hyderabad l tuesday l august 19, 2025 l `9.00 l PAGES 16 l LATE CITY EDITION India’s job market shows relief as unemployment rate falls A government survey on Monday said the unemployment rate dipped to 5.2 per cent in July, down from 5.6 per cent in June marginal rise in urban youth joblessness labour participation rate sees a spike The Periodic Labour Force Survey released by the Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation said the pace of joblessness among men stayed slightly higher at 5.3 per cent compared to that of women at 5.1 per cent. The rate of unemployment in urban areas for 15-29 age group saw a marginal increase to 19 per cent in July from 18.8 per cent June | P10 ■ ■ The Labour Force Participation Rate among persons of all age groups rose to 41.4 per cent in July 2025 as compared to 41 per cent in June In rural areas, the Labour Force Participation Rate of all age groups was 42 per cent, as against 41.5 per cent in the preceding month. In urban areas, it was 40.1 per cent in July, up from 39.8 per cent in June 89,505 Households were covered by The periodic labour force survey 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 INDIA parties mull impeaching CEC p r eet h a n a i r @ New Delhi AS the face–off between the Election Commission Of India (ECI) and the Opposition intensifies over allegations of ‘vote theft’ and poll rigging, the INDIA bloc on Monday said it is mulling an impeachment motion against Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Gyanesh Kumar. The move comes a day after the CEC asked Rahul Gandhi, leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha, to either file an affidavit substantiating his vote theft allegations or apologise. The pro- Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy lays the foundation stone for the Sardar Sarvai Papanna Goud statue, on Tank Bund in Hyderabad on Monday TG too a victim of ‘vote chori’: CM E x p r e s s N e w s Se r v i c e @ Hyderabad Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy on Monday alleged that “vote theft” is taking place across the country including in , Telangana. Addressing the gathering at the Tank Bund, where he laid the foundation stone for a statue of Sardar Sarvai Papanna Goud, the chief minister said: “Nobody has the right to steal votes. Conspiracies are happening in Telangana too. People should verify whether their votes are valid.” Revanth announced that he, along with Deputy Chief Minister Mallu Bhatti Vikramarka, would join Rahul Gandhi’s “Voter Adhikar Yatra” in Bihar. He accused the BJP of manipulating election results in Maharashtra and claimed that one crore bogus votes were added within four months between the Lok Sabha and Assembly polls. Revanth also referred to the deletion of 65 lakh votes in Bihar, accusing the Election Commission of India of failing to address questions raised by the Congress. Arguing with cops not obstruction of duty: HC T G N a i d u @ Hyderabad The Telangana High Court on Monday made it clear that the police cannot invoke Section 353 of the IPC against anyone for merely arguing with them, as it does not amount to “obstruction of public servants in the discharge of their duties”. Justice Anil Kumar Jukanti observed that Section 353 applies only when there is assault or use of criminal force on a public servant with the intention of deterring him from performing official duties. “Mere arguments cannot be brought under its ambit,” the judge stated. The court was hearing a petition filed by Akkineni Rajasekhar, against whom the Mangapet police registered a case under Section 353 IPC after he argued with a constable who intervened in a land dispute between him and his neighbour. The judge said that stretching the scope of Section 353 to cover arguments would amount to misuse of law. The chief minister also accused Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union Minister G Kishan Reddy of blocking his government’s move to raise the BC quota to 42%. “The two bills passed by the Assembly to provide 42% quota to BCs have been pending before the Centre for five months,” he stated. “There are no religion-based reservations in this country. Let BJP and BRS leaders prove that even 0.1 per cent of reservations for Muslims exists in the bills sent to the President,” Revanth challenged. He pointed out that Muslim reservations have been implemented in BJP-ruled states since the 1970s. The chief minister also criticised the 2018 Panchayat Raj Act, introduced by his predecessor K Chandrasekhar Rao, for capping reservations at 50%, calling it a hurdle in implementing higher quotas. Asserting that his government was committed to implementing promises made by Rahul Gandhi, Revanth said conducting the caste census was one of the main assurances given by the Congress. posal for an impeachment motion was discussed at the INDIA bloc meeting on Monday morning. Several Opposition leaders met in the chamber of Mallikarjun Kharge, leader of Opposition in Rajya Sabha, and held discussions on how the CEC on Sunday addressed a press conference without answering any of the questions raised by them, according to a leader who attended the meeting. The Opposition also decided not to cooperate with the