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In what threatened to bringBengal’s health services to a

standstill, hundreds of seniorGovernment doctors on Fridaystarted tendering mass resig-nations in support of theirjunior colleagues even as theIndian Medical Association(IMA), in solidarity with theprotesting doctors, has calledfor a countrywide strike onJune 17.

Doctors in Kolkata, whohave been on strike for the lastfour days over the assault oftheir colleague, on Friday setsix conditions, including ChiefMinister Mamata Banerjee’sunconditional apology, to with-draw their protest. “We wantunconditional apology of ChiefMinister Mamata Banerjee forthe manner in which she hadaddressed us at the SSKMHospital yesterday. She shouldnot have said what she had,” aspokesperson of the jointforum of junior doctors, DrArindam Dutta, said.

Meanwhile in an attemptto solve the impasse, five seniordoctors met Mamata on Fridayevening. The physicians saidMamata has invited the juniordoctors to the State Secretariaton Saturday for a discussionover the issue. However, thejunior medicos turned downMamata’s offer.

The protesting doctors inBengal are demanding “ade-quate infrastructure and pro-tection against ‘hooligans’ onhospital premises.”

The apex body of doctorsin the country also renewed itsdemand for a Central law tocheck violence against health-care workers in hospitals andsaid that the law should providea minimum sentence of seven-year jail to violators.

The IMA has also decidedto continue their protest onSaturday and Sunday con-demning the continued suf-fering of the resident doctorsand repeated occurrence ofharassments. These protestswill include wearing blackbadges, dharnas, peace march-es. IMA has requested the sup-port from all associations of thefraternity to join the protest.

“IMA condemns the recentincident of violence againstDr Paribaha Mukherjee, whowas brutally attacked by a vio-lent mob at NRS MedicalCollege, Kolkata, and demandsan exemplary action by theState Government. All the legit-imate demands of the residentdoctors in West Bengal shouldbe accepted unconditionally,”RV Asokan, Secretary General

of IMA, said.The IMA called for a

“nationwide withdrawal ofnon-essential services in allhealthcare institutions” onMonday. All non-essential ser-vices including OPDs will bewithdrawn for 24 hours from6 am, while emergency andcausality services will contin-ue to function.

Meanwhile in Kolkata,more than 1,000 doctors of theRG Kar Medical College put intheir papers. A letter signed by126 doctors and addressed tothe Director of MedicalEducation said, “We the fol-lowing doctors of RG KarMedical College have so farbeen trying our level best torun the hospital servicessmoothly. You are aware thatthe present situation is not idealfor patient care services. Inresponse to the prevailing sit-uation as we are unable to pro-vide services, the followingdoctors would like to resignfrom our duty.”

Following the suit, about100 senior doctors, includingspecialists from thePostgraduate SSKM Hospital,tendered their resignation,Health Ministry sources saidadding about 175 senior doc-tors of NRS Medical Collegeand Hospital, the epicentre ofthe agitation, too resigned.

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At least five security per-sonnel were martyred on

Friday in an attack by the CPI-Maoist on a patrol party atKhukru block under Tiruldihpolice station in SeraikelaKharsawan district ofJharkhand, police said. Theattack, which comes days aheadof Prime Minister NarendraModi’s visit to Ranchi, was thefourth one since the Lok Sabhaelection results on May 23.

According to eyewitnesses,at least 15 bike-borne Naxalsattacked the police party whileit was patrolling in the vicini-ty of a weekly-haat known asKhukru haat. The rebels,sources said, stabbed thepolicemen with knives and

took away their guns.Additional Director

General of Police (ADG)Operations, ML Meena said theincident occurred around 6.30pm on Friday. The rebels, hesaid, attacked the policemenand escaped with three INSASrifles and two pistols. Therewere five policemen and a dri-ver in the patrolling team.While all the policemen in theteam were killed in the attack,the driver escaped unscathed,Meena said.

“The rebels escaped onbikes and took away arms fromthe policemen. They were notin their CPI-Maoist uniforms,”Meena said.

S eraike la-K hars awanSuperintendent of PoliceChandan Kumar Sinha said,“Police forces from theIchargah, Chandil and Nimdihthana area have rushed to thespot. We are trying to find outwhether a sixth cop too hasbeen killed.”

According to data with the

Ministry of Home Affairs(MHA), at least 18 of 24 dis-tricts in Jharkhand are LeftWing Extremism-affected. Inthe past one month, at least 20soldiers have sustained injuriesin attacks by the CPI-Maoist inJharkhand. The State, howev-er, has upped the ante andintensified its combing opera-tions against the rebels lately.

An official said two of thecops martyred were sub-inspectors and the rest threewere constables. According tosources, the time the rebelsattacked the police party, thevenue of the weekly haat wasabuzz with people.

“The rebels had firstattacked the cops with knivesand subsequently killed themafter chasing them down in thecrowded weekly haat. Theattackers fled the scene after fir-ing in the air,” said an eyewit-ness. Eyewitnesses said that therebels had fled towards Tamar,which was about 10 km fromKhukru.

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After extending the deadlinefor several times, India

has decided to impose addi-tional customs duties on 29 USproducts, including almond,walnut and pulses, with effectfrom June 16, making themexpensive for domestic con-sumers, sources said. A notifi-cation with this regard will beissued by the Finance Ministrysoon, they added.

The move will hurtAmerican exporters of these 29items as they will have to payhigher duties on these prod-ucts, making those items cost-lier in the Indian markets. Thecountry would get about $217million additional revenuefrom such imports.

The Government had onJune 21, 2018, decided toimpose these duties in retalia-tion to the US decision of sig-nificantly hiking customsduties on certain steel and alu-minium products.

America had in March lastyear imposed 25 per cent tar-iff on steel and a 10 per centimport duty on aluminiumproducts. Earlier, there was noduty on these goods.

