chennai l friday l April 03, 2026 l `9.00 l PAGES 14 l vellore EDITION Amid tighter visa norms, Indian student count in U.S. falls 6.2% Over 3.52 lakh Indians are studying in the US as of February 2026, down from 3.78 lakh last year, the government told Parliament on Thursday ai generated Indians impacted by trump’s visa policy: mos ‘Govt raising student concerns with U.S.’ The Trump administration expanded screening and vetting for all visa applicants on June 18, 2025. The Minister of State for External Affairs Kirti Vardhan Singh said this tougher filtering, including increased scrutiny and compliance requirements, had an impact on the number of US student visas issued to Indian nationals ■ ■ “The new US guidance mentions that every visa adjudication is a national security decision and calls on all applicants to credibly establish their eligibility for the visa sought,” Singh said The government has been regularly raising all issues being confronted by Indian students with the US authorities, he said 8.92 lakh Asian students in the United States as of March 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 At UK-led talks, India SC stinker as for unimpeded transit mob gheraoes 60+ nations join Hormuz meet on safe passage options day 34 J aya n th J a c o b @ New Delhi Moonshot The NASA Artemis II SLS (Space Launch System) rocket with the Orion spacecraft launches at the Kennedy Space Center in the wee hours of Thursday, in Cape Canaveral, Florida | AP | P9 India on Thursday called for immediate de-escalation in West Asia, warning of risks to global energy flows and maritime security, while highlighting that it is the only country to have lost mariners in recent attacks on merchant shipping in the Gulf. Representing India at a highlevel virtual meeting convened by UK Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper, Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri said the crisis could only be resolved through diplomacy and dialogue. The meeting, attended by representatives from over 60 countries including France, Germany, Italy, Canada and the UAE, focused on the deteriorating security situation in key international waterways, particularly the Strait of Hormuz. In his remarks, the Foreign Secretary talked about “the importance of the principles of freedom of navigation and unimpeded transit through international waterways.” an official readout said. Misri stressed that “the way out of the crisis consisted of de-escalation and a return to the path of diplomacy and dialogue among all concerned parties,” signalling India’s preference for a political solution over military escalation. The meeting took place amid heightened tensions after US President Donald Trump suggested that ensuring the security of Hormuz should be the responsibility of nations that rely on it. The US did not participate in the meeting. The strait remains a critical artery for the global economy, Customs duty off S UC H I T R A K ALYAN MO H AN T Y @ New Delhi Full customs duty exemption granted on critical petrochemical products for three months till June 30. Will help industries like plastics, packaging, textiles, pharma, chemicals, automotive components etc. Revenue loss pegged at `1,800 crore Don gives no timeline US President Donald Trump claims Israel and US were close to completing their key objectives in the war against Iran, adding the conflict would soon be over, but doesn’t provide an exact timeline Iran’s pushback Iran threatened “crushing” attacks on the US and Israel, firing missiles at the Israeli and , after Trump vowed to bomb the Islamic Republic “back to the Stone Ages” Videograb of a strike on an IRGC missile base in Iran’s Baharestan, Isfahan | X handling nearly 20% of the world’s oil and LNG shipments and its ongoing blockade sent oil prices soaring above $100 per barrel. Two Indian seafarers had lost their lives since the beginning of the war. Cooper accused Iran of disrupting global trade. “We have seen Iran hijack an international shipping route to hold the global economy hostage,” she said, warning of ripple effects across energy fertiliser and fuel , supply chains worldwide. European countries, initially reluctant to commit naval forces, are now exploring a coordinated approach amid rising energy costs. Officials said the meeting marked the first step toward forming a coalition to restore safe passage. Initial plans include clearing mines from the waterway and ensuring protection for commercial vessels, with further consultations involving military planners expected in the coming weeks. Congress struggles to fill 5 of 28 seats allotted in TN after vijay’s plaint samudram seats. A senior Congress leader told TNIE that members of the The Congress is facing diffi- TN unit involved in the constitculty in finalising its candidate uency identification process list for the Assembly poll as the had to accept 14 seats from the party’s screening committee DMK that were not part of the has run into trouble in identi- party’s original wish list subfying suitable candimitted to the Draviddates for five of the 28 ian major. Assembly elections constituencies allot“Of the 28 seats alted to it by the DMK lotted, we got 16 as part of the Secular where we have sitting Progressive Alliance MLAs. Of the 16 seats, (SPA). Sources said O o t y a n d M ay i the party was unable it’s fight for laduthurai were not india’s soul, to identify winnable part of our wish list, candidates for Ooty, says raja I P6 and we did not intend Mayiladuthurai, At- Eps can’t talk to renominate the tur (SC), Sankarank- about women candidates,” the senov i l , a n d A m b a - safety: CM I P4 ior leader said.  