HYDERABAD  FRIDAY  JANUARY 03, 2025  `9.00  PAGES 36  LATE CITY EDITION IIT-GUWAHATI DEVELOPS INJECTABLE HYDROGEL FOR CANCER TREATMENT Researchers developed an advanced injectable hydrogel for localised cancer treatment with fewer side effects than conventional treatments Professor Debapratim Das (left) with a research student TARGETED DRUG RELEASE CAN CUT SIDE EFFECTS TUMOUR SHRINKS 75% WITHIN 18 DAYS Hydrogel is a water-based, three-dimensional polymer network that can absorb and retain fluids. It can act as a stable reservoir for anti-cancer drugs. It responds to high glutathione (GSH) levels, a molecule found in cancer cells. Upon encountering high GSH levels, it releases the drug in a targeted manner, not affecting nearby cells, leading to fewer side effects ■ ■ “In preclinical trials, a single injection of the hydrogel, loaded with the chemotherapy drug Doxorubicin, resulted in a ~75% reduction in tumour size within 18 days,” professor Debapratim Das of IIT-G said The research was conducted in collaboration with Bose Institute, Kolkata. It has been published in the journal Materials Horizons 8,00,000 NEW CANCER CASES IN INDIA EACH YEAR, ACCORDING TO GOVT ESTIMATES 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 Arjuna honour for Deepthi after bronze at Paralympics U M A H E S H @ Warangal AFTER making waves by winning the bronze medal in the women’s 400 metres (T20 category) at the Paris Paralympics in September 2024, para-athlete Jeevanji Deepthi from Warangal district has been selected for the Arjuna Award this year. Deepthi’s parents, Jeevanji Yadagiri and Dhana Laxmi, hail from Kalleda village in Parvathagiri mandal. Yadagiri works as a helper in a private company while Dhana Laxmi is a daily wage labourer. Despite their modest means, they continue to work in the village while supporting her passion. Expressing joy over the recognition, Dhana Laxmi told TNIE that Deepthi’s success was the result of eight years of hard work. She credited Deepthi’s schoolteacher and college principal, Adepu Janardhan, for recognising her talent and encouraging her to pursue athletics. She also described how Kalleda residents were celebrating Deepthi’s achievement, with many visiting their home to congratulate the family after the para-athlete secured a medal in the Paralympics. Adepu Janardhan, principal of Vanitha Achutha Pai Junior College in Kalleda, said the entire college staff felt proud of Deepthi’s hard work and determination, which earned her national recognition. Efforts on to make TG sports capital of India: Surekha Congratulating Deepthi, Endowments Minister Konda Surekha said that despite facing mental health challenges, the para-athlete showcased exceptional strength and capability, which she termed “inspiring to many”. She asserted the state government would continue to support Deepthi and other athletes. She also highlighted Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy’s efforts to promote sports in Telangana. She mentioned that the Young India Physical Education and Sports University Bill was recently passed in the Assembly, and competitions like the CM Cup are being organised to uncover hidden talent in villages. Surekha further announced that the government would soon introduce a comprehensive sports policy to make Telangana the sports capital of India. Head coach Gambhir’s ambiguous reply gives new twist to Rohit not figuring in the playing XI for Sydney Test saga RESTED? G O M E S H S @ Sydney Manu, Gukesh among four Khel Ratna awardees E X P R E S S N E W S S E R V I C E @ Chennai THIS being an Olympic year, there were exceptions to the number of Dhyan Chand Khel Ratna awardees and also the Arjuna Awards list. As expected the list is dominated by Olympic and Paralympic medal winners. What seems interesting is that D Gukesh who became the youngest world champion in December too has been included in the list the sports ministry released on Thursday . Speculation over Manu Bhaker not being considered for Khel Ratna for not applying too has been laid to rest. India men’s hockey team captain Harmanpreet Singh who won bronze medal at this year Olympics his second medal after Tokyo 2020 in 2021 too feature among the four chosen for country’s highest sports awards. Para-athlete high jumper Praveen Kumar is the fourth name. There were reports that suggested Manu’s named was not on the list but the ministry’s official announcement included her name. What seems to be interesting is that Manu did not apply . It is not clear whether Gukesh’s name was added after his world championship match that he won on December 12. It is learnt that the national awards committee met a couple of days after the chess final. It is understood that the committee had taken cognisance of applications but the final list was made after sports ministry included two more names as per latest rules. COFFEE STANDARDS TO BE INTRODUCED IN INDIA|P5 WITH less than 24 hours to go for the Sydney Test, the India team did not know who would come out for toss. Or so it seems. “The answer remains the same.” That was what India team head coach Gautam Gambhir had to say when he was asked whether Rohit Sharma will be in the playing XI for the fifth and final Test between India and Australia that begins