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Former Delhi Metro chief ESreedharan, known as

Metro Man, has written toPrime Minister Narendra Modiurging him “not to agree” withthe Delhi Government’s pro-posal for giving women com-muters’ free rides.

In his letter to the PrimeMinister on June 10, a copy ofwhich was accessed by ThePioneer, Sreedharan wrote,“One shareholder cannot takea unilateral decision to giveconcession to one section ofcommunity and push DelhiMetro into inefficiency andbankruptcy.” Sreedharan,presently a Principal Adviser tothe Delhi Metro and LucknowMetro Rail Corporation(LMRC), sought PM Modi’s“personal intervention” in thematter.

“If the Delhi Governmentis so keen to help lady com-muters, I would suggest theDelhi Government can paydirectly to the lady commutersthe cost of their travel ratherthan make travel free on theMetro,” Sreedharan said in theletter.

Delhi Chief MinisterArvind Kejriwal recentlyannounced its decision to allow

free rides to women passengerson DTC buses and Metrotrains. Once implemented byAugust-September, the schemewould put an additional burdenof around �700-800 crore in thecurrent financial year. TheDelhi Government and Centreare equal partners in the DelhiMetro.

“When the first section ofthe Delhi Metro was to beopened in 2002, I had taken a

firm and conscious decisionthat no one would be given anytravel concession on DelhiMetro. This stand was taken tomaximise revenues so thatMetro fares could be kept lowso as to be affordable to ordi-nary citizens and at the sametime Metro would make suffi-cient operational surpluses topay back the loans taken fromJapan InternationalCooperation Agency (JICA),”Sreedharan wrote.

Reacting on theSreedharan’s letter, AAP MLASaurabh Bhardwaj said, “Wethank Sreedharanji for hisresponse and suggestion on thefree ride scheme for womanand girls. The scheme is gettingboth positive and negative sug-gestions but I would like toinform Sreedharanji that withthis scheme Metro station andits efficiency will not beharmed”.

“The Government hasboth idea and money to imple-ment the scheme. Further, asper your suggestion if theGovernment will depositmoney in all women’s account,we won’t be able to identifywho is spending on travellingin Metro as people can use themoney for any purpose.

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In the wake of protests by themedical fraternity in support

of agitating doctors in Kolkata,Union Health Minister HarshVardhan on Friday urged WestBengal Chief Minister MamataBanerjee not to make this sen-sitive matter a “prestige issue”and to ensure an “amicableend” to the stir. In a letter toMamata, the Union Ministerurged her to provide a secureworking environment for doc-tors.

He also appealed to the agi-tating doctors, particularly inWest Bengal, to hold symbol-ic protests and resume work sothat patients do not suffer.“Strike is certainly not the bestway to protest. Patients shouldnot be deprived of immediateand emergency healthcare facil-

ities,” he said.“It is a matter of concern

that the agitation of the doctorsin West Bengal is not headingtowards resolution but seems tobe getting aggravated. Bettercommunication with the doc-tors and a compassionateapproach to take care of thegenuine problems being facedby them in day-to-day func-tioning would definitely behelpful in tiding over the cri-sis which has been created,”Vardhan said in his letter toMamata.

“Despite getting beaten upso badly, doctors have onlyasked her (Mamata Banerjee)to provide them adequate secu-

rity and also demanded actionagainst the perpetrators of theviolence as per the law. Butinstead of doing that, shewarned them and gave an ulti-matum which angered doctorsacross the country and theyproceeded on strike,” he said.

“So if the chief ministeracts in a sensitive manner insuch a grave scenario, patientsacross the country will not suf-fer. I plead to the West Bengalchief minister to not makethis an issue of prestige,” headded.

Vardhan also supportedthe medical fraternity’s demandfor a Central law to check vio-lence against health care work-ers in hospitals and said suchcrimes should be made non-bailable. “Govt must pass a lawto make any attack on doctorsa non-bailable offence withmin 12-year jail. DraconianClinical Establishment Act thattreats doctors as criminals mustbe withdrawn (sic),” Vardhantweeted.

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In what her critics called a bidto play to the Hindu Bengali

gallery, Chief Minister MamataBanerjee on Friday said thatthose who chose to live inBengal would have to speakBengali. Vowing not to letBengalis become homeless inBengal, the Chief Minister said,“Though the BJP is trying toturn Bengal into a Gujarat, Iwill not allow them to do that.”

Addressing a meeting atKanchrapara, the home groundof senior BJP leader Mukul Royand his son Subhrasnghu anMLA who was recentlyexpelled from the TMC,Mamata said the BJP is tryingto “reproduce the Gujaratmodel in Bengal by targetingthe minorities and theBengalis,” vowing “I will not letthat happen.”

Promising not to allowBengalis to become foreignersin their own homeland, shesaid, “I will never allowBengalis to become homeless inBengal,” reminding those “whowant to live in this State willhave to speak in Bengal as wedo when we go to other States.”

Attacking the BJP forinjecting alien culture in theState, she said, “When we go toPunjab, we speak in Punjabi,when we go to Delhi, we speakin Hindi and even if I do notknow Tamil I try to speak aword or two in Tamil whenev-er I go to Tamil Nadu,” she said,adding, “If you are in Bengal,you have to speak Bengali. Wehave to bring Bengali forwardas a language.”

Mamata’s statement comesagainst the backdrop of herparty TMC losing a largeground to the surging BJP in apolarised atmosphere in theLok Sabha elections.

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Prime Minister NarendraModi on Friday lashed out

at countries “sponsoring, aid-ing and funding” terrorismand told top leaders at theShanghai CooperationOrganisation (SCO) Summitthat such states must be heldaccountable, in a veiled refer-ence to Pakistan whose premierImran Khan was among theaudience. “Countries sponsor-ing, aiding and funding ter-rorism must be held account-able,” he said.

