THIRUVANANTHAPURAM l Sunday l may 18, 2025 l `12.00 l PAGES 26 l LATE city edition CBSE asks schools to set up ‘sugar boards’ to check intake move follows rise in type 2 diabetes in kids The move follows a significant increase in Type 2 diabetes among kids, a condition once primarily seen in adults, over the past decade. Several studies indicate that sugar constitutes 13 per cent of daily calorie intake for children aged four to 10 years, and 15 per cent for those aged 11 to 18 years, substantially exceeding the recommended limit of 5 per cent The CBSE has directed affiliated schools to establish “sugar boards” to monitor and reduce sugar intake of children, according to officials sugary snacks, processed foods culprits ■ “The proliferation of sugary snacks, beverages, and processed foods, often readily available in school environments, contributes significantly to this excessive intake,” CBSE said in a circular ■ The direction was issued after a nudge by the National Commission for Protection of Child Rights to ensure kids are safe from diabetes 13% of daily calorie intake among children comes from sugar 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 India turns the screws on imports from Bangladesh Tharoor on govt’s global CM picks ex-MLA outreach team, Cong sore Pradeep Kumar as d i pa k m o n d a l @ New Delhi P r ee t h a N a i r @ New Delhi IN what seems like another ‘retaliatory’ move, the Indian government has imposed restrictions on imports of certain goods from its eastern neighbour Bangladesh. In a directive issued on Saturday by the Directorate General of Foreign Trade (DGFT), under the Ministry of Commerce and Industry, the import of all kinds of readymade gar ments from Bangladesh through land ports has been prohibited. These goods will only be allowed to be imported through the seaports of Nhava Sheva and Kolkata. A wider range of goods—including fruit and fruit-flavoured carbonated drinks, processed food items, cotton and cotton yarn waste, plastic and PVC finished goods (excluding essential industrial inputs such as pigments, dyes, plasticisers, and granules), and wooden furniture — will face more stringent port restrictions. These items will not be allowed entry through northeastern states of Assam, Meghalaya, Tripura, and Mizoram. The restriction also extends to Changrabandha and Fulbari in West Bengal. However, the DGFT clarified that these restrictions do not apply to essential imports such as fish, LPG, edible oil, and crushed stone. The DGFT notification clarified that these port restrictions would not be applicable to Bangladeshi goods transiting through India but destined for Nepal and Bhutan. The rift between the Congress leadership and Shashi Tharoor deepened on Saturday after the Centre picked him to lead one of the seven multi-party delegations for its diplomatic outreach against Pakistan’s crossborder terror despite the party not recommending his name. Apart from Tharoor, BJP MPs Ravi Shankar Prasad and Baijayant Panda, JD(U)’s Sanjay Jha, DMK’s Kanimozhi, NCP (SP)’s Supriya Sule, and Shiv Sena’s Shrikant Shinde will head the other delegations. Congress leader Jairam Ramesh said the party had submitted four names for the mission and was surprised to see ‘a different name’, Shashi Tharoor, in the official list. The party had suggested the names of Anand Sharma, Gaurav Gogoi, Syed Naseer Hussain and Amrinder Singh Raja Warring for the delegations. Significantly, the party distanced itself from Tharoor’s comments endorsing the Modi government’s handling of the India-Pak conflict and US President Trump’s intervention in announcing the ceasefire. Wasn’t recommended by party; govt names 7 heads of delegations WITH THIS ISSUE Sultan of Subversion PLUS 12 PAGES Gujarat minister’s son held for R71-crore scam involved fake infrastructure projects, with funds meant for A `71-crore scam under the Matribal employment siphoned hatma Gandhi National Rural off to agencies linked to the Employment Guarantee Act minister’s sons through fabri(MGNREGA) has been un- cated invoices. An audit reearthed in Gujarat, implivealed that Raj Concating the family of state struction and Raj panchayat and agriculTraders, run by Balwant ture minister Bachu and Kiran Khabad, were Khabad. His elder son, involved in the fraud. Between 2021 and Balwant Khabad, has been 2025, villages like Kuva, arrested, while his younger son, Kiran Khabad, is Gujarat minister Redhana, and Simamoi Bachu Khabad were falsely marked as under scrutiny . The scam surfaced after beneficiaries of comB M Patel, director of DRDA, pleted MGNREGA projects. On flagged irregularities in project the ground, there was little to execution in Devgadh Baria no work—only forged compleand Dhanpur taluks. The scam tion reports. D i l i p S i n g h k s h at r i ya @ Ahmedabad Will not be found wanting: Cong MP “I am honoured by the invitation to lead an all-party delegation to five key capitals, to present our nation’s point of view on recent events... When national interest is involved, and my services are required, I will not be found wanting. Jai Hind!” Tharoor said “We were asked for names. We expected that the names we had given would be included. But when we saw the press release of PIB, we were surprised. I cannot say what will happen now. Asking four names, giving four names, and announcing another name is dishonest on t h e g ove r n m e n t ’s p a r t , ” Ramesh told the media. “The government cannot include names of MPs in delegations without consulting the party he said. ,” This paper reported on Saturday that the PMO had prepared the list of names