gov- ernment on the special discussion on the impact of astronaut Shubhanshu Shukla’s space mission. The Lok Sabha is having a two-day special discussion on the issues. Some opposition MPs said they feel this fight has to be taken forward and suggested an impeachment motion against the CEC, sources said. Addressing a joint press conference on Monday representa, tives of eight opposition parties including Congress, TMC, SP DMK and RJD hit out at the , Trump floats security guarantee for Ukraine Signals flexibility on NATO role; Putin briefs Modi on Alaska summit JAYA N T H JACOB @ New Delhi US President Donald Trump on Monday said Washington would ensure any future peace agreement between Ukraine and Russia “works”, offering what he described as “very good protection” for Ukraine but left open the question of whether NATO would play a central role. In a high-stakes Oval Office meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, Trump signalled his willingness to support long-term security guarantees. “We’ll give them good protection,” he said, though when pressed on whether that would resemble NATO’s Article 5 collective defence commitment, he replied: “It hasn’t been discussed yet.” Zelenskyy, asked what guarantees he needed, replied: “Everything” from equipment to intelligence. But the most striking development came near the end of the meeting, when Trump announced he would be speaking to Vladimir Putin again soon, following discussions with European leaders also gathered at Zelenskyy’s wife writes to Melania In a curious development, Zelenskyy delivered a personal letter from his wife Olena to First Lady Melania Trump, thanking her for all the good efforts to help return Ukrainian children taken to Russia the White House. The call would mark his second direct engagement with the Russian leader in four days, an indication that Trump is attempting to personally steer negotiations toward a resolution. “I just met with Zelenskyy, and we covered a lot of territory,” Trump said. “I plan to speak with President Putin again later today .” That statement reframed the day’s diplomacy Trump’s move . to keep direct lines open with Moscow even as European leaders, including UK Prime Minister Sir Keir Star mer and French President Emmanuel Macron, advocate a tougher approach underscores his central role in shaping the next phase of the conflict. “I don’t think you need a ceasefire to end the war,” Trump said—a position more closely aligned with Moscow’s narrative than Kyiv’s. Earlier in the day, Russian President Vladimir Putin called Prime Minister Narendra Modi to brief him on his recent meeting with US President Donald Trump in Alaska. Putin’s telephone call to Modi—their second call in the past 10 days—came amid mounting pressure from the US over India’s continued purchase of Russian oil. During the call with Modi, Putin shared his take on his meeting with Trump and Modi responded by reaffirming India’s position: support for a peaceful resolution to the Ukraine conflict through dialogue and diplomacy  . P9 CEC, alleging that instead of responding to questions raised by them, he chose to attack them at his presser on Sunday . TMC’s Mahua Moitra said the Lok Sabha should be dissolved as the last elections were held on “faulty” voter list. When the Lok Sabha met at 11 am on Monday, opposition MPs, including those from the Congress, were on their feet, raising slogans and showing placards with demand for discussion on the Special Intensive Revision in Bihar. Speaker Om Birla adjourned the House following the bedlam. We’re not afraid of poll panel’s threat: Rahul Patna: A day after chief election commissioner asked Rahul Gandhi to submit an affidavit on his vote theft slur or apologise in a week, the Congress leader on Monday said he was not afraid of such threats | P7 BJP throws a dare at opposition parties New Delhi: BJP spokesperson Sambit Patra on Monday dared INDIA bloc parties to dissolve state assemblies where they are in power if they doubt the Election Commission’s fairness. INDIA bloc Vice-Prez pick to be decided today P r eet h a N a i r @ New Delhi THE Opposition INDIA bloc is likely to announce its candidate for the Vice Presidential election on Tuesday afternoon. According to sources, though top leaders of the bloc discussed a few names at a Zoom meeting on Monday the final call will be taken on Tuesday , . “A meeting of leaders of all Opposition parties in Parliament will be held at 12.30 PM Tuesday Aug 19 at 10, Rajaji Marg,” wrote Congress leader Jairam Ramesh on X. Sources said names that came up in the meeting include former ISRO scientist and Padma Shri awardee M Annadurai and Tushar Gandhi, great grandson of Mahatma Gandhi; and DMK leader M Annadurai. The Opposition’s candidate will be vying with NDA pick Maharashtra Governor C P Radhakrishnan. Sources said the Opposition wants to field a non-political face who has national standing and stature senior DMK leaders have proposed the name of M Annadurai, who hails from Tamil Nadu and is well respected, for the vice-president’s post. IMD issues red alert for rain in Konkan, parts of Southern India New Delhi: The IMD on Monday issued a ‘red alert’ for extremely heavy rains in the next 