THIRUVANANTHAPURAM l thursday l fEBRUARY 12, 2026 l `9.00 l PAGES 16 l LATE city EDITION SC asks Centre to file report on Air India plane crash probe The Supreme Court asked the Centre on Wednesday to file a brief report on the procedural protocol followed so far in the investigation probe by AAIB nearing its end, Govt tells SC Court gives three-week deadline Solicitor General Tushar Mehta told the Supreme Court that a fact-finding inquiry by the Aircraft Accident Investigation Board (AAIB) is currently underway in accordance with international commitments and is likely to be completed in three weeks. The bench was hearing three petitions seeking an independent, court-monitored investigation into the crash ■ ■ Mehta urged a bench of Chief Justice Surya Kant and Justice Joymalya Bagchi that the three pleas be listed after three weeks “Let us see the result of the AAIB probe and then we will see whether a court of inquiry will be needed or not,” the CJI said and fixed the pleas for hearing after three weeks | P7 June 12, 2025 when Air India flight to London crashed in Ahmedabad 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 press Intake Govt taking steps to stop caste-based discrimination in edu: Minister | P7 All 6 stanzas of Vande Mataram must be sung before National Anthem, says MHA | P7 IAF to recreate Op Sindoor-style precision targeting near Pakistan border | P7 Sunetra Pawar meets Amit Shah amid NCP merger talks | P8 Mamata only chief minister to move SC against govt staff: Bhupendra | P8 superB two super overs decide afghan-sa tie The first tied match of T20 WC needed two overs after stunning display of pulsating comebacks by both teams. In the end, SA win by 4 runs I P11 Today’s matches 11am: Sri Lanka vs Oman (Pallekele), 3pm: Italy vs Nepal (Mumbai), 7pm: India vs Namibia (New Delhi) 16 pages, including 4 pages of THIRUVANANTHAPURAM Express Union Budget debate All set for the big day States to get Bharat Mata over L25L cr sold to the in FY27: FM US: Rahul Hopes, apprehensions Election officials check ballot boxes and voting materials after collecting them ahead of polls, in Dhaka, on Wednesday | AP as B’desh goes to polls P u s h p i ta De y @ New Delhi P r eet h a N a i r @ New Delhi FINANCE Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Wednesday rejected allegations levelled by several Opposition-ruled states that the Centre was not transferring states’ share from the divisible pool of taxes. The Union finance minister, in her reply to the Budget discussion in the Lok Sabha, said that the Centre has transferred the full 41% share of divisible taxes to the states as mandated by the Finance Commission. “The states should check if the entire net proceeds, which form the divisible pool, i.e., removing cess and surcharge from gross tax revenue, are received by them. There is no need to discuss the gross tax revenue,” the minister said. The FM said the Centre has allocated `25.44 lakh crore to states in FY27. “This much money will go to the states. This entails an increase of `2.70 lakh crore from FY26,” Sitharaman said. Commenting on the transfer of cess and surcharges, she clarified that these are collected for a purpose and if states can come with proposals on health, education, roadways, they will get the funds. “Cess and surcharge collected by the Centre are given to the States for development work in various sectors. This is separate from the 41% of funds allocated to the States,” she added. Debunking allegations that the government was not approving credits to the states, the finance minister stated the total credit has grown 13.8% in the current financial year. She pointed out that headline capital expenditure stands at `12.2 lakh crore while the effective capital expenditure, including grants to states, totals `17.1 lakh crore, amounting to 4.4% of GDP . The FM said the government has envisaged a total expenditure of `53.47 lakh crore for the next financial year, up 7.7% from the current fiscal ending March 31. According to the revised estimate, the budget size for FY26 is `49.64 lakh crore. After being repeatedly blocked from quoting ex-Army Chief General M M Naravane’s unpublished memoir in the Lok Sabha last week, Leader of the Opposition Rahul Gandhi on Wednesday mounted a sharp attack on the government over the India-US trade deal framework, accusing the Modi administration of having “sold off the nation” and terming it as a “wholesale surrender”. Participating in the debate on the Union Budget, Rahul said he does not believe that any Indian PM, including Narendra Modi, would agree to such a deal unless there is a “chokehold” on him. “Why has he sold India? Because the US are choking him. They have a grip on his neck.” Rahul asserted that the The govt has trade agreement had un- given up control dermined farmers’ inter- over digital trade ests, destroyed the textile rules, removed sector, and handed India’s data localisation, energy security to the US. allowed free flow Calling it a surrender of of data to the US, limited digital the future of 1.5 billion tax, waived Indians, he said it was source code driven by the need to prodisclosure, and tect the BJP’s financial offered 20-yr tax architecture, which he holidays to big tech firms said is facing scrutiny in the US. “The US will deRahul Gandhi cide who we buy oil from. They will monitor.” He accused the government of opening the door to mechanised American farms, thereby crushing India’s small farmers, and called the move disgraceful, saying that no PM before had done such a thing, nor would any after him. “How can you come to this House and defend this? Are you not ashamed of what you are giving away? Are you not ashamed of selling India? You have sold our mother — Bharat Mata?” he said. The House saw heated exchanges after Rahul referred to Union minister Hardeep Puri and industrialist Anil Ambani in connection with mentions in the Epstein files. HARD TALK 1 Rejecting criticism over impact of cess on divisible pool, FM said states must check net proceeds that can be shared 2 The govt plans a total expenditure of