THRISSUR l thursday l april 24, 2025 l `9.00 l PAGES 12 l city EDITION European Union hits Apple, meta with 700 million euros in fines In a decision likely to further strain its ties with the US, the EU has slapped steep penalties on the American firms for breaking its competition rules Penalty over App store monopoly, ads First action under digital markets act Apple must pay 500 million euros for preventing app makers from pointing users to cheaper options outside its App Store. As for Meta Platforms, it must pay a 200 million euro fine for forcing Facebook and Instagram users to choose between seeing personalised ads or paying to avoid them. Both companies indicated they would appeal | p10 ■ ■ The penalties were the first issued under the EU’s new Digital Markets Act, designed to give consumers and businesses more choice and prevent Big Tech “gatekeepers” from cornering digital markets “Both Apple and Meta have taken away free choice from their users,” Henna Virkkunen, the European Commission’s executive V-P said 60 days timeframe for Apple and Meta to comply with the decision 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 CCS also decides to shut Attari Check Post to press pak, Indus treaty put on ice Commission in New Delhi have been declared persona non In response to the deadly Pa- grata and must leave India halgam terror attack that killed within a week. India will with26 people, including a Nepali draw its own Defence, Navy, national, India on Wednesday and Air Advisors from its High put Pakistan on notice, placing Commission in Islamabad. the Indus Waters Treaty in These positions in both misabeyance, expelling military at- sions are now considered antachés, slashing diplomatic nulled, and five support staff staff and suspending associated with the the entry its nationals, service advisors will faces of citing clear cross-border also be withdrawn from terror links to the assault. each side. Diplomatic India also decided to strength in both misshut down the Integratsions will be reduced ed Check Post at Attari from 55 to 30 by May 1. with immediate effect, India suspendas part of the measures ed the Indus Wataken by the Cabinet ters Treaty with Committee on Security immediate ef(CCS) chaired by Prime fect “until PakiM i n i s t e r N a re n d r a stan verifiably Modi. The CCS assessed ends support for the overall security situcross-border terroration and instructed ism,” Misri said. The “all forces to remain on treaty signed in 1960, is , high alert”. “It (CCS) reconsidered one of the solved that the perpetramost generous and entors of the attack will be during water-sharing brought to justice and pacts globally. Now, Intheir sponsors held to dia has frozen it, halting account,” Foreign Secall data exchange and retary Vikram Misri said. suspending “its obligations” to “In the briefing to the CCS, share river waters. the cross-border linkages of It has been decided the Intethe ter rorist attack were grated Check Post at Attari will brought out. It was noted that be closed, with a May 1 deadthis attack came in the wake of line for return of those who the successful holding of elec- crossed over with valid docutions in the Union Territory ments. Travel under the SAARC and its steady progress towards Visa Exemption Scheme is now economic growth and develop- barred for Pakistani nationals, ment,” Misri said. with existing visas cancelled The Defence, Naval and Air and current holders given 48 Advisors in the Pakistani High hours to exit. J ayan t h J a c o b @ New Delhi Pak’s Military diplomats expelled Navy Lt Vinay Narwal’s wife Himanshi breaks down while paying tribute to her husband killed in the attack | pTI Diplomatic Staff reduced Prime Minister Narendra Modi chairs a meeting of the Cabinet Committee on Security on Wednesday that decided on coercive action against Pakistan over the J&K massacre | PTI Sketches of terrorists out, top Lashkar leader Saifullah mastermind of carnage Faya z Wan i an d MU K E SH R A N J A N @ Srinagar/New Delhi A day after 25 tourists and a local were mowed down by terrorists in Pahalgam, security agencies on Wednesday released sketches of the three terrorists involved in the attack. Intelligence agencies also identified Pakistan-based Lashkar-e-Toiba’s top commander Saifullah Khalid alias Khalid as the mastermind behind the carnage. One of the three terrorists is suspected to be a local while the others are Pakistani nationals. “The team of three was led by one Pakistani militant Asif Fauji,” sources said. “We suspect the terrorists were provided support by some locals by way of logistics and reconnaissance,” a security official said. Security agencies reckon that the assailants may have used M4-carbine rifles. They possibly crossed over from Kishtwar, where three terrorists were recently killed in a threeday long encounter. The police have also questioned some locals. Khalid, the mastermind behind the attack, also heads the LeT’s Peshawar unit. In the past, he had expressed frustration over Pakistan’s strategic shift in its Kashmir policy, particularly after the India abrogated Article 370 of the Constitution. Khalid has always held the view India is united in fighting it, says Kharge Kashmir observes bandh against killings by terrorists for the first time in more than 35 years 1 Army personnel at the site of the attack Pahalgam terror attack is direct assault on Indian state, the country is one in fighting it, says Cong chief Kharge 2 E x p r e s s N e w s Se r v i c e @Kochi Aravinda Menon, son of N Ramachandran, receives the mortal remains of his father at Kochi airport on Wednesday. Agriculture Minister P Prasad (left) and Aluva MLA Anwar Sadath (right) are seen. The body will be kept at Changampuzha Park from 7am to 9am on Friday for the public to pay homage. The cremation will be carried out at the crematorium near Edappally at noon | A Sanesh | P4 in the snow-clad mountains. “Arathy accompanied Ramachandran to trek the hills to visit Baisaran. Shiela stayed back as she had difficulty climbing. Arathy said the terrorists suddenly emerged from the pine forest and asked tourists for their identity. When Ramachandran revealed his name, they shot him point-blank. Arathy screamed and ran. The terrorists spared the driver as he was a Muslim,” said N C Induchoodan, retired deputy conservator of forest and Ramachandran’s cousin. “Ramachandran uncle returned from Qatar two years ago and was enjoying the retired life with Arathy and the grandchildren,” said actor Shankar Induchoodan, son ● More on P4 of Induchoodan.  