zero space debris creation by 2030 As of March, 129 space debris originating from Indian satellite missions are in orbit, mostly from PSLV rockets, Parliament was informed. According to a written reply, the debris includes 23 defunct satellites in low earth orbit and 26 in geostationary orbit. In addition, there are rocket debris from PSLV (40), GSLV (4) and LVM3 (3). It is in this backdrop that India is aiming for zero debris creation by 2030 vijayawada l saturday l march 21, 2026 l `9.00 l PAGES 12 l late city EDITION 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 Steepest single-day New National Dental Commission rupee dive in 4 years formed to reform dental education Import costs may soar as currency falls 82 paise over Iran conflict B ENN K O C H U V EEDAN @ Mumbai The rupee on Friday logged its steepest single-day decline in four years, closing at a record low of 93.71 against the dollar, down 82 paise, as escalating tensions in West Asia kept crude oil prices elevated. The currency opened at 93.15 and remained under pressure through the session. During intraday trading, it weakened 1.1% to touch 93.7350 (down 103 paise), breaching its previous record low of 92.63 hit earlier this week. The rupee eventually settled at 93.71, marking a weekly decline of about 1.3%—the sharpest since late 2022. With this, the rupee has earned the dubious distinction of being the worst-performing currency in Asia, depreciating over 5.5% so far this year. Over the past year, the currency has weakened by around 8% against the dollar compared with an average annual fall of 4.2% in recent years. The continued slide poses risks to India’s macroeconomic goals, including its ambition to become a $5-trillion economy . A weaker rupee raises the cost of imports across the board, not just crude oil. India imports nearly 85% of its crude oil and over 60% of its natural gas requirements, making it particularly vulnerable to currency depreciation. ‘Re may breach 95-mark’ Rupee vs Dollar 92.28 (+2p) 92.25 (-24p) 92.30 (-5p) day 21 92.40 (-12p) 92.89 (-49p) 93.71* (-82p) March 12 March 13 March 16 March 17 March 18 March 20 *Provisional (Inverted Scale) According to RBI estimates, a $10 per barrel rise in crude prices typically pushes up inflation by about 30 basis points. Crude is currently trading above $110 per barrel. For the domestic economy, the impact of a prolonged conflict extends beyond currency weakness. The combination of a depreciating rupee and elevated crude prices could fuel imported inflation, especially in fuel and commodities, raise input costs for businesses, and increase the burden on consumers—prompting monetary policy action by RBI. With no signs of ease in the West Asia conflict, the rupee remains vulnerable. Several global brokerages, including Goldman Sachs and UBS, expect the Indian currency to weaken further and breach the 95-mark in the near term A sustained spike in oil prices could also dampen growth in one of the world’s largest oilimporting economies. Foreign portfolio investors (FPIs) have already pulled out over $8 billion from Indian equities this month—the highest outflow since January 2025— adding further pressure on the rupee. In 2025, FPIs had sold equities worth $18.9 billion. Domestic equity markets, however, showed resilience. After a sharp fall of 3% on Thursday benchmark indices Sensex , and Nifty recovered modestly on Friday rising 0.5%. , K a v i ta B a j e l i - D at t @ New Delhi IN a major reform aimed at improving the quality of dental education and aligning it with global standards, the Centre on Friday announced the constitution of the National Dental Commission (NDC). To support the functioning of the Commission, three autonomous bodies have also been constituted. The Commission will introduce essential and long-overdue regulatory reforms in dental education, and enhance access to affordable oral healthcare across the country . The notifications in this regard were issued on March 19. The NDC framework will now replace the Dental Council of India (DCI), which regulated dental education and profession throughout the country. The new Commission has come into effect from March 19. The Commission will frame regulations to implement the provisions of the Act; will conduct rating and assessment of dental institutions; evaluate human resources and promote dental research; frame guidelines for fee regulation in private dental colleges; and establish standards for community dental care, education, research, and professional ethics. “This historic reform marks a decisive shift towards a regulatory framework that is transparent, quality-driven, and accountable; replacing the earlier elected structure,” the Union Health Ministry said in a statement. E x p r e s s Re a d Untimely rains: Naidu seeks report on crop loss ‘Mee Intiki - Mee Doctor’ in seven districts soon Vijayawada: Chief Minister Nara Chandrababu Naidu has directed officials to submit a report within two days on the damage caused to different crops due to untimely rains and gales in the State. Conducting a video conference with officials on Friday, he took stock of the crop damage due to the untimely rains. The officials informed that maize crop was damaged in 4,840 hectares, paddy in 1,534 hectares and black gram in 310 hectares | P4 Vijayawada: The Indian Red Cross Society (IRCS), AP Branch, is set to launch an innovative project named ‘Mee Intiki - Mee Doctor’ at a cost of `8.40 crore. It will be implemented over a period of three years with the support of Rural Electrification Corporation (REC) Limited under CSR. The project will cover seven districts, including Parvathipuram Manyam, Alluri Sitarama Raju, Nandyal, Palnadu, Tirupati, BR Ambedkar Konaseema & West Godavari | P3 Key mandate of NDC The commission will frame rules, conduct rating and assessment of dental institutions. It will evaluate human resources and promote dental research, frame guidelines for fee regulation in private dental colleges and establish standards for ethics T h e t h re e a u t o n o m o u s boards are — Undergraduate and Postgraduate Dental Education Board, which will oversee dental education; Dental Assessment and Rating Board, which will regulate accreditation and institutional assessment; and the Ethics and Dental Registration Board, which will govern professional con- duct and re gistration of dentists. Dr Sanjay Tewari has been appointed as the Chairperson of the Commission, while Dr. Mousumi Goswami will be a part-time member. Dr Chandrashekhar Janakiram has been appointed as the president of the Undergraduate and Postgraduate Dental Education Board. Dr. Shailesh Madhav Lele will be the whole time member. Lt Gen (Retd) Nanda Kishore Sahoo is the president of the Dental Assessment and Rating Board while Dr Himanshu Aeran is a whole time member. Lt Gen (Retd) Tapas Kumar Bandyopadhyay has been appointed as the whole time member of the Ethics and Dental Registration Board. Arindam Modak will head the Secretariat as Secretary to the NDC. CJI recuses from hearing plea on panel picking CEC U d aya n K i s h o r e @ New Delhi Chief Justice of India Surya Kant on Friday recused himself from hearing a batch of petitions challenging a 2023 law that removed the CJI from a committee mandated to appoint the chief election commissioner to the poll panel, citing “conflict of interest”. The court was hearing a batch of PILs challenging the constitutional validity of certain provisions of the Chief Election Commissioner and Other Election Commissioners (Appointment, Conditions of Service and Term of Office) Act. The CJI said it would be appropriate for the case to be listed before a bench where no judge was in line to become the chief justice.