Addressing the SCOSummit here, Modi also calledfor a global conference to com-bat the scourge of terrorism. Hehighlighted the spirit and idealsof the SCO to strengthen coop-eration in the fight against ter-rorism. India advocates a ter-rorism-free society, he said.

“During my visit to SriLanka last Sunday, I visited theSt Anthony’s church, where Iwitnessed the ugly face of ter-

rorism which claims the lives ofinnocents anywhere,” Modisaid, referring to one of the sitesof the devastating EasterSunday attacks that killed 258people in Sri Lanka.

According to the BishkekDeclaration, the member statesstressed that acts of terrorismand extremism cannot be jus-tified. “They note that inter-fering in other countries’domestic affairs under the pre-text of fighting terrorism andextremism as well as usingterrorist, extremist and radicalgroups to achieve one’s ownmercenary ends is unaccept-able,” it said.

The Declaration added,“The member states condemnterrorism in all its forms andmanifestations. They call on theinternational community topromote global cooperation incombatting terrorism with thecentral role of the UN by fullyimplementing correspondingUNSC resolutions and the UNGlobal Counter-TerrorismStrategy in compliance with theUN Charter and the principlesof international law withoutpoliticisation and double stan-dards and with respect for thesovereignty and independenceof all countries.”

Continued on Page 4

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With arrest of six burglars,Delhi Police on Friday

claimed to have busted a gangof robbers who allegedly usedto steal copper wire fromDelhi’s All India Radio HighPower Transmission AerialField near Mukerjee Nagar.Police have also recovered twohundred kilogram (Kg) copperwire from the possession of theaccused.

The accused have beenidentified as Umed (33),Akshay(22), Abhishek (22) allresidents of Hapur, UttarPradesh (UP), Shan Mohamad(24), Shahzad (26), both resi-dents of Delhi's Seemapuriarea and a receiver of stolenitems identified as AasMohamad (26) a resident ofGTB Enclave in Delhi.

According to VijayantaArya, the DeputyCommissioner of Police(DCP), North West district,several incidents of theft werereported by All India RadioHigh Power TransmissionAerial field in Mukherjee Nagar

police station following whicha case under sections457/380/411/34 of Indian PenalCode (IPC) was registered andinvestigation was taken up.

"Police teams were formedand the staff of the facility wasalerted and told to keep an eyeopen for anything strange.Subsequently police team alsokept eyes on the activities in thearea which led to the arrest ofthree accused identified asShan, Shahzad and Abhishekwhile they were stealing copperwire again from the facility.Police recovered 90 kg of cop-per wire from their possession,"said the DCP.

"On their instance, thereceiver of stolen items, AasMohamadd was arrested fromGTB Enclave and police hadalso recovered 110 kg of cop-per wire from his possession.On the instance of the accusedpersons, several raids wereconducted in which two anoth-er co-accused persons Umedand Akshay were also arrestedfrom Hapur," said the DCPadding that further investiga-tion is going on.

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The sleuths of New Delhidistrict of Delhi Police have

arrested two members of infa-mous ‘Thak Thak gang’involved in cases of theft andsnatching from slow movingcars at red lights across thenational Capital. Police saidthat these members wereactive in Delhi and itsperipheral areas.

The accused have beenidentified as Jabbar andMohammad Furkan both res-idents of Meerut in UttarPradesh. According toMadhur Verma, the DeputyCommissioner of Police(DCP), New Delhi district, inview of the incidents of theftsby Thak Thak Gangs andstreet crimes in the area, thepolice presence was enhancedand various teams of policepersonnel were formed tokeep a check on such activities.

"On June 14 about 5.00 pma police team present at JanpathRed Light, Outer Circle ofConnaught Place heard some-one screaming chor-chor(thief-thief) following whichthe team immediately respond-ed and rushed towards theplace from where the screamswere heard," said the DCP.

"They saw two personsrunning towards Sansad Margand caught them after a brief

chase. The victim VikramSingh who was laso present atthe spot reported that theseaccused knocked his car whenhis car was standing at RedLight and after distracting him;they stole his purse from thedashboard of the car and ranaway," said the DCP.

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Expressing solidarity withprotesting colleagues in

Kolkata, doctors at severalGovernment and private hos-pitals in Delhi on Friday boy-cotted work and demonstratedagainst an attack on their col-leagues in West Bengal.Wearing bandages on fore-head or helmets, doctors underthe banner of the ResidentDoctors' Association (RDA)held out marches on the AIIMScampus on Friday.

Doctors at Centre-runSafdarjung Hospital and LadyHardinge Medical College andHospital and hospitals run bythe Delhi Government such asLok Nayak Jayaprakash (LNJP)Hospital, Dr BR AmbedkarMedical College and Hospital,DDU Hospital, Sanjay GandhiMemorial Hospital, Institute ofHuman Behaviour and AlliedSciences, and private hospitallike Sir Ganga Ram HospitalFriday also joined the stir. Theresident doctors associations ofGB Pant and Guru NanakHospital, associated with theMaulana Azad Medical Collegehave also joined the protest.

In a memorandum sub-mitted to the Union HealthMinister Dr Harsh Vardhan,doctors demanded a centrallaw against hospital violence.They have sought immediatesecurity and intervention of theCentre to stop the "politicallymotivated atrocity" on theprotesting doctors in WestBengal. They have alsodemanded recruitment of both"armed and unarmed trainedcompetent security guards" atall Government health facilitiesand increasing the number ofsecurity staff at hostels.

There were some demandsmade by the Resident Doctors

Association in the letter whichwas sent to the Health Minister,Government of India, adapta-tion of a uniform security codeapplicable to all Governmenthealthcare facilities across thecountry. And to formulate anSOP for the entry and exit pro-tocols in wards, emergencies,and OPD and hostel premises.They also demanded to deployarmed securities in hostelpremises of the hospitals.

