HYDERABAD  WEDNESDAY  JANUARY 22, 2025  `9.00  PAGES 18  LATE CITY EDITION AT LEAST 66 DEAD, 51 INJURED IN FIRE AT A SKI RESORT IN TURKEY HOTEL’S LOCATION HAMPERING RESCUE EFFORTS The fire at the Grand Kartal hotel in Kartalkaya, 300 kilometres east of Istanbul, occurred near the start of a two-week winter break for schools, when hotels in the region are packed. A part of the 161-room hotel is on the side of a cliff, hampering rescue efforts. President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said all steps will be taken to nab those responsible for the blaze A fire raged through a 12-story hotel at a ski resort in northwestern Turkey on Tuesday during a school holiday, killing 66 people and injuring 51 ■ 238 SIX-MEMBER PANEL TO LEAD INVESTIGATION ■ The government appointed six prosecutors to lead an investigation into the blaze, which is believed to have started in the hotel’s restaurant section, later spreading to other portions Tourism Minister Mehmet Nuri Ersoy said the hotel underwent inspections in 2021 and 2024 and was found up to the mark REGISTERED GUESTS WERE PRESENT IN THE HOTEL AT THE TIME OF THE BLAZE 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 EXPERTS RULE OUT SIGNIFICANT IMPACT ON INDIA DUE TO TRUMP’S TRADE POLICIES SHORT-TERM PAIN, LONG-TERM GAIN... ...India sees window of opportunity amidst tests D I PA K M O N D A L @ New Delhi J AYA N T H J A C O B @ New Delhi HOURS after taking charge as US president, Donald Trump took a slew of major executive actions to effect major policy shifts, many of them with global ramifications whose ripple effects would be felt across the world including India. The Indian equity markets felt the tremors on Tuesday with benchmark indices falling by 1.6%, while the rupee tanked 14 paise to close at 86.59 against dollar. However, most analysts and commentators expect limited economic impact on India as most decisions won’t impact India directly, though the uncertainties could shake a few indicators in the short term. In his America First Trade Policy Trump announced with, drawal from global tax deals as well as the Paris Climate Accord. He declared a national energy emergency, reinstating the country’s oil and gas industry at the centre stage. He also ended the federal mandate for electric vehicles, which has set a target of electrifying all new light-duty vehicles by 2027. While he did not sign any orders announcing import tariff hike, he proposed 25% duty on goods coming from Canada and Mexico. Earlier, Trump had proposed a 60% tax on Chinese imports and 20% tariff on imports from other countries. He also hinted he would target countries with trade surplus with the US. India figures in this list but Soumya Kanti Ghosh, SBI’s group chief economic adviser, says the impact will be limited as India has broadened its export market. Ajay Sahai, director-general and CEO, Federation of India Exports Organisation, believes India stands to gain. “These measures aim to protect US industries but they also create opportunities for Indian exporters to fill supply chain gaps in textiles, pharmaceuticals, and engineering goods,” he said. Trump’s US-centric energy policies also signal potential sanctions on Russia and Iran, EXTERNAL Affairs Minister S Jaishankar will be the first foreign minister to meet US Secretary of State Marco Rubio for a bilateral discussion, as India aims to strengthen its ties with the US following the inauguration of President Donald Trump as its 47th President. Rubio will be meeting Jaishankar in the state department soon after his meeting with foreign ministers of India, Japan and Ausralia under the Quad format in the same venue. Jaishankar, who represented India at the inauguration, was seated in the front row alongside Ecuadorian President Daniel Noboa. He also had brief interactions with members of Trump’s administration, including Speaker Mike Johnson, Senate Majority Leader John Thune, and FBI Director nominee Kash Patel. According to sources, the importance of the Quad format is quite pronounced, going by the way the first day’s appointments of Rubio are planned. Soon after interacting with state department staffers, the Quad ministers will meet for an hour. Trump is expected to visit India to attend the first Quad summit later this year. India also intends to host the first meeting of the Regional Ports and Transportation Conference, a new initiative of the grouping, in Mumbai in the coming months. Sources said that India-US ties will continue to grow under Trump despite negotiating some of the challenges, including the tariff plans and the efforts to draw outsourced manufacturing units back to the US. “Tariff on imported goods, we need to wait and see. It could also be the case that the new American administration takes some time before arriving at any definite plans,” said a source. New Delhi has