tadepalligudem l wednesday l march 04, 2026 l `9.00 l PAGES 12 l city EDITION Nitish kumar agrees to let son Nishant enter politics jubilation at jd(u) headquarters in patna Eschewing aversion for “dynasty politics”, Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar on Tuesday agreed to launch his only son Nishant in politics an engineer keen about public affairs The announcement came from state Rural Development Minister and senior party leader Shrawon Kumar, who has been a close aide of the JD(U) supremo since the Samata Party days, in the 1990s. Party workers distributed sweets, smeared each other’s faces with ‘gulaal’ and raised slogans to express delight over the political entry of their supremo’s son ■ ■ Five Rajya Sabha seats from Bihar are going to polls and the BJP and JD(U) hold two seats apiece. Nishant, known to be reticent but with a good grasp of public affairs, may replace Harivansh Narayan Singh Former state BJP president Dilip Jaiswal said, “If Nitish Kumar’s son enters politics, it’s great... time for a new generation to emerge” 48-yr-old nishant is single and has a degree in engineering 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 787 The latest war toll in Iran, according to the Iranian Red Crescent 153 Countries affected in some way or the other by the war 1,039 Attacks by US, Israel across Iran. Qatar joined the pounding Thoughts on education, public service, dissent and AI enliven TNIE’s conclave E x p r e s s N e w s Se r v i c e @ Chennai Presents An explosion in UAE’s Fujairah after drone debris fell on a part of the oil industrial zone | AP/PTI Wboth sides go full blast Asia burns as a g en c i e s @ Tehran, Tel Aviv THE West Asia war is showing no signs of abatement. Iran stepped up its attacks on economic targets and US missions across West Asia on Tuesday as President Donald Trump warned it was “too late” for the Islamic republic to seek talks. As drones and missiles crashed into oil facilities and US embassies in the Gulf, Israel bombarded targets in Iran and pushed troops deeper into Lebanon to battle the Tehranbacked militia Hezbollah. “They want to talk. I said: ‘Too late!’,” Trump said on Truth Social. Later, he said “someone from within Iranian regime might be the best choice to take power once US-Israel campaign is finished.” As if to underline Trump’s new stance, loud blasts echoed around downtown Tehran. According to Iranian media, US-Israeli strikes targeted the ‘Assembly of Experts’ building in Qom, housing the panel electing Iran’s new supreme leader. Israel’s military said its air force struck industrial sites “throughout Iran” used to produce ballistic missiles, to pre-empt their use. Iran soon struck the US Embassy in Saudi Arabia’s Riyadh and in Kuwait City with a drone early Tuesday. The strike in Riyadh caused part of its roof to collapse, although there were no deaths or injuries. In Kuwait City the vicinity of the em, bassy was hit by two drone strikes from Iran, with no casualties. With Iran bombing Gulf monarchies on whim, the US ambassador in Israel asked Americans to move out on their own. “The US Embassy is not in a position at this time to evacuate or directly assist Americans in departing Israel,” Mike Huckabee wrote on X. Earlier Tuesday IAEA said Iran’s , Natanz site sustained “some recent damage”, but “no radiological consequence was expected.” Israel’s Foreign Minister Gideon Saar urged foreign capitals to cut all ties with Tehran. China’s Foreign Minister Wang Yi warned Saar that Beijing opposes the strikes. Govt sets up inter-ministerial group to monitor, manage crisis itoring and follow-up to ensure continuity in trade flows. THE Ministry of Commerce held a Some of the measures include consultation meeting on Tuesday flexibility in export-related authoriwith key ministries, logissation and steps to prevent tics operators, and trade cargo bottlenecks. AI operates facilitation bodies to asWith the ongoing Iranrelief flights sess potential risks to exIsrael conflict, exporters Air India on Tuesday ports and imports due to deployed a wide-body fear severe disruptions in the ongoing geopolitical aircraft with 350 seats logistics, spike in freight turmoil. An Inter-Ministe- to Jeddah and another cost and longer transit rial Group for Supply plane with 300 seats time. As a big share of InChain Resilience has also to Dubai to bring back dia’s crude oil passes been created to aid Indian through the Strait of Horstranded passengers exporters amid the growmuz, fuel prices can rise. ing geopolitical crisis. However, government sources The group comprises members said India has crude oil reserves and from the ministries of finance, ex- refined petroleum products that ternal affairs, shipping, and petro- could weather disruptions for up to leum, to facilitate coordination mon- eight weeks. P U S H PI TA D E Y @ New Delhi 7pm: South Africa vs New Zealand (1st Semi-Final)(Kolkata) SA vs NZ: First