ai enhance image hyderabad l saturday l october 17, 2026 l `9.00 l PAGES 16 l late city EDITION elon Musk unveils Tesla’s ‘flying’ car adept at barrel roll During a livestreamed event at a SpaceX facility, Musk revealed his new Roadster car with cold gas thrusters and a multi-mode suction system 0-96 kmph in less than a second! production won’t begin till 2028 “Turns out the future does have flying cars,” Musk, Tesla’s CEO, wrote on his social media platform X shortly after the launch. Beyond quick jumps and flips, Tesla also said the car can accelerate from zero to 60 miles (96.6 km) an hour in less than a second. The launch came after years of delays around the Roadster — and Tesla shares climbed up slightly in early trade ■ ■ Musk said production for consumers won’t begin until 2028. Tesla also didn’t immediately set a price tag on its latest electric vehicle There are ample regulatory hurdles for flying vehicles across the globe. The fine print of the Roadster’s “rocket” feature on Tesla’s website notes: “Not approved for public road use” $1.1 billion is net income of tesla in the second quarter of this financial year 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 Centre will meet YTPS coal needs, says Kishan E x p r e s s N e w s Se r v i c e @ Hyderabad Student groups & CJP supporters with Tricolour as security forces look on, in Delhi on Friday | Parveen negi Pvt teachers can be roped in as Census enumerators e x p r e s s ne w s s e r v i c e Flags of dissent amid Dipke, Bora detention Both were on their way to Tiranga rally at Connaught Place @ New Delhi THE Centre on Friday amended the Census Rules, 1990, permitting state governments and Union Territory administrators to appoint teachers from aided and unaided private institutions as enumerators. A gazette notification issued by Registrar General of India Mrityunjay Kumar Narayan said eligible personnel include teachers of government, local authority , and aided or unaided private institutions, as well as clerks and officials of central and state governments, public sector undertakings, banks, companies and trusts. The amendment follows a petition by the Haryana Progressive Schools Conference in the Punjab and Haryana High Court, challenging the state’s move to requisition teachers from private unaided schools. It argued that the government lacked statutory authority under the Census Act, 1948, or the rules framed under it, to requisition teaching staff from private unaided schools for census work. The HC on October 8 stayed two Haryana government communications seeking details of available teachers. U D AYA N KIS H OR E & A N U P V E R M A @ New Delhi Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) founder Abhijeet Dipke and AISA’s Neha Bora were detained on Friday even as thousands of people, holding Tricolours, banners and raising slogans, held a march to Connaught Place circling around the Central Park amid a thick security blanket. This was the latest in a series of protests demanding the resignation of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar over alleged electoral irregularities. Dipke and Bora were detained while on their way to join the Lehra Do Tiranga (unfurl the Tricolour) gathering called by the CJP Dipke was de. tained from NCP (SP) spokesperson Anish Gawande’s house in Jhandewalan while Bora was at Mandi House. Dipke was taken to Jafarpur Kalan police station after being detained. Hundreds of CJP supporters and members of student organisations, including those from AISA, AISF (All India Students’ Federation), and SFI (Students’ Federation of India), held a series of flash protests in CP and Mandi House in the evening. At one such march at around 6 pm, the protesters walked through the inner circle of CP, around the Central Park — which remained closed and protected by paramilitary forces. While the rally held a large Tricolour, several of its members carried smaller national flags, banners and placards as they raised slogans against Kumar. Security personnel cordoned off the park, forming a human chain along its metal railings. Just before the CJP protest at 5 pm, people gathered between Palika Market and the Central Park, as over 6,000 Delhi Police personnel, 220 companies of Central Armed Police Forces conducted flag marches and manned Metro station gates. Security ar rang ements around CP, Rajiv Chowk, Central Park, Jantar Mantar, Palika Bazaar, nearby Metro stations and other sensitive locations in Lutyens’ Delhi were tight, with additional personnel being mobilised from other districts to prevent any law and order situation. The forces also monitored the crowd through an expanded CCTV network. Teargas and Vajra vehicles were stationed outside the park, while Rapid Action Force personnel did the rounds. Traffic police were deployed to regulate movement along the inner and outer circles of CP . No US levy seen on Russian buy P U S H PI TA D E Y @ New Delhi THE US is unlikely to penalise India under the Lindsey Graham Sanctioning Russia and Iran Act of 2026, which authorises President Donald Trump to impose tariffs of up to 100% on countries buying Russian oil and gas, official sources said on Thursday . Asserting that the government is confident that India will remain protected from US sanctions, sources pointed out that New Delhi has clearly communicated to Washington India’s position. “From what we sense, the US government will not put sanctions on India. We have been in touch with the US team and India’s standpoint has already been conveyed regarding the challenges that could arise because of that,” a government official said. The clarification came a day after US Ambassador to India Sergio Gor said that Trump would soon decide on the sanctions under the new law. He also indicated the Trump administration was likely to adopt a pragmatic approach towards India rather than demand an immediate halt to its purchases of Russian energy . Indian officials pointed out that the country had previously avoided US sanctions despite purchasing the S-400 Triumf missile defence system from Russia under a deal worth more than $5 billion. “Even previously, there was a threat of US sanctions when India bought Russian weapons a few years ago, but we didn’t get sanctions for buying the S-400 Triumf missile system. The Countering America’s Adversaries Through Sanctions Act (CAATSA) doesn’t say that just because it has been signed by the President, the US government needs to apply it,” another official said. CAATSA is a US federal law that provides for sanctions against Iran, Russia and North Korea. Although India has longstanding commercial and defence ties with Russia, the application of sanctions depends on the relevant legal provisions and decisions by the US administration. CJP’s Abhijeet Dipke (top) and AISA’s Neha Bora being detained on the way to the rally on Friday | PTI ‘Where are Abhijeet and Neha?’ CJP and AISA late Friday questioned the whereabouts of their leaders Abhijeet Dipke and Neha Bora, alleging the two were being denied access to lawyers after their detention Express Re a d Vijaya milk to cost `2 more in TG Hyderabad: The Telangana Dairy Development Cooperative Federation Limited (TGDDCF) has hiked the prices of standardised and whole milk sold under the Vijaya Telangana brand by `1 per 500 ml packet, with the revised rates coming into effect on October 17 | p2 Rare ruling on ‘Khula’ Court tells woman to return gold, gift to ex S H YA M P V @ Palakkad IN a rare ruling on khula, a form of divorce initiated by a woman under the Muslim Personal Law, a family court in Kerala has ordered a woman to return 11 sovereigns (88 gm) of gold ornaments to her former husband, including the mahr and gifts received by her at the time of their marriage in 2008. The Ottapalam family court directed the woman to return five sovereigns of gold received as wedding gifts and six sover- eigns of jewellery (mahr) given by her husband, within 30 days of the judgment. It also ordered that the amount could be recovered from her property in the event of noncompliance. “This is a rare instance where a man approached the court to get back the mahr and other valuables gifted by him at the time of marriage. The court has delivered the verdict in the man’s favour,” said advocate Shahul Hameed P T, who appeared for the petitioner. The case began in 2021 after the woman, following a breakdown of the marital relationship in 2019, invoked her right to seek separation through khula and issued a notice dissolving her marriage. Though the husband accepted divorce through khula, the woman did not return the mahr. He subsequently approached the family court. Talaq vs Khula While talaq is a divorce initiated by the husband and takes effect by pronouncing the word talaq to his wife in the presence of witnesses, khula is a divorce initiated by the wife upon the return of mahr The Union government would ensure coal supplies to the Yadadri Thermal Power Plant in Telangana, Union Minister for Coal and Mines G Kishan Reddy said on Friday responding to a , call from Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy, who sought supplies to boost power generation in the state. Addressing a press conference at the BJP state office in Hyderabad, Kishan noted that power demand had spiked by 16% to 18% even as electricity generation declined. Coal demand had also increased, prompting the Centre to step up domestic production, he said, adding that Prime Minister Narendra Modi was reviewing the situation daily to ensure the country’s growing energy needs were met. The Union minister further assured people there was no shortage of foodgrains in the country and urged them not to be apprehensive. He claimed that rice produced in Telangana was being sold to other states, while the state government had failed to supply the Centre with the required quantity of foodgrains Kishan said the Centre had a responsibility to support financially distressed states, rhetorically asking whether it would provide funds to Pakistan instead. His remarks came amid a discussion on Telangana’s grain procurement and the Centre’s obligations to the state. Addressing allegations concerning Singareni Collieries, Kishan denied coal theft, saying the issue stemmed from errors in book adjustments. He said details involving the two political parties would be explained in due course, adding that the BJP was yet to launch its political offensive. Responding to BRS working president KT Rama Rao’s comments, Kishan said the BRS government had left dues of around `26,000 crore, which had since risen to approximately `60,000 crore. He accused the Congress and the BRS of politicising Singareni’s affairs and said neither was in a position to lecture others on financial management. The Union minister further claimed that Revanth was merely making lengthy speeches without addressing problems on the ground. He said the BJP’s state president had been arrested five times and alleged that the government was also arresting party workers. Turning to national politics, Kishan criticised Congress leader Rahul Gandhi’s reported remarks that the Modi government would collapse within 10 months and that he would take responsibility for bringing it down. He described the statements as a threat to a constitutionally formed government.  Continued on p4 right treatment Water Board’s out-of-the-box idea for dry city E x p r e s s N e w s Se r v i c e @ Hyderabad The Hyderabad Metropolitan Water Supply and Sewerage Board (HMWSSB) will launch its Dial-a-Green Tanker service from November 1 to supply treated wastewater for nondrinking purposes, including construction, industrial use, landscaping and other suitable applications. The initial target is 100 million litres per day (MLD). The idea is to reduce dependence on drinking water and groundwater and ease pressure on the Hyderabad’s water resources for the upcoming summer season. On orders of Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy, HMWSSB managing director K Ashok Reddy met representatives of CREDAI, Telangana Builders Federation (TBF), NAREDCO and other stakeholders on Friday to discuss water conservation over the next eight months. Ashok said the period until the next monsoon would be crucial and called for wider use of treated wastewater in construction, industries, parks and landscaping.  Continued on p5