KOZHIKODE l saturday l june 14, 2025 l `9.00 l PAGES 12 l city EDITION India abstains from voting on DRAFT Gaza ceasefire resolution in U.N.G.A. The UN General Assembly overwhelmingly voted to adopt the resolution seeking an immediate, unconditional and permanent ceasefire in Gaza Motion also demands release of hostages Dialogue is the only solution, says India The resolution, introduced by Spain, got 149 votes in favour. Twelve members voted against it while 19 nations, including India, abstained. The resolution also demanded release of hostages, return of the remains of those killed, exchange of Palestinian prisoners, return of civilians to their homes in Gaza, and full withdrawal of Israeli forces from the Gaza Strip ■ India’s Permanent Representative to UN, Parvathaneni Harish, said India has earlier abstained on resolutions on Israel-Palestine. “Our vote today is in continuation of this in the belief that there is no other way to resolve conflicts but through dialogue and diplomacy," he said ■ India is concerned at the deepening humanitarian crisis, he added U.S. Had vetoed a similar resolution at the U.N. Security Council last week 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 Black box found, Modi visits crash site injured persons. “Met those injured in the aftermath of the tragic plane crash in AhmedaA day after a horrible plane bad, including the lone survicrash killed at least 260 people vor,” Modi said. “ Assured them here, probe agencies recov- that we are with them and ered the Digital Flight Data their families in this tough Recorder (DFDR) or black box, time. The entire nation is praywhich is expected to throw up i n g f o r t h e i r s p e e d y clues on India’s worst air trag- recovery .” edy in decades. Modi also paid tribute to The Aircraft Accident Inves- former Gujarat chief minister tigation Bureau that scoured Vijay Rupani, who was among the debris, said it recovered the passengers who lost their the black box from the rooftop lives in the ill-fated flight. “It is at the crash site — possibly of unimaginable that Vijaybhai the BJ Medical College hostel, is not in our midst,” he said. which the London“We worked togethbound Air India er, shoulder to aircraft slammed shoulder, including into shortly after during some of the take-off from the most challenging Sardar Vallabhbtimes. Vijaybhai hai Patel Airport. was humble, hardThe black box reworking, and firmcording will offer ly committed to the vital data on the fiparty’s ideology .” nal moments of Amid speculathe flight. tion on the cause of While the DFDR the crash, includis housed in the ing the position of tail section, the its flaps, the DirecRelatives of a victim mourn at a hospital in Cockpit Voice Retorate General of Ahmedabad on Friday corder (CVR) is C i v i l Av i a t i o n usually located (DGCA), ordered within the cockpit. Both DFDR Air India to go in for enhanced and CVR are better known as safety checks, including a reblack boxes. Till the time of view of take-off parameters of going to press, there was no its Boeing series of flights word on finding the CVR. from June 15. “ a preventive As Prime Minister Narendra measure, DGCA hereby diModi visited the accident site rects Air India to carry out adand chaired a high-level re- ditional maintenance actions view meeting with senior of- on B787-8/9 aircraft equipped ficials to assess the ongoing with Genx engines with immerescue and relief efforts. “Vis- diate effect in co-ordination ited the crash site in Ahmeda- with the concerned DGCA bad today The scene of devas- agencies.” . tation is saddening,” he posted The National Investigation on social media. Agency and other central He also met the lone survi- agencies, too, joined the probe, vor of the crash and the other sources said. Lone survivor found some space, escaped D i l i p S i n g h K s h at r i ya @ Ahmedabad Multiple strikes on Tehran IRAN ISrael A residential apartment in Tehran that was damaged in Israeli strikes on Friday | AP Natanz: Uranium enrichment plant strikes near Military, Nuclear, Residential sites Israel takes out Iran’s military brass, nuke sites Over 100 military facilities destroyed in airstrikes; India calls for de-escalation A g en c i e s @ Jerusalem / Dubai / Washington We expect to be exposed to several waves of Iranian attacks Benjamin Netanyahu With this crime, Israel has set itself for a bitter and painful fate Ayatollah Ali Khamenei Iran must make a deal, before there is nothing left... JUST DO IT, BEFORE IT IS TOO LATE Donald Trump IN a major escalation of tensions in West Asia, Israel on Friday launched a barrage of strikes across Iran, targeting nuclear and missile sites, and taking out its top military leadership. Iran responded by launching a swathe of drones. Israeli military said it intercepted 100 drones. Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei warned Israel of a “bitter and painful” fate, signalling further escalation. Late in the evening, Israel launched a second wave of attacks specifically targeting Tehran. Among those killed in the early-morning strikes were the country’s highest-ranking military official General Mohammad Bagheri, commander-inchief of the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps General Hossein Salami, deputy commander-inchief of the armed forces Gholamali Rashid, and Gen Amir Ali Hajizadeh, who ran the missile programme. Iranian media put the total toll at 18. Israel said it deployed 200 aircraft to hit 100 targets, including Iran’s main nuclear enrichment facility at Natanz. Dozens of missile launchers and radar installations in western Iran were also destroyed in the attack, in which drones smuggled into the country were also used. US Secretary of State Marco Rubio ruled out Washington’s involvement in the attack, while President Donald Trump blamed Iran for not taking the off-ramp he offered by restricting its nuclear programme. “Two months ago I gave Iran a 60-day ultimatum to make a deal... Today is day 61,” he wrote on Truth Social. The Wall Street Journal quoted Trump as saying he was aware of Israel’s plans to attack Iran. India called on both sides to exercise restraint. The Indian embassies in Iran and Israel advised all Indian nationals in the respective countries to exP9 ercise extreme caution.  (With inputs from Jayanth Jacob in New Delhi) EXPRESS READ One killed in wild jumbo attack in Peermade Wan Hai 503 drifting towards Kerala coast Idukki: After a brief lull, Peermade taluk of Idukki witnessed two incidents of wild elephant attacks on humans. While one person lost her life, two suffered serious injuries. Seetha 42, of Malampandaram tribal community at Thottapura, was killed when she went to forest to collect forest produce on Friday. Kochi: Despite the efforts of the Indian Coast Guard and salvage team, container vessel MV Wan Hai 503 has been drifting towards Kerala’s coast in the past two days. The state government has begun preparations to meet any emergency situation should the ship reach the Kerala coast. P4 “Luckily, the portion where I was seated fell on the ground floor of the hostel after the crash. When I saw that the door broken, I saw an opportunity to escape,” says Vishwas Kumar Ramesh, the lone survivor | P7 LIC eases norms on proof of death To mitigate hardships of claimants, LIC said any evidence in govt records of death of policyholder due to the air crash or any compensation paid by Central/state govt /airlines will be accepted as proof of death palakkad community mourns crash victim Prime Minister Narendra Modi at the site of the plane crash on Friday | PTI Ease insurance claim settlement: Govt D i pa k M o n d a l @ New Delhi The government has instructed insurance companies to ease the process of claim settlement for family members of the deceased in the air crash. A senior finance ministry official said instructions were sent to the insurance companies on Thursday night itself. Rajnath Singh set to visit China on June 24-25 JAYA N TH JACOB & RAJ E SH KUMAR THAKUR @ New Delhi AS India and China work to stabilise relations and rebuild trust, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh will travel to the neighbouring country on June 24-25 — the first highlevel Indian ministerial visit since the 2020 border standoff in Eastern Ladakh. This signals renewed momentum in India-China engagement, following disengagement along the Line of Actual Control and continuing efforts to normalise ties. Singh will take part in the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation defence ministers’ meeting, where he may hold talks with Chinese defence minister Admiral Dong Jun. This will be Singh’s first visit to China as defence minister, though he had previously travelled there in his capacity as home minister. The Indian defence minister’s decision to visit to China later this month reflects the intent of both nations to build mutual confidence and trust —Diplomatic sources Singh had last met Admiral Dong in Vientiane, Lao PDR, in November last year on the sidelines of the ASEAN Defence Ministers’ Meeting-Plus. While Chinese foreign ministers have visited India twice since 2022, this marks the first reciprocal high-level visit from India. Diplomatic sources say Singh’s visit reflects the intent of both nations to build mutual confidence and advance the contacts following an understanding reached between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Chinese President Xi Jinping in October last year. Palakkad: The plane crash in Ahmedabad has cast a pall of sorrow on Nila Nagar colony at Olavakkode in Palakkad. Among the victims was Shraddha Dhavan, wife of Rajesh C K, whose parents have been long-time residents of the colony. P4 On Thursday Foreign Sec, retary Vikram Misri had held talks in New Delhi with Chinese Vice Foreign Minister Sun Weidong. The two sides reviewed the state of bilateral relations since their last meeting in January and agreed to focus on “peoplecentric engagements” to stabilise and rebuild ties, External Affairs Ministry said. The discussions covered a broad agenda including resumption of direct air services, visa facilitation, media and think-tank exchanges, and preparations for the 75th anniversary of diplomatic ties between the two nations. “Right now it is time for mourning, and no one is thinking about the money However, the . claim settlement process will begin in 5-6 days,” he said. He, however, declined to give an exact estimate of the claims. “This is not something that we can estimate — individually passengers would have all kinds of insurance policies, therefore, it is difficult to make an insurance claims estimate,” said the official. The industry is looking at $150-200 mn in claims. “The hull agreed value of the aircraft would be roughly around $75-80 million, which will be covered under the Hull All Risk part of Insurance,” says Hitesh Girotra of Prudent Insurance Brokers. 