belagavi l thursday l december 19, 2024 l `9.00 l PAGES 12 l late city EDITION Donald Trump threatens to impose reciprocal tax on India The US President-elect said India charges ‘a lot’, adding that he would retaliate with the same tax that New Delhi imposes on import of US products Reciprocity to be key for next u.s. govt Don sends mixed signals to China “Reciprocal. If they tax us, we tax them the same amount. They tax us, We tax them. They’re taxing us, and we haven’t been taxing them,” Trump told reporters. “Perhaps the most important element of my plan to make America extraordinarily wealthy again is reciprocity. It’s a word that’s very important in my plan because we generally don’t charge tariffs,” he said ■ ■ Trump’s tariff threat against India comes a day after his sweeping offer to work with China “to solve all problems of the world” After winning the presidential election in November, Trump had called for trade sanctions against China, Mexico, and Canada. Now he has added India to the list. Don had targeted India in his first term as well $77.51 bn India’s exports to u.s. in fy24, while imports aggregated at $42.2 billion 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 Modi raps Cong over demand for Shah’s axe 13 killed as Navy boat rams ferry 1 S U D H I R S U R YA W A N S H I @ Mumbai 2 Attacks Kharge claim on Ambedkar’s insult R A J E S H K U M A R T H A K U R @ New Delhi Narendra Modi Amit Shah Mallikarjun Kharge X issues notices The Congress and some of its leaders received notices from X for sharing certain video clips of Shah RS speech on their handles. Sources said X referred to the notice it received from MHA’s Cyber Crime Coordination Centre for removal of the content, which is in violation of law of India Hours after the Congress demanded Union home minister Amit Shah’s resignation on Wednesday over alleged ‘insult’ of Dr B R Ambedkar in his Rajya Sabha address the previous evening, Prime Minister Narendra Modi strongly defended him, saying Shah had instead exposed the Congress’ dark history of disrespecting the architect of the Constitution, leaving the Opposition “stung and stunned”. In a series of posts on X, Modi said, “If the Congress and its rotten ecosystem think their malicious lies can hide their misdeeds of several years, especially their insult towards Dr Ambedkar, they are gravely mistaken!” The day began with Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge demanding that Modi sack Shah before midnight if the minister does not quit on his own. “If there is no resignation, there will be protests all over the country Ba. basaheb belongs to everyone because he used to talk about every person of society including , Dalits, the oppressed and the deprived. He had sympathy for everyone,” Kharge said. Shah had launched a broadside against the Congress in the Rajya Sabha, saying: “It has become a fashion to say Ambedkar, Ambedkar, Ambedkar, Ambedkar, Ambedkar, Ambedkar’. If they had taken God’s name so many times, they would have got a place in heaven.” Hitting back at the Congress, the PM said, “The people of India have seen time and again how one party led by one dynasty has indulged , , in every possible dirty trick to obliterate the legacy of Dr Ambedkar and humiliate the SC/ST communities.” Getting Ambedkar defeated in elections not once but twice; Nehru campaigning against him and making his loss a prestige issue; denying him the Bharat Ratna; and not allowing his portrait the pride of place in Parliament’s Central Hall are some of the many sins committed by the Congress, he added. In his pushback, the Union home minister accused Congress leader Rahul Gandhi of forcing Kharge to go after him. “Kharge should not have supported this nefarious effort of the Congress in spreading false and distorted statements. I am very sad that you (Kharge) have also joined this under the pressure of Rahul Gandhi.” express read Snehamayi alleges pressure to withdraw MUDA case mysuru: RTI activist Snehamayi Krishna on Wednesday filed a complaint with the Lokayukta police here alleging pressure and attempts to bribe him to withdraw a case pertaining to alleged irregularities in allotment of sites by Mysuru Urban Development Authority (MUDA) | P5 JPC 3 1. The Navy’s speed boat that lost control and crashed into the passenger ferry Neel Kamal 2. The ferry capsizes after the collision 3. Passengers of the ferry being rescued | pti Border talks back on track as Doval meets Wang in Beijing M AYA N K S I N G H @ New Delhi IN what is seen as a major step towards normalisation of India-China ties, National Security Advisor Ajit Doval and Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi held “substantive discussions” during the Special Representatives dialogue in Beijing on Wednesday . Constituted in 2003, the Special Representatives (SRs) meeting is regarded as significant as it is the only structured engagement between the two countries to restore relations. During their meeting, the first after a gap of five years, the two SRs discussed a range of issues, including the management of peace and tranquillity along the Line of Actual Control (LAC) and normalisation of relations that remained frayed after the border clash in eastern Ladakh four years ago. ‘The SRs positively affirmed the implementation of the latest disengagement agreement of October 2024, resulting in patrolling and grazing in relevant areas. The SRs reiterated the importance of maintaining a political perspective of the overall bilateral relationship while seeking a fair, reasonable and mutually acceptable framework for settlement of the boundary question, and resolved to inject more vitality into this process,” the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) said. The MEA said both sides exchanged views on bilateral, regional, and global issues of mutual interest. “They provided positive directions for cross-border cooperation and exchanges including resumption of the Kailash Mansarovar Yatra, data sharing on trans-border rivers and border trade. They