5 THINGS FIRST Today: PM Modi to attend swearing-in of Maldives president-elect; Nine-phase J&K panchayat polls begin. Tomorrow: PM Modi’s poll campaign in Chhindwara and Indore (MP); Indo-Russian joint military exercises in Jhansi; President Kovind on a four-day visit to Vietnam

1. Can states ban CBI from investigating? What: The Andhra Pradesh government has withdrawn consent given to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) to exercise its authority in the state. The consent was given to the CBI to investigate crime and conspiracies covering 187 sections of the Indian Penal Code and 63 under various central government Acts. Following Andhra, West Bengal also said it will not allow CBI and other central agencies from operating within its boundaries. Why: Ever since he snapped ties with the NDA government this year, Andhra CM Chandrababu Naidu had been alleging that the centre was misusing CBI to target political opponents. Recent raids by income tax authorities on some businesses run by those close to the ruling Telugu Desam Party are believed to be the trigger. West Bengal has also been accusing Centre of misusing CBI. How: CBI's functioning is governed by the Delhi Special Police Establishment (DSPE) Act. Section 6 of the Act prohibits the agency from investigating cases outside Delhi (and Union Territories) without permission from the respective state governments. While arguing in Supreme Court (in 2013) for dropping the clause (which the agency says impedes its independence) it said that only 10 states had issued general consent for cases against central government employees and for the others the agency had to seek consent on a case-to-case basis. However, the Supreme Court and high courts can direct the CBI to probe any case in any state. This means: CBI cannot, on its own, decide to probe offences outside Delhi. If a state refuses CBI investigations and a major probe requires conducting raids, the agency will have to approach courts to take permission for the same. The agency also needs support from the state police in cases which would not be forthcoming if the state denies it. While CBI has often been accused of being Centre's tool to harass state governments that don't toe its line, the legal clause has also been used by accused politicians to argue their case against a CBI investigation. Meanwhile, Supreme Court looked at the Central Vigilance Commission (CVC) report on allegations against the CBI director Alok Verma (who has been forced to go on leave) and said some findings are ‘complimentary’ and some ‘very uncomplimentary’. It asked CVC to give a copy of the ‘confidential’ report to Verma and asked him to respond by Monday. It will hear the case on Tuesday. Full story here

2. Why do eastern states bear the brunt of cyclones? The latest: Gaja, a severe cyclonic storm, battered the Tamil Nadu coast on Friday, killing at least 13 people and causing widespread destruction. Land of cyclones: 26 of the 35 deadliest tropical cyclones in history have been along the Bay of Bengal coast. Bangladesh has seen the most casualties accounting for over 40% of world's tropical cyclone-associated deaths in the past two centuries (India accounts for a quarter of the deaths). In India, Odisha has seen the most number of cyclones (98 between 1891 and 2002) but Andhra Pradesh and Tamil Nadu have had most casualties in recent times. Why: More cyclones are formed in the Bay of Bengal than the Arabian Sea due to wind patterns (that keep oceans cooler on the western side). Even among those formed along the western coast, many move towards Oman instead of hitting Indian shores. Storms formed on the eastern coast, however, are more intense and since states on that side have relatively flatter topography compared to the western coast they can't deflect the winds. Season of cyclones: April to December is the cyclone season but over 65% of all cyclones occur in the last four months of the year. Strength of cyclones: Cyclones are classified based on the wind speed around the low-pressure area. Wind speed of over 62 kmph is classified as a tropical cyclone and assigned a name. It becomes a severe cyclonic storm if the speed is between 89 and 118 kmph and a very severe cyclonic storm if the speed is between 119 and 221 kmph. Those with higher speeds are categorised as super cyclonic storms.

