mangaluru l tuesday l june 03, 2025 l `9.00 l PAGES 14 l city EDITION IPL 2025 final: upbeat RCB face punjab might today Fresh from its incredible win against Mumbai, Shreyas Iyer set to lead the team against resurgent Royal Challengers in Ahmedabad Rajat Patidar Shreyas Iyer ‘Sarpanch’ Shreyas comes to the fore trophy hunting in 18th edition for No 18 The Punjab skipper is the title-defending captain but with a different franchise. He led Kolkata Knight Riders to the title last year, but was not retained. He came into the auction with a statement to make. He has led from the front, inspired a bunch of uncapped Indian players to rise to the occasion. Can he go all the way against Bengaluru team? It has been the narrative from the beginning of the season. Will RCB finally win an IPL title? They had a new captain in Rajat Patidar, built a strong squad around Virat Kohli (No 18) and have dominated the season like never before. The bowling attack has played a crucial part as well. Come Tuesday, expect a massive support for Kohli and Co P13 2022 last time a team (Gujarat Titans) won their first IPL title 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 Tesla won’t make in India, says HDK Sikkim landslide kills 3 jawans, 6 others missing Express News Service @ Guwahati Only wants showrooms; Merc, Skoda, VW, Hyundai, Kia interested in manufacturing EVs DI PA K MONDAL @ New Delhi Elon Musk-promoted Tesla is not interested in manufacturing electric vehicles in India, Union heavy industries minister H D Kumaraswamy said here on Monday, adding that the US firm seems interested only in opening showrooms in India. However, other global players including Mercedes, Volkswagen, Skoda, Hyundai and Kia have shown interest in setting up manufacturing facilities in India, he added. The minister’s comments came while announcing the guidelines for the Scheme for Promotion of Manufacturing of Electric Passenger Cars in India (SMEC). He, however, added that the real intention of companies will be known only when the application window for the scheme opens. SMEC—meant for attracting investment from global EV manufacturers—will allow companies to import completely built units of EVs priced below $35,000 at 15% import duty against the currently applicable rate of 70%. Government officials said Tesla, which had initially shown interest in setting up manufacturing units in India, attended only the first stake- holders’ consultation meeting to discuss the details of the scheme. They skipped subsequent meetings. US president Donald Trump, who is against American firms setting up factories abroad, has very close links with Musk. When asked about Musk’s plans to manufacture in India, Trump had said it would be “very unfair”. Meanwhile, India and the US are negotiating a trade deal under which India is expected to lower the import duty on American cars, which at present is in the range of 70-100%. Under the recently concluded India-UK trade deal, India has agreed to reduce the tariff on cars to 10% in 10 years. However, small EVs have been kept out of the purview of the deal. The application widow under SMEC will open next week, and won’t shut for 120 days. However, the Centre can reopen the window as and when required till March 15, 2026. On the likely chances of BYD applying under the scheme, officials said the Chinese EV maker is very keen but the Indian government has no plans to grant permission. The government estimates a revenue loss of `6,484 crore per applicant under the scheme. New Union heavy industries ministry, the scheme EV scheme Notified by the aims to bring global investments and tech to India 10k crore Annual revenue plus `3,000 cr global asset base needed for cos to apply Lower import duty of 15% (down from 70%) for EVs priced above $35,000 25% domestic value addition must be achieved in 3 yrs, and 50% in 5 yrs 4,150 crore Must be invested in India within 3 years of getting approval Import quota capped at 8,000 cars per year, for 5 yrs. Unused quota can be carried forward to next yr express read Kohli’s pub booked for COTPA violations DK police book case against Kalladka Bengaluru: The Bengaluru police have registered an FIR against One8 Commune, a pub and restaurant co-owned by cricketer Virat Kohli in Bengaluru for not having a designated smoking zone. Mangaluru: The Dakshina Kannada police on Monday booked a case against RSS leader Kalladka Prabhakar Bhat and issued an externment notice against BJP leader Arun Kumar Puthila | P4 The site of the landslide (above) that hit a military camp at Chaten in Sikkim; and rescue operations (left) in progress | PTI KFCC call for ban: Thug Life maker moves K’taka HC Yat h i r a j u @ Bengaluru The co-producer of Kamal Haasan-starrer Thug Life knocked on the doors of the Karnataka High Court over the proclaimed ban on the release and distribution of the movie by the Karnataka Film Chamber