TIRUNELVELI l sunday l december 22, 2024 l `12.00 l PAGES 24 l CITY EDITION lanka out of sovereign default rating after FITCH’s upgrade Finance ministry hails it as a milestone The island nation’s finance ministry said it officially ended its debt default after Fitch upgraded its credit rating, paving way for easier borrowing Medium term interest for govt to be high Mahinda Siriwardana, a finance ministry bureaucrat, said December 20 marked a major milestone in the country’s economic recovery process as Sri Lanka officially exited sovereign default. Fitch upgraded Sri Lanka’s long-term foreign-currency default rating to CCC+ from restricted default after creditors approved the nation’s $12.55 billion debt ■ ■ Despite the debt restructuring the “general government debt/GDP and the interest/revenue ratio are likely to stay high in the medium term,” Fitch Ratings said In 2022, Sri Lanka plunged into an economic crisis, defaulted on its foreign debt due to its high debt burden amid the Covid pandemic Nov 26 Date when Lanka announced ratification of debt restructuring 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 Rule tweak cuts access to certain poll documents Pegasus liable in WhatsApp suit: US court Ex press N ews Service @ New Delhi With a US court finding Israel’s NSO Group — which sells spyware Pegasus — liable in a lawsuit filed by WhatsApp in 2019 flagging breaches in devices, snooping is back on the front burner, including in India. District Judge Phyllis Hamilton in Oakland, California, on Friday granted a motion by Mark Zuckerberg-owned WhatsApp and found NSO liable for hacking and breach of contract, Reuters reported. In 2019, WhatsApp sued the NSO Group accusing it of accessing WhatsApp servers without permission to install the Pegasus software on mobile devices. The suit alleged the intrusion allowed the surveillance of 1,400 people. The US Supreme Court last year turned away NSO’s appeal against the lower court’s decision, allowing the lawsuit to proceed. The ruling assumes significance as over 300 mobile numbers in India, including those of ministers in the Modi government, Opposition leaders, journalists and business magnates were allegedly infected with Pegasus in 2021. Soon, several petitions were filed in the Supreme Court seeking a probe. The court set up a committee of technical experts, which found no conclusive evidence on the use of the spyware in phones examined by it. WITH THIS ISSUE Delivery of Instant Gratification PLUS 12 PAGES Congress says it will challenge it in court P r e e t h a N a i r @ New Delhi Centenarian’s spirit Prime Minister Narendra Modi meets Kuwait-based retired Indian Foreign Service officer Mangal Sain Handa, 101, upon his arrival in Kuwait, on Saturday. On Friday, Handa’s granddaughter Shreya Juneja had requested the PM to meet her Nanaji | PTI Plan to formalise special cess for disaster relief d i pa k m o n d a l @ Jaisalmer THE GST Council on Saturday decided to formalise a procedure for states to levy special cess to raise money for disaster relief. This was decided after Andhra Pradesh sought the Council’s permission to levy a 1% cess on goods and services in the highest rate bracket of 28%. Andhra Pradesh request for a 1% cess will be referred to a Group of Ministers (GoM) as was done previously for a similar request by Kerala in 2018. Addressing a press briefing after the GST Council meeting, Finance Minister Nir mala Sitharaman said that since similar EB deaths up, but no count of contract staff lives lost S GURUVANMIKANAT H AN @ Chennai The recent electrocution deaths of two contract employees engaged in maintenance work on a 11-kV power line in Tiruchy district has brought the focus back on the avoidable yet recurring mortalities of Tamil Nadu Electricity Board’s workers. While data obtained by TNIE revealed that as many as 87 employees died in the three-year period from 2021-22 to 202324, this number is likely to be an underestimation since TNEB doesn’t count deaths of contract labourers as employee deaths. For instance, the recent deaths of Kalaimani (42) and Manickam (37), both contract labourers who previously worked with the state highways department and then with TNEB, will not go on record as TNEB employee deaths. Earlier this year, TNIE had reported that fatal accidents related to the TNEB, including those involving employees and the public, was increasing at the rate of 8% to 10% every year for the past three years. Workers and staff associations have raised concerns over safety measures adopted by TNEB and its engagement of unskilled, temporary workers for high-risk tasks. They also urged the board to address long-pending issues of staff shortages, high work pressure and inadequate employee training. S Nagalsamy, former member of the Tamil Nadu Electricity Regulatory Commission criticised the board for failing to learn from past incidents. “TNEB has had several such bitter experiences, yet no lessons have been learnt,” he said. “The contract system should be scrapped and vacancies must be filled at the earliest to prevent such incidents and reduce the workload on existing employees,” Nagalsamy added.  