monday hEZBOLLAH strikes deep inside Israel as tensions escalate 23 september, 2024 epaper.morningstandard.in Hezbollah fired over 100 rockets across a wider and deeper area of northern Israel, with some landing near city of Haifa, injuring three facebook.com/TheMorningStandard X.com/TheMornStandard iran blast in coal mine kills 51; 20 hurt A blast caused by a gas leak at an Iranian coal mine killed at least 51 people, in one of the country’s deadliest work accidents in years Page 9 U.N. warns of imminent catastrophe A CAPITAL VIEW OF NEWS l New Delhi l J8.00 l PAGES 12 The rocket barrage overnight set off air raid sirens across northern Israel, sending thousands of people scrambling into shelters. Tensions have escalated sharply after the recent pager and walkie-talkie explosions and an Israeli air strike that killed a Hezbollah commander in Beirut. The United Nations warned that the region is on the brink of “an imminent catastrophe” | P9 twin towers: men, women create olympiad history S w a r oo p s w a m i n at h a n @ Chennai Prime Minister Narendra Modi greets Indian community members at Nassau Veterans Coliseum in New York, on Sunday. Over 13,000 Indian Americans were present | PTI Quad calls for rules-based order Leaders agree to expand maritime ties, express concerns over situation in East, South China Seas Y e s h i Sel i @ New Delhi Amid Chinese military posturing in the Indo-Pacific, Quad leaders on Sunday decided to expand maritime security cooperation in the region and expressed concerns over the situations in the East and South China Seas. Though China was not named by any of the leaders, the White House had earlier indicated that it would be high on the agenda of discussions during the annual meeting of the grouping in Wilmington, Delaware “We are seriously concerned about the situation in the East and South China Seas. We continue to express our serious concern about the militarisation of disputed features, and coercive and intimidating maneuvers in the South China Sea,” the leaders said in a joint declaration. They condemned “dangerous manoeuvres” in the region. “We condemn the dangerous use of coast guard and maritime militia vessels, including increasing use of dangerous maneuvers,” the Quad Wilmington Declaration said. Recently, Philippine vessels were allegedly rammed by Chinese coast guard ships in the South China Sea. During his address, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said the “Quad supports rules-based international order, respect for sovereignty and territorial integrity, and the peaceful resolution of all issues.” “Our meeting is taking place at a time when the world is surrounded by tensions and conflicts. In such a situation, it is crucial for the Quad to unite around our shared democratic values for the greater good of humanity. We are not against anyone,” Modi said. President Joe Biden said Quad is more strategically aligned and delivering more positive impact across the IndoPacific than ever before. “Four years after my proposal to elevate Quad, the US, India, Japan, Australia, are more strategically aligned and delivering more positive impact across the Indo-Pacific than ever before. While challenges will come and the world will change, the Quad is here to stay,’’ he wrote on X. Later, Modi met members of the Indian diaspora in New York. “Just yesterday, President Biden took me to his home in Delaware. His affection, his warmth, it was a moment that touched my heart. This respect is for the 140 billion Indians. This respect is for you, for your achievement,” he told them. Drone deal on track, new semicon plant in Kolkata D Gukesh was in stellar form during the Chess Olympiad this edition | PTI team meeting before the Slovenia game they were kind of celebrating. On Sunday, Gukesh and Co. ‘forced ourselves’ to refocus. Arjun Erigaisi came with a funky opening while Gukesh started enjoying a fairly big advantage over Vladimir Fedoseev, who had taken down Magnus Carlsen a few days ago. With two wins fairly certain, the celebrations could start in earnest. When R Praggnanandhaa nailed his game, it sealed an Tirumala temple Y E SHI S E L I @ New Delhi Boston, LA TO HAVE consulaTes India will open new consulates in Boston and Los Angeles, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said while addressing the Indian diaspora in New York nearly 300 Antiquities returned US handed over to India 297 antiquities, which were smuggled out of the country over the years | P7 Signalling that the US is keen to strengthen ties with India, US President Joe Biden highlighted the progress in India’s procurement of 31 long-endurance MQ-9B armed drones from American defence major General Atomics and also referred to the setting up of a semiconductor plant in Kolkata, West Bengal. During his interaction with Prime Minister Narendra Modi, he held wide-ranging talks covering various key aspects of India-US ties including ways to further ramp up bilateral defence and military engagement. It may be recalled that the US had approved the sale of 31 MQ-9B drones to Indian military for around $4 billion in February. Out of these, 16 