visakhapatnam l tuesday l june 17, 2025 l `9.00 l PAGES 12 l late city EDITION India women to kick-start ODI World Cup against Sri Lanka The Harmanpreet Kaur-led Women in Blue will be playing the opening match of the tournament in Bengaluru on September 30 Kaur & Co to play Pak in Colombo on Oct 5 Home advantage for India and Sri Lanka With the ongoing agreement between India and Pakistan cricket boards, the latter will not travel to India and will be camped in Colombo for their league-stage games. India and Pakistan are scheduled to play each other in Colombo on October 5. It will be the first match between the neighbouring countries after the recent cross-border tensions ■ ■ Apart from hosts India, Sri Lanka will play five of their league games in Colombo. Their two games in India are in Bengaluru and Guwahati If Pakistan advance past the round-robin stages, they will play the semifinal and final in Colombo. If they don’t, Guwahati will host that semifinal. Bengaluru will host the other semifinal and final | P11 2013 The last time India hosted the Women’s ODI World Cup 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 Census-2027 notification finally out MUK E S H R A N J A N @ New Delhi Rescue team work at the site where a missile launched from Iran struck Tel Aviv, Israel, on Monday | AP/PTI Israeli Missiles hit Iran’s state tv hq Israel on Monday struck Iran’s state TV while a live broadcast was underway, forcing the anchor to rush out as debris started falling in the studio iaea WARNS OF contamination The International Atomic Energy Agency warned of both radiological and chemical contamination at Iran’s nuclear enrichment facility in Natanz India begins to move out its citizens in Iran Students to be evacuated via Armenia, UAE Israel, Iran RAMP UP ATTACKS civilian CASUALTIES RISE J AYA N T H J A C O B @ New Delhi AS hostilities between Iran and Israel intensify India has , begun relocating its nationals from high-risk zones in Iran and is mulling on evacuation plans via both land and sea routes through Armenia and the United Arab Emirates, sources said. The first batch of 110 students has reached the Armenian border, from there they will be evacuated by air. The external affairs ministry on Monday said Indian nationals, including 1,500 students—from Jammu and Kashmir, Karnataka, and other states—are being moved to safer areas within Iran. Embassy officials are in constant touch with local leaders and the Indian community. An estimated 10,000 Indian nationals are in Iran. Tehran, where a majority of Indian students are enrolled in institutions such as Tehran University of Medi- Hoax bomb alert triggers tension at SHAR Centre E x p r e s s N e w s Se r v i c e @ Nellore A bomb threat triggered a high alert at the Satish Dhawan Space Centre (SDSC-SHAR) in Sriharikota late Sunday night. The Tamil Nadu Command Control Centre on Sunday night reportedly received an anonymous call alleging the presence of terrorists on the SHAR campus. Following the threat, security forces were swiftly mobilized. From the early hours of Monday, intensive searches were conducted across the SHAR premises. Teams from the Central Industrial Security Force (CISF) and local police combed the area thoroughly Coastal secu. rity forces also carried out searches along nearby sea routes as a precautionary measure. After several hours of detailed inspections, authorities concluded that the bomb threat was a hoax and attributed the P4 call to mischief-makers.  cal Sciences and Iran University of Medical Sciences, has seen heightened risk amid Israeli strikes. Some students are being relocated to Qom, 148 km from Tehran. Sources said land evacuation via Armenia and a sea route through the UAE are being explored as viable options. “It’s an evolving situation and we are exploring every ways and means to ensure the safety of our nationals as we have done in the past,” said a source. External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar has spoken to his Armenian counterpart Ararat Mirzoyan and UAE Foreign Minister Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed Al Nahyan to discuss the situation. It’s painful for both parties, but I’d say Iran is not winning this war. They should talk before it’s too late US President Donald Trump The Centre on Monday formally notified the much-delayed National Population Census 2027, which was due way back in 2021, but had to be put off after the Covid-19 pandemic outbreak. The Gazette notification said, “the Central Government hereby declares that a census of the population of India shall be taken during the year 2027.” The notification added that the reference date for the Census shall be 00.00 hours of the 1st day of March, 2027, except for Ladakh and snow-bound Caste enumeration definitely on, says govt The Union home ministry rubbished Congress apprehensions on caste enumeration as the notification did not mention it. “The census will include caste enumeration... It