P5 e x press re a d ‘TN won’t tolerate centre’s step-motherly attitude’ Chennai: Tamil Nadu CM M K Stalin on Saturday commended the DMK MPs on how they conducted themselves by raising important issues during the recently concluded Parliament session. They have sent a clear message to the centre that people of TN will not tolerate the step-motherly treatment and will teach them a lesson, he said | P4 T’gana CM blasts Allu Arjun again over stampede Hyderabad: Blaming actor Allu Arjun again for the Sandhya Theatre stampede during which a woman lost her life, Telangana CM A Revanth Reddy said the actor didn’t listen when an ACP asked him to leave the theatre. “Even after he was brought out, he waved at people from his vehicle. Man, what kind of a person is he,” asked the CM | P5 requests have been made earlier as well, “we are of the view that there should be a laid-out procedure to deal w i t h s u ch re q u e s t s i n future”. Besides floods, several states wanted drought to be brought under the definition of disaster, she added. Andhra Pradesh finance minister Payyavula Keshav told the media that the state in August and September faced unprecedented rains and flood, which caused severe financial loss to the state. “…we will need a sum of `15,000 crore to come back to normalcy. There- fore, we requested the Council to allow us to levy a cess of 1%,” said Keshav, adding that most states were supportive of the Andhra’s demand. Meanwhile, the 55th GST Council meeting ended without any major decisions being taken. The much-awaited decision on lowering GST rates on health and life insurance premium has been deferred as the Council was of the view that the issue needs more discussions. Among the changes in tax rates, the Council decided to increase the GST rate from 12% to 18% on sale of all old and used vehicles, including electric vehicles. Caramelised popcorn would attract 18% GST as it comes under sugar confectionery  . P10 In a move that drew sharp criticism from the Opposition parties and RTI activists, the Centre on Friday amended the ‘Conduct of Election Rules’ to prevent public scrutiny of certain electronic documents such as CCTV footage and video recordings of polling. Based on the Election Commission’s (EC) recommendation, the Union Law Ministry amended Rule 93 of the Conduct of Election Rules, 1961, to restrict certain documents that were to public inspection till now. Rule 93(2)(a) earlier stated that “all other papers relating to the election shall be open to public inspection”. The amended version says “all other papers as specified in these rules relating to the election shall be open to public inspection.” Acting upon a complaint filed by advocate Mehmood Pracha, the Punjab and Haryana High Court has recently directed the EC to provide videog raphy, security camera footage, and copies of documents related to votes polled at a polling station during the recent Haryana assembly elections. Pracha had sought video and CCTV footage, and copies of Forms 17-C Parts I and II related to the polls. Coming down heavily on the amendment, the Congress said it would challenge it in court. In a post on X, Congress general secretary Jairam Ramesh said that the tweak was a “vindication” of its assertions regarding the “rapidly eroding integrity” of the electoral process managed by the Election Commission in recent times. For their part, the Law Ministry and EC officials said documents such as nomination forms, appointment of poll agents, results and election account statements are mentioned in the Conduct of Election Rules, but electronic documents such as CCTV footage are not. “There have been instances where such electronic records have been sought, citing the rules. The amendment ensures that only papers mentioned in the rules are available for public inspection,” an EC official said. He added that the misuse of CCTV footage from inside polling booths could compromise voter secrecy and could be used to generate fake narratives using AI. “All such material is available to candidates, including footage. After the amendment, too, it will be available to them.” RTI activist: Huge setback for transparency Prominent RTI activist Anjali Bharadwaj said it is a huge setback for transparency. Rule 93(2) was amended to restrict access to poll-related records after court orders disclosure. “Applications we filed under Rule 93(2) in May 2024 for copies of Form 17C are still pending,” she said Unpaid bills: 4K schools may lose net s u ba s h i n i v i jaya k u m a r @ Chennai At a time when the Tamil Nadu gover nment is promoting smart classrooms and hi-tech labs across state schools, more than 3,700 high and higher secondary government schools may soon lose their internet connection as they haven’t been able to settle outstanding bills worth `1.5 crore to BSNL. A majority of these 3,700 government schools, which account for 50% of the total 6,223 high and higher secondary schools in TN, have not paid their internet bills for the last two to three months, mainly due to lack of funds. A school education