3. Even the government wants Tatas to buy Jet... What's new? Tata Sons has said it has not made any concrete proposal for taking over the struggling carrier Jet Airways but has held only 'preliminary’ discussions. The Tatas, which already run two carriers (Vistara and AirAsia India), are reported to be planning a complete takeover of Jet. So why are the Tatas interested in the ailing airline? Govt wants it to: Reports say the Central government has approached the Tatas to help rescue Jet because the collapse of the country's second-largest airline and resulting job losses just before 2019 polls can be bad news. To aid the process, reports say, the government is talking to Tata about a potential haircut state-run banks would take on Jet's loans and writing off some of its dues to the Airports Authority of India. Tata loves planes: Tatas started India's first airline (Tata Airlines) in 1932 that eventually became Air India. The company's plan of making a comeback in the sector prompted the two joint ventures with Singapore Airlines and AirAsia. Profit in loss: Vistara and AirAsia have a combined market share of just 8.2%, which can increase to 24% overnight with the acquisition of Jet. That will make Tata the largest aviation company in India after IndiGo. The deal will also give the company access to lucrative landing and parking slots at busy airports abroad, a big fleet of aircraft, and a big domestic network. Tata & Tata: The six-and-a-half-hour-long board meeting held on Friday remained inconclusive. All eyes in the group are on Ratan Tata, chairman of Tata Trusts, which is a two-thirds shareholder in the holding company. Tata was reported to be keen on Air India when the government, unsuccessfully, put it on the block earlier this year. Whether he shares the enthusiasm of some others about Jet is not clear. Tata Sons chairman N Chandrasekaran who was not keen on acquiring Air India has spearheaded the deal talks with Jet. Read the full story here

4. With a little cash, estranged friends become good friends Who: Prime Minister Narendra Modi will be at the inauguration ceremony of an ally today. The ally, though, is not a politician in India but the President-elect of Maldives, Ibrahim Mohamed Solih. The other friend: Maldives and India are historical allies. But history is not as important as money, said the Chinese. And they let Maldives dip into its cash bag to build infrastructure projects and more. Maldives President Abdulla Yameen was happy. So happy, Yameen blocked projects financed by India, such as $511 million deal with India's GMR Infrastructure to build an airport, a contract later awarded to Beijing Urban Construction Group Company Limited. The Maldives had also slowed down business approvals by Indian companies, visas for Indian workers etc. The cost: But China's largesse wasn't a donation but a loan that has to be repaid. Till date, the debt is said to be around $1.5 billion, more than a quarter of Maldives' GDP. That helped in the surprise defeat of Yameen in the presidential election this September. And winner Solih has promised to relook the projects being financed by China under the Belt and Road Initiative. Price of a hug: But to keep China away, Solih is asking for financial assistance from India, US and Saudi Arabia. An official said the nation needs $200-300 million dollars "straightaway". India had previously provided Maldives some $75 million credit before Yameen winked at Beijing, so there is a precedence. How much will India give this time? We will know after Modi hugs Solih today. Full story here

NEWS IN CLUES 5. Who did Benedict Cumberbatch portray in 'The Fifth Estate'? Clue 1: On Nov. 30, 2010, Interpol issued a Red Notice seeking his arrest. Clue 2: He was Time magazine's 'Person of the Year' in 2010. Clue 3: Born in Queensland, Australia, he's a naturalised citizen of a South American country. Scroll below for answer

X-PLAINED 6. Cambodia's fight for justice Senior Khmer Rouge leaders Nuon Chea and Khieu Samphan on Friday were handed life sentences on charges of genocide. The sentencing is a landmark verdict — for the first time the charge of genocide has been levied against any senior leader of the ultra-Maoist regime, which left an estimated two million Cambodians (a quarter of the country's population) dead during its four-year reign of terror. When: 1975-79 Where: Cambodia Who: The Khmer Rouge originated as the armed wing of the Communist Party of Kampuchea in the 60s. After a right-wing military coup toppled head of state Prince Norodom Sihanouk in 1970, the Khmer Rouge entered into a political coalition with him and began to mobilise support. Khmer forces finally took over the capital, Phnom Penh, and therefore the nation as a whole in 1975. What: The Khmer was led by a ruthless man called Pol Pot, who sought to transform Cambodia (then renamed 'Kampuchea') as an agrarian society and take it back to the glory days of the Khmer empire. He isolated Cambodia from the rest of the world and his regime set about emptying cities, abolishing schools, currency, private property and religion, and setting up rural collectives. Which: Ethnic Vietnamese and Cham Muslims in Cambodia were targeted, tortured and executed, along with the country's educated middle-class and intellectuals. Hundreds of thousands of others died from disease, starvation and overwork. How: The Vietnamese Army invaded Cambodia in 1979 and removed Pol Pot and the Khmer Rouge from power, after a series of violent battles on the border between the two countries. A UN-backed tribunal launched in 2006 then sought to bring specific Khmer leaders to justice, for the acts committed between 1975-79. Pol Pot: Died, aged 73, in a tiny jungle village, never having faced charges. Ta Mok: Military chief. Died, aged 80, while awaiting trial by the war crimes court. Ieng Sary: Foreign minister. Died, aged 87, while awaiting trial. Kaing Guek Eav: Prison chief. Age 75. Life imprisonment. Ieng Thirith: Social affairs minister. 83. Released. And now, Nuon Chea: (right side) Second-in-command to Pol Pot. Age 92. Life imprisonment. Khieu Samphan: Head of state. Age 87. Life imprisonment.