There was a shutdown ofoutpatient departments(OPDs), routine operation the-atre services and ward visits,except emergency services inseveral hospitals of the city.However, in the wake of thestrike, the AIIMS has institut-ed contingency measures totake care of the patients admit-ted, including those in theICUs and wards.

A senior official of LNJPhospital said that the OPDservices at the hospital areshut, and only emergencydepartment is functioning. Hesaid patient services will getaffected as this is the DelhiGovernment’s biggest hospital,but, as fellow doctors, a standhas been taken to show sup-port.

At Sir Ganga RamHospital, the private OPD wasclosed for today as a mark ofsolidarity, officials said. "Alldoctors of Sir Ganga RamHospital are fully in support ofour colleagues in West Bengal

and strongly protest againstgrowing tendency of violenceagainst doctors," a hospitalspokesperson said.

The DMA executive statedthat the organisation is readyfor an agitation to press forstrong legislation and strictaction against violence at hos-pitals. The Indian MedicalAssociation (IMA) has direct-ed the members of all its state

branches to stage protests andwear black badges on Friday.

Meanwhile strike by doc-tors affected OPDs in hospitalsas people could be seen run-ning around. There were manypatients with their family mem-bers, who wore worried look inabsence of medical help.Doctors said they want to workbut their security should beensured by the State.

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During surprise inspectionat Delhi's Tihar jail,

authorities found a mobilephone from the prison cell offormer Haryana Chief MinisterOm Prakash Chautala onThursday.

According to AdditionalInspector General, Tihar, RajKumar, a surprise inspectionwas conducted on Thursdayand a mobile phone, a charger, tobacco pouch, and awire were recovered from theprison cell.

"During enquiry,Chautala's co-inmate Ramesh claimed that the items belonged to him," saidthe officials.

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Five people were killed fol-lowing personal enmity in

the national Capital duringlast 24 hours. A 40 year-oldcriminal along with his 28year-old associate was shotdead by unidentified bike-borne assailants in NandNagari area of North-EastDelhi on Friday afternoon. Insecond incident, a 35 year oldman was shot dead by someunidentified miscreants in WestDelhi area on Thursday night.In two separate incidentsreported from Delhi’s OuterNorth, Bhalswa Dairy area, a42-year-old property dealerand a 17-year-old boy wereshot dead over personal enmi-ty on Thursday.

In first incident reportedfrom North-East district, thedeceased was identified asKhurvesh, a criminal involvedin 41 cases, while his associateidentified as Kanchi was also

named in several cases. Bothwere residents of Nand Nagri.Khurvesh was also declared a‘Bad Character’ (BC) by NandNagri Police Station.

According to Atul KumarThakur, the DeputyCommissioner of Police(DCP), North-East district, aPolice Control Room (PCR)call was received at 12.12 pmon Friday afternoon that therewas an accident near NandNagri red light in which firingsound was heard.

“Acting on the call a policeteam rushed to the spot but theinjured were taken to GTBHospital where they weredeclared brought dead by thedoctors,” said the DCP.

“Initial investigation sug-gests that Khurvesh had aquarrel over a petty issue inMunshi Market Nand Nagri ayear ago. Prime facie personalenmity was behind the twinmurders,” said the DCP.

“The accused had fired

seven to eight rounds onKhurvesh and Kanchi. Twoaccused persons involved in themurders have been identifiedand raids are being conductedto bring them to justice.Meanwhile one suspect hasbeen apprehended for ques-tioning,” said the DCP.

“Police has registered acase under appropriate sec-tions at Nand Nagri police sta-tion. Police teams have beenformed who are scanningCCTV cameras in the area toknow the crime sequence,” saidthe DCP adding that furtherinvestigation underway.

Meanwhile in the secondincident, a 35 year old man wasshot dead by some unidentifiedmiscreants in West Delhi areaon Thursday night. Thedeceased has been identified asAmit Kochar (35), who earlierworked in call centre and wasrecently unemployed.

According to MonikaBhardwaj, the Deputy

Commissioner of Police(DCP), West district, onThursday night, Kochar was athis home with his four friendswhen at around 10.50 pm,someone rang the door bell.

“Kochar went out and satin the car of the unidentifiedperson who had come with fewother boys. After 10 minutesKochar’s friends sitting in hishouse suddenly heard gun-shots,” said the DCP.

“His friends rushed outsideand found Kochar in the carwith bullet injuries. Theyrushed him to a nearby hospi-tal where the doctors declaredhim brought dead on arrival,”said the DCP.

“A case has been regis-tered and police teams havebeen formed. Police teams arescanning CCTV footage in thearea to nab the accused behindthe killing. Police is investigat-ing the case with all anglesincluding personal enmity,”said the DCP.

In Bhalswa Dairy of OuterNorth district, two persons,including a juvenile, were shotdead in two separate incidents.In the first incident, a 42-year-old property dealerChandrashekhar was shot deadon Thursday evening.

Police suspect that theaccused persons had killedChandrashekhar, a resident ofShradhanand Colony, oversome monetary or propertyissue. “The accused personshave been identified. Policeare trying to nab them who arefrom the same locality and areabsconding,” a senior policeofficer said.

A 17-year-old youth wasshot dead by two persons onThursday night in BhalswaDairy area. According to asenior police official, VishalMishra, the deceased, had aquarrel with some persons ofthe same locality around threedays ago over a petty issue.

“Prima facie it seems like

the accused had fired over himover some dispute. Police haveidentified both the accusedpersons, who are also juveniles,and trying to apprehend them,”said the senior police official.

According to Anil Mittal,Additional Public RelationOfficer (APRO), Delhi Police,the murders have all been con-firmed to be personal enmityrelated. “Overall heinous crime

in 2019 is down by 10.5 per-cent, crime by use of fire armsis down by 5.65 per cent andcrime against women is downby 11.5 per cent as comparedto previous year”.