I53.47 lakh crore for FY27, up 7.7% from the current financial year 3 The Centre is open to working with states that are willing to set up key infrastructure to develop critical sectors such as healthcare, the FM said 4 charges baseless: Puri Targeting TMC, FM said there is no law and order in West Bengal but a ‘bomb culture’ prevails there Dismissing Rahul’s allegations as baseless, Union minister Hardeep Puri said, “He has a habit of making baseless allegations and lying.” Puri said he had met Epstein only a few times as part of an official delegation and had exchanged just one email with him. He added that he had limited interactions with Epstein had no connection whatsoever to the crimes later associated with him. Inclusive recreational spaces, internship avenues in revamped policy for elderly E x p r e s s N e w s Se r v i c e @T’Puram Interventions to reduce social isolation, creation of internship avenues, inclusive recreational spaces, and a single-window system for grievance redressal are among the key features of a revamped policy for elderly persons the state has brought out. The Kerala State Policy for Elderly Persons, 2026, drawn up to ensure inclusion and equality of the elderly, received the cabinet’s approval on Wednesday said Social Justice Minis, ter R Bindu. “The revised policy will promote active and healthy ageing and ensure the social and mental well-being of the elderly in the state,” Bindu told reporters here. The policy assumes significance as persons above 60 years constituted 16.5% of the state’s total population in 2021, the highest in the country As . per a recent report by the RBI, the rate of elderly population is expected to rise to nearly 19% this year and touch 22.8% by 2036. The revised policy comes close on the heels of Kerala becoming the first Indian state to introduce a specialised ‘Elderly Budget’ this year. In Major proposals Mainstreaming the needs of the elderly in policy and governance Providing internship opportunities for skilled senior citizens Setting up fast-track legal systems Promoting active & healthy ageing Inclusive recreational spaces Doorstep delivery of services, elderly-friendly building designs Ensuring latest health care systems such as tele-medicine Sthree Suraksha Pension scheme T’Puram: A total of 10,18,042 beneficiaries received I1,000 each in bank accounts within two hours of the state-level launch of the Sthree Suraksha Pension scheme on Wednesday, CM Pinarayi Vijayan has said. The scheme offers a monthly pension of I1,000 to economically vulnerable women and transwomen aged between 35 and 60 who are not enrolled in other social welfare programmes. March 2025, Kerala became the first state in the country to establish a Senior Citizens Commission to protect Reverse mortgage facility and affordable insurance care Utilisation of facilities such as digital health, e-health systems the rights, health, and welfare of the elderly Other proposals in the policy . include setting up fast-track legal systems for the elderly and a centre of excellence for gerontology - a multidisciplinary scientific study on the biological, psychological, and social aspects of ageing and older adults. The policy calls for providing internship opportunities for skilled senior citizens. The proposal comes in the wake of a recent RBI report that said Kerala will see a major decline in the share of working-age pop● More on P4 ulation by 2036.  B angladesh heads to the polls previous elections, Jamaat’s support on Thursday under an unprece- hovered below 10%, while BNP sedented political landscape, follow- cured over 30%. ing the sudden exit of former With the Awami League out, many prime minister Sheikh Hasina af- believed BNP would secure a comfortter a mass upsurge in 2024. The election able majority. But Jamaat’s renewed is set to be a unique experience for vot- presence has complicated the electoral ers, many of whom will cast arithmetic, raising the prostheir ballots for the first time. pect of a close fight. Alongside electing members The NCP, despite leading of parliament, citizens will the anti-Hasina drive, has also vote in a referendum on struggled to maintain its moconstitutional reforms. mentum. It is contesting just The main contest is be30 out of 300 parliamentary tween the Bangladesh Naseats under its alliance with tionalist Party (BNP) and the Bayezid Milky Jamaat. In all, around 50 parBangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami. Senior journalist based ties are in the contest. The new National Citizen Voters will cast two balin Dhaka Party (NCP), which emerged lots—one for parliament and from the mass movement one for the referendum— against Hasina, joined the race as part while the absence of the Awami of an 11-party alliance with Jamaat. League has left many uncertain. The The BNP, a seasoned force with past Election Commission has warned stints in power, was expected to domi- counting may take longer due to dual nate in the absence of the Awami ballots and higher turnout. AuthoriLeague. However, Jamaat claims it has ties say the February 12 vote will shape built a strong base and is positioning Bangladesh’s future, and citizens hope itself as a formidable challenger. In for a fair and peaceful election. General Strike Today The 24-hour nationwide strike called by central trade unions is likely to affect normal life in Kerala on Thursday WHAT’S ON Milk supply Newspaper distributionHospital-related servicesMedical storesFire & rescue services Train services Kochi Metro Rail (Feeder buses: Aluva to Kochi airport and Kalamassery to medical college services will ply) Water Metro service WHAT’S OFF Shops Malls Banks Auto & taxi services, Private busesInsurance companies A section of state and central govt offices Special economic zonesFuel outlets KSRTC has announced that it would operate services Trade union leaders have asked “exempted” travellers to display boards citing purpose of travel on vehicles. Tourists unaware of the strike and those travelling to attend funerals and marriages will be allowed to ply with display boards, they said