District Hyderabad Rangareddy Medchal-Malkajgiri hyderabad l tuesday l august 11, 2026 l `9.00 l PAGES 16 l LATE City EDITION Earlier, these fees were applicable only for initial H-1B and L-1 petitions or if the applicants changed jobs. The 9-11 Response and Biometric Entry-Exit Fee, applicable to employers with 50 or more employees in the US if more than 50 per cent are in H-1B or L-1 nonimmigrant status, takes effect from September 9, as per the Department of Homeland Security ■ $157.3 mn rocky road ahead for indian it firms 29.79 ■ Organisations filing routine extension requests for same employee will now face additional filing costs. Amended petitions not needing an extension of status are exempt from the expanded fee For an IT services firm managing several thousand onshore Indian engineers on H-1B or L-1 status, the new rule hands a huge expense 47.37 Large employers now have to pay a fee of $4,000 for H-1B and $4,500 for L-1 applications for extension of visas of their employees takes effect from september 9 37 new u.s. visa rules: firms to pay a bomb for extending l-1s, h1bs Electors EFs digitised Coverage Uncollectable 47.37 27.9 58.89% 19.47 37 24.1 65.16% 12.88 29.79 19.05 63.97% 10.73 is the annual revenue that the fee hike will generate for the u.s. 19.47 24.1 19.05 27.9 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 Batons, tear gas mark march of Ranchi students Police use water cannons on agitators, CM appeals to resolve issue with dialogue M ukesh ranjan @ Ranchi AT LEAST four students and one policeman were injured during a clash near the Jharkhand Assembly on Monday, when police used water cannons, tear gas and batons to stop students protesting against alleged irregularities in recruitment examinations, officials said. The clash took place after the protesters breached multiple barricades near the Vidhan Sabha. This is for the first time in the history of Jharkhand that protesting students reached so close to the state assembly . Though the administration had erected multiple barricades and deployed a large police contingent to stop the protesters from reaching the Assembly, the students waded through the barriers. They dismantled seven to eight barricades near Jagannath Temple before resuming their march. Ranchi Rural SP Gaurav Goswami said police had to use batons after some protesters at- tempted to reach the final barricading, where prohibitory orders under Section 163 were already in force. The students are adamant on their demands of cancellation of the 14th Jharkhand Public Service Commission (JPSC) (Preliminary) Group 1 examination and a CBI inquiry into the Jharkhand Staff Selection Commission Combined Graduate Level (JSSC CGL) examination. Student leader Devendra Nath Mahto, who has been on a hunger strike for nine days, reached the protest site in an ambulance and participated in the march on a stretcher. “The reverse of the word ‘yuva’ (youth) is ‘vayu’ (air), and no one can stop the air,” Mahto said. “The government is trying to suppress our voice by using water cannons and tear gas shells. This is reprehensible,” Mahto said. Congress leader Rahul Gandhi condemned the use of force against students protesting in Jharkhand and called on the state government, of which Student leader Devendra Nath Mahto (above) during the march towards the Jharkhand assembly; and police personnel deploy water cannons (top) to disperse student protesters | PTI Deepti Gaur Mukerjee new higher edu secy THE Parliament stand-off continued on Monday even after the government offered a debate and Home Minister Amit Shah’s reply on the student protests and police action, with the Congress insisting that Prime Minister Narendra Modi reply to a discussion on the donation theft at the Ayodhya Ram temple. While Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi demanded that Shah disclose who authorised the use of pellet guns against the protesters, Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju hit back, saying Shah will give a proper reply but the Opposi- tion should not try to run away from the discussion by disrupting House proceedings. Speaking to reporters after the Business Advisory Committee meeting, Rijiju said the government is ready for a fullfledged discussion in the Lok Sabha on the student protests and police action across the country and Shah will reply to the debate, provided the Opposition promises to listen peacefully . Shah has not been seen in the House in the ongoing session even though he has been regularly coming to Parliament House complex. On a question whether the issue of alleged theft of donation EFs digitised Hyderabad Coverage Rangareddy 10.73 10.73 (in lakhs) 12.88 19.47 63.97% 65.16% 58.89% Electors Uncollectable 43 lakh Medchal-Malkajgiri EFs digitised EFs remain uncollectable in these three districts — about 58% of the state total 