semis in Kolkata On Wednesday, South Africa face New Zealand in the first semifinal of the T20 World Cup. The African side has an advantage over their opponents after remaining unbeaten until now. To add to that, they even got the better of Kiwis in the group stage. More importantly they seem to be a well-rounded unit and the conditions here suit them better | P11 saudi arabia US embassy hit by drones An attack from two drones on the US Embassy in Riyadh caused a “limited fire”. The embassy urged Americans to avoid the compound israel Tel Aviv hit injures 7 At least seven people were seriously wounded after a salvo of missiles fired from Iran hit the capital city Tel Aviv qatar Loud blasts heard in Doha AFP journalists in the Qatari capital of Doha heard more explosions on Tuesday, as Iran carried out a fourth day of attacks in Gulf countries uae Amazon data centres hit Tech giant Amazon said two of its data centres in UAE had been “directly struck” by drones, disrupting cloud services in the region iran Urges UNSC to stop the war Iran urged the United Nations Security Council to take action to stop the war. “ If UNSC wishes, it can certainly act to stop the war” Deputy CM launches ‘HANUMAN’ to mitigate human-wildlife conflict E x p r e s s N e w s Se r v i c e @ Vijayawada In a major initiative aimed at mitigating human-wildlife conflict and strengthening conservation efforts, Deputy Chief Minister (Forest and Environment) Pawan Kalyan has launched HANUMAN (Healing and Nurturing Units for Monitoring, Aid and Nursing of Wildlife) project. At a programme held at the APSP 6th Battalion Parade Grounds in Mangalagiri on Tuesday Pawan Kalyan flagged , off over 100 specially designed Rapid Response and Rescue Vehicles dedicated to wildlife emergencies. The fleet comprises 93 rapid response vehicles and seven fully equipped ambulances to provide medical aid to injured wild animals. HANUMAN has been conceived as a comprehensive and technology-driven system to address the rising incidents of crop damage, livestock loss and threats to human life in forest fringe villages AP ranks 6th in organ donation; 64 get new lease of life this yr E x p r e s s N e w s Se r v i c e @ Vijayawada A n dhra P r a d e s h h a s achieved a significant milestone in the field of organ donation, securing the sixth place, according to the latest rankings released by the National Organ and Tissue Transplantation Organisation (NOTTO), the apex body under the Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare. Health Minister Y Satya Kumar Yadav announced AP’s achievement, highlighting the growing public awareness and participation in organ donation across the State. He mentioned that in the past two months, 64 patients got a new lease of life through organ transplants. This marks a sharp increase compared to the same period in previous years — 31 organs from 12 donors in early 2025 and 30 organs from 10 donors in 2024. “The rising numbers reflect the compassion and nobleness of our people, and the success of awareness campaign under Jeevandan, established in 2015 after the State bifurcation,” he said. Following the recent High Court directions, he reviewed the progress of transplant surgeries in government hospi- tals. The number of hospitals perfor ming organ transplants has risen from three to nine, including Vizag’s KGH and VIMS, Guntur GGH, Kurnool GGH, Vijayawada GGH, Tirupati SVIMS, Mangalagiri AIIMS, Sri Padmavathi Children’s Heart Centre in Tirupati and Palasa Kidney P4 Research Centre.  express read AP unveils roadmap to become logistics hub Vijayawada: Andhra Pradesh has unveiled an ambitious plan to transform itself into a national logistics hub, aiming to achieve the lowest logistics costs in the country. It plans to develop 3,358 km of highways in the next three years at a cost of `76,000 cr | P3 One-man panel sets up camp office in Tirupati Deputy Chief Minister Pawan Kalyan launches ‘HANUMAN’ at the APSP 6th Battalion Parade Grounds in Mangalagiri on Tuesday | Express from wild animals. Speaking on the occasion, Pawan Kalyan said the project reflects India’s enduring belief in ‘Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam’, stressing that wildlife forms an inseparable part of ecological balance. Equal emphasis should be laid on wildlife conservation efforts and protection of people from animal attacks and their livelihoods. HANUMAN will function through a coordinated mechanism involving the Forest Department and other line departments, including Revenue, Police, Panchayat Raj, Agriculture and Horticulture. The initiative aims to ensure swift response to distress calls, scientific rescue operations, immediate relief measures and a streamlined compensation process to affected families, he P4 explained.  