Kochi l saturday l October 24, 2026 l `10.00 l PAGES 16 l late city EDITION record play: BEst-ever show for India at Para Asian Games Double medallist shooter Mona Agarwal (C) will be one of the flag-bearers | pci More reward with lower strength Despite 168 para-athletes for this edition, which was nearly half of the contingent size that went to the Hangzhou Games in 2023, India returned with 114 medals, including 30 gold. In the previous edition, India had sent 309 para-athletes and they finished fifth on the medal tally with 101 medals, including 29 gold, 31 silver and 51 bronze As the continental event comes to a close on Saturday, the country registers historic haul to occupy fourth place as of Friday. A look... Highest single-day haul on Friday ■ ■ On the last day of their competition on Friday, India collected nine gold medals, their highest single-day haul in the ongoing edition, with top finishes registered in archery, shooting, badminton and athletics Athletics, as always, ended up being the driving force snaring 65 medals in all, 12 more than 2023 | P11 114 medals won by india including 30 gold, 35 silver and 49 bronze 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 state of the economy Festive cheer Net FDI inflows eludes Street went up 44% amid oil shock during Apr-Aug D I PA K MOND A L @ New Delhi INDIAN equities continue to bleed through the festive season when buying sentiment is typically strong. The benchmark indices—BSE Sensex and NSE Nifty 50—settled in the red in all four trading sessions of this week, with the broader indices facing a much steeper decline. On Friday, the 30-share BSE Sensex opened higher but later plunged 797.02 points, or 1.08%, to hit an intraday low of 72,452.37. It later recouped some losses to settle at 73,123.83, down 125.56 points, or 0.17%. The 50-share NSE Nifty dropped 87.65 points, or 0.39%, to close at 22,600 after tumbling 315.65 points, or 1.39%, to a low of 22,372 on Friday The . Nifty Midcap 100 declined 2.21% and the Nifty Smallcap 100 fell 2.94%. Investors lost over `20 lakh crore this week as the market capitalisation of all BSE-listed firms came down from `473.46 lakh crore to `452.40 Friday’s lakh crore. 74,000 73,249.39 close The decline is Previous 73,123.83 primarily attribclose uted to elevated crude oil prices 73,000 amid g rowing tensions in West Asia. At about 72,000 $116 per barrel, 9 am 11 am 1 pm 3 pm 4 pm Brent crude oil Change is trading near a -125.56 (-0.17%) six-month high. For India, persistently high crude prices pose risks to imported inflation, corporate margins, and currency stability If oil prices remain . high, it could also lead to foreign fund outflows, further hurting domestic equities. “Indian markets are currently seeing selling pressure primarily due to global factors with elevated geopolitical tensions, rising bond yields and the sharp rise in crude oil prices, which increased concerns around inflation, margins and the current account. At the same time, tighter global liquidity and higher interest rates have reduced risk off sentiment,” said Shweta Rajani, associate director, Anand Rathi Wealth Ltd. Rajani explained that historically, the festive season that starts from the Navratri days till the end of Diwali has been favourable for equities. The Nifty50 and Sensex have fallen by around 14% since the beginning of this year. If the bearish trend continues till December, it would be the first time in the past 10 years that Indian equities give negative returns in a calendar year. According to Sudeep Shah, head of technical and derivatives research at SBI Securities, the sharp correction in AI- and data centre-related stocks across global exchanges has deepened market volatility . amid the exodus of foreign portfolio investors (FPIs) from Indian equity markets, net foreign direct investment (FDI) inflows have provided a silver lining, rising 44% year-on-year to $13.8 billion during April-August 2026, up from $9.6 billion in the first five months of last fiscal. According to the Reserve Bank of India’s (RBI) October bulletin released on Friday, net FDI stood at $3.3 billion in August, supported by sustained gross FDI inflows and a moderation in the pace of outward FDI. The RBI data showed that gross FDI inflows rose 20% y-o-y to $11.1 billion during the AprilAugust period, while net outward FDI increased 26.5% to $17.7 billion, compared with a 41.9% rise a year ago. In August, outward FDI flows moderated, with more than half directed towards Singapore, the Netherlands and the US. India recorded Net foreign direct and negative net FDI portfolio investment flows from August to Decem2024-25 ber 2025 before Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 recovering