HYDERABAD l friday l october 09, 2026 l `9.00 l PAGES 36 l late cITY EDITION Canadian poet Anne Carson awarded Literature Nobel Anne Carson won the Nobel Literature Prize on Thursday for her ‘bold and inventive’ works that fuse the classical and the modern Known for modern takes on Greek classics Carson brought a modern twist to ancient myths through her genreblending writings about love, desire and despair. In doing so, she has created new forms for contemporary literature, the Swedish Academy said. For example, her Autobiography of Red (1998) reimagines the myth of Hercules and the monster Geryon as a 20th-century coming-of-age story ■ 3rd Her reaction: They are all crazy ■ “Almost all her literary production has centred upon the intersection between the philologist’s obsession with words and the poet’s desire for new meaning,” the Academy said in a statement When asked about the Academy members’ decision to honour her, the 76-year-old told an Icelandic broadcaster, “They’re all crazy” | P9 Canadian to win the honour after Alice Munro and Saul Bellow 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 INDIA bloc stages Taxman losing arrest power sit-in at Rajghat among GST Council reforms Threshold for prosecution now `10 crore; for issuing notice, it’s `10,000 UDAYAN K I S HORE & ANUP V ERMA @ New Delhi INDIA bloc leaders, including Rahul Gandhi and Priyanka Gandhi, staged a peaceful protest on Thursday at the Mahatma Gandhi memorial at Rajghat against Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Gyanesh Kumar over alleged election malpractices. The leaders met briefly for lunch, hosted by Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge, at Connaught Place and then moved in buses towards the memorial, along with a group of supporters, where they paid floral tributes and sat in a peaceful protest. The INDIA bloc leaders said they were praying for “wisdom to the BJP government” as they alleged that the CEC in connivance with the Centre had “hijacked” the country through “a criminal conspiracy by indulging in vote theft”. The opposition leaders said they would continue their protest till CEC Gyanesh Kumar resigns. They are likely to meet again on Friday in Parliament for a protest. Samajwadi Party Shiv Sena, UBT, and NCP-SCP also attended the lunch. Besides TMC’s P u s h p i ta D e y @ New Delhi Rahul and Priyanka Gandhi along with INDIA bloc leaders en route to Rajghat on Thursday | Parveen Negi BJP dividing people: CM Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy accused Prime Minister Narendra Modi of using divisive tactics to capture power, alleging that the BJP seeks to divide Indians on religion, caste, region and language. He questioned the fall in voter numbers despite population growth | p4 Abhishek Banerjee and Menaka Guruswamy, CPI-M leader John Brittas and CPI leader P Sandosh were present. Later in the day, the INDIA bloc request an appointment with the President to make a representation on ‘vote theft’. The GST Council on Thursday approved a series of process reforms aimed at easing compliance for businesses, including simplifying registration and refunds, scrapping arrest powers of GST officers and raising the monetary threshold for prosecution to `10 crore from `5 crore. The Council also approved a `10,000 threshold for issuing GST show-cause notices and allowed input tax credit (ITC) on several business expenses, including employee insurance. The decisions were taken at the 57th meeting of the GST Council, chaired by Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman and attended by finance ministers from several states. The meeting focused on process reforms to reduce compliance burdens and litigation risks for businesses. The Council also addressed a major pain point for businesses — denial of ITC because of noncompliance by vendors in the supply chain. It said genuine buyers should not lose credit because of supplier defaults. A standing committee of officers will examine the issue and submit its re- Finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman, Karnataka CM D K Shivakumar (R), Maharashtra CM Devendra Fadnavis and others at the GST Council meet in Delhi on Thursday | PTI Input tax credit issues “In the spirit of cooperative federalism, it was decided to have an officers’ committee to examine ITC issues. Why should an honest taxpayer face issues in claiming ITC, if the person/business pays the input tax?” Sitharaman said port within three months, after which the matter will be placed before the next Council meeting. The Council also widened the scope of ITC to several business expenses, including outdoor catering, health and life insurance, telecommunication towers and pipelines laid outside factory premises. ITC will also be allowed Rice gets costlier, other essentials follow: El Nino? K h yat i S h a h & M V K S a s t r y &A Seshacharyulu FINE RICE (26-kg bag) Earlier: `1,800 (`70/kg) Now: `2,150 (`82/kg) PADDY (per quintal) MSP: `2,440 10 days ago: `3,400 Open market: `4,000 @ Hyderabad/Nizamabad/Nalgonda A sharp rise in rice prices