New Delhi: Concerned withthe five murders being report-ed from various parts of thenational Capital, ChiefMinister Arvind Kejriwalappealed to LieutenantGovernor Anil Baijal andUnion Home Minister AmitShah to urgently look into lawand order situation of thenational Capital as five peoplewere shot dead in 24 hours.

Notably, Delhi Policecomes under the jurisdictionof the Ministry of Home

Affairs (MHA), presentlyheaded by Shah.

“Five murders in Delhi inlast 24 hours is an extremelyserious situation. I appeal to@LtGovDelhi & @HMOIndia

to urgently look into the lawand order situation of thenational capital,” KejriwalTweeted. Replying to Kejriwalon twitter Delhi Police tweet-ed “The murders have all beenconfirmed to be personalenmity related. Accused pre-viously known to victim andalready arrested in some cases.Overall heinous crime in 2019is down by 10.5% Crime by useof fire arms is down by 5.65%Crime against women is downby 11.5%”. SR

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The race for the 62,000 seatsof the Under Graduate

(UG) admissions in DelhiUniversity (DU) will be overtonight. More than three lakhstudents have applied for var-ious UG courses till Fridayevening.

The online registrationsfor the UG courses were start-ed on May 30 and will contin-ue till Friday i.e, 14 June 2019.The students can fill the onlineforms up to 12:00pm. The firstcut off is likely to be released on20th June , second on 25th June, third on 29th June and fourthand fifth on 4th July and 9thJuly respectively .

As per the officials, thelargest numbers of applica-tions were received for theB.Com honors. Further, as perthe data available on the web-site of DU, till Friday eveningabout 336548 students haveregistered online on the UGadmission portal, of which232282 are paid applications.Till Sunday, the varsity hasreceived a large number ofapplication for English with90,000 applications, 83,000 forPolitical Science, 80,000 forBA (programe), 80,000 forEconomic and 76,000 forHistory. There are 62000 seatsfor UG courses.

A total of 138412 applica-tions have been received underGeneral category while

48698 applications havebeen received under OtherBackwards Caste (OBC), 31039-Schedule Category (SC) and31039 applications werereceived under Schedule Tribescategory. Besides, a total of7722 applications have receivedunder the new EconomicallyWeaker Section (EWS) catego-ry which has been implement-ed from this academic session.

Officers on Special Duty(OSD) admissions, SukantoDatta, said, “The exact final fig-ures will be available only afterthe release of examinations asthe students choose and markmore than one subject. Thus,once the applications will beanalyzed and the students willtake admission in particularcourse, the figures exact figureswill come out.”

Some students who arerunning from pillar to post gettheir EWS certificates donepleaded for extra time for fill-ing online registrations. “I haveapplied for EWS category but

the certificates yet to come. Itwill be helpful if the varsityextends the date of online reg-istrations of UG courses for aday or two will be helpful forhundreds of students like me,”said Heena, a student.

However, an official oncondition of anonymous saidthere is no chance to extend thedates of online registrations asthe varsity is already runninglate as it started the admissionprocess late this year than theprevious. There is a chance iflarge number of studentsrequests, otherwise there is nohope.”

Besides, the first cut off ofNon-collegiate WomanEducation Board (NCWEB)will coincide with the secondcut off of regular colleges. Thetentative dates of the examina-tion for entrance based cours-es will begin from from 30thJune to 6th July and admitcards for the same, are likely tobe available on the websitefrom 22nd of June.

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Delhi’s power regulatorDelhi Electricity

Regularity Commission(DERC) has notified groupand virtual net metering frame-work, paving way for installa-tion of rooftop and agri-solarplants in residential areas andvillages in the city.

With the move, thousandsof Resident WelfareAssociations (RWAs) and lakhof individuals will be able totake advantage of the schemesof the Delhi Government in thesolar energy sector, with a par-ticular push to rooftop solarenergy.

Under ‘Group NetMetering’ (GNM), the surpluselectricity exported into thegrid through a net meter will beadjusted with other serviceconnection(s) of the same con-sumer in the same discomarea. Whereas, Virtual Net

Metering (VNM) allowthe renewable energy gen-erator to export electrici-ty into the grid throughrenewable energy meteror gross meter which canbe adjusted in more thanone electricity service con-nection of participatingconsumers in the samediscom area.

A government offi-cial said that the GNM frame-work would be applicable to allconsumers category in Delhi.Whereas, VNM frameworkshall be applicable for residen-tial consumers, group housingsocieties, offices of govern-ment, local authorities andrenewable energy generatorsregistered under MukhyaMantri Kisaan Aay BadhotariYojna. Under the scheme, theDelhi government offices andbuildings mainly of Delhi JalBoard, Health department,Public Works Departments

(PWD) are mandated to pro-cure green power generatedfrom the plant installed underthe scheme.

Delhi Power MinisterSatyendar Jain said that this isa big push for renewable ener-gy in Delhi. “The DelhiGovernment has clearly out-lined its energy vision for sus-tainability, decentralization,and anti-corruption. In col-laboration with the DERC,honest politics and ethical pol-icy decisions have been takenin the last five years which have

ensured that tariffs don’trise in the state of Delhi,making it the only Indiancity and state to do so,” hesaid.

These guidelines willenable the speedy imple-mentation solar projectsunder of Mukhya MantriKisaan Aay BadhotariYojna and MukhyaMantri Solar Power

Yojana for domestic sectorconsumers in Delhi, helpingthe city take giant strides in sus-tainability and decentraliza-tion, he said.

“I urge the DERC, powerdepartment and the discoms tocome together and incentivizedecentralized green energyproduction for the sake of ourfuture generations. I welcomeall citizens, corporate and agri-cultural land owners and oper-ators to take benefit of thisframework,” he added.

