tirupati l sunday l december 14, 2025 l `12.00 l PAGES 24 l late city EDITION 19 U.S. states sue Trump over $1,00,000 fee on new H-1B visa The Democrat-ruled states warned that the policy will worsen labour shortages in key sectors such as health care, education and technology Petitioners say fee hike against law Coalition led by New york attorney general The attorneys general argued that the new fee breaches both the Administrative Procedure Act and the Immigration and Nationality Act, as it was introduced without congressional approval or the required rulemaking process. “The administration thinks it can raise costs on a whim, but the law says otherwise,” said the California attorney general | p9 ■ ■ New York Attorney General Letitia James (L) led 18 other attorneys general in filing the lawsuit. In September, President Donald Trump announced a one-time $1,00,000 fee on all new H-1B petitions Many states depend on H-1B visa to fill essential roles. For instance, about a third of health care workers in New York are H-1B visa holders $2K-5k Is how much it cost to file an H-1b application before the fee hike 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 in kolkata Strong UDF show in Kerala, BJP takes capital in hyderabad An i l S @ T’puram Fans turn violent after Leo Messi suddenly leaves due to security reasons. (R) Telangana CM Revanth Reddy, Rahul Gandhi with Messi | PTI/vinay madappu Mess in Bengal, grace in Hyd No glimpse of Messi for paying public Atmosphere electric as city hails soccer royalty A s h u t o s h A c h a r ya @ Salt Lake Stadium Stand E x p r e s s N e w s Se r v i c e @ Hyderabad All for a glimpse of Messi. For a Messi fan, it’s all that matters. As soon as I reached the gates of the Salt Lake Stadium at 8.30am, fatigue from overnight journey just disappeared.The stadium was draped in Argentina colours, with people wearing jerseys with Messi written on their backs, there were giant cutouts and paintings. Fans from across the country were there. My ticket allowed me to one part of the stands. More than 60,000 fans would have gathered inside by 10:30am. There was a cultural programme highlighting India and Argentina, followed by a friendly football match between Diamond Harbour Club and Mohun Bagan. Fans were kept engaged, but as soon as the announcer hollered in stadium PA system that Messi would be entering, at around 11.30am, excitement quickly turned into a frenzy Fans began climbing the . barriers placed in front of the stands to catch a glimpse of the 70-foot Leo Messi statue was World Cup winner. As Messi en- unveiled by the legend tered the stadium in a car things | sri loganathan velmurugan started getting out of hand. However, the scenes turned chaotic after guests in the cordoned-off VVIP area crowded around Messi blocking his view. Event organiser was heard repeatedly urging them to step aside. All of a sudden the situation went out of control and Messi and his entourage were escorted out of the stadium. We in the crowd did not know what was happening. Words spread that Messi had left. This sparked anger. Bottles were hurled onto the field, banners were violently torn down, and the situation deteriorated. Fans began breaking chairs and throwing them in the stadium. Several people breached barricades and entered the ground. Makeshift tents were overturned, chairs smashed.Even the goalpost was damaged. Eventually exhausted and disillusioned, , fans began leaving the stadium. Shah Rukh Khan and Sourav Ganguly who were part of the event cancelled P7 their appearcnes.  Hyderabad put its best foot forward on Saturday by ensuring that the visit of Lionel Messi to India was a resounding success. While the football was limited to an exhibition match between Team Revanth Reddy Singareni and Aparna All Stars, playing for Messi, the atmosphere was electric at the Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium, Uppal. The stadium and its vicinity turned into a roaring cauldron of song, colour and belief on a night Hyderabad came to salute football royalty First, Chief Minister A . Revanth Reddy stepped onto the pitch with his team, drawing loud cheers. A while later, Messi appeared, first watching quietly from the sidelines, smiling at the noise he had summoned without touching the ball. When he finally walked onto the field, the stadium erupted. Phones went up, voices cracked, and the stadium shook. Messi waved, took in the scene, and soon offered flashes of the touch that has defined a generation. He was joined by Luis Suárez and Rodrigo De Paul, with Revanth alongside them, a tableau that blurred lines between sport, spectacle and dream. For the record, Revanth found the net once and Messi twice. After the exhibition game ended, Messi made a slow lap of the ground, turning the moment into something personal. A gentle kick sent the ball sailing into the stands, triggering a scramble of joy At the football clinics, young . players shared the pitch with the legend, exchanging crisp tiki-taka passes. The loudest applause came when a child joined Messi on the grass, the two sharing a brief, unguarded moment that drew smiles across the stadium. Addressing the crowd in Spanish, Messi kept it simple. “I feel very happy and grateful to see so many people, and I am very happy to be in Hyderabad,” he