on Friday “We are . going to take a look at the wicket and probably announce our playing XI tomorrow,” Gambhir said moments earlier. Probably for any other player this would have been an apt answer but for a captain who has been appointed for a series this seemed little ambiguous. Whether resting was the decision of the team management or Rohit’s was also not clear. India begin their last match of the tour amid speculation of dressing room drama and Gambhir’s stern warning to players over not performing well. Even before a ball was bowled there seemed to be intrigue over Sharma’s position in the team. There were multiple indications, including his time in the nets, that suggest he is all set to be replaced. In fact, there are indications that he has told the team about his decision to opt out. This could be one of those rare instances when a captain has been dropped on poor form and for India this could be one of the first instances when a captain has been dropped or opted out. Gambhir made it clear during the briefing that performance alone matters. “Indian cricket’s transition is in safe hands as long as there are honest people in the dressing room. Only criteria to be in that dressing room is performance,” he said. In that case, Shubman Gill 3-day window for farmers to apply for Rythu Bharosa M A N DA RAV I N D E R R E D DY @ Hyderabad WITH the state government set to implement Rythu Bharosa from Makar Sankranti, the Cabinet sub-committee on the investment support scheme has decided to recommend a threeday window — January 5 to 7 — to receive applications from farmers through gram sabhas. On Thursday the Cabinet sub, committee, chaired by Deputy Chief Minister Mallu Bhatti Vikramarka, discussed the Cabinet meet on Jan 4 The state Cabinet, scheduled to meet on January 4 (Saturday), is expected to make the final decision on the recommendations before disbursing funds from Jan 14 scheme’s modalities. The subcommittee also proposed dividing each mandal into three parts for conducting gram sabhas. The state Cabinet, scheduled to meet on January 4 (Saturday), is expected to make the final decision. The government is likely to begin disbursing funds under the scheme from January 14. Sources said the sub-committee also discussed the application format. The government is expected to seek details such as the farmer’s name, the area cultivated, crop specifics and passbook number. While there are speculations that the scheme might exclude Income Tax payers and impose a ceiling on landholding, this claim was reportedly dismissed by the sub-committee. Instead, it recommended extending the benefits to all farmers cultivating land. Rythu Bharosa aims to provide `7,500 per acre per season as investment support to farmers. This was promised by the Congress in the run-up to the 2023 Assembly elections. It replaces the Rythu Bandhu scheme introduced by the previous BRS government, which offered `5,000 per acre per season. WHAT NEXT FOR ROHIT? Rohit Sharma’s future, with England visiting India for a whiteball series (five T20Is and three ODIs) in January before the Champions Trophy, depends on him and what he decides. His ODI numbers have been exceptional and he could lead the team against England after a possible meeting with selectors. BUMRAH LIKELY TO CAPTAIN INDIA Jasprit Bumrah, the vice captain, has been the team’s top performer with 30 wickets in four outings at an astonishing 12.83 average, is expected to take over if Rohit sits out. Under Bumrah’s captaincy that India won the first Test in Perth. is set to walk in at No 3 and in-form Jasprit Bumrah will lead in the absence of Sharma, who has been out of form, scoring only 31 runs at an average of 6.2 from five innings so far. He lost two Tests after joining the team in Australia. With the home series loss against New Zealand, pressure was mounting on the Indian captain. If nets were any indication, Sharma, who was not much involved for the better part while India were training. He could be seen chat- EXPRESS READ Formula E: ED denies time extension requests Hyderabad: The ED has denied the requests for additional time from former HMDA chief engineer BLN Reddy and former MAUD special chief secretary Arvind Kumar, who are to be questioned regarding the Formula E case. The agency has asked Reddy and Arvind to appear on January 8 and 9, respectively | P4 WITH THIS ISSUE CITY’S BEST WEEKEND GUIDE 36 PAGES, INCLUDING 24 OF INDULGE (TABLOID) Peeping Tom at CMR college? Cops send 11 phones for analysis C H I T H A L U R I R E V A N T H @ Hyderabad Students of CMR Engineering College, Medchal, stage a protest against the management and hostel warden on Thursday CYBERABAD police on Thursday said that 11 phones of five persons — who are suspected to have secretly recorded videos of girl students using the bathrooms in the hostels of CMR Engineering College, Medchal — have been sent for forensic analysis after no objectionable clips were found on the devices. The cops, acting on allegations by the students, carried out a preliminary probe to verify if any such video were on the devices. Medchal ACB B Srinivas Reddy told TNIE: “ Although no obscene videos were found, we wanted to make sure that the suspects did not delete them.” On Wednesday and