage over the RG Kar incident reflected the public’s growing discontent with the TMC government in West Bengal. “The primary purpose of joining as an MP without any , direct involvement in party politics, was that it offered an excellent forum to carry on the struggle against the autocratic and communal politics of the BJP and its PM. To that extent, I have some satisfaction and my several interventions in parliament...” he said in the letter. Sircar said he had “suffered patiently” for a month since the incident at RG Kar hospital, hoping for direct intervention with the agitating junior doctors, “in the old style of Mamata Banerjee”. On Sunday night, West Bengal Governor C V Ananda Bose asked Banerjee to hold an emergency Cabinet meeting and discuss the issue. He also reportedly suggested the Kolkata Police Commissioner Vineet Goyal be removed. Hasina Bangladesh to Begin extradition process Bangladesh will take necessary steps to extradite deposed PM Sheikh Hasina from India to try her on charges of mass killings during the student-led mass movement, chief prosecutor of the country’s Int’l Crimes Tribunal said | P9 Residents of the capital city had a harrowing experience as they were left without water supply for the fourth straight day on Sunday As residents suffered, the Kerala . Water Authority (KWA) continued to extend the deadline for restoring the supply following a pipeline realignment work. A holiday was declared for educational institutions, including professional colleges, in the city limits on Monday. Kerala University has postponed all examinations scheduled on Monday on account of the water supply disruption. The issue caused a huge embarrassment to the government as the assurances of two ministers -- V Sivankutty and Roshy Augustine -- on restoring the water supply fell flat. Pumping resumes Leader of the Opposition V D Satheesan demanded action At 10.30pm on Sunday, against KWA officials responsi- KWA announced that ble for the fiasco. CPM MLA from pumping of water from Vattiyoorkavu V K Prasanth Aruvikkara treatment made his displeasure public as plant has started after wards in his constituency were completion of pipeline work. According to among the worst hit. As taps remained dry residents KWA, supply will be , began frantically calling for wa- resumed in low-lying ter supply through tankers of the areas of the city at KWA. However, due to the huge around midnight and in demand, most requests could not other areas in the early hours of Monday. be met. Mayor Arya Rajendran said the corporation has requisitioned the service of 10 additional water tankers but it was highly unlikely that the demand could be addressed. The issue triggered an uproar with BJP counsellors staging a protest in front of the government secretariat late on Saturday Carrying empty pots and vessels, they . also took out a protest march on Sunday to the official residence of the water resources minister. Activists of Mahila Congress marched to the Corporation office late on Sunday to protest the water supply disruption. Water supply in 46 wards was affected due to the realignment of pipelines. This was necessitated by the doubling work on the Thiruvananthapuram-Nagercoil railway line. E X P RESS RE A D Guruvayur temple hosts 334 marriages State police launch security op centre India may bring more cheetahs from Kenya Thrissur: Guruvayur temple on Sunday hosted a record number of 334 marriages, with the flawless arrangements receiving appreciations. The marriages began at 4am. Special counters were set up for bride and groom to collect tokens, who were then lined up near the mandapam for their turn. P4 T’Puram: In a bid to plug the data breach in police communication systems, which has become a headache for law enforcement agencies, Kerala Police have set up a security operation centre to monitor all the traffic in police networks and issue alerts while encountering suspicious behaviour. P4 New Delhi: India has renewed its interest in bringing a fresh batch of cheetahs from Kenya, a country in the northern hemisphere, officials said. The move comes after India faced hiccups in conservation of cheetahs brought from southern hemisphere countries, as a few of the big cats died.P7 smooth ride With 18 bookings in a day, it’s double bell for KSRTC’s wedding trips K r i s h n a K u m a r K E @ Kochi While private luxury buses are often hired for marriage trips, the growing popularity of the Budget Tourism Cell initiative of the Kerala State Road Transport Corporation (KSRTC) shows that the ‘common man’s vehicle’ is increasingly becoming a preferred choice for wedding rides. A total of 18 KSRTC buses were hired for private marriage trips on Sunday alone, with the corporation raking in around `3 lakh. It was in Pathanamthitta that the highest number of KSRTC buses were booked on Sunday, an auspicious day for weddings. Here, nine buses, including two AC low-floor buses, became a part of the most memorable moment of the lives of newly-wed couples. This was closely followed by Alappuzha, where seven buses with floral decorations were hired by private parties for the grand celebration. One bus each was hired in Kollam A KSRTC bus of the Haripad depot that was rented for marriage trip on Sunday (Pathanapuram depot) and Thiruvananthapuram (Attingal depot) districts, also on Sunday . “My wish came true today. I’ve rented out two Fast Passenger buses for the wedding of my son Ananthu, who married Athirambuzha native Sajjaana. The buses becoming part of my son’s marriage lent an altogether different experience. The crew was very co-operative,” said a beaming Uthayapp a n ( 5 9 ) , a n at ive o f Cherthala. “I was a regular user of KSRTC buses. Also, I worked in a PSU until my retirement and wanted to hire the buses of the public entity My only concern . was whether the buses would come on time,” he said with a laugh. “And they did! The floral arrangements were simple. Also, they washed the buses which were neat and clean,” said Uthayappan, who retired as an employee of Autokast Ltd, Cherthala. While the Fast Passenger buses, with green and yellow paint, are the most hired ones, the AC buses too fit the bill. “Two out of the five buses hired from Pathanamthitta depot were AC low-floor buses. Three buses also operated the wedding trips from Adoor. In Alappuzha district, three buses operated from Mavelikkara, two from Harippad and two from Cherthala,” said a senior BTC official. “The demand is mostly in the central parts. A total of 22 wedding trips were operated from April 21 to September 1,” ● More on P4 the official said.