4 7 The New Indian Express wishes its readers a SHE IS THE 4TH OLDEST FIRST-TIME CHAMP (29) SAMBALPUR  SUNDAY  JANUARY 26, 2025  `12.00  PAGES 28  CITY EDITION MADISON UNLOCKS SABALENKA PUZZLE, WINS MAIDEN MAJOR US’ Madison Keys, who began the Australian Open final as the underdog, triumphed over the World No. 1 in a show filled with courage WINNER MANY YEARS IN MAKING When the 29-year-old won her maiden WTA tour level match as a 14-year-old, she was earmarked as a potential Major winner. But it didn’t transpire that way as she had a couple of near misses, including the final of the US Open in 2017 | MORE ON P15 WINNING BIG MOMENTS ENROUTE TITLE When Keys, the fourth oldest first time winner of a Major, will look back on the Major, she will reflect on how she saved a match point against Iga Swiatek in the semifinals. In the final, when Sabalenka, usually a reliable server, had the opportunity to force a final set breaker, Keys fought to win the Championship Our office will remain closed today and there will be no issue of the paper on Monday. I have wanted this for so long and I have been in one other Grand Slam final and it did not go my way. I’m mostly just really proud of myself to get back to this position, to be able to play the way that I played and finish on such a strong note KEYS’ NEW WORLD RANKING Madison Keys 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 Unified Pension Padma Vibhushan for MT, Suzuki czar Scheme to kick in from April 1 EXPRESS NEWS SERVICE @ New Delhi D I PA K M O N D A L @ New Delhi THE Unified Pension Scheme (UPS) for Central government employees — an improvement over the existing National Pension System (NPS) — will come into force from April 1. A government notification issued on Saturday said those who opt for UPS can’t go back to the NPS. State governments, too, can implement the UPS. As on March 31, 2024, 26 lakh Central government and 66 lakh state government employees were making contributions to NPS. Of the `11.7 lakh crore corpus under NPS, state and Central government employees accounted for `9 lakh crore. T he UPS guarantees a monthly payout of 50% of the 12 monthly average basic pay, immediately prior to the retirement of an employee who completed at least 25 years of service. It also guarantees a minimum monthly pension of `10,000 for those who have less than 25 years of service but served 10 years or more. In the case of voluntary retirement after at least 25 years in service, the assured payout will start from the date on which the employee would have retired, had he continued in service. In the event of the pensioner’s death, his family will receive 60% of the pension amount that was being disbursed at the time of demise. The pension will be adjusted for inflation. This means that the payments will include dearness relief. The UPS will have two funds — an individual corpus with employee contribution and matching Central government contribution; and a pool corpus with additional Central government contribution. The contribution of employees will be 10% of basic pay plus DA. The government will match it and provide an additional sumat an estimated 8.5% of basic pay plus DA to all those who chose the individual corpus. OSAMU Suzuki, the former CEO of Suzuki Motors, who gave India its people’s car, and veteran Malayalam writer M T Vasudevan Nair were on Saturday among the eminent personalities who have been conferred the Padma Vibhushan, the nation’s second highest civilian award. Others who have been awarded the Padma Vibhushan include Duvvur Nageshwar Reddy for medicine from Telangana, Justice (Retd) Jagdish Singh Khehar for public affairs from Chandigarh, Kaumudini Rajnikant Lakhia for art from Gujarat, Lakshminarayana Subramaniam for art from Karnataka and folk singer `5L CR INVESTMENT PROPOSALS EXPECTED AT UTKARSH ODISHA: SWAIN With only two days to go for Utkarsh Odisha: Make-inOdisha conclave, the first investors summit of BJP government in the state, Industries minister Sampad Swain on Saturday said 16 countries have confirmed their participation in it | P3 Sharda Sinha. The Padma Bhushan was awarded to 19 people, prominent among them being late BJP leader and former deputy chief minister of Bihar Sushil Kumar Modi and Shiv Sena leader from Maharashtra Manohar Joshi. Celebrated filmmaker Shekhar Kapur, ace hockey goalkeeper P R Sreejesh, noted economist and former chairman of PM’s economic advisory council Bibek Debroy, late Ghazal maestro Pankaj Udhas and former chairman of Prasar Bharti A Surya Prakash are the other recipients of the Padma Bhushan. Sadhvi Ritambhara, who was J AYA N T H J A C O B @ New Delhi INDIA and Indonesia agreed to instill a new momentum into their ties, with particular focus on collaborating in defence manufacturing, maritime security and supply chains as Prime Minister Narendra Modi held extensive talks with President P r a b owo S u b i a n