kannur l friday l october 24, 2025 l `9.00 l PAGES 12 l city EDITION Digital payments made up 99.7% transactions by volume in 2024 Digital payments accounted for 99.7% of total transactions by volume and 97.5% by value in 2024, the RBI said in a report on Thursday Trend continues in first half of 2025 UPI accounts for 85% of transactions There were 20,849 crore digital transactions in 2024, up from 3,248 crore in 2019, the RBI said in its half-yearly Payment System Report. In terms of value, I2,830 lakh crore was transacted through digital payment systems in 2024, up from I1,775 lakh crore in 2019. The transaction volume for the first half of 2025 stood at 12,549 crore, amounting to I1,572 lakh crore ■ ■ In terms of volume, UPI accounted for the largest share at 85% during the first half of 2025. Digital payments include NEFT, IMPS, RTGS, NACH, debit and credit cards, prepaid instruments and UPI Payments using debit cards have declined since 2019. In contrast, the value of credit card transactions have surged nearly 200% A143.3 lakh cr the value of all UPI transactions made in the first half of 2025 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 Tejashwi is INDIA bloc’s CM face, Sahani deputy Announcement after Gehlot-Lalu meet; no word yet on seat-sharing R A M A S H A NK A R @ Patna After weeks of hectic parleys, the opposition INDIA bloc on Thursday declared Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) leader Tejashwi Prasad Yadav its chief ministerial candidate for the upcoming Bihar elections. Cong ress leader Ashok Gehlot announced the decision at a press meet in Patna, a day after he and party’s state incharge Krishna Allavaru met RJD chief Lalu Prasad and Tejashwi to end the stalemate over seat-sharing and ‘friendly fight’ in a few seats. However, in the press meet, there was no announcement of any seat-sharing deal. Gehlot, who has been camping in Patna since Wednesday, said Vikassheel Insaan Party (VIP) chief Mukesh Sahani will be the alliance’s deputy CM face. He said more deputy CMs would be appointed if INDIA bloc comes to power. Tejashwi, Sahani, CPI-ML (Liberation)’s Dipankar Bhattacharya, and state Congress president Rajesh Ram addressed the press meet along with Gehlot. “Tejashwi is a Vikassheel Insaan Party chief Mukesh Sahani, CPI-ML leader Dipankar Bhattacharya, and RJD leader Tejashwi Yadav during a press conference in Patna on Thursday | PTI young and dynamic leader. We are also declaring Mukesh Sahani, an EBC leader, who has struggled to rise to this position, as the deputy CM face. Sahani is a messiah of his (Mallah) community After we win . the elections, some people from other sections of society could also be made deputy CMs,” Gehlot said. Tejashwi thanked his father Lalu, Congress leaders Sonia Gandhi, Rahul Gandhi, and Mallikarjun Kharge for reposing faith in him. “I alone will not become CM but everyone from Bihar will become Change Makers (CMs),” he remarked. He claimed if a gov- ernment is formed under his leadership, he would do all the development works the NDA could not do in 20 years, in just 20 months. Taking a dig at the NDA for not announcing its CM face, Tejashwi said, “Why did the NDA not declare Nitish the CM face? We have been saying that the BJP will not make Nitish the CM. Ami Shah has also clearly said it the elected MLAs will take a decision on this… You (the BJP) have always declared a CM face. Why not this time?” Gehlot also targeted Shah, saying: “Your contention that Nitish will lead the NDA in the polls has no meanP8 ing.”  ‘Carbide gun’ partially blinds at least 14 in MP A ‘desi firecracker gun’ landed as many as 122 Deepawali revelers in hospitals across Madhya Pradesh, at least 14 of whom have partially lost their eyesight. Better known as a ‘carbide gun’, the contraption got humongous traction on social media and became a must have ‘equipment’ for children and teenagers looking for a big bang. Priced at `150–200, they were sold as toys despite the possibility of misfire. By the time the state government banned it on October 18, they had already entered many E X PRESS RE A D Govt ignores CPI oppn, signs PM SHRI deal T’Puram: Ignoring stiff opposition from ally CPI, the CPM-led LDF government signed the MoU with the Centre for implementing the PM SHRI (Pradhan Mantri Schools for Rising India) scheme in the state. P4 Row over CM, Satheesan skipping Prez event T’Puram: The absence of CM Pinarayi Vijayan and Leader of Opposition V D Satheesan at Raj Bhavan event where President Droupadi Murmu unveiled the bust of former President K R Narayanan has sparked a row. The event was attended by former president Ram Nath Kovind, Governor Rajendra Arlekar and Bihar Governor Arif Mohammed Khan. P4 Moving to the next stage in the probe into the Sabarimala gold theft, the special investigation team (SIT) has arrested former Sabarimala administrative officer B Murari Babu, an accused in the case. He was taken into custody from his house at Perunna in Changanassery on Wednesday night and brought to Thiruvananthapuram, where his arrest was recorded after interrogation. On Thursday evening, Murari was produced before the Ranni Judicial First Class Magistrate court, which remanded him in 14-day judicial Murari Babu being brought custody. Noticeably, the out of the Ranni court on SIT didn’t ask for his Thursday | Shaji Vettipuram custody . The remand report said Murari had consciously mentioned the gold-plated sheets as copper sheets in records, sources said. He had also written to