THIRUVANANTHAPURAM l friday l july 11, 2025 l `9.00 l PAGES 16 l LATE city EDITION all government offices to display ‘oil and sugar boards’ Under the initiative of the health ministry, these informative boards will list the amount of sugar and oil in food items and their health hazards fssai, icmr roped in for model healthy meal The ministry has asked the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) and the Indian Council of Medical Research-National Institute of Nutrition (ICMR-NIN), which have prepared these ‘sugar and oil boards’, to suggest a model healthy meal that can be served in canteens and eateries of public institutions, instead of the greasy, oily and sugary meals ■ 20% limits daily sugar intake to 25 grams ■ The boards recommend that people consume only 27-30 gm of fat every day and that their sugar intake should not exceed 25 gm per person per day for adults and 20 gm for children | P7 The fiat comes after CBSE directed all its schools to establish ‘sugar boards’ to educate students about perils of excessive sugar or oil of adults in urban areas are overweight or obese as per NFHS-5 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 SUCHITR A K A LYA N M O H A N TY @ New Delhi Chandran KR, counsel for ‘Save Nimisha Priya International Action Council’ | PTI Urgent hearing to save Nimisha Priya on July 14 SUCHITR A K A LYA n M O H A N TY @ New Delhi THE Supreme Court on Thursday agreed to hear on July 14 a plea seeking immediate direction to the Centre to use diplomatic channels to save Indian nurse Nimisha Priya, 38, who is likely to be executed in Yemen on July 16 for murder charges. The petitioner, Save Nimisha Priya International Action Council (SNPIAC), moved the court seeking its immediate intervention. A bench of justices Sudhanshu Dhulia and Joymalya Bagchi listed the matter for hearing on July 14 after Subhash Chandran K R, counsel for SNPIAC, argued that diplomatic channels needed to be explored at the earliest. He submitted that the option Nimisha Priya of payment of blood money to the family of the deceased can be explored. The family of the deceased may pardon the Kerala nurse if blood money is paid, he submitted. The bench asked the counsel to serve a copy of the petition to the Attorney General and sought his assistance. Quoting media reports, Subhash said since Priya’s execution is scheduled for July 16, the Centre should immediately intervene to save her life. Priya, who hails from Palakkad in Kerala, was found guilty by a court in Yemen of murdering Talal Abdo Mahdi in 2017.  P5 The Supreme Court on Thursday asked the Election Commission of India (ECI) to consider Aadhaar card, voter ID card and ration card as acceptable documents in the ongoing Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls in Bihar ahead of the upcoming assembly polls in the state. Refusing to stay the voter list revision, a bench comprising justices Sudhanshu Dhulia and Joymalya Bagch called the SIR a “constitutional mandate” and permitted the ECI to continue the exercise. The court took on record the poll panel’s submission that the list of 11 documents it put out on June 24 to prove citizenship in Bihar was illustrative, nor exhaustive. “In our prima facie view, since the list is not exhaustive, it will be in the interest of justice if the ECI will also consider the Aadhaar card, Electoral citizenship check ambit “Isn’t it too late now for that?” asks Justice Dhulia on the timing of citizenship verification 1 Bench wonders whether the issue of citizenship falls within the Election Commission’s jurisdiction Photo Identity Card issued by the Election Commission and the ration card,” the bench said. This, the court said, was a suggestion, not a direction. “If you have good reason to discard Aadhaar, you do it, but give reasons,” it added. While asking the ECI to file its counter-affidavit by July 21, the court fixed the case for further hearing on July 28. The bench was hearing a batch of petitions challenging the SIR in Bihar. It observed that the petitions raised an im- 2 ECI says Aadhaar is for identity verification, not citizenship proof. But citizenship check is govt’s job, says SC 3 Poll panel argues it has role as the Representation of the People Act, 1950 mandates that one must be a citizen to vote portant question which goes to the root of the functioning of democracy — the right to vote. “We are of the prima facie opinion that three issues are involved in this case: (a) The very powers of the Election Commission to undertake the exercise; (b) The procedure and the manner in which the exercise is being undertaken, and (c) The timing, including the timings given for the preparation of draft electoral roll, asking objections and making the final electoral roll etc, which Indian negotiators to visit US again to resume trade talks D IPA K M O N D A L @ New Delhi With the Trump administration’s deadline for imposing higher import tariffs on its trading partners shifted to August 1, Indian trade negotiators are likely to visit the US again to iron out the differences and seal a deal, government sources said. India was expecting to sign an interim trade deal with the US ahead of