PIC: P ravi kumar THIRUVANANTHAPURAM l monday l april 08, 2024 l `9.00 l PAGES 14 l late city EDITION IPL 2024: Mumbai get off the mark with emphatic victory After three losses, Mumbai Indians pocketed their first points with a 29-run victory vs Delhi Capitals while Lucknow secured their third win... MI out-hit Capitals; LSG too good for GT Rohit Sharma (49 off 27), Ishan Kishan (42 off 23), Tim David (unbeaten 21-ball 45) and Romario Shepherd (39 n.o from 10 balls) exhibited a sixhitting show as Mumbai posted a massive 234/5 against Delhi. Despite Tristan Stubbs’ heroic efforts (71 n.o), DC could only manage 205/8. In the second game, Lucknow Super Giants beat Gujarat Titans by 33 runs ■ 284 Can chennai get back to winning ways? ■ Chennai Super Kings are back at Chepauk after two away losses as they take on Kolkata Knight Riders on Monday While Mustafizur Rahman is expected to be back, the Ruturaj Gaikwad-led side will be hoping that their batting fires to perfection against KKR who have some serious hitters in the ranks | P13 STubbs’ 71 n.o IS third Best sR amongst 25-plus ball knocks in IPL 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 Day after Bengal mob attack, NIA officers face FIR Vistara cutting 30 flights daily E N S E c o n o m i c b u r ea u @ New Delhi Having to cancel over 150 flights in the first week of April due to non-availability of pilots, Vistara on Sunday said it is cancelling 10% of its daily flights in April as it looks to normalise operation. “We are carefully scaling back our operations by around 25-30 flights per day. This will take us back to the same level of flight operations as at the end of February 2024, and provide the much-needed resilience and buffer in the rosters,” said a Vistara Spokesperson. The cancellations are done mostly in the domestic network of Vistara, a joint venture between the Tata Group and Singapore International Airlines. Vistara operates about 300 flights daily and 1,000 pilots on its rolls. Earlier this week, the DGCA sought a daily report from the airline as the issue snowballed into a major embarrassment. Vistara pilots were not happy with the revised salary structure, which is being “forced upon them” ahead of its merger with Air India, they said. Vistara CEO Vinod Kannan, a day ago said that 98% of its pilots have signed the new contracts with the revised salary structure. “We are aware that some pilots have some concerns and queries regarding the contract. We are engaging with them to clarify and resolve the same. However, this has not caused any visible spike in attrition among the pilots,” Kannan said. Police register case against central agency’s officials for ‘molestation’ and ‘trespassing’ Palestinians return to Khan Yunis after Israel pulled its ground forces out of southern Gaza Strip on Sunday | afp Under pressure, Israel pulls forces out of southern Gaza E x p r e s s N e w s Se r v i c e Under pressure from the US and allies over the ‘unintentional’ killing of aid workers, Israel on Sunday adopted a conciliatory approach and pulled out troops from southern Gaza. The Israeli military in a statement said the 98th commando division has “concluded its mission” in Khan Yunis and left “in order to recuperate and prepare for future operations”. However, the Israeli military said it will continue to have presence in the rest of the Gaza Strip. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Israel is ready for a deal but is not ready to surrender. The partial withdrawal from Gaza should aid the truce talks expected to resume in Cairo. “There will be no ceasefire without the return of hostages. It just won’t happen,” he said. Netanyahu has been under pressure from the international community after Israel on April 1 dropped bombs on humanitarian workers of US-based food charity World Central Kitchen by mistake. Last week, US President Joe Biden said his support for the war would depend on Israel curtailing the death of civilians and improving humanitarian conditions in Gaza. Britain also demanded that the conflict must end. Israel’s public broadcaster Channel 11 reported that the remaining forces would be located along the Netzarim Corridor, a route that splits the Gaza Strip in two. Following the global outcry over the death of aid workers, Israeli military sacked two senior officers on Friday. Israeli military’s inquiry into the incident revealed that the drone operators did not follow rules and thought the World Central Kitchen’s cars were carrying Hamas gunmen. The Israel Defence Forces apologised for its mistake and sacked a colonel and major for the failure and added that those who carried out the attack could face criminal prosecution. While welcoming the action, World Central Kitchen founder Jose Andres called for an independent probe into the Israeli strike that killed his staff, and warned that the conflict had become a “war against humanity itself.” Reacting to Israel’s partial withdrawal, US National Security Council spokesman John Kirby said: “As we understand it, and through their public announcements, it is really just about rest and refit for these troops that have been on the ground for four months and not necessarily, that we can tell, indicative of some coming new operation P11 for these troops.” CPM leaders’ visit to blast victim’s house sparks row E x p r e s s N e w s Se r v i c e @Kannur Local CPM leaders on Sunday visited the house of Sheril, who was killed in the bomb blast at Panur, giving fresh ammunition to