HYDERABAD  SATURDAY  JANUARY 18, 2025  `9.00  PAGES 16  LATE CITY EDITION DONALD TRUMP’S INAUGURATION ON SUNDAY TO BE MOVED INDOORS President-elect Donald Trump’s inauguration will be moved indoors, he said Friday, due to forecast of severe cold temperatures in Washington DC VICTORY RALLY VENUE REMAINS UNCHANGED ‘ARCTIC BLAST SWEEPING THROUGH U.S.’ Trump posted on his app Truth Social: “I have ordered the Inauguration Address, in addition to prayers and other speeches, to be delivered in the United States Capitol Rotunda, as was used by Ronald Reagan in 1985, also because of very cold weather.” The Victory Rally at Capital One Arena Sunday and the three Inaugural Balls on Monday will remain unchanged ■ ■ “There is an Arctic blast sweeping through the US. I don’t want to see people hurt, or injured, in any way,” the President-elect said. The last time a US president was sworn in indoors was in 1985, when Ronald Reagan took oath of office inside Capitol Rotunda due to extremely cold weather, forcing the inaugural parade to be cancelled $170 mn HAS BEEN RAISED TO COVER EXPENSES OF DONALD TRUMP’S INAUGURATION 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 Israel nod to truce deal a step away BUILDING TIES Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy meets Singapore Foreign Affairs Minister Vivian Balakrishnan on Friday. They discussed forging broad, long-term partnerships across infra development, energy, sustainable green energy initiatives, water management, river rejuvenation, tourism, education, skill development, IT parks and other areas First hostages to be freed Sunday; Hamas required to furnish hostage names by Saturday NAYSAYER IN CABINET AP & AGENCIES @ Jerusalem ISRAEL’S security cabinet on Friday recommended approval of a ceasefire deal after Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu confirmed an agreement had been reached that would pause the 15-month war with Hamas in Gaza and release dozens of hostages held by militants there. Mediators Qatar and the US announced the ceasefire on Wednesday, but the deal was uncertain as Netanyahu insisted there were last-minute snags he blamed on Hamas. The truce deal now goes to the full Israeli cabinet for its final approval. The cabinet is KHEL AWARDS Israel’s National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir threatened to quit if a ceasefire is approved, although his resignation wouldn’t derail the peace deal. His resignation could, however, destabilise the coalition govt cobbled together by Netanyahu expected to approve the pact. Netanyahu instructed a special task force to prepare to receive hostages returning from Gaza, and said their families were informed about the deal. The prime minister’s office said the ceasefire could start Sunday when the first hostages are freed. Under the deal, 33 of some 100 hostages in Gaza will be released over six weeks in exchange for hundreds of Palestinians imprisoned by Israel. As for Israel, its forces will have to pull back from many areas in Gaza, allowing hundreds of thousands of displaced Palestinians to return to what’s left of their homes. The remaining hostages, including male soldiers, are to be released in a second — and much more difficult — phase. Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich and National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir voted against the deal at the security cabinet, but were in a minority . Israel’s Justice Ministry published a list of Palestinian prisoners slated for release in the first phase. The list includes 95 women and children held in Israeli jails. The deal stipulates that Hamas provide Israel with names of the hostages it will release by Sunday . (Extreme left) Para-athlete Deepthi Jeevanji, from Warangal, receives the Arjuna Award from President Droupadi Murmu at the Rashtrapati Bhavan on Friday. President also confers the Khel Ratnas to Paris Olympic double medallist Manu Bhaker, Paris Para-Olympics gold winner Praveen Kumar, Paris hockey medallist Harmanpreet Singh and World Chess Champion D Gukesh | PTI | P11 BJP to go all out on 1-nation-1-election RAJESH KUMAR THAKUR & J AYA N T H J A C O B @ New Delhi SIGNALLING its resolve to roll out the ‘one nation, one election’ plan, the BJP has constituted a high-powered committee chaired by Union agriculture minister Shivraj Singh Chauhan to shape public opinion and align its own state and local body governments with the importance of the idea. BJP leaders Sunil Bansal, Om Prakash Dhankhar, Surendra Nagar, Kamakhaya Prasad Tasa and Anil Antony are the other members of the panel. The six-member team will plan the outreach programmes and campaigns in this regard even as a Joint Parliamentary Committee, chaired by BJP leader P P Chaudhary