KOZHIKODE l Sunday l june 15, 2025 l `12.00 l PAGES 24 l city edition J&K to reopen Destinations closed after Pahalgam attack in phases Jammu & Kashmir Lt Governor Manoj Sinha on Saturday said closed parks at tourist places will be reopened in a phased manner starting June 17 8 parks in jammu to reopen in first phase Sinha said the tourist spots that would be reopened include Beetab Valley and the parks near Pahalgam market. In Srinagar, Badamwari Park, Duck Park and Taqdeer Park will be reopened. Sarthal and Dhaggar in Kathua, Devipindi, Siyad Baba, and Sula Park in Reasi, Guldanda and Jai valley in Doda, and Pancheri in Udhampur—all in Jammu—will also be reopened 48 Tight security for Amarnath yatra ■ The committee comprising divisional commissioners and IGPs will take reports from districts and then some more places will be reopened in consultation with the tourism department, the L-G said ■ Security has been beefed up for the Amarnath Yatra starting July 3, the L-G said, adding that he expects a large number of pilgrims out of 87 tourist spots in Kashmir closed after April 22 Pahalgam attack 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 Dangerous escalation Iran threatens to hit US, UK bases in West Asia; Israel vows to destroy Tehran’s nuclear infra AG E N CI E S @ Jerusalem / Dubai Cranes clearing the debris of the crashed plane in Ahmedabad on Saturday | PTI Toll 270, probe panel formed D i l i p S i n g h K s h at r i ya @ Ahmedabad The death toll in the Air India flight tragedy here went up to 270, even as a body was extracted from the tail of the crashed aircraft on Saturday The Lon. don-bound flight had rammed into the BJ Medical College hostel moments after takeoff on Thursday . As of now, DNA matches of 11 victims with their families have been established — three more than on Friday. Since many bodies were charred beyond recognition, authorities are depending almost entirely on DNA testing for accurate identification. “This isn’t something we can afford to rush. Every case must be verified with clinical precision,” said Dr Rajnish Patel, surgery professor at B J Medical College. Gujarat Revenue Secretary Alok Pandey said many of the victims hailed from 18 of the state’s 33 districts. He said said 230 teams have been formed to coordinate with families of the victims. “A grief counsellor L25L interim relief Air India will make interim payment of I25 lakh to the families of the deceased and survivors of the plane crash — in addition to its I1 crore compensation has been assigned to every family to deal with mental trauma,” Pandey added. Gandhinagar Forensic Science Lab (FSL) Director H P Sanghvi said, “We’ve begun profile matching. Tests are ongoing in batches, each taking 36–48 hours. A team of 36 experts is working round-the-clock with the National Forensic Lab to expedite the process.” In a related development, the Centre constituted a multi-disciplinary panel headed by the Union home secretary to probe the cause of the air crash. Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge urged the government to fix accountability “Let . the black box reveal the truth. The government must then fix accountability,” he said after visiting the crash site. IRAN and Israel on Saturday carried out waves of deadly attacks at each other, ignoring pleas from various countries including India for an immediate de-escalation of hostilities. Israel’s attacks on Iran’s military and nuclear targets on Friday and Saturday killed 78 people, according to Iranian authorities. The Israeli military said its air strikes killed 20 Iranian army and Revolutionary Guard commanders. According to local media, Iran’s retaliatory strikes in the wee hours on Saturday killed three persons and injured 80 others in Israel. The development comes amid the ongoing talks between Iran and the US seeking to reach a deal on Tehran’s nuclear programme. A sixth round of negotiations is scheduled in Oman on Sunday, but it’s not clear if the talks will take place. Iran on Saturday said it would be meaningless to hold talks while it is under attack. Israel said it has destroyed bases of Israel’s allies including the US, UK, and France if they helped Tel Aviv. The warning came after reports said US air defence systems shot down Iranian missiles. With both Israel and Iran hardening their positions, it could become a protracted, fullfledged war that could disrupt global economy by making the P9 Red Sea more unsafe. India distances itself from sco statement India on Saturday sought to distance itself from the statement of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization criticising Israel’s strikes, saying the conflict can be sorted out only through dialogue and diplomacy | P7 Iran’s air defence systems claiming its jets flew for nearly two hours over Iranian airspace, hitting targets. “Tehran is no longer immune; the capital is exposed to strikes,” an IDF spokesperson said, adding that Israel plans to dismantle Iran’s military and nuclear capabilities. As for Iran, it threatened to attack the regional military WITH THIS ISSUE Shaken & Stirred PLUS 12 P AGES Govt fast-tracks airstrip project, aims small town connectivity K r i s h n a K u m a r K E @Kochi With the aim to provide air connectivity to smaller towns, the state government has expedited the project to develop airstrips across Kerala, by kicking off the process to identify suitable land in Idukki, Kasaragod and Wayanad districts. Joint venture firm RITES-KIIFCON has been tasked with conducting the feasibility study . “The three district collectors have been directed to finalise Soon, an app to track real-time blood availability suitable land at the earliest. The spots in consideration are in Periya (Kasaragod) and Kalpetta (Wayanad), while a fresh site will be identified in Idukki,” said a senior official with the