PIC: NASA vijayawada l wednesday l august 12, 2026 l `9.00 l PAGES 14 l late city EDITION NASA invites India to be part of its Moon Base mission The ambitious Moon base mission is a programme to build humanity’s first lunar outpost near the Moon’s South Pole invite follows u.s.-india space group meet According to the US space agency, the project aims to unlock scientific discoveries, and prepare for future deep space exploration. India and US explored expanding space cooperation at a meeting of their Civil Space Joint Working Group held in Bengaluru last week. The two sides agreed to advance discussions for cooperation on open scientific data sharing ■ 9th step-by-step approach to Build base ■ The Moon base will be built in phases, says NASA. It will begin with robotic missions to test new tech, then build systems & infrastructure needed to establish humanity’s first long-term presence on the Moon The first phase will focus on gaining reliable access to the lunar surface and building a deeper understanding of the environment meet of india-u.s. space joint working group was held last week 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 July 2026 Economic Report AP records growth Phuket flight captain fails second dope test: Sources despite El Nino Tests positive for marijuana in the confirmatory screening test S V i s w a n at h @ Vijayawada Despite El Nino challenge, Andhra Pradesh has registered a steady economic growth rate, according to the July 2026 Monthly Economic Report. The report states that the State’s growth rate has remained higher than the national average for the past two years. The real growth rate of the Gross State Domestic Product (GSDP) increased from 6.5% in 2023-24 to 9.9% in 202526. The Monthly Economic Report highlighted significant growth across agriculture, industrial and services sectors in the State. Planning Department officials presented the economic report to Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu at his Camp Office in Undavalli on Tuesday . The report stated that industrial production increased by 8.2% compared to June 2026. Spices production recorded a remarkable 304% growth during the April-June period, reaching 89,383 metric tonnes. Vegetable production also registered a growth of 44.8%. In the livestock sector, meat, S L a l i t h a @ New Delhi egg and marine shrimp production increased by 9.6%, 5.1% and 17% respectively . Services sector continued to witness strong activity in IT, transportation and commerce. General exports registered 10.5% growth, reaching `16,322 crore. STPI exports grew by 32.2%, while commercial vehicle purchases recorded a significant 51.6% growth. Technology integration undertaken by the State government has helped improve GST collections, which grew by 21% to `13,282 crore. Mineral production increased by 17.9%, while power consumption grew by 22.2%.Tourist arrivals also increased significantly in July . The State received 3.10 crore domestic and 35,951 foreign tourists during the month.  P4 IN a new twist to last week’s mid-air incident involving Air India’s Phuket-Delhi flight that experienced a sudden altitude loss, the captain of the flight has reportedly tested positive for marijuana in the confirmatory screening test. “The Pilot-in-Command has tested positive in the second dope test too with marijuana found in the samples taken from him,” a source told this newspaper on Tuesday . Another source, a pilot, too confirmed the development, adding that the captain, in his late 30s, could be terminated. The civil aviation ministry, which had earlier insisted that the result of the confirmatory test must be awaited before drawing any conclusions, on Tuesday issued a detailed statement on the probe into the incident. However, there was no mention of dope test. Air India declined to comment on the drug screening. Earlier in the day Union civil , aviation minister K Rammohan Naidu said strong action would File pic CEO summoned Civil Aviation Minister K Rammohan Naidu on Tuesday summoned the outgoing CEO of Air India, Campbell Wilson. In the meeting, also attended by top officials, the minister demanded an explanation be taken if the pilot was found to have indulged in any substance abuse. “If there needs to be any tweaking of the existing legislation, we will do that also,” he told reporters. According to the civil aviation ministry’s statement, flight AI 2379, an Airbus A320 aircraft with 145 people on board, suffered a mid-air altitude drop of 300 feet on August 4 resulting in injuries to 20 passengers and four cabin crew members. Under existing DGCA norms, if a pilot tests positive for drugs, the person is referred for a rehabilitation programme. He needs to go for treatment at a de-addiction centre and can return to duty only after producing a negative confirmatory test and a fitness certificate from the airline’s medical in-charge. This could take up to eight months. If the same person tests positive again, the licence is suspended for three years. If the violation happens for the third time, the licence is cancelled. Following the August 4 incident, the Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau asked airport authorities in Delhi to conduct two different tests. “After the arrival of the plane in Delhi, both pilots were subjected to a breathalyser test for alcohol content, which turned out to be negative. Then, blood and urine tests were done to trace psychotropic substances. This was positive for the Pilotin-Command,” a source said. Earlier, sources said the flight might have experienced multiple technical glitches including hydraulic failures. Battle lines drawn for possible Shah show in LS today P R E E THA N AI R @ New Delhi In this videograb, Abhishek Porel being taken away by police on Tuesday | X IPL star Porel arrested for blackmail, rape of woman THE stalemate in Parliament continued on Tuesday over the Opposition’s demand for accountability from Union Home Minister Amit Shah on the student protests, despite the government offering a discussion on “student and youth agitations” and a reply by Shah, including on the alleged police action. Amid speculation that Shah may make a statement in the Lok Sabha on Wednesday the Opposi, Keralam bill passed The Lok Sabha on Tuesday passed the bill seeking to rename Kerala as Keralam without debate, as Opposition members continued their protests demanding Home Minister Amit Shah’s presence in the House Sources said the INDIA bloc would take a final call on its floor strategy at the meeting on Wednesday morning. There was broad agreement with Lok Sabha Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi’s position that a general response from Shah would not be enough and that the Home Minister must specifically address the circumstances surrounding the alleged use of pellet guns against student protesters on July 20, said a senior leader. The Congress has also maintained that a discussion on the alleged theft of funds related to the Ram temple in Ayodhya is ‘non-negotiable’ and has demanded an apology from Prime Minister Modi. E xpress N e w s S er v i c e @ Vijayawada The gravity of an offence alone cannot justify the imposition of the death penalty and courts must also take into , account the circumstances, background and prospects of reformation of the accused, the Andhra Pradesh High Court has held. A Division Bench, comprising Justice K Suresh Reddy and Justice A Hari Haranatha Sarma, Sentence said courts must balance the manner commuted and brutality of the crime and the circumstances of the victims with factors The High Court relating to the accused, including age, commuted the socio-economic background, criminal death sentence antecedents and mental condition. of doubleThe Bench emphasised that the posmurder accused sibility of reformation, rehabilitation Sravan Kumar & and reintegration of an accused into the Varaprasad of mainstream of society should be given Kurnool to life the highest priority while deciding imprisonment. whether capital punishment is However, the warranted. duo is not The criminal justice system should entitled to not become excessively punitive and remission of must also provide scope for reform and their life rehabilitation, the Bench observed. sentences Punishment, reformation and enabling offenders to return to the mainstream of society are among the important objectives of the criminal justice system, it said. The High Court further made it clear that where life imprisonment can adequately serve the ends of justice, the case should not be treated as one of the “rarest of P4 rare” cases warranting the death penalty . 158 remote villages to get roads under PMGSY s u b h en d u m a i t i @ Kolkata WEST Bengal and Delhi Capitals cricketer Abhishek Porel was arrested late Monday night by Hooghly police on allegations of rape and blackmail. He was produced before the Chinsurah court on Tuesday . A 24-year-old undergraduate medical student from Karnataka lodged a complaint at Mogra police station in Hooghly on June 24, alleging a threeyear relationship during which the pair travelled abroad together. Porel, a Chandannagar resident and wicketkeeperbatsman who performed well for Delhi Capitals this IPL season, allegedly had sexual relations with her on the pretext of marriage. The complainant said Porel later refused to marry her despite repeated requests, and blackmailed her using her obscene photographs. Police registered nine nonbailable cases under relevant sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita and the IT Act covering rape, assault, cheating and other offences. Porel has denied all charges, stating that the complaint was an “attempt to tarnish his image amid strong IPL performances.” After the season ended he returned home. The complainant moved the Calcutta High Court alleging police inaction. The court ordered his immediate arrest and seizure of digital devices, including his mobile phone. Hooghly (Rural) Superintendent of Police Kunar Bhushan Singh said a court order led to Porel’s arrest. tion signalled that it was not ready to relent. At a meeting of INDIA bloc parties chaired by Rajya Sabha Leader of Opposition Mallikarjun Kharge, leaders decided to continue their protests and maintained that Shah could not be allowed to make a unilateral