Tirupati: The One-Man Commission headed by retired IAS officer Dinesh Kumar, along with his team, arrived in Tirupati on Tuesday. He set up his camp office at the Padmavati Guest House to probe the Tirumala laddu ghee adulteration case | P4 Chilli price slump dashes ryots’ hopes Nellore: After incurring crop loss for two consecutive years, farmers have pinned their hopes on the Priyanka variety of chilli this season, expecting to recover from mounting debts. However, as crop arrivals increased in the markets, prices began to tumble sharply, dashing all their hopes | P4 Nod to plan for 60 transport aircraft J a v a r i a Rana @ New Delhi EXPRESS ILLUSTRATION Today’s Match West Bengal Governor Dr C V Ananda Bose on Tuesday recalled a quote from the Kothari Commission Report, “destiny of India is being shaped in her classrooms”, to underscore the relationship between education, public service, and nation-building at the ThinkEdu Conclave 2026 held in Chennai on Tuesday . Speaking on the second day of the event presented by the Tata Group and Tata ConsulTHINKEDU TNIE Editorial Director Prabhu Chawla and Editor Santwana Bhattacharya presenting a memento to West Bengal Governor t a n cy S e r v i c e s CONCLAVE Dr CV Ananda Bose at ThinkEdu Conclave; (right) Bihar Governor Arif Mohammed Khan | P jawahar, Ashwin Prasath (TCS) with Rajalakshmi Group of Institutions as title sponsor, V-C, MGR Medical University, brought the discussion closer eignty Prof Pawan Goyal of IIT . Dr Bose said that Viksit Bharat also highlighted the need for home, highlighting the power, Kharagpur, and author Sairam 2047 mission can be achieved value-driven education. pains, and representation of Surenderasan explained how only through the path of Dr Santishree Dhulipudi Pan- youth in TN’s charged political AI is already disrupting education. dit, Vice-Chancellor of JNU, Dr landscape. education. Bihar Governor Arif Mo- Sunaina Singh, former V-C of Advocating for the ‘DravidiSenior BJP leader K Anhammed Khan reflected on the Nalanda University, and Dr an Model’, Tamil Nadu School namalai called for a major overcontroversial Shah Bano case, Thangam Meganathan, Chair- Education Minister Dr Anbil haul in the civil services, while and spoke on what it means to person, Rajalakshmi Group of Mahesh highlighted the state’s former TN chief secretary V be a “Liberal Muslim” in India Institution, stressed on the im- strides in inclusive education, Irai Anbu batted for purposetoday . p o r t a n c e o f re s p o n s i bl e while IT Minister Dr Palanivel driven public servants. Swami Suddhidananda, pres- dissent. Thiyaga Rajan outlined its ecoThinkEdu 2026, with over 30 ident of Advaita Ashrama, iniSachin Pilot, senior Congress nomic success story . riveting sessions and 45 speaktiated the day’s discussions with leader, commented on the fleetDriving the importance of ers across two days, representa reminder that education must ing nature of political ideolo- self-reliance in emerging tech- ed the continuation of a 14-year also enrich the spiritual and gies in India. Senior BJP leader nologies, Prof V Kamakoti, Di- legacy of championing the exmoral centres within students. Dr Tamilisai Soundarajan and rector of IIT Madras, explored cellence of Indian thought. FULL COVERAGE: P5 Dr Sudha Seshayyan, former DMK MP Dr Kanimozhi Somu India’s roadmap to AI sover- The Defence Procurement Board (DPB) has cleared the acquisition of 60 medium transport aircraft for the IAF, setting in motion a long-pending plan to renew its tactical airlift fleet. Sources said the DPB, chaired by Defence Secretary R K Singh, met on Monday and cleared the proposal. The board vets capital acquisition proposals before they move to the Defence Acquisition Council for Acceptance of Necessity, following which the process moves to tendering, trials, negotiations and contract award. The acquisition, estimated at around `1 lakh crore, will be pursued under the ‘Buy and File pix of C-390 Millennium Make’ route, with 12 aircraft to be acquired in flyaway condition and the remaining 48 to be manufactured in India in partnership with the domestic industry sources said. , The requirement centres on replacing the An-32 fleet. The new aircraft are also expected to take on some roles of the ageing Il-76. The aircraft being sought must be capable of operating in high-altitude environments and from short, semi-prepared or unpaved surfaces, including Advanced Landing Grounds in Ladakh and the Northeast. A threeway contest is taking shape, with each contender offering a different mix of capability and industrial alignment. Sources said the contest is expected to be closely fought between Brazil’s Embraer, which has partnered with Mahindra Defence for this bid and US-based Lockheed Martin, which has a long-standing manufacturing partnership with Tata Advanced Systems. Embraer has offered the C-390 Millennium, a jet-powered aircraft with a payload of around 26 tonnes, placing it at the upper end of the IAF’s requirement. Lockheed’s C-130J Super Hercules (20 tonnes) and Airbus’ A400M Atlas (30+ tonnes) are also in the race.