WWW.INDIANEXPRESS.COM Artist, Uninterrupted, Unbroken & Present PUNE, DECEMBER 7, 2025 US-based Marina Abramović, a pioneer in performance art, on using the body to confront vulnerability, and how art can be spiritual LATE CITY 18+4 PAGES ₹7.00 SCREEN Shefali Shah and Huma Qureshi on the latest instalment of popular Netflix series Delhi Crime D A I L Y F R O M : A H M E D A B A D , C H A N D I G A R H , D E L H I , j A I P U R , K O L K A T A , L U C K N O W , M U M B A I , N A G P U R , P A T N A , P U N E , V A D O D A R A FARE CAPS TO PROTECT PASSENGERS FROM OPPORTUNISTIC PRICING: MINISTRY Govt imposes airfare caps, asks IndiGo CEO to explain in 24 hrs E. Operational failures indicate planning lapses: Show-cause notice to CEO Govt firefights Indigo-induced pain Poor planning by the country’s largest airline has resulted in an unprecedented crisis. Warning signals were visible through November, but before the government acted, it descended upon passengers with flight cancellations and skyrocketing fares. The government is firefighting now. Sukalp Sharma New Delhi, December 6 WITHAIRFARESskyrocketing due to large-scale cancellation of flights by domestic aviation market leader IndiGo, the government on Saturday stepped in to regulate fares for all airlines by prescribing caps. As widespread disruptions in operationsenteredthefourthday, the government also issued a show-cause notice to IndiGo CEOPieterElbersaskinghimto respond within 24 hours why no action should be taken against him. Elbers has been the CEO of IndiGo since September 2022. The Ministry of Civil Aviation(MoCA)Saturdayinvoked its regulatory powers in an otherwise free market aviation sector “to ensure fair and rea- EXPlAINED At Terminal 1 of Delhi’s Indira Gandhi International Airport on Saturday. AMIT MEHRA sonablefaresacrossallaffected routes” and protect passengers from “any form of opportunistic pricing”. The airfare caps are: Rs 7,500 for a stage length of up to 500 km (Delhi-Jaipur/ Chandigarh), Rs 12,000 for 500-1,000 km(Delhi-Bhopal/Jammu),Rs 15,000 for 1,000-1,500 km (Delhi-Mumbai/ Kolkata), and Rs18,000forover1,500km(say Delhi-Chennai/ Bengaluru). These caps are exclusive of airportleviesandtaxes,andare l Maximumdomesticfare Rs 7,500 500km FOR ROUTES UP TO (E.G. DELHI TO CHANDIGARH) Rs 15,000 FOR 1,000-1,500km (E.G. DELHI TO MUMBAI) lLimits exclude airport levies and taxes; do not apply to business class or flights under the UDAN scheme Rs 12,000 FOR 500-1,000km (E.G. DELHI TO PATNA) Rs 18,000 1,500 km FOR ROUTES ABOVE (E.G. DELHI TO CHENNAI) lFare caps apply to all bookings, whether made directly with airlines or through online travel agents not applicable for business class fares and on flights operated under the regional connectivity scheme, the MoCA order stated. The fare limits are applicablefortravel“untilfares stabilise or till further review”, it said. The show-cause notice to Elbers said that “such largescale operational failures indicate significant lapses in »CONTINUED ON PAGE 2 RElATED REPORT PAGE 3 happening today l INAUGURAL CEREMONY of a key UNESCO meeting — during which Diwali is set to be proposed for inclusion in its Intangible Cultural Heritage List — will be held at Red Fort. The main session will run from December 8 to December 13. PROjECT MAhADEvA Former Delhi University associate professor Hany Babu, who was granted bail in the Elgaar Parishad case Thursday, with his wife, Prof Jenny Rowena, and their daughter Farzana after his release from Taloja Jail in Navi Mumbai on Saturday. NARENDRA VASKAR No. 16 on his jersey, idol Sreejesh as his coach, Hockey India’s Prince in waiting Vinayakk Mohanarangan Chennai, December 6 07/12/2025 118 146 181 92 l Shubhajit Roy New Delhi, December 6 AS RUSSIAN President Vladimir Putin concluded his twoday visit to India December 5, New Delhi was preparing the next steps in a careful diplomatic balancing act: moves are afoot to schedule a possible visit by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy to India in the coming months, The Indian Express has learnt. The visit could take place as early as January 2026. A Zelenskyy visit would reinforce Delhi’s effort to stay engaged with both sides of the