BELAGAVI l sunday l june 29, 2025 l `12.00 l PAGES 24 l LATE CITY EDITION DNA test identifies last victim of plane crash; FINAL toll 260 Over two weeks after the Ahmedabad plane crash, the toll now stands at 260, down from 270 reported earlier, officials said on Saturday Remains of all 260 victims handed to kin ‘dna matching process too complicated’ The bodies of all 260 victims have been handed over to the relatives. Of the 241 passengers and crew members who died, the mortal remains of 240 had been identified earlier while one body was pending for match. The matching of the DNA samples confirmed the victim’s identity on Friday. Till June 23, officials had confirmed the identity of 259 victims ■ ■ An official release said DNA matching was complicated as several bodies had to be identified since they were beyond recognition The 260 victims of the plane crash included 200 Indians — 181 passengers plus crew and 19 ground victims. The others included seven Portuguese nationals, 52 British nationals and one Canadian 2 weeks was time taken to complete identification of dna samples 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 Award will open Agniveer Remittance tax cut induction door into forces to 1% in latest big, beautiful bill draft Gallantry medal or participation in global event will make the cut MAYA N K SI N GH @ New Delhi Man who killed wife 23 years ago finally nabbed R a g h o t ta m K o p pa r @ Koppal A man, who was absconding after murdering his wife 23 years ago in Gangavathi, Koppal district, was arrested on June 25. Hanumant Hussainappa, 75, was arrested in his native Aldal village in Manvi taluk of Raichur district after villagers alerted the police. He was produced before Gangavathi First Additional Sessions Court on June 27. Judge Sadanand Nagappa Naik sentenced Hanumant to life imprisonment after finding him guilty of murdering Renukamma. The judge also ordered him to pay a fine of Rs 10,000. Hanumant worked as an assistant at the gover nment health centre in Badarli village in Koppal district. After his first wife died due to disease, Hanumant mar ried another woman. She left him after a few years and went to her parents’ house. He then married Renukamma from Indiragi village. Hanumant used to quarrel with Renukamma frequently, suspecting her fidelity In 2002, Ha. numant murdered Renukamma with some sharp weapon. He later packed her body in a gunny bag and put it in a Gangavati-Kampli bus, telling the conductor that his relatives will collect the parcel. When nobody came to collect the parcel, the conductor opened it to see Renukamma’s body Police launched . an investigation based on the conductor’s complaint. Meanwhile, Hanumant fled Aldal and worked in neighbouring states for some years. He later moved to Atanur in Raichur district. He never visited Koppal for 23 years. He visited Aldal a few days ago, when he was arrested. Agniveers who participate in any international event or get gallantry medals, including the Sena Medal, will be inducted permanently into the services, as per a new document seen by this newspaper. They would be part of the 25% who make the cut for permanent induction after four years of serving as Agniveers. Over all, Agniveers will undergo four sets of evaluations. For context, the first batch of Agniveers are in their third round of assessment. “Agniveer recipients of the Sena medal and above like Ashok Chakra, Kirti Chakra, and Shaurya Chakra, will surely be retained as permanent soldiers,” the document says. These awards are given for exceptional acts of bravery cour, age or self-sacrifice. Those who get ‘Mention in Dispatches’ will get 25 extra marks. Mention in Dispatches is awarded for distinguished and meritorious service in operational areas and acts of gallantry, which are not of a suf- press clusive Three, two ka one Tests at the regimental centre include drill, physical test and firing. The recruits get three chances in each test; only the best score is uploaded in the data. In the subsequent phases of tests, they are given two chances ficiently high order to warrant gallantry awards. Similarly ex, tra marks will be given to Agniveers getting Commendation cards from the Chief, Army Commanders and the Corps Commanders. Besides, Agniveers recruited as sportspersons and others $38 bn participating in any international event will get permanent recruitment. Also, those participating in national events will be given 10 extra marks. Participation in services level events will give them six more marks in their assessment tests. The total assessment will be of 1,000 marks, which will have to be completed and entered in the data sheet three months prior to the Agniveers completing their four-year service period and returning home. As for the first batch, the assessment data entry has to be wrapped up by October 2026. Of the four levels of assessment, the first one will be within 31 weeks of the Agniveer’s induction; the second at 18 months; the third in 30 months and the last in 42 months, just six months before exiting the unit as Agniveer. To make it transparent, the first assessment is done at the