maintained that Trump’s policies that change the international order will have less impact on countries like India as New Delhi is not heavily invested in the existing order. “Those most anxious are the nations and organisations who are deeply invested in the current order....For the countries who are less invested, it could very well be a time of opportunity. India falls in the latter category Jaishankar said ,” during the Nani Palkhivala Memorial Lecture on January 18. DON’s 1 DAY st KEY EXECUTIVE ORDERS DONALD TRUMP SIGNED ON HIS INAUGURATION DAY Withdraws US from the Paris Agreement and WHO PARDONS FOR JAN 6 US CAPITOL ATTACK Trump pardoned around 1,500 people convicted or charged in the Jan 6 attack END TO FEDERAL CASES Trump ordered an end to federal cases against ‘political opponents’ of the Biden administration, effectively helping his own supporters Ends remote work policies for all federal workers EASING REGULATORY BURDENS Trump ordered easing of regulatory burdens on oil and natural gas production TARIFFS ON CANADA AND MEXICO Trump plans to impose 25% tariffs on Canada and Mexico starting Feb 1 which could disrupt energy imports for India. But on the positive side, there is a possibility of more US energy coming to India, Union minister Hardeep Singh Puri said. India needs to diversify its energy supply sources, intensify domestic oil and gas exploration efforts, and expand investments in renewable energy to reduce external shocks,” said Ajay Srivastava, founder, Global Trade Research InitiaP11 tive. COMBATING CONSUMER INFLATION Trump calls for an “all of government” response to bring down costs for Americans NATIONAL EMERGENCY AT US-MEXICO BORDER Trump declared a national emergency, planning to send US troops to support immigration agents ENDING BIRTHRIGHT CITIZENSHIP It denies citizenship to children born in the US whose parents lack legal immigration status even if they are not illegals MINIMUM TAX PACT AXE Withdraws US from global minimum tax agreement The only one smarter than Vance is his wife (Usha). I would have chosen her (for V-P) but somehow the line of succession didn’t work that way, right? Donald Trump in his first address after inauguration Seize Husain’s two paintings: Delhi court  MEIL to invest `11,000 crore to set up a 2,160 MW pumped storage project; develop a cumulative 1,000 MWh battery energy storage system across various strategic locations in the state with `3,000 crore and invest `1,000 crore to establish a wellness centre  Skyroot to establish an integrated private rocket manufacturing, integration and testing facility with an investment of `500 crore  CtrlS Datacentres will invest `10,000 crore in data hub with 612 MW capacity E X P R E S S N E W S S E R V I C E @ Hyderabad Income Tax officials leave the residence of DIl Raju after completing searches in Hyderabad on Tuesday SEVERAL teams of Income Tax sleuths on Tuesday spent more than 12 hours conducting extensive raids at the houses and offices of prominent Telugu film producers and other personalities. Around 50 teams have reportedly conducted the raids at more than eight locations. However, there is no confirmation from the I-T department about these raids on film industry personalities. E N S @ Hyderabad IN a major investment boost, the Telangana government has signed several MoUs with three Hyderabad-based companies — Megha Engineering and Infrastructure Limited, CtrlS Datacentres and Skyroot Aerospace — during the World Economic Forum in Davos. As per the MoU, MEIL will set up a 2,160 MW pumped storage project in the state. The project represents a landmark initiative with a proposed investment of `11,000 crore and is expected to create over 1,000 jobs in the construction phase, with an additional 250 jobs during the operations phase. The company will also initiate campus recruitment drives within Telangana to fulfil the project’s workforce requirements. MEIL signed another MoU to establish a cutting-edge The I-T officials began raids at the crack of dawn at the Telangana Film Development Corporation (TGFDC) chairman and prominent film producer Dil Raju’s office and residences of his and those of his relatives. Offices of Dil Raju’s daughter Hansitha Reddy and his partner in SVC cinemas, Shirish were also raided. According to sources, around 20 Income Tax officials conducted the CONTINUED ON P7 raids. Top gun among 14 Maoists killed in C’garh E J A Z K A I S E R @ Raipur IN a big jolt to the outlawed CPI (Maoist), its Central Committee member Jayram Pratap Reddy alias Chalapathi and 13 senior cadres were killed in an exchange of fire with security forces along the Chhattisgarh-Odisha border, 160 km east of Raipur. The gun battle late on Sunday continued intermittently for 48 hours in the Kularighat forest of Mainpur region in Gariaband district, said a senior police officer supervising the