Aviation regulator asks IndiGo CEO to appear before it again THRISSUR l friday l december 12, 2025 l `9.00 l PAGES 12 l city EDITION 76.08% voter turnout in second phase of local body elections 70.91% recorded in first phase of polling 85-year-old twin sisters, Manga and Lakshmi, show their inked fingers after voting at Kavalappara AUP School in Shoranur | Praveesh ShorAnur $1 mn ‘Trump Gold Card’ rolled out President Donald Trump on Wednesday launched the $1 mn ‘Trump Gold Card’, a visa programme offering pathway to US citizenship. He said if, say, IBM wants to hire an individual at the top of his or her class at Wharton but can’t guarantee the person stays in the country, the company can buy the Gold Card and “that employee can be there for a very long period of time.” | P9 Purposeful and positive engagement India and the US on Thursday concluded two days of talks with both sides exchanging views on trade-related issues. Both sides agreed to continue the purposeful and positive engagement. A delegation led by Deputy US Trade Representative Rick Switzer was in Delhi for the talks | P10 Sign on the FTA dotted line: Goyal The US should sign the free trade agreement (FTA) with India on the “dotted lines” if it is happy with what has been offered by India, Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal said on Thursday. 6 states get SIR extension, WB left out PR E E T H A N A IR @ New Delhi The Election Commission on Thursday revised the timeline for the ongoing Special Intensive Revision (SIR) in six states, including poll-bound Tamil Nadu, following requests from the chief electoral officers. However, pollbound West Bengal was not granted any extension as the SIR exercise concluded on Thursday. The West Bengal government has been at the forefront of protests demanding a longer extension of SIR citing BLO distress and rushed timeline. The enumeration period for Tamil Nadu and Gujarat has been extended till December 14, and the draft electoral rolls will be published on December 19, according to a statement by the EC. The enumeration period for these six states and UTs was to end on Thursday, and the draft electoral rolls were to be published on December 16. The schedule for poll-bound Kerala was revised earlier. Fo r M a d hya P r a d e s h , Chhattisgarh, and the Andaman and Nicobar Islands, the deadline has been extended till December 18, and the draft electoral rolls will be published on December 23. The exercise in Uttar Pradesh has been extended till December 26. The enumeration period for Goa, Puducherry, Lakshadweep, Rajasthan and West Bengal end on Thursday, and the draft electoral rolls will be published on December 16. The decision came against the backdrop of suggestions that several electors had not been able to fill out or submit their enumeration forms. Except a few incidents of skirmishes at polling stations, allegations of bogus voting and EVM malfunctioning, the second phase of elections passed off peacefully. 78.30% Wayanad district witnessed the highest turnout, with both phases of polling taken together. Counting of votes polled in both phases on Dec 13 On Thursday, voting was held in 18,274 polling stations in Thrissur, Palakkad, Kozhikode, Malappuram, Wayanad, Kannur and Kasaragod districts. ‘Warm’ Modi, Trump call amid deal push J ayanth J a c o b @ New Delhi Amid hopes for an early framework trade deal and intense discussions over US agriculture and dairy products seeking access to Indian markets, Prime Minister Narendra Modi held a telephonic conversation with US President Donald Trump on Thursday, a call described as “warm and engaging”. Modi said that two leaders reviewed progress in the bilateral relationship. “Had a very warm and engaging conversation with President Trump. We reviewed the progress in our bilateral relations and discussed re gional and international developments. India and the US will continue to work together for global peace, stability and prosperity Modi posted on X ,” after the discussion. People familiar with the call said the two leaders exchanged views on expanding cooperation across trade, critical technologies, energy, defence and security, and agreed to work closely to address shared strategic and economic challenges. They also reiterated satisfaction at the momentum in the India–US Comprehensive Global Strategic Partnership and underlined the need to sustain progress. The conversation comes as Washington signals cautious optimism on market access talks. US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer told a Senate Appropriations Subcommittee this week that New Delhi Had a very warm and engaging