hyderabad l Monday l january 05, 2026 l `9.00 l PAGES 12 l LATE City EDITION ‘Waterman of India’ slams Indore tragedy that killed 6 Water conservationist Rajendra Singh Sunday called the Indore drinking water tragedy a ‘systemcreated disaster’ which was avoidable Corruption has ruined the system: singh The Magsaysay Award winner expressed alarm that such a crisis could unfold in Indore, which has been ranked as India’s cleanest city. “If such a tragedy can occur in the country’s cleanest city, it shows how serious the condition of drinking water supply systems must be elsewhere,” Singh said, alleging that corruption has ruined the entire system 30 AFTER INDORE, GANDHINAGAR SEES OUTBREAK ■ Officially, the death toll in Indore was put at six so far. Locals, however, claim the fatality count could be anywhere between 10 and 14, with another 200 people remain in various hospitals ■ After Indore, over 100 people have fallen sick with typhoid in Gujarat’s Gandhinagar following water contamination Patients still in icu in indore following the diarrhoea outbreak 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 walks diplomatic tightrope on Venezuela, calls for dialogue Rhetoric & rivers The AP government dismissed CM A Revanth Reddy’s remarks on river waters and accused the YSRCP of exploiting them to target the TDP. Andhra Pradesh CM N Chandrababu Naidu said he would soon talk about all the issues pertaining to utilisation of Krishna river waters | p5 MEA terms the developments ‘a matter of deep concern’, but does not name the US J aya n t h J a c o b @ New Delhi INDIA on Sunday expressed “deep concern” over the unprecedented US action to capture Venezuela’s President Nicolás Maduro and his wife Cilia Flores in a late-night military operation. In its first reaction to the dramatic US military action in Venezuelan capital Caracas early on Saturday the Ministry , of External Affairs (MEA) said it is closely monitoring the evolving situation as the deposed Venezuelan leader has been brought to the US to face drug trafficking charges. Calling for a peaceful resolution of all the issues through dialogue, the MEA said India reaffirms its support for the well-being and safety of the people of the oil-rich South American country. “We call upon all concerned to address issues peacefully through dialogue, ensuring peace and stability of the region.” The statement said the Indian embassy in Caracas is in contact with members of the Indian community and is providing all possible help. On Saturday, the MEA had issued an advisory urging Indian citizen to avoid non-essential travel to Venezuela. In its carefully worded statement issued on Sunday, the MEA did not make any direct Streets empty, shops shut Tense calm prevailed in Venezuela on Sunday with capital Caracas witnessing empty streets with few vehicles moving around. Most convenience stores, gas stations and other businesses were closed, in contrast to the rush usually seen on Sundays Screengrab of Nicolas Maduro (centre) escorted inside the headquarters of the US Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) in lower Manhattan, New York | afp reference to alleged violations of sovereignty or name the US, adopting a measured tone amid rapidly unfolding events. The MEA statement came a day after the Donald Trump administration announced that it had captured Maduro and his wife following a military operation that targeted Caracas as well as other areas. The operation was described by the US as part of a crackdown on what it called “narco-terrorism”. Washington launched the military action after putting pressure on Caracas for several months through a series of strikes on Venezuelan vessels accused of smuggling drugs. T h e l at e st deve lop men ts marked a sharp escalation in the long-running political and diplomatic crisis surrounding Venezuela. After he was ‘arrested’ by US forces in the audacious raid early Saturday, Maduro was brought to the US and is currently held in a New York detention centre. The deposed Venezuelan leader is facing drug trafficking charges and is likely to be produced in court on Monday . While Trump said the US would oversee the administration of the country until a transition of power takes place, Secretary of State Marco Rubio said in a television interview that Washington will use control of Venezuela’s oil industry to force policy changes. He also did not rule out putting US troops in Venezuela.  P9 Tapgate: BRS MLC grilled by SIT for eight hours questioning, the MLC said the SIT repeated the same questions BRS MLC K Naveen Rao ap- that had been asked earlier. “I peared before the Special Inves- was questioned in September tigation Team (SIT) on Sunday 2024 for around three hours. The for questioning in connection same questions were repeated, with the alleged phone-tapping and I gave the same answers. I case linked to the previous BRS have shared whatever I know regime. He was questioned for and cooperated with the police. nearly eight hours at the Jubi- They asked me about certain lee Hills police station. persons, including politicians Sources said the SIT and the accused in this questioned Naveen Rao case, and I will continue about his alleged links to cooperate,” he said. with the accused in the Police sources indicase, including former cated that more politiSpecial Intelligence Bucians are likely to be reau (SIB) chief T Prasummoned as part of bhakar Rao, the prime the ongoing probe. It accused. During the may be recalled