former Sabarimala executive officer D Sudheesh Kumar, recommending Unnikrishnan Potti, the prime accused, to conduct electroplating of gold on the copper sheets of dwarapalaka idols and the sheets placed in the corners of the sanctum sanctorum. According to sources, the SIT had collected incriminating evidence against Murari and some other devaswom board officials who were ar● More on P4 raigned in the case. S L al i t h a @ New Delhi AN average of 250 passenger seats on Air India flights develop faults every month, posing persistent challenge for the Tata group as it works to modernise the ageing fleet it acquired from the government in January 2022. According to airline insiders, the main hurdle lies in the non-availability of spare parts for older aircraft, many of which are 15-20 years old. In several cases, even address meet J aya n t h J a c o b @ New Delhi India and Malaysia announced on Thursday that Prime Minister Narendra Modi will join the ASEAN-India summit on October 26 virtually after a telephonic conversation between the two leaders. “I had a warm conversation with my dear friend, Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim of Malaysia. Congratulated him on Malaysia’s ASEAN Chairmanship and c o nv e y e d b e s t wishes for the success of the upcoming Summits. Look forward to joining the ASEAN-India Summit virtually and to further deepening the ASEAN-India Comprehensive Strategic Partnership,” Modi said on X. Ibrahim said he respected Modi’s decision and extended Deepavali greetings to him and the people of India and added that Malaysia remained committed to advancing bilateral and ASEAN-India cooperation for a “more peaceful and prosperous region”. school sports meet 16-yr-old sprinter breaks 37-yr-old record A s w i n A s o k K u m a r @T’Puram As the crowd at Chandrasekhar Nair Stadium dispersed on Thursday Athul T M, the new record hold, er in 100m Junior Boys, spotted Ram Kumar. The duo greeted each other by shaking hands, which later turned into a tight hug. Heart-warming scenes unfolded during the finals of the much-awaited track events at the stadium here, as the 16-year-old Alappuzha native broke a 37-year-old record, held by Ram, at the Kerala State School Sports Meet. The meet record for the 100m (Junior Boys) was 10.90 seconds, set in 1988. During the shortlisting heats held earlier in the day, Athul T M, who broke the meet record in 100 m Junior Boys, with Ram Kumar who set the existing record in 1988 | Vincent Pulickal 1 2 First, calcium carbide goes into the hole Next, water added, produces acyteline gas ‘Cannon’ Bore Cannon Drum Igniter homes. Vidisha, which neighbours Bhopal, is the worst-hit among all districts. The Vidisha district police have ar- 3 Igniter burns gas, creates a big bang rested six persons for the illegal sale of the guns. “I can’t see anything since the carbide gun we bought on Deepawali exploded. One of my eyes has burnt completely,” recounted 17-year-old Neha, who is currently recuperating at the state government’s Hamidia Hospital in Bhopal. Of the 122 patients, 26 are under treatment at Hamidia Hospital. Some teenagers attempted to make them at home using plastic or tin pipes, filling them with gunpowder, matchstick heads and calcium carbide. One such teen Raj Vishwakarma said, “I attempted to make it at home. That was when it went off on my face, resulting in loss of sight in one of the eyes.” Air India faces 250 seat faults each month ASEAN-India Murari deliberately mentioned gold-plated Modi speaks to Malaysian PM, sheets as copper: SIT to virtually S h a n A S @T’Puram How it works A n u r aa g S i n g h @ Bhopal Athul surpassed it with a time of 10.79 seconds, leaving even the authorities awestruck. In the finals, he recorded a time of 10.81 seconds. Athul couldn’t contain his excitement. “I was unaware of my record performance in the heats. But I am super proud and happy with my achievement,” he said. Ram, the record holder from 1988, waited beside the track during the event. “I wanted my record to be broken. What is the point of holding on to an old record? Let new talents find their space,” an elated Ram said. Athul’s success did not come easily. Just like any other player who made it big, he too had been through ● More on P4 the wringer.  the original manufacturers of seat components have shut down. “Seat maintenance was never a priority earlier,” said a senior Air India source. “A seat includes not just the cushion but also trays, in-flight entertainment screens, and fittings. Sometimes, passengers themselves cause damage during travel, and immediate re- pairs aren’t possible if the aircraft is due for a quick turnaround.” While travellers have long voiced concerns over poor cabin conditions, a recent social media outcry by a business class passenger brought renewed scrutiny The passenger, . flying AI 187 from Delhi to Toronto laimed he was asked to sign a consent form acknowledging his seat’s broken tray before boarding. Air India sources admitted such incidents are “not isolated”, adding mul- tiple solutions are offered to affected passengers. “At check-in, travellers are informed about seat issues and asked if they wish to continue with that seat. If not, they can opt for the next available flight,” the source explained. The airline, however, insists that a large-scale retrofit and modernisation plan is already in motion. All 26 A320 aircraft have been upgraded, featuring new seats and interiors. The first Boeing 787 is currently being retrofitted in the US.