china PoK Awantipura afghanistan P A K I ST A N Operational range 40N6E missile[3] Long-range surveillance radar 240 km 200 km 150 km 48N6DM(E3) missile 48N6M(E2) missile 48N6(E) missile Command vehicle 120 km 9M96M(E2) Sindh Karachi 40 km 9M96 missile Engagement radar Launch vehicle Ludhiana Jaisalmer Phalodi Bikaner Jodhpur Uttarlai Barmer Umerkot’s Chhor How S-400s neutralised the enemy 400 km Lahore Bhatinda Interception The Air Force used the Russian-made S-400 missile defence system to obliterate Pakistan’s escalation bid Pathankot Amritsar Rawalpindi Chakwal Gujranwala KOCHI l friday l may 09, 2025 l `9.00 l PAGES 16 l LATE city EDITION Srinagar Jammu Attock Engagement radar helps guide missiles towards target Bhuj Map not to scale Tensions between India and Pakistan escalated on Thursday evening after Pakistani drone attacks were reported across parts of Jammu, Punjab and Rajasthan. The Indian air defence system responded swiftly, intercepting multiple drones, triggering air raid sirens and enforcing blackouts in border towns. India’s armed forces followed the principle of proportionate response and negated Pakistan’s bid to escalate the conflict. Intense Pakistan shelling from across the border drew a similar response from India. As the tension ratcheted up in the e ve n i n g , U S s e c re t a ry of state Marco Rubio spoke to External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar and called for “immediate de-escalation”. He offered “support for direct dialogue between India and Pakistan and encouraged continued efforts to improve communications,” US state department said. Jaishankar said India “will firmly counter any attempts at escalation”. The chain of events began with Pakistan launching missiles and kamikaze drones targeting the Jammu airport, which also houses the Indian Air Force station, and the civilian areas around it. All missiles and drones were neutralised. Soon after, explosions were reported in Punjab, followed by Pakistani shelling near Pathankot and Kupwara. Moments later, Pakistani drones were seen being intercepted over Rajasthan’s Jaisalmer, with visible explosions and flashes lighting up the sky . The situation quickly escalated as civil administrations across northern India moved into action. Hoshiarpur in Pun- PM meets top officials, calls for emergency preparedness RAJESH KUMAR THAKUR @ New Delhi PRIME Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday chaired a high-level meeting with top officials from various ministries to review national preparedness and inter-ministerial coordination in light of the escalating conflict with Pakistan. According to sources, several key issues were discussed in the meeting, including strengthening of civil defence, combating misinformation and fake news, and securing critical infrastructure. The Cabinet secretary senior , officials from the prime minister’s office, and secretaries from key ministries including defence, home affairs, external affairs, information & broadcasting, power, health, and telecommunications attended the meeting, sources said. The secretaries were directed to conduct a comprehensive review the operations of their respective ministries and to ensure the fool-proof functioning of essential systems, with particular emphasis on readiness, emergency response, and internal communication protocols. Terrorists killed by Indian strikes being given state funeral in Pakistan M U K E S H R A N J A N @ New Delhi Abdul Rauf Azhar, Jaish-eMohammed founder Maulana Masood Azhar’s brother and the terror outfit’s operational head, was killed in India’s airstrikes under Operation Sindoor, officials said on Thursday . The slain terrorist was considered the mastermind of the IC-814 hijacking in 1999 and involved in the 2001 Parliament attack. Terming it major victory, officials said he was killed in the Indian strikes on the Bahawalpur terror hideout early on Wednesday . Masood Azhar acknowledged that 10 members of his family and four of his close associates were killed Rubio calls Jaishankar, seeks quick de-escalation of tension jayanth ja c o b @ New Delhi AS tensions flare between India and Pakistan, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio on Thursday called for immediate deescalation during a phone conversation with External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar. He also spoke to his counterpart in Pakistan. “The Secretary emphasised the need for immediate de-escalation. He expressed US support for direct dialogue between India and Pakistan and encouraged continued efforts to improve communications,” said a statement.Rubio also offered condolences for the April 22 Pahalgam terror attack, in which 26 civilians were killed. “The Secretary reaffirmed the United States’ commitment to work with India in the fight against terrorism.” “Deeply appreciate US commitment to work with India in the fight against terrorism. Underlined India’s targeted and measured response to crossborder terrorism. Will firmly counter escalation attempts,” he said on X. Washington has urged direct communication between the two sides. Our response was measured. It is not our intention to escalate this situation S Jaishankar ‘Sunny days’ for Congress in Kerala New entrants K S SR E E J I T H @ T’Puram 1st POpe from U.S. Robert Prevost, 69, the 267th pontiff of the Roman Catholic Church, waves from the balcony of St Peter’s Basilica. He has taken the name Pope Leo XIV | AP | P9 After much drama, the Congress central leadership has appointed three-time MLA Sunny Joseph as the party’s new state chief. Outgoing president K Sudhakaran, who had openly revolted against his removal, has been accommodated as a permanent invitee to the Congress Working Committee (CWC). The AICC has replaced UDF convener M M Hassan with Attingal MP Adoor Prakash. Three working presidents were also announced. MLAs P C Vishnunadh and A P Anil Kumar and MP Shafi Parambil Three-time Peravoor MLA Sunny Joseph is KPCC president MP and outgoing KPCC Sunny Joseph president K Sudhakaran now permanent invitee to Congress Working Committee MP Adoor Prakash replaces M M Hassan as UDF convener P C Vishnunadh, A P Anil Kumar and Shafi Parambil new working presidents replace Kodikkunnil Suresh, T N Prathapan and T Siddique. The name of the new president was announced in the evening through a press release issued by AICC general secretary (organisation) K C Venugopal. By noon, Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge, Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi and Venugopal contacted Sudhakaran and convinced him about the necessity to have a leadership change in the state Congress. The two top leaders reportedly assured Sudhakaran that the party still considers him one of its tallest leaders in the state, and his services will be needed further.  ● More on P4 Nipah returns in state, Malappuram woman ‘extremely critical’ E x p r e s s N e w s Se r v i c e @Malappuram A 42-year-old woman from Malappuram has tested positive for Nipah, triggering concerns across the state. The development comes nearly a year after the death of a 14-year-old boy from the same district from the viral infection. The officials said the condition of the woman, a native of Valanchery is extremely critical and , she is undergoing intensive treatment at a private hospital in Perinthalmanna. This is the third consecutive year since 2023 that Nipah has been reported in Kerala. After the first-ever outbreak in 2018 in Kozhikode, the infection was reported in Kochi in 2019, in Kozhikode in 2021 and 2023, and in Malappuram in 2024. A total of 21 Nipah-related deaths have been recorded in the state so far. The officials said the woman had been under treatment for four days for symptoms like high fever, THREAT NEUTRALISED Army said military stations of Jammu, Pathankot and Udhampur in proximity to the International Boundary, in Jammu & Kashmir targeted by Pakistan using missiles and drones. No losses. Threat neutralised by #IndianArmedForces as per SoP with kinetic & non-kinetic means ABHRA Medium Range Surface-to-Air Missile ‘IC-814 hijacking mastermind Rauf Azhar killed’ Prime Minister Narendra Modi meeting secretaries of various ministries | PTI Pakistan sites hit by India India’s Air Defence SYSTEM Swarms of drones and missiles targeting Jammu airport neutralised; bid to bomb parts of Rajasthan, Punjab and J&K blocked; India follows principle of proportionate response @ Srinagar/ Chandigarh/New Delhi Indian sites hit by Pakistan Kapurthala PAKistan DRONE BLITZ jab declared an immediate blackout after loud explosions were heard. “The blackout will continue till further orders,” said Deputy Commissioner Aashika Jain, confirming that it was enforced following instructions from Air Force authorities. Amritsar, Chandigarh, Mohali, Panchkula, and parts of Barmer in Rajasthan soon followed with similar blackout orders. Debris believed to be from missiles was recovered from Kumahi Devi village near Hoshiarpur’s Talwara, officials said. “Military stations of Jammu, Pathankot and Udhampur in proximity to the International Boundary in J&K were targeted by Pakistan using missiles and drones. No losses. Threat neutralised by #IndianArmedForces as per SoP with kinetic & nonkinetic means,” the Army said. The Centre attributed the success to the jointness of the armed forces. Besides, eight missiles from Pakistan directed at Satwari, Samba, RS Pura and Arnia were neutralised. Similarly, a bid to attack two ammunition depots in Jalandhar, drone attacks at the Pathankot airbase and the Shahpur Kandi dam were thwarted in Punjab. Earlier in the day, India had targeted Pakistani air defence systems, including one in Lahore, in response to overnight drone and missile attacks launched by Pakistan. These strikes came just a day after India carried out Operation Sindoor, targeting terror infrastructures in Pakistan, following the April 22 Pahalgam terrorist attack that killed 26 civilians. In Gujarat’s Kachchh, border villages plunged into darkness following blackouts. Security agencies remained on high alert, and civil defence protocols were rolled out across states bordering Pakistan. ■ Jalandhar INDIA REPELS F aya z Wan i , H a r p r eet Baj w a , M ayank S i n g h 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 ■ persistent cough and acute breathing difficulty . Suspecting Nipah, the medical staff collected her samples, which were first tested at the Kozhikode Microbiology Lab and then sent to the National Institute of Virology (NIV) in Pune, which confirmed ● More on P4 the infection.  Gates of two dams opened in India’s precision air strikes on JeM’s headquarters in Bahawalpur. Those killed included Masood Azhar’s sister and brother-in-law. “Now we have confirmation from our sources in Pakistan that Rauf was killed along with 10 of Masood’s family members and four close associates,” a senior intelligence official said. “Rauf Azhar’s role in orchestrating the IC-814 hijacking directly facilitated the release of Omar Saeed Sheikh, a key Al-Qaeda operative who went on to kidnap and murder Daniel Pearl, an American-Jewish journalist working with the Wall Street Journal,” the official added. ABHRA is a joint development between India’s DRDO and Israel Aerospace Industries. It’s a state-of-the-art air defence weapon system, range 70 km, designed to neutralise aerial threats and drones. It is powered by a dual-pulse solid propulsion system AKASH: Mobile surface-to-air missile The Akash missile system can engage targets up to a range of 25 km. It is a short-range surface-to-air missile (SAM) designed to protect from air attacks. The Akash system has been showcased for its ability to engage multiple targets simultaneously at this range SPYDER air defence system: A workhorse This air defence system includes the Elta EL/M-2106 ATAR radar, which can control missile firing units up to 10 km. It also includes Python-5 infrared missiles of range up to 12 km and Derby radar-guided missiles up to 50 km IGLA-S: Russian portable air defence A Man-Portable Air Defence System that can hit low-flying aircraft, helicopters, drones, cruise missiles, and UAVs within a 6 km range The gates of two dams in J&K – Salal hydro project in Reasi and Baglihar hydro project in Ramban – were opened on Thursday allowing flow of Chenab water to Pak | P8 16 pages, including 4 pages of kochi Express RECORDED VIDEO COURSES for IIT JEE + CBSE + NEET Physics, Chemistry, Maths & Biology Class 7 to 12 UPTO 15 BUY NOW! to Register 96001 00090 96001 00020