that previous BRS regime, Prabhakar was quesK Naveen Rao Prabhakar is alleged to tioned for 14 days last have threatened certain per- month following directions sons, claiming to be acting at from the apex court. The acthe behest of Naveen Rao and cused are alleged to be part of former minister KT Rama Rao. a conspiracy in which SIB rePrabhakar was recently ques- sources were misused for potioned by the SIT. litical purposes by placing citiA few months ago, Naveen zens from various walks of life Rao had denied the allegations, under surveillance. describing them as a political The Supreme Court has listcampaign to tarnish his image. ed the matter for hearing on Speaking to reporters after the January 16. E x p r e ss N e ws S e r v i c e @ Hyderabad express read Trio held for murder of Hindu bizman in B’desh Dhaka: Three persons — Damudyar Sohag Khan, 27, Rabbi Molya, 21, and Palash Sardar, 25 — were arrested on Sunday in the case of hacking and burning to death a 50-year-old Hindu businessman, Khokon Chandra Das, in Shariatpur district on Wednesday night | p9 North India shivers as cold wave persist New Delhi: Winter deepened across north India on Sunday as day temperatures dropped in Delhi, and fog disrupted visibility in parts of Rajasthan. Kashmir reported sub-zero temperatures. CM consults Singhvi ahead of SC hearing on Polavaram link projects U.S. Lawmakers question action Ahead of the Supreme Court hearing on Monday Chief Min, ister A Revanth Reddy held consultations with senior advocate and Congress MP Abhishek Manu Singhvi to finalise Telangana’s legal strategy against Andhra Pradesh’s proposed Polavaram link projects. The discussion, held in Mumbai on Sunday was also attend, ed by Irrigation Minister N Uttam Kumar Reddy. The chief minister briefed Singhvi on the legal and technical aspects of the case, including the likely loss to Telangana and the impact on its share of Godavari waters, and asked that the argu- US lawmakers have raised questions about the operation, done without congressional approval. “Trump is undermining Constitution’s separation of powers,” said Congressman Raja Krishnamoorthi, while Ro Khanna said Trump has set a dangerous precedent Rodriguez named interim prez Venezuela’s vice president, Delcy Rodriguez will be the acting president with the Supreme Court ordering her to take charge in Nicolas Maduro’s absence. Terming the US action illegal, Rodriguez said Maduro is the country’s rightful leader and must be freed A day after Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) released Bangladesh seamer Mustafizur Rahman from the IPL squad at the instruction of BCCI, the Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) has formally written to the ICC to relocate their T20 World Cup matches from India. While the BCCI remains silent on the matter at the moment, if things don’t get sorted amicably, the entire World Cup schedule might have to be changed. Bangladesh, who are scheduled to play three matches in Kolkata and Mumbai, have now officially refused to travel to In- dia amidst the rising growing concerns rediplomatic tensions begarding the safety and tween the two counsecurity of the Banglatries. Following an desh contingent in Inemergency board meetdia and considering the ing on Saturday night, advice from the BanglaBCB said as much in a desh Government, the statement. “The Board Board of Directors rereviewed the situation solved that the Banglain detail, taking into Mustafizur Rahman desh National Team account developments will not travel to India over the last 24 hours and ex- for the tournament under the pressed deep concern over the current conditions,” the stateoverall circumstances sur- ment read. rounding the participation of BCB went on to say that the the Bangladesh National Team step was necessary for the safein matches scheduled to be ty and well-being of the players played in India. Following a and officials from the country . thorough assessment of the “In light of this decision, the prevailing situation and the BCB has formally requested the M a n da Rav i n d e r R e d dy @ Hyderabad ments be presented effectively before the apex court. The focus was on opposing the Polavaram–Banakacherla and Polavaram–Nallamalasagar link projects. Telangana has challenged the projects on the grounds that they violate interstate water-sharing agreements, provisions of the AP Reorganisation Act and existing tribunal awards. The state has argued that the scope of the Polavaram project is being altered without consent. In December 2025, the Telangana government filed a writ petition in the Supreme Court seeking a stay on the proposed link projects and directions re- Express News Service @ Hyderabad A three-year-old boy allegedly died after accidentally falling into a swimming pool at a gated community under the Kukatpally Housing Board (KPHB) police station limits on Sunday morning. The victim was identified as Arjun. Police said the boy’s parents, residents of Gajularamaram, had left him at his grandmother’s house on Saturday night. Around 7.30 am on Sunday, Arjun accompanied his grandparents on their routine walk within the Vertex Premio apartment premises. While playing near the swimming pool, he reportedly slipped and fell into the water. According to the cops, the victim’s grandmother had briefly gone to buy vegetables, assuming the child was with his grandfather. With no close supervision, the incident went unnoticed for some time, and the boy was later found floating