SpaceX launches mission to bring back Sunita williams Falcon 9 rocket carrying Dragon spacecraft lifted off from Cape Canaveral with NASA astronaut Nick Hague and Russian cosmonaut Alexander Gorbunov on board, leaving two seats empty for Sunita Williams and Butch Wilmore. The spacecraft will return with all four in February 2025. By then, Williams and Wilmore will have logged over eight months in space | AFP MADURAI l Monday l September 30, 2024 l `9.00 l PAGES 12 l late city EDITION 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 After Nasrallah, Qaouk killed in Israeli airstrikes Stunning blow to Hezbollah’s command structure as 7th high-profile leader eliminated Israel and its citizens,” Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said in a Two days after Hezbollah suf- post on X. In the post announcfered its biggest blow in recent ing his death, IDF warned that times in the loss of its long- it will continue to strike and time chief Hassan eliminate the HezbolNasrallah, yet another lah commanders. high-profile leader of Hezbollah also conthe Lebanese group firmed on Sunday that was killed in an Israeli another senior comair strike on Sunday . mander Ali Karaki Nabil Qaouk, the was among those deputy head of Hezkilled along with Nasbollah’s Central Counrallah in Friday’s atcil was the seventh Sheik Nabil Qaouk tack. Among other senior Hezbollah leadsenior figures killed Iran seeks er to be killed in Israein recent are Nasralli attacks in a little UNSC meet lah’s right-hand man over a week. Hezbol- Iran on Sunday Fuad Shukr, head of lah has confir med the elite Radwan Force sought a Qaouk’s death. He was Ibrahim Aqil. meeting of the killed in a targeted United Nations Israel has stepped strike on Beirut on Security Council up its attacks on LebaSunday . non in recent days, to discuss the Qaouk was one of carrying out a number killing of the earliest members Hezbollah leader of air strikes on tarof Hezbollah and led gets in southern LebaHassan the force against Isranon and other parts of Nasrallah and el in the 2006 war. Israel’s ongoing the country . Since 2020, he was unRe por ts quoting attacks on der US sanctions for Lebanon’s health minLebanon his involvement in istry said 24 people Hezbollah’s activities. were killed on Sunday “Qaouk was close to Hezbol- in Israeli raids in Baalbek-Herlah’s senior commanders and mel. Israel said it hit over 120 was directly engaged in terror- Hezbollah targets in the latest ist attacks against the State of attacks.  P9 Agencies ‘Would have given Pak more money than IMF...’ J&K polls Campaigning ends for final phase PARTIES IN FRAY 40 seats up for grabs Oct 1 415 Statehood  Congress Article 370  NC no. of candidates MAJOR ISSUES  BJP Voting on: Jobs  PDP Power tariff Results: October 4 Won’t die till Modi is removed: Kharge Congress chief Mallikarjun Kharge, 83, on Sunday fell unwell while addressing a poll rally in Kathua. After receiving medical attention, he said he is fine and won’t die till Prime Minister Narendra Modi is removed from power. “I am 83 years, I am not going to die so early. I will stay alive until PM Modi is removed...” he said Express read Cabinet rejig: Four mins take oath at Raj Bhavan Chennai: Governor R N Ravi administered the oath of office and secrecy to four newly appointed ministers – Govi Chezhiyan (Higher Education), V Senthil Balaji (Electricity, NonConventional Energy, Prohibition and Excise), S M Nasar (Minorities Welfare and Non-Residents Tamils Welfare) and R Rajendran (Tourism) – in the presence of CM M K Stalin at the Raj Bhavan on Sunday. Lack of cooperation with the party and local issues led to three other ministers losing their positions, said party sources | P4 distance from us. You are our neighbouring country Our be. defence Minister Rajnath loved leader and former Prime Singh on Sunday said that In- Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee dia could have given a larger used to say that you can change bailout package to Pakistan the friends but not the neighthan what it is begging from bours,” Singh said. the IMF, had Islamabad mainThe defence minister said tained friendly relathat whatever money tions with New Delhi. the central gover n“The money that Pament spends in J&K, it kistan is begging from is for the region’s deIMF, our government velopment and to imhas spent more money prove the living standthan that in Jammu ard of people. and Kashmir,” Singh “In contrast, Pakisaid while addressing stan has been misusRajnath Singh an election rally in ing the financial asborder area of Gurez, sistance granted to it close to Line of Control in Jam- by other countries. After taking mu and Kashmir on Sunday . money, Pakistan is running a The IMF recently approved factory of terrorism,” he said. $7 billion to Pakistan under a In a stern warning to Paki37-month loan programme, stan, the defence minister said: with $1 billion earmarked for “I want to tell them that if a big immediate disbursement. terrorist attack takes place in “I am saying to my Pakistani India then we will strike inside friends, why are you keeping Pakistan”. F AYA Z W A NI @ Srinagar FIR filed against Snehamayi surfaces amid his battle with Karnataka CM Siddaramaiah have been filed against him for allegedly harassing a woman. RT I a c t iv i s t S n e Though the woman hamayi Krishna, who filed a police comrecently secured a plaint on August 21, court order to register 2024 and an FIR too an FIR against Karnawas registered the taka Chief Minister Snehamayi Krishna same day, the news Siddaramaiah in the started doing the Mysore Urban Development rounds in the light of Krishna’s Authority (MUDA) site-allot- actions against Siddaramaiah. ment case, has found himself In her complaint, the woman in a tight spot as it has come to alleged in that Krishna, along light that criminal charges with some others, attacked her, E X P R ESS NE W S SE R V ICE @ Mysuru pulled her clothes, and issued death threats, on July 18, 2024. The complaint also alleged that Krishna was harassing her over a property dispute. This also involves claims over her husband’s death benefits and her jewellery which is current, ly under litigation. Her husband died in 2020, she stated. In another development, the RTI activist wrote to the ED seeking a probe into the MUDA scam, alleging that `5,000 crore has been misappropriated. banking access Ration shops to double as micro-ATMs B A N B U SE LV A N @ Chennai Tamil Nadu Cooperation department is planning to modify fair price shops to also function as micro-ATMs that provide cash disbursement services. The proposal aims to offer lastmile banking access to underserved communities that face challenges in accessing ATMs and bank branches. To achieve this, the state plans to introduce Aadhaarbased digital payment services at ration shops in rural areas, hill stations, and densely populated regions lacking banking facilities. A digital device with biometric authentication, capable of providing core banking services, would be installed at ration shops and a banking correspondent would be deployed. Eight years ago, the centre mooted the idea, but it did not materialise due to challenges in linking electronic Point-ofSale machines to core banking solutions platforms. Registrar of Cooperative Societies N Subbaiyan told TNIE that works are under way to identify ration shops that could be modified. He said, “Further modalities of transformation would be explored. A G.O. on the same is expected soon.” Subbaiyan said many Primary Agricultural Cooperative Credit Societies (PACCS) were modified to offer similar services. “Out of the 4,500 PACCS units, nearly 3,500 function as micro-ATMs,” he added. P5