chennai l tuesday l october 06, 2026 l `9.00 l PAGES 20 l LATE CITY EDITION U.S.-German trio wins medicine Nobel for illuminating the brain The Nobel Prize in medicine was awarded on Monday to three scientists for their pioneering work in the neuroscience field of optogenetics Karl Deisseroth Peter Hegemann Prof. Dr Georg Nagel Using light as switch to control brain Helps understand role of specific cells Using light, researchers can now switch individual neural circuits on or off in the brain. It all began when Peter Hegemann and Georg Nagel discovered a protein, channelrhodopsin, in a single-celled alga. German researcher Karl Deisseroth then worked with the gene that controls that protein to create a light-controlled switch for nerve cells in mice’s brain ■ ■ Optogenetics helps researchers understand how specific cell types contribute to behaviours like learning, fear, addiction and movement Optogenetics has “altered our understanding of the brain. Every day brings discoveries, helping to solve one of humanity’s great mysteries: how our incredible brain works,” the Nobel committee said | P13 Today Nobel prize for physics to be announced 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 Didn’t approve change Your IndiGo ticket just got costlier to ECI’s Form 6, says SC A R S H A D K H A N @ New Delhi Says will annul unilateral decisions; rejects plea to suspend CEC s u c h i t ra K a lyan M o han t y @ New Delhi THE Supreme Court on Monday said it had never approved any modification to Form 6 used by the Election Commission of India (ECI) during the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of poll rolls, and said it would examine records to find out who altered the statutory form without following due process. A bench of Chief Justice of India Surya Kant and justices Joymalya Bagchi and V Mohana issued notice to the ECI and the Centre on a batch of pleas alleging that Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar took key decisions unilaterally , without the concurrence of the other two Election Commissioners. It directed the ECI and the Law Ministry to file responses in a week and listed the matter for October 13. “Any modification to Form 6 has not been approved by us. Let’s be clear. When records are produced, we would like to see who modified it,” the CJI said. Later in the day, the ECI pushed back, saying a declaration was attached to Form 6 in the Bihar SIR order of June 24, 2025, which was upheld by the top court in its May 27 order. The court on Monday was hearing a PIL by advocate Shailendra Mani Tripathi challenging unilateral decisions and software changes introduced by the CEC. The plea, filed through advocate C h a n d Qureshi, was taken e x p r ess r e a d Order issued to roll out ‘Annan Seer’ scheme Chennai: The Tamil Nadu government on Monday issued an order allocating `812 crore for the implementation of the ‘Annan Seer Thittam’. Under the scheme, eligible brides will get an 8-gram gold coin and a silk saree on their wedding day | P2 Veeramani case: Three ex-drivers arrested Chennai: Three former drivers of Gem Granites chairman R Veeramani (84) were arrested on Monday for allegedly aiding him in sexually abusing minor girls. The suspects, Lasar, Babu and Parthiban, had allegedly brought girls to Veeramani and assisted him in the offence | P2 INSIDE tvk faces first bypoll today | p4 We will examine all the decisions. If any decision is not in accordance with the law, we will annul it. You know the power of the court — Chief Justice Surya Kant 1 One plea contended that under Article 324, ECI is mandated by law to take decisions by unanimity 2 The petition raised additional concerns over electoral roll revisions in Goa and West Bengal up in the wake of a recent report stating that two Election Commissioners had objected to changes made during SIR, including modifications to Form 6 requiring details of an applicant’s ancestry and a link to the previous SIR, which the petitioners said was arbitrary . The bench tagged the plea with a petition by Patna resident Rakesh Kumar Singh through senior advocate Vikas Singh. Tripathi alleged that the changes were introduced through EC software without following statutory procedure, adding the two ECs, Dr Vivek Joshi and Dr Sukhbir Singh Sandhu, noted on file that the changes were “unauthorised and illegal” and sought their immediate rescission. The ECI’s DG-IT Seema Khanna had “no legal authority” to curtail Electoral Registration Officers’ (ERO) access to ECI 3 SC ruling came ahead of a proposed protest outside EC HQ on Tuesday by INDIA bloc parties Net, he said. The plea alleged violation of collective decisionmaking and sought criminal