and conveyed them to the respective political parties. When asked about Tharoor’s inclusion as a representative of the Congress in the list, Ramesh said that ‘there is a difference between being in the Congress and being of the Congress’. “In a democratic system, when individual MPs are sent as part of an official delegation, MPs must seek the concurrence of the party. If the government wants to send him as part of a delegation, the MP should be asking the party, he said. “The ball is in the government’s court now,” he added. Accusing the government of being ‘dishonest’ in its approach, the leader asserted that the party would not change the four proposed names for the delegation. Ramesh added that Rahul Gandhi has written to Union Minister of Parliamentary Affairs Kiren Rijiju on this. P7 Kerala beer sales losing fizz, decline 8.6% over two years R a j es h R a v i @Kochi Kerala, it seems, is no longer looking to beat the heat with a chilled bottle of beer! Over the 2023-25 period, consumption of the beverage in the state declined by a sharp 8.6%, or nearly 10 lakh cases. This downturn underscores Kerala’s enduring preference for hard liquor, a characteristic of its traditionally brown spirits market that holds firm even during record-breaking heat, as data from the Kerala State Beverages Corporation (Bevco) confirms. Bevco managing director Harshita Attaluri told TNIE that beer consumption has been on the decline over the past two years, and she attributed the slump to public preference. As per the Beverages corporation’s data, beer sales slumped from 112 lakh cases -- both wholesale (to bars) and retail (Bevco outlets) — in 2022-23 fiscal to 102.39 lakh cases in 2024-25. Meanwhile, consumption of Indian Made Foreign Liquor (IMFL) through the wholesale and retail routes surged by 9.74 lakh cases in the two-year period to 229.12 lakh cases. In contrast, beer sales increased year-on-year by 9% nationally during 2024-25, according to Brewers Association of India (BAI), the apex body of the Indian beer industry representing India’s , leading beer manufac● More on P7 turers. k o h l i t r i b ute Men in Whites dwarf Red and Gold at Bengaluru Chinnaswamy stadium G o m es h S @ Bengaluru IT had been brewing since Virat Kohli announced his retirement from Tests last Monday What started . as a social media campaign on Tuesday hours after Kohli’s social media , post, became a reality on Saturday as thousands of fans came dressed wearing Kohli’s replica Test jersey . “Virat,” the back of the white jersey read “18”. There were some pockets with a lot of Red and Gold, something very common at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium. But a lot of the ticket-holders had turned a Red wall into a lot of White as they paid tribute to the man who has called this ground home for more than two months every year since 2008. Photo: Vinod kumar T In many ways, Saturday was significant even before Kohli’s sudden announcement. For starters, it marked the resumption of the Indian Premier League after an eightday break following the escalation of hostilities between India and Paki- stan. For the fans, however, it was about giving their cricketing hero a fitting on-field tribute. It did not matter that this wasn’t even an international game. Kohli, as many fans outside the stadium put it, was, is and will be an emotion to them. They wanted to give a fitting salute to their beloved star. Some fans, when they realised they would not be getting the tickets, decided to shell out money from their own pockets to print white replica jerseys in the name of Kohli and sell them outside the ground. Talamika, an IT professional, said: “We wanted to give a tribute to Kohli. We couldn’t get tickets that is why we are selling the jerseys.” private secretary E x p r ess Ne w s S e r v i ce @ T’Puram As the Pinarayi 2.0 government enters its final year in office, former MLA A Pradeep Kumar has been selected to be the chief minister’s private secretary, a key political appointment. Once a VS loyalist, the highperforming leader was handpicked by the CM as his trusted lieutenant to lead the ch i e f m i n i s t e r ’s office. The unexpected appointment has put an end to all speculations on who would succeed K K Ragesh, who had stepped down from the post after being elected as party Kannur s e c re t a r y l a s t m o n t h . Though it was widely expected that a leader from Kannur would succeed Ragesh, the CM chose Pradeep to lead the CMO at a time when two significant elections are around the corner. Former Kozhikode North MLA, Pradeep is currently a CPM state committee member. With the Left eyeing a third term in the office, Pradeep’s appointment is part of the LDF government’s image makeover. A mass leader with a clean image and proven track record, the party feels that the threetime MLA would undoubtedly be able to steer the CMO away from controversies and deal with political developments in a mature and efficient manner. A leader who maintains close relations both within and outside party circles, Pradeep is widely recognised for his educational and urban life initiatives that have transformed Kozhikode city. His efforts to elevate the city schools to high standards garnered widespread appreciation. Pradeep, who recently turned 61, entered politics through SFI, donning crucial roles in both the party’s student organisation and DYFI.  ● More on P7 vlogger from haryana held for spying Jyoti Malhotra, who runs a YouTube channel ‘Travel with JO’ was allegedly in contact with a Pakistani staffer working at the Pakistan High Commission in New Delhi | P10