KALABURAGI  SUNDAY  JUNE 22, 2025  `12.00  PAGES 26  CITY EDITION ADVANCE TAX, HIGH REFUNDS HIT NET DIRECT TAX COLLECTIONS REFUND ISSUANCES ROSE BY 58% IN 1ST QUARTER Advance tax, an indicator of corporate profitability and income of individuals, grew a meagre 3.87% to `1.56 lakh crore between April 1-June 19, 2025. In the same period in 2024, advance tax collection had recorded an annual growth of 27%; on the other side, refund issuances rose by 58% to `86,385 crore till June 19 this fiscal, govt data shows Net direct tax collection in Q1 dipped 1.39% to `4.59 lakh crore, on slowdown in advance tax mop-up and higher refunds CORPORATE TAX COLLECTIONS SEE A DIP I I Advance tax paid by corporates saw a growth of 5.86% to `1.22 lakh crore, while those by non-corporates, including individuals, HUFs and firms, dropped by 2.68% to `33,928 crore, as per govt data During April 1-June 19, 2025, net corporate tax collection saw a slowdown of `1.73 lakh crore, a decline of over 5% year on year 12% IS THE RATE BY WHICH SECURITIES TRANSACTION TAX GREW THIS FY CHENNAI I MADURAI I VIJAYAWADA I BENGALURU I KOCHI I HYDERABAD I VISAKHAPATNAM I COIMBATORE I KOZHIKODE I THIRUVANANTHAPURAM I BELAGAVI I BHUBANESWAR I SHIVAMOGGA I MANGALURU I TIRUPATI I TIRUCHY I TIRUNELVELI I SAMBALPUR I HUBBALLI I DHARMAPURI I KOTTAYAM I KANNUR I VILLUPURAM I KOLLAM I TADEPALLIGUDEM I NAGAPATTINAM I THRISSUR I KALABURAGI For 200 yrs, S’patna waste flowing into Cauvery that quenches B’luru’s thirst YAT H I R A J U @ Bengaluru FOR the last 200 years, the entire sewage of Srirangapatna town has been let into the Cauvery river which supplies drinking water to Bengaluru. The sewage, which passes via Rampal Road in Srirangapatna, joins the river under Wellesley Bridge through the water gate. Untreated sewage from Srirangapatna flowing into Cauvery at this point | EXPRESS DGCA asks AI to shift three officials due to serious lapses EXPRESS NEWS SERVICE @ New Delhi THE DGCA has ordered the removal of three top personnel of Air India in its flight operations department from all roles related to crew scheduling and rostering due to their serious and repeated lapses. After the DGCA chastened the airline for not taking strict action against them, Air India said it had complied with the directive. The DGCA named Choorah Singh, Divisional Vice President, Pinky Mittal, Chief Manager, Daily Operations, Crew Scheduling and Payal Arora, Crew Scheduling, Planning for continued non-compliance with scheduling rules. These officials did unauthorised and non-compliance crew pairings, violated mandatory licensing and recency norms and were responsible for systemic failure in scheduling protocol and oversight. Recency refers to the number of take offs and landings a pilot must have within a timeframe to operate an aircraft safely . The violations were voluntarily disclosed by Air India. “The voluntary disclosure, while noted, points to systemic failures in crew scheduling, compliance monitoring and internal accountability. Of particular concern is the absence of strict disciplinary measures against key officials directly responsible for these operational lapses,” the regulator said. It ordered immediate internal proceedings against them, adding they need to be re-assigned to non-operational roles until corrective reforms are initiated in scheduling practices. WITH THIS ISSUE Let’s get Personal PLUS 12 P AGES EXPRESS READ Bike taxi riders want ban lifted, seek proper policy BENGALURU: Over 5,000 bike taxi riders from across Karnataka rallied at Vidhana Soudha in Bengaluru on Saturday, urging the State Government to lift the ban against their services and introduce a proper regulatory policy. This the point from where drinking water is lifted to Pandavapura and Mandya towns. The very same polluted water reaches Thorekadanahalli from where it is lifted to Bengaluru. People of Bengaluru, Pandavapura and Mandya are using the same polluted water for drinking and other purposes. “Though the KRS reservoir was constructed across Cauvery river with the vision of Nalwadi Krishnaraja Wadiyar and Sir M Visvesvaraya to supply drinking water to Bengaluru and Mysuru, besides supplying water for agriculture in Mandya district, no steps were taken by the Town Municipal Council of Srirangapatna, taluk administration, Cauvery Neeravari Nigam Ltd and Environment Department officials to stop sewage from entering the river,” said Upa Lokayukta Justice B Veerappa, who has registered a suo motu case against all the concerned, directing them to fix the issue. This is one among the 22 suo motu complaints registered by GOVT PRESSES B’DESH ON REVIEW OF GANGA TREATY IN POST-PAHALGAM SQUEEZE, INDIA SAYS IT NEEDS MORE WATER FOR GROWTH J I T E N D R A C H O U B E Y @ New Delhi AFTER the suspension of the Indus Waters Treaty in the wake of the Pahalgam terror attack, the government has now decided to renegotiate the Ganga River Water Treaty with Bangladesh, which is set to expire next year. India has communicated to its counterpart that it requires more water to meet its needs. The new treaty will likely to be shorter, lasting 10 to 15 years. The shorter duration will foster flexibility and adaptability for both nations moving forward. The Ganga Water Treaty was signed on December 12, 1996, on sharing of water, particularly around the Farakka Barrage during the lean season. “Before Pahalgam, we were inclined to extend the treaty for another 30 years, but the situation changed drastically afterward,” stated a senior officer at the MEA who participated in a meeting with the Bangladeshi counterpart earlier in May . PRESS CLUSIVE “It was a routine meeting, held twice a year, but it also provided an opportunity to express our concerns regarding the increasing need for water to support domestic development, which will GANGA WATER TREATY, 1996 Availability at Farakka Balance of flow 35,000 