HYDERABAD l thursday l june 26, 2025 l `9.00 l PAGES 16 l LATE CITY EDITION Qatar, U.S. CLAIM momentum in Gaza deal after Israel-Iran ceasefire Qatar’s PM Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Jassim Al Thani said informal talks between Israel and Hamas could begin in the next two days Very close to reaching a deal: Trump US President Donald Trump claimed there has been “great progress” in efforts to end the Gaza conflict, adding that his special envoy Steve Witkoff has told him “Gaza is very close”. He linked his optimism about imminent “very good news” for the Gaza Strip to a ceasefire agreed on Tuesday between Israel and Hamas’s sponsor Iran to end their 12-day war | P9 Bibi may soften stand, call snap polls ■ However, neither Israel nor Hamas has confirmed any truce deal yet ■ Israel’s official position is it will eliminate Hamas and its leaders, while the outfit demands complete withdrawal of Israeli troops from Gaza ■ Reports said Netanyahu is ready to cut a deal with Hamas, call snap polls, and seek to retain power on the back of the victory over Iran Seven Israeli troops killed in one of the deadliest attacks against IDF in Gaza 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 CBSE to conduct Class 10 board exams twice a year from 2026 IFRAH MUF T I @ New Delhi STARTING next year, Class 10 students will be allowed to take CBSE board exams twice year – in February and again in May. The first attempt in February will be mandatory . Taking the second chance in May is optional and is mainly for those wishing to improve their scores. The move, recommended in the new National Education Policy (NEP), is expected to reduce stress among students over annual exams and give them an opportunity to score better marks. “The first phase will be conducted in February and second in May The results for the . two phases will be announced in April and June, respectively said Sanyam Bhardwaj, ,” Examination Controller, Central Board of Secondary Education. In the second phase of examination in May, students will be allowed to improve their performance in any three subjects out of science, mathematics, social science and languages, he added. Class 10 students from winter-bound schools will be allowed to appear for exams in any of the phases. Internal assessments will be conducted only once during the academic session. Exams under the first phase will begin on February 17, 2026 and the results will be declared in April. The second exam is scheduled to commence on May 5, 2026 and the results will be out in June. The Ministry of Education said the new system will reduce pressure on students, offer flexibility and promote stress-free learn, ing. “It is a landmark shift towards competency-based assessments that value understanding over rote learning. This reform empowers students with choice, confidence, and second chances,” it stated. SC: Police summons to lawyers threat to justice E x p r e s s N e w Se r v i c e @ New Delhi The Supreme Court on Wednesday said probe agencies cannot directly summon lawyers over matters involving their clients, calling such actions a direct threat to the administration of justice. A bench comprising justices K V Viswanathan and N Kotiswar Singh took suo motu cognisance of the matter while hearing a plea by a lawyer who had been summoned by the Gujarat police in connection with a case involving his client. “Permitting investigation agencies/police to directly summon defence counsel or lawyers who advised parties in a given case would seriously undermine the autonomy of the legal profession and would even constitute a direct threat to the independence of the administration of justice,” the court said. The matter has been sent to the CJI for appropriate directions. What a ride! India re-enters Democracy placed space odyssey after 41 years under arrest by Cong govt 50 yrs ago: Modi Emergency anniversary Narendra Modi, prime minister Today marks 50 years since one of the darkest chapters in India’s democratic history, the imposition of the Emergency... No Indian will ever forget the manner in which the spirit of our Constitution was violated Union home minister Amit Shah addresses an event on Emergency in Delhi | PTI Shah went ballistic against the Congress on the Emergency, saying it was imposed to Prime Minister Narendra preserve dynastic politics. As Modi on Wednesday set the for Bihar Chief Minister Nittone for the commemoration ish Kumar, he said Emergenthe 50th anniversary of Emer- cy symbolised Indira’s dictagency describing it as one of , torial streak, adding its the darkest chapters in India’s imposition marked a “black democratic history . day in history”. Attacking the then Con“The anti-Emergency movegress government led by In- ment was a learning experidira Gandhi, he said it was as ence for me. It reaffirmed the if it had placed devitality of preservmocracy under aring our democratic rest. All values enframework. At the shrined in the same time, I got to Constitution were learn so much from set aside, fundamenpeople across the potal rights were suslitical spectrum,” pended, press freeModi said in his post dom extinguished on