t o o n Saturday . The Indonesian President, who is on a three-day visit to India, will be the chief guest at the Republic Day celebrations on Sunday . “To strengthen our cooperation in the defence sector, we have decided to work together in the areas of defence manufacturing and supply chain,” Modi said. Describing the visit of the President as the chief guest for the Republic Day as a “matter of immense pride”, Modi said: “We have also highlighted the importance of cooperation in maritime security cyber security coun, , ter-terrorism, and de-radicalisation. The agreement signed today on maritime safety and security will enhance our collaboration in areas such as crime prevention, search and rescue, and capacity building.” Indonesia, an ASEAN partner and an archipelagic nation comprising over 17,000 islands located between the Indian Ocean and the Pacific Ocean holds immense strategic significance to India. WITH THIS ISSUE THE SHAPE OF NOW PLUS 12 PAGES THE Supreme Court on Friday issued notice returnable within four weeks to the Odisha government on a special leave petition (SLP) challenging the Orissa High Court order that quashed the order of the Judicial Magistrate First Class (JMFC), Salepur, taking cognisance of offences against BJD leader and former minister Pratap Jena as an accused in the Mahanga double murder case. The SLP was filed by Ranjit Kumar Baral, son of BJP leader and chairman of Mahanga block Kulamani Baral who was brutally killed along with his associate Dibyasingha Baral on January 2, 2021, while they were returning home by motorcycle. The division bench of Justice Vikram Nath and Justice Sandeep Mehta also al- FOUR ODIAS TO GET PADMA AWARD Bhubaneswar: Four eminent Odias will receive the prestigious Padma Shri awards this year in the fields of art, medicine, education and literature. Sculptor Adwaita Charan Gadanayak, renowned neurosurgeon Dr Ashok Kumar Mahapatra, Odissi dancer Durga Charan Ranbir and poet Pratibha Satpathy will be conferred the highest civilian award. Both Gadanayak and Ranbir have been chosen for the award in the art category. For literature and education, poet Satpathy will receive the award. And in the field of medicine, Dr Mahapatra will be conferred with the Padma Shri for his significant contributions to healthcare and medical MORE ON P3 research. Rana loses last appeal against extradition M U K E S H R A N J A N @ New Delhi DECKS have been cleared for the extradition of Tahawwur Hussain Rana, a Canadian national of Pakistani origin and a convict in the Mumbai terror attack case, to India after the US Supreme Court recently dismissed his review petition. India has been seeking Rana’s extradition since 2019. Rana’s petition in the US Supreme Court was his last legal India to step SC notice to govt on HC reprieve up ties with to Pratap Jena in Mahanga case Indonesia E X P R E S S N E W S S E R V I C E @ Cuttack associated with the Ram Janam Bhumi movement in the 1990s, has also been awarded Padma Bhushan. In all, 139 eminent personalities were awarded. On the list of 113 Padma Shri awardees were several unsung heroes. Prominent among them are Libia Lobo Sardesai, a 100-year-old freedom fighter from Goa, who played an important role in the state’s freedom movement, Gokul Chandra Dey, a 57-yearold Dhak player from West Bengal and Dr Neerja Bhatla, a gynaecologist from Delhi, who specialises in cervical cancer detection, prevention, and management. lowed Pratap Jena (who had filed a caveat) to file counter affidavit and the parties to place on record the statements of witnesses recorded by the courts of Sessions Judge as well as Magistrate within four weeks. The double murder case was first registered on the complaint filed by Ramakant Baral, son of deceased Kulamani. However, Ramakant passed away and his younger brother Ranjit renewed the complaint. On September 25, 2023, the JMFC in its order said: “After going through the statements of the complainant, witnesses, and other available materials on record, it is found that a prima facie case punishable for the offences under sections 302, 506, 120 B of the Indian Penal Code is made against the accused Pratap Jena.” CONTINUED ON P7 option to avoid his extradition to India. Incidentally, the US Supreme Court’s order came on January 21, a day after Donald Trump took charge as the 47th President of the US. Rana, 64, is currently lodged at the Metropolitan Detention Centre in Los Angeles. According to Indian agencies, Rana is an associate of Pakistani-American terrorist David Coleman Headley, a key conspirator of the 26/11 Mumbai attacks. At least 166 people were killed in the attacks orchestrated by Pakistan-based Lashkar-e-Toiba. Ajmal Kasab was the only convict executed in the case. Another accused, Sayed Zabiuddin Ansari alias Abu Jundal, an Indian operative working for LeT, was arrested in 2012. 1 DAY TO GO PRESENTS THINKEDU CONCLAVE