BHUBANESWAR l wednesday l October 22, 2025 l `9.00 l PAGES 12 l LATE CITY EDITION Sanae Takaichi wins historic vote, is Japan’s first woman pm Sanae Takaichi, a staunch conservative who admires Margaret Thatcher, became Japan’s first woman prime minister on Tuesday hardliner with eye on defence, economy The 64-year-old, who won the ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) leadership this month, has positioned herself as a hardliner focused on defence and economic security. After forging a last-minute coalition deal, Takaichi was appointed by parliament on Tuesday as the country’s first woman head of government and Japan’s fifth leader in as many years ■ 237 votary of aggressive monetary easing ■ Takaichi supports aggressive monetary easing and big fiscal spending, echoing her political mentor’s Shinzo Abe’s“Abenomics” policies, which, if implemented again, could rattle markets | P9 On tariffs, she said she won’t shy away from renegotiations with US if the deal is implemented in a way deemed harmful or unfair to Japan votes were won by takaichi, 4 more than a majority 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 Relief as $1L H-1B fee does not apply to US visa holders J AYAN T H J A C O B & P U S H P I TA D E Y @ New Delhi bhubaneswar New Delhi Heavy smog (L) near India Gate at dawn on Tuesday; A thick layer of smog engulfed Bhubaneswar on Monday night | Sayantan Ghosh/ DEBADATTA MALLICK Post-Diwali air quality in Delhi worst in 4 years Revellers flouted time limit for firecrackers PM2.5 Levels in Delhi I f r a h M u f t i @ New Delhi Despite a Supreme Court fiat and the Delhi government’s repeated appeals for a “Green Diwali”, the national capital woke up to a thick, suffocating haze the morning after the festival, as pollution levels shot through the roof across Delhi-NCR on Tuesday The city witnessed its . worst air quality since 2021, with PM2.5 levels zooming to 488 micrograms per cubic metre within 24 hours after Diwali—over three times the prefestival level of 156.6. PM2.5 represents the quantity of fine particles that easily penetrate the respiratory system. This year’s spike was the highest in five years (see graphic). Though the SC allowed bursting firecrackers only between 8-10 pm, crackers boomed till 2.30 am. By 6.05 am on Tuesday , the city’s overall AQI was 347, falling in the ‘very poor’ category Of the 37 air quality moni. toring stations, 34 recorded readings in the red zone — ‘very poor’ to ‘severe’. Last year, the AQI stood at 359 the morning after Diwali. Among the city’s 10 most polluted areas, Bawana topped the list with AQI of 418, followed by Wazirpur at 408 and Jahangirpuri at 404, all falling in the severe category. Slightly better, but still alarming, were Burari Crossing and Shadipur, both recording 393, and Ashok Vihar at 386, placing them in the very Pre-Diwali | 500 454.5 Post-Diwali Worse 488 than 2021 400 319.7 300 220 168 200 163.1 100 129.3 2021 204 92.9 2022 2023 156.6 2024 2025 Particulate Matter(PM)2.5 in µg/m³ poor range. Other localities like RK Puram (369), Rohini (367), and Vivek Vihar (367) also saw heaqy pollutants. As for the NCR, its overall average AQI was 388. Health experts raised alarms over the worsening situation. “Studies show pollution causes a 22–25% rise in heart, asthma, and bronchitis attacks,” said Dr G C Khilnani, chairman, PSRI Institute of Pulmonary, Critical Care and Sleep Medicine. A 2017 tweet by Delhi’s current CM Rekha Gupta resurfaced online: “My city is melting, it’s all smoke, in the air… So much poison, who is spewing it?” It went viral on Tuesday, capturing the city’s toxic irony . Toxic spike Capital sees three-fold deterioration in AQI, noise pollution surge S u d a r s a n M a h a r a n a @ Bhubaneswar The state capital witnessed a three-fold deterioration in air quality on Diwali on Monday as people burst firecrackers till late in the night, violating the two-hour limit set by the Odisha State Pollution Control Board (OSPCB). This apart, the city also witnessed large-scale noise pollution during the night as noise levels too, breached the norms and value -Leq dB(A) at multiple locations. A thick layer of smoke enveloped the city skyline in the night following Diwali celebrations, pushing the capital’s average Air Quality Index (AQI) from ‘moderate’ to ‘poor’. Such was the condition that many localities like Nayapalli, Old Town, Rasulgarh, Baramunda and Patia witnessed drastically reduced visibility . OSPCB officials said the level of Particulate Matter (PM) 2.5, a prominent air pollutant, increased nearly three times - from 