are for the Indian Air Force and 15 for the Navy . The salient feature of the drones is that these can operate in pin-drop silence and fly as close as 250 metres from the ground. According to reports, some more small details are to be worked out and both sides are likely to formally conclude the deal by next month. As for the semiconductor fabrication plant in Kolkata, both Modi and Biden hailed it as a watershed arrangement. “The plant will be established with support from India Semiconductor Mission as well as strategic technology partnership between Bharat Semi, 3rdiTech and US Space force,’’ the White House said in a statement. Shraddha case redux: Lover’s role suspected Express read RG Kar: More rallies held to demand justice People and political parties across West Bengal held rallies on Sunday to press their demand for justice for the victim of RG Kar Hospital. Union minister Sukanta Majumdar led a rally in Howrah city with a placard that read “Justice for Tilottoma (assumed name of victim)”. e x p r e s s n e w s s e r v i c e @ Bengaluru The murder of a woman in Bengaluru has shocked the city not only for its ghastly nature, but also for the fact that it is quite similar to the chilling murder of Shraddha Walkar in the national capital last year. Hemant Das, the estranged husband of Mahalakshmi — whose body was chopped into pieces and was stuffed into a refrigerator — said his wife had an illicit relationship and he suspected her paramour’s role in the cold-blooded murder. Speaking to reporters at the Bowring and Lady Curzon Hospital mortuary, where an autopsy was conducted on Sunday, Das claimed that he last saw Mahalakshmi around 25 days ago when she went to his shop in Nelamangala to see their daughter. “We were married for six years and separated nine months ago due to differences. Mahalakshmi had filed a case against me over a dispute. After we separated, she stayed alone in Vyalikaval. On Friday, the landlord called and informed me about the foul smell coming from the first floor, where she lived,” Das said. The police have formed five teams to investigate the case. They are questioning those who were close to the victim and analysing footage captured by over 150 CCTVs. LATE on Saturday Viswanath, an Anand had posted his congratulations to the Indian Open team for winning the chess Olympiad. Minutes later, he had posted a clarification as it wasn’t mathematically over. Hours into Sunday’s final round, the Open team, led by D Gukesh, completed formalities as they monstered the Slovenian side 3.5-0.5 to rubber-stamp their authority. If their gold wasn’t much of a surprise — they were one of the favourites — that was followed by a famous double as the women’s team beat Azerbaijan by a similar margin to script yet another piece of history . Going into the final round in Budapest, the Open team was sole leader by two clear points. The players also enjoyed a clear advantage on tie-breaks. It was such a big advantage that in the Gas cylinder found on rail tracks in UP top spin: ash reward R Ashwin picks six wickets in the second innings to skittle Bangladesh out for 234 runs and help India script a 280-run victory in the first Test | Ashwin prasath utterly dominating two weeks. On air, Vidit Gujrathi, one of the unsung heroes of this team’s campaign, said this would go down as a win for the ages never to be repeated again. Even as the Open team converted their positional superiority into points, the women’s team had to take the scenic route to global glory D Harika, . playing on the top board, was inconsistent while R Vaishali had slightly lost her rhythm in the second phase. But it didn’t matter as Divya Deshmukh, a world champion at age-group level, and Vantika Agrawal, on Board 4, became giants. So, even as Harika and Vaishali had to grind their way to wins or salvage draws, Deshmukh and Agrawal enjoyed serene progress in terms of wins. In the end, they won two individual gold, an apt reward for what they had done to the colP11 lective cause. A train accident was averted after an empty LPG cylinder was found on the tracks by a goods train driver who applied emergency brakes and stopped the train near Prempur station in Kanpur on Sunday. This is the second such incident in Uttar Pradesh this fortnight. | P8 Andhra govt forms SIT to probe Tirupati laddu row This victory belongs to all of us. Together, we stand ready to rewrite Sri Lankan history Express news servcie @ Vijayawada President-elect Anura Kumara Dissanayake gestures after his victory | AFP Sri Lanka picks Dissanayake as prez to fix economy COLOMBO: National Peoples’ Power (NPP) candidate Anura Kumara Dissanayake, 56, was on Sunday declared president-elect by the Election Commission of Sri Lanka at the Election Secretariat in Colombo. Addressing election officials, presidential candidates, and political party representatives, Dissanayake promised to usher in a new political culture and strive to serve 22 million Sri Lankans “with deep commitment and respect” and to create a new political culture that celebrates political differences and honours people’s dignity and rights. Dissanayake, who