X. In his foreword and several political to the book, former leaders, social workPM H D Gowda said ers, students and orpeople like Modi dinary citizens were built a strong netjailed, he pointed The cover of The work of communicaout in a post on X. Emergency Diaries tion and resistance. Later in the day, Modi urged others The Emergency Diaries — who still remember the tyrYears that Forged a Leader, a anny of Emergency, to share book that chronicles Modi’s their experiences on social journey during that time, media so as to enhance awarewhen he was a RSS prachar- ness of those dark days. ak, was released by Union In his reposte, Congress home minister Amit Shah. chief Mallikarjun Kharge Shah said Modi, then 25, used charged that there was an unto work underground at that declared emergency in India time against Emergency, since the last 11 years. He acsometimes as a saint, some- cused the BJP of staging a times as a Sardarji, sometimes ‘drama’ of observing Samvidas a hippie, sometimes as an han Hatya Diwas to mark the incense stick seller or some- proclamation of Emergency times as a newspaper seller. to hide governance failure. RA J E SH K UMAR T HA K UR @ New Delhi mallikarjun kharge, Cong president 2-minute silence, resolution The Union Cabinet on Wednesday passed a resolution condemning the proclamation of Emergency 50 years ago and observed a twominute silence to pay tributes to those whose constitutionally guaranteed democratic rights were taken away and were then subjected to “unimaginable horrors” | P7 Kuldip Nayar’s caution the day before emergency I edit page No loos talk: A school’s lesson in locks and leaks Students of ZPHS Dharur head for the woods to answer nature’s call as the toilet on the campus remains locked N a v een K u m a r Ta l l a m @ Jagtial “Public from outside use the toilet when we’re busy in class. The school has no compound wall to stop them. It becomes unhygienic,” defended incharge headmaster Md Abdul Basith, adding that he unlocks the toilet only during breaks. However, Basith appears to have not considered the logisti- cal challenge of 260 boys competing for the seat in 10 minutes. “It’s just not possible to accommodate them all. So, many of them go outside,” the headmaster said. District Educational Officer K Ramu, when contacted, offered the kind of assurance that Namaskar to all my countrymen. What a ride! After 41 years, we are back in space and what a ride it has been.” These were the first words of Axiom-4 mission pilot and the first Indian to travel to space in 41 years, Group Captain Shubhanshu Shukla (nicknamed Shux), when the mission was launched at 12.01 pm Wednesday from Kennedy Space Centre, Florida, after six postponements since May 29. The commercial space mission by Axiom Space was launched in collaboration with National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), the Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO), and the European Space Agency (ESA). The spacecraft is now scheduled to dock with the International Space Station (ISS) on Thursday 4.30 pm, 28-and-half, hours after launch. After acclimatising with the environment in space, the mission’s four-member crew comprising Shukla, mission commander Peggy Whitson from the US, and mission specialists Slawosz Uznanski-Wisniewski of Poland, and Hungarian astronaut Tibor Kapu will carry Shukla is the second Indian in space after Sqn Ldr Rakesh Sharma, who was a crew member of the Soyuz T-11 in April 1984, and will be the first Indian to pilot a spacecraft. Shukla is carrying a ‘surprise’ for Sharma to the ISS, which will be known only later SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket with the Crew Dragon capsule lifts off | pti out 60 experiments; seven of them will be done by Shukla. As part of their 14-day mission, the astronauts will hold live classes and interactive sessions with students, experts and VIPs from the ISS, using Amaetur Radio on the ISS. Before heading to his designated seat inside the spacecraft attached at the top of the twostage Falcon 9 launcher, Shukla listened to his favourite song Vande Mataram from the movie Fighter, starring Hrithik Roshan, Anil Kapoor, and Deepika Padukone. Ahead of the takeoff, the as- tronauts are allowed to listen to their favourite music and say goodbyes to their dear ones. After lift-off, Peggy revealed the name of the Dragon Spacecraft: Grace. She also released a baby swan soft toy named Joy , which was seen bobbing up and down in zero-gravity . Ten minutes after the launch, when the pilots were in the designated low earth orbit, they changed their space suits and had their first meal in space. Before reaching the ISS, the Dragon will orbit the earth and the astronauts will have at least three interactive checks with the base stations. The four astronauts had been in a four-week quarantine since May 25, the longest in any modern space missions. The longest ever before was three-weeks-long, ahead of the Apollo Moon Mission. These people failed in governance. People are concerned over inflation. The govt has no answer to unemployment, corruption and economic failure. To hide their lies and