SAMBALPUR l tuesday l October 28, 2025 l `9.00 l PAGES 14 l CITY EDITION CJI Gavai recommends Justice Surya Kant as successor Chief Justice of India (CJI) Bhushan Ramkrishna Gavai, who is retiring on November 23, has recommended Justice Surya Kant as successor justice kant to have 14-month tenure Was part of article 370 verdict Justice Surya Kant, the second senior-most judge of the Supreme Court after Justice Gavai, will become the 53rd CJI. He will have a tenure of 14 months before retiring on February 9, 2027. The retirement age for Supreme Court judges is 65 years. Kant was elevated to the Supreme Court in 2019 and has been part of several landmark verdicts ■ ■ He was on the bench that upheld the Central government’s decision to abrogate the special status of Jammu and Kashmir Kant headed the bench that asked the Election Commission to disclose the details of 65 lakh names excluded from the draft electoral rolls during the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) in Bihar Nov 24 when Justice kant is due to take charge as the chief justice of India 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 SIR in 9 states, 3 UTs from Nov 4: ECI M U K E S H R A N J A N @ New Delhi plainspeak West doesn’t practise what it preaches: Jaishankar J AYA N T H J A C O B @ New Delhi EXTERNAL Affairs Minister S Jaishankar on Monday took a swipe at the Western nations, accusing them of selectively applying global principles and distor ting the international energy market through restrictive practices. Speaking at the East Asia Summit in Malaysia, Jaishankar said the world is going through “complicated times” marked by shifting global alignments, competition over technology, resources and supply chains. “Energy trade is increasingly constricted, with resulting market distortions. Principles are app l i e d s e l e c t ive ly and what is preached is Foreign minister not necessarS Jaishankar ily practiced,” he said, in remarks seen as directed at Western-led sanctions regimes and certain protectionist policies. The comments came hours after he met US Secretary of Marco Rubio on the sidelines of the summit. His public remarks underscored New Delhi’s willingness to call out perceived Western hypocrisy while asserting an independent foreign policy stance. Jaishankar argued that the global order must evolve to reflect a more multipolar reality. “Multipolarity is not just here to stay but to grow,” he said. On terrorism, he said: “The world must display zero tolerance; there is no room for ambivalence.” The Election Commission of India (ECI) on Monday announced Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls in nine states and three Union Territories in two phases — door-todoor enumeration forms distribution and collection — from November 4 to December 4. The final voters’ list would be published on February 7. Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar said the draft rolls would be published on December 9; claims and objections can be filed from December 9 to January 8; and hearing and verifications from December 9 to January 31. The nine states are Chhattisgarh, Goa, Gujarat, Kerala, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, Tamil Nadu, Uttar Pradesh and West Bengal and the UTs are Andaman & Nicobar, Lakshadweep and Puducherry Tamil Nadu, Pondy Kera. , la and West Bengal will go to the polls in 2026. As for Assam, where polls are due in 2026, the revision of rolls will be announced separately, as a separate provision of the Citizenship Act was applicable to the state. “Under the Citizenship Act, there are separate provisions for citizenship in Assam. Under the supervision of the Supreme Court, the exercise of checking citizenship is about to be completed. The June 24 SIR order was for the entire country Under such cir. cumstances, this would not have applied to Assam,” Kumar said. He ruled out any confrontation with the Bengal government, where the ruling TMC has expressed reservations about the SIR. As for Kerala’s local bodies elections, due in November-December, Kumar said, “The notification for the same was yet to be issued. The state governments are bound by Constitution to provide personnel for the preparation of electoral rolls and conduct of polls.” Required indicative documents for the revision of draft electoral roll Any identity cards, pension payment order issued to regular employee/ pensioner of any Central government/State govt/PSU Any identity cards/ certificate/ documents issued by Indian govt/ banks/local E xpress N ews S ervice @ Bhubaneswar Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi receiving a commemorative plaque at the inaugural session of IMW 2025 event in Mumbai capacity to 500 million tonnes annually , supported by three major ship anchor points,” he said. The Paradip Port Authority (PPA) and Odisha Maritime Board (OMB) signed MoU for development of a mega shipbuilding cluster at the mouth of Mahanadi river in Kendrapara district with an investment of `22,700 crore. The PPA, OMB and Sagarmala Finance Corporation entered into a pact for constructing an all-weather satellite major port at Bahuda Muhana in Ganjam district at a cost of `21,500 crore. The state Commerce and Transport department signed an MoU with Indian Ports Association for development of a cruise terminal at `500 crore, while the PPA and OMB will establish an international cruise terminal at Puri with Continued on P5 similar cost.  SC allows govt to reassess Vi’s dues eX PRESS n EWS sERVICE @ New Delhi IN a major relief for Vodafone Idea (Vi), the Supreme Court on Monday allowed the Centre to reassess the demand for adjusted gross revenue (AGR) dues raised against the telco. While passing the order, a bench of Chief Justice B R Gavai and Justice K Vinod Chandran observing that the decision on any relief to the telecom operator is a policy matter and the court need not interfere. The matter pertains to a plea by Vi against the Department of Telecommunications’ demand for an additional `9,450 crore towards AGR dues. Vi, the country’s third-largest telco, also sought a waiver of interest and `1.95 lakh crore in total liabilities, including AGR AGR is the income figure to calculate the licence fees and spectrum charges that telcos must pay the government. At present, VI owes the government around `76,000 cr in AGR dues, plus `1.19 lakh cr in deferred spectrum payment penalties, arguing that several components of the dues remain disputed. “Taking into consideration the status of the case now—the government has infused substantial equity into the company and that it will have a direct bearing on 20 crore Passport Birth certificate issued by competent authority Permanent resident certificate issued by State authority Matriculation/ Education certificate issued by recognised Boards/Univs OBC/ST/SC or any caste certificate Forest Rights Certificate National Register of Citizens (wherever it exists) Family register prepared by state/ local authorities Any land/house allotment certificate by govt Aadhaar as an option proof of identity, but not as a proof of date of birth or citizenship Odisha signs MoUs worth `50K cr in maritime sector at IMW 2025 in Mumbai Showcasing its maritime strength and immense opportunities in blue economy at the India Maritime Week (IMW) 2025 in Mumbai, the Odisha government on Monday signed nine MoUs worth `50,000 crore in the sector, including construction of new ports, shipbuilding, connectivity, logistics and waterways. The investment proposals were inked in the presence of Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi. “Odisha is committed to building a strong port-led and port-based economy to transform our ports into engines of trade, industry and employment and drive India’s growth journey for the next 25 years,” he said. Joining the inaugural session of the event, hosted by Ministry of Ports, Shipping and Waterways in association with the Indian Ports Association (IPA), alongside Union Home minister Amit Shah, Majhi highlighted Odisha’s maritime vision that aims at enhancing port capacity to 500 million tonne by 2047, with development of 14 new ports. “Odisha’s maritime strength is driving a new era of industrial and economic growth. With Paradip, Dhamra, Gopalpur, and upcoming ports at Astaranga, Jatadhari Muhan, Subarnarekha, and Bahuda, we are expanding our total port handling authorities/PSU customers—we see no issue in the Union reconsidering the issue and taking appropriate steps,” the CJI said. Welcoming the SC order, Vi said: “We look forward to working closely with the Department of Telecommunications to resolve this matter in the interests of our nearly 200 million subscribers.” During the hearing, Solicitor General Tushar Mehta informed the court that the government now holds 49% equity in Vodafone Idea, and that 20 crore consumers depend on its services. He said under the new circumstances, the Centre was willing to examine the issues to ensure consumer interests are safeguarded. ShREYAS in icu after injury India vice-captain had a fall while diving to take a catch in the third ODI. He suffered a spleen laceration | P13