has already been mentioned in press releases dated 30 April, 4 June and 15 June, that the census will also have caste enumeration,” the govt said non-synchronous areas of Jammu and Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh and Uttarakhand. As for the rest, the reference date shall be 00:00 hours of October 1, 2026. The notification was issued by Mritunjay Kumar Narayan, Registrar General and Census Commissioner. The census exercise will be held in two phases—House Listing Operation (HLO) and Population Enumeration (PE). While HLO will involve collecting data on assets and amenities in each household, the PE exercise will capture the demographic, socio-economic, cultural and other details of every person in each household. Also, caste enumeration will Naidu eyes 22 world records on Yoga Day, reviews preparations E x p r e s s N e w s Se r v i c e @ Visakhapatnam A woman holds her baby as residents evacuate downtown Tel Aviv on Monday | AP/PTI Tehran said despite the closure of Iranian airspace, “all land borders are open for crossing” and has requested India to share details of those intending to leave. The Indian Embassy in Tehran urged all nationals to stay indoors, avoid non-essential movement, and follow advisories. As the war entered the fourth day on Monday, Iran confirmed 224 deaths while the toll in Israel rose to 24. India, which maintains diplomatic ties with both nations, reiterated its call for de-escalation. “Existing channels of dialogue and diplomacy should be utilised,” said MEA spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal. However, with neither side showing intention to dialing down tensions, the region is bracing for more strikes. On Monday, Israel ordered residents of Tehran to evacuate the district immediately, warning that lethal strikes P9 were coming.  Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu on Monday reviewed the preparations underway for the 11th edition of International Yoga Day celebrations, scheduled to be held in Visakhapatnam on June 21. Prime Minister Narendra Modi is set to participate in the grand event, which is being planned on a massive scale with five lakh people performing yoga simultaneously on RK Beach Road. As part of his visit, the Chief Minister inspected the arrangements on RK Beach Road, which will serve as the main venue for the International Yoga Day event. He examined the progress of the main stage’s setup for the Prime Minister, reviewed logistics, and issued instructions to CM Nara Chandrababu Naidu inspects arrangements for the International Yoga Day where PM Narendra Modi will take part in Vizag Monday | Express officials on various aspects, including security, transportation, sanitation, and crowd management. He stressed the importance of flawless planning and meticulous execution to enable the smooth conduct of the event, which aims to set a new benchmark in yoga participation. Later, he visited the Andhra University College of Engineering grounds, which has been identified as an alternative venue in case of unforeseen circumstances, such as adverse weather. Special Chief Secretary (Medical and Health) M T Krishna Babu, Visakhapatnam District Collector M N Harendhira Prasad, and several other officials presented a detailed blueprint of the arrangements being made. Following the inspection, the Chief Minister held a high-level review meeting at Novotel Hotel with senior officials, Ministers, elected representatives, and members of allied organisations. After the meeting, the Chief Minister addressed a press conference where he shared his vision, preparations, scale, and significance of the InternationP4 al Yoga Day event.  LEAGUE clears ashwin of ball-tampering TNPL dismissed the balltampering allegations made by Madurai Panthers against Dindigul Dragons skipper R Ashwin. They have given one day to submit material evidence | P11 119 IDed, 64 bodies handed over D i l i p S i n g h K s hat r i ya @ Ahmedabad The process to identify victims of the June 12 AI-171 air crash picked up pace on Monday as officials said DNA samples of 119 of them have been successfully matched. At least 270 people perished in the aircrash. Ahmedabad Civil Hospital Superintendent Dr Rakesh Joshi said 64 bodies have already been handed over to the respective families. Another 24 families are expected to collect the mortal remains of their loved ones in the coming days, while 11 families await confirmation of DNA matches with additional relatives. Twelve families are still awaiting final DNA results. Authorities expect the identification to conclude swiftly once pending reports are in. Among the bodies identified on Sunday was that of former Gujarat chief minister Vijay Rupani. He was cremated in Rajkot with full state honours on Monday . Probe teams scouring the aircraft debris recovered the cockpit voice recorder (CVR), the second black box. The CVR, along with a wire trailing from the aircraft’s rear section, was handed over to the Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau (AAIB). The first black box, called the flight data recorder, was recovered a day after the accident. Besides, human remains were found amid the debris and shifted to the Civil Hospital for postmortem. Parallelly a high-level multi, disciplinary committee led by Union home secretary Govind Mohan discussed the possible causes of the crash so as to evolve a policy roadmap for fuP8 ture safeguards.  