polled 5,634,915 votes (42.31%), was declared winner after a second preferential count, as none Dilrukshi of the candidates reached Handunnetti the constitutionally required Award-winning journalist 50% plus 1 vote. In the second and lawyer, founder and director of the Colombopreferential count, he obbased Center for Investigatained 105,264 votes. His main tive Reporting (CIR) rival, Opposition Leader and Leader of the Samagi Jana Balawegaya Sajith Premadasa, polled 4,363,035 votes (32.76%) and 107,867 second preference votes. The president-elect noted the need to amend the election laws to enable certain sections of the public such as migrant workers to be able to vote, and promised to accord it high priority However, he said it would not be possible to pass . these amendments before the next bunch of elections. “Our country is unstable in many ways. There are economic, political, social, geopolitical challenges before us. They need to be addressed with care. But to address them, the NPP believed the rulers have to be mandated by the people. Without a public mandate, it becomes a distorted administration as we witnessed recently he said. ,” Sri Lanka’s election history has been marred by election violence from time to time. But the 2024 polls witnessed minCONTINUED ON: P7 imum incidents. A Special Investigation Team (SIT) headed by an Inspector General and above rank officer will be constituted to probe the alleged adulteration of the Tirumala temple Laddu Prasdam, Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu announced on Sunday . “The SIT will investigate all issues, including procurement of adulterated ghee containing animal fat, and its use in making the Laddu Prasadam offered to Lord Venkateswara at Tirumala temple, and misuse of power by the previous dispensation,” Naidu said. Based on the inquiry report submitted by the SIT, strict action will be taken against the culprits, the chief minister added. “There is no compromise in safeguarding the sanctity of Tirumala temple and its traditions,” Naidu said. The CM also said that based on the recommendation of Agama Advisors of Tirumala temple, it has been decided to perform Shanti Homam and Panchagavya Prokshana to sanctify the Tirumala temple premises and its surroundings. “The Shanti Homam will be performed at Yagashala near Bangaru Bavi in Srivari temple from 6-10 am on Monday he said. ,” The Endowments Minister has been directed to take up similar rituals in all other temples in the State after verifying the quality of ingredients used in making Prasadam. tackling dementia Kochi corporation launches ‘memory cafe’ to care for elderly people a n n a j o s e @ Kochi A space where the elderly, and their families and caretakers come together and engage in conversations, games and other lifestyle-enhancement activities — That’s what the Kochi corporation is planning to do in a move to address the issues related to dementia and care for the elderly population. As part of this, the first mem- ory cafe was launched at Samrithi, where the corporation runs its subsidised food outlet, on Saturday to coincide with World Alzheimer’s Day . Named Smrithiyoram, the first-of-its-kind initiative in the state will see the civic body setting up similar cafes at other venues to address challenges related to dementia by involving the elderly and their caregivers in conversations, games, train- Similar facility to come up at other venues too Named Smrithiyoram, the first-of-its-kind initiative in Kerala will see Kochi corporation setting up similar cafes for the elderly and their caretakers at other venues to address challenges related to dementia by involving the elderly and their caregivers in games, conversations, training, and other lifestyle-enhancement activities. ing, and other lifestyle-enhancement activities. The meetings will be held once a month, on second Saturdays. Smrithiyoram is an informal group of people led by resource persons: doctors, physiotherapists, and other experts, said Dr Praveen G Pai, the focal point of the World Health Organisation’s Global Network for Age-Friendly Cities and Communities in Kochi. “There is no labelling or structure for these groups. The participants can engage with other members, discuss, and spend time together to improve their mental and physical wellbeing as they age. These are support groups with a maximum of 15 people,” he said. The WHO Global Network for Age-Friendly Cities and Com- munities along with the Kochi corporation are planning to expand this initiative to other areas under the civic body . Kochi Mayor M Anilkumar said the memory cafe is one of the initiatives under AgeFriendly Kochi. “We have implemented various projects to make the city more age-friendly . It comprises infrastructure development and improved transportation facilities,” he said.
Express Network Private Limited publishes thirty three E-paper editions of The New Indian Express newspaper , thirty two E-paper editions of Dinamani, one E-paper edition of The Morning Standard, one E-paper edition of Malayalam Vaarika magazine and one E-paper edition of the Indulge - The Morning Standard, Kolkatta.