TIRUPATI  WEDNESDAY  NOVEMBER 13, 2024  `9.00  PAGES 14  LATE CITY EDITION 35 KILLED, 43 INJURED AFTER MAN RAMS HIS CAR INTO CROWD IN CHINA Police said the 62-year-old driver, surnamed Fan, had been “triggered by (his) dissatisfaction with the division of property following his divorce” PEOPLE AT ZHUHAI SPORTS CENTRE TARGETED ATTACKER SERIOUSLY INJURED, HOSPITALISED According to police, the disgruntled man drove his small SUV into a crowd of people exercising at a sports centre in the Chinese city of Zhuhai, which is hosting a major international military airshow this week. Terming it a “major vicious incident”, local police said the horrific incident occurred at 7:48 pm on Monday. The attacker tried to flee but the police nabbed him ■ ■ Responding officers found Fan in his vehicle attempting to self-harm with a knife. They swiftly intervened and sent him to hospital Fan is still receiving medical treatment as he was unconscious due to severe injuries to his neck and other areas and is not yet fit to be questioned by the police, state-run Xinhua news agency said | P11 Zhuhai 15TH CHINA INT’L AVIATION & AEROSPACE EXHIBITION KICKED OFF ON TUESDAY S U D H I R S U R YA W A N S H I @ Mumbai P R A S A N TA M A Z U M D A R @ Guwahati A day after he accused the Election Commission of India (ECI) of being selective in its searches, Shiv Sena (UBT) chief Uddhav Thackeray said he was subjected to checks for the second straight day on Tuesday, when he arrived in Latur district to campaign for the November 20 assembly polls. He said official searched his luggage, like they did on Monday after his helicopter landed at Wani in Yavatmal district. Tuesday’s inspection was carried out by the election officials after the former Maharashtra CM’s chopper arrived at a helipad in Ausa of Latur ahead of his rally scheduled to be held in Kasar Shirshi village. According to a video posted on X, Thackeray is heard asking the election staffers why he was being singled out for such searches. Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Sanjay Raut alleged cash is being exchanged for votes at the behest of BJP-Sena-NCP leaders but the EC is not acting. “Our luggage, helicopter, private jet, cars... everything is checked. They search our homes also... We don’t have a problem if it is done impartially. But, where Eknath Shinde, Ajit Pawar, and Devendra Fadnavis are contesting, `25 crore have already reached...” he alleged. EC officials later confirmed that nothing objectionable was found in Thackeray’s bags. THREE Meitei women and as many children from the same community have been missing from restive Manipur’s Jiribam since Monday’s gunfight in which 10 Kuki ‘militants’ were gunned down by the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) and the police. In Imphal, 13 organisations jointly announced a 24-hour total shutdown in the Imphal valley from 6 pm of Tuesday seeking government intervention to secure the release of the six individuals. Talking about the Jiribam gunfight, Inspector General of Police I K Muivah said armed miscreants had attacked the Borobekra police station and also at a nearby CRPF camp at Jakuradhor on Monday afternoon. “The militants were using RPGs and other sophisticated weapons such as AK, INSAS, SLRs. A CRPF jawan was injured in the attack and evacuated to Assam for treatment,” Muivah said. The CRPF retaliated and the firing stopped after about 45 minutes. “About 10 militants were found dead. Two elderly persons were found burned to death while three women and three minor children were found missing,” the IGP said, adding the police are trying to trace the six missing persons. The two elderly persons were from the Meitei community . Protesting the “inhumane actions” of CRPF in Jiribam, the Kuki Students’ Organisation issued a “notice” stating that “no CRPF personnel shall be allowed to leave their camp premises.” It demanded a thorough and courtmonitored probe into the “fake encounter”. CANADA CONSULAR EVENT CANCELLED The Brampton Triveni temple in Canada cancelled a consular event after the police warned them of an “extremely high” threat level of violent protests | P10 Given the kinds of weapons recovered and the clothes they wore, we can say that they were either armed militants or armed miscreants I K Muivah, IGP KUKI FIAT No CRPF personnel shall be allowed to leave their camp premises till they apologise, a Kuki student outfit said YSR District Police on Tuesday issued lookout notices for several YSRC social media activists, including the party’s social media in-charge Sajjala Bhargav Reddy, and Arjun Reddy, a close relative of party president and former Chief Minister YS Jagan Mohan Reddy among , others. The development comes in the backdrop of a case being booked against them and YSRC MEAT AND FISH SNACKS, SWEETS CEREALS AND PRODUCTS 7.43 6.94 4.87 3.65 3.17 Figures are inflation rates (%) of the items for October 2024 Inflation heat breaches RBI’s top tolerance level Retail inflation shoots up to 6.21% in October, dashes rate cut hopes