operation. Chalapathi, who hailed from Andhra Pradesh, was an active member of the Central Committee, which holds significant authority in the banned CPI (Maoist), just below the Politburo. He had a bounty of `1 crore on his head. “The encounter is still on. So far, 14 bodies have been recovered. The casualty count is expected to rise as the search operation has been intensified. This is the first operation where senior leaders of the banned outfit have been killed in Chhattisgarh,” Nikhil Rakhecha, Gariaband SP told this paper. There were intelligence inputs specifying the presence of the senior Maoist assembling in the re-  Unilever to set up a palm oil production facility and unit for manufacturing bottle caps IT Minister Sridhar Babu holds talks with MTC Group on expanding its huband-spoke model to state. Efforts will begin soon to identify land for the purpose Investments rain at Davos as MEIL, Ctrls, Skyroot sign MoUs I-T raids on film producer Dil Raju S H E K H A R S I N G H @ New Delhi A Delhi court ordered the seizure of two paintings by renowned artist M F Husain displayed at the Delhi Art Gallery following a complaint that they were offensive. Judicial Magistrate First Class Sahil Monga, presiding over the Patiala House Court, on Monday approved advocate Amita Sachdeva’s request for their seizure under Section 94 of the BNSS Act. The court instructed the Investigating Officer (IO) to secure the artworks and submit a report by January 22. “In light of the facts and circumstances mentioned in the said application, the said application is allowed and the IO is directed to seize the said painting.” Sachdeva’s complaint at the Parliament Street police station, alleged that the paintings depicting Hindu deities Hanuman and Ganesh, were offensive. Sachdeva also sought an FIR against the Delhi Art Gallery’s CEO for removing the paintings and falsely claiming they were never on display . DAVOS DELIGHT gion. A joint operation launched by a special team faced heavy gunfire from the Naxals, the officer said. Union Home Minister Amit Shah said on X: “Another mighty blow to Naxalism. With a resolve for a Naxal-free India and joint efforts of security forces, Naxalism is breathing its last today .” Two security personnel, who were injured in the gunfight, are out of danger. The forces recovered self-loading guns, INSAS rifles and Improvised explosive devices (IEDs) from the scene, the SP said. Several slain Maoists were said to be members of Mainpur-Nuapada division of the outlawed organisation. battery energy storage system project in the state. The company will develop a cumulative 1,000 MWh battery energ y stora g e system across various strategic locations in the state. The project entails an investment of `3,000 crore and is poised to create over 1,000 direct jobs and an additional 3,000 indirect jobs within two years. As per the third MoU signed by the government, MEIL will establish a world-class wellness resort at Ananthagiri. The deal will reflect the state’s commitment to promoting luxury tourism and re gional economic growth, a release from the chief minister’s office (CMO) said. Under this partnership, MEIL will invest `1,000 crore to develop the resort. The project is expected to generate over 2,000 jobs during construction and operation CONTINUED ON P4 phases. KLIS loans will be restructured: Govt to Ghose panel EXPRESS NEWS SERVICE @ Hyderabad SPECIAL Chief Secretary (Finance) K Ramakrishna Rao informed Kaleshwaram Commission of Inquiry on Tuesday that the state government was trying to restructure the loans taken for the Kaleshwaram Lift Irrigation Scheme. Deposing before the commission, the senior IAS officer said that the government paid `6,519 crore towards interest and `7,382 core towards principal amount in this financial year on the loans taken for the irrigation project. When commission chairman Justice PC Ghose asked about the borrowings, Ramakrishna Rao said that rate of interest ranges from 9 to 10.5 per cent for Kaleshwaram loans. That was why the government was trying to restructure the loans, he said. When the commission asked what was the responsibility of the Finance department in the event of the government was required to discharge the loans raised by the Kaleshwaram Irrigation Project Corporation Limited (KIPCL), Ramakrishna Rao said that the government was the guarantor and it had to service the loans. CONTINUED ON P4 KRMB HAS AGREED TO CONSIDER TG PLEA to increase its allocation in Krishna river waters from the present 66:34 ratio. A three-member committee would take a decision on the quantum of increase in future. At a meeting, state government opposed water share between AP and TG in 66:34 ratio | P4 SAFE SAIF Actor Saif Ali Khan back home from hospital following multiple surgeries five days ago after he was stabbed by an intruder, in Mumbai on Tuesday | ANI