kollam l Sunday l december 08, 2024 l `12.00 l PAGES 24 l city edition DEcember 21 to be observed as World meditation day, says U.N. A draft resolution co-sponsored by India was unanimously adopted by all member countries in the UN to observe Dec 21 as World Meditation Day India guides adoption of resolution Dec 21 marks the beginning of uttarayana India’s UN ambassador Parvathaneni Harish said on social media, “A day for comprehensive well-being and inner transformation! Glad that India along with other nations of the core group guided the unanimous adoption of the resolution on the declaration of December 21 as World Meditation Day @UN General Assembly today (Friday).” ■ ■ Dec 21 marks the beginning of Uttarayana, which is considered as an auspicious time of the year, especially for meditation and inner reflection to fully harness the human potential, Harish added The other members who co-sponsored the resolution include Liechtenstein, Sri Lanka, Nepal, Mexico and Andorra Six months after Yoga day comes meditation day 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 HC slams state govt over lack of clarity on disaster fund details E x p r e s s Ne w s Se r v i ce @ Kochi The Kerala High Court has come down heavily on the state government for failing to maintain accurate figures regarding the availability and utilisation of the State Disaster Response Fund (SDRF). When a case initiated suo motu regarding the Wayanad landslides came up for hearing, the court said: “If the state government is not able to give a statement regarding the fund, even an approximate figure, there is no point in having the discussion saying, ‘we have not got this money we don’t have ... the funds’. The Wayanad landslide happened in July and still there is no clarity Every day in . the news, we see claims that ‘Centre is not disbursing funds’, and this blame game continues.” A division bench comprising Justice A K Jayasankaran Nambiar and Justice Muhammed Nias C P said the blame game is violating the dignity of people of the state, US rejects BJP’s ‘deep state’ charges y e s h i s e l i @ New Delhi In its pushback to the BJP’s charges, the US embassy in Delhi said it was disappointing that the ruling party would make accusations that ‘deep state’ elements and the US government were trying to destabilise India. “The US government works with independent organisations on programming that supports professional development and capacity building training for journalists. This programming does not influence the editorial decisions or direction of these organisations,” according to a spokesperson of the US embassy . It was responding to the BJP’s accusation on Thursday that US government and deep state elements were trying to destabilise the country. The ruling party alleged that the investigative journalism portal, Organised Crime and Corruption Reporting Project (OCCRP), was providing ammunition to the Congress to target India and the BJP . “The US has long been a champion of media freedom around the world. A free and independent press is an essential component of any democracy, enabling informed and constructive debate and holding those in power accountable,” the US embassy spokesperson added. If you don’t know how much of the K677 crore (in the disaster response fund) is available for spending, how can you demand an additional K219 crore — Kerala High Court especially people of Wayanad. The state government argued that `219 crore was needed immediately for disaster relief. However, the court questioned the basis of this claim, observing that the government was unaware of the actual status of the `677 crore reportedly available in the SDRF. “If you don’t know how much of the `677 crore is available for spending, how can you demand an additional `219 crore,” the court asked. The finance officer of SDRF, who was present in the court, informed that `782.98 crore was available in the SDRF, including state’s share of `97 crore. Of this, `95 crore was spent between April 1, 2024, and October 1, 2024. An amount of `677 crore is available in the account now. The court emphasised the urgent need for an accurate financial reconciliation. “You have `677 crore in your account, but you don’t know how much can be spent. What prior commitments are holding you back? Where is the reconciliation statement? Its absence is symptomatic of systemic issues,” the court said. “If the state government has a utilisation certificate, will there be any difficulty in telling us the correct opening balance of the day the High Court ,” ● More on P5 asked.  foreign secy’s visit Yunus press secy cagey on Hasina issue in talks B a l a C h a u h a n @ Bengaluru Bangladesh wants to “normalise ties with its big neighbour India,” said Shafiqul Alam, press secretary to Bangladesh’s Chief Adviser Prof Muhammad Yunus. Speaking to this newspaper from Dhaka, Alam said they are keenly awaiting the visit of India’s Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri to Dhaka on Dec 9. “This is the first high profile visit of the highest ranking officer from India after the August revolution and we look forward to meeting him. There are multiple issues of mutual interests between the two countries which will feature in the discussion. India is a big neighbour and a world player. We would like to continue with our good relations,” said Alam. He refused to comment on whether an extradition re- quest of the ousted Awami League leader and former prime minister Sheikh Hasina will feature in the talks with Misri. In August, Hasina’s 15-year-regime was ousted by a student movement. She fled her country and took refuge in India. “We have an extradition treaty with India, and have pressed for her extradition, but we will have to wait till all the legal formalities are completed. She has been indicted by a tribunal here for murder. She is also accused of forced disappearances of thousands of people and rampant corruption. She is accused of extrajudicial killings during the August revolution,” Alam alleged. On attacks on minorities and their places of worship in Bangladesh, Alam said the interim government regrets communal violence and is committed to protecting rights of minorities. First day, first boycott by Aghadi lawmakers SP threatens to exit the MVA over Uddhav Sena’s Babri glorification CM: Home for double-engine coordination S u d h i r S u r ya