KOCHI l friday l june 19, 2026 l `9.00 l PAGES 16 l LATE city EDITION Latest IMD data puts Monsoon rain deficit at whopping 41% With the southwest monsoon stalled over Maharashtra, India is facing a nationwide rainfall deficit of 41% between June 4-18, the IMD said A dried-up pond at Koonthankulam Bird Sanctuary, Tirunelveli dist | KARTHIKALAGU IMD’s reasons for weak monsoon surge weak phase of madden-julian oscillation There are five main factors behind the slowdown in monsoon’s northward progress. First, the current monsoon flow lacks a strong surge from the Arabian Sea, according to IMD. Second, low-level southwesterly winds associated with the monsoon circulation have weakened over the Arabian Sea. Third, the cross-equatorial flow over the western Indian Ocean ■ ■ IMD said the fourth reason is cyclonic circulations over the Arabian Sea and Bay of Bengal, or an offshore trough along the west coast that facilitates monsoon advancement, are absent The last factor is the weak phase of the Madden-Julian Oscillation (MJO), a moving system of wind, cloud, and pressure that brings rain 4-5 days more wait for maharashtra for rainfall to resume, predicts IMD 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 Poll rout triggers power equation shift within CPM A n i l S @ T’Puram The humiliating assembly poll debacle appears to have jolted the Kerala CPM into introspection, with the party gearing up for significant organisational changes. While a changing of the guard is unlikely, at least until the next state conference, there is growing stridency in calls for a major shake-up of the state committee and secretariat, after the extended committee meetings in August. The electoral setback has triggered realignments within the CPM, with leaders pushing for sweeping changes starting to regroup. The recent public criticism by party general secretary M A Baby and central committee member P Rajeeve is being viewed as the emergence of a new power axis within the party . As demands for a leadership overhaul grow and state secretary M V Govindan comes under mounting pressure, the central leadership is moving to tighten its grip on the Kerala unit.In what is widely seen as a veiled swipe at Govindan over his wife’s candidature in Taliparamba, Baby reportedly remarked that had he been in a position to take the decision, he would have gone for someone other than a relative as candidate. Notably, Pinarayi Vijayan himself stepped in to counter attempts to pin the blame for the party’s poor electoral performance on Govindan alone. Responding to questions on Baby’s remarks, the former chief minister made it clear that the CPM would not permit individuals to be singled out. “The party conducted a detailed review of the electoral setback. That review did not hold any individual responsible for specific shortcomings,” Pinarayi said at a media briefing, in an indirect rebuttal of Baby’s criticism. Sources said the CPM is in for an inevitable churn, with new power equations emerging. While Pinarayi continues to wield considerable influence, Govindan finds himself on a sticky wicket. “If you notice, leaders like Baby, Thomas Isaac and Rajeeve have been vocal about the need for introspection. Both Govindan and Pinarayi faced criticism at most lower-level committee meetings. With a section of leaders pushing for sweeping changes, a new axis is taking shape within the party,” a senior leader from Thiruvananthapuram said. ● More on P4 HC poser on Telegram ban proportionality u daya n k i s h o r e @ New Delhi SOCIAL media app Telegram was banned “temporarily” to prevent misleading crores of students so that they do not come on the streets, the Centre told the Delhi High Court on Thursday claiming that the app was the most preferred platform for terror activities. The Centre made the submission after Justice Tejas Karia questioned how can the rights of 150 million people just be stopped because one set of citizen are appearing in examinations. “The question is can you block somebody else’s rights to protect someone else’s rights,” the judge asked. The judge reserved verdict on Telegram’s plea challenging the government order banning the platform till June 22 in view of the NEET re-exam. Attorney General R Venkataramani, appearing for the Centre, said Telegram, because of its architecture, was a “Frankenstein”. “If a country like ours cannot take preventive action, where do we go?” Solicitor General Tushar Mehta said Telegram operates through cloud, “even if we block something and someone does a mischief, law enforcement agency can’t reach the person... This is the most preferred platform for