TIRUCHY l Friday l march 14, 2025 l `9.00 l PAGES 12 l late city EDITION Spadex Mission Achieves Maiden Undocking, next docking in april Indian Space Research Organisation recorded its first successful undocking as part of the Space Docking Experiment (SpaDeX) mission paves way for crucial future missions announcement After 3-Hour Assessment The two light weight satellites, SDX-01 (the chaser) and SDX-02 (target) successfully separated almost a month-and-a-half after it was scheduled to be achieved. With this success, ISRO is now bracing for its future missions — Chandrayaan-4, Bhartiya Antriksh Mission, manned space mission Gaganyaan, and Man on Moon mission ■ ■ Although the undocking happened around 9.20 am, ISRO announced on ‘X’ only at 12.21 pm, after assessing all parameters ISRO monitored operations from Bengaluru, Lucknow, and Mauritius. Satellites’ independent ops, sensors, and components are being analysed, said ISRO Chairman V Narayanan 460 km above Earth, the two mini satellites were successfully separated 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 Stalin emerges as the anchor of Opposition unity Telengana & Karnataka govts, BRS, YSRCP, BJD to attend Chennai meet on delimitation Preetha Na i r @ New Delhi Revanth to consult party brass Telangana CM Revanth Reddy said he would attend the Chennai meet after taking permission from the high command. A DMK delegation led by minister K N Nehru met him in Delhi on Thursday and extended an invitation Siddu to send DKS for event With several political parties extending support to the DMK government in Tamil Nadu in its fight over the proposed delimitation of parliamentary constituencies, Chief Minister M K Stalin appears to be emerging as the voice that binds the non-BJP parties on the issue. Congress-ruled Telangana and Karnataka governments, opposition BRS in Telangana, former Odisha CM Naveen Patnaik’s BJD, and former Andhra Pradesh CM Jagan Mohan Reddy’s YSRCP are some of the parties that have confirmed their participation in a meeting convened by Stalin on March 22. Spearheaded by Stalin, the coming together of political parties is widely seen as a show of Opposition unity against ‘delimitation’. On Thursday Telangana CM Revanth Reddy said , he would attend the Chennai meeting after taking permission from the Congress high command. “I welcome M K Stalin’s stand. I have to get permission from the Congress high command to attend the meeting. In principle, I have agreed to attend,” Reddy told reporters. Earlier this month, Stalin had written to the chief ministers of seven states, including Reddy to , form a joint action committee against the delimitation exercise. The Chennai meeting is seen as a first step towards ‘unified action’ against any move by the Centre to implement delimitation of Lok Sabha constituencies in a manner that will cut down the representation of states that have successfully implemented population control. Though the BRS in Telangana keeps a distance from both the Congress and the BJP BRS leader K , T Rama Rao on Thursday confirmed it will attend the meeting. A DMK delegation also extended an invitation to Andhra Pradesh’s ruling TDP and a key ally of the NDA government. According to sources, the party said that it will discuss the matter with CM Chandrababu Naidu and take a call. Delegations of DMK leaders met K’taka CM Siddaramaiah, former AP CM Jagan Mohan Reddy and BJD’ s Naveen Patnaik, who assured their support. Siddu deputed Deputy CM D K Shivakumar for the Chennai meeting Rupee symbol axed Intensifying the language showdown, the TN govt on Thursday replaced the Devanagari rupee symbol with a Tamil letter in its logo for tomorrow’s TN budget | P4 After raid at 25 places, ED claims `1K cr financial fraud in Tasmac E x p ress n e w s ser v i c e @ Chennai The Enforcement Directorate (ED), in a statement on Thursday alleged that its recent search, es in Tasmac offices have revealed “a well-orchestrated scheme” through which distilleries, particularly through bottling units, generated unaccounted cash of over `1,000 crore. The money the agency claimed, , was then used for kickbacks to secure increased supply orders from the Tasmac — the sole organisation empowered to procure and sell liquor in the state. Last week, the ED searched 25 locations, including Tasmac offices, distilleries and bottling units. The statement said, “Evidence reveals direct communication between distilleries and Tasmac officials, exposing efforts to secure increased indent orders and undue favours.” The ED said the illicit money was generated by distilleries “systematically” inflating expenses and fabricating bogus purchases, through bottle-making companies. P5 ‘special order’ tasmac liquor procurement system binned | P4 playing with Colour Children celebrate Holi a day ahead of the festival of colours, in Karnataka’s Chikkamagaluru on Thursday | PTI In short term, TN’s growth rate to be 9%, says economic survey B’luru to host BJP natl executive council meet continue to spur economic activity India’s national economy . recorded 7.61% growth in 202223, 9.19% in 2023-24, and 6.48% in 2024-25. The survey covers the developments in all sectors of Tamil Nadu’s economy over the past five years, while listing out the issues to be addressed and development gaps to be bridged in the state to achieve more in the coming years. “Over the medium term, the growth rate may moderate to around 8% with a 4% inflation rate, reflecting the long-term sustainability of growth driven by industrial, agricultural, and service sector reforms. As the investments mature and economic conditions stabilise, Tamil Nadu’s growth trajectory is expected to stay strong, contributing significantly to the national economy,” the survey said. MORE ON P4, P5 the BJP is likely to hold its National Executive Council meeting in Bengaluru between April 18 and 20, sources said. According to party insiders, the decision to hold the meeting in Bengaluru carries significant symbolism for the BJP’s Mission South project. “This could indicate