in the pool.  continued on P5 International Cricket Council (ICC), as the event authority to , consider relocating all of Bangladesh’s matches to a venue outside India. The Bangladesh Cricket Board looks forward to the ICC’s understanding of the situation and an urgent response on this matter,” the statement added. Since the political turmoil in Bangladesh last year, the cricketing relations between two countries have not been smooth. India men’s tour of Bangladesh was postponed last August and as late as December 2025, the Bangladesh women’s tour of India was indefinitely postponed. straining the AP government from preparing detailed project reports (DPRs) and inviting tenders. According to the petition, the Polavaram project was originally approved to utilise 80 tmcft of water, but AP is now planning to utilise nearly 200 tmcft by taking up the link projects, which Telangana says violates tribunal awards and infringes on the rights of its people. It also sought directions to the Polavaram Project Authority to stop the works. It stated that Polavaram works should be carried out as per the originally approved plan and that undertaking expansion works is illegal. continued on p4 IAF chief says timely delivery of aircraft is key Three-year-old drowns in gated community pool B’desh refuse to travel to India for T20 WC G o m e s h S @ Cape Town Along with minister Uttam Kumar Reddy, CM A Revanth Reddy meets Congress MP and advocate Abhishek Manu Singhvi in Mumbai on Sunday express news service @ Bengaluru A file photograph of Indian troops on patrol duty along the LAC. The middle sector of LAC is in focus due to the unpredictable patrolling of China’s PLA China on mind, army to up the ante along LAC’s middle sector sector, spanning Himachal Pradesh and Uttarakhand THE Indian Army will con- borders, features unique chalduct a major academic exer- lenges such as difficult tercise on January 7 focussing rain, limited infrastructure, on the Middle Sector of the environmental limits, and Line of Actual Control with grey-zone activities. China, driven by growing “Chinese assertiveness is concerns over Chinese as- no longer limited to tradisertiveness, enhanced infra- tional military manoeuvres. structure development across We have witnessed infrathe border, and unpredictable structure push in sensitive People’s Liberation Army pa- zones, dual-use facilities, introl behaviour. creased PLA troop moveThe seminar, titled ment, aggressive pa“Fortifying Himatrolling patter ns, laya: A Proactive cyber probing, and Military-Civil Furapid militarisation sion Strategy in Mid- Our aim must be of border villages,” to transform the dle Sector,” will be Middle Sector into reads a synopsis of held in Dehradun, the seminar. an unshakeable Uttarakhand, bringThe Middle Sector logistics and i n g t o g e t h e r re includes four valleys surveillance n ow n e d e x p e r t s, backbone, capable in Uttarakhand— academia, and mili- of supporting fast Harshil, Mana, Niti, response, tary leaders to exand Barahoti, with deterrence, and plore civil-military 22 passes serving as long-term integration redefincrucial mountain acdominance ing India’s defence cess points. Barahoti Seminar synopsis architecture. Va l l e y r e m a i n s Sources said the among eight mutuacademic exercise aims to ally accepted disputed areas promote strategic thinking with overlapping claims beand understanding of civil- tween India and China military fusion, providing a Since May 2020, when Chiplatform for academic ex- na breached agreements, the change on frontier security . sector’s status has remained Historically seen as less unclear, prompting major vulnerable than the Eastern troop reorganisation. and Western sectors, the MidThe seminar comes as the dle Sector has gained strate- trust deficit between India gic importance in the wake and China persists despite reof rising tensions and Chi- cent disengagement at Depnese infrastructure expan- sang and Demchok in Eastsion along LAC. The 545-km ern Ladakh. m aya n k s i n g h @ New Delhi SPEAKING at the inauguration of ‘Aeronautics 2047’, a two-day national seminar organised by the Aeronautical Development Agency (ADA) at the Centre for Airborne Systems, Air Chief Marshal A P Singh on Sunday underlined the critical need for timely aircraft delivery to maintain the Air Force’s operational readiness. Congratulating ADA on completing 25 years of flight operations of Light Combat Aircraft Tejas, Air Chief Marshal Singh emphasised the need to stick to delivery timelines as essential for IAF readiness in a rapidly evolving security environment. Dr Samir V Kamat, secretary, Department of Defence R&D and DRDO chairman, said developing indigenous cutting-edge technology t o re d u c e import dependence is the need of the hour to realise the goal of ‘Viksit Bharat’ by 2047. The seminar saw the presence of domain experts, industrial partners, academia, and aviation enthusiasts from across the aerospace community to discuss aeronautics evolution, design innovation, manufacturing advances, and future frontiers. Aeronautics-2047 will cover the future of Indian space technologies and the journey of LCA Tejas from sketch to squadron. ADA has designed and developed LCA Tejas with more than 5,600 successful flight trials. Several niche technologies like carbon composites, light-weight materials, fly-by-wire flight control, digital utility management system, Glass Cockpit, etc. were developed to make LCA a fourth-generation fighter.