kozhikode l sunday l march 29, 2026 l `12.00 l PAGES 28 l city EDITION Nepal’s ex-pm oli arrested over 2025 Gen Z protest crackdown Nepal’s former Prime Minister K P Sharma Oli was arrested on Saturday over the brutal crackdown of anti-government protests last year start of justice, says new home minister oli, Lekhak face up to 10 years in jail Oli was arrested at the Gundu area of Bhaktapur district, 12 km east of Kathmandu, early Saturday morning, the police said. “We have taken under control former Prime Minister K P Oli and former Home Minister Ramesh Lekhak. This is not a revenge against anybody, just the beginning of justice,” Nepal’s Home Minister Sudhan Gurung wrote on social media ■ ■ A probe panel had recommended legal action against Oli and Lekhak under criminal offence over their involvement in the crackdown Nepal’s new government, led by Balendra Shah, in its first cabinet meeting on Friday, decided to immediately implement the panel’s recommendations, which includes three to ten years of jail sentence 76 people killed during the crackdown on gen z protests in September 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 Red Sea worry as Houthis join conflict for first time ‘ W e a k c a p e x , a ss e t cr e a t i o n ’ Kerala among laggards in fiscal health index Afghanistan Syria Choking Bab el-Mandeb Strait could haemorrhage economy Israel a Se ed eR Th 2nd chokepoint The Bab el-Mandeb Strait is a narrow waterway that controls traffic toward Suez Canal Bab el-Mandab Strait Strait of Hormuz Arabian Sea Yemen Gulf of Aden R a j e s h R a v i @ Kochi Ethanol blend eased fuel crisis pressure: Modi a g e n c i e s @ Tehran S L a l i t h a @ Noida YEMEN’S Houthi rebels entered the West Asia war on Saturday by launching a ballistic missile towards Israel, as the world struggled to contain the economic damage of a conflict on verge of entering its second month. The intervention of Iran’s Yemeni allies into Tehran’s conflict with Israel and US raised concerns about disruption to Red Sea shipping, with trade from the Gulf through the Strait of Hormuz already choked off. With no end to the conflict in day sight, despite US President Donald Trump’s optimism that US forces have obliterated Iran’s military a spokesman for the , Iran Houthis issued a video statesceptical ment declaring that the group on talks had launched ballistic misIran is sceptical siles at Israel. about recent Israel’s military said it had diplomatic intercepted a missile. During efforts to stop Israel’s recent war on Gaza, the war in the the Houthis, claiming solidarMiddle East, its ity with the Palestinians, atForeign Minister tacked shipping in the Red Abbas Araghchi Sea and Gulf of Aden. But, told his Turkish until Saturday, had sat out counterpart in this conflict. Experts warn a phone call Saturday | P11 that the Iran-backed Houthis have the potential to create a disastrous economic shock around the world. If the Houthis ramp up their role in this conflict by targeting vessels in the narrow Bab elMandeb Strait off the Red Sea, it would not only further push up oil prices but destabilise “all of maritime security,” said Ahmed Nagi, a senior Yemen analyst at the International Crisis Group, a research institution. As Iran strangles Hormuz, countries have scrambled for alternative routes. Bab el-Mandeb is crucial as it controls traffic for vessels heading to the Suez Canal through the Red Sea. Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday said the Centre was taking all possible steps to ensure that the ongoing West Asia conflict does not impact the common man. After unveiling the first phase of the Noida International Airport in Jewar, Modi commended sugarcane farmers for reducing India’s dependence on crude oil by helping scale up ethanol production. “Without the increase in ethanol production and its blending with petrol, India would have had to import an additional four-and-a-half crore barrels, approximately 700 crore litres of crude oil annually he said. “The ,” hard work of our farmers has given the country enormous relief during this time of crisis.” Ethanol has not only benefited the country but also the farmers, with approximately `1.5 lakh crore worth of foreign exchange being saved, he elaborated. Stating that he discussed the West Asia crisis in detail in Parliament as also as with all chief ministers the previous day he appealed , to the people to face the situation with a calm mind and remain patient. “What is in the interest of Indians and in the interest of India, that alone is the policy and strategy of the Government of India,” he said. 29 Kerala finds itself among the more fiscally stressed states in the country according to the , latest Fiscal Health Index (FHI) for 2023-24 released by the NITI Aayog. Ranked 15th among 18 major states, Kerala falls in the “aspirational” category, placing it alongside states grappling with persistent financial pressures. The FHI of 18 major states and 10 Northeastern states was calculated using data from the Comptroller and