MADURAI l friday l november 29, 2024 l `9.00 l PAGES 12 l LATE city EDITION TRAI assures no delay in OTP delivery as new rules to kick in The regulator said the new regulations meant to improve message traceability and combat fraud will not affect the delivery of bank OTPs New regulations to take effect on Dec 1 The new norms, likely to take effect on Sunday, will require telecom service providers to trace the origin of bulk messages, including one-timepasswords. Some reports had said this would delay delivery of messages, including OTPs. “This is factually incorrect. It will not delay delivery of any message,” the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India said in a post on X TRAI Oct deadline pushed on telecos’ request ■ ■ TRAI has directed telecom providers, including Reliance Jio, Bharti Airtel and Vodafone Idea, to implement traceability in their systems October 31 was initially fixed as the date for the new regulations to kick in. But this deadline was extended amid concerns raised by telecom operators about potential for service disruptions | P10 had proposed to increase scrutiny of users sending over 50smses a day 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 Red alert issued for TN coastal districts on Friday & Saturday Bangladesh Buzz on tough talk as Jaishankar meets Modi SV K R I SHN A CH A I TA NYA P R EE T H A N A I R @ New Delhi AMID escalating tensions in Bangladesh, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar on Thursday met Prime Minister Narendra Modi to discuss the situation. There is speculation that Jaishankar may make a statement in both Houses of Parliament on Friday if there , are no disruptions. In response to this newspaper’s query on the possibility of the government making a statement on the issue, Jaishankar said, “We haven’t decided anything yet”. Sources said Jaishankar’s meeting with Modi lasted for half an hour. The meeting comes in the wake of the recent arrest of Hindu leader Chinmoy Krishna Das and the increasing attacks on minorities in Bangladesh. Meanwhile, MoS for external affairs Kirti Vardhan Singh said in the Rajya Sabha that it is the responsibility of the Muhammad Yunus-led administration to protect the minorities. In a written reply to a question, he said New Delhi has expressed its concerns to Dhaka. Congress MP Shashi Tharoor said officials of the foreign ministry will brief the Parliamentary Standing Committee on External Affairs on Bangladesh on December 11. West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee expressed concerns over the attacks on religious minorities in Bangladesh but said she will abide by the Centre’s decision. In a relief to ISKCON, the Bangladesh High Court on Thursday rejected a petition filed by a lawyer seeking a ban on the group’s activities the country. The petition was moved after a prosecutor was killed in clashes between security personnel and supporters of Chinmoy, who was earlier linked to ISKCON.  P9 13,749 hectares of crops under water: Minister The deep depression over southwest Bay of Bengal, which has brought intense rainfall to Sri Lanka causing flooding in multiple places, has put north Tamil Nadu on its toes as the regional meteorological centre has issued a red alert for several coastal districts on November 29 and 30. The weather system, which was initially expected to intensify into a cyclonic storm, is likely to gradually weaken into a depression by Friday evening. It will cross the coast as depression, the IMD said. The Met office has issued a red alert for Chengalpattu, Villupuram, Cuddalore, Mayiladuthurai, Tiruvarur, Nagapattinam, Puducher ry and Karaikal area on Friday as scattered heavy to very heavy A fisherman secures the net near the shores of Besant Nagar beach | P Ravikumar Tiruchy: Over 13,749 hectares of standing crops, including 12,741 hectares of samba and thaladi paddy, were completely inundated in the heavy rain over the last few days, agriculture minister MRK Panneerselvam said on Thursday | P4 rain with extremely heavy rain is forecasted. A red alert has been issued for Saturday for Chennai, Tiruvallur, Kancheepuram, Chengalpattu, Villupuram, Kallakurichi, Cuddalore districts and Puducherry. Villupuram and Cuddalore have declared a holiday for schools and colleges on Friday while schools and colleges in Puducherry will remain closed on both Friday and Saturday . The rainfall activity will start over Chennai and neighbouring districts from Friday morning and will gradually increase, peaking on Saturday . The system has been stationary off the Sri Lankan coast for 24 hours, moving slowly. It is 410 km from Puducherry and 470 km from Chennai. Met officials predict it will move north-northwest and cross the Tamil Nadu-Puducherry coasts on November 30. P5 @ Chennai Priyanka makes debut Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi takes pictures of sister Priyanka Gandhi Vadra after she took oath as a Lok Sabha MP from Wayanad, holding a copy of the Constitution, on Thursday. (Inset) The