BHUBANESWAR l wednesday l november 11, 2026 l `9.00 l PAGES 14 l LATE CITY EDITION ‘The End of Everything’ by John Harrison wins Booker A satirical, dystopian novel themed on catastrophe by British author M John Harrison won the Booker Prize for fiction, 2026 first sci-fi to grab the prestigious prize It’s the first work of science fiction to take the prestigious 50,000 pound ($67,000) literary award, but 81-year-old Harrison said he doesn’t want to be hemmed in by the sci-fi label. Harrison beat five other finalists including previous winners Douglas Stuart and Marlon James, the oddsmakers’ favourites, and Pulitzer Prize laureate Elizabeth Strout ■ 1969 politics of now seen through the future ■ The novel is set on England’s Channel coast in the future, after an unspecified calamity shatters society and brings an influx of enigmatic alien entities that can imitate humans Historian Mary Beard, who chaired the judging panel, said the book is “the politics of now seen through the lens of the future” | P11 when booker, open to english novels in u.k., ireland, was founded 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 Rahul had premonition of Madhu Babu pension for 5L new beneficiaries Rajiv assassination: Sonia E x press N e w s S er v i c e @ Balasore Memoir says his warning came 2 months before the murder in 1991 P R E E T H A N A I R @ New Delhi TWO months before Rajiv Gandhi was assassinated, Rahul Gandhi had warned Sonia Gandhi about the inadequate security of the former prime minister. This is one of the most poignant revelations in Congress Parliamentary Party chairperson Sonia Gandhi’s memoir Belonging: A Journey of Love, released on Tuesday . In the memoir, Sonia opens up about some of the most contentious chapters of her personal and political life including the 1984 anti-Sikh riots, the 2002 Gujarat violence, her strained relationship with Maneka Gandhi, and the decision to turn down the prime minister’s post in 2004. Rahul’s eerie premonition about his father’s security came two months before Rajiv’s assassination on May 21, 1991. Sonia writes that as her world came crashing down when Rajiv was killed in an explosion in Sriperumbudur in Tamil Nadu, the warning by her son echoed in her mind. “If something isn’t done about Pa’s security I know I’ll soon have to come , back for his funeral,” Rahul had told his mother just two months earlier while on a tour with Rajiv. The final attempt on Rajiv’s life came a little over a year after his Special Protection Group (SPG) cover was withdrawn by the V P Singh government without conducting a fresh threat assessment. A committee had recommended that the SPG cover must continue “unless a change was warranted by some fresh threat assessment,” Sonia writes. She learnt about Rajiv’s assassination when Priyanka informed her about a phone call, a bomb explosion, people dying, and urged her to get ready to go to Tamil Nadu. Rahul was in the US. “A friend had called Rahul to say ‘It’s bad news,’ and , Proposed pact India, US held talks on trade, customs in Delhi last week pushpita de y @ New Delhi INDIA and the US held detailed discussions on the customs and trade facilitation chapter of the proposed Bilateral Trade Agreement (BTA) in New Delhi last week, government sources said. A two-member US team visited on November 2-3. “Last week two members came to India to have a detailed discussion on the chapters related to customs and trade facilitation,” a source said. Commerce ministry officials said negotiations were on track, with talks under way to finalise the first tranche of the pact. The announcement came days after US President Donald Trump’s Republican Party lost control of both chambers of Congress in the November 3 midterm elections. Officials said technical talks would continue irrespective of the outcome and that bilateral ties were not likely to be affected. Indian exporters hope the result will give fresh life to IndiaUS talks, as it checks Trump’s ability to push key agenda, including tariffs and anti-immigration measures. The two sides have been negotiating the BTA since February . Differences over tariff and access to India’s agri-dairy markets remain sticking points, along with the threat of US tariff under Section 301 apart from sanctions over oil purchase from Russia. India has agreed to address any challenges that could be a hurdle for the exporters, with the US suspending potential 100% tariffs on major buyers of Russian energy . Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi on Tuesday announced a major expansion of the Madhu Babu Pension Yojana (MBPY), bringing an additional 5,05,817 eligible beneficiaries under the social security scheme. With the latest expansion, the total number of beneficiaries has increased to 41,80,825, marking what Majhi described as the complete saturation of the scheme. Addressing a state-level function at the Reserve Police Lines ground here, the CM said the state government has abolished the earlier quota-based sys- Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi with a beneficiary at the event | express tem to ensure that no eligible senior citizen, person with disabilities, widow or destitute individual was deprived of pension benefits. “Our government has done away with this inhumane system. All eligible beneficiaries will now be covered under the pension scheme,” he said. Criticising the previous BJD government’s quota system, Majhi said eligible applicants were often forced to wait for an existing beneficiary’s demise for a vacancy to be created. He said the inclusion of over five lakh additional beneficiaries would entail an annual expenditure of approximately `625 crore. The CM also launched the Unified Pension Management Portal (UPMP) to make pension delivery simpler, more transparent and efficient. Eligible applicants can apply online through the portal or seek assistance from their nearest common services centre or BDO’s office. Regular pension payments will begin from the month following the submission of applications. He further announced that beneficiaries attaining the age of 80 years would automatically become eligible for a monthly pension of `3,500 without having to submit a fresh CONTINUED ON P7 application. Some relief as crude rate down to $89 RAKESH KUMAR & ARSHAD KHAN @ New Delhi File picture of Rajiv Gandhi comforting son Rahul at the funeral of Indira Gandhi, after her assassination in New Delhi in 1984 he’d replied immediately ‘Papa is dead, , isn’t he?’” Sonia recalls. The memoir revisits the tumultuous days following the anti-Sikh violence after Indira Gandhi’s assassination and the controversies that dogged Rajiv’s tenure. Sonia also reflects on one of her most challenging personal assignments of bringing the DMK into the alliance in 2004. “Though I spoke no Tamil and he (M Karunanidhi) did not speak English, his response was cordial. We went on to meet and go through all the steps of joining forces.” Opening up about her decision to decline the prime ministership in 2004, Sonia recounts how Congress leader Pranab Mukherjee hinted at his “longheld desire” to become PM during a conversation with her in 2010. She also recalls that there were occasional embarrassing instances, such as Rajiv’s public sacking of the then foreign secretary A P Venkateswaran. giving a shot in the arm to Indian markets, international oil benchmark Brent crude fell below $90 a barrel on Tuesday for the first time since August as US President Donald Trump signalled that the West Asia war may be coming to a close. Brent, the price gauge for around 80% of global crude, hit a low of $89.03 per barrel in morning trade in London. Crude oil is a big burden on India’s imports bill, with the country sourcing 85% of its requirements from overseas. Falling prices could translate into lower transport costs and lower prices of goods and services, thus improving the purchasing power of express read NCP merger bid amid family turf war Mumbai: While the proposed merger of the two Nationalist Congress Party factions has gathered momentum, Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister and NCP chief Sunetra Pawar remains reluctant to surrender control of the party founded by her late husband Ajit Pawar | P7 households. The fall in crude prices will likely bring cheers to equities, bonds and the rupee, and if the price sustains it may prompt RBI to rethink its pace in the battle against inflation. “Pullback in crude oil prices definitely augurs well sentimentally for domestic equities,” said Sunny Agrawal, head – fundamental research at SBI Securities. On Monday, the BSE Sensex added 107.25 points, or 0.13%, to close at 81,106.65, while the Nifty50 closed 58.25 points, or 0.23%, higher at 25,044.65. On Tuesday the markets re, mained closed on account of DiwaliBalipratipada. The rupee has weakened nearly 4% against the dollar this year, despite gaining some ground in recent weeks. Analysts, however, aren’t willing to uncork the bubbly early They said the fall in prices may . not last long as global oil supplies remain tight and countries will need to replenish their strategic reserves. “Global reserves, particularly in OECD countries and China, have come down considerably and have been drawn upon during the disruption,” said Prashant Vasisht, senior vicePresident and co-group head, corporate sector, ICRA.Vasisht said countries would need to rebuild their strategic petroleum reserves. Pronab Sen, former chief statistician of India, said the fall in crude prices is positive, but the situation remains uncomfortable compared with the assumptions made in the Union Budget for FY27. Price correction The fall in oil prices came after US President Donald Trump said he would hold off on fresh strikes against Iran. Hopes of a peace deal between Russia and Ukraine also supported the fall in prices