P5 E x p ress n e w s ser v i c e @ Chennai p r a b h a k a r ta m i l a r a s u @ Chennai Rathore new DGP as ECI shakes up bureaucracy As per the orders of the Election Commission of India (ECI), Tamil Nadu government on Thursday transferred the state’s DGP (Head of Police Force), three more senior IPS officers, including Tambaram police commissioner, and collectors of two districts. Dr Sandeep Rai Rathore, DGP, Training, took charge as DGP (HoPF), replacing DGP (HoPF incharge) G Venkataraman, on Thursday evening. ECI had directed all the officers to take charge in their new roles latest by 11 am on Friday and added that those transferred out should not be involved in any election-related work. ECI’s direction came two days after actor and TVK president Vijay sent a representation to the commission through the chief electoral officer of Tamil Nadu, demanding the transfer of DGP (HoPF), ADGP (Law and Order), and commissioner of Greater Chennai Police.  P5 Star campaigner Tharoor moves from sidelines to spotlight K S S R E E J I T H @ T’Puram TILL a few weeks ago, he was ignored and isolated by his own party in Kerala. But now, as the poll heat in Kerala has breached tolerance levels, the same Congress leaders are vying with each other to get his date. Congress MP Shashi Tharoor now has no time to rest, as UDF candidates carry him from one campaign site to the next, hoping his charismatic persona and suave communication skills will draw voters. In the run-up to the assembly elections — Kerala goes to polls on April 9 — Tharoor has emerged the most sought after star campaigner of the Congress, after Rahul Gandhi. Party sources say every UDF candidate wants Tharoor to campaign for them, banking on his popular appeal among urban voters and the wider electorate. The dramatic change in the attitude of regional Congress leaders is hard judges in WB to miss. In a recent road show Tharoor shared stage with Leader of Opposition V D Satheesan, once a staunch adversary of the Thiruvananthapuram MP drawing signifi, cant public attention. “The requests for his participation often exceed what can be accommodated. Leaders who once asked him to quit the Congress are now requesting his presence,” a senior leader told this newspaper. 56 seats to be covered Tharoor is expected to cover 56 constituencies. In the first leg, from March 21 to April 1, he visited 37 constituencies. From April 2 to 6, he will participate in road shows with candidates THE Supreme Court on Thursday came down heavily on the West Bengal government for its inaction over the gherao of judicial officers in Malda district during the special intensive revision (SIR) drive, ordering an independent probe by the CBI or NIA. “We direct the ECI to entrust the enquiry /investigation to either the CBI or NIA. The compliance report shall be submitted to this court. The agency shall be obligated to submit a preliminary enquiry report directly to this court,” said a bench headed by Chief Justice Surya Kant during an urgent hearing on Thursday morning. The court took suo motu cognisance after it received a letter from the Chief Justice of Calcutta High Court detailing how the judicial officers, including three women, were held captive for nine hours without food or water by protesters who claimed their names were deleted from the voter list. The incident occurred during the SIR exercise in the Kaliachowk area of Malda district. The bench said the incident exposes the ‘complete failure of the state administration’. “We have never seen such a polarised state. Unfortunately in your state, each one of you speaks politi, cal language. That is the most unfortunate thing. We have never seen such a polarized state,” the CJI told West Bengal’s Advocate General. The bench also asked the election commission to deploy adequate central forces for the safety of judicial officers in the poll-bound state. Didi blames it on EC Mamata Banerjee distanced herself from the incident saying “EC failed to protect the judicial officers”. “My powers have been taken away; Bengal defamed,” she said This incident is a brazen attempt not only to browbeat judicial officers but challenge authority of this court Supreme Court EC hands over case to NIA; probe team to reach today Kolkata: Hours after the SC order, the Election Commission of India handed over the probe into the gherao of the seven judicial officers in West Bengal’s Malda district to the NIA. A top official of the poll body said the NIA team would reach West Bengal on Friday. The gherao happened when the officers were engaged in adjudicating cases of voters whose names had been marked “under adjudication” in the draft electoral rolls. The protesters initially sought a meeting but then resorted to a prolonged gherao