COIMBATORE l saturday l november 22, 2025 l `9.00 l PAGES 12 l LATE CITY EDITION Govt reopens tourist visa access for Chinese nationals VISA In further signs of thaw, Chinese nationals will now be able to apply for tourist visas through Indian missions and consulates around the world AI Image People-centric steps key to strong ties visa applications spike at embassies Issuance of visas to Chinese nationals was suspended following the start of a military stand-off along the Line of Actual Control (LAC) in eastern Ladakh that began in May 2020. This follows efforts by India and China to rebuild ties after the resolution of the eastern Ladakh military stand-off. The two nations have agreed on several people-centric steps of late ■ ■ Visa applications were received at the Indian embassy in Beijing and the consulates in Shanghai, Guangzhou and Hong Kong this week Some other diplomatic efforts between neighbours include resumption of Kailash Manasarovar Yatra, resumption of direct flights, commemoration of 75th anniversary of diplomatic relations 2020 in may of that year, the stand-off at ladakh marked a new low 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 Inc weighs fallout as four Labour Codes kick in Social security for all; retrenchment rules eased for companies Express News Service @ New Delhi THE Centre on Friday notified the four Labour Codes pending since 2020, ushering in several worker-friendly measures such as universal social security and timely minimum wage, while also trying to make life easy for companies in terms of compliance and paper work. In all, 29 older labour laws were streamlined into four codes—the Code on Wages, 2019; the Industrial Relations Code, 2020; the Code on Social Security 2020; and the Occupa, tional Safety Health and Work, ing Conditions Code, 2020. According to the government, these codes will bring improvements in wages, workplace safety, social security, equality, and employee rights across several sectors. In a first, gig workers have been formally brought under the social security framework. Towards this, aggregators such as Zomato, Swiggy, and Uber will have to contribute 1-2% of their annual turnover. Among the other key reforms are mandatory appointment Big-bang labour reforms 29 labour laws streamlined into 4 comprehensive Labour Codes 1 Code of Wages 2 Code on Social Security 3  ccupational Safety, Health O and Working Conditions Code 4 Industrial Relations Code letters to workers to ensure formalisation and job security ex, panded rights and safety for women, including night-shift work and mandatory grievance committees, and free annual health check-ups for workers above 40. Migrant workers in the textile sector, will get equal wages and welfare benefits. They can raise claims for up to three years to settle pending dues, and overtime must be paid at double the wage rate. As for companies, their compliance burden has been eased with the number of returns to file, number of records to keep, and the number of licences to obtain being cut down to size. Also, the retrenchment rules have been relaxed, triggering angry reactions from trade unions. While the government claims the move will go a long way in ease of doing business, it will also increase the operating costs for companies due to higher minimum wages and greater accountability on safety and working conditions. Meanwhile, a joint platform of 10 central trade unions called for a nationwide protest on November 26 demanding the withdrawal of the codes, terming them “anti-worker” and “pro-employer”. Some trade unions welcomed the reforms. The next step is framing the rules. As labour is a concurrent subject, the Centre and states have to frame laws and rules. Combo videograbs of IAF’s Tejas Mark 1 Light Combat Aircraft crashing in a ball of fire during an aerial display at the Dubai Air Show on Friday | PTI Tejas crash at Dubai air show MAYANK SIN G H @ New Delhi A showpiece Light Combat Aircraft (LCA) Tejas Mark 1 of the Indian Air Force crashed during an aerial display on the last day of the Dubai Air Show2025 on Friday The pilot, iden. tified as Wing Commander Namansh Syal, sustained fatal injuries in the accident. The IAF mourned his untimely loss. A court of inquiry is being constituted to ascertain the cause of the accident. The plane crashed around 2.10 pm local time (3.40 pm IST) during the demonstration flight. The aerial display of Tejas was scheduled to last eight minutes. Videos the accident showed the Tejas suddenly dropping height after a low-altitude manoeuvre. It failed to recover from the dive, hit the ground and was engulfed in a ball of fire within the airfield of the Al Maktoum International Airport at Dubai World Central. A post from the @PIBFactCheck handle on Thursday had dismissed claims that a Tejas at the DubaiAirshow 2025 had suffered an oil leak. The post said “intentional draining of condensed water from the aircraft’s Environmental Control System (ECS) and On-Board Oxygen Generating System (OBOGS)” was erroneously interpreted as an oil leak. At the time of going to print, it was not clear whether the plane in question was the same one that crashed on Friday. There were two Tejas planes in Dubai, one static and the other for aerial display . Manufactured by Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd, the Tejas is a platform for air combat and offensive air support. Reconnaissance and anti-ship operations are its secondary roles. Friday’s accident is the second involving Tejas in two years. The first one crashed in Jaisalmer in Rajasthan on March 12, 2024. express read HC stays proceedings against Balveer Singh Will push for timelines for guvs on bills: Stalin FIR on Aadhav Arjuna for online post quashed Will remain CM: Siddu ‘All the best’, says DKS Madurai: The Madurai Bench of the Madras HC on Friday stayed all proceedings pending before the Tirunelveli Judicial Magistrate I against ex-ASP Balveer Singh in connection with four custodial torture cases registered in 2023 | P2 Chennai: CM M K Stalin on Friday reiterated that the DMK will continue its fight for states’ rights and federalism, declaring he would not rest until the Constitution is amended to mandate time-bound action by governors on bills | P4 Chennai: The Madras HC on Friday quashed the FIR filed against TVK general secretary (Election Campaign) Aadhav Arjuna over his now-deleted post on ‘X’ that compared the public mood in TN to youth-led uprisings in Sri Lanka and Nepal | P4 Bengaluru: Amid the intense power struggle involving his deputy and state Congress chief D K Shivakumar, Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah on Friday asserted that he would continue in office, prompting an “all the best” wish from the former | P5