photo Rahul shot and shared on Instagram. Parliament remained paralysed for the third day over Manipur and Adani row | PTI | P7 Mahayuti leaders discuss Maha power-share formula with Shah Eknath Shinde, Devendra Fadnavis and Ajit Pawar hold talks with the Union home minister S u d h ir S u r ya w a n s h i @ Mumbai Eight days after the ruling Mahayuti’s thumping victory in Maharashtra, its leaders Devendra Fadnavis, Eknath Shinde and Ajit Pawar held talks with Union home minister Amit Shah in Delhi amid indications that the final call on chief ministership could be made in a day or two. The meeting is also expected to discuss cabinet berths. Highly placed sources said out of total 42 ministerial slots in the outgoing government, the BJP wants to retain at least 50% while giving the Shiv Sena 30% and the NCP 20%. Sources said the RSS wants a senior party leader elevated as chief minister, adding the message has been conveyed to Prime Minister Narendra Modi. “RSS was silent in Lok Sabha polls, therefore BJP’s tally crashed from 23 to 9 in Maharashtra. But in the state polls, its cadre was active and that changed the final outcome. We have to promote a strong and young leader, therefore this is the best time to elevate Fadnavis as CM and later project him as the face of the BJP at the Centre,” said sources requesting anonymity . However, the BJP top brass is considering other names as well. “Fadnavis is a Brahmin. In the state elections, OBCs voted unitedly for the Mahayuti as did Marathas in large numbers. So, the BJP leadership is evaluating if they have a suitable OBC or Maratha candidate in the party for the top post, hence the delay in the final call,” said top sources. Ajit Pawar is certain to retain his position as deputy 50:30:20 BJP proposes a 50:30:20 formula for portfolio sharing with Shiv Sena and NCP Ajit Pawar hoping to keep all plum portfolios he had in the outgoing government BJP uneasy with Shinde’s proposal on promoting his son as deputy chief minister chief minister (DCM) and wants to keep the weighty portfolios he held in the previous government. He is pushing for finance, agriculture etc. Shinde wants Home and Urban Development if he is not made the chief minister. “Shinde proposed that his son Shrikant Shinde be elevated as DCM but the BJP is lukewarm, as it would weaken its campaign against dynasts. Shinde, however, argues that it is for the Shiv Sena to decide its DCM candidate, not the BJP. The flux has prompted many senior Sena leaders to enter the DCM ring,” said sources. Sources said many senior NCP and Sena ministers in the last government are unsure whether they will be part of the new dispensation. “Keeping everyone happy this time around will be tough because the number of MLAs is more. The massive mandate is good for stability but it is not easy to keep everyone in good humour,” said a senior NCP leader requesting anonymity . No road to reach hospital, CCI launches probe against Google TN girl dies of snakebite E x pr e s s N e w s S e r v i c e @ New Delhi E x pr e s s N e w s S e r v i c e @ Dharmapuri A 13-year-old girl of Alakattu Vattuvanahalli panchayat, a hamlet located on a hillock, died of snakebite on Thursday after it took nearly two hours for the villagers to reach the bottom of the hill by carrying her on a doli for 8km on unmotorable road. According to sources, at least 200 people belonging to 40 families live in the hamlet, which is bereft of any basic facilities, located at Pennagaram taluk in Dharmapuri district. More than 60 children from the village walk 10km (two-way) every day to reach the nearest school located on a nearby hill on muddy roads. The villagers, who are mostly labourers, have to climb down the hill by foot to reach towns to eke out a living. The nearest public health centre (PHC) at Seengadu is located at least 2.5km from the foothill. An auto was waiting to rush the victim, R Kasturi, to the PHC but she died on the way, sources said. A video showing villagers carrying a girl on a doli through rugged terrain went viral on social media on Thursday . Residents carrying the girl on a doli on Thursday | Express The residents shared the video to draw attention to their situation and urge authorities to take action. The villagers are seen struggling to navigate the steep path in a bid to seek medical help for the girl. Speaking to TNIE, A Pasuvaraj, a local resident, said, “We did everything we could to save her, but she died before we could reach the bottom of the hill. It takes more than an hour to trek down, and it takes even longer if someone has to be carried on a doli.” He added that the girl was picking greens with her sisters when a snake bit her. P5 THE Competition Commission of India (CCI) on Thursday launched an investigation into Google after online gaming firm WinZo accused the US tech giant of anti-competitive practices. In the order, the regulator asked its director-general to wrap up the probe and submit a report in 60 days. WinZo, an online gaming platfor m, has