tadepalligudem l tuesday l april 15, 2025 l `9.00 l PAGES 12 l city EDITION Blue Origin launches all-woman celebrity crew on space flight Jeff Bezos’ Blue Origin launched his fiancee Lauren Sanchez into space Monday with an allfemale celebrity crew that included Katy Perry 10-minute-long flight took off from texas us’ first spaceflight with women crew The New Shepard rocket blasted off on the quick up-and-down trip from West Texas. The fringes of space beckoned some 65 miles (105 kilometers) up, promising a few precious minutes of weightlessness. Sanchez, a helicopter pilot and former TV journalist, invited the others for the 10-minute flight, packing on star power with Perry and Gayle King ■ ■ Blue Origin declined to say how much the flight cost or who paid what. The trip came two months before Sanchez and Bezos marry The celebrity launch of the space flight was the nation’s first where an all-women crew filled seats. The other all-female crew in 64 years of human spaceflight was in 1963 helmed by Valentina Tereshkova 11th human spaceflight for the Washington state-based company 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 India intensifies Now, Waqf Act bid to extradite protests spread to South Bengal fugitive Choksi Villagers expel family after dowry death, transfer funds arson attack E x p r e s s N e w s Se r v i c e @ Nellore Villagers of Utukuru Peddaputapalle, in Vidavalur mandal have expelled a family accused of killing their daughter-in-law for dowry and decided to transfer the family’s property to victim’s children. The decision was taken by village elders, led by the local Kapu community leader, following the gruesome murder of Suguna, a young woman who was allegedly beaten to death by her husband Harikrishna, his parents, and other family members on April 10, 2025. The accused then staged the crime scene to make it appear as a suicide. Suguna, originally from Tatithetlapalem in Bogole mandal, married Harikrishna in 2021. The couple had two children. Over time, Harikrishna and his father Nagur reportedly developed a severe gambling habit and began pressuring Sugufor more dowry. The situation escalated tragically when Harikrishna, along with his father mother and other relatives, allegedly murdered Suguna. Outraged by the incident, the villagers declared the family a disgrace to the community and decided to banish them. In an unprecedented move, village elders also resolved to ensure that all the family’s property is legally transferred to Suguna’s children. Nellore rural DSP G Srinivasa Rao confirmed that Harikrishna, Nagur, and Narasamma have been arrested. He added, “Villagers who try to block entry of Suguna’s family members will be summoned and given counselling.” S u l a g n a Sen g u p ta @Kolkata Team to travel to Belgium to seek custody of arrested diamantaire named in PNB scam Honouring Babasaheb with grace President Droupadi Murmu with Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Union minister J P Nadda, Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge and party leader Sonia Gandhi during a ceremony to pay tribute to B R Ambedkar on his birth anniversary, in New Delhi on Monday. There was a generous show of courtesy and grace from all sides at the event | PTI As promised, T’gana first off the blocks on SC sub-quota E x p r e s s N e w s Se r v i c e Group-1 @ Hyderabad Telangana on Monday became the first state in the country to implement SC categorisation, with the state government issuing GOs notifying the Telangana Scheduled Caste (Rationalisation of Reservation) Act, 2025, its guidelines as well as roster points. “On the auspicious day of the birth anniversary of Dr B R Ambedkar, the Telangana state government paid the best tributes by bringing into force a great Act of social justice addressing a long overdue demand of classification of SC sub-castes,” Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy said in a post on social media. In its August 1, 2024 verdict, the Supreme Court had upheld the power of states to Break-up of 15% SC quota 1% reservation for 15 castes (3.2% of SC population) legislate separate quotas within the SC category. The same day, the chief minister declared in the state assembly that Telangana would lead the nation in legislating sub-categorisation. The Telangana Scheduled Caste (Rationalisation of Reservation) Act creates three distinct bunches within the existing 15% SC reservation based on population and socio-economic indicators. Group-1, consisting of 15 castes with 3.2% of SC population, will get 1% share in the quota pie; Group-2 with Group-2 Group-3 9% 5% reservation for 18 castes (62.74% of SC population) reservation for 26 castes (33.96% of SC population) 18 castes and 62% population get 9% share, while Group-3 with 26 castes and 33.96% population have been awarded the remaining 5%. This restructuring follows long-standing demands for equitable distribution of reservation benefits among all SC sub-castes, particularly from the Madiga Reservation Porata Samithi (MRPS). A one-man commission under Justice Shameem Akhtar drafted the bill which was passed during the recent Budget session