of Commerce (KFCC) in the state over a controversial statement made by the actor that ‘Kannada was born out of Tamil’. In the petition filed before the Karnataka High Court, the Chennai-based Raajkamal Films International (RKFI), represented by its CEO V Narayanan, stated that the KFCC statement to the media about stopping the release and distribution of the movie heeding to the demands of Kannada organisations infringes the fundamental right to free speech and expression as the certification under the Cinematograph Act from the Central Board of Film Certification was obtained in May . RKFI stated it is also aggrieved by unlawful protests and burning of Kamal’s effigies, which the Benglauru police commissioner and state police chief have failed to restrain. Elaborating that it has spent over Rs 300 crore on the movie, RKFI stated that the movie is slated to be released worldwide on June 5. It contended that during the audio launch of Thug Life in Chennai, Kamal’s statement that “Kannada was born out of Tamil” was taken out of context, as he also expressed camaraderie and love he shares with the Kannada film fraternity and particularly actor Shivaraj Kumar, who was present in the audio launch. Even if the statement is wrong, no credence should be attached to it as Kamal is not a historian. The statement only sought to express cultural solidarity and affection between the people of Karnataka and Tamil Nadu.  P5 Maha objects to increasing Almatti dam height E x p r e s s N e w s S e r v i c e  @ Bengaluru Deputy Chief Minister DK Shivakumar, who also holds the Water Resources portfolio, said on Monday that Maharashtra has objected to the state’s move to increase the height of Almatti dam in Vijayapura district from 519.6 to 524 metres. He said the state government is planning to take up the matter with Prime Minister Naren- dra Modi. The Union ministers and MPs from Kar nataka should safeguard the state’s interests. Ter ming Maharashtra’s stand “shocking”, Shivakumar said the neighbouring state, which never objected to Karnataka’s decision in the past, has now suddenly expressed its concern that increasing the dam’s height could lead to floods in Sangli and Kolhapur districts. “Flooding in Maharashtra is its internal matter and that state should fix it. We will meet the PM and the Union Jal Shakthi minister and prevail upon them to go ahead with our project,” he said. Shivakumar said Karnataka has been waiting for a gazette notification on increasing the Almatti height since 2013 and there is no scientific basis for Maharashtra CM’s letter opposing it. It is shocking. Maharashtra had never objected to K’taka’s move. It did not raise objection when the tribunal passed its judgment in 2010 DK Shivakumar, DCM A landslide struck an Army camp at Chaten in Sikkim’s Lachen district, killing three personnel. Four individuals were rescued while six other personnel were reported missing, a defence ministry statement said. The incident occurred on Sunday evening. The deceased were identified as Havaldar Lakhwinder Singh, Lance Naik Munish Thakur and porter Abhishek Lakhada. All three bodies were recovered. “Rescue teams are relentlessly working around the clock under extremely challenging terrain and adverse weather conditions to locate and rescue the six personnel who remain missing,” the statement stated. “The Indian Army remains steadfast in its commitment to ensure the safety and well-be- ing of all its personnel, demonstrating its unyielding spirit and dedication to duty even in the face of nature’s fury,” the statement added. With rainfall in recent days exceeding 130 mm, roads to key tourist destinations, including Lachen, Lachung, the Valley of Flowers and Zero Point, suffered major damages. As emergency work is under way following a sudden increase in Teesta’s water level, the National Highways & Infrastructure Development Corporation Ltd restricted vehicular movement along National Highway 10. Thousands of tourists evacuated Most of the over 18,000 tourists stranded in Sikkim’s Lachung and Chungthang towns following landslides were evacuated on Monday. Over 100 others are still stuck in Lachen Khurshid to party critics: Some not focussing on unity P r e e t h a N a i r @ New Delhi Days after supporting the abrogation of Article 370, Congress leader and former external affairs minister Salman Khurshid on Monday fired another salvo, saying “it’s distressing that some at home focus on political allegiances instead of unity”. He wondered if it was so difficult to be patriotic. Khurshid, part of a multiparty delegation to various countries, expressed concern over political divisions amid India’s efforts to address terrorism. He posted on X, “When on mission against terrorism, to carry India’s message to the world, it’s distressing that people at home are calculating political allegiances. Is it so difficult to be patriotic?”