for a fit body & mind People take part in yoga at Perupalem Beach in West Godavari | Express be done for the first time after Independence as part of the Census, which is in its eighth edition. Overall, this is the 16th edition of the Census since its beginning in 1881. As many as 34 lakh enumerators and supervisors and around 1.3 lakh census functionaries will conduct the operation with cutting-edge mobile digital gadgets, Union home minister Amit Shah said on Sunday after chairing a high-level meeting to review the preparations for the Census exercise. Union Home Secretary Govind Mohan, Mritunjay Kumar Narayan and other senior officials participated. In rare move, FATF condemns Pahalgam attack J AYA N T H J A C O B @ New Delhi AS India intensifies its diplomatic push to put Pakistan on the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) grey list, the global anti-terror financing watchdog has issued a rare, strongly worded condemnation of the terrorist attack in Pahalgam, flagging the financial lifelines that sustain such violence. “The FATF expresses grave concern and condemns the brutal terrorist attack in Pahalgam, Jammu & Kashmir, India, on 22 April 2025,” it said, noting the brutality of the incident in which 26 tourists were killed. Victims were executed after being forced to reveal their religion—an act FATF described as a targeted and horrifying assault on civilians. Only twice in the past has FATF publicly condemned a specific terrorist attack, in 2015 and 2019. This underscores the gravity of the Pahalgam incident in the eyes of the international community . “This, and other recent attacks, could not occur without money and the means to move funds between terrorist supporters,” the FATF said, highlighting the central role of terror financing in enabling such operations. India is currently engaged with FATF member states to reclassify Pakistan under its ‘grey list’, citing Islamabad’s failure to act decisively against groups responsible for crossborder terrorism. FATF will soon release a comprehensive report on terrorist financing risks, which, for the first time, will acknowledge ‘state-sponsored terrorism’ as a financing threat. The condemnation of the Pahalgam attack signals a shift in international willingness to call out statelinked financing of terrorism. express read Edu dept completes teacher transfers Markapur irrigation official in ACB trap This is not an era of war, says Modi in Cyprus Vijayawada: The School Education Department of School Education has successfully completed the 2025 teacher transfer and promotion exercise in AP | P3 Ongole: Anti-Corruption Bureau officials on Monday caught K Srinivasa Rao, a Senior Assistant at the Markapur Irrigation Office while accepting a bribe of `30,000 from a contractor. New Delhi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday said conflicts like the Israel-Iran hostilities underline the urgent need for global restraint, stressing that “this is not an era of war.” | P7 pilot not sure DGP seeks report on CM’s chopper’s functionality after technical snag E x p r e s s N e w s Se r v i c e @ Vijayawada The Director General of Police (DGP) Harish Kumar Gupta has reportedly instructed Intelligence Chief Mahesh Chandra Ladda to inspect and submit a report on the functionality and other technical issues related to the chopper, currently being used by Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu. The move came after a technical snag was reported in the chopper on Monday when it was allocated to Union Minister of Commerce and Industry Piyush Goyal. Goyal, who was on a two-day visit to the state, reportedly postponed his visit to Krishnapatnam Port following the incident. The technical snag was detected after the minister boarded the helicopter at Reni- gunta Airport, prompting Goyal to cancel his visit. Though the concerned persons rectified the snag, the pilot refused to continue with the scheduled trip, stating that he was unsure and wanted the issue to be cleared by a com- petent authority . Goyal, who arrived in Amaravati on Sunday for a two-day visit to the state, reached Tirupati on Monday morning with his family members and offered prayers at Lord Sri Venkateswara Temple atop Tirumala. According to officials, Piyush Goyal was supposed to travel from Tirupati to Krishnapatnam, but the trip was cancelled due to the technical glitch. Following the incident, officials were put on alert. As a result, the DGP asked for a reP4 port on the chopper.