Chief Minister’s Office. In Idukki, the National Cadet Corps (NCC) has set up an airstrip at Sathram near Vandiperiyar village for training air wing cadets. The government plans to develop a separate facility to cater to the air passenger traffic. “The main aim of the airstrips is to facilitate air passenger services. However, they can also be used during emergencies like landslides. The airstrips will cater only to small aircraft like ATR or below,” the official said. Earlier, the cabinet entrusted a joint venture of RITES, a transport consultancy firm, and KIIFCON, a consultancy organisation under the Kerala Infrastructure Investment Fund Board, to conduct the fea- Sites to be identified The spots in consideration are in Periya (Kasaragod) and Kalpetta (Wayanad), while a fresh site will be identified in Idukki, said an official with the CMO. sibility study for developing the three airstrips. The government had earmarked `20 crore in a previous budget for the development of heliports and airstrips. Finance Minister K N Balagopal, while presenting the 2025-26 state budget, announced allocation of `1.5 crore for the preparation of a detailed project report (DPR) and other preliminary activities to set up airstrips in Idukki, Wayanad ● More on P5 and Kasaragod.  e x p r ess r e a d Mystery shrouds death of woman ‘killed by elephant’ Idukki: Mystery shrouds the death of a 42-year-old tribal woman, who was reportedly killed by a wild elephant in Meenmutty in Peermade. The forensic surgeon, who conducted the post-mortem examination, indicated that preliminary findings pointed to a murder. However, the police are yet to confirm the murder, and the suspect Binu, husband of the deceased Seetha, has not yet been taken into custody. P5 E x p r e s s N e w s Se r v i c e @T’Puram Situations in which friends and relatives have to scamper in search of blood for patients during emergency will soon be a thing of the past. A centralised software ‘blood bank traceability application’ is being developed by the state health department that would provide real-time updates on blood availability across the state. Health Minister Veena George said a dedicated portal will also be set up as part of the project, which is expected to be up and running by the end of this year. “Once the system becomes operational, the public will be able to know the availability of compatiable blood groups and quantity in blood banks located across the state,” she said. The application is being developed by the health department in partnership with K-DISC, Kerala State AIDS Control Society Blood Transfusion , Council and e-health. The department has already put in place blood storage units or blood banks in hospitals from the level of primary health centres where deliveries happen. Besides, a digital blood bag traceability mechanism is in place that will track the process from the collection of blood from the donor till its transfusion on the recipient. “The blood bank traceability application comes close on the heels of the state bringing out a registry of donors having rare blood groups,” she said. Destroyed residential buildings in Ramat Gan, near Tel Aviv, Israel, hit by a missile fired from Iran on Saturday | ap/pti Wan Hai 503 pulled away, at safe distance from Kochi united by cricket South Africa captain Temba Bavuma with the World Test Championship mace after beating Australia in the final. This is SA’s first ICC trophy in 27 years | AP | P11 TAKE YOUR FIRST STEP TOWARDS TRANSFORMATION GITAM ADMISSION TEST (GAT) Kochi: Wan Hai 503, the burning container vessel which was drifting towards Kochi coast, was pulled away to a safe distance by the Indian Coast Guard with support from the Indian Navy and the salvage team. The vessel which drifted to a distance of 27 nautical miles from Kochi coast on Friday night was pulled back to deeper sea. P2 LAST DATE TO REGISTER 19 June th 2025 su n d a y s p e c i a l EXAM DATE 22 June nd A peek into where Gill’s journey began G o m e s h S @ Chennai Chak Khere Wala in Punjab, close to the Pakistan border, is not even a speck on the map. It would have remained a nondescript village of India’s vast hinterland if not for one man — Shubman Gill. When the newlyanointed India captain walks in the India blazer to toss the coin against England in the first Test at Leeds on Friday (June 20), the village would enter into the folklore of Indian cricket. This is where Gill’s cricketing journey began as a threeyear-old with a wooden bat carved out of a tree trunk. Gill’s grandparents — Sardar Didar Singh Gill and Gurmail — still live in the house surrounded by acres of farm land. The small stretch of concrete built to make Gill bat and the kitchen walls still stand as a testimony to his early toil as a batter. Didar, who is nearing 90, showed the house where Gill’s mementos and plaques hold pride of place. Gill and his father may have shifted to Mohali when he was seven but the cricketer has not forgotten the village. A small distance away from the Gills’ is the Jaimal Wala Academy. Coach Gurpreet Singh says Gill’s father trains kids whenever he is in village. Gill donat- 2025 Architecture ed `3.5L, which was used to set up the nets and buy equipment. The construction got over on Friday The district authorities . are building a new stadium to honour him. “Since Shubman, a lot of academies have come up in the area,” says Surinder Chindi, Fazilka Cricket AssoP11 ciation Secretary  . The patch of concrete where Shubman Gill used to practice as a child. The kitchen is on the right I Gomesh S Engineering Humanities Law Management Medicine Nursing Paramedical Pharmacy Physiotherapy Public Policy Sciences MERIT SCHOLARSHIPS AVAILABLE UP TO 100% THAT ALSO COVER FOOD AND ACCOMMODATION BENGALURU | HYDERABAD | VISAKHAPATNAM 8884984000 www.gitam.edu Scan the code to schedule your test