in the Net FDI 6.2 -2.8 -2.8 0.4 final quarter of the previous fiNet FPI 0.9 19.9 -11.4 -5.9 nancial year. In 2025-26 (Provisional) the current fiQ1 Q2 Q3 Q4 nancial year, net Net FDI 5.2 2.1 -5.1 4.5 FDI again slipped into negNet FPI 1.6 -5.7 -0.2 -13.5 ative territory in 2026-27 (Provisional) May and June as Q1 Q2 outward investments exceeded Net FDI 3.1 10.7* inward inflows. Net FPI -9.6 -0.3 Financial serv(Figures in $ bn) *Data for July-August ices, communication services, computer services and manufacturing accounted for 73% of total FDI equity inflows during April-August 2026. Singapore, Japan, Mauritius, the United Arab Emirates and the US were the major sources of inward FDI, together accounting for around 81% of total inflows. The rebound in FDI comes amid a sustained sell-off by FPIs to the tune of $9.8 billion during April-August, data showed. RBI also reported a sharp rise in its net dollar purchases in August, buying $43.26 billion on a net basis, more than double the $18.65 billion purchased in July The increase came amid sig. nificant inflows of NRI deposits into banks. India received around $136 billion under the RBI’s special dollar swap window, with Foreign Currency Non-Resident (Bank), or FCNR(B), deposits crossing $127 billion in August. Meanwhile, RBI flagged concerns over rising inflationary pressures stemming from the West Asia crisis and recurring trade tensions, alongside multi-decade-high sovereign bond yields and elevated public debt. However, it noted that sustained domestic demand and the services sector continued to support economic growth. BSE sensex Source: RBI bulletin A R S H A D K H A N @ New Delhi PLA patrol deviation tied to LAC disturbances: Govt jaya n th ja c o b @ New Delhi INDIA and China continue to use established diplomatic and military mechanisms to resolve outstanding issues and prevent misunderstandings along the Line of Actual Control (LAC), the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) said on Friday, amid a row over remarks by Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP) chief Shatrujeet Kapur about an ongoing face-off in Arunachal Pradesh. MEA spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal, responding to questions about Kapur’s reported comments, said disturbances along the India-China border occur when Chinese troops deviate from “established patrolling patterns.” He, however, did not provide specific details about the reported face-off in Arunachal Pradesh and referred questions on operational matters to the Ministry of Defence. “We have noted in the past, the situation in the India- China border areas gets disturbed from time to time when Chinese forces diverge from established patrolling patterns,” Jaiswal said. “Both sides continue to use existing diplomatic and military mechanisms to resolve outstanding issues and avoid misunderstanding along the Line of Actual Control,” he said. Jaiswal also said the two countries had agreed to discuss ways to improve their understanding of the LAC in appropriate areas to strengthen border management. The MEA’s remarks came after Kapur reportedly referred to a continuing face-off at multiple locations in Arunachal Pradesh during an address to ITBP personnel at a felicitation ceremony in Alwar, Rajasthan, on Thursday “There was . a situation in Arunachal Pradesh where there was a face-off at different locations, which is still continuing. There our Shaurya commando teams did exceedingly well,” Kapur reportedly said. E X P RESS REA D France braces for fresh protests Paris: France will deploy some 70,000 police nationwide as the country braces for fresh protests this weekend after some of the worst urban violence in years erupted on the sidelines of demonstrations a week ago. Meanwhile, a gunman firing from his car killed one person and wounded five others in the Paris suburbs on Friday, with prosecutors investigating a potential “terrorist” act. P9 16 pages, including 4 pages of KOCHI Express Vigilance finds no lapses in 2007 probe against Gyanesh S ha n A S @T’Puram The Vigilance and Anti-Corruption Bureau (VACB) is unlikely to follow up on the preliminary inquiry that it conducted in 2007 against Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Gyanesh Kumar following the suicide of a Malaysian engineer involved in a roadwidening project in Keralam, as it has not found any discrepancies in the earlier probe. Sources said the preliminary inquiry against Gyanesh, the then secretary of public works department, was found to be in line with existing rules and Vigilance protocols. Gyanesh was given a clean chit following the 2007 probe. The UDF government had earlier this month ordered a relook into the 2007 inquiry after a