kochi l saturday l November 16, 2024 l `9.00 l PAGES 16 l late city EDITION PCB’s PoK CT Trophy tour: BCCI protests, ICC puts it on hold ICC on Friday put on hold Champions Trophy tour of disputed Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK) following BCCI’s strong objection Photo: Twitter BCCI takes up issue with international body PCB had tweeted that they would take the trophy to PoK. “Get ready, Pakistan! The ICC Champions Trophy 2025 trophy tour kicks off in Islamabad on 16 November, also visiting scenic travel destinations like Skardu, Murree, Hunza and Muzaffarabad,” it tweeted. BCCI secretary Jay Shah reportedly protested with the ICC quite strongly ■ 1996 ‘discussions on’ over trophy tour ■ ■ The tournament, last held in 2017, is already in a limbo after BCCI refused to send its team to Pakistan for the tournament PCB announced the tour without prior knowledge of all stakeholders PCB is saying that discussions between the PCB and the ICC are in progress on the Trophy tour | P11 Last global men’s event in pak was when they co-hosted World cup 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 The name is Bond... for top RNG award Lifetime achievement award goes to Ruskin Bond, Non-fiction award to Neerja Chowdhury, Fiction award to Aishwarya Jha journos must be daring, says chinmaya mission head M u ke s h Ran j an @ New Delhi Ramnath Goenka Sahithya Samman awardees Ruskin Bond (represented by granddaughter Srishti), who was conferred the Lifetime Achievement Award (4th from L), Non-fiction award winner Neerja Chowdhury (6th from L) and Fiction award winner Aishwarya Jha (3rd from L) with (from L) TNIE CEO Lakshmi Menon, TNIE CMD Manoj Kumar Sonthalia, Chinmaya Mission global head Swami Swaroopanandaji, TNIE Editorial Director Prabhu Chawla, and TNIE Editor Santwana Bhattacharya, in New Delhi on Friday | Shekhar Yadav P r a c h i Sat r a w a l @ New Delhi “Words steer the mind and heart, revealing the truth that uplifts and transforms,” said Swami Swaroopanandaji, Global Head, Chinmaya Mission, as he inaugurated the Ramnath Goenka Sahithya Samman 2024 at Bharat Mandapam on Friday . An evening dedicated to celebrating the enduring power of storytelling, the awards brought together luminaries from India’s literary and journalistic circles to honour exceptional voices in fiction, non-fiction, and lifetime achievement. The Sahithya Samman, instituted in memory of Ramnath Goenka, the visionary founder of The New Indian Express group, pays tribute to the trans- formative force of literature. Speaking at the event, Chairman and Managing Director Manoj Sonthalia described the awards as “a powerful testimony to the resilience, complexity , and beauty of the human experience.” He added, “Today, we honour authors whose works have risen above the ordinary to touch the extraordinary .” Elaborating on the significance of the awards, Editor Santwana Bhattacharya said: “An entity so utterly mundane, familiar, and yet also a stranger— this is what the word is. It was iconised by our founder Ramnath Goenka. Imagine a blank editorial, a silence that echoes through the ages; such aware- ness would not be out of place in a poet. It is fitting, therefore, to have a literary award instituted in his honour.” One of the highlights was the Lifetime Achievement Award to celebrated author Ruskin Bond, represented by his granddaughter Srishti Bond. In a heartfelt video message, the 90-year-old author expressed his gratitude: “This is a happy moment for me... I only wish I could be with you. I am sending my beloved granddaughter Srishti to receive it.” The Non-fiction award went to veteran journalist Neerja Chowdhury for How Prime Ministers Decide, a meticulous exploration of pivotal decisions by six Indian Prime Ministers. “To receive a literary award in Ramnath Goenka’s name is an honour,” she said. Jury chair, author and former diplomat Pavan Varma shed light on the rigorous selection process: “Each work presented a unique lens on India. The sheer depth of research and narrative scope in Neerja Chowdhury’s book set a new benchmark for contemporary non-fiction.” In the Fiction category debut , author Aishwarya Jha received the award for The Scent of Fallen Stars, a poignant tale of love and longing. Quoting V S Naipaul in her acceptance speech, Jha said, “Fiction reveals... I feel honoured to receive this award that celebrates India’s diP7 versity and beauty  .” Hailing the doyen of the Indian media, Ramnath Goenka, as a “great independent thinker”, Swami Swaroopanandaji, the global head of Chinmaya Mission, on Friday said responsible journalists have to be daring and courageous and should write facts without prejudice to convey the truth. The Swami was the chief guest at the 2nd edition of the Ramnath Goenka Sahithya Samman ceremony in Delhi. Swaroopanandaji in his address said writers “are those who protect and spread the knowledge to the world”. Reminding people about the timeless impact of epics like Ramayana and Mahabharata on the lives of the people, SwarooResponsible panandaji dwelt on the journalism role of Sanjaya, advisor should be of the blind King Dhricourageous, tarashtra in the Mahabfearless and harata. “Sanjaya narindependent. rated the developments The wellbeing of society in the Kurukshetra war should be at as it unfolded to his the core of blind king without prejresponsible udice and with a lot of journalism clarity he said. ,” The spiritual leader Swami cautioned that when Swaroopanandaji fact and truth are muddled and falsehood is spread as fact, the situation becomes very harmful for the society . Noting that he did not see any difference in the various forms of writing – fiction, non-fiction or media reporting, he said, “In either form, if a writer is able to bring out the better self of people to think independently, the work should be considered a great success.” Talking about the difference between fact and truth, he said, “When fact is told without prejudice it becomes truth.” Authors of books, he added, “should lead us with their writings to allow us to live in unity and harmony. Such writings benefit the society forever.” @ T’Puram/Alappuzha Even as senior CPM leader E P Jayarajan is feeling the heat over the ‘autobiography’ controversy, Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan and the CPM leadership have offered wholehearted support to the former LDF convenor. Endorsing Jayarajan’s arguments, Pinarayi alleged