statement in the House. The gover nment had placed the condition that it was willing to have Shah respond on the student protests, provided the Opposition did not disrupt his reply . Gravity of offence alone no ground for death penalty: HC Y Br a h m a j i @ Vijayawada The new roads will not only improve transportation in Agency areas but also connect remote communities with outside world, enabling easier access to schools, hospitals and markets Pawan Kalyan, Deputy Chief Minister In a major push to take development to the doorstep of people living in remote and neglected habitations, 158 villages and hamlets in Andhra Pradesh are set to get road connectivity for the first time. The `422 crore project, taken up under the Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojana (PMGSY), is expected to transform the lives of thousands of people living in the remote areas without access to education, healthcare, markets and other essential services. Under the project, 146 roads measuring 347 km and 19 bridges will be con- structed across several districts of the State. The project is part of Deputy Chief Minister (Panchayat Raj and Rural Development) Pawan Kalyan’s broader effort to ensure that the benefits of development reach even the last habitation in the State. The administrative sanction for the road project has been given, paving the way for its execution by the Panchayat Raj Engineering Department. Another `24.47 crore has been sanctioned for maintaining the roads for five years. The habitations identified for the road project are spread across Alluri Sitarama Raju, Parvathipuram Manyam, Anantapur, Sri Sathya Sai, Kurnool, Kadapa, Tirupati, Nellore, Prakasam, Palnadu, NTR, Eluru, Polavaram, Vizianagaram and Srikakulam districts. The initiative follows ‘Adavi Thalli Bata’, through which road connectivity has already been provided to several hilltop villages in ASR and Parvathipuram districts. The Deputy Chief Minister has directed officials to maintain the highest quality standards in the construction of the roads and bridges, stressing that the infrastructure created with public money should remain durable and serve communities for decades. He said, “The provision of road connectivity to 158 habitations under the PMGSY is a matter of immense satisfaction to me.” He credited the road project to Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s leadership, and the cooperation of Union Rural Development Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan. “The new roads will not only improve transportation in Agency areas but also connect remote communities with the outside world,” he added. Trump slinked out When Air Force One became decoy amid Iran attack threat a g en c i es @ Washington PRESIDENT Donald Trump secretly flew out of last month’s NATO summit in Ankara, Turkey on an unheralded military , aircraft while the White House made it appear that he was flying on Air Force One, according to a report published by The Washington Post. The Post said Monday the operation was prompted by an Iranian assassination threat against Trump. The ruse was carried out as journalists and some White House staff mem- bers were led to believe they were on the same plane as the president as he began his journey back to Washington from the annual gathering of NATO country leaders. Trump had flown to the summit in a new Qatari-gifted and retrofitted red, white and navy blue jet. But ahead of departing Turkey he , said he would fly partway home on an oldermodel baby blue Air Force One plane instead. The president at A file photograph of the legacy Air Force One | AP the time said the new luxury jet was being flown out ahead of his departure from Ankara to give some US troops based in eastern England a chance to check out the new Air Force One. In Ankara, Trump boarded the old Air Force One in view of television cameras ahead of the plane flying to Royal Air Force Mildenhall in the United Kingdom. However, according to the Post report, after boarding the legacy Air Force One, he was secretly shuttled minutes later to a smaller plane — an Air Force C-32A — via an airport catering truck. Trump flew to Mildenhall on that smaller jet. Security experts alleged the press pool aboard the legacy Air Force One was turned into “sitting ducks”. Express Read Female drivers for 102 Ambulances Vijayawada: In a significant step toward women’s empowerment, Health Minister Y Satya Kumar Yadav announced that the State government is initiating steps to appoint female drivers for the newly upgraded 102 ‘Thalli-Bidda Express’ ambulances | P3 Server outage hits passport services Vijayawada: Server outage and major technical glitches affected passport services across Andhra Pradesh on Tuesday, leaving hundreds of applicants stranded at Passport Seva Kendras (PSKs) and Post Office Passport Seva Kendras (POPSKs) | P3 AP exports $551 mn chillies in 2025-26 Vijayawada: Andhra Pradesh exported 2.96 lakh metric tonnes of chilli and chilli products valued at $551.27 million in 2025–26, according to data tabled in the Lok Sabha on Tuesday by Union Minister of State for Commerce and Industry Jitin Prasada | P4