As per guidelines, the

renewable energy systemcapacity under GNM andVNM shall not be less than fivekilowatts and more than 5000kilo Watt. It also highlightedthat distribution licensee shallfacilitate and bear the capitalexpenditure on account of ‘ser-vice line cum development’(SLD) and network augmenta-tion towards renewable energyprojects registered underMukhya Mantri Kisaan AayBadhotari Yojna. The costincurred by distributionlicensee shall be passingthrough in ‘Aggregate RevenueRequirement’ (ARR) for theschemes implemented up to31st March 2022.

In order to get the GNM orVNM connection, the appli-cant shall submit an applicationalong with non-refundable feesof Rs 1000 to discom to carryout the three-tier process of fea-sibility analysis, registrationand connection agreement.

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Aam Aadmi Party (AAP)has expressed its disagree-

ment with the proposal of theDelhi Metro Rail Corporation(DMRC) in which it said thatthe scheme to provide freemetro ride to women will takeover the next six to eightmonths.

AAP Chief SpokespersonSaurabh Bharadwaj said that allof us use smart cards to travelby Metro. To my mind, a sim-ple solution to rollout the freemetro for women scheme is toissue pink smart cards to

women travellers. “Of the several entry gates

at every station, all that needsto be done is to reserve one gatefor women travellers alone anddepute a CISF jawan, homeguard or a civil defense volun-teer to ensure there is no mis-use. This would be the onlymanual supervision required,”he said in a statement.

Bharadwaj said, “Only onechange needs to be made to thesoftware used in the turnstiles.The entry gates meant for maletravelers should be pro-grammed to reject pink smartcards or tokens, and thewomen-only turnstiles shouldaccept any card or token so asto allow even women travelersto purchase tokens or cards ifthey wish to give up the sub-sidy.”

Offering to help DMRC inimplementing the scheme,Bharadwaj said, “The softwarechanges will not take more thantwo weeks and I am happy toundertake the project forDMRC without charging anyfees as a public service,” he said,adding that even the deputingof personnel to prevent misuseof the pink cards can be com-pleted within two weeks.

��**�� 67�%6*0'�

After free ride scheme inmetro and bus, the Delhi

Government is set to form atask force for the safety andsecurity of woman in publictransport especially in buses.“The Task force will conductboth off and on ground review-ing and monitoring of all exist-ing schemes for women’s safe-ty in Delhi, and propose newplans for strengtheningwomen’s safety in the capital”explained Jasmine Shah, ViceChairperson , Delhi DialogueCommission (DDC).

The Task force, constitut-ed with the approval of

Transport Minister KailashGahlot, has been entrusted with the task of eval-uating and monitoring of var-ious initiatives taken by the Government in the direction of women safety,including installation of CCTVand panic buttons in buses, andstrengthening the DelhiGovernment’s flagship ‘BusMarshal scheme’, which hasbeen in place in allGovernment run DTC busessince 2015.

“The Task force will com-prise of representatives from allstakeholders of public transportin the capital as well as eminentexperts from civil society work-

ing in the field of Women’s safe-ty and public transport inDelhi. It would also include twodaily female commuters nom-inated by transport Minister”said Shah.

The members of the Taskforce will be appointed for aperiod of one year, or until thetenure of the present DelhiGovernment.

One of the key mandates ofthis Task Force is to recommend and monitor the implementation of all ini-tiatives undertaken by theTransport Department forwomen safety.

The Task Force will com-prise of representatives from

the DDC, concerned govern-ment departments, DelhiCommission for Women(DCW), Delhi Police, NGOsand two members from thecivil society.

According to a statementfrom Chief Minister Office(CMO), “The Task Force willassess and recommendimprovements in the effective-ness of bus marshalls pro-gramme. Gender sensitisationof drivers, conductors, mea-sures like installation of panicbuttons and CCTVs in busesalong with other importantwomen safety measures will be part of the mandate of thisTask Force”.

��**�� 67�%6*0'�

In order to make the Delhiroads pedestrian friendly, the

Delhi Development Authority(DDA) has approved the DraftRegulations for EnhancingWalkability and Green Mobilityin the city. The policy will beforwarded to the Ministry ofHousing and Urban Affairs forfinal notification. The policywas approved in a meetingchaired by the L-G, Delhi AnilBaijal on Friday. The meetingwas also attended by the vicechairman (VC) of DDA, TarunKapoor and other senior officialsof the authority.

The Policy aims to improvepedestrian friendly walkabilityby creating a quality urban envi-ronment that facilitates socialinteraction on streets wheremore people are encouraged towalk as the first choice to under-take short journeys.

The following areas wheresuch facility will be made areboth North and Sotuh Campus,ITO, Uttam Nagar crossing,C h a n d n i C h o w kmeeting,ISBT,INA, HauzKhas-IIT, Nehru Place, Bhikaji KamaPlace, Karol Bagh,Saket-MalviyaNagar, Kamla Nagar, LajpatNagar, Lakshmi nagar, Sector-21Metro Station, Dwarka, Adchiniarea on Aurobindo Marg, OldDelhi and New Delhi RailwayStation, Mandi House,PuranaQuila,PragatiMaidan andDelhi Zoo Area and InderlokStation Area.

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A delegation of ResidentDoctors Association of AIIMS,Safdarjung Hospital, RamManohar Lohia Hospital,United Resident and DoctorsAssociation of India (URDA)and Federation of ResidentDoctors Association (FORDA),met Vardhan and gave a rep-resentation to him on the vio-lence against doctors in WestBengal.

Reacting to Vardhan’sremarks for Central law, theIMA thanked the CentralGovernment for respondingpositively to its demand. “IMAwholeheartedly thanks thePrime Minister of India and theCentral Government and wel-comes the decision on behalf ofthe medical fraternity of India,”it said in a statement.

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From Page 1In an apparent reference to

recent spate of violence inneighbouring Bhatpara andNaihati area dominated by BJPstrongman and MP ArjunSingh who had just before theelections quit the TMC to jointhe saffron outfit, Mamata said“I will not allow the Bengalipeople to get assaulted by thepeople who come from outsidethe State.”

