villupuram l Thursday l October 15, 2026 l `9.00 l PAGES 14 l city EDITION Wholesale inflation rises to record 11.39% in sEPTember India’s Wholesale Price Index (WPI)-based inflation rose to 11.39% in September, compared to 9.92% in August, official data showed | P10 Costlier food, fuel basket behind surge on a steady climb since start of iran war The rise in the prices of food, manufactured items, fuel and power contributed to September’s higher figure. Inflation in the food index rose to 8.66% in September from 7.05% in August. In manufactured items, WPI was at 9.76%, higher than 8.37% in the previous month. In the fuel and power basket, it was 25.85% in September, up from 22.93% in August ■ ■ The WPI has been on an upward trajectory since the start of this fiscal year as the blockade of the Strait of Hormuz pushed up crude and fertiliser costs with a spillover effect on food and commodities Amid hardening food inflation and no respite so far on global energy and commodity prices, analysts expect WPI inflation to hit 12% in Oct 2.13% Was the wpi inflation in February when the west Asia war began 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 Rubio to come calling amid trade talks, fuel import tension Fairfax to buy 61% stake in IDBI Bank To invest `52,878 crore in the bank at `81 per share J aya n t h J a c o b @ New Delhi THE Centre has approved the sale of a controlling stake in IDBI Bank to M/s 10955230 Canada Inc, a subsidiary of Canada-based Fairfax Financial Holdings. The proposed transaction is valued at `52,878 crore—the largest foreign investment in an Indian bank -- with the government and Life Insurance Corporation of India selling a combined 60.72% stake at `81 per share, against the reserve price of `75.99. “This is a strategic restructuring, as the government would remain invested,” Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said. Founded by Indian-origin billionaire Prem Watsa, Fairfax currently holds a 40% stake in CSB Bank through its subsidiary FIH Mauritius Investments Ltd. Fairfax will have to either sell its stake in CSB or merge the Kerala-based bank with IDBI within two years as RBI regulations don’t allow an entity to own two banks. The share purchase agreement of the IDBI restructuring will be signed and executed by the end of 2026. The government and LIC currently hold 94.71% stake in the bank. After the transaction, the government and LIC’s shareholding will be 15% and 19%, respectively with the LIC’s stake , set to be reduced further to 15% within two years. The bank will be re- Shift in Cong stance as Rahul supports CJP stir P U S H P I TA D E Y @ New Delhi US Secretary of State Marco Rubio will begin a five-day visit to India and Uzbekistan on Saturday with energy , cooperation, trade negotiations and bilateral ties likely to feature prominently in discussions amid persistent differences over tariffs and India’s purchases of Russian oil. Rubio will visit Mumbai and Jamnagar in India before travelling to Samarkand in Uzbekistan. In Mumbai, he will meet External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar for discussions on bilateral relations and areas of cooperation. The visit comes as New Delhi and Washington seek to advance trade negotiations despite strains over US tariff policies, President Donald Trump’s repeated claims of having brokered an India-Pakistan ceasefire and a US military attack on a vessel off Oman that killed three Indian seafarers. India has also expressed concern over US legislation that could allow tariffs of up to 100% on imports from countries purchasing Russian oil and gas, as Washington seeks to increase pressure on Moscow over its war in Ukraine. JaisMarco Rubio hankar said on Wednesday that India-US trade negotiations were moving towards a resolution, even as Washington’s changing economic policies compel countries to reassess their engagement with the US. “The United States has repositioned itself,” Jaishankar said, adding that countries needed to “recalculate and reset” their relationships with Washington. Rubio’s visit follows his four-day trip to India in May , when he met Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Jaishankar to discuss trade, energy, defence, maritime security and regional developments. India has called for an early conclusion to an interim trade agreement as a step towards a broader bilateral pact first envisaged during Modi’s February 2025 visit to Washington. Energy cooperation is expected to be an important part of the engagement, particularly as the two countries navigate differences over Russian oil purchases. India has been reducing its reliance on Russian crude amid the threat of punitive US tariffs. P r eet h a N a i r @ New Delhi branded within three years under its new promoter. The strategic disinvestment process began in 2022, but the initial bidding process in 2025-26 failed to attract a successful bid. The reserve price for the initial round was `94.42 per share. The government arrived at the latest reserve price of `75.99 per share by taking the average valuation of two methods—the Market Multiple Method and the Asset Valuation Method. “The stock market price of IDBI Bank was not used directly to determine its intrinsic value, citing volatility in the relatively thinly traded stock. Its share price fluctuated between `61.01 and `118.38 during the valuation period, moving both above and below the bid offer price,” the finance ministry said. Government sources said the transaction would not affect depositors, borrowers or staff. `2,000 cr bonus for 11 lakh rly staff RAJ E S H KUMAR T HAKUR @ New Delhi THE Union Cabinet, chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, on Wednesday approved a productivitylinked bonus (PLB) equivalent to 78 days’ wages