BHUBANESWAR  WEDNESDAY  APRIL 16, 2025  `9.00  PAGES 12  LATE CITY EDITION EXPECT ABOVE-NORMAL RAINFALL THIS SOUTHWEST MONSOON: IMD India will experience above-normal cumulative rainfall in the upcoming southwest monsoon, the India Meteorological Department said on Tuesday TAMIL NADU MAY SEE BELOW-NORMAL RAINS EL NINO CONDITIONS UNLIKELY TO DEVELOP The cumulative rainfall is estimated at 105% of the long-period average of 87 cm, IMD chief Mrutyunjay Mohapatra said. However, large parts of Tamil Nadu and the northeastern region are likely to get below-normal rainfall, while the rain-deficient parts of Marathwada and adjoining Telangana are expected to witness above-normal showers ■ ■ Mohapatra said El Nino conditions, which results in weaker monsoon in the Indian subcontinent, are unlikely to develop this time As per the IMD, the sea surface temperatures in western and eastern sides of the Indian Ocean are roughly the same, and the snow cover in Northern Hemisphere is low—both of which point to normal monsoon 26% CHANCE OF EXCESS PRECIPITATION, IMD DIRECTOR GENERAL MOHAPATRA SAID 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 HEAT ON GANDHI FAMILY 8 RAISES HOPES OF FURTHER REPO RATE CUT BY 50 BPS IN THIS CALENDAR YEAR S H E K H A R S I N G H @ New Delhi EXPRESS NEWS SERVICE @ Bhubaneswar ODISHA is expected to receive above normal precipitation this year, revealed first monsoon forecast of the India Meteorological Department (IMD) on Tuesday . The monsoon rainfall between June and September over the country as a whole is likely to be 105 per cent of the long period average (LPA), which is 87 cm, with a model error of 5 per cent, said the national agency in its first estimate for the southwest monsoon. Citing the forecast, scientists at Meteorological Centre here said Odisha too will receive above normal rainfall in the upcoming monsoon season. The probability of above normal rainfall is about 33 per cent for the state. However, in parts of south Odisha, especially in the Koraput-Malkangiri-Nabarangpur belt, the probability of above normal rainfall is even more and goes up to the range of 65 to 75 per cent. Coastal, central north belts, however, have lesser probability as compared to south Odisha, the met officials said. Meanwhile, there will be temporary relief for people from severe heat conditions owing to ongoing thunderstorm activities and nor’wester rain across the state. The thunderstorm and heavy rainfall activities will continue till April 19 and there will be no large change in the maximum day time temperature for the next three to four days said, Bhubaneswar Meteorological Centre director Manorama Mohanty. The summer rains and thundershower lashed several parts of the state including Bhubaneswar and Cuttack on Tuesday Gusty winds up to 50 kmph . are very likely in many parts of the state on Wednesday too. 6 Congress leaders Rahul Gandhi and Sonia Gandhi | PTI FILE format by the next date,” the court said. For its part, the Congress slammed the Centre over the chargesheets against Sonia and Rahul, saying it was playing vendetta politics. “Filing charg esheets against Sonia Gandhi, Rahul Gandhi, and some others is nothing but politics of vendetta and intimidation by the prime minister and the home minister gone completely berserk,” Congress general secretary incharge communications Jairam Ramesh said in a post on X. VADRA QUIZZED FOR 8 HOURS IN MONEY LAUNDERING CASE M U K E S H R A N J A N @ New Delhi THE Enforcement Directorate on Tuesday questioned businessman Robert Vadra, the husband of Congress leader Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, for over eight hours in connection with its probe into money laundering linked to a Gurugram land deal. His statements were recorded under provisions of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act, sources said. Vadra walked from his residence at Sujan Singh Park in central Delhi to the ED headquarters on APJ Abdul Kalam Road, a stretch of about 2 km. Before entering the agency’s premises, he said, “This is nothing but political vendetta. Whenever I speak for minorities, they try to stop me, crush us... they tried to stop Rahul (Gandhi) in Parliament too. This is misuse of agencies and this is political vendetta.” He said he will not be intimidated and will continue to cooperate with the agency . The probe pertains to a land deal in February 2008 where a company linked to Vadra—Skylight Hospitality Pvt Ltd— purchased a piece of 3.5 acre land in Shikohpur village in Gurugram from Onkareshwar Properties for a price of `7.5 crore. It is alleged that the mutation of this land was done within hours. 