Injured Djokovic exits after 1st set Melbourne: Novak Djokovic retired injured from his Australian Open semifinal against Alexander Zverev after first set (6-7) and left the court to boos, with defending champ Jannik Sinner to face German for the title. Topranked Sinner blew past Ben Shelton 7-6 (7/2), 6-2, 6-2 despite late cramp in the second semis to set up meeting on Sunday | P11 tirupati l saturday l january 25, 2025 l `9.00 l PAGES 12 l late city EDITION 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 Effects of explosion heard in nearby areas; 2nd blast in an ordnance factory in 4 months 8 killed, 7 injured in blast at Maha ordnance factory M ayan k sin g h @ New Delhi AT least eight persons were killed and seven others injured in a massive blast at the ordnance factory in Jawahar Nagar area of Bhandara district in Maharashtra on Friday The . explosion occurred around 10.30 am in the low temperature plastic explosive (LTP) section, causing the roof to collapse and trapping more than a dozen workers. R K Yadav, joint general manager, Indian Ordnance Factories Board said 13 people have been rescued from the accident site and five among them have been shifted to a local hospital. The blast was of such high intensity that it was heard from as far as 5 kilometres away. A thick smoke was seen rising from the factory in a video captured from a distance. A rescue and relief team comprising fire brigade, local administration, National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) and medical teams reached the spot within minutes of the explosion, an official said. Defence Minister Rajnath Singh said on X, “My condolences to the bereaved families. Praying for the speedy recovery of the injured.” Bhandara district Collector Sanjay Kolte said the blast led to a roof collapse at the site that trapped over a dozen workers. The district administration has ordered a probe. Four among the deceased workers were identified as Chandrashekhar Goswami (59), Manoj Meshram (55), Ajay Nagdeve (51), and Ankit Barai (21). Union minister Nitin Gadkari termed the explosion an unfortunate incident. Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis announced `5 lakh each to the family of those killed in the blast. Just four months ago, two workers were killed and 15 others injured in a blast at the Ordnance Factory in Jabalpur of Madhya Pradesh. (With inputs from Mumbai) Deeply saddened to know about the blast at Ordnance Factory at Bhandara. All efforts are being made to provide aid to those affected — Rajnath Singh, Union defence minister E x press N e w s S ervi c e @ New Delhi Smoke billows from the Ordnance Factory in Bhandara on Friday | PTI 21-year-old among the deceased Nagpur: The blast was so powerful that residents of three villages in the vicinity felt its impact, said relatives of a 21-year-old apprentice who died. Ankit had joined the factory only last year. I’m quitting politics: Vijayasai Reddy S V is w anath @ Vijayawada In a major setback to the YSRCP, party Rajya Sabha MP V Vijayasai Reddy has announced his decision to quit active politics. “I am retiring from politics. I will resign from Rajya Sabha membership tomorrow, 25 Jan, 2025,” Vijayasai posted on ‘X’ on Friday . At a time when YSRCP chief YS Jagan Mohan Reddy is away in the UK, Vijayasai, who is the national general secretary and , the party floor leader in the Rajya Sabha, took the shocking decision. Vijayasai sailed with Jagan during the latter’s tough times, and also went to jail along with him, and he is still accused No. 2 in most of the cases pertaining to disproportionate assets, in which Jagan is A1. In fact, Vijayasai enjoyed a good clout in the party and was , positioned next to Jagan for Trump begins mass deportation drive some years after the formation of the YSRCP government in the State. However, for reasons unknown, his grip over the party affairs weakened gradually . Making it clear that he is not joining any other political party, Vijayasai said his resignation is not to attain any post/ position, benefit, or monetary gain. “This decision is entirely personal. There is no pressure, or coercion or undue influence P4 on me,” he asserted. THE new US administration under Donald Trump has started deporting undocumented immigrants, the White House said on Friday . White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said the authorities “arrested 538 illegal immig rant criminals” on Thursday, adding that “hundreds” were deported by military aircraft. “Just as he promised, President Trump is sending a strong message to the world: those who enter the United States illegally will face serious consequences,” the White House said. Tough action against illegal immigration was a major poll promise that Trump set out to fulfil soon after his express read Naidu puts AP’s wishlist before FM Vijayawada: Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu called on Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman in New Delhi on Friday. It is learnt that Naidu put the wishlist of Andhra Pradesh before Sitharaman ahead of the presentation of the Union Budget for 2025-26 on February 1. He thanked her for announcing a financial package to revive VSP | P4 inauguration as US President on January 20. According to the Department of Homeland Security, over 11 million people are staying in the US illegally A few thousand . Indians are reportedly also among the undocumented. Meanwhile, India on Friday reiterated its position that it will take back undocumented Indians, adding that New Delhi is against illegal immigration. “For Indians not just in the US, but anywhere in the world, if they are Indian nationals and they are overstaying, or they are in a particular country without proper documentation, we will take them back provided documents are shared with us so that we can verify their nationality and that they are indeed Indians,” MEA spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said. syria THE LAST hours OF THE Assad regime How did the Bashar alAssad regime meet its spectacular collapse? How did the secular Ba’athist state fall after 13 years of brutal civil war? What led to the takeover by Hay’at Tahrir al-Sham | P9 unruly scenes Oppn MPs suspended from Waqf Committee P R E E T H A N A I R @ New Delhi THE meeting of the Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC) on the Waqf Amendment Bill witnessed unruly scenes on Friday after 10 opposition members were suspended for a day amid accusations against Chairman Jagdambika Pal of steamrolling through the proceedings. Later, the suspended MPs wrote to Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla, alleging Jagdambika Pal suspended them after he received a phone call during the meeting. The MPs said the JPC chairman does not have the power to suspend them and demanded that the proceedings be conducted in a fair manner. On his part, Jagdambika Pal alleged the Opposition MPs were trying to disrupt the meeting, adding that TMC member Kalyan Banerjee verbally abused him. The suspended MPs include TMC’s Banerjee, Congress’ Naseer Hussain and Md Jawed, DMK’s A Raja, and AIMIM’s Asaduddin Owaisi. The ruckus began after some members questioned the change in the date of the meet. “After the January 21 meeting, we were told the next meeting would be on January 24-25,” said Raja, adding the Opposition sought it be held after January 30, but the chairman did not respond to their request.