w a n s h i @ Mumbai Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis, Deputy CM Eknath Shinde and Ajit Pawar and others pay tribute to Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj, in Mumbai | PTI S u d h i r S u r ya w a n s h i @ Mumbai The Opposition Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) alliance in Maharashtra on Saturday refused to take part in the oath taking ceremony of the newly elected MLAs in protest against the alleged rigging of electronic voting machines (EVM) in the recent assembly elections. However, Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis and deputy CMs Eknath Shinde and Ajit Pawar and others took their oath as MLAs. There was turbulence in the MVA, as the Samajwadi Party that has two MLAs in Maharashtra, threatened to walk out of the alliance. SP MLA Abu Azmi said the MVA was taking decisions without consulting them, including the boycott of the oath ceremony . Another SP MLA Rais Sheikh said his party was not comfortable with the Uddhav Thackeray-led Shiv Sena lauding the demolition of the Babri Mas- jid. “We will talk with our leaders and take the call on the MVA,” he said. As for the EVM issue, Ajit Pawar said that MVA was doing injustice to their voters. He said when the MVA did well in the Lok Sabha elections, they had no problems with the EVM. “Now, the Opposition is blaming the EVM This is nothing but cheating,” he said, adding they will have to take their oath on Sunday, else they will lose their assembly membership. Uddhav Sena’s MLA Aditya Thackeray said he suspected EVM rigging gave the Mahayuti the mandate. “We did not take oath in protest against the EVM rigging. We are raising our concern at the appropriate platform of the Election Commission of India. When the Markhadwadi village tried to conduct a mock poll to verify their voting through paper ballot, the local administration and the police disallowed it. Something is fishy he alleged. ,” express read 60-yr-old sentenced to death for murder of wife in 2004 Alappuzha: The additional district court in Mavelikkara on Saturday sentenced a 60-yearold man to death for the the murder of his wife 20 years ago. Judge V G Sreedevi found Kutty Krishnan, of Alummoottil, Mannar, guilty of the brutal murder of his wife Jayanthi on April 2, 2004, at their house. P5 Despite Pkd setback, Surendran may carry on as BJP state chief T’Puram: K Surendran is most likely to continue as BJP state president till the end of his second term in 2026. An understanding to this effect has reportedly been reached between the party and the RSS. This comes amid rumours that a new president would be appointed in the backwash of BJP’s setback in the Palakkad assembly by-election. P5 India issues Syria travel advisory, asks citizens to return Security has been beefed up outside the Bangladesh Assistant High Commission in Agartala on Saturday, after its security was breached | pti New Delhi: India on Saturday issued an advisory for its citizens in Syria to return at the earliest and also urged others to drop any travel plans to the insurgency-hit country. Reports said Syrian rebels are closing in on Damascus from north and south, and have entered the key city of Homs. P7 circular of caution Perform duty as per temple customs, TDB tells priests M S V i d ya n a n d a n @ T’Puram In an effort to upgrade efficiency of temple priests, the Travancore Devaswom Board (TDB) has issued a circular of caution to the priests attached to it, urging them to improve their ‘work performance’ in line with the customs and standards of conduct stipulated by the temple where they work. Non-compliance with the guidelines will attract strict disciplinary action, said the circular. It comes in the wake of a report from the devaswom vigilance wing that priests of various temples are not performing their duty as per the tradition and customs. “Priests should perform their duties, including pooja and other rituals, in time, as per the custom and tradition of the temple. They should act in such a way as to increase the divinity and greatness of the temple,” it said. The devas- wom board commissioner directed the new priests of a temple to meet the thantri and learn pooja and rituals. Those failing to follow this will face strict disciplinary action, it said. TDB president P S Prasanth said priests are duty-bound to preserve the divinity and sanctity of temples. “It is important for the priests to learn about the customs and rituals peculiar to the temple where they work. The thantri of a temple is considered as the father of the deity. Only he can advise the priests on such matters,” Prasanth said. He said the circular is a reminder of the standing instructions. There are about 18 temples, including the Sabarimala Lord Ayyappa temple, where chief priests are selected through draw of lots, Prasanth said. The temple thantri passses on the ‘moolamantra’ to new priests ● More on P5 of these temples.  It is important for priests to learn about the customs and rituals peculiar to the temple where they work P S Prasanth, TDB president Amid continuing wrangling for plum portfolios in the ruling alliance, Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis on Saturday justified his claim on the home ministry, saying it would enhance coordination with the Centre. Both the BJP and the Shiv Sena are yet to thrash out a consensus on portfolio allocation, specifically home, which Deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde is keen on holding. Shinde’s argument is that finance and home are portfolios worthy of a deputy chief minister. If NCP’s Ajit Pawar can get finance with 41 MLAs, why can’t the Sena with 57 MLAs have home, he reasoned. Fadnavis said, “we feel the home ministry should remain with us for coordinating with the Centre on issues like Naxalism. Ajit Pawar and Eknath Shinde can also do coordination, but we strongly feel the home ministry should be with us.” He further added that as leader of the BJP in the state, he is always in contact with the party and its leadership in Delhi, one more reason why he should have the home ministry . In the outgoing Mahayuti government, Fadnavis as deputy chief minister was in-charge of the home portfolio. Of the 43 ministries, BJP wants to keep as many as 60% of them. ‘CPM not against ANY RELIGIous practices’ P4 WITH THIS ISSUE Playing by the Roles PLUS 12 PAGES