BHUBANESWAR l friday l October 24, 2025 l `9.00 l PAGES 12 l LATE 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, `2,830 lakh crore was transacted through digital payment systems in 2024, up from `1,775 lakh crore in 2019. The transaction volume for the first half of 2025 stood at 12,549 crore, amounting to `1,572 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% `143.3 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 Vedanta to invest `1L cr in new Air India faces 250 projects in state: Anil Agarwal seat faults each month bloc’s CM face, Sahani deputy E x p r e s s N e w s Se r v i c e @ Bhubaneswar Announcement after Gehlot-Lalu meet; no word yet on seat-sharing Vikassheel Insan Party chief Mukesh Sahani, CPI-ML leader Dipankar Bhattacharya, and RJD leader Tejashwi Yadav during a press conference in Patna on Thursday | PTI RA M ASHA N K AR @ 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 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 People won’t forget ‘jungle raj’ for 100 yrs: Modi Referring to the RJD rule in the past as ‘jungle raj’, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said people won’t forget it for another 100 years. Modi said the opposition alliance is not a ‘gathbandhan’ but a ‘lathbandhan’ (coalition of criminals) as its leaders are out on bail 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 government 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. Amit Shah has also clearly said 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 l e a d t h e NDA i n the polls has no P8 meaning.”  express read DAC approves `79K cr worth defence projects New Delhi: The Defence Acquisition Council (DAC) under the chairmanship of Defence Minister Rajnath Singh on Thursday and approved several proposals for the Army, Navy, and Air Force amounting to around `79,000 crore. The DAC gave nod for the procurement of the Nag Missile System among others | P7 Vedanta Group chairman Anil Agarwal on Thursday said the work on the proposed 3 million tonne per annum aluminium smelter in Dhenkanal district will start in the next three to four months if required land along with necessary statutory clearances is granted within the period. After a meeting with Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi at Lok Seva Bhawan, Agarwal told mediapersons that his company plans to invest `1 lakh crore on the smelter plant which will generate employment for around 40,000 people. “This will be one of the largest smelters in the world. If things go as per plan, we will be able to complete the Dhenkanal project within three or three-and-half years’ time,” he said. According to the office of the chief minister, Vedanta has also agreed to establish an ultramodern ferro-alloys plant in Keonjhar district with an investment of `2,000 crore. This will enhance Odisha’s standing in the global metal value chain, the CMO said. The Vedanta Group will also set up two new aluminium parks - one near its aluminium Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi with Vedanta chief Anil Agarwal during their meeting in Bhubaneswar, on Thursday plant at Jharsuguda while the other will come up at a site to be identified by the state government. These state-of-the-art parks will produce high-grade aluminium alloys suitable for use in aerospace, electric vehicles and defence sectors. This will attract large-scale downstream investments and significantly boost the MSME sector in the state. As per the CMO, Majhi lauded the company’s approach to Odisha and stated these initiatives will not only accelerate economic growth but also create vast opportunities for the youth, empower people and set the ground for Odisha to become a $500 billion economy by 2036. “This Modi speaks to Ibrahim, will virtually address ASEAN-India summit 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 conveyed best 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 ex- Narendra Modi tended 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”. While the Indian statement did not cite reasons for Modi’s decision to skip the regional gathering, it is learnt that the upcoming Bihar assembly elections and the absence of immediate breakthroughs in trade talks with the US were among the factors influencing the move. President Donald Trump is scheduled to visit Malaysia for the summit on October 26. This newspaper had reported that Modi is unlikely to attend the summit and will address the event virtually External Affairs Minister S Jais. hankar will represent India at the 20th East Asia Summit in Kuala Lumpur on October 27. The summit is expected to deliberate on regional security, Indo-Pacific challenges, and global developments. ‘Carbide gun’ partially blinds at least 14 in MP An u r a a g S i n g h @ Bhopal 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 homes. Vidisha, which neighbours Bhopal, is the worst-hit among all districts. The Vidisha district police have arrested 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.” 1 How it works First, calcium carbide goes into the hole 2 Next, water added, produces acyteline gas ‘Cannon’ Bore Cannon Drum Igniter 3 Igniter burns gas, creates a big bang massive investment will be a game-changer for the bright future of Odisha,” the CM added. Vedanta had earlier also submitted a proposal to the state government to set up a 6 MTPA alumina refinery plant in Rayagada district. The Sijimali mine will meet the bauxite need of the new refinery . On environmental and forest clearance to the Sijimali bauxite mine, the Vedanta chief said the CM has assured all assistance for conduct of the public hearings soon. The central government has temporarily halted the forest land diversion for the mine following concerns over tribal rights and complaints from local communities. On the Vedanta University project, Agarwal said, “Many states like Andhra Pradesh, Bihar and UP are keen to grab the project but my heart is in Odisha. We want to set up a university of international standards in Odisha. It is for the state government select a suitable site. Any location other than Puri is acceptable.” He said, “The chief minister insisted on the university in Odisha with assurance of all possible assistance. I have not seen a chief minister like him, who is such progressive in thinking.” S L a l 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 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 repairs 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 claimed he was asked to sign a consent form acknowledging his seat’s broken tray Retrofitting work on Air India sources say complaints about broken and malfunctioning seats will stop once the retrofit project is complete. Till then, however, passengers may have to put up with uncomfortable seats before boarding. Air India sources admitted such incidents are “not isolated”, adding multiple 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 availabl e fl i g h t , ” t h e s o u rc e 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. Once completed, work will begin on the Boeing 777 fleet.