Auditor General of India (CAG). The study evaluates states across five key sub-indices: quality of expenditure, revenue mobilisation, fiscal prudence, debt index, and debt sustainability . The report notes that higher-ranked states tend to demonstrate stronger fiscal discipline and better resource mobilisation, while lower-ranked states are marked by higher nondevelopmental spending and less sustainable fiscal patterns. Lekha Chakraborty, professor at the New Delhi-based National Institute of Public Finance and Policy said Kerala’s , press Intake 40% decline in medical tourism due to war | P11 Contraceptives to manage leopard population | P11 Hotel business takes a hit in W Asia | P14 Prime Minister Narendra Modi with UP Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath and others, during the inauguration of the Noida International Airport, in Jewar on Saturday | PTI Assembly elections Poll panel launches youth-focused drive T’Puram: With Election Commission surveys in the state indicating a lower turnout among young voters — including first-time voters in the 18-19 age group — in previous elections, the poll panel has launched special awareness drives to reverse the trend. P4 scripting memories ezhavas reshaping political narrativeI P4 With Plus-II examinations coming to a close, students enjoy a joyous moment of bonding as they turn their uniforms into ‘slam books’ to record emotions and wishes, at St Mary’s Convent Girls Higher Secondary School in Ernakulam on Saturday | T P Sooraj fiery flares and cold comfort I P5 I P L e n t e rs n e w e r a Next-gen homegrown captains in focus s w a r o o p s w a m i n at h a n @ Bengaluru WHEN Ishan Kishan was appointed interim captain of the Sunrisers Hyderabad franchise in the lead-up to the 19th edition of IPL, it was a small but significant in the competition’s history It meant captains of all fran. chises would be Indians, at least to begin the season. Taken in isolation, it may not mean a lot. But pull back the curtains a little bit and analyse it at the macro level. It suggests several things. Mainly the league, firmly in , its adulthood from this year, is willing to experiment in terms of how they appoint captains. Earlier, captains and experience went hand in The 11 seats reserved permanently at M Chinnaswamy Stadium in remembrance of lives lost during the stampede at RCB’s IPL celebrations in 2025 | Kevin nashon hand. Captains and the biggest overseas stars of those teams went hand in hand. Not anymore. Some franchises are beginning to get smarter. It’s not a surprise because this is how leagues evolve. There used to be a demand in franchise cricket to spend extra for the purpose of picking a captain. Boffins of teams in the bigger leagues have realised that specialist captains, in general, do not contribute extra points in a season. It’s why, over the last few seasons, Shreyas Iyer, Ruturaj Gaikwad, Shubman Gill, Axar Patel and, recently Rajat Patidar and Kishan were , handed the gigs. Outside Gill, none of them were the biggest names of the side when they were given the job for the first time. This is an intriguing development for a league which was infatuated with its biggest stars. But after 19 years, it doesn’t need hand-holding anymore. Highs & Lows The Fiscal Health Index of 18 major and 10 NE states was calculated using CAG data. A look at the scores of top and lowest-ranked states. State FHI score Rank Odisha 73.1 1 Goa 54.7 2 Jharkhand 50.5 3 Kerala West Bengal Andhra Pradesh Punjab 24.8 15 23.8 16 23.1 17 12.4 18 Quality of Revenue Fiscal expenditure mobilisation prudence 71.2 80.3 58.7 49.5 80.4 45.0 66.3 37.6 54.4 4.1 37.4 43.1 8.1 position on the index highlights a structural paradox at the core of its development model. “The state’s score has shown no meaningful improvement from 25.3 in 2022-23 and has declined from an average of 30.8 in the 2014-17 period,” she pointed out. “This stagnation is not cyclical but reflects deep-seated rigidities in expenditure composition and fiscal space. The report’s state profile explicitly frames this as ‘the challenge of balancing strong social and developmental commitments with limited fiscal flexibility she said. ,’” According to the report, the 47.8 12.9 21.7 29.8 24.0 22.7 9.9 5.9 Debt Debt index sustainability 95.8 59.5 56.8 41.9 67.9 26.3 23.3 20.1 36.6 2.1 24.8 25.6 4.2 15.9 Source: NITI Aayog’s Fiscal Health Index for 2023-24 Turkmenistan Caspian Sea Turkey most striking concern is how Kerala spends its money. A large share of its budget goes towards salaries, pensions, and interest payments. It points out that Kerala’s capital spending is among the lowest in the country, indicating that the state is not creating enough assets to drive future growth. The report also flags relatively high debt levels, with a growing share of revenue being used to service interest payments. Lekha points out that a pillar-wise reading of the index is crucial to understanding why Kerala remains near the bot● More on P8 tom. 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