M O N I K A YA D A V @ New Delhi IIP TURNS POSITIVE THE spectre of inflation has come back to haunt the economy as retail inflation shot up to 6.21% in October, marking the highest level in 14 months, driven by a sharp spike in food prices. This surge was noted in the prices of fruits, vegetables, meat, fish, and cooking oils. Food inflation rose considerably to 10.87% in October, the highest in 15 months, up from 9.24% in September and 6.61% in the same month last year. In October, the rate of price increases exceeded the Reserve Bank of India’s upper limit for acceptable inflation (6%). Rural areas experienced a significant rise in inflation at 6.7%, while urban consumers faced a lower rate of 5.6%. The latest inflation numbers dash any India’s industrial production grew 3.1% with all three key sectors— mining, manufacturing, and power generation—demonstrating positive trends in September. This is a notable improvement as factory output had dipped to (-) 0.1% in August hope of an interest rate cut by the RBI during its monetary policy review in December. In October, food prices in rural areas increased 10.7%, while urban food inflation was even steeper at 11.1%. Meanwhile, inflation for vegetables surged from 36% in September to a five-year high of 42.2% in October. Additionally edible oil , prices rose 9.5%, the biggest jump in two years. Fruit prices rose 8.4%, while inflation for pulses decreased to 7.4%, ending a 17-month streak of double-digit price increases. On the other hand, spice prices fell 7%. Additionally in October, households , experienced an 11% increase in the costs of personal care products and services, up from 9% in September. For experts, core inflation remaining below 4% for 11th consecutive month is a big positive. “The surge in vegetable prices was due to uneven rains. Data for November suggests some moderation in vegetable prices. This, in addition to a favourable base, can lend some downside to vegetable inflation,” said Dharmakirti Joshi, chief economist, CRISIL. 15 WHIPS NAMED Assembly Chief Whip appointed Vijayawada: The TDP-led NDA government on Tuesday named Chief Whips and Whips for the Andhra Pradesh Legislative Assembly and Council. Apart from the Chief Whip, 15 MLAs were named as Whips in the Assembly. In the Council, three MLCs were named Whips. Interestingly, the Chief Whip as well as the three Whips in the Council are the first timers. While Vinukonda TDP MLA GV Anjaneyulu was the Chief Whip in the Assembly, 15 other MLAs were made Whips SOCIAL MEDIA ABUSE Varra sent to 14-day remand Kadapa: Varra Ravindra Reddy, accused of posting offensive content on social media, was presented before the Second Additional Junior Civil Judge on Tuesday, along with two others. The magistrate ordered a 14-day remand for Ravindra Reddy, while the other twoGurrampati Venkata Subba Reddy (alias Subba Reddy) and Gurajala Uday Kumar Reddy-were issued notices under Section 41(A) and granted bail | P4 Carbon market deal done? Experts wary Reliance to set up 500 S V KRISHNA CHAITANYA EXPRESS IN BAKU T HE United National Climate Conference (COP29) presidency has claimed early success with the adoption of standards for carbon credits, referred to as Article 6.4 of the Paris Agreement, a long-debated framework designed to help nations collaborate on reducing carbon emissions. But, critics say it was pushed without adequate scrutiny and would lead to greenwashing as there are not enough safeguards. Yalchin Rafiyev, COP29 lead negotiator, told the media, “This will be a game-changing Yalchin Rafiyev GAME-CHANGING TOOL: COP29 “This will be a game-changing tool to direct resources to the developing world and help us save up to $250 billion a year when implementing our climate plans,” said Yalchin Rafiyev, Azerbaijan’s Dy foreign minister and COP29 lead negotiator tool to direct resources to the developing world.” However, Harjeet Singh, Global Engagement Director for the Fossil Fuel Non-Proliferation Treaty Initiative, disagreed. “Fast-tracking carbon market rules at the start of COP29 sets a troubling precedent. Rushed rules open the door to weak, false ‘solutions’ that will only delay real climate action,” he told this paper. Article 6, offers two options for trading: countries can enter into bilateral agreements and set their own rules, or participate in a United Nations-supervised market open to all. This UN supervised carbon market, in which the credit price will be fixed by the market players but embedded with third party accreditation, has several loopholes. Critics argue that the benefits of Article 6 are far from guaranteed, as they could result in potential human rights abuses and ‘greenwashing’, in which polluters can claim environmental progress without genuinely reducing emissions. However, Martin Hession, Vice-Chair of the Article 6.4 of the Supervisory Body told this , newspaper, “there are enough safeguards to thwart greenwashing. Third party verification is integral. But, individual countries must also ensure the quality of