terrorist activities,” the SG said. To this, the bench asked, “How can we stop rights of 150 million people?” Diaz Kane hero for Colombia sets stage alight Skipper Harry Kane, coming of a record-breaking domestic season with Bayern Munich, sparkled as his brace helped England overcome Croatia 4-2 in a thriller. The striker, who equalled England’s World Cup record of 10 goals (Gary Linekar), will be key if they are to match the exploits of 1966 when they won the cup for the only time Luis Diaz, who has gone up a level over the last 12 months, was all-action as his country saw off Uzbekistan 3-1 in Wednesday’s final game in Mexico. The winger displayed all his typical traits as he contributed a goal and an assist to help them begin their campaign with a win Three Lions roar with four England got their campaign off to a rousing start while Colombia eased past the challenge of Uzbekistan as the World Cup’s first round comes to an end. A look... Today's matches USA vs Australia l 12:30 AM Scotland vs Morocco l 3:30 AM Brazil vs Haiti l 6AM Turkiye vs Paraguay l 8:30 AM Live on United8 Sports & ZEE5 (All IST Saturday) India-UK free trade pact to kickstart on July 15; bid to energise economy on fast track UK steel deal clears FTA rollout path P u s h p i ta D e y @ New Delhi India has secured additional concessions under the free trade agreement with the United Kingdom, resolving all outstanding issues that had delayed its implementation, setting the stage for its roll out on July 15. The gains include an extension of the social security contribution exemption for Indian professionals working temporarily in the UK from three years to five years and a resolution of concerns over Britain’s proposed steel safeguard measures. The Ministry of Commerce on Thursday said around 85% of India’s steel exports have been kept outside the UK’s new import restrictions. “The key issue which was holding us back was the new steel measures. Around 85% of our exports to the UK are outside the steel measures,” an official said. The UK had announced a 60% reduction in tarifffree steel import quotas from June and imposed a 50% duty on shipments exceeding those quotas to protect its domestic steel industry. In its pushback, India had warned that it could revisit the concessions under the FTA if the issue remained unresolved. Since nearly 85% of India’s steel exports to the UK fall outside the product categories covered by the British safeguard regime, it will ensure continued market access through a combination of countryspecific quotas, residual quotas and an authoriseduse mechanism. Of India’s nearly $900 million steel exports to the UK, only about $137 million will now be subject to the new safeguard measures. Sources said both countries spent the last two months negotiating the outstanding issues. Multiple areas have been negotiated. Course corrections in multiple areas have been discussed and finalised. We have resolved all issues Union commerce ministry official Deft balancing “Balancing has been done in a manner that does not impact Free Trade Agreement. Also, the proportionate benefits and market access to both sides under Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement have been preserved,” the official said Final FTA text by July 1 Prime ministers Narendra Modi and Keir Starmer announced on Wednesday that CETA will come into force on July 15. The final legal text and details of the agreement are expected by July 1 Modi call to democratise technology J aya n t h J a c o b @ New Delhi Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday positioned India as a global hub for inclusive technology and innovation, telling business leaders and entrepreneurs at the VivaTech Summit 2026 in Paris that technology can drive progress only when it is accessible to everyone. He also met top French CEOs to discuss fresh investments and expansion plans across sectors including artificial intelligence, shipping, logistics, railways and construction. Speaking at VivaTech, Europe’s largest technology and startup event, where India is the Country Partner and has set up the largest national pavilion, Modi highlighted India’s technology-led transformation over the past decade and presented a vision of AI that prioritises inclusion and broadbased growth. “When it comes to technology, along with innovation, what matters is access. Technology can lead to progress only when it is democratised. India believes that in this era of disruption, technology must deliver for all,” Modi said. His comments assume significance amid growing global debates over access to advanced AI technologies and recent restrictions