THRISSUR l sunday l august 02, 2026 l `12.00 l PAGES 26 l city EDITION Elite mountaineer Nirmal Purja killed in poK avalanche Famous mountaineer Nirmal Purja and nine others were on Saturday confirmed dead, days after an avalanche hit Broad Peak in PoK was leading 10-member team to broad peak ■ 2018 Climbed all 14 ‘super peaks’ in 6 just months British-Nepali climber Purja, popularly known as Nims or Nimsdai, was leading a 10-member climbing team when the avalanche hit on Thursday morning. The mountaineers were ascending at an altitude of around 6,600 metres when they were swept away, local authorities said. Broad Peak, standing at 8,051 metres, is the world’s 12th-highest mountain ■ Purja famously scaled all of the world’s 14 highest peaks in just over six months in 2019, breaking the previous record of seven years He wrote on X this week that he was close to becoming the first person to climb all 14 “super peaks” twice without oxygen. “Broad Peak, I ask for nothing but safe passage up and back down,” he wrote Purja was appointed Member of the Order of the British Empire 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 Seven dead as extreme rain triggers floods, landslides 4 killed after they were caught in debris flow triggered by landslides; 3 children drown 65 relief camps opened; CM says state prepared to face any emergency situation M a n o j V i s w a n at h a n @ Kochi Torrential rain battered Kerala, triggering a series of landslides, resulting in flash flooding and leaving a trail of devastation. Seven people died in rain-related incidents on Saturday, of which four were caught in debris flow following landslides while three children drowned. The central districts of Pathanamthitta, Idukki and Kottayam bore the maximum brunt of the rain fury, which revived memories of the catastrophic deluge of 2018 that left 483 people dead, displaced a million and ravaged homes and infrastructure. The rain that started around 11pm on Friday pummelled the eastern parts of southern Kerala for hours, causing rivers to breach banks by around 2.30am. As floodwater began entering houses and shops, panic spread in towns and villages located along the banks, with people scrambling for their lives. F loods inundated several towns, including Ranni, Vadaserikkara and Pala. As many as 65 relief camps have been opened across the state, sheltering 1,465 people. Meanwhile, the India Meteorological Department (IMD) forecast that the intensity of the rain will reduce from Sunday, and that the southern districts of Thiruvananthapuram and Kollam are out of danger as the cloud band has moved to the north. Though the intensity of the rain will decrease, the flood situation in districts north of Thrissur will remain grim on Sunday as the rivers remain in spate due to intense rain received over the past two days. Among the seven victims of the deluge, four died in landslides in Kottayam and Idukki districts, while three children drowned in Malappuram and Kottayam districts. Rejina of Poonjar Thekkekara panchayat in Kottayam and her son Josephine Johny, 24, died as a portion of their house was destroyed in a landslide. Sumathy, 69, was killed after a landslide buried her house at Adurmala near Kudayathoor in Idukki in the early hours of Saturday. Two others in the house, Ravi Narayanan,72, and Ratheesh,38, were rescued with injuries. In Kolahalamedu of Vagamon, Prabhakaran Nair, Deluge & destruction Flood-affected areas P’thitta: Ranni, Vadasserikkara, Aranmula Kottayam: Poonjar, Pala, Erattupetta, Ponkunnam Idukki: Adurmala, Adimali, Peruvanthanam, Kattapana, Kanchiyar, Vagamon, Vazhavara, Cheruthoni Alappuzha: Chengannur Kasaragod: Thayyeni, Fire and Rescue Services personnel evacuate residents after floodwaters entered their homes following heavy rain in Ranni town, Pathanamthitta, on Saturday. (Below) People wade through floodwaters after overflowing Pampa river inundated the Kozhencherry–Chengannur route at Aranmula | Pics: SHAJI VETTIPURAM 72, who was staying at the house of his relative, died after a landslide destroyed the house. The body was retrieved after demolishing a portion of the house. In separate incidents, Abdul Muhaini, 3, and Adam Aymen, 4, drowned after they were caught in the heavy flow of streams in Malappuram district. Milan K Shinu, 11, of Thottakkad in Vakathanam panchayat, Kottayam, died after he fell into a waterlogged pit. In other incidents, one person was electrocuted in Wayanad, and the body of a fisherman who went missing in the 6 years on, border trade via Nathu La Pass resumes P r a s a n ta M a z u m d a r @ Guwahati Border trade via Nathu La Pass, which had remained suspended for six years amid the Covid-19 pandemic and India-China border tensions, resumed on Saturday . The inaugural ceremony was attended by Sikkim’s Commerce & Industries Minister Tshering T Bhutia among others. The reopening is expected to inject fresh momentum into the local economy by generating business for registered traders, transport operators and other stakeholders dependent on border trade. Border trade through Nathu La will oper- ate from Monday