In the recently concludedelections her party got 22 seatsas against BJP’s 18 out of a totalof 42 seats.

Apart from the fleeingHindu Bengali votes the TMCleadership has held the 50 lakhHindi-speaking votes for thesaffron outfit’s rise.

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Karnataka Chief MinisterHD Kumaraswamy on

Friday inducted two indepen-dent MLAs to his Cabinet in amove to douse the rebellionwhich has threatened the yearold JD(S) –Congress collationGovernment in the State. ARShankar and H Nagesh weresworn in as cabinet-rankMinisters by GovernorVajubhai Vala who adminis-tered them the oath of officeand secrecy at a ceremony at theRaj Bhavan. These two inde-pendent MLAs had threatenedto join BJP andKumaraswamy’s move is polit-ically seen as to stop them fromjoining BJP which has 104MLAs in its kitty.

The MLAs were inducted,one each from the JD(S) andCongress quota. Shankar hasreportedly been asked to mergehis outfit KarnatakaPragnyavantha Janatha Party

(KPJP) with the Congress Partyimmediately. Former ChiefMinister and chairman of coor-dination committee of the coali-tion Government Siddaramaiahwas man behind this move tosave the coalition Governmentled by HD Kumaraswamy.

This is the second cabinetexpansion since the two partiesstitched up an alliance to formthe Government after a frac-tured mandate in the LegislativeAssembly election held last year.

Shankar was a Minister inJune 2018, during the initialdays of the Government. Hewas dropped months later inDecember for refusing tobecome an associate member ofthe Congress. Following this, hewas seen in the BJP and is nowback with the Congress.

When Shankar was movingtowards the BJP, he had writtento the Governor withdrawingsupport to the Government.Since the BJP was unable toform the Government, both

Shankar and Nagesh once againsupported the coalition.

Shankar had defeated for-mer Assembly Speaker KBKoliwad of the Congress fromthe Ranebennur constituency.Nagesh, meanwhile, is a formerCongress member fromMulbagal constituency. He wasa member of the Congressparty and also an aspirant forthe ticket from the seat.However, the Congress decid-ed to give the ticket to MLA GManjunath. He was, however,defeated in the recent polls.

Post Lok Sabha drubbingby the BJP, both Congress andthe JD(S) are struggling tokeep their flock together andthe sword of un certainty ishanging on them threateningthe very existence of theGovernment. In the Lok Sabhaelections both JD(S) andCongress lost miserably to theModi wave and won just oneseat each in the 28 parliamen-tary constituencies.

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Nine more children died onFriday in Bihar's

Muzaffarpur district, which isreeling under an outbreak ofbrain fever, taking the toll to 63this month, with officials main-taining the death were due tohypoglycemia.

All the victims have fallen prey to hypoglycemia, a condition caused by a verylow level of blood sugar and electrolyte imbalance, theysaid.

The 63 children died intwo hospitals of Muzaffarpur,one of which was visited bystate Health Minister MangalPandey during the day.

A statement issued byMuzaffarpur district adminis-tration said that till 6 pm onFriday, six children died in thestate-run Sri Krishna MedicalCollege and Hospital

(SKMCH) while three died atKejriwal hospital, which isoperated by a trust.

Since June 1, 178 and 72children were admitted inSKMCH and Kejriwal hospitalrespectively with suspectedcases of Acute EncephalitisSyndrome (AES) but most ofthem were found to be victimsof hypoglycemia.

Nine children undergoingtreatment at SKMCH are seri-ous, the release said, addingthat five children are critical inKejriwal hospital.

The health minister whoheld a meeting with doctorsand officials at the SKMCHsaid six more ambulances willbe available there from Fridayand a 100-bed new ward will bemade operational soon.

The Kejriwal Hospital'smanagement also agreed toincrease the number of beds ifthe need arises, he said.

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Two local Lashkar-e-Tayyeba(LeT) terrorists were

gunned down by the joint teamof security forces in Awantiporatehsil of South Kashmir'sPulwama district on Fridaymorning.

The operation waslaunched in the area after receiv-ing credible inputs about thepresence of terrorists in the area.

Police spokesman said,“during the search operation,the hiding terrorists fired on thesearch party. The fire was retal-iated leading to an encounter. Inthe ensuing encounter, 02 ter-rorists were killed and the bod-ies were retrieved from the siteof encounter”.

Police spokesman said, “thekilled terrorists have been iden-tified as Irfan Ahmad Degu@Abu Zarar of Naina LitterPulwama and Tasaduk AminShah of Kadlabal Pampore”.

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The Ministry of EarthSciences on Saturday said

that cyclonic storm ' Vayu' islikely to recurve and hit theKutch coast of Gujarat. “Vayuis likely to recurve on June 16and hit Kutch between June17-18,” M Rajeevan, Secretaryof the Ministry of EarthSciences said.

However, the intensity ofthe cyclone is likely to getreduced, Rajeevan said, addingthat it may hit the coast as acyclonic storm or a deepdepression. He said the Gujaratgovernment has been alertedabout the possible recurvatureof the cyclonic storm.

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New Delhi: Union MinorityAffairs Minister MukhtarAbbas Naqvi on Friday hit outat the Congress for raisingdoubts over the use of EVMs inthe Lok Sabha polls, saying theOpposition party is showingarrogance instead of intro-specting the defeat in the elec-tions.

The 'EVM vilaap mandli'has become active again andwhile earlier they demandedtallying of VVPAT slips withEVM count, they are nowlooking for new excuses afterthere was no mismatch, theaffairs minister said. PNS

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Mumbai: The CBI andMaharashtra CID told theBombay High Court on Fridaythat it had, to some extent,established commonalitybetween the killings of ratio-nalist Narendra Dabholkar andactivist Govind Pansare.