Jayathilak to be Kerala’s 50th Chief Secy champion, Thiruvananthapuram native Jayathilak is a multifaceted personality. The government has appoint- Having passed out of Thirued IAS officer Dr A Jayathilak vananthapuram Medical Colas the 50th Chief Secretary of lege in 1990, he started his buKerala. The 1991 batch officer, reaucratic career as the currently serving as Addition- Mananthavady sub-collector al Chief Secretary (finance), and went to hold different will succeed incumposts later. As the disbent Chief Secretary trict collector of KolSarada Muraleedhalam and Kozhikode, ran who retires on Jayathilak launched April 30. notable initiatives Manoj Joshi, the such as a career guidsenior most Kerala ance programme for cadre IAS officer of school students. The the 1989 batch, was collector’s participaA Jayathilak among the probables tion in programmes in for the state’s top budifferent schools was reaucratic post. However, Jay- appreciated by all. athilak was picked as Manoj Jayathilak, along with tourcontinued on central deputa- ism secretary Amitabh Kant tion. Another 1991 batch of- and director V Venu, is also ficer, Raju Narayana Swamy, credited with taking brand is yet to get the Chief Secre- ‘Kerala Tourism’ to greater tary grade. heights. T he experience A doctor and former quiz helped him in securing a depE x p r e s s N e w s Se r v i c e @T’Puram 50% US tariffs on Chinese goods could come down to between 50% and 65%, a senior White House official told Wall Street Journal Vietnam began trade talks with the US to avert the 46% tariffs set to kick in when the 90-day pause ends Finance Secretary Ajay Seth said direct impact of US tariffs on India’s GDP growth would be around 0.2 to 0.5% Exodus begins, 90% tour bookings for Kashmir cancelled, say Delhi travel agencies 3 Airlines operate addl flights to Srinagar with reasonable airfare for tourists wanting to return home early 4 We will not only trace those who perpetrated it. We will also go after those who, sitting behind the scenes, conspired to carry out the attack. They will face a strong response in the near future —Rajnath Singh, defence minister Tragic end to Gulf returnee’s holiday trip with family N Ramachandran had a sweet vacation in mind when he took his wife, daughter and two grandchildren to Baisaran, the fabled valley known as Mini Switzerland, in Pahalgam, Kashmir, on Monday . However, the family’s excitement and happiness gave way to shock, horror and grief as terrorists mercilessly gunned down Ramachandran and 24 other tourists on Tuesday . Ramachandran, a Gulf returnee, had set off for Kashmir with wife Shiela, daughter Arathy and grandchildren Kedar and Drupath on Monday The children were in . high spirits, hoping to experience Kashmir’s cool weather and take that it was because of Pakistan’s decision to scale back LeT’s operations in Kashmir that violence escalated in Balochistan and the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa area, sources said. The TRF is alleged to have gunned down tourists to retaliate against 85,000 domicile certificates issued to non-locals, though there is no conclusive evidence to establish the claim. Since its inception, the TRF targeted non-Kashmiris and religious minorities, including Pandits. The murders of well-known chemist Makhan Lal Pandita and school principal Supinder Kaur in 2021, the 2023 Anantnag encounter, and the killing of civilians at a construction firm in Ganderbal in 2024, were all done by the TRF. utation to Chhattisgarh, then a new state, where he served as the maiden managing director of Chhattisgarh tourism board. In two years, Jayathilak was able to successfully brand and market Chhattisgarh internationally . As a student, Jayathilak won several quiz competitions in school and college. He consecutively bagged the first prize in the state-level wildlife quiz competitions organised for college students by the forests and wildlife department. Jayathilak’s elevation to the top post comes amid a power struggle in the bureaucratic circle following the allegations levelled by IAS officer N Prasanth. Set to retire in June 2026, Jayathilak will have a longer tenure than Sarada, who held the Chief Secretary office for seven months after taking over from her husband Dr V Venu in September 2024. p4 Quiz champ, doctor A Jayathilak succeeds Sarada Muraleedharan who retires on April 30 As student, he won several quiz contests in school and college. He is also an MBBS graduate Set to retire on June 2026, Jayathilak’s appointment comes amid power struggle in the state’s bureaucratic circle SAARC visa scheme off J&K Chief Minister Omar Abdullah consoles the father of Syed Adil Shah who was killed in the terrorist attack | PTI Local lad fought assailants, laid down his life Faya z w an i @ Srinagar When terrorists opened fire at tourists at Baisaran meadows in Pahalgam on Tuesday , local pony ride operator Syed Adil Shah’s first instinct was not to run for cover, but to save the lives of the tourists around him. The sole breadwinner of his family, Adil charged at the terrorists, trying to snatch the gun from one of them to stop the attack. This selfless act cost him his life. “He attempted to snatch the rifle of a militant to prevent him from firing and save the lives of the tourists. That is why he was then targeted,” Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Syed Adil Shah Abdullah told reporters. Adil’s body was returned to his family on Wednesday “We have to take . care of his family. The government stands with him and whatever it can do, it will do,” Abdullah said while attending his funeral. Adil left home on Tuesday morning for work, his father said. “Around 3 pm, we heard that tourists were attacked at Baisaran. We tried to call him, but his phone was switched off,” he said. The family lodged a complaint with the local police station. In the evening, they were informed that Adil was shot dead. “He was our sole breadwinner and we were dependent on him for our survival,” Adil’s father said demanding justice.