117 micrograms per cubic metre (mg/m3) to 297 mg/m3. Palasuni and Capital Police Station areas recorded the highest level of pollution in the city as air quality in both these areas deteriorated to the ‘very poor’ category, with PM 2.5 levels of 362 mg/m3 and 354 mg/m3 respectively The quality of air in Unit VIII, Nayapalli and . Chandrasekharpur areas remained ‘moderately poor’ to ‘poor’, with PM 2.5 remaining in the range of 200 mg/m3 to 253 mg/m3 In Palasuni, the air quality was moderate with a PM 2.5 level of around 167 mg/m3 on pre-Diwali night of October 14 and 20. Similarly, air quality in Capital Police Staion area was satisfactory with PM 2.5 measuring only 97 mg/m3 during the period. Meanwhile, the noise monitoring data of OSPCB showed that Leq dB(A) of Saheed Nagar, Mancheswar Industrial Estate and Nayapalli areas remained 79 on Diwali night (6 pm to 10 pm) against the standard Leq dB(A) of 70, 55 and 45 respectively , for these localities. Expressing concern over the city’s deteriorated air quality environmental experts warned that such , alarming rise in pollution level poses immediate health risks, especially to children, elderly and those already having respiratory issues. Officials of the pollution control board said prolonged exposure to such high levels of air pollution can lead to longterm respiratory complications.  Continued on P5 A month after US President Donald Trump’s proclamation jacking up the fee for H1-B visas to a steep $100,000 caused panic among international students and professionals, the US government has now clarified that the fee won’t apply to current visa holders and recent international graduates. In a detailed clarification issued on Monday, the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) said the fee will not be applicable to those already in the country seeking a ‘change of status’ or an ‘extension of stay’. The fee is only applicable to petitions filed on or after 12:01 am ET on September 21, 2025, for beneficiaries outside the US without a valid H-1B visa, or those requesting consular processing. While the September 21 Presidential proclamation created confusion regarding the entry of professionals to the US, the USCIS confirmed that the proclamation does not impact Proclamation applies to new H-1B petitions filed on or after September 21, 2025, on behalf of beneficiaries who are outside the US and do not have a valid H-1B visa — USCIS statement travel for current H-1B visa holders or those with an approved change of status petition. Importantly, USCIS said that even those with expired F-1 or H-1B visas who depart the US and later return on an approved petition will not be subject to the fee, provided their original petition was filed before the September 21 cutoff date. The update offers long-awaited clarity to thousands of skilled foreign workers and international graduates navigating an already complex immigration landscape in the US. Healthcare professionals, workers under national interest waivers (such as those in defence), and employees of universities, nonprofit research institutions, and government research bodies are believed to fall under exempt categories, though further clarification is expected. Students go to the US as F1 visa holders and later transition to H1B through employer sponsorship. International students in the US, especially from STEM fields, can work fo r u p t o t h re e ye a r s a f t e r graduation. According to the Open Doors report for 2023-24, there are over 3.3 lakh Indian students in the US and 95% of them are enrolled in post graduate courses or PhD programmes. Indians, who continue to form the largest group of international students in the US alongside the country’s tech professionals, are one of the biggest beneficiaries of H-1B visas. According to US administration data, Indians account for nearly 70% of new H-1B visa allocations, followed by Chinese nationals at 11–12%. Gajapati rejects ISKCON’s alibi on untimely Rath Yatras worldwide as per the temple schedule during the nine-day period comWITH ISKCON reluctant to host its mencing on Asadha Shukla Paksha Rath Yatra in overseas countries as Dwitiya ‘tithi’. per the tradition of Shree In his response, chairJagannath temple in Puri, man of ISKCON governing Gajapati Maharaja Dibyasbody commission (GBC) ingha Deb in a strong wordGovardhan Dasa on Suned letter on Tuesday asked day said that government the organisation to honour authorities in the West althe sacred scriptures and low processions only on traditions followed at weekends to avoid disrupSrimandir. tion of commercial funcThe