alleged that Google’s policies for hosting apps on the Play Store are unfair. It says Google’s Developer express read Swiatek tests positive, banned for a month Chennai: Five-time Grand Slam champ Iga Swiatek accepted a one-month suspension after testing positive for the banned substance trimetazidine, a heart medication known as TMZ | P11 5-member panel to probe Pamban bridge Chennai: Railway Ministry has set up a five-member panel to address safety concerns raised by the Commissioner for Railway Safety about the new Pamban Bridge built for `531 crore | P4 Distribution Agreement and Developer Program Policies are one-sided, adding that Google restricts hosting of gaming applications that offer Real Money Games (RMP) in India. As a result, customers are forced to download the WinZo app from its website. Additionally, when users download the app on Android devices, misleading warnings are displayed, which WinZo claims tarnish its reputation. The CCI has taken notice of these allegations and ordered an investigation into Google’s business practices, citing concerns over discriminatory conduct. The regulator noted that exclusion from the Play Store is tantamount to denial of market access. As for the disclaimer that pops up while downloading the app, the CCI said the warning is peculiar to the Google-operated Android OS and is completely illegal. Mild intensity blast in Delhi’s Rohini area, second in forty days U J W A L J A L A L I @ New Delhi chemical cocktail Preliminary examination suggested traces of ammonium nitrate, hydrogen peroxide and some sulphur compounds. They were in a polythene bag It is probably similar to what was found last time outside CRPF school. Its composition will be examined thoroughly FSL official A mild-intensity explosion at the entrance of a park near Delhi Police’s Crime Branch office in Rohini on Thursday cocked a snook at the security apparatus in the national capital at a time when Parliament is in session. This was the second blast in Rohini’s Prashant Vihar area in the past 40 days. On October 20, a mysterious blast had taken place near Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) school in Rohini. Its probe is still underway . Thursday’s blast took place just 2 km away from the site of the earlier explosion outside the CRPF school. It left the driver of a milk distribwution van injured. He was identified as Chetan Khushwaha, 27. There was no damage to his van, though. “He was taken to Dr Baba Saheb Ambedkar Hospital from where he was discharged after first aid,” a senior officer said. A Delhi Fire Service officer said a call regarding an explosion near Bansi Sweet Shop, Prashant Vihar, Rohini was received at 11.48 am following which four fire tenders were rushed to the spot. Senior police officers also reached the site followed by multiple security agencies, including the bomb disposal squad of the National Security Guard (NSG) and National Investigative Agency (NIA). Investigators gathered fragments of ‘white powder’ from the site and sent them to the Forensic Science Laboratory (FSL). They also recovered small wires, which indicate that they could have been used to detonate the bomb. NSG personnel at the site of the blast in Delhi’s Rohini on Thursday | Parveen Negi College girl confined and raped for 2 days, 1 held A n ton y F e r n a n do @ Mayiladuthurai In a suspected gang-rape of 17year-old college girl, one person was arrested under Pocso Act and remanded in judicial custody on Thursday and at least five more, including a juvenile, are under investigation in Mayiladuthurai. The girl was allegedly illegally detained for two days at a secluded spot and sexually assaulted by the accused. “We are waiting for the final medical report and investiga- tion is still under way,” Mayiladuthurai SP G Stalin told TNIE. K Rekha, District Child Protection Officer in-charge of Mayiladuthurai, said, “The victim told her our counsellors that she was sexually assaulted by multiple people over days. But we are waiting for the initial police probe to be completed.” According to sources, the victim, who belongs to Tiruvarur district, was doing her first-year B Com in a college in Mayiladuthurai. A A Abinath, a 20-year-old resident of Mayiladuthurai, established contact with her through Instagram a n d b e f r i e n d e d h e r. Abinath met the girl at Tiruvarur Bus Stand on Monday afternoon, and allegedly took her to a village near Mayiladuthurai where he sexually assaulted her. She was allegedly kept under illegal confinement and was dropped near the Mayiladuthurai bus stand by the per petrators in a car on Wednesday . Meanwhile, the girl’s parents filed a missing complaint in Tiruvarur on Tuesday and in Mayiladuthurai on Wednesday after they were unable to reach her. The victim was rescued on Wednesday, and a Pocso case w a s re g i s t e re d at M ay iladuthurai All Women Police Station on Thursday Police lat. er arrested Abinath and produced him before a magistrate and remanded him in judicial custody . P5