the Opposition who alleged that the leaders’ presence has exposed the party’s link to the incident. CPM Kunnothparamba area committee member Sudhir and local committee member A Ashokan visited Sheril’s house. Koothuparamba MLA K P Mohanan of RJD, an ally of CPM, also attended the funeral on Sunday . Sheril lost his life and three others suffered serious injuries in the blast while making explosives at an under-construc- None of the prominent leaders from Kunnothparamba has visited the house. Sudhir and Ashokan may have personal connections with the victim’s family Although the CPM state leadership has denied any connection with the Panur blast accused, it will soon announce a family package for the person killed in the explosion P Jayarajan, CPM state committee member K Sudhakaran, Kannur MP tion house. They are alleged to be CPM sympathisers. The CPM leadership has maintained that the party has no connection with the incident. Meanwhile, CPM state committee member P Jayarajan defended the local leaders’ visit to Sheril’s house. “It is customary to offer condolences to the victims’ families in such accidents. None of the promi- Javadekar: BJP will win five-plus seats in Kerala A r u n M @ Kochi Exuding confidence of a landmark performance by the BJP in Kerala, senior leader Prakash Javadekar said the party will win five-plus seats from the state in the Lok Sabha election. He said the BJP will also emerge as the party with the most number of MPs in South India. In an interview with TNIE, the BJP Kerala Prabhari and former Union minister said this time, there is a tremendous churning in Keralites’ mind. “This is because they have realised that Narendra Modi will become the prime minister again. What the people are thinking is that ‘oh, we wasted our vote last time voting for Congress in the hope that Rahul Gandhi will become the prime minister’,” he said. “I claim today that BJP will emerge as the party with the largest number of MPs from South India, and we will lead Prakash Javadekar | A sanesh the largest alliance with the highest number of MPs in the region. This is what is happening. Those who propagate the notion that the BJP is solely a party of the north are mistaken; people have rejected this divisive narrative of south versus north. India is one and all Indians are one,” he said. Responding on the allegations that the probe by ED and other central agencies are politically motivated, he said it has nothing to do with BJP and government. “It is a legal process. The government or the party is not involved in this,” he Full interview | P5 said. nent leaders from Kunnothparamba visited the house. Sudhir and Ashokan may have personal connections with the victim’s family. The party cannot prevent its workers from attending funerals,” he said. Jayarajan also said an attempt is being made to undermine the CPM. “The party has already made it clear that it has no connection with the blast accused. But the UDF and the media are continuously trying to put blame on the party. We are not inhumane to forbid party workers from a mour ning house,” Jayarajan told reporters. Nanu, father of Bineesh who was injured in the blast, asserted that the party has no role in bomb-making. “He has no link with CPM or its frontal organisations,” said Nanu, who is a CPM local committee member. Meanwhile UDF claimed that CPM’s role in the bomb-making became clear after the local leaders’ visit to Sheril’s house. “Major party workers avoided visiting Sheril’s house only because it is election time,” said Vadakara MLA K K ● More on P6 Rema. eXPR E SS n E WS s E RVIC E @ Kolkata A day after the National Investigation Agency (NIA) team probing the 2022 Bhupatinagar bomb blast case came under attack by an unruly mob in West Bengal’s East Midnapore district, the police on Sunday said that they have booked the agency’s officials for ‘molestation’ and ‘trespassing’. The NIA team had gone to the Bhupatinagar village in the wee hours on Saturday to conduct raids and take into custody two key conspirators of the 2022 attack. During the raids, the antiterror agency arrested Balai Charan Maity and Manobrata Jana, a Trinamool Congress leader. Police sources said an FIR was filed against officials of the NIA as well as the accompanying security personnel after Jana’s wife lodged a complaint accusing the officials of forcibly entering her house and trying to outrage her modesty . The NIA strongly refuted the allegations, pointing out that the searches were conducted at five locations in the presence of independent witnesses and under the security cover provided by the CRPF, which included women constables. The probe agency said Maity and Jana were taken into custody following extensive searches. As the team commenced its search operation, the officials were reportedly confronted by a hostile mob, which included women. The situation quickly escalated as the unruly mob launched an assault on the NIA officers, resulting in injury to an official and damage to a ve- Bid to intimidate TMC, says Abhishek Trinamool leader Abhishek Banerjee accused the BJP of using central agencies to intimidate TMC and asserted that people are with the Bengal party. “BJP can have ED, CBI on their side. They are threatening those who are raising their voices against their undemocratic acts. A section of media friends are also siding with the BJP. But people of Bengal are with the TMC,” he said ‘Attack on officials was unprovoked’ The NIA refuted allegations of ‘mala fide’ in