of the assembly on March 17. j aya n t h j a c ob @ New Delhi THE Indian government has intensified efforts to extradite fugitive diamond trader Mehul Choksi following his April 12 arrest in Antwerp, Belgium. Sources said a multi-agency Indian team is likely to travel to Belgium to push for Choksi’s extradition in connection with the `13,000 crore PNB loan fraud case. The process will need to pass through Belgium’s domestic legal system. Earlier this year, India submitted an extradition request under a 2020 bilateral treaty after learning that Choksi was residing in Antwerp. Belgian authorities executed an Indian arrest warrant after the Antwerp Public Prosecutor’s Office deemed the foreign warrant enforceable, which source said shows the “progress on how two sides are working together.” The arrest was carried out as Choksi was allegedly pre paring to move to Switzerland. Choksi seemed to have submitted “forged documents” to obtain residency, concealing his Indian and Antiguan citizenship. “He is being detained and further judicial proceedings are awaited and as per the local law, access to his legal counsel has been assured,” sources said. “The India and Belgium File picture of Mehul Choksi. He is in Antwerp after being denied bail | ANI treaty... covers fraud, money laundering, cheating and economic crimes related to taxation and revenue — many of them relevant in case of Mehul Choksi’. We are working on the extradition process and we have already shard all the necessary documents with the Belgium authorities,” sources said. The ED and CBI have been actively pursuing Choksi’s extradition, especially after the Interpol Red Notice against him was withdrawn. Choksi had fled India in 2018. Both Choksi and his nephew Nirav Modi are wanted for allegedly defrauding Punjab National Bank (PNB) of over `13,500 crore in 2018. PNB had filed a criminal complaint naming Choksi, Modi, and the managing director of Gitanjali Gems, for orchestrating the fraud. CLASHES erupted between police and Indian Secular Front (ISF) members protesting against the Waqf (Amendment) Act at Bhangor in South 24-Parganas district of West Bengal on Monday when police put up a barricade to stop the protesters from marching towards Kolkata. A large police force was deployed to bring the situation under control. “What started as a demonstration escalated and took a communal colour,” said an eyewitness. The situation in violence-hit Murshidabad was tense, yet under control after three days of protests. Many shops have reopened and families displaced by the clashes have started to return homes. Zafarabad, Suti, Dhuliyan, Shamsherganj, and Jangipur are the areas worsthit by the violence. In Zafrabad, a large number of houses and shops belonging to Hindus were reportedly set ablaze, forcing many to flee. Temples were vandalised during the unrest. The Calcutta High Court had to instruct that Central forces be deployed in Murshidabad along with the state police. Police vehicles set on fire by members of Indian Secular Front | PTI Ex-TTD chief’s allegations on cow Will revive Ambedkar Overseas Scheme: CM deaths baseless, says Shyamala Rao E x p r e s s N e w s Se r v i c e @ Guntur E x p r e s s N e w s Se r v i c e @TIRUPATI Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanams (TTD) Executive Officer J J Shyamala Rao on Monday refuted the allegations made by former TTD Trust Board Chairman Bhumana Karunakara Reddy over the death of 100 cows in TTD Goshala as baseless and made with the intention to malign the reputation of TTD, thereby hurting the sentiments of scores of Hindus. Citing the TTD Vigilance Report, the EO said there were a lot of corrupt practices carried out in SV Gosala from March 2021 to March 2024 and explained in detail about the misappropriation of funds during that time with the help of video clippings and statistical evidence. The EO said, on an average, nearly 15 cows die every month due to old age and some other diseases. He said in 2024, 179 cows died in SV Gosala, and from January to March this year, around 43 cows died because of old age and diseases. He said a total of 59 calves have also born during the same period this year. When the reality is like this, it is unfortunate that the former TTD Board Chief made baseless allegations that TTD has ignored the fodder for the cows which resulted in the deaths of these cattle. In fact, the TTD Vigilance Report clearly said about the negligence shown and the misappropriation of funds during the YSRCP regime in SV Gosala. Unhygienic and poorquality quality fodder was given to cattle, illegal floating of fodder tenders. The YSRCP regime also prevented vigilance inquiry to suppress the cow deaths, among many other issues. “If they (the YSRCP leaders) are really concerned about the cows, then why they have they not carried out any investigation on all these irregularities during their ruling? After the appointment of the new director for SV Gohala, all these issues came to the fore, and at present, we are correcting all the lacunae,” the EO asserted. Earlier, the TTD EO said that since last June, many reforms were brought to TTD, including