vijayawada l tuesday l october 13, 2026 l `9.00 l PAGES 12 l late city EDITION Retail inflation rises to 5.54 pc in September on high onion price Retail inflation rose sharply to 5.54 per cent in September on the back of high onion and other food prices, government data showed | P14 Just within the RBI’s tolerance band Rural inflation crosses 6 per cent The Consumer Price Index-based headline inflation was 4.83 per cent in August. The latest figure is just within the RBI’s tolerance band of 6 per cent. Food inflation rose to 7.74 per cent from 5.97 per cent the previous month. The top items with high inflation were onion (108.09 per cent), silver jewellery (87.8 per cent) and ginger (62.85 per cent) ■ ■ The top five states with high inflation were Tamil Nadu, Odisha, Madhya Pradesh, Telangana and Andhra Pradesh. The figures for rural and urban areas are 6.08 per cent and 4.88 per cent, respectively Commenting on the data, Dipti Deshpande of CRISIL said food inflation is likely to remain firm as weak rainfall weighs on agri output 5.2 per cent The projected retail inflation for 2026-27 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 Massive march for democracy Rahul says anyone committed to protecting Constitution has Oppn INDIA bloc’s support Jantar Mantar denotified as designated protest venue E x p r e s s ne w s s e r v i c e @ New Delhi Cong leaders Rahul Gandhi, Priyanka Gandhi Vadra and AISA chief Neha Bora during INDIA bloc’s march to the SC | PTI Rahul challenges legality of SIR ‘Didn’t approve or disapprove Form 6’ LoP Rahul Gandhi’s writ petition in the SC challenges the legality of the SIR, alleging largescale deletion of genuine voters. It seeks a direction to the ECI to place on record relevant ECINET and ERONET access logs and the complete file recording the decision to commence the SIR across India | P7 Chief Justice of India Surya Kant said the SC had neither approved nor disapproved the revised Form 6. The court said the ECI cannot claim judicial endorsement for its revised form and that earlier orders (from Bihar SIR case) cannot be cited as approval for a form introduced later | P7 U d aya n K i s h o r e & Anu p Ve r m a @ New Delhi OPPOSITION leaders, party workers and members of the public took to the streets of central Delhi in a massive show of strength on Monday as the INDIA bloc intensified its campaign against Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar, alleging electoral irregularities and demanding an end to the Special Intensive Revision of electoral rolls. The ‘Chalo Delhi—March for Democracy was later followed ,’ by the filing of a joint petition in the Supreme Court seeking judicial intervention over the allegations. INDIA bloc has demanded Kumar’s resignation, suspension of SIR, a return to ballot papers and poll reforms. Led by Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi, Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge and Congress MP Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, the march began near the Connaught Place–Barakhamba Road junction. Opposition leaders, including Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav, RJD’s Tejashwi Yadav, NCP (SP) leader Supriya Sule and CPI’s D Raja, joined the mobilisation alongside activists Yogendra Yadav and Nandita Narayan and AISA chief Neha Bora. Police stopped the march at Bhagwan Dass Road about 1km away , with security tightened across central Delhi. The petition, filed later in the day, lists several Opposition leaders as petitioners and challenges alleged irregularities in the SIR process. The SC registry subsequently flagged at least 10 defects in the plea. Addressing a reporters ahead of the march, Rahul said the Opposition’s campaign was a collective effort to defend democratic institutions, rather than a series of separate partyled protests. “There are no par- allel protests, there is one protest,” he said, adding that anyone committed to protecting the Constitution would have the Opposition’s support. “People should continue with the protests as the country cannot be saved in a day or two,” he said. Addressing Kumar, Rahul said, “Resign, turn approver; you have made a mistake but you are not the mind behind the mistake.” He said the campaign would continue until the Election Commission’s leadership changed, the Constitution was upheld and the electoral system was overhauled. On X, Rahul said the INDIA bloc had written to Chief Justice of India Surya Kant, who directed them to approach the court through a petition. He urged people across political affiliations to join the campaign. “We want India to believe that India is not scared of anything,” he said, adding that the agitation would continue. The Delhi Police on Monday denotified Jantar Mantar as a protest venue and named Ramlila Maidan, Burari Ground and CBD Ground, about 4, 21 and 13 kilometres away from Parliament, respectively, as the new designated sites for holding protests and demonstrations in the national capital. According to the order, the Union home ministry had constituted a committee to examine alternative venues for citizens’ right for organising protest and demonstrations in place of the existing “designated site”. “Based on the committee’s recommendations, Jantar Mantar as a protest venue has been de-notified. Three new venues viz Ramlila Ground, Burari Ground and CBD Ground, East Delhi have been designated as new venues for organising protest/demonstrations,” the order stated. Criticising the decision, Congress MP Jairam Ramesh said, “It is a definite sign of the extreme panic that has gripped the PM-HM duo that the historic Jantar Mantar will no longer be a place where our democracy is given a daily booster dose.” Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) spokesperson Saurav Das called the decision an “assault” on the fundamental right to protest and assemble peacefully . “Why is Narendra Modi scared of Jantar Mantar? The Jantar Mantar belongs to THE PEOPLE OF INDIA. Did the Ministry of Home Affairs consult with the people of India?” he wrote on X, adding that “we do not accept this arbitrary decision.” 4 burnt alive as electric car catches fire E x p r e s s N e w s Se r v i c e @ Vijayawada Four persons were burnt alive and another suffered critical injuries after an electric car crashed into a roadside railing and caught fire on the Vijayawada West Bypass near Nunna in NTR district on Monday . The vehicle was completely gutted in the accident, leaving four occupants dead at the scene. The injured person was shifted to a nearby hospital, where the condition was stated to be critical. The deceased were identified as Kommareddy Ramdev (39) and his mother, Kommareddy Aruna, both residents of Nun- na near Vijayawada; Tiguru Vijaya of Namburu in Guntur district; and a child. The identity of the injured person is yet to be ascertained. According to Kothapet police, the victims were returning after attending a function at Namburu when the accident occurred. The electric car reportedly rammed into the roadside railing, following which flames rapidly engulfed the vehicle. Locals alerted the police and fire services, whose personnel rushed to the spot and brought the blaze under control. The charred bodies were recovered from the vehicle. Relatives who reached the accident site broke down on seeing the tragedy . Police registered a case and launched an investigation into the circumstances leading to P4 the accident.  Robert E Hall Michael Woodford Nobel honours work on managing crises US economists Robert E Hall and Michael Woodford won the Nobel Economics Prize on Monday for work on models that have helped central banks manage economic shocks | P10 Naidu lays stone for `3,222-cr Tirumala-Tirupati makeover E x p r e s s N e w s Se r v i c e @ Tirumala/Tirupati In a massive developmental push aimed at transforming the Tirumala-Tirupati region into a world-class spiritual and model city Chief Minister , N Chandrababu Naidu on Monday virtually laid the foundation stone for projects worth `3,222 crore within the Tirupati Urban Development Authority (TUDA) and TTD limits from the Secretariat in Amaravati. The virtual ceremony was attended by TTD Chairman BR Naidu, Executive Officer M Ravichandra, TTD Board members, local legislators, the Tirupati District Collector, and TUDA officials. Addressing the gathering, CM Naidu emphasised that the grand scale of infrastructure must mirror the sacredness of the region, stating that visitors to Tirumala should experience an atmosphere akin to a replica of heaven. Setting a strict two-year completion deadline for the mega-projects, the CM cautioned executing authorities to assign contracts exclusively to organisations motivated by CM N Chandrababu Naidu virtually lays the foundation stone for development works worth `3,222 crore in Tirumala-Tirupati region from Amaravati | EXPRESS service and devotion rather than commercial profit. To ease pilgrim congestion on Tirumala and expand world-class facilities in lower Tirupati, the government has initiated a comprehensive Integrated Pilgrim Township near the Alipiri SV Zoo Park road with an outlay of `2,750 crore. Designed to provide a seamless spiritual and modern experience, the multi-faceted project integrates accommodation, dining, parking, trans- Gubernatorial reshuffle Arlekar is TN guv, Om Prakash Mathur moves to Kerala RAJ E SH K U MAR T HA K U R @ New Delhi President Droupadi Murmu on Monday appointed governors for six states, naming Rajendra Vishwanath Arlekar as the regular governor of Tamil Nadu, transferring Om Prakash Mathur from Sikkim to Kerala and appointing Sudha Yadav as Governor of Karnataka. Braj Mohan Ram has been appointed Governor of Odisha, Dhal Singh Bisen will be posted in Uttarakhand and Dushyant Gautam in Sikkim. Arlekar, who was serving as Kerala Governor, has been in charge of Tamil Nadu following R N Ravi’s transfer as Governor of West Bengal in March. R Vishwanath Arlekar Mathur, a BJP leader and ex-Rajya Sabha member from Rajasthan, sucEx minister, ceeds Arlekar in Kerala. He assumed Speaker office as Governor of Sikkim in July 2024. Mathur has held several organisa- A former Speaker tional positions in BJP, including na- and minister of Goa tional vice-president and general secre- Assembly, Arlekar tary and served two Rajya Sabha terms has also served as , from 2008 to 2014 and