kalaburagi l tuesday l september 29, 2026 l `9.00 l PAGES 12 l city EDITION Sensex tanks 1,124 pts to 6-month low amid surging crude, FII exit Sensex plunged 1,124 points to a six-month low on Monday amid a broader sell off triggered by Iran war uncertainties and weak global cues oil spikes after U.S. Rejects IRan truce Analysts said surging crude oil prices following the US-Iran stalemate over the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz and foreign fund outflows hit investor sentiment, triggering the selloff. Brent crude jumped 3.81% to $108.3 per barrel. Foreign Institutional Investors (FIIs) offloaded equities worth `3,693.93 crore on Friday amid a sharp rise in US bond yields ■ 29 `17.17 lakh cr investor wealth wiped out ■ With the Monday’s slump, Sensex and Nifty have fallen by over 5% over the past month, wiping out `17.17 lakh crore of investor wealth Wall Street stocks fell in early trading on Monday. In Asia, Japan’s Nikkei 225 index and Shanghai’s SSE Composite index ended lower while Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index settled higher | P10 of 30 sensex stocks in red, with Infosys being the sole gainer in the pack 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 Teen gangrape in Delhi park has Nirbhaya parallel, says SC bench Bench led by Justice Pardiwala takes suo motu cognisance, seeks status report in 4 weeks Repeat offenders s u c h i t r a k a lya n m o h a n t y @ New Delhi Kingpin of fake medicine racket held, sent to SIT custody till Oct 7 E x p r e s s Ne w s Se r v i c e @ Bengaluru The Karnataka Special Investigation Team (SIT) on Monday arrested 35-year-old Prashanth Ranjan Babu, who is the alleged kingpin of a fake drug network unearthed in Bengaluru, at the Kempegowda International Airport after he landed from Dubai. He was produced before a court which remanded him in SIT custody till October 7. A look out circular had been issued against Prashanth, a resident of Papareddypalya and a med cal repres e n t at ive. H e had been missing for the last one-and-a-half months after the fake drug racket was unearthed at a farmhouse in Dodderi in Tavarekere police limits in Bengaluru South district. He had earlier been traced to Azerbaijan, where he was reportedly detained by local authorities over passport and visa-related issues. He was taken into custody around 5.40 am at KIA by a team led by Assistant Commissioner of Police Anjan Kumar. He was subjected to mandatory medical examination and then taken to the police commissioner’s office for questioning. He was produced before the court later.  P5 WORRIED over recent reports of sexual violence cases in the Delhi-NCR region, the Supreme Court on Monday took suo motu cognizance of the alleged gangrape of a 17-year-old in a park near Lady Sri Ram College, and observed that “painful parallels with the 2012 Nirbhaya case were unavoidable.” A bench of justices J B Pardiwala and K Vinod Chandran expressed concern over rising crimes against minor girls and women in the capital and directed the court registry to register a suo motu public interest litigation in the matter. “One cannot help but draw painful parallels with the 2012 Nirbhaya case, raising the question of whether systemic law-enforcement mechanisms The bench sought a report on the manner in which the National Database on Sexual Offenders is being utilised by Delhi Police. “Whether the database is being regularly accessed for identification of repeat sexual offenders?” the court asked. have made any meaningful progress in the decade since then,” Justice Pardiwala said. “The safety concerns emerging from this incident, however, cannot be viewed in isolation. This incident has also brought to light pre-existing complaints of recurrent sexual harassment faced by students of Lady Shri Ram College, situated in the vicinity of Aastha Kunj Park. Regrettably, these prior grievances failed to serve as a wake-up call for the police or the local administration,” the court said. On September 21 evening, three men — Asif, Hemant and his brother Manish — posed as police personnel and allegedly took turns to rape the 17-yearold girl inside the Aastha Kunj Park near Kalkaji Mandir. It was also submitted before the court that at least 13 cases of sexual assault have been reported in the national capital this month. In another case last month, a Noel proposes major Tata Sons rejig to stay private B e n n K o c h u v ee d a n @ Mumbai Tata Trusts on Monday proposed restructuring Tata Sons by merging two privately held arms — Tata Electronics Systems Solutions and Tata Consulting Engineers — with the group holding company to take , it outside the RBI’s definitions of an NBFC and a Core Investment Company (CIC). Noel Tata, chairman of Tata Trusts, which owns 66.6% of Tata Sons, has opposed the listing, while the Tata Sons board recently decided to comply with the RBI’s September 11 directive to go public. The restructuring is meant to turn Tata Sons into an operating firm alongside its role as the group’s holding company while staying private. However, it requires approval from the Tata Sons board and a prior no-objection certificate from the RBI. The Trusts said it has asked the Tata Sons board to consider and