the party’s shift in electoral strategy towards Buzz on South India, with a focused effort on sonew prez lidifying its base in states like Karnataka, where the Congress is in power now,” a The meeting is expected to senior BJP leader told this paper. Also on the agenda is announcing a new pass a couple of resolutions, party president, sources said, adding that in addition to the new chief may be from South India, adding that female leaders may have an deliberating edge, in line with the party’s policy of proon and moting women’s participation in politics potentially — from organisational roles to announcing the new party governance. BJP’s Andhra unit chief Daggubati president Purandeswari is among the women leaders being considered. The other names doing the rounds include Union ministers Manohar Lal Khattar, Bhupendra Yadav and Dharmendra Pradhan. Also in the race are Dr Sudha Yadav, Vinod Tawde, Tarun Chugh, and Arun Kumar. There is also speculation about Sarbananda Sonowal and Kiren Rijiju, along with Sanjay Joshi and Ram Madhav being considered for the top party post. T M uru g a n a n d ham @ Chennai The first-ever economic survey of Tamil Nadu released by Chief Minister M K Stalin for the year 2024-25 said that based on current trends and economic projections, the state seems to be well-positioned for robust growth in the coming years. Tamil Nadu contributes 9.21% of India’s GDP despite having just 6% of the population, the CM said in his ‘X’ post pointing to the survey . The survey said given the projected capital expenditure (Capex) of `47,681 crore, a significant influx of committed investments, and a supportive policy environment, Tamil Nadu’s economy is likely to outpace national growth. In 2022-23, Tamil Nadu’s per capita income was `2.78 lakh, 1.6 times the national average of `1.69 lakh. The state consistent- DMK government’s last full budget today Chennai: Finance Minister Thangam Thennarasu will present the last full budget of the present DMK regime for 2025-26 on Friday. While key announcements are likely, opposition parties AIADMK and BJP are expected to target the government over law and order, and debt | P4 ly outpaced the national average over the years and is the fourthlargest state in per capita income. The survey also pointed out that in the short term, Tamil Nadu is expected to maintain a real growth rate of approximately 9% with an inflation rate of around 5%, as large-scale infrastructure projects, industrial growth, and foreign investments Pricey Starlink to target niche customers in India R A K E S H K U M A R @ New Delhi ELON Musk-led Starlink may target niche customers in India due to its pricing, which is significantly higher than the services provided by Bharti Airtel and Reliance Jio. According to a report by Bernstein, Starlink’s satellite technology offers advantages in remote areas but its high cost and potential speed variability make it less attractive to consumers in urban and semi-urban regions, where Airtel and Jio provide affordable and reliable broadband services. Reliance Jio and Bharti Airtel have recently announced separate partnerships with Starlink to offer broadband services in India. Both companies have clarified that services will commence only after Starlink receives approval from the Department of Telecommunications (DoT). Industry insiders say the DoT is likely to grant a licence to the Musk-led company soon. In fact, Union minisElon Musk ter for Electronics & COSTLY AFFAIR Starlink Bharti Airtel Reliance Jio Speed (mbps) 50-200 100 200 100 200 Initial upfront 52,242 1,000 1,000 1,000 1,000 fees (J) Per month 10,469 799 999 699 999 fees (J) Tax and 30 18 18 18 18 levies (%) Total annual 2,15,600 12,314 15,146 10,898 15,146 price (J) Information Technology Ashwini , Vaishnaw, welcomed Starlink to India through a social media post on Wednesday night. However, the minister later deleted the post. Meanwhile, the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India is yet to release its recommendations on the pricing and other modalities for satellite broadband. Reports suggest that the telecom regulator plans to recommend satellite broadband spectrum be allotted for five years instead of 20 years to assess initial market adoption. Policy directive out to launch Nuclear Energy Mission R A J E S H K U M A R T H A K U R @New Delhi THE Centre has issued a policy directive to launch the Nuclear Energy Mission (NEM) as part of the country’s energy transition efforts. The mission focuses on research and development of new reactor designs and technologies. To achieve this, the government will allow private investors and sectors to participate in largescale deployments of existing technologies. In response to a query in the Lok Sabha, Dr Jitendra “The task force is examSingh, Minister of State ining aspects such as for Personnel, Public building, owning, and opGrievances, Pensions and erating nuclear power the PMO, said NEM necesplants by private sector; sitates capacity building, nuclear safety, security, and to facilitate active safeguards, fuel procurepartnerships with the priment/fabrication, waste Jitendra Singh vate sector, amendments management, and spent to the Atomic Energy Act fuel reprocessing,” the and the Civil Liability for Nuclear minister added. Damage Act are being pursued. The government also plans to Dr Singh said a task force has partner with the private sector to been set up to review these set up Bharat Small Reactors amendments. (BSR), with NPCIL floating a Re- quest-for-Proposal to private industries. These reactors will be commissioned and operated by NPCIL but set up with private capital. “With ... private investment, it is expected that the strategy for scaling up the nuclear sector will send a strong signal to participate and plan for capacity and infrastructure expansion for nuclearrelated projects...,” he said. The government is also working towards making Nuclear Power Projects (NPPs) eligible for climate finance, Dr Singh said. R A J E S H K U M A R T H A K U R @ New Delhi