that there was a deliberate move afoot to help the UDF and the BJP. Meanwhile, the CPM secretariat that met on Friday decided to stand by Jayarajan and his version of events, at least for now. I n a u g u r at i n g t h e CPM area committee office at Kanjikuzhy in Alappuzha on Friday Pinarayi , said Jayarajan had clarified that he had not penned any of the contentious topics now being discussed in the media. Determined to effectively counter the campaign, Pinarayi said these are deliberate attempts to create needless controversies. “Jayarajan assured us that none of what is being discussed is part of what has been written so far. We asked Jayarajan if he knew Sarin. He said he did not know him earlier and confirmed that there is nothing about Sarin in the book. Certain people are deliberately trying to stoke controversies,” Pinarayi said. He also countered allegations over Jayarajan’s meeting with BJP leader Prakash Javadekar. “The meeting between Jayarajan and Javadekar took place more than a year-and-a-half ago. But the news was deliberately highlighted on election day. Similarly, the controversy over Jayarajan’s autobiography surfaced on the day of the by-elections. These incidents clearly point to a deliberate agenda aimed at helping the UDF and the BJP,” Pinarayi said. Meanwhile, the party secretariat, which met in Jayarajan’s presence, decided to stand by the senior leader. The CPM will not examine the merits of the autobiography episode. At the meet, Jayarajan reiterated his version that he has not told the media anything related to the book ‘Parippu Vadayum Kattan Chayayum’, attributed ● More on P4 to him.  N a m i ta Ba j pa i @ Lucknow Ten newborn babies died of burn injuries and suffocation after a massive fire broke out at the neo-natal intensive care unit (NICU) of Rani Laxmi Bai Medical College in Jhansi, Uttar Pradesh late on Friday night. Jhansi Range DIG Kalanidhi Naithani said the ward had 54 children in all and 44 were rescued after the accident, which occurred around 10.45 pm. Jhansi District Magistrate Avinash Kumar said a short circuit in the NICU was believed to have caused the fire. “A committee has been formed under Jhansi Divisional Commissioner to probe the incident. It will submit a report to the CM,” he added. The fire led to a stampede-like situation with people trying to flee. Doctors and medical staff were seen evacuating patients by breaking the windows of the ward filled with smoke and doors blocked by flames. Panic and screams of parents of victims gripped the medical college where the incident occurred. Parents were seen pleading with authorities to save the lives of their children. The fire brigade rushed to the site soon after the incident and the district administration also called in the Army to help out. The bodies of 10 newborn babies were recovered. Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath expressed his condolences to the families of the victims. He also wished for the speedy recovery of the injured. The CM directed officials and doctors to reach the spot immediately for relief work. 16 pages, including 4 pages of KOCHI Express COP29: Climate finance talks progressing at a snail’s pace Pinarayi, CPM back EP, allege agenda to help UDF & BJP E x p r e s s N e w s Se r v i c e Massive fire in UP hospital, 10 newborns dead S V Krishna Chaitanya EXPRESS IN BAKU auspicious start Outgoing melsanthi P N Mahesh Namboothiri opening the sreekovil of the Sabarimala temple for the Mandala-Makaravilakku pilgrimage season in the presence of thantris Kandararu Rajeevaru and Kandararu Brahmadathan on Friday | Shaji Vettipuram | P5 The climate finance talks at COP29 are going on at a snail’s pace with no significant headway achieved although five days have passed. Yalchin Rafiyev, COP29 lead negotiator, during the presidential press conference on Friday called upon the parties to use the precious time wisely . “...talk to each other and take ownership of building bridging solutions. We must be honest. We believe that the pace of their work is currently too slow. We cannot afford to leave too much work to be covered later in the summit at the political level. We are urging everyone to intensify their engagements and remain focused on the imperative to make quick progress.” At a high-level ministerial, India on behalf of the Like-Minded Developing Countries (LMDCs) made a statement reiterating its demand from the developed countries for $1.3 trillion annually until 2030. “We are at a crucial juncture in our fight against climate change,” India’s lead negotiator Naresh Pal Gangwar said.  Continued on: P9 ‘Blast while taking off’ Paper napkin with scribbled bomb threat on flight; 2 booked T o b y A nt o n y @Kochi Two flyers who arrived at Kochi airport on an Air India Express (AIE) flight from New Delhi were taken into custody after they allegedly wrote a bomb threat on a paper napkin and left it inside the plane on Thursday . The napkin with the threat ‘Blast while taking off ’ had been placed inside a seat pocket and was found during routine cleaning of the plane around 8.30am. A 40-year-old native of Manjoor in Kottayam and a 33-year-old Kanhangad resident have been booked under the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita over the incident. The napkin was recovered from the pocket of seat 14B. A bomb threat alert was is- sued and AIE security staff along with officials of the airport carried out an inspection. “The entire aircraft was checked and no explosives were found. The authorities contacted AIE officials in New Delhi who said no such tissue paper was found during the cleaning work done in New Delhi before the flight left for Kochi,” a police officer said. The Bomb Threat Assessment Committee (BATC) held a meeting around 9am and decided to follow the protocol wh e n a b o m b t h r e a t i s received. “A probe revealed that two friends had occupied seats 14B and 14C. They were stopped at the airport and their luggage checked. It was found that they had changed their dress after landing at the airport,” said an officer. The duo was questioned for hours, after which their handwriting was checked. “It was confirmed that the hoax threat had been written by one of them. The BTAC declared the threat as specific and directed the police to register a case against the two. They confessed that they committed the offence without realising its seriousness,” said a police ● More on P4 officer.