by the US on the use of certain cutting-edge AI models by foreign nationals. Using a phrase that drew applause from the audience, Modi said: “For India, AI means ‘All Inclusive’.” He said AI should be leveraged to improve lives, expand access to services, accelerate economic growth and support sustainability goals. According to Ministry of External Affairs, the PM’s discussions focused on strengthening collaboration across shipping, railways, construction and AI. Uddhav Sena on the verge of a split, again P R EETH A N A I R @ New Delhi As the Shiv Sena (UBT) appears to be headed for a second major split, six of its nine Lok Sabha MPs skipped the parliamentary party meeting on Thursday signalling that a for, mal crossover to the ruling Shiv Sena led by Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde is imminent. The MPs who skipped the meeting are Nagesh Aashtikar, Sanjay Deshmukh, Sanjay Jadhav, Sanjay Dina Patil, Omprakash Rajenimbalkar, and Bhausaheb Wakchaure. The party issued a show cause notice to them to explain their absence within seven days. Arvind Sawant, Anil Desai and Rajabhau Waje attended the meeting, along with Sanjay Raut, the party’s lone Rajya Sabha MP. Raut said the MPs’ no-show will be considered a violation of party whip and legal action will be taken to disqualify them as lawmakers. Sources said the dissident MPs have given a letter to LS speaker seeking a merger with the Shinde-led Sena. Budget today The UDF government led by V D Satheesan, who also holds the finance portfolio, is set to unveil its financial plan for state | P4 16 pages, including 4 pages of KOCHI Express Mob trial in Kuttiady as duo attacked in cops’ presence Now, Kerala Kalamandalam comes up with textbooks for classical artforms L e s ly J o s e p h @ Kozhikdoe In a shocking incident, an aggressive crowd subjected a man and a young woman travelling with him to public trial and physical assault, that too in the presence of police, at Kuttiady in Kozhikode. The crowd intercepted their car and dragged the man — a narcotics case accused booked under KAAPA — and the woman out of the vehicle before assaulting them. The visuals of the incident that happened on Wednesday have been widely circulating on social media, triggering a A video grab shows Ajmal being moved to ambulance after being tied up fierce debate over the rising trend of moral policing and unchecked crowds taking the law into their own hands. The violent episode traces back to a multi-vehicle road accident that occurred on Friday at Kakkatil near Nadapuram, where a car hit an autorickshaw and sped off. The car crashed into three other vehicles, including an ambulance, before fleeing. Following this, the owners of the vehicles involved in the accidents filed a complaint. Even as search had been going on for the car by the complainants, local residents and the local police, information emerged on Wednesday evening that the vehicle was spotted at Nilechukunnu in Kuttiady In a sequence . described as cinematic, a large group of local residents on mo- torbikes, along with the police personnel, chased and intercepted the vehicle. The car was driven by Ajmal Manthattil, 34, a historysheeter with 16 criminal cases against him, including assault, narcotics, and attempt to murder. He was actively defying a ban on entering Kozhikode district under the Kerala Anti-Social Activities (Prevention) Act (KAAPA). He was accompanied by a woman passenger. However, instead of letting the legal process take its course, the situation rapidly degenerated ● More on P4 into mob rule.  G o p i k a V arr i e r @Thrissur For the first time in its history , Kerala Kalamandalam has introduced textbooks for various classical artforms in high school classes. Kathakali maestro Kalamandalam Gopi released the textbooks at a function on Thursday . Since its establishment in 1930, Kalamandalamfollowed lessons as per the conviction of its teachers. With the introduction of textbooks, the teaching process, which focused on oral and performance-based interactions between teachers and students, will now become more systematic and standardised. “Textbooks have been prepared for 15 subjects, including The cover page of kathakali text for Class 8 kathakali thekkan and vadakkan. The teachers of Kalamandalam worked hard to come up with a syllabus and standard textbooks under the guidance of State Council of Educational Research and Training. The books will definitely act as a documental foundation for all courses helping students learn better,” said P Rajesh Kumar, Registrar of Kalamandalam. A total of 42 books were released on Thursday  ● More on P4 .