tadepalligudem l monday l january 06, 2025 l `9.00 l PAGES 12 l city EDITION Pravasi Bharatiya Divas to be held in Bhubaneswar from Jan 8 Prime Minister Narendra Modi and President Droupadi Murmu will arrive in the city on January 8 to attend the 18th Pravasi Bharatiya Divas Event being held in Odisha for the First time Diaspora’s Contributions to be highlighted The three-day convention will begin on January 8. Prime Minister Narendra Modi will formally inaugurate the event on January 9. A large number of overseas Indians, including top businessmen, entrepreneurs and economists, from over 50 countries are expected to participate. This is the first time that the convention is being held in the state of Odisha ■ ■ The theme of the convention is ‘Diaspora’s Contribution to a Viksit Bharat’. President Murmu will confer the Pravasi Bharatiya Samman Awards 2025 on select members of the Indian diaspora Christine Carla Kangaloo, President of Trinidad and Tobago, will be the chief guest. She will address the convention virtually | P7 2003 when pravasi Bharatiya divas was observed for the first time 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 Four Maoists, 1 jawan killed in Chhattisgarh encounter E j a z k a i s e r @ Raipur Four Maoists and a jawan were killed during an encounter in south Chhattisgarh’s Narayanpur district on Sunday . “Based on specific inputs about the presence of Maoists in the Abujhmad region, a joint team of District Reserve Guard (DRG) personnel from four Maoist-affected districts of Bastar division along with the Special Task Force (STF) left on the search operation on Saturday In . the ongoing encounter, bodies of four Maoists have so far been recovered from the spot,” a police officer in Bastar. “The gun battle is still one and further details awaited,” he added. The slain security force personnel has been identified as head constable Sannu Karam of Dantewada District Reserve Guard. Of the four Maoists killed, two are women. The security forces have recovered an AK-47 and a self-loading rifle from the spot. The search operation has continued for nearly 24 hours with intermittent exchanges of fire, sources said. Sunday’s encounter in Abujhmad is the second between Maoists and the security forces so far this year in Chhattisgarh. Last Friday, a Maoist was killed in an encounter with the security forces in Gariyaband district, 170 km east of Raipur. The security forces intensified their anti-Maoist campaign in the region. Union home minister Amit Shah had said the government will end the Maoist problem by March 2026. Chief Minister Vishnu Deo Sai, expressing grief over the death of DRG jawan, reiterated that the battle against Maoists will continue till the insurgents are defeated. express read Ensure success of PM’s visit to Vizag: Lokesh FRESH WOUND FOR INDIA, repercussions likely India fall in Bumrah's absence; focus back on Gambhir after yet another series loss G o m e s h S @ Sydney IT all seemed doomed the moment Jasprit Bumrah walked out of the field here during the fifth and final Test on Saturday . Signs were ominous. There were scans followed by silence. So much was riding on Bumrah the entire series that his absence for a few hours seemed like an eternity.The lead up to the final Test match of the five-Test series here was not ideal after the Melbourne drubbing. There were reports of a distressed dressing room followed by India skipper Rohit Sharma’s decision to ‘rest’ due to failure of form. Sunday was another melancholic day for Indian cricket. The last four wickets fell for 16 runs setting up a target of 162 runs. Without Bumrah, Aussies had a psychological edge.Being Bumrah seemed very difficult on the day when the Indian team marched out without him. India were staring at inevitability Without Bumrah, the attack . lost its teeth as India pacers huffed and puffed to find the rhythm. Australia, despite a few hiccups, had a stranglehold Eithad jet’s tyres burst seconds before takeoff Melbourne: An Etihad Airways Boeing 787-9 jet with 289 passengers on board aborted take-off from Melbourne airport at the last minute after tyre burst. “The aircraft was safely brought to a stop on the runway, and emergency services attended as a precaution,” the Arab airline said in a statement. A little disappointing that I probably missed out on the spiciest wicket of the series but that’s the way it is. I felt a bit of discomfort during my second spell in the first innings Jasprit Bumrah, India stand-in skipper is first 2014-15 This forthewon BGT Australia since 2014-15 series. India had the last four series before this (twice each in Australia and India) on the contest. Bumrah stood helpless as the TV cameras occasionally panned on him. The stand-in skipper, who bossed the show with the ball in the Border Gavaskar Trophy with 32 wickets in 9 innings, eventually had a resigned look on his face as Aussies won the match by six wickets and the series 3-1. The focus is now on some of the senior players and the team management. With India’s second consecutive Test series loss, there could VHP international president Alok Kumar shares a view with Sri Chinna Jeeyar Swamy at the ‘Hyndava Sankharavam’ public meeting at Kesarapalli near Vijayawada on Sunday | Express Liberate temples from control of govt to uphold Dharma: VHP K K a lya n K r i s h n a K u m a r Visakhapatnam: HRD and IT Minister Nara Lokesh called upon public representatives and officials to ensure the success of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit to Visakhapatnam on January 8. At an official meeting at the Collectorate on Sunday, Lokesh reviewed arrangements for Modi’s public meeting | P4 Jasprit Bumrah and Rohit Sharma (foreground) during the presentation ceremony after the fifth and final Test of the BGT in Sydney, on Sunday | afp @ Vijayawada The Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) held ‘Hyndava Sankharavam’ at Kesarapalli near Vijayawada on Sunday Around 2 . lakh people from different parts of Andhra Pradesh attended the public meeting. A nine-point declaration was adopted at ‘Hyndava Sankharavam’, which was attended by 150 seers, saints and top VHP leaders. Speakers exhorted Hindus to protect temples with the slogan ‘Mana Deeksha, Devalaya Raksha’. The entire meeting venue echoed with chants of ‘Jai Sriram.’ Addressing the public meeting, VHP international president Alok Kumar raised concer ns over the temple management in Andhra Pradesh. “Every temple in State needs to allocate 7% of its income to the government with 5% going to the Common Good Fund. Additionally, temples need to pay high tax and power tariff. But, the government distributes the income accrued from Hindu temples to other communities in the guise of secularism, looting Hindu resources,” he alleged. He deplored the gover nment’s interference in the temple administration, where executive of ficers, not Dharmacharyas, take the decisions weakening the system. Though the temples owned 10 lakh acres of land, the extent of encroachments remains unknown. The temple management should be handed over to the Hindu community, who are their rightful custodians, he demanded. Nine-point declaration A nine-point declaration was adopted at the ‘Hyndava Sankharavam’ meeting held at Kesarapalli. The VHP demanded that the laws be amended to grant full autonomy to Hindu temples, besides ouster of employees of other religions No HMPV cases in State, advisory issued Signs & symptoms HMPV is a respiratory virus from the pneumoviridae family. Its symptoms are often flu-like Cough and cold Sore throat and difficulty in breathing Dos E x p r e s s N e w s Se r v i c e @ Vijayawada Cover your nose and mouth with a tissue or handkerchief when you cough or sneeze Wash your hands frequently with Maintain a healthy soap or use diet & stay hydrated sanitiser Avoid crowded places and practise social distancing If symptomatic, isolate at home & limit contact with others Refrain from frequently touching your eyes, nose, or mouth Don’ts Do not spit in public Avoid close contact with sick persons Avoid shaking Avoid self-medication without hands consulting a doctor In severe cases, it can lead to pneumonia, bronchitis, or worsen asthma, particularly Currently, there is no specific vaccine in vulnerable Treatment or antiviral treatment for HMPV and populations care is primarily supportive EXPRESS ILLUSTRATION Rest, hydration, and symptomatic relief (fever reducers) No cases of Human Metapneumovirus (HMPV) have been reported yet in the State, and the people need not panic, said Dr K Padmavathi, Director of Public Health and Family Welfare. Meanwhile, the State government issued an advisory for people regarding HMPV . In a release on Sunday, Dr Padmavathi said, “No HMPV cases have been reported in India. Both the Centre and the State government are closely monitoring the situation, and remain vigilant for any developments. By following simple precautions, and staying informed, we can protect ourselves and our loved ones from HMPV .” Antibiotics are only prescribed if a secondary bacterial infection is suspected Oxygen therapy for severe cases Hospitalisation is recommended for severe cases, especially among infants and elderly individuals potentially be some shake-ups, even in the team management. Head coach Gautam Gambhir too would be facing some hard questions. The whitewash three Test series loss against New Zealand would be the added burden for him. Even Sharma’s future would be discussed. Gambhir felt it was too early to speak about any changes. “It’s too early to talk about it. The series just got over. I think we still have five more months to plan where we want to head towards. But it’s not the right moment right now for me to talk about where we are going to be after five months. A lot of things change in sport. So let’s see before the England series what’s going to happen. But whatever will happen, will happen for the best interest of Indian cricket,” Gambhir said. On the evidence of the series, India had multiple issues. Lack of big totals in the first innings, preference of batting depth over fielding five frontline bowlers, struggling seniors, lack of proper planning...the list goes on. Come England series, India will be hoping to regain order and get back to winning ways. Coast Guard helicopter goes down in Gujarat, 3 crew members killed D ILIP SI N GH K SHAT RIYA @ Ahmedabad THREE crew members of an advanced light helicopter (ALH-Dhruv) of the Indian Coast Guard were killed when the chopper crashed and caught fire at Gujarat’s Porbandar airport on Sunday The chopper, which was . on a routine training sortie, went down while trying to land on the runway The au. thorities have launched an inquiry to determine what led to the accident. According to an Indian Coast Guard statement, the ALH MK-III helicopter 859 met with a mishap at Porbandar airport runway at 12.15 pm on Friday It said the . helicopter had two pilots and one air crew diver. The crew were rushed to the Porbandar government hospital, where they were declared brought dead. “The reasons leading to the incident are being investigated by a Board of Inquiry,” the statement read. The crew members killed in the accident are Commandant (JG) Saurabh, Deputy Commandant S K Yadav, and Rescue workers at the crash site at Porbandar airport on Sunday | pti Pradhan Navik Manoj. The incident comes four months after another Coast Guard helicopter crashed into the Arabian Sea off Porbandar, killing three crew members. The September 2024 crash occurred during a critical evacuation mission, as the helicopter was attempting to rescue an injured man from the oil tanker Hari Leela, situated nearly 30 nautical miles from Porbandar. The indigenously developed ALH-Dhruv is a twin engine, multi-role, multimission new generation helicopter. So far, Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd has produced over 340 Dhruv helicopters.