EXCISE DUTY EXEMPTION TO HIGHER ETHANOL-PETROL BLENDING: GOVT FRIDAY 12 The government has exempted higher ethanol-blended petrol grades from central excise duty to prevent double taxation on fuel blending JUNE, 2026 epaper.morningstandard.in facebook.com/TheMorningStandard X.com/TheMornStandard L O W F U N D A L L O C AT I O N UK DEFENCE MINISTER QUITS John Healey unexpectedly quit on Thursday, saying the government is unwilling to spend enough on the military at a time of “rising threats.” PAGE 9 FIAT APPLIES TO E22-E30 PETROL MIXTURE A CAPITAL VIEW OF NEWS  NEW DELHI  J8.00  PAGES 12 Central Board of Indirect Taxes and Customs issued notifications exempting ethanol blended petrol grades E22, E25, E27 and E30 containing 22%, 25%, 27% and 30% ethanol, respectively - from applicable central excise duties, subject to excise duty having already been paid on petrol and GST on the ethanol used 31 mn tonnes worth crude oil substitution has been effected by ethanol blending MCD inquiry report finds licence approval after expiry in B&B fire case A D I T I R AY C H O W D H U R Y @ New Delhi A fire that killed 23 people at a B&B in Delhi’s Hauz Rani has now exposed far more than a single administrative lapse, with an internal Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) inquiry pointing to repeated clearances despite expired licences, overlooked violations, and a pattern of regulatory failure that persisted for years until it ended in tragedy . A key finding of the MCD’s Public Health Department inquiry report, as narrated by highly placed sources, relates to the licence renewal process. The renewal application for the 2025–26 licence, which was set to expire on March 31, 2026, was submitted on April 18, 2025. After undergoing the re- quired process, the application appeared on the concerned official’s portal only in January 2026 and was finally approved on June 2—just one day before the tragedy . Which means that after the licence for 2025-2026 expired on March 31, 2026, the establish- Expansion after owner bought Malviya Nagar property The ill-fated establishment, Flourish Stay B&B, had been operating for nearly a decade and underwent significant expansion after its current owner purchased the property in 2022, sources said. ment, Flourish Stay B&B, didn’t have an active licence. On June 3, the day of the tragedy even as the fire was engulf, ing the building, the owner logged onto the portal and submitted a fresh renewal application for the 2026–27 licence. The application was rejected a few hours later. The report, submitted to the MCD commissioner on Thursday, found that a health trade licence was approved by the concerned civic official after it had already expired. It flagged multiple instances of approvals being granted over time despite apparent violations at the establishment. This raises questions about regulatory oversight within the civic body, especially as no major action has yet been taken against the officials concerned since the fire tragedy . The establishment had been operating for nearly a decade TMS Exclusive and underwent significant expansion after its current owner purchased the property in 2022, according to sources. The owner had obtained permission from the Delhi Tourism Department to operate a bed-and-breakfast with six rooms. However, the property later exceeded this limit and came under the regulatory jurisdiction of the MCD. Beyond the Public Health Department, the role of other municipal departments, including All 3 missing seafarers dead Hindi literary awards renamed after Savarkar, Vajpayee: Govt Two bodies recovered; another vessel with 20 Indian crew members comes under attack TRUMP THREATENS TO STRIKE IRAN, BACKS OFF HOURS LATER J AYA N T H J A C O B @ New Delhi ALL three Indian seafarers who had been reported missing after the US attack on the Palau-flagged tanker MT Settebello off the coast of Oman have been confirmed dead, Union Minister for Ports, Shipping and Waterways Sarbananda Sonowal said on Thursday . The tanker, carrying 24 Indian crew members, was struck by the US military earlier this week, triggering a search-andrescue operation involving Indian and Omani authorities. In a post on X, Sonowal described the development as “deeply unfortunate”, confirming that the three crew members initially reported missing had lost their lives. “Sadly, three Indian seafarers initially reported missing are now confirmed dead after two bodies were recovered,” the minister said. Calling the deaths a “profound loss to our maritime family”, Sonowal said the government stood firmly with the Hours after threatening to hit Iran ‘very hard’ and “assume total control” of its oil and gas, US President Donald Trump on Thursday night called off the proposed US military strikes claiming ceasefire negotiations were “brought to the highest level of Iranian leadership” Discussions have been brought to the highest level of Iranian leadership and approved... I’ve cancelled the scheduled strikes against Iran— Donald Trump bereaved families and would give all necessary assistance. The minister added that officials had been instructed to