7. What's changing? A kilogram — also kelvin, ampere and mole Weighty physics is mainstream news these days — you may have read that the definition of 1 kilogram is changing. But 1 kg is not alone in its makeover, Kelvin, Ampere and Mole are giving her company. Wait, what? OK. Let's slow down. How much is a kilogram? You would, perhaps, say, 'duh, 1,000 grams', and you would be right. But how is a kilogram, a gram and other multiples of it defined? Got thinking? Since the year 1889, 1 Kg is defined by a cylinder of platinum-iridium alloy. That is, to ensure the 1 kg I have is the same mass of 1 kg you have, there is a constant — and that is that cylinder of platinum-iridium alloy, which is housed in nested bells in a vault in Paris (so no one scratches a piece off it and, you know, 1 kg becomes a little lighter). And to ensure that everyone around the world (or those who matter) had access to it, six identical copies of the cylinder was made... But... turns out the mass of the cylinder is not really a constant. The copies have changed their mass (by a small fraction) since 1889 — some increased a little and some shed weight a little (just by sitting there in a vault, think about that!). Which means the original cylinder in Paris too could have changed, which, in turn, means we need a better constant to define 1 kg. Got here? So, that constant is Planck constant — and it is no object, it is one of the fundamental physical constants, some of which you may have heard of, for instance, 'c', the speed of light. So how much is a Planck constant? That numerical value will be decided on May 20th 2019 — after which, 1 kg will be defined in relation to that value. (Go deeper here). And who is Kelvin? Kelvin is not a 'he' but an 'it' — it is the unit of thermodynamic temperature. But, hey, temperature is measured in Celsius, you say? You are right. But if you have come across a good Celsius scale, you would know the lowest Celsius is -273.15. Why so, because -273.5 Celsius = 0 Kelvin, that is absolute zero. So, how much is a Kelvin? It is defined by the triple point of water, which is the state at which the three phases of water — gas, liquid, and solid — will be at an equilibrium, and it is 273.16 Kelvin (0.01 Celsius). But the triple point of water, like our platinum-iridium alloy cylinder, is not really a constant. Hence, 1 Kelvin needs a better definition. And that leads us to another physical constant, Boltzmann constant 'k'. So now 1 Kelvin will be defined by the numerical value of 'k'. And others? Ampere, you know, is the unit of current. 1 ampere is defined as that constant current which, if maintained in two straight parallel conductors of infinite length, of negligible circular cross-section, and placed 1 m apart in vacuum, would produce between these conductors a force equal to 2 x 10-raised to- minus-7 N per metre of length. A silly definition, right? So 1 ampere will be defined by — you are right — another physical constant, elementary charge, 'e' (Nerds, you may remember 'e' from your electrical lessons). And mole, a unit of substance, too will get a new definition, related to Avogadro constant, N. Bonus info: Because you have been patient, here is a gift. What happens when the temperature is 0 K? Atoms become more or less motionless. And at 0 K all individual atoms lose their identity — and clung together to behave like one big atom. That state is called Bose-Einstein condensate, named after Albert Einstein and our very own Satyendra Nath Bose — the merits of reading an entire article!

8. In Karnataka a Congress ally is a BJP friend — or is it? The Congress and JD(S) are allies in Karnataka, keeping out the BJP, the party that won more seats in the state elections. And JD(S)-Congress alliance could be crucial in the coming general elections as well as Karnataka contributes 24 MPs. But in politics, there is never truly an evergreen friend... In Mysuru, the recent local body election sprung up a hung verdict — 22 BJP, 19 Congress, 18 JD(S), 1 BSP and five independent candidates were elected on September 3. Congress and JD(S) combined with help of BSP can vote to power the new Mayor and Deputy Mayor. But the trouble is, some JD(S) members in Mysuru are apparently in favour of supporting BJP because they say the two parties have been allies in Mysuru Corporation since 2013. Hence, as typical of Karnataka politics, the JD(S) legislators were sent to a resort to protect them from poaching. The election to the Mayor post is scheduled today 11.30 am. Will JD(S) break free and go with BJP here, or is it simply manoeuvering to get the Mayor post from Congress — JD(S) leader HD Kumaraswamy is the state CM even though the party is smaller in numbers. But Congress is keen on the post as it does not have a minister from the region in the government and had given the mayor post in Bengaluru corporation to JD(S); it also claims support of four independents.