cusecs 40,000 cusecs Balance of flow * SUBJECT TO THE CONDITION THAT INDIA AND BANGLADESH EACH SHALL RECEIVE GUARANTEED 35,000 CUSECS OF WATER IN ALTERNATE THREE 10-DAY PERIODS FROM MARCH 11 TO MAY 11 influence the terms of the new treaty he explained. ,” According to internal documents for discussions, seen by TNIE, the Farakka Barrage was built to continuously divert 40,000 cusecs of water into a feeder canal for the Kolkata Port Trust (now known as Syama Prasad A G E N C I E S @ Tehran An Indian student reunites with parents after returning from Iran as part of Operation Sindhu on Saturday | PTI J AYA N T H J A C O B @ New Delhi AS tensions between Israel and Iran entered their ninth day India intensi, fied its evacuation efforts under Operation Sindhu, bringing home over 800 Indian nationals stranded in the conflict zone. A special evacuation flight from Mashhad, Iran, landed in New Delhi at 4.30 pm Saturday carry, ing 310 Indian citizens. Earlier in the day, another flight from Ashgabat, Turkmenistan, repatriated evacuees who had transited from Iran. “This brings the total number of Indians evacuated to 827,” confirmed Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal, adding that the mission is on. “Operation Sindhu continues,” he said. In a gesture of regional solidarity, India also facilitated evacuation of Sri Lankan and other South Asian nationals. Sri Lanka’s Deputy Foreign Minister Arun Hemachandra expressed gratitude for India’s assistance in evacuating its citizens. Among the evacuees were 256 Indian students, mostly from J&K, who arrived in Delhi early Saturday. Many of them described days of anxiety and disruption in Iran before being flown to safety. This is the second evacuation flight from Iran in 24 hours after the first on Friday with 290 Indian students. Tulu vs Kannada: Language row erupts in DK A fresh controversy has erupted in Dakshina Kannada over the use of Tulu versus Kannada in local governance, placing the district administration in a delicate position. The trigger was a petition filed by Muralidhar, convener of the Yashashwi Nagarika Seva Sangha, Karkala, urging the authorities to ensure Kan- nada -- and not Tulu -- is given primacy during monthly gram panchayat meetings. In response, the Dakshina Kannada Zilla Panchayat forwarded the request to the executive officers of all taluk panchayats, advising them to take “necessary action as per the rules”. Though the Karnataka Official Language Act, 1963, mandates the use of Kannada for all government communication, Tulu remains the 50% 75,000 cusecs or more Ayatollah names Op Sindhu: 310 his successors, Indians brought new army brass back from Iran V I N C E N T D ’ S O U Z A @ Mangaluru Share of Bangladesh 50% 70,000 cusecs-75,000 cusecs MID-EAST CRISIS WARY of assassination, Iran’s supreme leader mostly speaks with his commanders through a trusted aide now, suspending electronic communications to make it harder to find him, Iranian officials say, The New York Times reported on Saturday . Ensconced in a bunker, the supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, picked an array of replacements down his chain of military command in case more of his valued lieutenants are killed. And in a remarkable move, the officials add, the leader has named three senior clerics as candidates to succeed him should he be killed, as well. The extraordinary series of steps are being seen as an attempt to preserve the Islamic Republic ever since Israel launched a series of surprise attacks last Friday. In normal times, Ayatollah lives and works in a highly secure compound in central Tehran called the “beit rahbari” — or leader’s house — and he seldom leaves the premises. His retreat to a bunker shows how furiously Tehran has been struck in a war with Israel. Iran’s top officials are also quietly making preparations for a wide range of outcomes as the war intensifies and as President Trump considers whether to enter the fight, according to the Iranian officials, who insisted on anonymity “It is clear that . we had a massive security and intelligence breach; there is no denying this,” said Mahdi Mohammadi, a senior adviser to Iran Parliament’s speaker, Gen Mohammad Ghalibaf, in an audio recording analysing the war. Share of India 70,000 cusecs or less dominant spoken language. This linguistic duality has placed officials in a bind -- enforcing the rule may alienate local communities, yet ignoring it risks violating statutory norms. Notably the ZP avoided pushing for , stringent enforcement. Unlike typical protocol, it did not seek an action-taken report from taluk officials -- a move interpreted as a cautious attempt to P7 avoid inflaming sentiments. Mookerjee Port, Kolkata). “The 1996 treaty has disrupted this arrangement, leading to issues such as slope failure, bed erosion, and heavy siltation in the KPT, which has reduced its navigational efficiency. Additionally the NTPC plant there is , facing water crisis,” the officer added. The current arrangement provides 35,000 cusecs of water alternately for 10 days each to both countries during the lean season, which lasts from March 11 to May 11. India is seeking 30,000 to 35,000 cusecs more during the same period to meet its requirements. The Centre has the support of the West Bengal government, which is the primary beneficiary of the additional water. During internal discussions, Bihar too emphasised the need for extra Ganga water to meet its drinking and irrigation needs. An internal meeting, which included a senior officer from West Bengal, has confirmed this requirement. him after he witnessed a flood of public grievances about rampant maladministration in Mandya district during his recent surprise visit. According to the Upa Lokayukta’s report, sewage from entire Mandya town joins Guttalu Lake. spread over 169 acres 33 guntas, directly through the P7 Raja Kaluve.