BHUBANESWAR  TUESDAY  MARCH 25, 2025  `9.00  PAGES 14  JEYPORE EDITION SC SETS UP TASK FORCE TO ADDRESS RISING TREND OF STUDENT SUICIDES The Supreme Court on Monday ordered a national task force to be formed under former SC judge S Ravindra Bhat to study rising student suicides CULTURE OF NEGLECT IN INDIA’S EDU INSTITUTES A bench of justices J B Pardiwala and R Mahadevan said when academic environments fail to address mental health concerns effectively, they contribute to a culture of neglect. The court took note of reports of ragging, academic pressure, caste discrimination, sexual harassment, etc, that were driving students to suicide due to the absence of institutional support ■ 13,000 STUDENTS FORM 7.6% OF SUICIDES REPORTED ■ According to the 210th report of the Law Commission of India, suicide was identified as one of the most significant factors contributing to the premature and unnatural cessation of human life Student accounted for 7.6% of total suicides in India in 2022, with 1.2% attributable to career problems and 1.2% to exam failures STUDENT SUICIDES REPORTED IN INDIA IN 2022 ALONE 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 DEMOLITION JUSTICE AGAIN OERC keeps power tariff unchanged for 2025-26 EXPRESS NEWS SERVICE POWER ORDER @ Bhubaneswar Shiv Sena workers vandalise Habitat Studio in Khar, where Kunal Kamra had performed; (right) a bulldozer takes down the home of an accused in the Nagpur riot case | PTI FIR against Kamra, lens on call data, bank account House of prime accused in Nagpur riots razed S U D H I R S U R YA W A N S H I @ Mumbai S U D H I R S U R YA W A N S H I @ Mumbai AN FIR has been filed against stand-up comedian Kunal Kamra for making defamatory remarks against Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde during a comedy show. As part of the investigation, police will check Kamra’s phone call records and freeze his bank account, said Maharashtra minister of state (Home) Yogesh Kadam. This comes after Kamra courted controversy on Sunday night when he uploaded a video of a standup comic piece he had performed at the Habitat Studio at the Unicontinental Hotel in Mumbai’s Khar area. In the 45-minute video, Kamra used a parody in which he referred to Shinde as a “traitor”, sparking outrage from Shiv Sena workers. As per police, Kamra used a modified version of a Hindi song to mock Shinde over his 2022 rebellion against thenChief Minister and Shiv Sena president Uddhav Thackeray. Within an hour of the video being uploaded, scores of Shiv Sena workers ransacked the property . The Habitat Studio, where the show was filmed, was demolished by Mumbai’s civic body on Monday for ‘building violations’. A BMC official said THE two-storey residence of Fahim Khan, an alleged mastermind behind the communal violence in Nagpur on March 17, was demolished on Monday by civic authorities who alleged it had been constructed in violation of norms. Two days ago, Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis had said the cost of properties damaged during the violence will be recovered from rioters and the failure to pay up would lead to seizure and selling the properties to recover losses. The operation, which involved bulldozers and a heavy police presence assisted by drones, also saw the removal of an illegally constructed balcony at the house of another accused, Yusuf Sheikh, in the Mahal area. Just hours after the demolition began, the Nagpur Bench of the Bombay High Court intervened, issuing a stay on the demolitions and criticising the administration for its “highhandedness.” A division bench comprising Justices Nitin Sambre and Vrushali Joshi questioned why the property owners were not given an opportunity for a hearing before the demolition of the building. The bench indicated that if determined that Kunal Kamra 12 SENA WORKERS GRANTED BAIL Mumbai: A local court granted bail to 12 workers of the Shiv Sena for ransacking the venue in Mumbai where Kamra made the ‘traitor’ jibe. The workers were arrested on Monday morning the temporary shed and other structures comprising the studio created in the basement of the hotel have been razed. Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis sought an apology from Kamra, stating that while the comic has the right to freedom of speech, he cannot insult leaders. “Kamra should read the Constitution ... where it is mentioned that you have freedom of speech, but it should not insult anyone. We demand an apology from Mr Kamra,” he said. Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar distanced himself from the controversy, and said that there should be no pressure on the police during the investigation. IN a major relief to consumers, the Odisha Electricity Re gulatory Commission (OERC) has kept the retail power tariff unchanged for all categories of consumers for the ensuing 2025-26 financial year. The regulator had reduced tariff by 10 paise for domestic consumers in the current 2024-25 fiscal. Explaining the salient features of the tariff order, to be effective from April 1, at a media conference here, OERC secretary Priyabrat Patnaik said the commission has not effected any hike in the electricity charges for the fourth consecutive year. The last hike was in 2021-22 when an overall increase of 5.6 per cent (30 paise per unit) for all Fahim Khan HOUSE WAS BUILT ILLEGALLY: OFFICIAL  ToD rebate of 20p per unit during solar hours for contract demand of over 10 KW  They will pay 30p surcharge during peak hours categories of consumers except BPL and irrigation was effected. The notable feature of the tariff order is that consumers with smart meters up to 2 kilo watt connected load will be exempted from meter rent of `60 per month. The cost of the meter rent will be borne by the state government as an incentive to en- Nagpur: Civic body commissioner Harish Raut said they were acting on directives regarding the property illegally constructed on an expired lease from the Nagpur Improvement Trust the demolition was conducted unlawfully, the authorities might be liable for damages. Khan, a leader of the Minority Democratic Party (MDP), is currently in jail and facing charges of sedition in connection with the March 17 riots in Nagpur. The riots erupted after rumour about the burning of a ‘chadar’ featuring religious inscriptions during protests organised by the Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) demanding the removal of Aurangzeb’s tomb in Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar in central Maharashtra. According to civic officials, prior to the demolition, Khan had received a notice citing multiple violations, including the lack of an approved plan. @ New Delhi / Lucknow THE Supreme Court on Monday confirmed the transfer of Delhi High Court judge Yashwant Varma, who is under scrutiny after a huge pile of cash was found at his official residence, to the Allahabad HC. “The Supreme Court Collegium in its meetings held on March 20 and 24 has recommended the repatriation of Justice Yashwant Varma, Judge, High Court of Delhi, to the High Court of Judicature at Allahabad,” read the Collegium’s resolution, uploaded on the SC website on Monday . The confirmation came amid stiff opposition from the Allahabad High Court Bar Association (HCBA), which said the high court is not a “dumping ground for corrupt and tainted judges”. The HCBA called for the impeachment of Justice Varma and announced an indefinite strike from Tuesday against the Collegium’s resolution. The proposed transfer of Justice Varma, who has now been stripped of all the judicial responsibilities, will become effective if and when the S U D A R S A N M A H A R A N A @ Bhubaneswar THE Lucknow bench of the Allahabad High Court on Monday granted the Central government a month’s time to take a decision regarding the status of Cong ress leader Rahul Gandhi’s ‘dual citizenship’. A PIL by BJP worker S Vignesh Shishir based in Karnataka sought cancellation of Rahul’s citizenship owing to his alleged concealment of his British citizenship. Deputy Solicitor General of India Surya Bhan Pandey, representing the Centre, requested the division bench comprising Justice Attau Rehman Masoodi and Justice Ajai Kumar Srivastava for two months to make a decision on Rahul’s citizenship, but the bench directed that the matter be listed in the week commencing April 21 for the next hearing. Vignesh’s counsel told the court his client had presented a detailed representation-cum-complaint to the Union Ministry of Home Affairs, asking for the cancellation of Rahul’s Indian citizenship. The petitioner had sent emails to the UK government seeking details about Rahul’s citizenship records. He learnt that UK had already received a similar request from one VSS Sarma (respondent no. 14) in 2022. Vignesh then approached Sarma who agreed to share the confidential emails of the UK government which hinted at Rahul’s British nationality The plea . added that in the email, the UK government stated that it could not provide information about Rahul Gandhi unless it got a letter of authority from him (Rahul). The PIL alleged that the email of the UK government was an outright admission of Rahul’s British nationality . eggs, their digging activity risks disturbing and damaging the earlier nests, potentially affecting the survival of the hatchlings already developing beneath the sand. It takes around 45 days for the eggs to hatch,” Behera said. Berhampur DFO Sunny Khokhar said all protection measures for the turtles have been put in place. However, it is to be seen what impact the two arribadas will have on hatchlings at the site this year, he said. Rabindranath Sahu, the founding head of Rushikulya Sea Turtle Protection Committee, said, “This is the fourth time mass nesting has taken place twice in a season at the site. Previously, such nestings had been recorded in 2006, 2011 and 2018. However, the phenomenon is something that no one can do much about,” he said. In the first wave, Rushikulya rookery saw a record 7.2 lakh Olive Ridley turtles arriving at the nesting site this year, the highest in recent decades. The arribada lasted for eight days, from February 16 to 23.  