from 2016 to 2022. Governor of He was also associated with BJP’s elec- Himachal Pradesh and Bihar. During tion management in several states. Ram, a former Lok Sabha MP from his tenure as Goa Jharkhand’s Palamu, succeeds Hari Speaker, the House became the first Babu Kambhampati in Odisha. Sudha Yadav, a former BJP MP from legislature in the Mahendragarh, Haryana, and member country to adopt a of the National Commission for Back- paperless system ward Classes, succeeds Thaawar Chand Gehlot as Karnataka Governor. She entered politics after the death of her husband, a deputy commandant in BSF, in the Kargil war when PM Narendra Modi, then BJP’s Haryana in-charge, proposed her candidature from Mahendragarh. farm distress Kharif sowing holds promise in AP, but costs double for farmers Y B r a h m a j i @ Vijayawada Defying El Niño impact, water shortages and adverse weather conditions, Andhra Pradesh has wrapped up the Kharif sowing season on a promising note, with farmers covering 28.68 lakh hectares. Paddy sowing reached 14.54 lakh hectares, while pulses surpassed their season-normal acreage by a wide margin. However, behind the encouraging sowing figures lies a growing financial burden, with many farmers reporting that cultivation costs have doubled after repeated sowing, scarce irrigation water and rising expenditure on fertilisers and motor pumps. Sofar, the total cropped area stood at 28.68 lakh hectares against the full-season normal of 30.84 lakh hectares, achieving around 93% of the target. The performance comes despite a challenging monsoon, with rainfall remaining substantially below normal across most districts. Paddy, the principal crop, covered 14.54 lakh hectares against the seasonal normal of 15.14 lakh hectares, reaching around 96% of the target. The acreage remained close to the full-season normal, helping sustain foodgrain cultivation despite uneven rainfall and concerns over irrigation supplies. The State received 392.6 mm of rainfall against the normal 637.6 mm so far, a deficit of 38.4%. Of the 28 districts, only three Srikakulam, Alluri Sitharama Raju and Visakhapatnam were in the normal rainfall category. As many as 24 districts recorded deficient rainfall, while Prakasam was the only district classified under large deficit. The weak start to the North-East monsoon has added to farmers’ concerns. The State received just 10.3 mm of rainfall against the normal 57.5 mm since October 1, a shortfall of 82.1%. Reser- voir storage in the State’s seven major reservoirs stood at 402.99 TMC, compared with 788.44 TMC during the corresponding period last year, intensifying worries over the availability of water for standing crops. For farmers, the rainfall deficit has translated into mounting cultivation expenses and uncertainty over returns. In several areas, crops that withered forced growers to undertake sowing again, in some cases investing in cultivation twice during the same season. Farmers have also had to spend more on running motors to pump available water, while fertiliser and other input costs have added to their financial strain. With substantial amounts already invested and water supplies remaining uncertain, many growers are distressed over their losses and fear that the standing crop may not survive until harvest. Even where sowing was completed, the chances of recovering investment remains uncertain.  P4 port, digital navigation, and emergency medical care into a single centralised hub. The core infrastructure and welfare components launched under the mega developmental package include the construction of 2,700 rooms across four 10-storey blocks at Alipiri with an outlay of `1,332 crore, providing daily lodging for up to 15,000 pilgrims, alongside a dedicated Annaprasada centre worth `160 crore engineered to serve meals to 6,000 devoP4 tees simultaneously  . express read Vizag ITIs set for major upgrade Vijayawada: The Centre and AM/NS India signed a pact in Visakhapatnam on Monday to upgrade four government ITIs at a cost of `200 crore under the PMSETU scheme. The Visakhapatnam cluster is the first in India to secure approval. The upgrades include modern workshops and new courses | P3 APSRTC plans 5,261 Dasara special buses Vijayawada: APSRTC will run 5,261 special buses during Dasara to meet passenger demand, Joint MD M Siva Prasad said on Monday. Fares will remain unchanged. For Tirumala Brahmotsavams, 100 electric buses will join ghat services. The corporation plans 750 electric buses by December 31, he said | P3 Govt notifies ward, mayor seat quotas Vijayawada: The State government on Monday notified reservations for mayoral posts and wards in 13 municipal corporations ahead of local body elections in the State . Of 17 mayoral posts, five are reserved for BCs, five for women, two for SCs and one for STs, while four remain unreserved | P4 Srivari temples in all 175 AP segments Vijayawada: The State government will build Lord Venkateswara temples in all 175 Assembly segments, allocating `5 crore to `10 crore each, Endowments Minister A Ramanarayana Reddy said on Monday. It also aims to build 5,000 temples by 2028. He laid the stone for a temple at at village in Nellore district | P5