S JANAKI tirunelveli l Sunday l july 12, 2026 l `12.00 l PAGES 24 l city EDITION av i n as h ra m ac h a n d ra n @ Chennai LEGENDARY playback singer S Janaki, fondly called the Nightingale of South India, passed away in Mysuru due to age-related health complications on Saturday She was 88. . Over more than six decades, Janaki was the voice not just of generations of actors, but also the most identifiable voice for years to come. While she was best known for her renditions of countless songs in South Indian languages, Janaki left an indelible mark in Hindi, Bengali, and Odia, as well. She began her singing career with the Tamil film, ‘Vidhiyin Vilayattu’ (1957) at the age of 19. Although she retired from active playback singing in 2016, the 48,000 songs she sang in over 20 languages since the late 1950s will stand a testimony to her versatility . 23 April 1938 l 11 July 2026 EVERY GENRE HAS A JANAKI AMMA SPECIAL The remarkable thing about her legacy is that every genre had its Janaki song. If you wanted to take the devotional route, you had the breathtaking “Singara Velane Deva.” Soon enough, she became the voice of unadulterated romance, encompassing the age of ache and yearning with “Senthoora Poove”, which earned her the National Award. How could this same divine voice also define the tone of the singer, fondly called Janaki amma, also sang the two ‘ mma’ songs that would paciA fy the hearts of children longing for their mothers: “Chinna Thaayaval” from Thalapathy and “Amma Amma” from Velaiyilla Pattadhaari. Every era discovered a new Janaki. She didn’t just adapt to changing musical landscapes but underscored them with her high-pitched yet soothing tone.  CONTINUED on: P5 sensuality with ‘Ponmeni Uruguthey’? And if you had any doubts about her versatility, you have the two amazing Sundari songs: “Sundari Neeyum Sundaran Naanum” and “Sundari, Kannal oru seidhi...” And 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 NZ ties scaled up to strategic partnership romance de La Roja Spain ultimately showed their class as they beat Belgium 2-1 to advance to only their second World Cup semifinal. A look... Merino does it again A few days after scoring the winner against Portugal in injury-time, the midfielder, who had only been on the field for three minutes, finished from close range to score the winner in the 88th minute Trade target set at `35,000 crore by 2030 4 killed in electrocution during bore work Four workers died of electrocution and another suffered injuries after a metal borewell pipe came into contact with a high-tension power line during repair work at a private resort near Mamallapuram on Saturday. The borewell contractor & resort owner have been booked | P4 W I T H T H I S I SS U E Game On PLUS 12 P AGES India and New Zealand elevated their relationship to a Strategic Partnership on Saturday , marking the most significant upgrade in bilateral ties in decades, with the two countries unveiling an ambitious defence, maritime and economic agenda aimed at deepening cooperation in the Indo-Pacific. Following wide-ranging talks between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his New Zealand counterpart Christopher Luxon, the two sides announced 18 outcomes, including 10 agreements spanning defence, maritime security, trade, supply chains and regional cooperation. The two sides launched a Maritime Security Dialogue, a reciprocal logistics support arrangement between the Indian Navy and the New Zealand Defence Force, a maritime cooperation pact between their defence ministries, and a roadmap to expand bilateral engagement over the next four years. The leaders also set an ambitious target of doubling bilateral trade in goods and services to NZ$7 billion (around `35,000 crore) by 2030, while committing to ensure the early implementation of the recently signed India-New Zealand Free Trade Agreement. “I am delighted that we are going to take our relationship forward through a Strategic Partnership. This milestone As soon as the draw was out, the brackets had suggested this and so it has come to pass. Two of the world’s best sides against will face each other in the first semifinal at Dallas for a place in the final. And it promises to be a cracker PM Narendra Modi with his New Zealand counterpart Christopher Luxon at an Indian diaspora event in Auckland | PTI will motivate us to move ahead with greater energy confidence , and determination,” said Modi, the first Indian PM to visit New Zealand in four decades. The agreements underscore New Zealand’s growing strategic engagement with India as Wellington seeks to diversify partnerships in the Indo-Pacific, while reflecting New Delhi’s efforts to strengthen cooperation with like-minded maritime democracies against the backdrop of China’s expanding regional influence. The joint statement reaffir med both countries’ commitment to a free, open, inclusive and prosperous Indo-Pacific, stressing respect for sovereignty territo, rial integrity and the rulesbased international order. Both PMs also reiterated support for freedom of navigation and overflight. UN experts flag concerns on SIR deletions in Bengal B a n s y K a l a p pa @ B’luru/New Delhi THREE United Nations Special Rapporteurs have written to the Indian government expressing concern over allegations that the Election Commission of India’s (ECI) Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls resulted in the deletion of millions of voters, with minority communities allegedly being disproportionately affected. In a formal communication to the Centre, the UN Special Rapporteur on minority issues, the Special Rapporteur on the promotion and protection of the right to freedom of opinion Simon finally breached Meeting France J aya n t h J a c o b @ New Delhi file pic and expression, and the Special Rapporteur on freedom of religion\ belief said they had received information indicating that the electoral roll revision adversely affected ethnic, reli- After not conceding for almost 11 hours, Spain’s Unai Simon finally conceded a goal, Charles de Ketelaere heading home a cross from the right. But Spain refocused to deliver the finishing touch 15 Indians killed as boat capsizes off Vietnam j aya n t h j a c o b @ New Delhi AT least 15 Indian tourists, including 13 men and two women, were killed after a tourist boat carrying Indian visitors capsized off Vietnam’s Phu Quoc Island on Saturday prompting a major , search-and-rescue operation and emergency assistance by Indian diplomatic missions. The vessel, carrying 