4% rebate for pre-paid meters S U C H I T R A K A LYA N M O H A N T Y & N A M I TA B A J PA I Govt gets a month to decide on Rahul citizenship row Turtles laying eggs at Rushikulya on Monday | EXPRESS  `60 meter rent exemption for smart meters SC confirms Justice Varma’s transfer 2nd wave arribada at Rushikulya brings joy and worry for officials THE second wave of arribada at Rushikulya rookery in Ganjam district - a rare occurrence at Olive Ridley turtle nesting sites - has brought both joy and worry for forest officials. While more than 1.2 lakh turtles have already laid their eggs during the second phase of nesting which started from Friday, the nesting has raised fears over the safety of the eggs that had been laid during the first phase in February. The officials are now in wait and watch mode to see what impact the two mass nesting events will have on hatchlings. Officials of Berhampur forest division said the mass nesting resumed on March 21 was expected to end by Sunday. However, despite rains, it is continuing and expected to go on for a few more days. “About 1.2 lakh Olive Ridleys have already laid eggs in this phase. We are expecting the number to go close to two lakh as a large number of turtles are still congregated in the shore waters and ready to lay eggs,” said assistant conservator of forests of Khalikote, Dibya Shankar Behera. However, with the turtles laying eggs at the same stretch where the arribada in the first phase continued from February 16 to 23, at least 5 to 10 per cent eggs may get damaged in the process. Hatching of crores of eggs laid previously by the Olive Ridleys on the 7-10 km stretch of the rookery is fast approaching and expected to take place anytime in the first two weeks of April. “The second wave of nesting at the same site within the same season has presented a significant challenge. As new turtles arrive to lay  No tariff hike for 2025-26 courage consumers to opt for smart meters, a move vigorously pushed by Tata Power. Patnaik said consumers with pre-paid meters will get a four per cent rebate on prepaid amount and the low transmission (LT) domestic and single-phase general purpose consumers will continue to enjoy four per cent digital payment rebate. All consumers provided with smart meters and contract demand of more than 10 KW, except irrigation and agriculture consumers will be eligible for a time of day (ToD) rebate of 20 paise per unit in energy charge during solar hours (8 am to 4 pm). They will pay a surcharge of 30 paise per unit during peak hours (6 pm to midnight). CONTINUED ON P7 N A M I TA B A J PA I @ Lucknow Centre accepts the Collegium’s recommendation. The HCBA also demanded registration of an FIR and probe by the CBI and ED against the judge, who has denied all the allegations against him claiming the whole affair was a conspiracy to tarnish his image. The association said Justice Varma’s past judgments need to be reviewed to safeguard the integrity of the judiciary It also called for an overhaul of . the Collegium system saying the current practice of appointing judges lacks transparency . Meanwhile, a three-member probe panel set up by Chief Justice of India Sanjiv Khanna is looking into the allegations against Justice Varma. The probe panel comprises Justice Sheel Nagu, Chief Justice of the Punjab & Haryana High Court; Justice Gurmeet Singh Sandhawalia, Chief Justice of the Himachal Pradesh High Court; and Justice Anu Sivaraman, Judge of the Karnataka High Court. While dousing a fire at Justice Varma’s Delhi residence on March 14, firefighters found a huge quantity of partially burnt currency notes. The judge was not at home when the incident took place. UNANSWERED QUESTIONS SEVERAL CRUCIAL POINTS ARE MISSING IN THE CASH-AT-JUDGE’SHOME STORY. HERE’S A LOOK: 1 Who ordered removal of debris from the scene on the morning of March 15. Where is this debris now? 2 According to reports, half-burnt sacks containing cash were seen. Then why wasn’t the scene sealed immediately? 3 Delhi HC CJ’s aide reported seeing debris on March 15 night. How is it possible if it was removed in the morning? 4 A video showing burnt currency notes has gone viral. Has the device on which it was recorded been recovered?