73.53 lakh EFs not received/ digitised by August 10 n August 17, 2026 Draft electoral rolls published n August 17 – September 16 Claims & objections n August 17 – October 15 Disposal of claims & objections n October 19, 2026 Final electoral rolls published n Missed from the draft? Electors whose names do not appear in the draft roll can file claims and objections during the prescribed period that remain uncollectable is largely concentrated in the Hyderabad metropolitan region. Hyderabad, Rangareddy and Medchal-Malkajgiri districts together account for 63.97% 65.16% 58.89% 24.1 Enumeration Forms received 78.26% Medchal-Malkajgiri 19.05 2.64 crore nearly 43 lakh, or about 58%, of the uncollectable forms in the state. Hyderabad district has the h i g h e s t n u m b e r. O f i t s 47,36,669 electors, forms relat- Other districts 96% Hanamkonda highest with 96% Digitisation Karimnagar lowest @ 72.23% digitisation 72.23% ing to around 27.90 lakh electors had been received and digitised, covering 58.89% of the electorate. This leaves around 19.47 lakh forms uncollectable.  CONTINUED ON P4 Govt considering JPC route for FCRA bill P R E E T H A N A I R @ New Delhi Rain Invocation Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy, along with his wife, offers Purnahuti during the Varuna Yagam at Nagarjunasagar on Monday Shah ok to debate students’ stir; Cong adds temple theft to demand P R E E T H A N A I R @ New Delhi Rangareddy 27.9 total electors Senior bureaucrat Deepti Gaur Mukerjee was on Monday appointed the new Higher Education Secretary. She succeeds Vineet Joshi, who was appointed last month as the Secretary in the Ministry of Panchayati Raj | P7 Congress is a part, to hear the protesters out and resolve their issues immediately . Meanwhile, the state CID on Monday arrested former JPSC Chairman L Khiangte in connection with alleged irregularities in 14th Combined Civil Services Examination. Chief Minister Hemant Soren in a late night post on X said, “I assure you (protesters) that action will be taken on your demands with utmost seriousness and sensitivity... let us resolve this issue together through dialogue.” Hyderabad 29.79 3.38 crore Electors EFs digitised Coverage Uncollectable 47.37 27.9 58.89% 19.47 37 24.1 65.16% 12.88 29.79 19.05 63.97% 10.73 Electors EFs digitised Uncollectable Hyd region accounts for mostCoverage uncollectable forms 37 Around 73 lakh electors in Telangana are likely to be left out of the draft electoral rolls to be published on August 17 after Enumeration For ms (EFs) could not be collected from them during the field-level exercise for the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls. About 58% of these voters may be from the Hyderabad metropolitan region. The field-level deadline for collecting the duly filled forms ended on Monday Forms that . could not be collected by Booth Level Officers (BLOs) have been categorised as “uncollectable” for the purpose of the SIR exercise. As of 6 pm on Monday elec, tion authorities had received and digitised 2,64,73,616 Enumeration Forms, covering 78.26% of Telangana’s 3,38,26,448 electors. This leaves around 73.53 lakh forms that had not been received and digitised by the end of the field exercise. The number is not necessarily final. Officials expect some more forms to come in through designated collection centres and online submission facilities even after the field-level deadline. Such forms will be dealt with according to the prescribed procedure. The large number of forms Rights and fundamentals 47.37 @ Hyderabad What happens next? S B a c han J ee t S in g h 12.88 73L in danger of deletion from voter list District Hyderabad Rangareddy Medchal-Malkajgiri pellet guns were fired,” Rahul said, asking Shah to come clean Responding to Rahul Gandhi’s charges, on whether he gave the firing Union Health Minister JP Nadda said the orders or not. Congress is repeatedly shifting Talking to the media alongside goalposts to disrupt Parliament. He said party chief Mallikarjun Kharge, the Opposition party’s demand moved Rahul said if Shah ordered it, he from a debate on NEET paper leak, a is culpable; if he didn’t know, he statement from Home Minister Amit is incompetent, adding Shah Shah on the student protests, and then “should go” either way . to the Ram temple trust issue Rahul added that Modi must apologise for the police action during the protests. will also be discussed, he said said the question was never The third issue, he said, is the Uttar Pradesh gover n- about whether Shah can give a the Ayodhya donation theft. ment’s probe through a special speech in Parliament on ‘genKharge said the Opposition investigation team and several eral issues’. “The question was wanted a discussion on these other steps are going on. that Home Minister Shah has issues but the government did Responding to the govern- to make