Russia–Ukraine war, following the same calibrated approach adopted last year. In July 2024, Prime Minister Narendra Modi travelled to Moscow and met Putin; a month later, in August, he had visited Ukraine. SourcessaiddiscussionsbetweenIndianandUkrainianofficials have been ongoing for several weeks, with New Delhi intouchwithZelenskyy’soffice even before Putin arrived in India. The timing and scope of the proposed visit will depend on multiplefactors,includinghow former US President Donald Trump’s peace plan unfolds and developments on the battlefield.Domesticpoliticsin Ukraine, where Zelenskyy’s government is currently under pressure embroiled in a sweeping corruption scandal, could PM’s ‘not-neutral’ remark Friday echoes what he told Zelenskyy last year PM Modi with President Zelenskyy in Kyiv in August 2024. AP FILE ThE wORlD PAGE 8 RUSSIA TARGETS INfRA, ENERGy SITES IN UkRAINE also influence the outcome. Notably, Ukraine has sent Presidents to India only three times: 1992, 2002 and 2012. US deputy trade representative, chief negotiator to meet Commerce Secy Out of Jail After 5 Years PAGE 11 Diplomatic tightrope: Red carpet for Putin, Delhi works on dates for Zelenskyy visit US negotiators to be in Delhi next week, trade talks may get fresh impetus TRACK THESE AND MORE ON www.INDIANEXPRESS.COM 30 bOyS, 30 GIRlS & A COmmON DREAm TO mEET mESSI WILL BE FIRST VISIT BY UKRAINIAN PRESIDENT SINCE 2012 PRINCEDEEP SINGH grew up wanting to be like P R Sreejesh. Somuchsothattherookiegoalkeeper even got the legendary Indian custodian’s jersey number — 16 — on his back. And now, in the team coached by Sreejesh, Princedeep has emerged as a standout performer. On Friday, the 21-year-old goalkeeper shot into the lime- light with a sensational display inthepenaltyshootoutasIndia defeated Belgium in the thrilling quarter-final of the FIH Junior World Cup in Chennai. The number 16, made famous by Sreejesh, has a special place for Princedeep. “I started playing hockey around 2015 at Cheema Academy in Batala and I actually played fullback for a year... I used to also play football during the weekends, and I was good at goalkeeping »CONTINUED ON PAGE 2 Princedeep Singh (left) thwarted Belgium twice in the shootout on Friday; working with coach P R Sreejesh (above) is a dream, the 21-year-old says. HOCKEY INDIA Ravi Dutta Mishra New Delhi, December 6 A US trade team led by Deputy US Trade Representative Rick Switzer is set to visit India next week to iron out differences such that the long-pending bilateral trade agreement (BTA) issignedbeforeDecember-end, a source aware of the developments said. SwitzerandBrendanLynch, the US chief negotiator for the trade deal with India, are expected to meet Commerce Secretary Rajesh Agrawal for the final talks ahead of the agreement.NegotiationswiththeUS had commenced after Prime MinisterNarendraModivisited the US in February this year. Themeetingcomescloseon the heels of Russian President Vladimir Putin’s two-day visit toIndiawhenthetwocountries decided to boost bilateral trade to $100 billion by 2030 from $64 billion now, and increase domestic currency trade. Sourcesdidnotprefertodescribe the US officials’ visit as a formal round of negotiations. They said differences are expectedtoberesolvedatapolitical level. India had last month sent across its final proposal to the US for the agreement. A government official told The Indian Express that the Indianteamhasnothadtechnical negotiations with the US team during the last one month and that the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) wingofthecommerceministry has begun working on the deal with Canada. In the recent months, India has increased oil imports from the US. This has helped the bilateral trade gap between US and India to reach $1.5 billion »CONTINUED ON PAGE 2 Putin’s visit has drawn close scrutinyfromEurope,withseveral European envoys urging India to use its influence to push Moscow towards ending the war. Delhi, however, consistently maintained that dialogue and diplomacy remain the only viable path forward with Modi framing it as: “India is not neutral, India is on the side of peace.” India has stayed in touch with both Putin and Zelenskyy