Congress leader filed a complaint alleging that past investigations were compromised or abruptly stopped due to exter nal pressure. The move came amid protests by Opposition parties demanding the resignation of the CEC over the controversies regard- Protesters at a march against the CEC in New Delhi on Friday | Sayantan ghosh ing the Special Intensive Revision of electoral rolls. Lee See Been, who served as chief project manager for PATI-BEL, an Indo-Malaysian consortium involved in upgrading the MC Road under the Kerala State Transport Project (KSTP), ended his life in Kuala Lumpur in 2006 allegedly after his bid to get bills cleared was stonewalled by gover nment officials. Gyanesh’s name was mentioned in one of Lee’s suicide notes, which also alleged systemic corruption that plagued the project’s implementation. In the wake of the government’s order, the VACB decided to scrutinise the preliminary inquiry to assess whether any procedural errors had occurred while conducting the probe. Sources said the inquiry did not reveal any lacunae and “it appears there is no scope for any further Vigilance action”. They said the complainant did not produce any fresh piece of evidence against Gyanesh to compel the agency to revisit its earlier decision of giving a clean-chit to the of● More on P4 ficer.  The smell of revival? Started by AKG, Indian Coffee House eyes new dawn under UDF govt K S S R E E J I T H @ T’Puram The Indian Coffee House is eyeing a revival with a new political brew! Initiated by Communist stalwart A K Gopalan, popularly known as AKG, the chain is seeking a resurgence under the new UDF government after more than a decade of struggle under previous Left governments. The Indian Coffee Board Workers’ Co-operative Society, which runs outlets from Thris- sur to Thiruvananthapuram, has begun recruiting employees and plans to expand its outlets. The last recruitment was carried out in 2015. The society, governed by the independent workers’ platform, Sahakarana Vedhi, has now invited applications for 600 vacancies. Despite the unemployment situation in the state, only 480 candidates applied, of whom 308 attended interviews at the society’s headquarters in Thrissur. “Even if you dress up The Indian Coffee House building at Thampanoor in Thiruvananthapuram like a king, complete with a crown and royal finery, you do not get to see political pressure securing jobs here for relatives or associates of powerful people,” society president S S Anil Kumar told TNIE. The reason, he said, lies in the nature of the job. The minimum qualification is Class X, but passing the examination is not mandatory . “We only ensure that recruits can read and write Malayalam so that they can later be posted as cashiers,” he said. Every recruit starts as a general worker, wiping tables, washing dishes and cleaning the premises. “Even those who become general managers work their way up,” Anil said. During six months of probation and a year of training, recruits are trained in everything from cooking to making coffee. Permanent employees are entitled to provident fund, ESI and gratuity They can have the . chain’s popular masala dosa or puri for breakfast for just `5, lunch for `8 and dinner for `7. The first Indian Coffee House was opened in Thrissur on March 8, 1958 by AKG. The chain grew to 58 outlets and 2,400 employees by 2017. It now has just 45 outlets. Two cooperative societies run outlets in Keralam. Besides Indian Coffee Board Workers’ Co-operative Society, Indian Coffee Workers’ Co-operative Society, governed by a CPM-backed union, covers Malabar region — from Kasara● More on P4 god to Palakkad. CPM sets up Internal Complaints Committee A n i l S @ T’Puram Setting an example for rival political parties in Keralam, the state CPM is going in for a fully operational Inter nal Complaints Committee (ICC). The just-concluded state committee meeting decided to reconstitute the defunct panel with senior leader T N Seema as its chairperson. Set up in the backdrop of an array of complaints including those against senior leaders, the five-member committee w i l l re p o r t t o t h e s t at e leadership. Notably, the CPM is coming up with an ICC to address sexual harassment complaints at a time when the party is mulling strong action against its former Palakkad district secretary E N Suresh Babu, against whom serious harassment charges were levelled. In addition to the chairperson, who is also a CPM state committee member, the panel comprises three more state committee members — P K Sainaba, M Vijayakumar and N Chandran — in addition to Advocate T Geenakumari as external member. The state CPM decided to reconstitute the ICC after a nudge from the central ● More on P4 leadership.