TUESDAY 17 JUNE, 2025 2013 THE LAST TIME INDIA HOSTED THE WOMEN’S ODI WORLD CUP epaper.morningstandard.in facebook.com/TheMorningStandard X.com/TheMornStandard M I N N E S O T TA INDIA WOMEN TO KICK-START ODI WORLD CUP AGAINST SRI LANKA SUSPECTED SHOOTER OF LAWMAKERS HELD The man suspected of killing a Minnesota lawmaker and wounding another crawled to officers in surrender after they located him near his home. KAUR & CO TO PLAY PAK IN COLOMBO ON OCT 5 A CAPITAL VIEW OF NEWS PAGE 9  NEW DELHI  J8.00  PAGES 12 With the ongoing agreement between India and Pakistan cricket boards, the latter will not travel to India and will be camped in Colombo for their league-stage games. India and Pakistan are scheduled to play each other in Colombo on October 5. It will be the first match between the neighbouring countries after the recent cross-border tensions. Census-2027 notification finally out M U K E S H R A N J A N @ New Delhi Rescue team work at the site where a missile launched from Iran struck Tel Aviv, Israel, on Monday | AP/PTI ISRAELI MISSILES HIT IRAN’S STATE TV HQ Israel on Monday struck Iran’s state TV while a live broadcast was underway, forcing the anchor to rush out as debris started falling in the studio IAEA WARNS OF CONTAMINATION The International Atomic Energy Agency warned of both radiological and chemical contamination at Iran’s nuclear enrichment facility in Natanz India begins to move out its citizens in Iran STUDENTS TO BE EVACUATED VIA ARMENIA, UAE ISRAEL, IRAN RAMP UP ATTACKS CIVILIAN CASUALTIES RISE J AYA N T H J A C O B @ New Delhi AS hostilities between Iran and Israel intensify India has , begun relocating its nationals from high-risk zones in Iran and is mulling on evacuation plans via both land and sea routes through Armenia and the United Arab Emirates, sources said. The first batch of 110 students has reached the Armenian border, from there they will be evacuated by air. The external affairs ministry on Monday said Indian nationals, including 1,500 students—from Jammu and Kashmir, Karnataka, and other states—are being moved to safer areas within Iran. Embassy officials are in constant touch with local leaders and the Indian community. An estimated 10,000 Indian nationals are in Iran. Tehran, where a majority of Indian students are enrolled in institutions such as Tehran University of Medi- Missing Haryana model found dead in canal H A R P R E E T BA J WA @ Chandigarh THE body of a 23-year-old Haryana-based model Sheetal was found in Sonipat, Haryana, two days after she was reported missing. According to sources, Sheetal, alias Simmy Chaudhry previously worked at a ho, tel in Karnal before becoming a model in the Haryanvi music industry She lived with her sis. ter, Neha, in Panipat. On June 14, when Sheetal failed to return from a shoot in Ahar village, her sister filed a missing person complaint. Her body was later found in a canal near Khanda village and has been sent for post-mortem. Sheetal had left in a car with a man identified as Sunil and their vehicle reportedly fell into the canal under suspicious circumstances. Sunil was rescued and is currently undergoing treatment in Panipat. Meanwhile, Sheetal’s family has alleged foul play, insisting she was murdered rather having drowned accidentally . cal Sciences and Iran University of Medical Sciences, has seen heightened risk amid Israeli strikes. Some students are being relocated to Qom, 148 km from Tehran. Sources said land evacuation via Armenia and a sea route through the UAE are being explored as viable options. “It’s an evolving situation and we are exploring every ways and means to ensure the safety of our nationals as we have done in the past,” said a source. External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar has spoken to his Armenian counterpart Ararat Mirzoyan and UAE Foreign Minister Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed Al Nahyan to discuss the situation. It’s painful for both parties, but I’d say Iran is not winning this war. They should talk before it’s too late US President Donald Trump THE Centre on Monday formally notified the much-delayed National Population Census 2027, which was due way back in 2021, but had to be put off after the Covid-19 pandemic outbreak. The Gazette notification said, “the Central Government hereby declares that a census of the population of India shall be taken during the year 2027.” The notification added that the reference date for the Census shall be 00.00 hours of the 1st day of March, 2027, except for Ladakh and snow-bound Caste enumeration definitely on, says govt The Union home ministry rubbished Congress apprehensions on caste enumeration as the notification did not mention it. “The census will include caste enumeration... It has already been mentioned in press releases dated 30 April, 4 June and 15 June, that the census will also have caste enumeration,” the govt said non-synchronous areas of Jammu and Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh and Uttarakhand. As for the rest, the reference date shall be 00:00 hours of October 1, 2026. The notification was issued by Mritunjay Kumar Narayan, Registrar General and Census Commissioner. The census exercise will be held in two phases—House Listing Operation (HLO) and Population Enumeration (PE). While HLO will involve collecting data on assets and amenities in each household, the PE exercise will capture the demographic, socio-economic, cultural and other details of every person in each household. Also, caste enumeration will Decade-long project to mitigate dust pollution to cost over `2K cr P R A B H AT S H U K L A @ New Delhi A woman holds her baby as residents evacuate downtown Tel Aviv on Monday | AP/PTI Tehran said despite the closure of Iranian airspace, “all land borders are open for crossing” and has requested India to share details of those intending to leave. The Indian Embassy in Tehran urged all nationals to stay indoors, avoid non-essential movement, and follow advisories. As the war entered the fourth day on Monday, Iran confirmed 224 deaths while the toll in Israel rose to 24. India, which maintains diplomatic ties with both nations, reiterated its call for de-escalation. “Existing channels of dialogue and diplomacy should be utilised,” said MEA spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal. However, with neither side showing intention to dialing down tensions, the region is bracing for more strikes. On Monday, Israel ordered residents of Tehran to evacuate the district immediately, warning that lethal strikes were coming. P9 A proposal to combat dust pollution in the capital, approved by the cabinet last month, is set to cost a total of `2,388 crore over the next ten years. The Public Works Department (PWD) will spearhead the project, which includes large-scale deployment of mechanical road sweeping and water sprinkling systems aimed at improving Delhi’s ambient air quality . The initiative falls under the broader ‘Pollution Control and Emergency Measures’ scheme approved last month by the Delhi Cabinet in a meeting chaired by Chief Minister Rekha Gupta. Of the total budget, `1,158 crore has been earmarked for the hiring of 250 water sprinkler vehicles equipped with anti-smog guns. These will operate in three daily shifts, using treated wa- 70 mechanical road sweeping machines The government will spend `1,230 crore over seven years in hiring 70 mechanical road sweeping machines. These units, will focus on cleaning road carriageways, not footpaths or green verges. ter supplied free of cost, 15,000 kiloliters per day by the Delhi Jal Board. In addition, the government will spend `1,230 crore over the next seven years in hiring 70 mechanical road sweeping machines. These units, which come equipped with 210 water sprinklers, tankers and antismog guns, will focus on cleaning road carriageways, not footpaths or green verges. Officials cited a 2016 study by IIT Kanpur, which found that mechanical sweeping alone can reduce PM10 levels by 55%, and up to 90% if supported by vacuum-assisted sweeping. The PWD currently maintains around 1,400 kilometres of main roads in Delhi. These high-traffic roads will be prioritised under the project, with plans to expand the coverage. The plan has seen delays, partly due to a jurisdictional tussle between the PWD and the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD). The MCD had objected to an earlier proposal by the Environment Department, asserting sanitation fell within its mandatory duties. However, after the project was transferred to the MCD with no action taken, the chief minister and environment minister decided to revert the execution to the PWD to avoid further delays. LEAGUE CLEARS ASHWIN OF BALL-TAMPERING TNPL dismissed the balltampering allegations made by Madurai Panthers against Dindigul Dragons skipper R Ashwin. They have given one day to submit material evidence | P11 119 IDed, 64 bodies handed over D I L I P S I N G H K S H AT R I YA @ Ahmedabad THE process to identify victims of the June 12 AI-171 air crash picked up pace on Monday as officials said DNA samples of 119 of them have been successfully matched. At least 270 people perished in the aircrash. Ahmedabad Civil Hospital Superintendent Dr Rakesh Joshi said 64 bodies have already been handed over to the respective families. Another 24 families are expected to collect the mortal remains of their loved ones in the coming days, while 11 families await confirmation of DNA matches with additional relatives. Twelve families are still awaiting final DNA results. Authorities expect the identification to conclude swiftly once pending reports are in. Among the bodies identified on Sunday was that of former Gujarat chief minister Vijay Rupani. He was cremated in Rajkot with full state honours on Monday . Probe teams scouring the aircraft debris recovered the cockpit voice recorder (CVR), the