36 people, 32 Indian tourists, three crew members and one attendant, overturned around 1 pm local time (11.30 am IST) while returning from Hon May Rut Ngoai Island to An Thoi Port amid rough seas and strong winds. Authorities said 21 people PM assures speedy assistance Prime Minister Narendra Modi said the government was extending all possible assistance. “My sincere condolences to families who lost their loved ones. Our Embassy are providing all possible assistance.” were rescued and taken to hospital, with two reported critical. The Indian embassy said its Ambassador, accompanied by mission officials, was travelling to Phu Quoc to oversee consular assistance, coordinate with Vietnamese author- ities and support the affected Indian nationals. Lava Mobiles said some of its employees and channel partners were among those killed in the boat accident. In a statement on X, Lava said, “Our immediate priority is to extend all possible support to those affected and their families. Our teams in both India and Vietnam are in regular contact with the families and are providing all possible assistance.” Sources said around 110 Lava distributors and employees from South India were travelling together on the Vietnam trip, although only a section of them was travelling on the ill-fated boat. cambodia Phu Quoc Phu Quoc Island Gulf of Thailand gious and linguistic minorities, particularly Muslims. The communication focuses primarily on the SIR exercise conducted in West Bengal before the elections in April 2026, while also referring to concerns raised during a similar roll revision in Bihar last year. The UN experts said many of those removed in Bengal allegedly possessed valid identity documents but were disenfranchised. The rapporteurs also cited allegations that Muslim voters were disproportionately affected. In Nandigram constituency, 95 per cent of deleted names belonged to Muslims, the representatives said. Vietnam The speedboat capsized 400 metres off Hon May Rut Ngoai, an island in the An Thoi archipelago off the coast of Phu Quoc, killing 15 Indian tourists, 10 of whom were from Tamil Nadu ai enhanced pic 10 TN phone dealers on sponsored trip among victims Vi v a n e s h Pa r t h ib a n @ Chennai As many as 10 people from Tamil Nadu were among those killed after a tourist boat carrying business associates of Lava International capsized off Hon May Rut Ngoai Island in Vietnam on Saturday . According to news reports, a total of 58, mostly dealers and distributors of Lava International (mobile phone manufacturer) were on a company-sponsored trip to Vietnam. While some tourists had already disembarked on the island before the mishap, those who remained on board died when the boat overturned. Out of 10 deceased from Tamil Nadu, three were from Tiruchy, one each from Chennai, Tiruvallur, Vellore, Tiruvannamalai, Dindigul, Salem and Dharmapuri. The deceased from Tamil Nadu have been identified as Senthil Kumar Jayavel, Murugaprabhu Arumugam, Sridhar Sundararajan, Shaik Abdullah, Balaji Natesan, Vinaya Kumar, Ravisankar Sugumaran, Santhosh Kumar, Babu Kuppuswamy and Alagurajan Sivasamy The group left for Vi. etnam on July 8 and was scheduled to return on Monday  P5 . PIL against TVK: Can’t use kids in poll rallies, says EC EXPRESS NEWS SERV I CE @ Chennai The Election Commission of India has told the Madras High Court that children cannot be used for political campaigns, and that a circular was issued two years ago against the use of children for election-related activities. Submitting its reply to a peti- tion seeking probe and action against the ruling Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK) for allegedly using children for indirect electoral gains, the poll panel said instances falling under ‘undue influence’ have to be examined to ascertain whether they had any bearing on the recent Tamil Nadu Assembly polls. Stating that voters are adult individuals capable of making their own decisions and are protected by law to maintain the secrecy of their vote, the ECI said there can be no presumption of indirect pressure having been exerted to vote for a particular party . The submission was made in a counter-affidavit filed by Chief Electoral Officer Archa- na Patnaik on a public interest litigation petition filed by L Vasuki of Bhuvanagiri in Cuddalore district. “It is not in dispute that children cannot be employed for the purpose of election related activity, be it from the officials’ side or from the political parties,” the counter-affidavit stated.  P5 ti m e f o r int r o s p e c ti o n Caught in traffic jam, T20 World Cup champions reeling in English heat express news service @ Chennai ON Saturday afternoon, India captain Shreyas Iyer was supposed to walk out for toss in Southampton for the final T20I against England at 2pm local time. Instead, India were stuck in traffic and the toss had to wait for 45 minutes. That, in essence, sums up India’s tour for the Men in Blue. From the time they landed in Belfast last month, not a single thing has gone their way . With six T20I losses so far and a complete white-wash, captain Iyer is yet to get his first win while coach Gautam Gambhir is feeling the heat too. And, to a large extent, the team management has jnot helped their cause either. In three games, Sanju Samson, player of the T20 World Cup, was To top it all, India had one of the worst bowling performances on Saturday | ap dropped for Vaibhav Sooryavanshi, the 15-year-old prodigy . After three matches, Sooryavanshi who did not get big scores was dropped on Saturday for Samson. Not to mention that India have been changing their playing XI every single game. Recurring injuries and poor fielding have added to the woes. “I feel this is the time we need to try what’s the best going forward for us as a team,” Iyer said at toss on Saturday . Which makes one wonder about playing XI of previous games, lack of role clarity and stability in the dressing room. Tilak Varma, who was touted as No 3 when the T20 WC started and named vice-captain for this tour, has been dropped down the order. Washington Sundar struggling for form and two seam-bowling allrounders — Hardik Pandya and Nitish K Reddy — are injured. India have not found a viable replacement yet. For a team that won the T20 WC seven games ago, India allowing England to score 257/3, before losing by 56 runs can be considered a new low. When the dust settles after the England tour (ODI-leg left), the BCCI will have to sit down and take a hard look at the way forward.