is beginning to pinch household budgets across Telangana. Fine rice, a staple in homes across the state, is now selling at `8082 a kg, up from `70 earlier. A 25-kg bag is now being sold at `2,150, up from around `1,800. However, rice is not the only item getting costlier. Between September and October, toor dal rose from `126 to `143 a kg, urad dal from `120 to `128, moong dal from `106 to `112 and gram dal from `80 to `90. Gundu chilli climbed from `330 to `420 a kg, long chilli from `275 to `290 and coriander from `190 to `210. Basmati rice rose from `113 to `122 a kg, sugar from `43 to `50, almonds from `1,000 to `1,150, raisins from `320 to `420, split cashews from `760 to `830 and whole cashews from `760 to `850 a kg. Behind the rise in rice prices is a tightening supply situation, linked partly to the decline in rice acreage during the current Kharif season. Nationally the area under rice cultiva, tion fell from 449.18 lakh hectares in 2025-26 to 433.62 lakh hectares this year, a decline of 3.46%, according to the Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare. The reduction in acreage Rice prices by variety (`/quintal) Premium: `8,000-`8,200 HMT: `7,600 R&R: `7,200 PPT: `6,500 Coarse: `4,000 - `4,500 (stable) pic: express came after the India Meteorological Department forecast a below-normal monsoon in May , factoring in the possible influence of El Nino. The southwest monsoon has since been uneven, with 18 of the 36 meteorological subdivisions, accounting for 53% of the country’s area, receiving normal rainfall, while 17 subdivisions covering 42% recorded deficient rainfall. Miryalguda Rice Miller As- Why its rising n  Acreage down n  Patchy monsoon n  yields Low n  stocks Tight n Niño/drought fears El sociation president Gauru Srinivas said premium rice stocks were under strain, with poor rainfall and lower yields affecting availability. HMT was selling at around `7,600 a quintal, PPT at `6,500 and R&R at `7,200. “The stock is not sufficient. There is no rain and the yield is low. The premium quality is only around 50%,” he added. The rise is even steeper when Other essentials (SEPT - OCT) Raisins: `320 - `420 Gundu chilli: `330 - `420 Sugar: `43 - `50 Almonds: `1,000 - `1,150 Toor dal: `126 - `143 Gram dal: `80 - `90 Whole cashew: `760 - `850 Coriander: `190 - `210 Split cashew: `760 - `830 Basmati: `113 - `122 Urad dal: `120 - `128 Moong dal: `106 - `112 it comes to paddy A miller in Mir. yalguda said the open-market price of a quintal of paddy had risen to `4,000 from `3,400 just 10 days earlier, against a Minimum Support Price (MSP) of `2,440. Supply constraints are also being felt in Nalgonda. Of the district’s total 11.23 lakh acres of farmland, crops were planted in 9.92 lakh acres during the Kharif season.  continued on p5 on free samples and goods destroyed or written off after expiry where such destruction is required by law. It also brought input services within the scope of refunds under the inverted duty structure, where businesses are left with accumulated credit because their inputs are taxed at a higher rate than their output. The benefit will be available for credit availed on or after November 1. The Council also scrapped the power of GST officers to arrest taxpayers. To curb litigation, it proposed that no show-cause notice be issued where the amount involved is up to `10,000. A common standard will govern the issuance and service of notices in cases involving alleged fraud. express read Cancer drugs set to become cheaper New Delhi: Cancer drugs are set to become cheaper, with the Centre planning to cap trade margins at 30% over the cost to distributors. The move is expected to cut retail prices of 110 anti-cancer drugs, including 35 patented medicines | p7 Wait for the other guy: Rahul to Musk New Delhi: Congress leader Rahul Gandhi welcomed Elon Musk to India, telling him to “wait till you discover the other guy” after Musk questioned whether Mukesh Ambani was the “real boss of India” over Starlink’s licence. Musk later thanked Gandhi, saying, “Thank you, Rahul. This is indeed troubling.” The government rejected Musk’s allegations, insisting all licensees must meet security norms | p10 TCs, Infosys, Cognizant hit US suspends IT giants from green card process E x p r e ss N e w s S e r v i c e @ Bengaluru AHEAD of Secretary of State Marco Rubio’s expected visit to India this month, the US government has suspended several Indian IT giants, including TCS and Infosys, from the Permanent Labour Certification (PERM) programme, a key step in the employmentbased green card process, amid allegations of abuse and fraud in US visa programmes. US Vice-President J D Vance announced the action on Thursday. Labour Secretary Keith Sonderling said Cognizant, Infosys, Tata Consultancy Services (TCS), Wipro, HCL and Capgemini were among the companies affected. Microsoft and Adobe were also suspended, with the Labour Department citing multiple federal investigations. Vance accused the companies of using H-1B workers to replace American employees and said the programme had