140 child labour hotspots in Kerala; 56 kids rescued V a r s h a S o m a r a j @T’Puram Here’s a shocker! In what could prompt immediate action, the state women and child development (WCD) department has identified 140 child labour hotspots across the state, a majority of them in Ernakulam. The hotspots were identified in a statewide survey to trace children engaged in labour and begging, and those living on the streets. The WCD conducted 704 rescue drives in the previous financial year — a majority of them in Kannur — during which 56 children were rescued and given rehabilitation support. This was part of the Saranabalyam project launched in 2017 to locate and rehabilitate children trapped in labour. In recent years, the project was strengthened by linking it with ‘Kaval Plus’, which enabled more sustained interventions through coordination with the 704 rescue drives At 30, Ernakulam topped the chart with most number of child labour hotspots, followed by Idukki (13) 704 rescue drives conducted by the women and child development dept in the previous financial year 56 children rescued and given rehabilitation support police, labour, education and health departments. The highest number of hotspots were identified in Ernakulam (30) and Idukki (13), and the least in Palakkad and Kozhikode (4 each). “There were no cases of child labour recorded in the last year. We identified the hotspots from earlier cases and by monitoring probable areas like settlements of migrant labourers who come with families, border regions, plantations and during festivals,” said WCD director Haritha V Kumar.  ● More on P4 Fish caught from Kerala coast safe to eat: CIFT Repugnant remarks against flight crash E x p r e s s N e w s Se r v i c e @Kochi The fish caught from Kerala coast is edible and there is no chemical contamination, Central Institute of Fisheries Technology (CIFT) director George Ninan has said. Meanwhile, the government of Kerala has roped in leading fisheries research institutes like Central Marine Fisheries Research Institute, CIFT and Kerala University of Fisheries and Ocean Studies to conduct a long-term study regarding the impact of the chemical contamination due to two accidents involving container vessels carrying dangerous cargo. “The state fisheries minister Container vessel MSC Elsa 3 that sank off Kochi coast | File pic had convened a meeting after the sinking of MSC Elsa 3 to discuss the fears about chemical contamination. We conducted a preliminary study using the fish and water samples collected by Matsyafed from various harbours from Ernakulam to Thiruvananthapuram. The test proved the fish was edible and safe. The pH level of sea water collected from the state’s coastline was normal. The turbidity level was slightly high because of the monsoon. The fluorescence test also gave positive results. This was a sensory evaluation and we need to have a detailed study to analyse the biochemical parameters,” George said. Meanwhile, fishermen and fish vendors are complaining about a decline in demand for fish in the market. “Many regular customers stopped purchasing fish after the shipwreck. However, there is a spike in demand for freshwater fish,” said Shinas, a fish vendor in Kochi. The decline in demand for fish came as a bless- ing in disguise for poultry farmers. There has been a 30% increase in demand and the scarcity of fresh chicken in the market has caused a sharp spike in prices. “There has been a spike in demand for poultry chicken after May 25. The market has recorded a 30% rise in sales which has led to scarcity The . production had plunged at the national level due to summer as the mortality rate was high. The wholesale price of chicken which stood at `80 per kg has risen to `125 per kg,” said All Kerala Poultry Federation general secretary S K Nazir. victim: Arrested official likely to lose job E x p r e s s N e w s Se r v i c e @ Kasargod Breaching all standards of civility, a government official took to social media, hurling obscene and casteist remarks to malign the Malayali nurse who lost her life in the Ahmedabad air crash. A Pavithran, a junior superintendent with the revenue department, is now under arrest, and his dismissal from service seems imminent. Kasaragod District Collector Imbasekar K on Friday recom- mended to the government Pavithran’s dismissal from service, citing his history as a habitual offender. Despite several warnings, punishments and granting opportunities for correcting his actions, Pavithran of the Vellarikundu taluk office refused to reform and continued with his misdeeds, “brining disrepute to the revenue department and the government,” the collector said in his report. Hosdurg police arrested Pavithran from his office. A case has been re gistered against him under non-bailable provisions of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (Sections 196, 75, and 67A) and the IT Act. A medical examination proved that he was intoxicated while on duty at the time of the arrest, police said. Pavithran sparked outrage after posting his remark under a Facebook condolence post for Ranjitha G Nair. Though he deleted the comment following intense backlash, screenshots had already gone viral, triggering widespread anger on social ● More on P4 media.