Thursday, the students staged a protest against the college management and hostel warden Preethi. They accused the mess staff of secretly recording their videos and peeping into bathrooms. After questioning the five suspects and examining their phones on Wednesday night, police released them. However, their fingerprints were collected for verification. Earlier, based on a complaint, police registered a case under Sections 77 (watching or capturing images of a woman engaged in a private act) and 125 (endangering personal safety or life) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita. A student said the management has provided accommodation to the mess staff at the back of the hostel, giving them opportunities to access the girls’ bathrooms after their work. Srinivas Reddy said after being alerted, Medchal Inspector A Satyanarayana and other cops went to the college where students told them that they had complained about the issue to the warden, but their concerns were dismissed. CONTINUED ON P5 ting with Washington Sundar, Bumrah, Gill before batting briefly along with the backup batters towards the end. It was not until most of the drill was over that Sharma and Gambhir were seen together alongside Bumrah. If Sharma gets dropped, which is most likely as of Thursday evening, MCG Test could be his last as a Test player. For India, a win in Sydney would help retain the Border-Gavaskar Trophy and keep World Test ChampionP11 ship hopes alive. Waqf JPC could miss Budget session deadline P R E E T H A N A I R @ New Delhi THE Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC) examining the Waqf Amendment Bill may miss the next deadline of the Budget session of Parliament, scheduled to begin on January 30, according to sources. The committee headed by BJP MP Jagadambika Pal is scheduled to present its report on the last day of the Budget session after missing the first deadline of the just concluded winter session of Parliament. The Budget session is expected to conclude on February 12. The Centre may now push the report for the Monsoon session as the committee will not be able to complete its work by the stipulated deadline, said people aware of the developments. Another key reason, according to sources, is the strong opposition from NDA allies Telugu Desam Party and the Janata Dal (United) over the proposed legislation. Several Muslim groups in Andhra Pradesh and Bihar have been opposing most of the amendments, including the appointment of non-Muslims as members of the Central Waqf Council and state Waqf Boards. “The government has not given any assurance to TDP or JD (U) on bringing any changes in the contentious proposals. The JD(U) does not want to risk its electoral prospects in view of the impending assembly elections in Bihar,” said a party leader, adding that the TDP and JD(U) enjoy a strong support base of minorities in their states. Though the government had listed the Waqf bill for passage during the winter session, the panel sought an extension after a showdown with the Opposition. Speaking to this paper, a panel member said it is impossible for the committee to meet the deadline as it will take a long time to record the concerns of lakhs of witnesses. “The chairman is under pressure from the Opposition to hear out stakeholders who have real concerns. The committee has not followed due process till now,” said an Opposition member. MP town protests over Union Carbide waste, CM says it’s not harmful A N U R A A G S I N G H @ Bhopal PROTESTS erupted at Pithampur industrial town in Madhya Pradesh’s Dhar district on Thursday, hours after truckloads of toxic waste was brought from the defunct Union Carbide factory in Bhopal. The hazardous waste collected from the 1984 Bhopal gas tragedy site is scheduled to be disposed at the treatment, storage and disposal (TDSF) facility located at Tarapura village in Pithampur Industrial Area. Pithampur, which has a population of 1.75 lakh, on Thursday witnessed massive protests by various groups against the planned incineration of the chemical waste. Some groups have called for a total shutdown on Friday . “Send the waste generated by the American company back to the US. We don’t want it here. The bandh call is to save our future generations and a g ricultural crops,” read a pamphlet distributed by the protesters. According to local activ- ists, 10 tonnes of toxic waste from Union Carbide was incinerated at the Pithampur TSDF in 2015 on a trial basis. The disposal contaminated the soil, groundwater, and water sources in the nearby villages; so, incinerating 337 tonnes of waste could inflict greater harm on the environment, they claim. Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Mohan Yadav sought to reassure people that the waste is not dangerous as its harmful effects have weakened over 40 years. He said the government is mindful of public sentiments and will take extra care while handling the waste. “Over 60% of the 358 tonnes of waste is local soil, while the remaining 40% comprises 7-naphthol, reactor residues, and semi-processed pesticides. The 7-naphthol residue is basically a co-product of the process of making methyl isocyanate and pesticides. Experts believe its toxic effects will end after 25 years,” Yadav claimed.