24 hours in Central and Southern India along with the Western Ghats. The alert said there was a risk of flash floods in Maharashtra, South Interior Karnataka, and isolated areas of Chhattisgarh. The IMD forecast indicates a higher possibility of extremely heavy rainfall over coastal Andhra Pradesh, southern Chhattisgarh, southern Odisha, Telangana, South Interior Karnataka, the Konkan region (including Mumbai), Goa, the Western Ghats area of Madhya Maharashtra, and coastal Karnataka and Gujarat in the next two days. IMD’s bulletin predicted flash floods over several watersheds in north Interior Karnataka, Telangana, Konkan-Goa, and Maharashtra in the next 24 hours. Besides, there is a low to moderate risk of flash floods in some watersheds in south Chhattisgarh, Vidarbha, and Marathwada during the same period. Bharat Future City to be spread over 765 sq km E x p r e s s N e w s Se r v i c e @ Hyderabad The Telangana government is moving ahead with plans to develop Bharat Future City a , 765 sq km urban-industrial hub in south Hyderabad, under the supervision of the Future City Development Authority (FCDA). The project is the brainchild of Chief Minister A Reva n t h Reddy . Officials said the project, being implemented by the Telangana State Industrial Infrastructure Corporation (TGIIC) with master planning support from an international consul- tancy, is aimed at creating a model for sustainable and inclusive urbanisation. The zones are designed to include artificial intelligence, life sciences, electronics manufacturing, electric vehicles, energy storage, tourism, entertainment, film production, health, and knowledge infrastructure. The state government has described Future City as India’s first net-zero smart industrial city designed to ac, commodate a population of over a million with integrated industrial clusters, housing, and civic infrastructure. The city will feature a “Live, E x p r e s s Re a d 5 electrocuted during Janmashtami festivities Hyderabad: Five people died and four others were injured after a chariot touched a live wire during a Sri Krishna Janmashtami procession in Ramanthapur, Uppal, on Sunday night. The chariot broke down near its endpoint. As devotees pushed the chariot forward, it brushed a dangling cable connected to overhead power lines | P3 AI-powered citizen services in TG by 2027: Sridhar Hyderabad: The state government is committed to delivering AI-powered citizen services to one crore people by 2027, said IT and Industries Minister D Sridhar Babu on Monday. He was speaking after inaugurating a three-day training programme for government officials at the Dr MCR HRD Institute on Monday. The event is being organised by the Emerging Technologies Wing of the IT department | P4 Learn, Work, Play” framework, with walk-to-work residential clusters near reserve forests, as well as hotels and resorts to support tourism. Connectivity will be provided through an internal metro line and Bus Rapid Transit Systems. The government said the project is structured to attract international funding from agencies such as JICA, the World Bank and the AIIB. The FCDA’s jurisdiction covers land parcels around the Outer Ring Road, Srisailam Highway, and Nagarjunasagar Highway, with a direct route to the Rajiv Gandhi International Airport. wangON yi In India TWO-DAY VISIT The Chinese foreign minister on Monday held talks with External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar, who called for “a candid and constructive approach” to reset ties. Wang will meet National Security Adviser Ajit Doval on Tuesday | P7 An AI-generated representative picture of Bharat Future City Girl, 10 murdered at home in busy Kukatpally locality E x p r e s s N e w s Se r v i c e @ Hyderabad A 10-year-old girl was found murdered in her home in Sangeetnagar, Kukatpally on Mon, day afternoon. The girl, a Class VI student, had stayed back at home as her school declared a holiday while , her parents went to work and her younger brother to school. Around 12.30 pm, her father, a bike mechanic, returned to pick up a lunchbox for the boy . What he discovered instead was his daughter’s body on the cot, with multiple stab wounds. He immediately alerted the police. The Kukatpally police rushed to the spot and pressed into service a dog squad and clues team. The body was shifted to Gandhi Hospital for postmortem examination. Police said the mother, who works as a lab technician, had prepared lunch in the morning and asked the girl to hand it over to her brother at the school. However, the boy’s teacher later informed her that no lunchbox had been delivered. On learning this, the father went home to collect it himself. The family lives in the penthouse of a building that has no CCTV surveillance. A board outside the gate makes it clear that delivery personnel are not allowed inside. Those ordering food or packages must come down to collect them. According to police, the parents have not named any suspects so far. The investigators have collected CCTV footage from surrounding areas. A source told TNIE that the police are trying to determine who entered the penthouse when no outsiders were usually allowed inside and if the killer was someone known to the family .