vijayawada l friday l december 27, 2024 l `9.00 l PAGES 12 l late city EDITION China to build world’s largest dam close to Indian border China on Thursday approved the construction of the world’s largest dam on the Brahmaputra River in Tibet, close to its border with India $137 billion project at himalayan gorge Worry over china flooding northeast Costing $137 billion, it is set to be the world’s biggest infra project till date. The dam is to be built at a huge gorge in the Himalayan reaches where the Brahmaputra makes a huge U-turn to flow into Arunachal Pradesh. Construction poses huge challenges as the project site is located along a tectonic plate boundary where earthquakes regularly occur ■ ■ An official statement on Wednesday sought to allay concerns about earthquakes, saying “a solid foundation has been laid for the sciencebased, secure, and high-quality development” of the project There are worries in India, given the massive size of the dam, that China could weaponise it and flood areas in the northeast during war 300 bn kWh of power to be generated each year, enough for annual needs 30 cr houses 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 architect of India of our times I hope history will be kinder to me than the contemporary media Manmohan Singh on January 3, 2014 at the fag end of his tenure as PM India wide awake “India is now wide awake. We shall prevail. We shall overcome,” Manmohan Singh said in his maiden speech in Parliament on July 24, 1991 santwana bhattacharya Editor E conomical with his words, but gentle in his phrasing, the conversations he struck up were with the times. And he persuaded the times to change. That was Dr Manmohan Singh, the self-effacing savant who rose to perform two big roles for an India in transition — that of prime minister and finance minister. In both roles, he is likely to win a contest with history for having been the most clean of spirit and genuinely courteous, the most P  asses away at 92 following age related medical issues. Declared dead at 9.51 pm s  even-day national mourning expected to be observed l  ast rites will be conducted with full state honours knowledgeable and, arguably, the most transformational. Perhaps only India’s first prime minister could run him close. If Jawaharlal Nehru was the founder-statesman of independent India, the guardian spirit of our formative decades, it was Manmohan who fathered the India we see around us today Its architect, its engineer, . its reticent philosopher. When another gnomic prime minister, Narasimha Rao, picked a safari suit-clad former Reserve Bank of India governor as his second choice finance minister in 1991, it was in a country not yet out of a long famine of new ideas and fresh energy also one wracked , by a decade of militancy, riots and assassinations. Everyone associates Manmohan Singh’s FM years for the way he clanged open the shutters of the Indian economy the , wholesale shift to the so-called Washington Consensus. That became grist for interminable debates — eliciting hurrahs, protectionist fears from local industry and trenchant socialist critique all at once. It didn’t register much in that moment how the unleashing of India’s free market “animal spirits”, to use one of his favourite phrases, helped sublimate animal spirits of the other kind. New cities came up, new landscapes of desire, malls, television channels, affordable flights, mint-fresh IT industries, the telecom boom, the Internet, global cuisine on the local thali — in fact, everything we now know India to be experientially. We perhaps didn’t then realise how much all of that healed us from other traumas of the past. That silent therapeutic effect scaled up to another level during Manmohan’s decade-long incumbency at 7 Race Course Road. Instant historians often saw only the ‘notional losses’, while the long-range lens captures some of India’s best growth years, qualitatively deepened with humane reform. But that was not all. Did India really have a prime minister from a minority community for a whole decade — and nobody didn’t even much notice? Yes, till just the other day . That’s the kind of conversation Manmohan Singh had with history the future and the , present, in his quiet monotone. P7 That will not die away . He will always be remembered for his service to the nation, his unblemished political life and his utmost humility He led India with immense wisdom and integrity. His humility and understanding of economics inspired the nation Droupadi Murmu, President 26 Sep 1932 - 26 Dec 2024 We interacted regularly when he was PM and I was the CM of Gujarat... His wisdom and humility were always visible Narendra Modi, prime minister Rahul Gandhi, Congress leader TDP irked over Visakha Dairy CWC flags attacks on Constitution chairman’s induction into BJP Party pushback S V i s w a n at h @ Vijayawada The TDP has expressed its ire over the induction of Visakha Dairy Chairman Adari Anand Kumar into the BJP after his resignation from the YSRCP. Several TDP leaders have accused the BJP State leadership of making decisions unilaterally, without consulting alliance partners.   Anand Kumar was inducted into the BJP on Wednesday in the presence of party State President and Rajahmundry MP D Purandeswari. The management of Visakha Dairy has been accused of misusing funds and running the dairy for personal gain. It is alleged that the Chairman, ViceChairman, and Directors, all Adari Anand Kumar joined the BJP on Wednesday in the presence of party State chief D Purandeswari | Express from the same family, reduced milk procurement charges, causing losses to dairy farmers despite rising fodder prices and rearing costs. In November, State Legislative Assembly Speaker Ch Ayy- Melbourne test Kohli shoulder bumps Konstas, ICC penalises G o m e s h S @ Melbourne What is India versus Australia match without a dash of controversy and pinch of heated exchanges. What makes this even more riveting are the two protagonists involved. One a teenager on debut and the other a veteran of 121 Tests and at 36, is almost double the former’s age. Sam Konstas and Virat Kohli. The two cricketing figures of contrasting fame clashed on the field. In short, there were two headlines on Day One here — Konstas’s fiery knock (60 off 65 balls) and his shoulder episode with Kohli after 10th over. Konstas was on fire, hitting the almost-invincible Jasprit Bumrah, including a sux, in the most unc o nve n - tional style in Tests, especially by an opener. The two were seen engageming in verbal altercation after Kohli seemed to have nudged the youngster on his shoulder while walking to the other end. Later, the match referee fined Kohli 20 per cent of match fee after hearing. “Kohli was found to have breached Article 2.12 of the ICC Code of Conduct... which relates to ‘inappropriate physical contact with a Player...’,” the ICC stated. Though former players criticsed Kohli, Konstas later said, “I was just doing my gloves and I think he accidentally bumped me. I think that’s just cricket and can happen with tension. I think the emotions got to both of us.”  