failure they have staged this drama selective access At Zilla Parishad High School (ZPHS) Dharur, located just outside Jagtial district headquarters, nearly 260 boys are forced to depart from their daily routine and take a reluctant field trip every time they need to use the toilet. The 40 girl students, meanwhile, suffer in silence. The only usable toilet on campus is locked to ensure that the general public does not turn it into its personal powder room. Forced to answer nature’s call beyond the school walls, students, some barely into their teens, are routinely seen venturing into the woods during breaks, seeking privacy. Even the male teachers have no choice but to head for the woods. Second Indian in space after Rakesh Sharma B OS K Y K HA N N A @ Bengaluru has come to define public education’s bureaucratic shrug. “The issue of toilets being locked hasn’t come to my notice,” he insisted, while confirming that the Mana Ooru Mana Badi programme, meant to fix infrastructure issues, has completed its tender process. He added that due to lack of funds, the school’s compound wall and kitchen room remain unfinished. As for toilets? “We do need more, given the number of students,” he agreed, but did not reveal why the existing one is under lock and key . Meanwhile, beyond the planning, promises and performance (or lack thereof), the one lesson the boys at ZPHS Dharur have learnt is: “When nature calls, be ready to run”. Indian astronaut Shubhanshu Shukla (second from left) and the three others aboard the SpaceX Dragon bound for the ISS | pti HC orders local body elections before Sept 30 T G N a i d u @ Hyderabad Making it clear that elections to local bodies should be held by September 30, 2025, Justice T Madhavi Devi of the Telangana High Court on Wednesday gave the state government 30 days to finalise and announce reservations for BCs in local bodies and the State Election Commission (SEC) a further 60 days to complete the process. The judge was hearing a batch of petitions filed by former sarpanches questioning the prolonged delay in holding local body elections. The petitioners argued that the delay was unconstitutional and violated the provisions of the Telangana Panchayat Raj Act and the democratic rights of rural citizens. During the proceedings, Additional Advocate General Imran Khan, appearing for the state government, sought a month to finalise the reservation process while senior advocate G Vidya Sagar, representing the SEC, told the court that without awaiting the government’s reservation notification, the election schedule could not be finalised. The court firmly reminded both the government and the SEC of their constitutional obligations. The judge observed that continued delay undermines grassroots democratic governance and warned that if timely elections are not ensured, the Supreme Court could step in and initiate the process independently . Right fight Muslim woman’s right to Khula absolute: TG HC E x p r e ss N e ws Se r v i c e @ Hyderabad Reiterating that a Muslim woman’s right to Khula (divorce) is absolute and she does not require the husband’s consent, the Telangana High Court on Wednesday dismissed an appeal against a family court order. The appeal also challenged the validity of a Khulanama (divorce certificate) issued by a religious council. The case involved a couple married in 2012. After years of domestic abuse, the wife sought Khula. When the man refused to cooperate, she approached a religious advisory body consisting of Islamic scholars which issued a Khulanama on October 5, 2020 after reconciliation efforts failed.  Continued on P2 12 Jurala gates leak, officials say ‘all’s well’ E x p r e ss N e ws Se r v i c e @ Hyderabad Bringing the shortcomings in the project’s operation and maintenance to the fore, leakages have been noticed at 12 gates of the Jurala project during the ongoing flood season. However, officials described the issue as “minor” and stressed that there was no threat to the structure. Jurala has been receiving floodwaters since the last week of May As of 6 am on Wednes. day, the average inflows were recorded at 52,436 cusecs. Alle- gations have surfaced that although a repair agency was engaged by the authorities, it carried out work on only four of the gates. Sources said that the ropeway mechanism and rubber components of the gates were not functioning properly . Jurala officials, when contacted, said there was no cause for concern even if inflows cross 12 lakh cusecs. “We are releasing water through the gates, so leakages are not relevant in this situation,” an official said. They added that leakage would be a concern only if water was being stored and found to be escaping, which would amount to wastage. Jurala has a total of 62 gates. The state government had sanctioned approximately `11 crore for minor repairs. However, there are claims that the executing agency failed to complete the work properly . Similar issues with rubber seals were noted last year. Although repairs began about three years ago, they remain incomplete. Officials said they were currently unable to undertake further repairs due to the flood season.