facilitate the immediate repatriation of the 21 rescued crew members and ensure the swift return of the deceased sailors’ mortal remains. “I have directed officials to ensure immediate repatriation of the rescued crew members and swift return of the mortal remains of the deceased for their final rites.” The incident had sparked concern in India after 21 Indian nationals were rescued while three others remained unaccounted for following the strike near the Omani coast. On Wednesday India strong, ly condemned the attack on the commercial vessel and formally lodged a protest with the US by summoning Jason Meeks, the US Chargé d’Affaires in New Delhi. The démarche was delivered by Nagaraj Naidu, Additional Secretary (Americas) in the Ministry of External Affairs, who called in Jason Meeks following the strike on the vessel and conveyed India’s concerns over the safety of its nationals working aboard commercial ships in the region. In a statement, the Ministry of External Affairs had said: “We condemn the attack on the commercial vessel Settebello off the coast of Oman, earlier today The ministry noted that .” of the 24 Indian crew members on board, “21 Indians have been rescued thus far and 03 Indians are reportedly missing” at the time of the statement. Officials also conveyed to the US side that attacks endangering Indian seafarers are unacceptable and raised concerns over the safety of Indian nationals serving aboard commercial vessels operating in the region. Meanwhile, crew members of a Guinea-Bissau-flagged vessel identified as MT Jalveer, carrying 20 Indians, were evacuated on Thursday after the vessel came under attack off an Oman port. This is the third instance of a ship with Indians coming under attack from the US military in the recent past. P8 RED ALERT Heavy rainfall, thunderstorms may pound city EXPRESS NEWS SERVICE @ New Delhi BRINGING relief from a severe heat spell, rains accompanied by strong winds lashed parts of Delhi on Thursday night. The India Meteorological Department (IMD) issued a red alert for the national capital for Friday warning of thunderstorms, , lightning and winds gusting up to 90 km per hour. Weather experts said that the sudden change in weather conditions has been triggered by a cyclonic circulation over central Pakistan and adjoining areas which has enhanced atmospheric instability over northwest India, including Delhi-NCR. The weather activity is expected to intensify from Friday as the system gains strength. Temperatures are likely to dip over the next few days under the influence of cloud cover and rainfall, the IMD said. A red alert is issued when severe weather conditions pose a threat to life and property. The IMD advised people to move to safe buildings, avoid weak structures, stay away from windows and avoid venturing near water bodies. The capital’s Air Quality Index stood in the ‘moderate’ category on Thursday . Colombian singer Shakira performs during the opening ceremony ahead of the 2026 World Cup tie between Mexico and South Africa on Thursday | AFP Co-hosts US, Canada begin Cup campaign On the second day of the tournament, the other two hosts begin their campaigns. Canada take on Bosnia & Herzegovina while United States of America face Paraguay in their first game of the tournament. TODAY'S MATCHES (IST) Group B: Canada vs Bosnia and Herzegovina (12.30 AM on Saturday), Group D: US vs Paraguay (6.30 AM on Saturday) WORLD CUP OPENS AMID FANFARE, FULL HOUSE With the Estadio Azteca witnessing a glittering opening ceremony, a look... SHAKIRA PERFORMS OFFICIAL SONG: One of the highlights of the nearly hour-long Opening Ceremony featured Colombian star Shakira performing ‘Dai Dai’, the World Cup’s official song. Burna Boy, J Balvin and Andrea Bocelli were also on stage AZTECA CREATES HISTORY: The 80,000-strong historic stadium, hosting its third World Cup, bore witness to dancers twirling around a giant model of the World Cup trophy. The city had pretty much come to a standstill hours before the opening whistle EXPRESS READ Homemakers are nation builders: SC ‘Govt plans to lift AFSPA from next yr’ The Supreme Court on Thursday recognised homemakers as nation builders and held that the loss of domestic care services should be counted as a separate head of compensation. P7 Home Minister Amit Shah on Thursday said that the government plans to withdraw the Armed Forces Special Powers Act from Northeast next year as the security situation in the region improved. P8 the Building Department, is also under scrutiny Three ad. ditional floors were reportedly added after the 2022 ownership change, and the permissions for the expanded structure are being reviewed. It was also found that the establishment obtained a tea and snacks licence in 2023 but was allegedly operating as a fullfledged restaurant. Despite this, the licence continued to be renewed in 2023, 2024 and 2025. CONTINUED ON P4 A N U P V E R M A @ New Delhi Prime Minister Narendra Modi meets Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Joseph Vijay | PTI Tap youth power for growth: PM P U S H P I TA D E Y @ New Delhi PRIME Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday asked states to tap into India’s 70-crore youth population and convert this unique demographic dividend into a development dividend for the country’s progress. “Creating the right ecosystem for our youth through quality education, demanddriven skilling and employment opportunities must remain a priority. Empowered youth will be the driving force behind our journey towards,” he said while chairing the 11th Governing Council Meeting of Niti Aayog, attended by chief ministers, Lt governors and administrators representing 28 States and five UTs. This was the first time chief ministers of all 28 states participated in the governing council meeting of NITI Aayog. The meeting primarily focused on human development index and creating alternative energy sources In India. During the meeting, governing council members extensively debated pushing rooftop solar energy across residential buildings, schools, hospitals, and government properties to reduce household dependence on grid electricity and make the state power subsidy burden more manageable. Several members voiced strong support for expanding nuclear energy, noting that technological evolutions have made modern nuclear power remarkably safe. In a key administrative push toward localised tracking, the prime minister urged all states to develop gross domestic product (GDP) estimation at the district level within the coming months. P7 As new technology comes, we have to adapt. We cannot get stuck in 1990s or 2000 technology Ashok Lahiri, VC, Niti Aayog Go for FDI, PM tells states The PM asked states to aggressively court foreign investments from nations with which India has signed FTAs MSMES, defence States were also told to leverage MSMEs and capture emerging opportunities in defence manufacturing THE Delhi government’s Hindi Academy has renamed several of its literary awards after prominent leaders, including V D Savarkar, Deen Dayal Upadhyay a n d M a d a n M o h a n Malaviya. The Hindi Academy Shalaka Samman has been renamed the Pandit Deen Dayal Upadhyay Shalaka Samman, with the award now carrying a cash prize of `7 lakh, up from `5 lakh earlier. The academy has also instituted a new award to promote Indian culture and knowledge traditions, named after former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee. Another award has been introduced in the name of late BJP leader Vijay Kumar Malhotra to honour contributions to the service of Hindi. The Hindi Academy has invited applications for awards for the academic years 2022-23, 2023-24, 2024-25 and 2025-26. Eligible litterateurs, poets and journalists from Delhi-NCR can submit their entries by June 23, officials said. Under the Sahityakar Samman Yojana, 16 awards will be presented to Hindi litterateurs, poets and journalists. The Atal Bihari Vajpayee Bharatiya Sanskriti and Gyan Parampara Samman carries a cash prize of `5 lakh. The Rani Ahilyabai Holkar Samman for women litterateurs, the Sant Ravidas Sahitya Samman and the Veer Savarkar Samman for national consciousness carry cash prizes of `2 lakh each. The women litterateurs’ award, which has been renamed after Rani Ahilyabai Holkar, was earlier named after Santosh Koli, an anti-corruption activist who died in a road accident. The AAP government had named the award in her memory . CONTINUED ON P4 HC questions expelled TMC leader appointment as LoP by Speaker S U B H E N D U M A I T I @ New Delhi THE Calcutta High Court on Thursday questioned the legality of West Bengal Assembly Speaker Rathindranath Bose’s decision to recognise rebel Trinamool Congress MLA Ritabrata Banerjee as the leader of the Opposition (LoP) without the consent of the political party concerned. Justice Krishna Rao raised the question while hearing a plea against the Speaker’s decision to recognise Banerjee as LoP and Akhruzzman, another rebel MLA, the chief whip when the party leadership had already expelled the former. The TMC leadership led by Mamata Banerjee had expelled Third MP quits The crisis in TMC deepened on Thursday as Rajya Sabha MP Prakash Chik Baraik resigned from both the Upper House and the party, becoming the third TMC parliamentarian to quit this week after Sukhendu S Ray and Sushmita Dev. | P7 Ritabrata, MLA from Uluberia Purba, and Sandipan Saha, another legislator from Entally, for anti-party activities. Veteran MLA Sobhandeb Chattopadhyay from Ballygunj, who was selected by the leadership as LoP moved HC on June 8 chal, lenging the Speaker’s decision to recognise Ritabrata as LoP . TMC MP and senior lawyer Kalyan Bandyopadhyay, appearing for petitioners, submitted that the move hits the basic structure of the Constitution. The TMC on 3 June suffered its first split in its history since its birth in 1998 after 58 MLAs belonging to the break-away faction elected Ritabrata as LoP and secured recognition from the speaker, landing Mamata’s party into its an unprecedented crisis. The rebel camp led by Ritabrata claimed they were ‘real Trinamool’. Ritabrata, however, asserted that all constitutional and procedural requirements in connection with his selection as the LoP had been followed.