approve the plan and apply to the RBI for the necessary noobjection certificate. “Tata Trusts, along with Tata Sons, will engage with the RBI on all aspects of the proposed reorganisation,” it said in a statement. Unlike a breakup or demerger of Tata Sons, the proposed restructuring would enlarge the holding company by absorbing two operating, non-financial businesses. This would give it substantial operating revenue in addition to income from its investments in Tata group companies. The resultant entity would have aggregate net assets of `2,00,158 crore, of which `1,77,120 crore, or about 88.5%, would comprise investments in group companies. This would keep the proportion below the 90% threshold applicable to CICs, according to the statement put out by the Trusts. S Chandrasekaran Noel Tata 16-year-old girl, who boarded a sleeper bus in Greater Noida, was allegedly gang-raped by its conductor and driver and abandoned near Kashmere Gate, more than 40 km away in Old Delhi, on August 4. The two accused have been arrested. In the third case, a 17-year-old girl was gang-raped and killed in Swaroop Nagar area. The bench said the right to live a fear-free life with dignity is an integral part of the fundamental right under Article 21. The court ordered certain immediate interim measures shall be undertaken within four weeks. It asked the police commissioner to form teams for each police district, headed by an officer not below the rank of DSP to conduct a survey of , parks, roads, public transport facilities, markets and educational institutions. Avoiding listing Tata Sons classified as an Upper Layer NBFC, triggering RBI listing requirement Restructuring plan by merging Tata Electronics Systems Solutions and Tata Consulting Engineers with Tata Sons Merger will give Tata Sons better operating revenue, reducing its reliance on financial investments Merged entity will have `1.05 lakh crore in operating revenue, against `40,072 crore from financial assets Group investments will account for less than 90% of net assets, taking it outside the CIC definition Restructuring will require RBI’s NOC under its 2025 voluntary amalgamation directions Water level at KRS reservior in Mandya district remains low this year Monsoon nearly over, Cauvery reservoirs at half of last yr’s levels B a n s y K a l a p pa @ Bengaluru The southwest monsoon formally ends in a few days, but reservoirs on the Cauvery basin are far emptier than they were a year ago. With little rain left for the season, the water now stored is largely what farmers and towns must depend on till the next monsoon arrives in June 2027. The water level data for September 28 shows that the four reservoirs hold 59.5 tmcft as against 107.4 tmcft a year ago. Of that, usable or live storage is only 36.2 tmcft, against 84.1 tmcft last year. The fall is apparent at every reservoir. Hemavathy is the lowest at 41% as against 91% last year, KRS at 55% against 96% and Kabini at 58% against 93%. Harangi is better placed at 73% against 94%. These are gross figures, but what matters is the live storage, which is at 36 tmcft, roughly 40%, and is less Dam capacity than half of last year’s 84 tmcft. 2026 2025 Kabini’s level reads 58% gross, Dam but only around 1.5 tmcft, or Hemavathy 41% 91% around 15% of its live capacity , KRS 55% 96% is usable. Secretary, disaster manage58% 93% ment and drought, Manoj Mee- Kabini na said rainfall in the Cauvery Harangi 73% 94% basin has been deficient, and what fell came too little and too late. A sharp drop in farm production is expected. Rainfall is deficient in almost all Cauvery basin districts, and 220 of the state’s 240 taluks have received less rain than normal, which he described as the second-worst shortfall in 50 years. Water Resources Minister Cheluvarayaswamy told The New Indian Express, “The situation is grim and we are monitoring it 24/7. I have been holding continuous meetings and consultations with experts. We will ensure that there is no problem for drinking water anywhere and as far as farmers’ needs are concerned, we are working out ways to solve their problems.” KRS, the lifeline of the Mandya-Mysuru belt, holds about 18.6 tmcft of live storage. It is releasing around 1,900 cusecs, including around 1,000 cusecs of canal withdrawal, against inflow of only about 560 cusecs. Hemavathy at around 40%, limits what , the Hassan-Tumakuru canal system can supply The northeast . monsoon, which will start in a few days, usually brings rain from October, but falls mostly over Tamil Nadu and does little for the Karnataka catchments that feed the river.  