conversation with President Trump had offered the “best (trade) offer ever” in ongoing negotiations, even as he acknowledged resistance in India to opening its market to US row crops and meat products. “They have been very difficult nuts to crack… but they have been quite forward leaning,” Greer said, calling India a “viable alternative market” for American exporters. The new US Deputy Trade Representative Rick Switzer’s visit to New Delhi is seen as critical, with both sides pushing to make crucial progress in trade talks amid American tariffs, including a 50% duty on certain Indian goods linked to purchases of Russian crude. Modi and Trump agreed to remain in touch, continuing a line of communication that has included calls on occasions ranging from Diwali greetings to discussions on the Gaza peace plan earlier this year. V C A p p o i n tm e n t s CM, guv fail to break deadlock, SC passes ball to Dhulia panel S U C H I T R A K A LYA N M O H A N T Y @ New Delhi With the Kerala government and the governor failing to reach a consensus on finalising the names for the appointment of vice-chancellors at the two technical universities, the Supreme Court on Thursday asked the Justice (Retd) Sudhanshu Dhulia committee to recommend the names in order of preference for each of the universities. The Dhulia committee, which was appointed by the apex court to recommend a panel of names to be considered for the appointment of V-Cs at the APJ Abdul Kalam Technological University and the University of Digital Sciences, Innovation and Technology had earlier submit, ted the shortlisted names in alphabetic order. However, Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan and Governor Rajendra Arlekar failed to unanimously zero in on one name each for the two universities. The SC Bench, comprising Justice J B Pardiwala and Justice K V Viswanathan, asked the Dhulia committee to submit the names in order of preference in a sealed cover by next Wednesday and fixed the , matter for further hearing on December 18. On Thursday Attorney General R , Venkataramani, appearing for the governor, and senior counsel Jaideep Gupta, appearing for the state government, apprised the bench that despite their best efforts, the deadlock continues till date. The entire exercise has been very well undertaken by the Dhulia committee, ● More on P5 the bench noted.  Messi mania: Meet AND greet WITH STAR for `10L Express News Service @ Hyderabad WANT to meet and greet one Lionel Messi? Well, there is a way Pay up `10 . lakh for a 15-minute meet and greet session with the football legend. Even if he may not be playing football or dribble past defenders during his trip to India, the name is enough to evoke an unimaginable romance. The craze to get a glimpse of the World Cup-winning captain has touched giddying heights during the GOAT tour. Take for instance the 38,000 capacity Uppal Stadium. It is sold out. The ticket price ranges from `2250 to `9000 (hospitality included). The session is set to be held at the Faluknama Palace before the bandwagon moves to the Stadium for an evening programme including a 20-minute match between Messi and Telangana CM Revanth Red- dy Messi’s journey will start in Kolkata . on Friday and will have a stop-over in Hyderabad before flying to Mumbai and New Delhi on Dec 15. Jayesh Ranjan, Special Chief Secretary for Special Projects and Investment Cell, and Special Chief Secretary, Tourism, Culture and Sports, Government of Telangana, outlined the programme in detail. On the meet-and-greet fee, Jayesh Ranjan framed it as a personal decision. “If someone wants to meet Elon Musk for 15 minutes and is asked to pay `1 crore, and they see it as a once-ina-lifetime opportunity, they may be willing to spend that amount. This event is curated in the same way But if someone simply wants . to see Messi on the ground and watch him play, they can go to stadium.” The football event at Uppal Stadium is scheduled from 7 pm on Saturday . Elbers was summoned by the DGCA on Thursday to submit a comprehensive report, including data and an update on the recent operational disruptions. Following the meeting, the regulator called him to another meeting on Friday. 60 flights from Bengaluru cancelled Disruptions continued, with the crisis-hit airline cancelling 60 flights from Bengaluru airport DGCA officials began monitoring IndiGo’s ops and refunds from the airline’s headquarters on Thursday Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) has asked IndiGo CEO Pieter Elbers to appear before it again on Friday amid ongoing flight disruptions 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 ■ ■