KOCHI l thursday l December 19, 2024 l `9.00 l PAGES 16 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 13 killed as Navy boat rams ferry over demand for Shah’s axe on board the Naval craft were also killed in the accident. It added that its boat was undergoing engine trials when it lost control and collided with the ferry Neel Kamal, off Karanja , near Mumbai coast. The distance between Gateway of India to Elephanta Island is 30 km and it takes around 45 minutes to cover. Sources said the Navy’s boat first circled around the passenger boat and then crashed into it, causing the ferry to capsize. Narrating the horrific incident to this newspaper, 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 SU D HIR SURYAWA N SHI @ Mumbai Thirteen people, including four women and two children, 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 Sourc. es said there were over 100 people on board the ferry which was carrying passengers from the Gateway of India to Elephanta Island, a popular tourist destination. As many as 99 were rescued and admitted in various hospitals. The condition of four is critical, sources said. According to a Navy statement, one Naval personnel and two from the Original Equipment Manufacturer Attacks Kharge claim on Ambedkar’s insult RA J E SH K UMAR T HA K UR @ New Delhi 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’s 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, citing violation of laws 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 Four naval helicopters, 11 naval craft, one Coast Guard boat and three Marine Police boats were involved in rescue efforts —Navy statement Ashwin’s big spin: Goodbye to international cricket dia 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 setup for 14 years, had evidently informed Rohit that if he is not needed going forward, it was time to hang up his boots. In fact, he G o m e s h S @ Brisbane JPC Priyanka Gandhi in House panel The Congress MP from Wayanad will be among the 21 LS members who will be part of the joint committee of Parliament that will scrutinise two bills on simultaneous polls. It will also have 10 RS members | P7 EXPRESS READ Kendra Sahitya Akademi award for K Jayakumar Point-of-call status sought for Kannur airport HC quashes delimitation in nine local bodies T’Puram: Poet, author and former chief secretary K Jayakumar has been chosen for the Kendra Sahitya Akademi Award. His work “Pingalakeshini” was selected for the award in Malayalam category. The award is in the form of a casket containing an engraved copper plaque, a shawl and an amount of J1 lakh | P5 Kannur: Political parties and expatriate groups have intensified their protests demanding pointof-call status for the Kannur International Airport (KIAL). Both the CPM and the Congress have accused the BJP of political discrimination in denying Kannur airport the status even six years after its inauguration | P4 Kochi: The Kerala HC has quashed the delimitation order in eight municipalities — Mattannur, Sreekandapuram, Panoor, Koduvally, Payyoli, Mukkam, Feroke and Pattambi — and one panchayat, declaring it illegal | P4 16 pages, including 4 pages of KOCHI Express 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. 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, at the Gabba. The veil was lifted when Ashwin walked out with In- 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 af,” P11 ter third Test.  The cricketer in me, the Indian cricketer, international cricketer might have come to an end, but the cricket nut in me will never come to an end — Ashwin while addressing his teammates in dressing room Was the first bowler to reach 100 wickets in the World Test Championship, reaching the mark in March 2022 Fast-track Became the fastest cricketer to reach 250, 300 and 500 Test wickets Figures Narendra Modi 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.” Tests: Matches 106, Wkts 537 ODI: Matches 116, Wkts 156 T20I: Matches 65,Wkts 72 w e l c o m i n g w ea t h er Tourists arrive in droves as temperature drops to 6°C in Munnar E x p r e s s N e w s Se r v i c e @Idukki The chilly weather in Munnar as 2024 nears its end is attracting visitors to the hill station in large numbers. The rush has come as a boon to the tourism industry, specifically hotels, with nearly all of them booked to near capacity till December 31. As per the data from the United Planters Association of Southern India (UPASI), the lowest minimum temperature of 6 degrees Celsius was recorded at Chundavurrai estate in Munnar on Tuesday Other . areas of the hill station, including Silent Valley, Devikulam, Lechmi, Sevenmalai, Mattupetty and Nallathanni, recorded temperatures between 8 and 9 degrees Celsius. People associated with the tourism industry hope the mercury drops to sub-zero level within a week, which would further drive up footfall. “We believe Munnar is going 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 initially. “Only when the boat started sinking did the boat’s crew start distributing them to the passengers. There were several children in the boat. The quick rescue operation saved many lives,” he said. Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis said the rescue team succeeded in saving several passengers. He also declared financial assistance of `5 lakh to the kin of victims of the tragedy from the Chief Minister’s Relief Fund. Official sources said an FIR under relevant sections of the new criminal code BNS was registered at the Colaba police station against the Navy speed boat driver and others responsible for the tragedy . to experience the highest footfall this season since 2020. Even before the holidays have begun, there is a considerable rush in tourist spots,” Asish Varghese, an adventure tourist guide in Munnar, told TNIE. He said almost all the hotels in Munnar have reported 90% bookings from December 20 to December 31. Besides families, adventure buffs too are making a beeline for the hill station to enjoy trekking and witness the fog- laden hills and the extreme climate. Sujith Krishnan, a tourist from Thrissur, said the weather has been “great” in Munnar for the past two days. “It is really cold here. This is the first time we are experiencing such low temperature. We visited Munnar two weeks ago, and the weather now is colder than then. We came early in the morning this time to enjoy the climate,” he said. As the temperature dipped, locals and tourists were seen huddling around bonfires to stay warm. Tourism department officials too said they were expecting a good turnout this Christmas and New Year. “The tourist footfall is expected to rise not only in Munnar, but also in other spots, including Wagamon, Idukki and Panchalimedu. Visitors will be ensured all necessary infrastructure facilities at the spots. We hope this season leads to turnaround of the industry,” ● More on P4 the official said. Govt okays Ajith Kumar’s promotion to DGP rank E x p r e s s N e w s Se r v i c e @T’Puram In a significant move, the cabinet on Wednesday accepted the recommendation of the highlevel screening committee to bestow DGP rank to ADGP M R Ajith Kumar, who is currently heading the Armed Police Battalion, when a vacancy arises. The 1995-batch IPS officer, who is facing a vigilance probe over alleged illegal amassing of wealth, will be promoted as DGP by July next year when a vacancy arises after the retirement of state police chief Shaik Darvesh Saheb. Also, S Suresh, who is on central deputation with the Special Protection Group, will be promoted to the DGP rank. And after K Padmakumar’s retirement on April 30, 2025, Law and Order ADGP Manoj Abraham of the 1994 batch will be elevated to the DGP rank. Ajith’s promotion will take place after that. The government’s decision to promote Ajith has not gone down well with the Opposition. State Congress chief K Sudhakaran alleged that the controversial officer was being promoted as Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan had succumbed to the RSS. He said despite facing a battery of serious allegations, Ajith was promoted since he is the CM’s blue-eyed boy . “Ajith was the bridge between the CM and the RSS. If disciplinary action was taken against him, this promotion would not have happened,” he ● More on P4 said.