said. Suárez and Guido Rodríguez echoed the sentiment, speaking of their delight at being part of The GOAT India Tour. The evening closed with a brief felicitation on the field by Chief Minister Revanth Reddy and senior Congress leader Rahul Gandhi. express read AP wins Nat’l Energy Conservation Award Vijayawada: Andhra Pradesh has once again asserted its national leadership in energy efficiency by winning the prestigious National Energy Conservation Award for the fourth consecutive year | P3 Nod to CRIP 1st phase in Vizag, Vijayawada Vijayawada: The State government has approved the first phase of the City Roads Improvement Programme (CRIP) in the GVMC and VMC, covering 110 km of corridors| P4 WITH THIS ISSUE The Wars Behind the War PLUS 12 P AGES It’s been great to be part of the tour. I am very happy to be in Hyderabad in the midst of the love and affection shown by you all —Lionel Messi AP’s fiscal deficit more than doubled since bifurcation S G u r u S r i k a n t h @ Vijayawada A sharp fiscal contrast separates 2023-24 and 2024-25 in Andhra Pradesh, two financial years governed by different regimes. The State’s fiscal deficit jumps from `62,720 crore (RE) to `68,743 crore (BE), the highest borrowing requirement it has ever projected. Meanwhile, the revenue deficit narrows from `38,683 crore to `34,743 crore, signalling an effort to tighten routine spending or bank on stronger revenue flows. Yet, AP remains one of India’s most revenue-stressed States, with its deficit still the second-largest, according to the Reserve Bank of India’s Handbook of Statistics on State Government Finances. The broader trend indicates that this is not a one-off fluctuation, but rather part of a deeper structural pattern. AP’s fiscal deficit has more than doubled since bifurcation, rising from `31,747 crore in 201415 to a projected `68,743 crore in 2024-25. A brief dip in 2021-22, when the deficit fell to `25,013 crore, stands out as the only year of sharp compression in an otherwise steadily widening gap. Subsequent years saw the deficit rebound, underscoring the persistence of fiscal pressure. The revenue deficit trajectory is even more telling. AP has not recorded a single revenuesurplus year since 2014. The deficit, which was `24,193 crore in 2014-15, expanded to `43,488 crore in 2022-23 (Actuals) before easing marginally in the last two years. The State continues to borrow heavily for routine expenditure — salaries, pensions, subsidies, and welfare — leaving limited room for capital creaP4 tion.  Major concerns  AP’s fiscal deficit is the highest in its history  Revenue deficit remains structurally large and persistent  AP has not recorded a revenue surplus since bifurcation  Borrowing dependence has doubled in a decade  A widening gap with fiscally stronger neighbour States Local body polls often signal the changing course of Kerala politics. On Saturday, political Kerala witnessed one of the biggest comebacks of recent times, with the Congress-led UDF scripting an authoritative victory in the two-phase local body elections held on Dec 9 and 11, and the ruling LDF nearly washed out. Riding on an anti-incumbency wave, the UDF garnered a stupendous victory, winning four out of six municipal corporations, seven district panchayats, 54 municipalities, 79 block panchayats and around 505 grama panchayats. The LDF lost four sitting municipal corporations, as many district panchayats, more than 100 grama panchayats, half of the block panchayats and around 20 municipalities. The election results, widely perceived as a precursor to the assembly polls just a few months away and the writing on the wall is clear: despite all its inherent weaknesses, the Congress front appears to be on a comeback path. However, what will go down in history as the biggest takeaway of the 2025 local body polls is the saffron front clinching the prestigious Thiruvanathapuram city corporation—a victory that has the potential to fuel the BJP’s growth in Kerala in the coming years. Egged on by the BJP national leadership’s long-standing desire to win the city corporation in the state capital, the BJP-led NDA wrested the civic body from the LDF, winning 50 out of 100 wards. Godavari Pushkarams from June 26, 2027 E x p r e s s N e w s Se r v i c e @ Rajamahendravaram The State government has officially announced that Godavari Pushkarams will take place from June 26 to July 7, 2027. The government had consulted Tangirala Venkatakrishna Purna Prasad, Asthana Siddhanti of Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanams, before announcing the dates of Godavari Pushkarams, which occur once in 12 years. The Commissioner of Endowments has informed that Godavari Pushkarams will commence on June 26, and continue for 12 days. The East Godavari District Collector issued an official release on Saturday, announcing the dates of Godavari Pushkarams. With nearly one-and-a-half years remaining for Pushkarams, expec- tations are high for large scale preparations for the major river fete. About six to eight crore pilgrims are expected to take a holy dip in the river during Pushkarams. Although a ministerial committee, and two special officers have been appointed to oversee the arrangements for Pushkarams, infrastructure development works are yet to begin in Godavari region.