agreed on the salience of stable, predictable and amicable India-China relations for regional and global peace and prosperity,” it added. Priyanka Gandhi among 21 members The Congress leader and MP from Wayanad, Kerala will be among the 21 Lok Sabha members who will be part of the joint committee of Parliament that will scrutinise two bills on simultaneous elections | P7 NSA Ajit Doval greets Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi | PTI Ashwin’s big spin: Goodbye to int’l cricket G o m e sh S @ Brisbane I ntrigue and suspense, the moments leading up to the revelation seemed like an episode right out of the pages of mystery books. It all started as murmurs as if something unexpected was going to happen. It seemed like a premonition. The cameras in the stadium that seem to be omnipresent and miss nothing panned it on an emotional conversation between two luminaries of Indian cricket — R Ashwin and Virat Kohli here at the Gabba. The veil was lifted when Ashwin walked out with the India skipper Rohit Sharma for the after-match press briefing. Someone retiring midway is rare but knowing Ashwin, the announcement wasn’t a surprise. He dropped the bombshell, just like taking wickets, out of nowhere. After spending years at the highest echelon of the sport, he would not want to travel if his services are not needed. Ashwin, having been a part of the India set up for 14 years, had evidently informed Rohit that if he is not needed going forward, it was time to hang his boots. In fact, he had spoken to the captain about it in Perth, where Washington Sundar played ahead of him, but Rohit had convinced Ashwin to stay on for pink ball Test. After 765 wickets in 277 appearances for India across formats in 14 years, Ashwin decided to call it a day in international cricket. “This will be my last day as an Indian cricketer in all formats at the international level. I do feel there is a bit of a punch left in me as a cricketer but I would like to expose and probably showcase that in club level cricket but this will be the last day,” Ashwin said after third Test. With 11 Player of the Series awards and 537 wickets, Ashwin goes down as one of the biggest match-winners of his generation in the longest format. Ashwin thanked his teammates, in particular Rohit, Kohli, Ajinkya Rahane and Cheteshwar Pujara, the BCCI and all the coaches involved. “As a cricketer, I’ve just stopped but I might go on to be involved with the game because this is a game that’s given me everything. Thank you,” he signed off. Like he said in a short video posted by BCCI, “the cricket in me will never come to an end” adding “if you need anything I am just a call away”.  P11 Thirteen people were killed after a speed boat of the Indian Navy crashed into a passenger ferry boat near the Gateway of India in Mumbai on Wednesday There were 114 people, in. cluding five crew members, on board the ferry which was carrying passengers from the Gateway of India to Elephanta Island, a popular tourist destination. Sources said 101 were rescued and admitted in various hospitals. The condition of four is critical while that of 97 others is stable. According to a Navy statement, its boat was undergoing engine trials when it lost control and collided with the ferry Neel Kamal off Karanja near Mumbai. The ferry capsized due to the impact of the collision. The distance between Gateway of India to Elephanta Island is 30 km and it takes around 45 minutes to reach this tourist spot. According to sources, the Navy’s boat first circled around the passenger boat and then crashed into it repeatedly caus, ing the ferry to capsize. Narrating the horrific incident, a rescued passenger said the incident took place about 10 km away from the Gateway of India. “The speed boat directly hit the passenger ferry and sea water rushed into the boat. The crew members told us to wear life-saving jackets to avoid drowning. Then the boat sank and everyone was in utter panic trying to save their lives. We struggled a lot to keep afloat. Later, local fishermen and the rescue teams of the Navy and Coast Guard arrived,” he said. Another passenger said they were not given life jackets by the crew members. “Only when the boat started sinking did they start distributing them to the passengers. There were several children in the boat. The quick rescue operation saved many lives,” he said. Maharashtra CM Devendra Fadnavis said the rescue operation was on and the rescue team succeeded rescuing several passengers. “We are in touch with the rescue team and local administration. We are closely monitoring the situation,” he said. The CM added that this accident took place after the Navy’s speed boat lost control and hit the ferry “The injured are . admitted in nearby hospitals while financial assistance will be provided to the deceased family members,” Fadnavis added. Health dept flags 26 meds as misbranded R ishita K hanna @ Bengaluru The health department has flagged 26 medicines -- eight as spurious or fake and 18 as misbranded -which are consumed for acidity , pain relief, cholesterol, iron deficiency and nasal congestion. , It has stated that these medicines have been produced in violation of the Drugs and Cosmetics Act. Over a year, five pharmaceuticals have been convicted for violating safety standards. Twelve cases are in various stages of trial. Investigations are on to ascertain whether pharma companies used substandard chemicals in 26 medicines flagged by the department. Of the 26 medicines, 10 used for nasal congestion relief were found to have violated the Act. Four medicines used for reducing eye inflammation and treating dry eyes, two to treat pain, inflammation and conditions such as arthritis and allergies have been labelled as spurious or misbranded. The department found three samples of folic acid (iron supplements) and multivitamin medicines not meeting the set standards alongside other drugs used for treating glaucoma and high eye pressure as well as preventing nausea and vomiting caused by chemotherapy or surgery .