4 Bail granted to accused cancelled. Cases go back to trial courts, which shall frame charges against the accused within a week thereafter If the accused are absconding, trial courts shall issue NBWs to secure them After charges are framed, the trial court shall record evidence preferably on day-to-day basis; complete trial within six months State govt must appoint three special public prosecutors for the trials State govt must provide police protection to victims Police have two months’ time to trace all the accused persons State govt must admit trafficked children in schools At the end of the trial, the trial court shall pass appropriate orders on compensation to the victims All HCs shall direct trial courts handling child trafficking cases to complete trials within six months and file compliance report Non-compliance of directions or any laxity can attract contempt Feb-25 Nov-24 Aug-24 Feb-24 Nov-23 D I PA K M O N D A L @ New Delhi RETAIL inflation in March fell to lower-than-expected 3.34%, the lowest since August 2019, vindicating the Reserve Bank of India’s decision to effect a 25-basis points repo rate cut in the April monetary policy . The sharp decline in consumer inflation during the month also raised hopes of at least another 50-basis points interest rate cut in the calendar year. The March inflation nu m b e r p e g g e d at 3.34% was lower than February’s 3.61%, and 4.85% in the same month last year. The sharp fall in overall retail inflation was driven largely by a huge correction in food price inflation. Food inflation crashed to 2.7% in March compared to 8.5% in the same month last year. A large part of the drop in food inflation was, therefore, due to high base effect. The Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementa- tion, which tracks the consumer price inflation, attributed the significant decline in headline inflation and food inflation during the month of March to the drop in inflation of vegetables, eggs, pulses & products, meat & fish, cereals & products and milk & products. According to D K Joshi, chief economist, Crisil Ltd, the Indian Meteorological Department’s forecast of an above-normal monsoon for the year — and Skymet’s of a normal one — adds to the happy tidings on the food inflation front. However, weather disruptions such as heat waves, could play spoilsport. Joshi said a sharperthan-expected fall in crude oil prices will help keep non-food inflation comfortable as well. The RBI has pegged the FY26 inflation at 4%. If inflation remains at these levels, the chances of more rate cuts brighten. It has already reduced the repo rate by 50 bps; experts believe further 50 bps cut is possible. Biju Patnaik’s statue set ablaze in Patnagarh; political turf on fire, CM assures strict action HISTORY OF CONTROVERSY EXPRESS NEWS SERVICE @ Balangir/Bhubaneswar STATUE of former chief minister Biju Patnaik which was set on fire in Balangir district’s Patnagarh snowballed into a raging p o l i t i c a l c o n t r ove r s y o n Tuesday . The incident occurred around 6 am when statue of the legendary leader located near Parsuram Chhak of the town was found engulfed in flames. Patnagarh police rushed to the spot and extinguished the fire. It also detained a person, identified as Jugal Kishore Sahu. Sahu was apparently sighted near the statue when it went up in flames. The act of arson fuelled a huge controversy with the opposition BJD training its gun at the BJP government, terming the incident a conspiracy. The saffron party, on its part, condemned the incident and said it has the highest regard for Biju Babu. The statue of Biju Patnaik on flames at Patnagarh town of Balangir on Tuesday The statue of Biju Patnaik at Parsuram Chhak was long embroiled in controversy. While former Patnagarh MLA Saroj Meher had installed the image, it had faced opposition from the Brahmin Samaj which had demanded that a statue of Lord Parsuram be put up at the spot. Members of Brahmin Samaj had also staged a dharna for around a month and a series of bandh was observed during that period. The matter later reached the Orissa High Court which had ordered covering of the statue in a polythene sheet. Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi deplored the incident and said the person involved in the incident must be of sick mentality While one person has . already been detained, police have also been asked to expose any conspiracy behind the incident and take strict action, he added. Majhi said the government holds all great sons of the soil in high regard for their contribution towards nation building. Stating that he has great respect for Biju Babu, he said the government celebrated birth anniversary of the tall leader on March 5 with great enthusiasm and he himself attended the function. The death anniversary of Biju Babu will also be observed by the government, he added. The BJD, however, remained critical of BJP even as its leaders sat on a dharna near the statue of Biju Patnaik at Airport Square. Former minister Sanjay Das Burma accused the BJP gov- MISSING ASHRAM SCHOOL STUDENT FOUND DEAD IN NULLAH A missing Class IV student of a government-run Ashram school in Gajapati district was found dead in Tabarasing nullah on Monday evening. The deceased minor was identified as nine-year-old Ruturaj Gamango of Kulapata village within Seranga police limits. He was missing from the hostel of Anukumba Ashram school since Sunday | P4 Hospital must lose licence if newborn is trafficked: SC GUIDELINES, CONTEMPT OF COURT WARNING Aug-23 Feb-23 May-23 Nov-22 Aug-22 May-22 Nov-21 Feb-22 Aug-21 3 May-24 3.34 3.28 Feb-21 Sonia and Rahul are majority shareholders of Young Indian with 38% shares held by each one of them. They were questioned by the ED in this case a few years back. Young Indian owns AJL, which is the publisher of the National Herald platform. 5 May-21 Majority shareholders in Young Indian Nov-20 Above normal rainfall in Odisha during monsoon season 7 Aug-20 TRUMP HINTS AT EASING OF 25% AUTO TARIFF THE Enforcement Director at e ( E D ) h a s f i l e d a chargesheet against Congress leaders Rahul Gandhi and Sonia Gandhi in a Delhi court in the National Herald money laundering case. Also named in the chargesheet are Sam Pitroda, the party’s Overseas Department Chief, veteran journalist Suman Dubey, and several others. The case revolves around financial transactions linked to the now-defunct National Herald newspaper and its parent company As, sociated Journals Limited. Justice Vishal Gogne of the Rouse Avenue Court examined the chargesheet filed on April 9. He said the court will consider on April 25 whether to take cognisance of the complaint. The court said a fresh prosecution complaint under sections 44 and 45 of Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) 2002 for commission of offence of money laundering as defined under Section 3 read with Section 70 and punishable under Section 4 of PMLA, 2002 filed by the ED, has been received by way of assignment. “Let the complaint be checked and registered. The ED is directed to file a soft copy of the complaint and documents in readable/OCR May-20 US commerce dept probing how import of computer chips and products that contain them affect national security 7.79 RETAIL INFLATION (%) Nov-19 Johnson & Johnson said it expects $400 million in tariffrelated costs DECLINES TO LOWER-THAN-EXPECTED 3.34% DUE TO FOOD PRICE CORRECTION Feb-20 million Retail inflation at 67-mth low Aug-19 $400 China orders its airlines not to take any further deliveries of Boeing ED chargesheets Sonia, Rahul in Natl Herald case S U C H I T R A K A LYA N M O H A N T Y @ New Delhi THE Supreme Court on Tuesday laid down strict guidelines for all states to prevent child trafficking and the offences arising out of it, warning that any laxity in implementing them could be treated as contempt of court. A two-judge bench comprising justices J B Pardiwala and R Mahadevan ordered lower courts to complete trials in such cases within six months. It added that if any newborn infant is trafficked from any hospital, its licence should be suspended immediately over and above other actions in accordance with law. WHIPLASH FOR REMARK AGAINST RAPE VICTIM Taking strong exception to a recent Allahabad HC remark against a rape victim that she had “invited trouble”, the SC cautioned judges against making such inappropriate observations | P7 When any woman comes to deliver her baby in a hospital, it is the responsibility of its administration to protect the newborn in all respects, the bench said. The court issued the directions after hearing petitions against anticipatory bail granted by the Allahabad High Court to 13 accused in trafficking cases in Uttar Pradesh. CONTINUED ON P5 ernment of being disrespectful to Biju Babu saying this is the third such incident in the recent past. “The government had cancelled Panchayati Raj Diwas celebrations on March 5 to erase his legacy If such incident con. tinues, self-respecting people of Odisha will give a befitting reply,” he said. The BJP described the incident as unforgivable. Party spokesperson Sajjan Sharma said the party holds Biju Babu in great esteem and the government had decided to install the statues of both Biju Patnaik and Lord Parsuram at the site but before it could be unveiled, such a condemnable incident took place. Sharma said police have already detained Sahu and a detailed investigation is underway . Sahu is mentally unsound and had climbed atop an electricity pole a few months back, he added. IG northern range Himansu Lal said police have detained a person and probe is underway .