regimental centre; the second and third at the unit; and the final one by the higher formation like the division/brigade under which the unit functions. sent home from US India was the top remittance recipient in 2024. Its total remittance receipts stood at $137.70 billion during 2024 (on a calendar year basis). As per an RBI report, 28% of India’s inward remittances came from the US – making it $38 billion j aya n t h j a c o b @ New Delhi President Donald Trump’s tax on outward remittance could pinch NRIs much less than was anticipated. In its latest update to its draft, the One Big Beautiful Bill Act seeks to impose a 1% levy against the earlier proposal of 3.5% on money sent overseas by non-US citizens. The bill had originally suggested a 5% tax, which was reduced to 3.5%, and now 1%. Senate Republicans released their updated draft of the proposed One Big Beautiful Bill Act on June 27 and have set a self-imposed deadline of July 4 to try to pass the bill. The updated Senate version significantly changes the remittance transfer provisions that were passed by House Republicans. Apart from proposing a muchreduced tax rate, the proposal exempts transfers from accounts held at banks and other financial institutions and also excludes transfers made via debit and credit cards issued in the United States. The remittance transfer tax will apply only to any remittance transfer for which the sender provides cash, a money order, a cashier’s check, or other similar physical instrument to the remittance transfer provider. This tax will apply to transfers made after December 31, 2025. “This should come as a huge relief to the NRI community in the US,” said Lloyd Pinto, Partner — US Tax, Grant Thornton Bharat. INDIA has imposed immediate restrictions on import of jute and allied fibre products from Bangladesh, reflecting growing tensions in bilateral relations. These new measures apply to all land and seaports across the country, with the exception of Nhava Sheva seaport in Maharashtra, a notification from the Directorate General of Foreign Trade (DGFT) said. However, these restrictions will not apply to goods exported by Bangladesh to Nepal and Bhutan. At the same time, the “re-export” of such Bangladeshi goods from Nepal or Bhutan into India “will not be allowed.” Under the South Asian Free Trade Area (SAFTA) agreement, Bangladesh’s jute exports currently enjoy duty-free access to the Indian market. Concerns, however, have persisted for years within the Indian jute industry about the adverse impact of dumped and subsidised imports, particularly jute yarn, fibre, woven fabrics, and bags originating from Bangladesh. “This has been putting Indian industry in disadvantageous position as there is credible evidence that Bangladeshi jute exports continue to benefit from subsidies by the government,” said a source. In response, the Directorate General of Anti-Dumping and Allied Duties had earlier imposed anti-dumping duties on jute and related goods from Bangladesh. But those duties didn’t work to India’s benefit as expected. 3, including cattle owner, held in tiger death case E x p r e s s N e w s Se r v i c e @ Mysuru Prime Minister Narendra Modi interacts with Group Captain Shubhanshu Shukla, aboard ISS | PTI Sky is never the limit, Shux tells PM from space B o s k y K h a nn a @ Bengaluru India’s Group Captain Shubanshu Shukla, who is also the mission pilot of the Axiom-4 mission, during his interaction with Prime Minister Narendra Modi, from the International Space Station (ISS), said: “Sky is never the limit, not for me, not for you, and not for the 140 crore Indians” – a progressive departure from the famed Indian Air Force motto, “Sky is the limit”. During the 18.05-minute-long conversation with the PM on Saturday, Shukla (call sign ‘Shux’) said the mission was a step towards India’s own Gaganyaan space mission scheduled for 2027, setting up the Bhartiya Antriksh Station (BAS) by 2035 and ISRO’s indigenous lunar manned mission by 2040. Shux explained to the PM that all the astronauts aboard the ISS hailing from different nationalities had already expressed their desire to visit the BAS when it is ready and up in space in future. “I am absorbing all that I’ve learnt during my year-long training and what I am now learning on the ISS like a sponge. This will help India in the upcoming missions,” Shukla told Modi, who gave him “homework” to do in space along with his seven scheduled experiments, which Shux will be undertaking as a part of the 14-day-long mission in the ISS.  