P4 Elephant kills 60-yr-old out INDIA bloc meet tomorrow on morning walk in B’luru CEC in crosshairs of CWC meet today B o s k y K h a n n a @Bengaluru tanker disaster averted by coast guard The force rescued a foreign tanker after it developed engine failure and rapid ballast tank flooding off Odisha | P7 E x p r e s s Re a d A 60-year-old man died in an elephant attack around 5.10am Monday, near Kumbalgodu in Bengaluru. Nag araja was on a morning walk with his daughter near Rajarajeshwari Medical College, along Mysuru Road, when he was attacked by the sub-adult elephant. The lone makhana (tuskless male) is suspected to have separated from his herd and strayed into human habitation. Nagaraja, a resident of An- chepalya village near Kengeri hobli, is survived by his 58-yearold wife Lalitha and four daughters. CCTV camera footage recovered from residential and commercial units in and a ro u n d t h e h o s p i t a l showed the elephant walking through city roads late at night and then rushing back into the forest patches. Forest Minister R Ramalinga Reddy visited Rajarajeshwari Medical College Hospital where Nagaraja’s postmortem was being conducted, and consoled the family . Approver Pradosh records statement Bengaluru: Pradosh S Rao, accused number 14 who turned approver in the Renukaswamy murder case involving actor Darshan, recorded his statement for nearly three hours before the City Civil and Sessions Court on Monday | P5 CCTV spots missing engineer in Vijayawada Gadag: Missing engineer Pervez Dharwad was spotted in CCTV footage at Vijayawada railway station, according to reports. “We will confirm it after we complete the search,” a police officer said, adding that five teams are looking for him | P5 Two held in Agra protest Pa r v e z S u lta n @ New Delhi THE Congress Working Committee will meet on Tuesday to chart the party’s action plan to further pressure the Centre on Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar’s exit. The Opposition has demanded Kumar’s removal since media reports revealed differences in the EC over the Special Intensive Revision of electoral rolls. Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge on Monday told reporters he had called for the CWC to meet and discuss the issue. The INDIA bloc is likely to Congress leaders Mukesh Dhangar and Anil Yadav were arrested for spray-painting the wall of CEC Gyanesh Kumar’s home in Agra with “Gyanesh Gaddar, Gyanesh Chor” on Monday, police said meet on this on Wednesday . “This issue concerns the entire country, the existence of our democracy and the survival of our country The EC’s own ... people have exposed them,” he said. Referring to a former Keralam official’s claim, Kharge said Kumar had become a BJP worker. Preparations for polls in five states are also on the CWC agenda. Meanwhile, the Congress staged protests in several cities. General secretary KC Venugopal on X said workers protested in over 1,000 districts and called on the Centre to sack Kumar. bronze show God by her side, Vithya breaks oldest nat’l record in athletics H ER initial target to break the women’s 400m hurdles national record — the country’s longest-standing and one of its most famous athletics records — was at the India Athletics Final Series in Delhi on September 10. Vithya Ramraj stumbled on a hurdle and missed out. If she had succeeded in Delhi, the natural progression would have been a sub-53s here. But God had other plans as Vithya broke PT Usha’s record set in Indraneel Das Express @ asian games Nagoya 1984 LA Games at the Asian Games here on Monday . The conditions were not ideal. Rain was battering the sprawling Paloma Mizohu Sports Park arena. Vithya, a firm believer, had only one wish: for the rain to stay away . When she was warming up, it An emotional Vithya Ramraj with her bronze medal on Monday | PTI had already started raining. However, God did answer her prayers when she needed it the most. The interlude was enough for her to complete the race; the initial burst off the blocks was slow, but she picked up her rhythm in the next six hurdles. With the crowd breaking into a cauldron of noise, the runners picked up the pace. The giant display board displayed her timing: 54.75s. The smile never left when she walked into the mixed zone. “I prayed to God,” she kept repeating. It took the athlete from Coimbatore three years to break the record after equalling Usha’s record at the Hangzhou Asian Games. In the end, a bronze medal was a fine reward. Vithya’s personal coach Nehpal Singh had told her that she would break the 55-second barrier. “When my coach said you are around 55s, I never believed him,” she said. “But today (Monday), I believed him. My coach is with me, my God is with me.”  P11 Class 6 too to get relaxation under three-language policy, says SC express news service @ New Delhi IN a major development on the implementation of the National Education Policy in schools, the Supreme Court on Monday directed that the relaxation given to classes VII, VIII and IX under the three-language policy be extended to Class VI as well. A three-judge bench led by Chief Justice Surya Kant did not accept the Union government’s plea that relaxation was not needed for Class VI. The direction comes as a breather for around 28 lakh Class VI students. The Centre, through Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, argued that of 28,819 affiliated schools, only 1.2% had reported issues with the implementation. The court’s order ensures that under the transitional arrangement, the third language will remain part of studies but students will not have to write a separate Board examination in Class X for it. Schools will assess the subject internally and no student’s promotion will be stopped. The bench also allowed students already learning two non-native languages to continue them and add a native language as the third option.