worth `2,009.61 crore to 11 lakh railway employees ahead of the festive season. Payment of PLB to eligible railway employees is made each year before the Dussehra and Diwali holidays. The Cabinet also extended the National Social Assistance Programme for another five years till 2030-31, with an outlay of `53,428 crore. The programme will be renamed the Pradhan Mantri Samajik Sahayata Yojana. Under the revised provisions, monthly assistance under the disabil- ity pension scheme will be `375 for beneficiaries aged up to 79 years and `625 for those above 80 years. The minimum benchmark disability requirement will be reduced from 80% to 40%. As part of the restructuring of the social welfare programmes, the Indira Gandhi National Old Age Pension Scheme has been renamed to Pradhan Mantri Vridhavastha Pension Yojana and the Indira Gandhi National Widow Pension Scheme to Pradhan Mantri Vidhawa Pension Yojana. Similarly, the Indira Gandhi National Disability Pension Scheme will be known as Pradhan Mantri Divyangjan Pension Yojana and the National Family Benefit Scheme will become the Pradhan Mantri Parivar Labh Yojana. NE monsoon to start in TN today e x p r ess n ews se r v i c e @ Chennai Motorists driving through heavy rain on PH Road on Wednesday. Meenambakkam recorded 5.2 mm of rainfall | Shiba Prasad Sahu The northeast monsoon is set to commence in Tamil Nadu on Thursday, with widespread rain forecast across the state through the week. The Regional Meteorological Centre (RMC) has issued orange and yellow alerts for several districts, warning of heavy to very heavy rain in parts of the state. With 91mm, Nagapattinam recorded the highest rainfall in the state on Wednesday, while Karaikal received 76 mm. Meanwhile, two farm workers were killed in a lightning strike near Ilayangudi in Sivaganga. According to police, A Savuriammal (47) and A Periyakaruppi (65), both residents of Thiruvallur village, had gone for agricultural work when they were caught in the rain. They took shelter under a tree when lightning struck them, killing both on the spot. Their bodies were shifted to the Government Sivaganga Medical College Hospital for postmortem. An upper-air cyclonic circulation over the Comorin region and a trough extending from the region towards the northwest Bay of Bengal are influencing the rainfall.  P7 messenger of peace ‘Global support vital for affected SL Tamils’ S u b a s h i n i V i j aya k u m a r @ Chennai Speaking about the role of the international community in ensuring justice for the Tamils affected by the civil war in Sri Lanka, 2026 Nobel Peace Prize winner Navanethem “Navi” Pillay strongly advocated for the global community to sustain a supportive environment for the affected community “When I was the . UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, I visited Jaffna. The issue must be kept alive and the solution is to ensure a supportive environment Congress leader Rahul Gandhi in New Delhi on Wednesday speaks to media with students hurt allegedly by police in protests | Parveen negi for the demands of the afpersistence of caste disfected people, whether they crimination. Praising Inseek a separate state or jusdia’s Constitution and aftice for the crimes that were firmative action, she urged committed. The world wants those still practising caste to support them. More than discrimination to reflect on anything, they (affected their actions. “Treating eveTamils) want to know what ryone equally is part of our happened to their loved ones culture, and we must bring Navanethem Pillay in the war,” she said. that quality out,” she said. In a telephonic interacIn a message to all persetion with TNIE, the ad hoc judge of cuted communities, she said, “We the International Court of Justice should give everyone the support (ICJ) also spoke about her roots in they need, even if it is only moral Tamil Nadu’s Vathalagundu and the support.”  FULL Q&A ON: P2 IN his first show of support to the CJP protests, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Wednesday called the jailing of young people for peacefully waving the Tricolour “an act of cowardice” soon after its leaders Saurav Das and Ashutosh Ranka were remanded in judicial custody for five days. This is a significant shift in approach from Congress, which so far has maintained a distance from CJP and its anti-NEET stir, that led to Dharmendra Pradhan’s resignation as Union Education Minister. “Waving the Tricolour at Jantar Mantar in a peaceful protest is not a crime... Students. Youth. Journalists. The INDIA bloc... All protests are one: citizens demanding their constitutional rights,” Gandhi wrote on X. “Jantar Mantar belongs to the people of India. We will reclaim it.” CJP’s Abhijeet Dipke thanked him for the support. The police action was condemned by INDIA bloc leaders, as well as DMK and AAP. At a press conference later, Gandhi urged the PM not to stand in the way of protesting students. He had met with students, including from Congress student wing NSUI, who were hurt in protests. The remand comes a day after INDIA bloc leaders and civil society groups met at tea hosted by Gandhi to discuss their campaign against alleged ‘vote chori’ and CEC Gyanesh Kumar. Congress absence from Saturday’s CJP protests raised eyebrows amid a police crackdown. express read Class 10, 12 exam schedule released Chennai: Class 12 board exam in TN will be held from March 3, 2027, to March 29, 2027, while Class 10 exams will be conducted from March 17 to April 12 | P2 Power plant to have 4,520 MW capacity Chennai: The capacity of Udangudi thermal plant will be increased by 560 MW to 4,520 MW by upgrading four units from 660 MW to 800 MW each, says TN govt | P4 INSIDE Stalin backs cjp over CEC stir | p4 HC questions tn on rss march nod | p7