is delib, erating the issue. TG plans pod taxis to end traffic woes S BACHAN JEET SINGH @ Hyderabad THE state government is planning to introduce a Personal Rapid Transit (PRT) or pod taxi system to improve last-mile connectivity in areas like Knowledge City Hitech City and , Kondapur, bringing an end to the frequent traffic jams in the IT corridor. The PRT system will initially come up in two corridors, linking Metro stations with key office hubs, multinational companies and high-rise buildings in Raidurg, Madhapur, Kondapur and nearby areas. The 8.8 kmlong Corridor-I with 28 stops will cover RaidurgITC Kohenur-Knowledge City and is estimated to cost `880 crore. CorridorII, on the other hand, will have 27 stops over 6 km. It will cost `600 crore and cover Raidurg-Tech Mahindra-Hitech City/ Kondapur. HMRL has commissioned a DPR which will be submitted to the government by the monthCONTINUED ON P4 end. CHAUHAN TO LEAD OUTREACH Six-member panel to direct campaigns and outreach initiatives to bring on board stakeholders Union agriculture minister Shivraj Singh Chauhan to head the panel BJP believes constant poll preoccupation is disrupting Shivraj Singh Chauhan the country’s development In March last year, a panel led by former President Ram Nath Kovind proposed the idea of holding state and general elections simultaneously in its 18,626-page report. An introductory meeting of the Chauhan-led panel has already been held, and a detailed meeting will take place in the coming days, where the complete roadmap for the plan will be chalked out, sources told TNIE. The committee may also be expanded, they added. According to a BJP functionary the plan is to draw a strat, egy to bring on board every stake holder as the party is confident of getting past the hurdles for passing the necessary constitutional amendments. The BJP wants to have a synchronised approach from its leaders, office-bearers, legislators, and local body representatives to “constantly and comprehensively” address the topic in public forums. The party also intends to engage Bar Associations, Chambers of Commerce, women’s self-help groups and student organisations in the campaign. MAHA CM SAYS SEVERAL CLUES FOUND IN Saif Ali Khan attack case, culprits will be caught soon. Over 30 teams are on the lookout for the culprit, he said, ruling out any underworld link | P8 Team Telangana scores first goal in Singapore EXPRESS NEWS SERVICE @ Hyderabad CHIEF Minister A Revanth Reddy’s two-nation tour commenced on a positive note on Friday with a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) signed between Young India Skill University (YISU)-Hyderabad and the Institute of Technical Education (ITE)-Singapore in the presence of IT and Industries Minister D Sridhar Babu. “The partnership aims to facilitate long-term cooperation in critical sectors such as infrastructure development, renewable energy resources, tourism, education, and skill development,” a release said. The delegation, dubbed ‘Telangana Rising,’ visited the ITE campus and was briefed on the skill development courses and advanced facilities available. The delegation also interacted with experts from around 20 fields and college staff providing training at the institute. Discussions were held with the senior management of the ITE, and a request was made to extend cooperation to YISU, established in the “Fourth City” proposed on the outskirts of Hyderabad. During the discussion, Sridhar Babu highlighted various courses introduced at YISU to train youth and meet market demand for a skilled workforce in various sectors. The ITE delegation responded positively to the chief minister’s request and agreed to collaborate with YISU. MUDA SCAM ED attaches `300 cr worth assets in case linked to Siddu EXPRESS NEWS SERVICE @ Bengaluru THE Directorate of Enforcement (ED), Bengaluru, has provisionally attached 142 immovable properties with a market value of about `300 crore under the money laundering Act, in connection with a case against Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah and others. The attached properties are in the names of individuals working as real estate businessmen and agents, according to a statement issued by the ED. The ED launched an investigation on the basis of an FIR registered by Lokayukta Police, Mysuru, under various Sections of IPC, 1860, and the Prevention of Corruption Act, 1988, against Siddaramaiah and others. The Lokayukta Police are investigating the MUDA sites allotment case against Siddaramaiah and others. It is alleged that Siddaramaiah used his political influence to get 14 compensation sites in the name of his wife B M Parvathi in lieu of 3 acres and 16 guntas of land acquired by MUDA. The land was acquired by MUDA for `3,24,700.