P11 anna Patrudu appointed a House Committee to investigate the allegations. In response to the issue, a TDP leader stated that while there is nothing wrong with inducting leaders from other parties, the induction of Anand Kumar, who is facing corruption charges, into the BJP is objectionable, especially with an ongoing probe against him. Another leader pointed out that the BJP did not consult with alliance partners — TDP and JSP — before inducting Anand Kumar. He questioned whether Purandeswari would welcome leaders who worked against her in the elections if they joined the TDP without her P4 knowledge. express read Heavy rain alert in South Coastal AP & R’seema for next two days Vijayawada: The IMD on Thursday issued a warning for severe rainfall in Andhra Pradesh over the next two days. Widespread rainfall is expected in the South Coastal Andhra Pradesh, including Nellore, Prakasam, while moderate to heavy rainfall is likely in Rayalaseema, including Anantapur, YSR, Annamayya, Sathya Sai, and Chittoor districts due to the deep depression in the Bay of Bengal | P2 against barb on distorted map E x p r e ss N e w s S e r v i c e @ Belagavi Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge with Rahul Gandhi and others during the Congress Working Committee meeting to mark the 100th anniversary of its Belgaum session presided over by Mahatma Gandhi, in Belagavi, on Thursday | Nagaraja Gadekal Naushad Bijapur & Subhash C h a n d r a N S @ Belagavi The extended Congress Working Committee (CWC) at Belagavi on Thursday sealed its commitment to revamp the party organisation in the coming months and fight “antiConstitutional” sentiments taking sway across India. The CWC resolved to commit to protecting the Indian Constitution and the ideals of the Independence Movement. It also planned to launch the “Jai Bapu, Jai Bhim, Jai Samvidhan Abhiyan”, beginning with a rally in Belagavi on Friday and culminating in a rally at Mhow on January 26, 2025. However, in view of former prime minister Manmohan Singh’s death, Friday’s programme was cancelled. KPCC president D K Shivakumar held an emergency press meet, and said a meeting would be held at 10.30 am in Belgavi on Friday to mourn Singh’s demise. Samvidhan Bachao Padayatra The Congress said it will launch a year-long public outreach from January 26, 2025 called the Samvidhan Bachao Rashtriya Padayatra in which all leaders will participate Earlier in the day, it was decided to hold rallies and marches in every block, district, and state as well. The CWC met on Thursday to commemorate the 100th anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi’s historic taking over of the Presidency of Indian National Congress at its 39th Session in 1924. It expressed concerns over alleged state-sponsored increase in communal and ethnic hatred, particularly targeted against minority communities. Manipur, which has been on the boil since May 2023, continues to be met with indifference by the prime minister and his government, it said. Communal tension, it alleged, has been stoked in Sambhal and other places for the RSS-BJP’s political gain. The Places of Worship Act to which the Congress is firmly committed in letter and spirit has also come under needless and reckless debate, the CWC opined. The CWC also condemned the manner in which peaceful protests by Congress were dealt with by the governments in BJP-ruled states. A number of Congress workers lost their lives, which it said is unacceptable. The meeting demanded a socio-economic caste census be conducted at the earliest. The 50% ceiling on quota for SC, ST, and OBC must be increased to enhance the benefits to these disadvantaged groups. Reservations must be on the basis of social, economic, or educational backwardness determined through appropriate means, the CWC said. Congress leaders on Thursday downplayed the controversy over party posters with “distorted” India map put up here for the centenary celebrations of the 1924 Congress session and said BJP was needlessly spreading false information. Reacting to BJP’s allegations that some posters had the distorted map, Congress leader Priyank Kharge said they were put up by some private companies. Those posters have already been removed. BJP is making baseless allegations in this regard, he added. Reacting to BJP leader Amit Malviya’s social media post on the alleged distorted map, KPCC president D K Shivakumar said those posters have been removed. The party has taken measures to hold the event successfully and meaningfully . BJP and JDS stated that the map did not have the Gilgit region of Pakistan-Occupied Kashmir as well as the Aksai Chin region now under China, which are integral parts of Jammu and Kashmir. “Amit Malviya’s job is to spread fake news. Look at the cases filed against him,” said Priyank Kharge. focus on infra & education Naidu’s native Naravaripalle set for major transformation D S u r e n d r a K u m a r @ Tirupati Naravaripalle, the native village of Chief Minister Nara Chandrababu Naidu, is set for a major transformation in the coming six months. With the Chief Minister focusing on the holistic growth of his hometown, a special officer has been appointed to oversee the development of Naravaripalle, similar to the approach taken in Kuppam. During his recent visit for his brother’s last rites, Naidu shared his plans with District Collector S Venkateswar, which also cover the neighbouring areas of Rangupeta, Kandullava a r i p a l l e, a n d C h i n n a Ramapuram. A door-to-door survey under the slogan “One Family, One A view of Naravaripalle village in Tirupati district | Express E n t re p re n e u r ” h a s b e e n launched to understand the specific needs of residents. Land has already been ident fied for constructing an Indo Power Substation, and tenders for the project have been invited. Additionally, an ATM-CDM (Cash Deposit Machine) facility linked to the Union Bank of India will be set up in the area. In Chinna Ramapuram Panchayat, efforts are underway to improve BSNL internet quality , and services like e-buses and eautos are set to be introduced soon. Infrastructure projects worth crores of rupees are also progressing rapidly, including 11 water works costing `41 lakh, five CC roads estimated at `81 lakh, and street lights worth P4 `21 lakh.