second black box. The CVR, along with a wire trailing from the aircraft’s rear section, was handed over to the Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau (AAIB). The first black box, called the flight data recorder, was recovered a day after the accident. Besides, human remains were found amid the debris and shifted to the Civil Hospital for postmortem. Parallelly a high-level multi, disciplinary committee led by Union home secretary Govind Mohan discussed the possible causes of the crash so as to evolve a policy roadmap for future safeguards. P8 LIFE ON THE LINE Residents during demolition drive near railway line in Wazirpur | SAYANTAN GHOSH | P4 be done for the first time after Independence as part of the Census, which is in its eighth edition. Overall, this is the 16th edition of the Census since its beginning in 1881. As many as 34 lakh enumerators and supervisors and around 1.3 lakh census functionaries will conduct the operation with cutting-edge mobile digital gadgets, Union home minister Amit Shah said on Sunday after chairing a high-level meeting to review the preparations for the Census exercise. Union Home Secretary Govind Mohan, Mritunjay Kumar Narayan and other senior officials participated. In a rare move, FATF condemns Pahalgam attack J AYA N T H J A C O B @ New Delhi AS India intensifies its diplomatic push to put Pakistan on the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) grey list, the global anti-terror financing watchdog has issued a rare, strongly worded condemnation of the terrorist attack in Pahalgam, flagging the financial lifelines that sustain such violence. “The FATF expresses grave concern and condemns the brutal terrorist attack in Pahalgam, Jammu & Kashmir, India, on 22 April 2025,” it said, noting the brutality of the incident in which 26 tourists were killed. Victims were executed after being forced to reveal their religion—an act FATF described as a targeted and horrifying assault on civilians. Only twice in the past has FATF publicly condemned a specific terrorist attack, in 2015 and 2019. This underscores the gravity of the Pahalgam incident in the eyes of the international community . “This, and other recent attacks, could not occur without money and the means to move funds between terrorist supporters,” the FATF said, highlighting the central role of terror financing in enabling such operations. India is currently engaged with FATF member states to reclassify Pakistan under its ‘grey list’, citing Islamabad’s failure to act decisively against groups responsible for crossborder terrorism. FATF will soon release a comprehensive report on terrorist financing risks, which, for the first time, will acknowledge ‘state-sponsored terrorism’ as a financing threat. The condemnation of the Pahalgam attack signals a shift in international willingness to call out statelinked financing of terrorism. EXPRESS READ Top court denies ‘Dunki’ agent anticipatory bail Thunderstorms, gusty winds forecast for Delhi India’s exports contract 2.17% to $38 bn in May The Supreme Court on Monday denied anticipatory bail to an accused for allegedly duping a man after promising to send him to the United States through the ‘donkey’ route | P7 Delhi is expected to experience light to moderate rainfall along with thunderstorms, lightning and gusty winds, particularly during the evening and night hours, the IMD said on Monday. After marking positive growth for two months, exports slipped into negative territory, contracting 2.17% year-on-year to $38.73 billion in May over fall in petroleum goods shipments | P10 OFFERINGS GET PRICEY Travancore board raises price of temple prasad, plans app for booking B I J U E PAU L @ Alappuzha Ambalappuzha Sree Krishna Swamy temple THE Travancore Devaswom Board (TDB) has decided to increase the price of the legendary palpayasam--a sweet dish made using milk and rice-which is served to devotees at the Ambalappuzha Sree Krish- na Swamy temple. Come August, the price of the prasadam (consecrated food offering) will be enhanced to `260 per litre from `160. The quantity of palpayasam prepared will also be increased. Currently 225 litres is prepared , every day, which will be in- creased to 350 litres on Thursdays, Sundays and other auspicious days, and 300 litres on other days. Officials said the price of the palpayasam is being increased after 14 years. According to V J Sreekumar, koima sthani of the temple, the revision was de- cided by the TDB. “Demand for the payasam has increased. However, production is controlled based on the direction of the Kerala High Court, to maintain sanctity he added. ,” The palpayasam is distributed to devotees in adherence to norms prepared by the TDB and the HC. The TDB is planning to introduce an online booking system for distribution of the prasadam. A directive has been issued to the devaswom deputy commissioner to introduce a mob i l e ap p l i c at i o n fo r t h e purpose.