proceedings against Kumar. The second petition, filed by Rakesh Singh and others, claimed SIR in Bihar and other states, rationalisation of polling booths and model code enforcement were decided by the CEC alone. Senior advocate Vikas Singh cited the 2023 Anoop Baranwal judgment, and argued collective decision-making was essential to avoid a perception of bias, and that the other two ECs could run ECI if Kumar were suspended. “If there is any violation, we will undo (it),” the CJI said. “Let the Election Commission file its affidavit.” The court declined to suspend Kumar or pass any interim direction, saying it could not do so without hearing the respondents. It cautioned that an ex-parte suspension would stall the ECI’s functioning. “Who will conduct the elections?” the bench asked. 70% more TN tribal teens enter top colleges in 2026 graduating from tribal schools has broadly remained the same in the last two years, but the Nearly every fifth student number of students entering who passed out of government such marquee institutes has schools run by the Tamil Nadu gone up nearly 70%. The 261 Tribal Welfare Departstudents account for ment has managed to 261 students 19.3% of the 1,350 secure admission to got admission tribal students who reputable higher eduentered higher educaAs many as 261 cation institutions lotion this year. tribal school cated across the counOverall, 1,350 of students have try this year. As many the 1,424 students as 261 students have secured admissions who passed Class 12 to reputable secured admissions to from tribal welfare institutions this institutions such as schools have entered NIFT, NIT, National year, compared to higher education, 153 students Law University, and taking the enrolment in 2025 Central Institute of rate to 95%, accordPetrochemicals Engiing to the departneering & Technology (CIPET) ment. The students have sethis year, compared to 153 stu- cured admission to courses in dents in 2025. engineering, law, fashion, food What makes the achievement technology, tourism, hospitaleven more noteworthy is that ity and forensic sciences, the total number of students among others.  P7 S u b ash i n i V i j ayak u mar @ Chennai IN a fresh blow to air travellers, the country’s largest airline IndiGo on Monday announced a fuel surcharge on domestic and international flights from October 6. The surcharge will range from `375 to `10,000, depending on the route and sector. The move comes amid a sharp surge in fuel prices triggered by the ongoing geopolitical tensions in the Gulf. For domestic flights, IndiGo will charge a fuel surcharge of `425 for routes less than 500 km, `600 for routes between 501-1,000 km, `900 for routes between 1,001-1,500 km, `1,150 for routes between 1,501-2,000 km and `1,300 for routes above 2,000 km. For international flights, In- Rising ATF costs Air India, IndiGo and Akasa, introduced fuel surcharge in March when global ATF prices shot up due to the West Asia war. They lowered it in July as prices stabilised. With tension again peaking in the region, energy prices, including ATF, have seen a sharp jump diGo will charge a fuel surcharge of `500 for the SAARC nations that are within 500 km. For SAARC region beyond 500 km, the charges are `1,000. For South East Asia, Middle East & GCC and North & East Asia, a fuel surcharge of `5,500 has been introduced. For Africa, it is `6,000 and for Europe, the fuel surcharge is `10,000. Ministers Hardeep Puri, Verma HC orders CBI out of BJP’s UP Rajya Sabha list ED’s allegations probe into graft in Punjab CMO The Punjab and Haryana High Court on Monday ordered a Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) investigation into allegations of corruption linked to Punjab Chief Minister’s Bhagwant Mann’s office. The allegations of graft in transfers, policy decisions and tenders were raised by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) in three letters to the Punjab Director General of Police (DGP). Punjab Finance Minister Harpal Singh Cheema said the state would challenge the order in the Supreme Court. Pronouncing the order, a division bench of Chief Justice Ashwani Kumar Mishra and Justice Rohit Kapoor directed the CBI to register an FIR and submit a status report within two months. The court ordered the state government and police to cooperate with the agency, noting it was “not impressed by the manner in which I hope CBI conducts Punjab police has acted a fair, impartial and so far in the matter”. time-bound The HC was hearing investigation. a PIL filed by advocate Those who looted Nikhil Saraf seeking Punjab’s exchequer an independent central must be booked probe into the ED’s alPartap Singh Bajwa legations. The