CONTINUED ON P5 Now, India imposes jute import bar from B’desh D i pa k M o nd a l @ New Delhi poison-laced meat Forest officials have arrested three persons in connection with the deaths of five tigers in Male Mah a d e s h w a r a Wi l d l i f e Sanctuary . The arrested were identified as Kunappa, Madaraj and Nagaraj from Koppa village. The preliminary investigation revealed that the cow found dead near the carcasses of the tigress and her four cubs had been poisoned intentionally The owner of the cow . is Kunappa. Already, veterinarians, who were involved with the autopsy, had confirmed that the tiger deaths were due to consumption of meat laced with poison. The tigers were found dead anti-dumping near the Gajanur beat of Hoogyam range, close to Meenyam in the MM Hills Wildlife Sanctuary During the inves. tigation into one of the biggest wildlife tragedies in Karnataka, it was found that the cow belonged to Kunappa. The forest department staff, with the help of police, arrested him and two others from Kalagovi Doddi. The forest staff, while questioning around half-a-dozen local cowherds, found out about the involvement of Madaraj. They picked him up from his house, and he revealed the involvement of the other two. All of them are being interrogated. Officials from the forest department, National Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA) and a special investigation team have launched a deeper probe into the matter. Villagers, meanwhile, expressed their displeasure over forest officials not responding immediately when their cattle are killed by wild animals. They said they have lost over 10 cows in the last two months, but the officials have not visited the spot or recommended compensation. WITH THIS ISSUE The Sword Of David PLUS 12 P AGES express read Israeli strikes kill at least 72 people in Gaza 11-day Mysuru Dasara from September 22 Bihar 1st to have mobile e-voting in local polls Parag Jain appointed new chief of RAW Deir al-Balah (Gaza): Israeli strikes killed at least 72 people across Gaza overnight and into Saturday, health workers said. Meanwhile, US President Donald Trump has said there could be a ceasefire agreement within the next week. Bengaluru: Mysuru Dasara will be celebrated in a grand manner in Mysuru from September 22 to October 2, CM Siddaramaiah said on Saturday. This year, it is celebrated over 11 days, rather than the usual 10, due to a rare astronomical occurrence | P4 Patna: Bihar on Saturday became the first state to implement mobile phone-based e-voting during local body polls. State Election Commissioner Deepak Prasad said while 70.20% of the eligible voters used e-voting, 54.63% voted in polling booths. New Delhi: Parag Jain, one of the brains behind the meticulous planning of ‘Operation Sindoor’, has been appointed as the new Chief of the Research and Analysis Wing (RAW), according to an official order issued here on Saturday | P7 Woman accused of sexually harassing NIMHANS Northern campus gets Centre’s nod minor daughter, POCSO case filed E x p r e s s N e w s Se r v i c e @ Bengaluru E x p r e s s N e w s Se r v i c e @ Bengaluru RT Nagar police have registered a case under different Sections of the POCSO Act against a 45-year-old woman for allegedly sexually harassing her 15-year-old daughter. The case was registered on Friday based on a complaint by a counsellor of a private school. The victim is a Class 9 student there. The student is said to have told the counsellor about the harassment by her mother. “My mother used to sexually harass me stating that she is teaching me how I should behave with my husband after marriage,” she is said to have told the counsellor. The victim is alleged to have been harassed for the last six years. The accused works with a private firm and her husband lives separately. The victim goes to the school near her house. “The incident came to light after the victim’s counsellor reported the matter to us. The accused has not been arrested yet. She is being questioned. The counsellor is also being questioned,” said an officer investigating the case. THE Union Government has granted in-principle approval for the construction of a 300bed Post-Graduate Polytrauma Centre under the National Institute of Mental Health and Neurosciences (NIMHANS) at Kyalasanahalli near Kempegowda International Airport (KIA), Bengaluru. The facility estimated to cost , Rs 498 crore, is aimed at providing advanced emergency and trauma care to accident victims in and around the Bengaluru region. The approval was issued by the Department of Expenditure under the Union Ministry of Finance, following a proposal submitted by the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare (MoHFW). The land for the project, measuring 39 acres, had been allotted to NIMHANS in 2012-13, during the tenure of the BJP-led state government in Karnataka. The proposed facility will serve as NIMHANS’ Northern Campus and will include not just the trauma hospital, but also residential quarters for staff, hostels, guest houses, administrative blocks, and other support infrastructure. The Finance Ministry has laid down several conditions for the project. These include optimising manpower and infrastructure as recommended by NITI Aayog in its 2021 report, ensuring the trauma centre also caters to regular patients, and monitoring outputs and outcomes regularly for mid-course corrections. The ministry has also asked the Health Ministry to frame a long-term national policy for emergency and serious injury care. The Centre will provide critical care for patients suffering from multiple and complex injuries, particularly head, brain, chest, abdomen, and skeletal trauma, during the crucial “Golden Hour.”  CONTINUED ON P5