to Thursday and continue until November. Under the Nathu La border trade arrangement, the approved categories of goods, including handicrafts, handloom products, traditional religious items, and ready-made garments, can now be imported and exported. This year, 38 traders have been issued passes to participate in the cross-border trade. Currently, there are around 35 tradable items. Bhutia said the Sikkim government had already sent a proposal to expand the list of tradable items. sea off the Kollam coast two days ago was recovered on Saturday . Landslides were reported at multiple places in Idukki, Pathanamthitta and Kottayam, which disrupted vehicle traffic along the Kochi-Dhanushkodi, Kottarakara-Dindigul and Kutttikanam-Kattapana highways. Traffic on the KottarakaraDindigul and Kutttikanam-Kattapana highways was disrupted due to mudslides at different locations. The floodgates of the dams at Pambla, Kallarkutty and Malankara were opened due to ● More on P6 heavy inflow.  Vaykkanam, Ottakuzhy Kannur: Kanjirappuzha Wayanad: Kavumandam, Sugandhagiri Rivers in spate Pampa, Periyar, Meenachil, Manimalayar, Chaliyar, Chalakudy river, Muvattupuzha river 65 No of relief camps 17 Houses damaged fully 1,465 No of people in camps 127 Houses damaged partially INDIA hits a gold mine in glasgow E x p r e s s Ne w s s e r v i c e WHEN the Commonwealth Games began in Glasgow on July 23, there was an expectation that India’s medals tally could suffer because of the absence of shooting, badminton and wrestling. In these three events, they are elite at this level. But this has still been a very creditable campaign thanks to other heroes, young and old. That they still have designs on finishing fourth — currently fifth with 10 gold — in the medals tally is notable. Those designs would not have been possible if it weren’t for the exploits of the para-athletes (three gold) and boxing (four gold at the time of writing with promise of more to come). There is the obvious caveat that boxing at the Games isn’t of the greatest standards, but this is a quiet win for the high-performance programme and the federation’s talent ID at the highest level. Another combat sport that deserves its two minutes in the limelight is judo. Even before the campaign had begun, it had become a bad word after another dope-related news item. However, on Friday, judokas won two gold medals in less than an hour after going without one since the sport’s inception 40 years ago. That is how you change history and create new narratives.Finish fourth and that’s basically the best of the rest outside the big three of Canada, England and Australia (New Zealand are great at the Olympics but some of their biggest athletes skip the CWG). Tejaswin Shankar’s bronze in the decathlon is a similar narrative-creating medal. In a loaded field, the Indian pioneer in this event showed what was possible. Another pioneer, Neeraj Chopra, found some form with a season’s best of 85.83m for silver. He won’t be happy with the result but will be quietly satisfied P13 with the performance.  INSIDE Ranni relives nightmare of 2018 as Pampa overflows, town goes under oVER 500 RESCUED AS p’THITTA INUNDATED 2 FISHERS DEAD, 6 MISSING AMONG ROUGH SEA CONDITIONS P6 Youth must turn Vivekananda’s vision into reality: PM Modi K a r t h i k K K @ Mysuru AMID growing protests by youngsters and Gen-Z demanding greater government accountability, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday called upon the youth to transform Swami Vivekananda’s vision of India into reality saying that the country’s future , rests on the strength, aspirations and character of its young generation. Addressing a large gathering after inaugurating the Swami Vivekananda Cultural Youth Centre — Viveka Smaraka — in Mysuru, PM Modi said Swami Vivekananda embodied the spirit of India and the newly inaugurated memorial would serve as a centre for inspiring generations of young Indians towards nation-building, service and patriotism. “I am confident that the Viveka Smaraka will become a pilgrimage centre for spiritual upliftment for seekers and devotees. “Through this memorial, we must mould young people who place the interests of society the nation, and suf, fering of the poor above their own personal joys and sorrows. Youth for whom ‘Nation First’ is the supreme guiding principle and whose life’s mission is the service of Mother India,” PM Modi said. PM Narendra Modi inaugurates ‘Viveka Smaraka’ in Mysuru Saturday | Udayashankar S EXPRESS READ 4-yr UG: Panel calls for broad reforms T’Puram: Two years after Kerala introduced the FourYear UG Programme, the first comprehensive review of its implementation has called for a broad reforms to the system. An expert panel has recommended reforms spanning examinations, curriculum, internships, governance and scholarships. P7 ED: Attack by CPM workers pre-planned Kochi: The ED has informed the HC that the attack on its officials by CPM workers during a raid at the residence of Opposition leader Pinarayi Vijayan was an organised assault on the Central agency. P7 WITH THIS ISSUE Take a Seat PLUS 12 P AGES