PIL alPunjab Leader of Oppn leged corruption by senior state officials, including Mann’s Officer on Special Duty Rajbir Singh Ghuman. The ED’s letters were based on material unearthed in an money laundering investigation involving Greater Mohali Area Development Authority land allotments in which one Nitin Gohal allegedly acted as an intermediary for Ghuman. The ED alleged that Gohal, in collusion with Ghuman and other associates, operated an organised bribery network out of the CMO, collecting crores of rupees in cash and real estate in exchange for influencing postings, leaking files and clearing commercial projects. The state had opposed the PIL, questioning maintainability and the credentials of the petitioner. Waste burning mars 2,500-yr-old TN megalithic site @ Chennai Despite a recent National Green Tribunal (NGT) order directing authorities to keep solid waste out of ecologically sensitive areas in Perumbakkam, the local panchayat is alle gedly dumping and burning municipal waste inside the more than 2,500-yearold protected megalithic site and along the Perumbakkam reserve forest, raising concerns over damage to archaeo- Municipal waste set on fire along the Perumbakkam reserve forest on Monday | express logical remains and the risk of forest fires. Residents and environmen- tal activists said the Perumbakkam panchayat has been using open spaces along the N am i ta Ba j pa i @ Lucknow H ar p r e e t Ba j w a @ Chandigarh N G T o r de r f l o u ted S V K R I S H N A C H A ITA N YA IndiGo controls two-thirds of India’s d o mestic air traffic. The fresh levy will lead to a sharp surge in ticket prices. “The continuous rise in fuel prices, with the latest monthon-month increase exceeding 14%, has taken ATF costs to levels that are amongst the highest in the last decade. Given that Aviation Turbine Fuel makes up a significant share of airline’s operating costs, this rise is expected to impact airlines’ cost structures and network economics, including those of IndiGo,” said IndiGo in a statement. The airline added, “In view of the situation, IndiGo has marginally re-calibrated its fuel charges across its domestic as well as international flights. The following charges will be included in all new bookings on IndiGo flights starting 0001 hrs on 6 October 2026.” Aviation turbine fuel or ATF, which accounts for up to 40% of an airline’s operating costs, has become more expensive amid the ongoing conflict in West Asia. After falling from `115 per litre in June to `110 in July domestic ATF prices rose , back to `115 per litre in August and then climbed to `121 per litre on September 1. The prices further shot up to `137 per litre for domestic airlines from October 1. forest and archaeological site to dispose of waste, with garbage being set on fire periodically. The burning of waste close to vegetation has also raised fears of fire spreading into the reserve forest, particularly during dry conditions. The southern bench of the NGT, in its September 22 order, had made it clear that the protected megalithic cists and cairns at Perumbakkam cannot be subjected to waste-management or other activities contrary to law.  P7 ASI stop notice in 2025 ASI had issued a show cause and stop notice in January 2025 after detecting dumping of waste and debris at the Perumbakkam site All outgoing MPs dropped Among the BJP Rajya Sabha members retiring from Uttar Pradesh are Hardeep Singh Puri, B L Verma, Arun Singh, Geeta Shakya, Neeraj Shekhar, Brijlal and Seema Dwivedi Union ministers Hardeep Singh Puri and B L Verma did not feature in the list of eight candidates announced by the BJP on Monday for the October 16 Rajya Sabha elections in Uttar Pradesh. The list has a mix of uppercaste, Other Backward Classes (OBC), Dalit and women faces, with sources saying the party is aiming to strike a careful caste and regional balance. The eight candidates announced are: State minister Dharampal Singh, Radhakant Ojha, Prakash Pal, Vidyasagar Sonkar, Gopi Krishna Pandey, Priyanka Singh Rawat, Ram Pratap Singh Chauhan and Shruti Gangwar. Besides two women, the list has three candidates from the OBC community two from the , Scheduled Caste and three from the upper caste. The nominations offer clues to the BJP’s strategy in UP, where social engineering remains central to electoral success. By accommodating various caste groups and regions, the party appears keen to reinforce its broad social coalition. The ruling BJP announced its candidates just a day before the last date for filing nomination papers. The Samajwadi Party has fielded its secretary general Ram Gopal Yadav and senior Reliance Industries executive Dhanraj Parimal Nathwani for two seats.