move comes after tioning of cities. Even if ISKCON agreed to advise such per missions are There can be no all its temples to celebrate valid justification granted, he added that the for celebrating Snana Yatra on Snana volunteers who facilitate Rath Yatra - the Purnima ‘tithi’, both in the Rath Yatra and particiand outside India, and greatest and most pants are unable to attend Rath Yatra as per Srimand- sacred festival of owing to professional comLord Jagannath ir schedule within the on just about any mitments during the country, but expressed in- day of the year on week. ability to align the internaDasa further reasoned one pretext or tional Rath Yatras with the that most temples in the another Puri ‘tithi’. West do not have their own Gajapati Maharaja The Shree Jagannath chariots and hence, the Dibyasingha Deb Temple Managing Comsame chariot travels from mittee, through chairman one city to another to faGajapati Maharaj, submitted a re- cilitate the festival. Also, some citport prepared by Srimandir schol- ies are in the midst of cold winters ars in September to ISKCON on during the Rath Yatra tithi in Puri, Continued on P5 why Rath Yatra must be celebrated he said.  D i a n a S a h u @ Bhubaneswar At least 30 rebels give NDA, Oppn a headache RA M A S HAN K AR @ Patna Vance says Gaza truce exceeds expectations US Vice President JD Vance on Tuesday visited a newly opened center in Israel for civilian and military cooperation that he called central to keeping the USbacked ceasefire plan for Gaza on track | P9 REBEL and independent candidates may spin the poll arithmetic for both the ruling NDA and the Opposition Mahagathbandhan in the Bihar Assembly elections, scheduled in two phases on November 6 and 11. As many as 30 rebels and independents are contesting in the first phase of the 243-member Assembly polls. Several aspirants who have been denied tickets have joined smaller outfits like the Jan Suraaj Party of Prashant Kishor or entered the fray as independents. The nominations of Shashi Bhushan Singh, sitting MLA from Sugauli (East Champaran), and Seema Singh of the LJP (Ram Vilas) from Marhaura (Saran), were cancelled due to technical reasons. Singh had filed papers as a Vikassheel Insaan Party (VIP) candidate — one of the INDIA bloc allies — while LJP (RV) is part of the NDA. Discontent, as per sources, simmers within both alliances. In the NDA, many have turned rebels. JD(U) MLA N a re n d r a Ku m a r Neeraj, alias Gopal BJP-JD(U) pressuring candidates: kishor Jan Suraaj Party founder Prashant Kishor on Tuesday alleged that three of his party candidates for the upcoming Bihar Assembly elections withdrew their nomination papers under “pressure” from the ruling BJP-JD(U) combine | P8 Mandal, is contesting as an Independent from Gopalpur, which he has represented four times. The JD(U) has fielded for mer MP Shailesh Kumar, alias Bulo Mandal, from the seat. Similarly BJP MLA Rashmi Verma , is fighting as an Independent from Narkatiaganj. Several Patna constituen- cies—Digha, Patna Sahib, Kumharar, Maner, Paliganj, Danapur, Bikram, and Barh— are witnessing intra-alliance resistance. In Digha, BJP MLA Sanjeev Chaurasia faces JD(U) rebel Ritesh Ranjan Singh of Jan Suraaj and CPI(ML) Liberation’s Divya Gautam. In Parihar, Ritu Jaiswal, who had unsuccessfully contested 2020 assembly election, has turned an RJD rebel. She has filed her nomination against RJD’s Smita Purbe, daughter-in-law of former RJD state chief Ram Chandra Purbe. More reports: P8 Tata Trusts reappoints Venu Srinivasan for life B E NN K O C HU V E E D AN @ Mumbai Tata Trusts, which owns and controls the $180-billion Tata empire, has ‘unanimously’ reappointed Venu Srinivasan, chairman emeritus of the TVS Group, as a trustee for life. With the reappointment of Srinivasan, 73, ahead of his term expiring on October 23, the focus now shifts to the upcoming decision on Mehli Mistry, whose trusteeship expires on October 28. The develop- Venu Srinivasan ment comes amid reports of a vertical split within Tata Trusts, with one faction aligning with Noel Tata, who took over as chairman following Ratan Tata’s death, and the other comprising loyalists of the former doyen. Mehli Mistry is the younger brother of late Cyrus Mistry and Noel is married to their sister Aloo Mistry. Mehli was brought on board by Ratan Tata during the crisis following Cyrus Mistry’s sacking in October 2016. “Renewal and fresh appointment is required to be unanimous according to past practice of the trusts. Renewal, after which it will be for life, requires unanimous approval,” a source said.