become “rife with fraud”. He alleged that Microsoft had laid off about 6,000 American workers while receiving thousands of H-1B approvals and filing PERM applications. The PERM programme is administered by the US Department of Labour. It generally requires an employer sponsoring a foreign worker for permanent residence to show that there are not enough qualified US workers available for the job and that employing the foreign worker will not adversely affect wages and working conditions. PERM is one of the main stages before an employer can proceed with an employment-based green card application. Indian technology firms are particularly affected because Indians account for a large share of H-1B workers. m e g h n a n at h @ Hyderabad Industry responds Indian IT trade association NASSCOM downplayed the action, saying Indian firms had built a strong US workforce. But immigration and skilled talent mobility are distinct issues and must not be viewed via the same lens, it said The message to Microsoft is that you’ve got to hire American workers JD Vance, US Vice-President I conic d i a l o g u e d e l i v e r y Nana Patekar 1 Jan 1951 — 8 Oct 2026 Man of contradictions and fiery, mesmerising monologues N a m r ata J o s h i N ana Patekar was a star sans glamour. If one phrase could capture him succinctly it’d be “son of , the soil”. It didn’t just reflect in his favourite attire of the kurta and the gamcha but also in his rootedness in his Marathi identity and culture, his simple one BHK (bedroom-hallkitchen) life in Mumbai, and his love for farming and all things rural, towards which he fo- cused most of his philanthropic efforts through the Naam Foundation that he jointly set up in 2015 along with actor Makarand Anaspure. His rough-around-the-edges, mercurial, far-from-glitzy personality found an answering reflection in the volatile, capricious, crusty characters he came to be identified with on screen; most of them, like him, driven by fierceness, fervour, outspokenness, and a righteous rage. He first caught the audience’s eye with the grounded way he captured the angst of Intensity, individuality Nana Patekar passed away at his Goa residence on Thursday after suffering a heart attack. He was 75. “Few actors possessed the intensity, individuality and unmistakable presence that Shri Nana Patekar Ji had,” Prime Minister Narendra Modi said on X an unemployed wastrel in N Chandra’s Ankush (1986). His popularity among the masses peaked in the zealous patriotism of films Tirangaa (1993) and Krantiveer (1994). His distinctive voice and unmistakable dialogue delivery added to the appeal. In that aspect, he was a true inheritor of the legacy of legendary Hindi film star Raaj Kumar, also known for his declamatory style. Nana’s iconic monologues were certainly not about mincing words; in fact, they whipped up the crowd and were repeated with the same gusto by his fans. Like the famous line on communal harmony in Krantiveer, which underscores that one can’t distinguish between the blood of a Hindu and a What AI sees in an X-ray may not be what doctors see Muslim, and if the creator has treated them equally, humans have no right to drive wedges between the two: “Yeh Musalman ka khoon, yeh Hindu ka khoon. Bata ismein Musalman ka kaunsa hai, Hindu ka kaunsa? Banane wale ne ismein fark nahi kiya, tu kaun hota hai fark karne wala?” Or the sharp barb, in the same film, on how the politicians continue to enjoy power while common people perish: “Ek ek karke sab marenge! Aur yeh neta log kursi par baithkar maza lenge!”  Continued on P8 A team of researchers at the International Institute of Information Technology-Hyderabad (IIIT-H) has found that heatmaps generated by medical artificial intelligence (AI) models to indicate disease in chest X-rays may not always correspond to the areas radiologists consider clinically relevant. The study, by IIIT-H’s Language Technologies Research Centre (LTRC) and led by Prof Parameswari Krishnamurthy, examined four vision-language models (VLMs) — MAIRA-2, MedGemma-4B, LLaVA-Med1.5 and LLaVA-1.5 — against thousands of publicly available chest X-rays. The findings have been accepted at MICCAI 2026, the International Conference on Medical Image Computing and Computer Assisted Intervention. The researchers sought to examine a question that goes beyond whether an AI model arrives at the correct diagnosis: does the area highlighted by the model correspond to where a radiologist would actually locate the disease? To answer this, the team compared AI-generated heatmaps with regions identified by radiologists and conducted a reader study involving two radiologists. The results showed that a model could appear to identify the correct part of an X-ray without necessarily locating the disease in the same way as a radiologist. Dr Syed Faizan, principal investigator, said the models may diagnose first and then use that information to place the heatmap. Removing diagnostic information reduced localisation performance, suggesting the diagnosis may influence the model’s visual reasoning.  continued on p2