credits. We are setting high quality standards.” On Article 6, India expects to conclude the deal. It hopes COP29 would be able to agree to a mechanism which uses market-based instruments (such as carbon credits) to incentivise low-carbon development. Lookout notice issued for Sajjala Bhargav Reddy D S U R E N D R A K U M A R @ K A D A PA PULSES AND PRODUCTS FRUITS 42.18 10.99 9.69 9.51 8.43 EXPRESS READ EGG WHAT’S DRIVING THE PRICE RISE OILS AND FATS TWO MEITEIS CHARRED TO DEATH, 6 MISSING FOOD AND BEVERAGES DAY AFTER PERSONAL CARE High drama as Uddhav’s bags checked again by EC officials Vegetables 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 NESWAR TIRUN social media activist Varra Ravinder Reddy under the SC/ ST Prevention of Atrocities Act on November 8. The lookout circular was issued on suspicion that Bhargav Reddy who al, ready faces several criminal cases in the State, might flee the country . Based on the statement of Varra Ravindra Reddy, special teams have been deployed to trace Bhargav Reddy and ArP4 jun Reddy . compressed biogas plants with `65,000 cr S V I S W A N AT H @ Vijayawada THE State government signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Reliance Industries for the establishment of 500 compressed biogas (CBG) plants with a total investment of around `65,000 crore (`130 crore per plant). All the available wastelands will be utilised for the project. The deal was signed in the presence of Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu at the State Secretariat on Tuesday . The plants would create direct and indirect employment for around 2.50 lakh people with estimated financial benefit of around `57,650 crore over a period of 25 years through State Goods and Service Tax (SGST) collection, electricity duty and taxes on employment. The production of around 39 lakh MT (Metric Tonne) of CBG per annum (7,800 MT per plant) will give a fillip to the State GDP by aiding industrial growth. Terming the MoU a land- A CLOSER LOOK 3 YEARS PROJECT TIMELINE Job creation 2.5 LAKH `57,650 CRORE Renewable fuel for 9.38 Lakh Light Commercial DECEMBER 28 Stone to be laid for 1st plant Vehicles daily in Prakasam district OVER 25 YEARS Financial benefit (Est) mark, Naidu in a post on X (formerly Twitter) said, “Out of Reliance’s national target of 2,000 CBG plants, 500 state-ofthe-art CBG plants will be built throughout Andhra Pradesh over the next three years.” P4 PERKS FOR FARMERS CULTIVATING ENERGY CROPS TOXIC HAZARD A farmer burns the remains of drumstick crop residue at Seed Access Road in capital region on Tuesday | PRASANT MADUGULA Once the CBG plants are established, farmers will be able to earn around `30,000 per acre per annum by cultivating energy crops (Napier Grass). Deployment of advanced farm machinery, IoT based agrisolutions and sustainable soil rejuvenation activities will have spillover benefits to the farmer community in the vicinity of the plant CRINUM ANDHRICUM New species of flower plant blooms in dry, rocky forests of Alluri district U S H A P E R I @ Visakhapatnam BOTANISTS have discovered a new species of flowering plant ‘Crinum andhricum’ in the Easter n Ghats of Andhra Pradesh. Collected in April 2023 by a team led by scientist L Rasingam from the Botanical Survey of India, Deccan Regional Centre in Hyderabad, this species was found growing in the dry, rocky forests of the Sapparla hills in Alluri Sitarama Raju district at an elevation of 1,141 metres. The researchers noted that Crinum andhricum, part of the Amaryllidaceae family, has unique characteristics that set it apart from other known species in the ‘Crinum’ genus. The plant is closely related to two species — Crinum amoenum and Crinum stracheyi — but differs in key ways. The study stated that Crinum andhricum has distinct features, including wider, oblanceolate perianth lobes (the outer part of the flower) and a greater number of flowers per cluster-producing between 12 and 38 flowers in each. It also noted that the plant’s pedicelled flowers (with a stalk-like structure) make it unique among species in the region. The flowers of Crinum andhricum are waxy white, blooming between April and June. Standing on a tall stem that reaches up to 100 cm, the plant is well-suited to dry rocky crev, ices in the Eastern Ghats. The leaves are large, elliptic, and have smooth, entire margins, features that the researchers noted add to its distinct appearance. The species was named after Andhra Pradesh in recognition of the State where it was first found. It is the latest addition to India’s Crinum species, bringing the total to 16, with several being endemic to India. Rasingam and his team stated that the plant has a limited known range, as it has so far only been found at the Sapparla Hills viewpoint. Despite observing over a 1,000 mature plants at the Sapparla hilltop, researchers cautioned that Crinum andhricum faces potential risks from human activities. They noted that the area, which is popular with tourists, faces threats from forP3 est fires and grazing.