the earlier deadline of July 9 but could not, due to differences over tariff rates on agriculture, dairy, and automobiles. The government decided to send the trade negotiators Trade Ag reement. again after the earlier “Whatever will be finteam led by Rajesh ished, we can package Agrawal, special secreit as an interim deal tary, Department of and for the rest, talks Commerce, returned will continue,” said an without a deal in official. Rajesh Agrawal, hand. While US President chief negotiator The dates for the Donald Trump has team’s next been claiming that a US visit have not deal with India would be signed been finalised, but it soon, finance ministry sources could be sometime say talks so far have hit a next week. Accord- deadlock. ing to sources, the InOfficials say the Indian side dian government is trying to has been guarding against any negotiate a “complete deal” tariff reduction on agriculture and it is not differentiating be- and dairy products. Tariff on tween an interim deal and the automobiles is also said to be first phase of the Bilateral one of the contentious issues. are very short, considering the fact that the Bihar elections are due in November 2025 and notifications for this elections will come in advance weeks earlier,” the bench said. While questioning the ECI on the timing of the SIR, the court rejected the argument of the petitioners that the poll panel did not have any power to carry it out. When senior lawyer, Rakesh Dwivedi, appearing for the ECI said Aadhaar wasn’t a proof of citizenship, the bench rebutted, saying the ECI had nothing to do with citizenship, as the matter is in the domain of the home ministry . The court asked the ECI why it started the SIR so close to the Bihar polls. There is nothing wrong with SIR but it should have been done months before the election, it said. Senior lawyer Gopal Sankarnarayanan, appearing for one of the petitioners, argued that the SIR drive was completely arbitrary and discriminatory . Nipah hunt intensified in Kerala Forest department has joined hands with the National Institute of Virology (NIV) in a mission to identify the source of the deadly Nipah virus in the state | P4 Job scam: CB probe on into recruitment firm Kochi: The crime branch has launched a probe into a Mangaluru-based overseas recruitment firm accused of cheating several people across Kerala of their money after offering them job opportunities in the United Kingdom | P5 Principal stabbed to death by 2 students Chandigarh: Two Class XII students allegedly stabbed their school principal to death in Haryana’s Hisar district Thursday — on Guru Purnima — after he asked them to get a haircut and follow school discipline | P8 16 pages, including 4 pages of THIRUVANANTHAPURAM Express marooned A man looks at a waterlogged subway at Rajiv Chowk after heavy rainfall in Gurugram, Haryana, on Thursday | PTI The revised rank list of KEAM engineering entrance exam, that was published late on Thursday after reverting to the old mark standardisation formula following a High Court directive, saw state syllabus students losing out top spots compared to the rank list brought out on July 1. While a state syllabus student was the engineering entrance topper in the previous rank list, his position slipped to No 7 in the new rank list. The top spot in the revised rank list went to a CBSE syllabus student who was ranked fifth in the previous rank list. CBSE students also bagged the top six ranks. However, the seventh and eighth spots were bagged by students from the state syllabus. While 43 state syllabus students figured in top 100 ranks in the July 1 rank list, the revised rank list saw their numbers dwindling to 21. On the other hand, the number of CBSE students among the top 100 ranks rose from 55 to 79. Among the top 5,000 spots in the new rank list, there were 1,796 state syllabus students. Notably their number , was 2,539 in the July 1 rank list. The number of CBSE students in this category rose E x p r e s s N e w s Se r v i c e On the back foot over MP Shashi Tharoor’s blistering article on the Emergency and the Nehru-Gandhi legacy Congress , leaders in Kerala have sought to distance themselves from the controversy, choosing instead to put the ball firmly in the court of the party’s central leadership. In the sharply worded article, which appeared on some news websites, Tharoor termed the 21-month Emergency (1975–77) a “dark period” in India’s democratic history and accused former prime minister Indira Gandhi of authoritarian overreach. He went further, calling out her son Sanjay Gandhi for “terrible atrocities” such as forced sterilisation and the use of violence in rural areas. Tharoor wrote that the period “severely tested the fundamental guarantees of equality, liberty, and fraternity” and left a lasting scar on Indian politics. Leader of Opposition V D Satheesan acknowledged that he had read the article and hinted at his disapproval. However, Satheesan made it clear that he would not publicly comment on the matter. “He (Tharoor) is a Congress Working Committee member. So, it’s up to the central leadership to comment. I have my opinion about the article, and if I have any concerns, I will raise them directly with the high command,” he said in Kochi. UDF convenor and senior leader Adoor Prakash echoed this line, calling on senior leaders to show restraint. “He is a senior AICC Working Committee member. It’s for the AICC to respond. Leaders must act within the party’s framework and be mindful of their responsibilities,” he said.  ● More on P4 m o r e th a n hi s to r y Tech-help: Visually impaired fans go app & mobile at Lord’s F i r o z M i r z a @ London Imagine an app cloning the whole stadium, compressing data of every corner, stairs, balconies and concourse for a visually impaired person to use and wander about more relaxingly All the information in the . palm of their hands (mobile phones to be precise) with a guiding voice in the ears. That’s how Lord’s has become more disabled-friendly when it introduced the visually-impaired apps this Summer. Now, the fans can not just listen to commentary but can feel and soak in the atmosphere of a game with more ease. At a time when even basic amenities for fans at stadiums across India seem to be a far cry , Lord’s, the Home of Cricket, in London has introduced this novel feature to make it more disable-friendly. The Marylebone Cricket Board (MCC), which runs the stadi- um, in collaboration with Waymap has installed a personal navigation system to help specially-abled fans to their seats and other amenities. The technology was tested ahead of the third Test between England and London last month and is now operational. The MCC also runs ball by ball commentary that allows fans to follow the game. “We hope that the introduction of Waymap at the home of cricket breaks down some of the barriers currently being faced by visually impaired fans,” Cel- root, nitish share honours on day 1 On a traditional, attritional day of red-ball cricket, India picked up timely wickets on a hot London day. England set the platform, thanks to a typically composed innings from Joe Root. Nitesh Reddy took 2 wkts | P11 Toppers So v i V i d yad h a r an @ T’Puram Joshua Jacob Thomas from Thiruvananthapuram is the state topper in the revised rank list. Hari Krishnan from Ernakulam and Emil Iype Sacharia from Thiruvananthapuram clinched the second and third spots, respectively. All of them had an overall score of 588.5773 / 600. THE RANK FLIP FLOP Category State CBSE Syllabus Top 10 2 8 Top 100 21 79 1,796 2,960 Top 10 5 5 Top 100 43 55 2,539 2,220 Top 5,000 Top 5,000 from 2,220 in the previous ranklist to 2,960 in the revised one. Earlier in the day, a division bench of the High Court upheld a single judge’s order cancelling the KEAM 2025 results. The state government decided not to approach the Supreme Court against the High Court verdict on the grounds that the engineering admission process has to be completed by August 14, as stipulated by the All India Council For Technical Edu● More on P4 cation.  Tharoor’s ‘Emergency’ Amit Shah flak: State Cong leaders to arrive in Kerala today put ball in AICC court @ Kochi/T’Puram express read KEAM revised rank list out; state syllabus students lose top spots July 10 list SC asks ECI to consider Aadhaar, voter ID, ration card as acceptable documents for proof July 1 list No stay on Bihar roll revision engg Entrance Exam so Zuccollo, the chief executive of Waymap, told this daily “Our . partnership with Lord’s cricket ground is improving the matchday experience for all visitors and we’re extremely proud of the positive impact this has on accessibility for all within our first sporting venue.” He said the wayfinding app is a highlyaccurate personal navigation system which offers step-by-step audio and on-screen instructions. The company mapped the venue using Lidar technology . Sachin Tendulkar rings the bell before the third Test on Thursday | AFP E x p r e s s N e w s Se r v i c e @ T’Puram Union Home Minister Amit Shah will reach Kerala for a two-day visit on Friday. Shah, who is expected to land at the Thiruvananthapuram airport around 10pm by a special flight, will attend various events on Saturday. He will inaugurate the BJP’s new state headquarters at Aristo Junction in the morning. Following this, he will address a massive gathering of booth-level party workers at Putharikandam ground. Senior BJP leaders said around 30,000 workers from Thiruvananthapuram, Kollam, Pathanamthitta, and Alappuzha districts are expected to attend the meeting. “Around 12,000 of them will be from Thiruvananthapuram alone. Lunch arrangements have been made for all attendees,” said a party functionary overseeing the preparations. After completing his engagements in the state capital, Shah will fly to Kannur. The minister, who is expected to reach the Kannur airport by 3pm, will visit the Thaliparamba Rajarajeswari Temple around 4 pm. Shah is likely to return to Delhi on Saturday night. In view of his visit, police have stepped up security across event venues and transit points in Thiruvananthapuram and Kannur, deploying additional personnel and intensifying surveillance. With local body and assembly elections around the corner, Shah’s visit is expected to energise party workers and sharpen the BJP’s electoral messaging in the state.