sincethewarbeganinFebruary 2022. Modi has spoken to Zelenskyy by phone at least eight times,andthetwoleadershave met on at least four occasions. Theirmostrecentconversation was on August 30, when »CONTINUED ON PAGE 2 India’s freedomof choice,Putin’s visit won’taffectUS ties:Jaishankar Divya A New Delhi, December 6 UNDERLINING INDIA’S “freedom of choice” in its relationships, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar on Saturday said RussianPresidentVladimirPutin’s two-day visit won’t complicate India’s ties with the United States. Defining India's ties with Russia as “among the steadiest big relationships” in the world, he said Putin's visit was about “re-imagining” the ties with a focus on economic engagement. Emphasising “strategic autonomy”,Jaishankar,duringan interactive session at the HT Leadership Summit in New Delhi, said, “Everybody knows that India has relations with all the major countries of the world. And for any country to expecttohaveavetoonhowwe develop our relationships with others, is not fair.” He was responding to a question on Putin's visit amid trade tensions with the US, after the Donald Trump administration imposed an additional 25% penalty tariff on India for importing Russian oil. »CONTINUED ON PAGE 2 CLUE ABOUT HIS SCHOOL HELPED MENTAL HOSPITAL PIECE TOGETHER HIS PAST Deemed dead in floods to theft charges: Man is united with family 12 years later Anuradha Mascarenhas In 2021, the temple at which he was staying in Sambhajinagar was burgled and the SHIVAM HAD gone missing robbers, who were subseduring the devastating Kedar- quently arrested, dragged Shinathfloodsof2013,whichkilled vam's name into the case. The a few thousands. With no trace judge before whom he was proof him for days after, duced ordered his PAGE 1 his brother even rehabilitation at went ahead and perPune's Regional formed his symbolic Mental Hospital last rites. But Shivam, who was (RMH) for “disorganised living with polio, had survived schizophrenia”. and landed in Sambhajinagar Atthegovernment-runmen(formerly Aurangabad) in Ma- tal hospital that presently has harashtra, with no recollection 1,037 inmates, a small detail of how he got there. about Shivam's school in RoorPune, December 6 anchor Shivam (in wheelchair) with staff members of Pune’s Regional mental Hospital. EXPRESS keetriggeredanintensebutsuccessfulsearchforhisfamily.With thecourtrulingouthiscomplicityinthetempleburglaryandthe RMH giving him a discharge, Shivam,55,wasreunitedwithhis brotheronFriday. Dr Shriniwas Kolod, SuperintendentattheRMH,toldThe IndianExpressthatthiswasthe first-ever rehabilitation of a longstanding case of an unidentified prisoner-patient at their facility. "It was the relentless efforts of our dedicated team that helped in this rehabilitation,” he said. Rohini Bhosale, Social Service Superintendent at RMH, recalled the difficulties they faced in trying to get information out of Shivam to know wherehehailedfrom."Itriedto figure out some words that he would speak in Hindi, but it was more of a Pahari dialect which was not easy to understand. He also dragged his feet due to polio and I wondered how he could have been involved in a robbery, ” she said, as she and her team set about responding sensitively and dedicatedly to the case. It was out of the blue that one day in 2023 he responded to a question about his school, Prem Vidyalaya in Roorkee. It was just this kind of concrete information the team was looking for. With renewed urgency, Bhosale and the team contacted the police station at Roorkee tehsil in Haridwar district. “We soon got information about his relatives and also learned that he had completed Class 12 from Prem Vidyalaya,” she said. Bhosale and the others explained Shivam's mental con- dition, disorganised schizophrenia, which centres around symptomslikeconfusedthinking and disorganised speech and actions. Bhosale was also consistently helped by other staff. They also informed his familymembersabouttheburglary case and remained connected with them via video calls. “The very first video call was a deeply emotional one, with both brothers being moved to tears,” she recalled. In 2023, she approached the Shivurpolicestation,wherethe »CONTINUED ON PAGE 2