it clear who authorised not say anything for 15 days, ment’s offer that Shah will the shooting of our children in which shows it did not want a speak in Parliament, Rahul Delhi. He is the home minister; discussion. Congress is shifting goalposts: Nadda Facing mounting opposition from political parties, church leaders and civil society organisations, the government may consider referring the contentious Foreign Contribution (Regulation) Amendment Bill, 2026, to a Joint Parliamentary Committee for detailed scrutiny before taking it up in Parliament, sources said. Neither the FCRA Bill nor the proposed Delimitation Bill figured in Monday’s Business Advisory Committee (BAC) meeting despite speculation that the government could take up the legislation in the remaining days of the Monsoon Session. This newspaper reported on Saturday that the government had not listed the two bills for the BAC meeting on Monday . Opposition sources told this paper that the government has proposed referring the bill to a JPC but they will insist that the legislation be withdrawn altogether. On Saturday, NCP (SP) working president Supriya Sule said foreign funding can’t always be viewed with suspicion, and urged the Centre to withdraw the bill or refer it to a JPC. She said her party opposes it in its present form. A delegation of eight NCP (SP) MPs met Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday but it was , not clear whether they raised the FCRA issue. The FCRA Amendment Bill, 2026, was introduced in the Lok Sabha on March 25 this year; however, it was put on hold after strong pushback from various stakeholders. On Sunday, Mizoram Chief Minister Lalduhoma and leading Christian organisations urged the Centre to refer the bill to a JPC. The Congress and other opposition parties said they will strongly oppose the bill if the government takes it up in Parliament. DMK calls for withdrawal of the bill The bill has drawn strong pushback from DMK, whose support is crucial for the government for the Delimitation Bill. A delegation led by DMK MP P Wilson met Home Minister Amit Shah and urged him to withdraw the bill and repeal Section 15 of the existing law Retired Army subedar dies in hit-and-run Set up 2 special courts for Manipur violence: SC E x press N e w s S er v i c e @ Hyderabad Priyanka’s final rites held in Gadwal U D AYA N K I S H O R E @ New Delhi A 47-year-old retired Army subedar was killed and two others were injured in a hit-and-run incident after an SUV reportedly travelling on the wrong side of the road hit two twowheelers and an autorickshaw at Hydershakote, under the limits of the Narsingi police station, on Monday morning. He was identified as D Ravinder. After the incident, the accused abandoned the damaged Hyderabad: The final rites of Dr Priyanka, who died in a hit-and-run accident in Rajamahendravaram, Andhra Pradesh, were performed at her native village of Eklaspur in Jogulamba Gadwal district on Monday. Tourism Minister Jupally Krishna Rao and others joined the funeral procession. The AP government and her college have each announced `20 lakh in financial help to her family. THE Supreme Court on Monday asked authorities concerned to consider setting up two trial courts to exclusively deal with cases arising out of the 2023 Manipur violence. A bench of Chief Justice Surya Kant and justices Joymalya Bagchi and V Mohana said that one court will be for CBI cases, while another will try cases lodged by NIA. “Our concern is whether vehicle and fled the spot. According to the Narsingi police, the incident occurred around 5.30 am when Ravinder was retur ning home on a twowheeler after completing his night shift.  CONTINUED ON P5 Meeting with UNC Manipur CM Yumnam Khemchand Singh on Monday reviewed security situation along the National Highways, even as a state government delegation held a meeting with the United Naga Council (UNC) to cajole it to lift “economic blockade” for resumption of bus services these courts are dealing exclusively with CBI and NIA cases arising out of the Manipur vio- lence, or whether they are also dealing with other cases,” the bench said. It directed the state and Central security agencies to ensure that probe agencies carry out their investigations without interruption. “With respect to law and order, the CBI and NIA shall be facilitated so that they are able to carry out investigation uninterruptedly said CJI Surya ,” Kant. Before this order, cases of the 2023 Manipur violence were being heard in the SC, the HC bench at Gauhati and local courts in the state. The bench took note of Centre’s submission that the CBI filed final reports in 27 of 31 Manipur violence cases, while NIA filed chargesheets in 15 of 30 cases. The Supreme Court took suo motu cognisance of the issue after a video of two women being paraded without clothes amid the violence went viral.