enhancement of the taste of Annaprasadam and Srivari Prasadams, laddu quality, transparency in Seva, Darshan tickets, and accommodation, getting rid of brokers, strengthening the IT wing of TTD, and transferring incompetent persons holding superior posts. P4 On the occasion of Dr B R Ambedkar Jayanti, Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu reaffirmed his government’s commitment to social justice and the upliftment of underprivileged communities, particularly Dalits. Speaking at a public meeting in Ponnekallu village of the Tadikonda constituency on Monday, he announced the revival of the Ambedkar Overseas Education Scheme, aimed at assisting Scheduled Caste (SC) students in pursuing higher education abroad. He also promised to establish more residential schools to ensure quality education for marginalized children. Naidu participated in the Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu interacts with a motor mechanic during his visit to Tadikonda constituency on Monday | Express Ambedkar Jayanti celebrations by paying floral tributes and interacted with locals as part of the “Margadarsi-Bangaru Kutumbam” (Mentor- Golden Family) initiative. He criticized the previous YSRCP government for its lack of action regarding public welfare and He condemned the opposi- tion for spreading false claims about cow deaths in Tirumala. He questioned their sudden display of religious devotion, given their history of temple desecration. Recalling various instances of misinformation, including the pink diamond conspiracy and the murder of YS Vivekananda Reddy he accused , the previous YSRCP regime of manipulating public sentiment through lies to secure electoral victories. “If we don’t expose such conspiracies, it will harm society he warned. ,” Naidu strongly defended the P4 (Public-Private-People-Partnership) model, describing it as a revolutionary welfare initiative aimed at eliminating P4 poverty and inequality . express read Natl Task Force to set up portal on student suicides New Delhi: The Supreme Court-appointed National Task Force (NTF) on the mental health concerns of students and the prevention of suicides in Higher Educational Institutions, in its second meeting, discussed developing a portal for data collection.Held under the Chairmanship of Justice S. Ravindra Bhat, a former SC judge. I P7 Goal is to build empowered India, says Amit Shah New Delhi: Home Minister Amit Shah on Monday said that the Government has been taking transformative steps to modernise the country’s criminal justice system. Forensic teams are now required to visit crime spots. . Shah claimed that the introduction of three new criminal laws “is the biggest reform of the 21st century.”I P7 Di v i n e t o u c h Prayer and devotional songs ahead of every match: LSG’s traditional touch FIR O Z MIR Z A @ Lucknow There are different rituals teams perform before a series or a season. And sometimes before every match. There are beliefs each team has. Lucknow Super Giants is one such team this IPL to follow more a traditional and pious path to invoke the spirits. Unlike other franchises, Lucknow Super Giants perform a puja at the South Corridor, South Block here at the Bharat Ratna Shri Atal Bihari Vajpayee Ekana Cricket Stadium, Lucknow followed by Ganesh aarti before every match. Even when Lucknow were to face Chennai Super Kings on Monday . The soothing voice of famous singer Anuradha Paudwal fills the air with devotional songs spreading positivity. “Yes, we perform puja before every home match here at the venue,” Vinay Chopra, LSG’s chief executive officer, told this daily The practice is an attempt . to inculcate Indian tradition in the league. The puja is performed in the presence of whosoever is available in the team management. It’s not that other teams do not perform puja or follow religious rituals. But most of them perform it at the beginning of LSG skipper Rishabh Pant on way to half century against CSK on Tuesday | afp the season. Take for instance, Punjab Kings, whose home games are being hosted in a relatively newer venue, Mullanpur, Chandigarh. They organised a havan (a sacred fire ritual) at the venue with head coach Ricky Ponting, players and other support staff attending the customary practice. “Yes, we hold religious rituals ahead of the tournament seeking blessings of God. A prayer will also be organised before PBKS’s first game in Dharamsala,” a PBKS spokesperson told this daily . Given the importance of the Monday’s game, Chennai Super Kings CEO Kasi Viswanathan also accompanied the team to Lucknow. When asked about any customary practice the team follows at Chepauk, he said, “I am a devotee of Ganesha so I offer prayer everyday . There are individuals who like to pray before matches and they do so but collectively as a team we do not offer prayers.” LSG might be different in this sense but the pious beginning in following Indian traditions is certainly a commendable step. On the ground though things did not go the way LSG would have wanted. The visiting team restricted them to just 166 runs in their allotted 20 overs. The Lucknow team is fourth on the IPL points table.