Houthis seize more Red Sea islands, attack Saudi’s King Khalid Air Base tuesdAY 15 Houthi rebels said on Monday they have captured more strategic islands in the southern Red Sea and hit a major Saudi Arabian airbase in Khamis Mushait september, 2026 epaper.morningstandard.in facebook.com/TheMorningStandard X.com/TheMornStandard China rivalry TRUMP JUNKS call for AI slowdown US President Trump on Monday attacked what he called a “sick conspiracy” against AI. He said US needed to stay ahead on AI to beat superpower rival China. Page 9 Arab states call off Iran meeting A CAPITAL VIEW OF NEWS l New Delhi l J8.00 Govt reaches out to Oppn for spl session P REET H A NAIR @ New Delhi WITH Parliament yet to be prorogued, the Centre has reached out to the Opposition parties over a proposal to convene a special session of Parliament before the festive season begins, to push through the delimitation-linked women’s reservation Bill, it is learnt. Sources said Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju’s office has reached out to Congress chief and Rajya Sabha Leader of Opposition Mallikarjun Kharge to explore whether the session can be held before October 11, when the Navratri season begins. Kharge’s office is yet to respond, sources said. The move comes amid the unusual delay in proroguing Congress bid to get SP, TMC on board Sources said Congress has reached out to its INDIA bloc allies, including SP and the TMC, to formulate a common position if government proceeds with the session Parliament, triggering speculation about a special session, though the government has made no announcement. Congress leader Jairam Ramesh on Friday said the government had broken its previous record for the longest delay in proroguing both Houses. The special session buzz intensified last week after Rijiju said Parliament could convene a ses- sion to discuss delimitation-related proposals. Following this, Kharge wrote to Rijiju, reiterating the demand that the government convene an all-party meeting and disclose the proposed agenda before taking a decision. During the Budget session on April 17, the government faced a setback as the Constitution amendment bill, involving de- Express read Car rams woman biker, hunt on for accused CBI registers FIR in Disha Salian death case Tejpal surrenders in Goa court to serve sentence A speeding car allegedly knocked a woman biker off her vehicle on Golf Course Road in Gurugram, prompting police to take suo motu cognizance and launch a hunt. The incident came to light after the biker posted a video on social media. The accused, identified as Kalyan Bainsla, said the collision was not deliberate and that he was unaware of the rider being a woman. | P4 The CBI has registered an FIR into the death of Disha Salian, former manager of late actor Sushant Singh Rajput, and begun recording statements, officials said. The FIR, registered on September 13, does not name any individual as an accused or prime suspect. The case follows a Bombay HC order directing the transfer of records from Mumbai Police to the agency. | P8 Former Tehelka editor-in-chief Tarun Tejpal surrendered before a Goa court on Monday to serve his 10-year rigorous imprisonment sentence in a 2013 sexual assault case. On August 25, the Supreme Court had directed Tejpal to surrender within three weeks to undergo the sentence following conviction by the Bombay High Court. He was then sent to Central Jail at Colvale. | P8 TOURISM SUMMIT Where India meets Bharat limitation, for the implementation of the women’s reservation in the Lok Sabha and assemblies was defeated in the LS. The government has now proposed to increase the total number of Lok Sabha seats, from 543 to up to 850 with each state’s representation increasing proportionately . According to sources, the government is pursuing DMK, which has 22 Lok Sabha MPs, to vote for the Bill. While there is still no clarity on whether the government has two-thirds majority a recent meeting between , DMK MP Kanimozhi and Shiv Sena (UBT) chief Uddhav Thackeray, NCP (SP) leader Sharad Pawar fuelled speculation over opposition consultations on delimitation. Tourism summit to be held in Chennai today The 2nd edition of this newspaper’s Tourism Summit, to be held in Chennai on Tuesday, will focus on the challenges and opportunities in the domestic travel sector, while showcasing the best of Indian states | P4 l PAGES 12 The capture of the islands of Greater and Lesser Hanish is the latest in the Yemen-based, Iran-backed rebels’ swift advance around the Bab el-Mandeb Strait, an alternative to the Strait of Hormuz and a key passage for Saudi oil shipments. In response to the fresh attack by the Tehran-backed outfit, Arab states in the Gulf called off a meeting with Iran planned for Monday | P9 Wholesale, retail inflation up in August P US H P ITA DE Y @ New Delhi INFLATIONARY pressure in the economy is slowly building up, with both retail and wholesale inflation inching up. Retail inflation rose to an eight-month high of 4.82% in August from 4.45% in July driven by higher , food prices. Wholesale inflation rose to 9.9% in August from 9.8% in July . With retail inflation breaching the Reserve Bank of India’s estimate of 4.7%, the prospects of a rate hike in the October monetary policy review have brightened. According to government data, higher prices of cereals, sugar, milk and other essential food items contributed to the increase in household expenses. Elevated global crude oil prices have also pushed up fuel and transportation costs. Food inflation emerged as a key driver of the rise in headline inflation, increasing to 5.95% in August from 5.52% in July due to , erratic weather conditions and supply-side disruptions affecting prices of several agricultural commodities. The prices of onion, ginger and garlic rose by more than 40%. According to economists, the combination of accelerating food prices and evidence of firming core inflation leaves less room for monetary easing by RBI. In wholesale inflation, major groups such as primary articles, fuel and power, and manufactured products recorded 7.76%, 22.93% and 8.37%, respectively in August. , The sharper rise in food inflation is worrisome since food has a large weight in household consumption Manoranjan Sharma, chief economist at Infomerics Ratings Oil prices shoot up Oil prices rose 3% after fresh Houthi strikes on Saudi and Iranian attacks on ships compounded supply concerns following the closure of a key Saudi oil pipeline. Brent crude futures rose $3.21 to $107.82 a barrel. WTI gained $3.17 to $103.22 a barrel MDR TO KICK IN UPI payments above `2,000 won’t be free DI PAK MONDAL @ New Delhi UPI transactions above `2,000 may not remain free, with the government on Monday directing banks and payment service providers not to charge customers for transactions made through RuPay debit cards or UPI for up to `2,000. The move provides a statutory basis for keeping these digital payment modes free for users within the specified limit. This means that UPI transactions above `2,000 could attract a Merchant Discount Rate (MDR) or a fee that the banks and payment gateways charge from the merchant for processing the payment. While the government has yet to announce the MDR, sources have pegged the rate at anywhere from 0.25% to 0.4% of the transaction amount. The government had earlier said that any MDR, if introduced, would apply only to a limited set of merchant transactions above a specified threshold and at a nominal rate, much lower than MDRs of debit and credit cards. All Person-to-Person (P2P) transactions will continue to be free of charge. INDIABegin Where Journeys Pilgrim trails, hidden gems, and the top of the world, Tourism Summit 2026 spans it all. Watch ministers, top officials, and travel storytellers come together and reveal where the country is headed next. 10AM, SEPTEMBER 15, 2026 ITC Grand Chola, Chennai Platinum Partner Gold Partners Silver Partner State Partner Associate Partners Support Partner