department circular sent to chief education officers of all districts said the hi-tech labs in these funds released once in 3-6 months oo TN Sch ls Currently, the school education department allocates `1,500 per month for these schools towards internet charges. The amount, however, is released only once in 3 to 6 months Many headmasters pay the bills either from their pocket or from the maintenance grant provided to schools and get it reimbursed once funds for internet are released — A headmaster from Dharmapuri 3700 schools are equipped with Fibre to the Home (FTTH) connections under the Samagra Shiksha Scheme, and BSNL, in a letter from its Tamil Nadu Telecom Circle, had warned of service suspension if the dues are not paid by Saturday . In May first week, the state government said it was partnering with BSNL to upgrade internet speeds in schools from 5-6 Mbps to 100 Mbps, addressing the growing need for faster connectivity High-speed inter. net has already been installed in 5,907 out of 6,223 schools and the remaining would be covered by the end of that month, a release from the department in May said. A section of schools were allowed to individually engage other service providers since BSNL did not have a strong presence in some areas. Reliable internet is essential for the operation of hi-tech labs, which are being used to improve learning through multimedia. These labs also facilitate career guidance, language classes and mental health programmes for students. Headmasters said the government previously provided internet through a private player at a speed of 3 to 5 Mbps. P5 near arcot Sagging power line kills pilgrim getting off bus E x p r e s s N e w s S e r v i c e @ Ranipet A 20-year-old bus passenger, Agalya of Tirupattur, died early on Saturday after she was electrocuted by a sagging power line while alighting from the vehicle along the Arcot-Cheyyar Road. The woman was on a pilgrimage trip to Melmaruvathur. According to official sources, the private bus carrying Agalya and other pilgrims made a stop around 5 am for refreshments. Unbeknownst to the passengers, the bus had come into contact with a low-lying overhead p owe r l i n e. Agalya, who was the last to get off, leaned on the side of the bus and was fatally electrocuted, sources said. Agalya (20) The other of Tirupattur passengers rushed Agalya to a nearby hospital, but the doctors there declared her dead on arrival, sources added. Speaking to TNIE, Tamil Nadu Electricity Board’s Arcot executive engineer explained the cause of the incident. “There is a commercial complex near the spot where the bus came to a stop. Its owner had recently increased the height of the parking area by filling it with sand, reducing the overhead clearance, leading to the fatal incident. The owner had not informed the EB about the modification,” he said. Subsequently, EB officials lodged a formal complaint with the Arcot police. A case has been registered. Further investigation is on. we d d i n g b e l l s Love-all start: Sindhu-Sai set for match close to heart A j ay t o m a r @ Hyderabad There is always a sprinkling of condiments to add flavour to a celebrity marriage. The brouhaha it generates is sometimes bewildering. When P V Sindhu announced her engagement and marriage to a Hyderabad entrepreneur, interest grew as date of marriage neared, especially surrounding the identity of her to-be-husband Venkata Datta Sai. As Udiapur gets decked up for the marriage on Sunday, Sindhu would be ready for a different match. Something close to her heart and soul. As the two went about inviting guests, the man who stole Sindhu’s heart was in the limelight as well. Sai is a Hyderabad-based IT professional and Executive Director at Posidex Technologies. His father G T Venkateshwar Rao is the managing director at the same company . “The two families are friends and have known each other for a long time,” Sindhu’s father P V Ramana told this newspaper over the phone from Udaipur. He explained that the pre-andpost wedding dates have been finalised keeping in mind the next season. “He is an avid sports follower and an active supporter. Who doesn’t follow sports these days?” asked Ramana. Sai’s career has been equally dynamic and has a sporting touch too. He has a Bachelor of Business Administration in Accounting and Finance and a Master’s degree in Data Science and Machine Learning from the International Institute of Information Technology Bengaluru. , Sai began at JSW as an intern and later worked as an inhouse consultant (2018-19). He then became the managing director of Sour Apple Asset Management while also contributing to Posidex since December 2019. Sai also managed the Delhi IPL team. Reflecting on the experience, Sai writes: “My BBA in finance and economics pales in comparison to managing an IPL team...” Match, court, love the words Sindhu would have grown up hearing will now be part of her life when she ties the knot in a royal wedding apparently with Rajasthani flavour in Udaipur – the venue of many a high-profile destination weddings. A reception is slated in Hyderabad a couple of days later.