its raids and said the attack on its officials was ‘unprovoked’. “NIA made it clear that its actions were bona fide, lawful, and legally mandated, as part of its ongoing probe into the heinous crime related to fabrication of crude bombs, leading to an explosion that killed three persons in Naruabila village, PS Bhoopatinagar,” it said hicle’s windscreen. The NIA said it has filed a written complaint about the attack on its officials at the Bhupatinagar police station. However, no one has been arrested in connection with the attack yet. The attack on the NIA team evoked memories of January 5 when an ED team was attacked by a crowd in Sandeshkhali. The ED team came under attack during a search at the house of Shahjahan Sheikh, a TMC strongman, in connection with alleged irregularities in the PDS in the state. TMC targets probe agencies to shield the corrupt: Modi E x p r e s s N e w s Se r v i c e @ Kolkata THE political slugfest over the attack on NIA officials escalated on Sunday with Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday alleging that the Trinamool Congress (TMC) was “orchestrating attacks on central investigative agencies” in the state to shield its extortionist and cor rupt leaders. Speaking at a rally in Jalpaiguri in West Bengal, Modi said the TMC desires a free licence for corruption and violence in Bengal, which is why central agencies investigating such cases face attacks in the state. “When central investigative agencies come here, the TMC attacks them...it’s a party that crushes the law and the Constitution of the country ...you saw what happened in Sandeshkhali. Everyone in the country knows it,” he said. Modi added that the TMC’s ‘syndicate Raj’ prevails in Bengal the ruling party in the state is only interested in protecting its cor rupt leaders. “The TMC gover nment seeks to have a free pass for loot and terror in Bengal. To shield its extortionist and corrupt leaders, the TMC orchestrates attacks on central investigative agencies when they come here,” he added. Meanwhile, Bengal CM Mamata Banerjee sought to put the blame on the NIA for the attack. “They are carrying out raids without prior information and barging into houses. What would women do if someone entered their house in the dead of night,” she said on Sunday at an election rally . E X P R E SS R E A D KSEB wants EVs charged during off-peak hours Met dept issues heat warning for 12 districts T’Puram: With power consumption hitting another high on Saturday, the state electricity board has urged consumers to charge electric vehicles (EVs) after midnight or during the daytime. The state consumed 108.22MU of power on Saturday. P2 T’Puram: Despite pockets of the state experiencing short showers on Sunday, the next few days are going to be blisteringly hot. The IMD has issued a yellow alert in 12 districts until April 11, indicating an increase in maximum temperature. P2 border bonhomie Chembra village in Kozhikode marks the border of two Lok Sabha constituencies — Kozhikode and Vadakara — and both sets of candidates have been focusing on the village in a desire not to miss out on the floating population. The hoardings of UDF and LDF candidates from both the constituencies are seen along the main road in Chembra | E Gokul mind the mess! LSGD wants parties to pay for ‘campaign waste’ disposal S h a i n u M o h an @T’Puram The state government wants political parties to clean up their act! In a major move, the local self-government department (LSGD) has proposed that the state chief electoral officer make political parties and candidates financially accountable for the tonnes of waste generated during Lok Sabha election campaigns. It is estimated that a minimum of 5,000 tonnes of campaign material waste will be generated in the state this poll season. As per a study conducted by the Centre for Science and Environment, around 6,000 tonnes of plastic waste alone was generated during the 2019 LS election in the country . According to the Solid Waste Management Rules, 2016, the producer should pay for the waste generated by them. Ever since the launch of the ‘Malinya Muktham Nava Keralam’ campaign, the rules have been implemented strictly in the state. The government also brought out an ordinance to collect a user fee, along with the taxes, for those failing to foot the bill. It is learnt that the cost of disposing 1kg of unse g re gated waste ranges from `6 to `10. “This is a huge burden on the financially struggling local bodies in the state. Political parties and candidates are not immune to these rules and reg- Political parties and candidates are not immune to rules and regulations. Just like any other citizen or institution, they are also bound to be financially accountable for the waste generated during campaigns An LSG department official ulations. Just like any other citizen or institution, they are also bound to be financially accountable for the waste generated during election campaigns,” said a top official of LSG department. According to the official, discussions in this regard are ongoing with election authorities. “Candidates are splurging to run their campaigns, and it shouldn’t be a problem for them to set aside funds for the disposal of campaign waste generated by them,” the official added. The LSGD in collaboration with the chief electoral officer has come out with a special handbook on green protocols to be followed for the Lok Sabha ● More on P6 election.
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