9. Angry birds and animal spirits of executives Everyone loves (or loved) Angry Birds. And that has made the mobile games' maker, Finnish company Rovio, soar high into the sky — in 2009, the company was nearly bankrupt but as mobile users took interest in the battle between the birds and the pig that stole their eggs, the company's revenue shot to $50 million by 2013 (Read about the early days here). But no one goes after pigs forever. And Rovio realised that as the Angry Birds fatigue started taking a toll on mobile gamers and in turn its coffers, forcing it to cut down on staff strength in 2014. Yet, Mikael Hed and Niklas Hed, the cousins behind Rovio, did not give up. They made more games on the birds: Angry Birds 2, Angry Birds Friends and Angry Birds Match. And gamers loved it, but they also loved copycat games released by smaller companies. So Rovio made an Angry Birds movie in 2016, which earned about $350 million at the box office. Cut to today, Rovio reported third-quarter operating profit of 10.4 million euros ($11.80 million), up from 4.0 million euros a year ago. But the company has acknowledged it is not really smart to put all its eggs in one basket, especially if it of birds who have lost their eggs to a pig. It is now close to releasing a Netflix-like streaming service called Hatch (because it was hatched by the money got from birds), which is being tested in Britain and Nordic nations.

YOU SHARE YOUR B'DAY WITH... Source: IMDB

10. Big win undone by 'little' pitch Cambridge City Ladies (in white) thought they had won a cliffhanger. An extra-time winning goal ensured a 2-1 victory against arch-rivals Cambridge United Women in the SSE Women's FA Cup first round tie at Trinity Old Field Sports Ground, Trinity College, in England. But the joy was short-lived. Cambridge United Women lodged a complaint that the dimensions of the home team's pitch were "too short and too narrow". True enough, the measurements were indeed too small—by almost 14%. According to Competition Rule 13(b)i, the minimum length of the pitch has to be 100 m and minimum width 64 m. And after being independently measured after the game, the playing surface was found to be 94 m by 58.7 m. The FA Women's Football Board has ordered the match to be replayed. While Cambridge City Ladies were "obviously disappointed" and "surprised" with the decision, Cambridge United have welcomed the replay at Mildenhall Town FC this Sunday. The dimensions are, hopefully, spot on this time.

KEEPING TRACK Goodbye Binny, goodbye Jabong: Walmart is likely to lay off 40–50% of the workforce at online fashion retailer Jabong and merge it with Myntra, according to three sources aware of the development, as founder Binny Bansal's ouster hastens restructuring at Flipkart Group. Dislike FB: Facebook came under fire from US politicians and advertisers, a day after the NYT report on its dubious lobbying practice. "They have absolutely no morals," said a senior executive of the largest ad agency in the world and a Senator said the story was a "chilling reminder that big tech can no longer be trusted". Trump-ed: A federal judge on Friday granted CNN's request for a court order that would temporarily reinstate network correspondent Jim Acosta's White House press pass, which had been suspended indefinitely in the wake of a fiery exchange between the reporter and President Donald Trump a week earlier.

3 CURATED WEEKEND READS 1. Breakfast has resisted globalisation, until nowIt has always been the most conservative meal of the day. But some diners are starting to experiment 2. I was raised as a Native American. Then a DNA test rocked my identityFinding out my father lied about his heritage has forced me to radically question who I am. 3. Poonam Yadav, India’s pint-sized magicianCurrently on show at the ICC Women’s World T20, she’s taken more T20 international wickets this year than anyone else, male or female.

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Answer To NEWS IN CLUES Julian Assange. The US Justice Department is preparing charges against the WikiLeaks founder, reports in the US said. The 47-year-old, naturalised citizen of Ecuador appears to have “been charged” with a federal crime, according to newly discovered court documents filed by federal prosecutors from the Eastern District of Virginia. The revelation was inadvertently included in documents filed in an unrelated case in August. It’s not immediately clear what charges Assange would face.