A division bench ofJustices S C Dharmadhikariand Gautam Patel was told thatin the Dabholkar case all theaccused have been arrestedbut the weapon used in the

crime is yet to be recovered.The CBI informed the court

that an operation will be carriedout within a month to searchand retrieve four country-madepistols, which were allegedly dis-mantled and thrown by theaccused into a creek in adjoin-ing Thane district.

“We are awaiting necessarypermissions from governmentagencies to undertake theoperation,” CBI counsel AnilSingh told the court. PTI

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The Bombay High Court onFriday granted bail to four

right-wing Hindu activists andaccused in the 2006 Malegaonbomb blast case, seven yearsafter they were arrested in thecase.

The four accused — DhanSingh, Lokesh Sharma,Manohar Narwaria andRajendra Chaudhary — hadmoved the Bombay High Court

in 2016, after a special NIAcourt had rejected their bailplea.

Granting bail to the fouraccused, a HC division bench ofJustices Indrajit Mahanty andAM Badar ruled the fouraccused should furnish �50,000bail bond each and two suretiesof same amount to get the bail.They ordered the four accusedto remain present during thetrial court until they wereexempted.

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They could be rebels but they choseto be who they are, not ashamedor diffident or overtly proud, buthonest and true to their grain. Andin a country inured to a democ-

racy that is now governed by militarists, theyembody a new kind of nationalism and peo-ple’s power that’s subtly changing the socio-economic narrative of Thailand, demolish-ing every known stereotype and forcing a pol-icy change. You could call them social entre-preneurs, who are rescuing vulnerable com-munities, redrawing the Thai identity beyondthe sex-tourism gaze, lending voices to realissues and solving them in their micro-envi-rons. These little dots of resistance to statusquo may not qualify as protests or politicalmovements but are more collective impactsof individual efforts that can no longer bebrushed under the carpet. There’s an old Thaiproverb, “The best time to plant a tree was20 years ago. The second best time is now.”And this second best time is being spearhead-ed by the country’s globalised youth, who areback to reclaim their destiny on homeground, one that is buried in the legends ofSiam. And they are talking in a language thateverybody understands — tourism.

Beginning as a marine biologist, SirachaiShin Arunrugstichai had a passion for pho-tography and hoped to be a journalist cov-ering stories like protests, religious events andpolitics in Thailand. But lost in a crowd, heapplied his newly-acquired skill set to some-thing that his years as a deep sea diver hadtaught him, the need to conserve marine habi-tats which Thailand was fast losing to over-tourism and the beach economy. His photostories on what once was and what it hasbecome are telling reminders of humandepredations of natural resources that couldspell doom for Thailand’s tourism sector,which constitutes 20 per cent of the nation’sGDP. His work on Maya Bay, the sharks ofthe Andamans Sea, the plight of waternomads, the reappearance and disappearanceof fish, restoration and regrowth of corals andmangroves has gone a long way in influenc-ing tourism policy and getting a global audi-ence. Thanks to him, the authorities havebravely shut down the fragile Maya Bay forfour years, crumbling as it was under theweight of 5,000 footfalls when it is equippedto handle only 170 visitors at a time. As thesharks are slowly making their way back tothe waters there, Shin asserts he isn’t againsttourism as such but over-exploitation. Heargues if there is no sustainable managementmodule, then there would be no tourist econ-omy or marine resources left for livelihoodor humanity. “With our dependency on richresources of the surrounding two seas, themarine and coastal ecosystems of Thailandhave borne the cost. In accommodating masstourism, which does not exactly serve the pur-pose of conservation of resources, andunable to prevent continuous degradationthroughout the years, we need to change now.Some specks of islands have completely

changed in five years and I document thechanges to build a consciousness.” Shin nowworks closely with the Tourism Authority ofThailand, which for the first time is regulat-ing the beach economy with permits, grad-ed arrivals and limiting stay periods on thecountry’s pristine stretches. Shin’s narrative-driven photo stories are now what he callsLego blocks that make for a larger story ofexploitation and a new-age colonisation bygreed. Even the Western tourists, who onceturned Thailand’s sylvan beaches into anindulgent and hedonistic hideaway, are nowbeing forced to reshape their ideas of the per-missive and expansive Orient.

Then there is Lee Ayu Chuepa, who hasturned Thailand coffee, traditionally very bit-ter and had with condensed milk, into a spe-cialty brew with applied research and his UStraining on growing and roasting tech-niques. Born to the Akha hill tribe, the tra-ditional growers of coffee, he wasn’t reallycommitted to it till he completed university,worked for an NGO and learnt how curat-ing specialty coffees could lead to high eco-nomic worth. So he turned agriculturists intoagri-preneurs and made coffee, a crop he hadgrown up with, as a tool of community devel-opment. Having experienced the creaturecomforts that he obtained through a Westernknowledge system, he realised they wouldhave no meaning in a resource-scarce ordepleted world. “Look at what our conve-niences and aspirations have given us. Wechased gains but look where it has landed us,a plastic sea, no water and poverty of our peo-ple,” says Lee, highlighting the growing Thaiconsciousness to save neighbourhoods, cul-ture, communities and people without sub-jecting themselves to the approbation of oth-ers. Today Lee’s Akha Ama Coffee is both a

national and international brand, with a chainof boutique cafes in Chiang Mai and othercities. Lee’s social enterprise is based on smartlogic and the right market linkages. His farm-ers follow sustainable cropping methods,adapt them to customise the coffee toflavour profiles in demand, rotate other cropslike avocado in lean times and directly sellto the buyer networks, primarily the tourismindustry. So all boutique hotels in Thailandpick up curated batches of Akha Ama cof-fee from the farmers themselves. Not onlythat, Lee emphasises on creating a bio-diver-sity rich plantation that is complete with liv-ing organisms, birds and honey bees, allow-ing natural processes like pollination toimprove the ecosystem for his coffee. He evenconsults R&D and knowhow specialists ongrowing best coffee varietals and ensures azero-waste model where leftovers of a har-vest are used as fertilisers, manure and evenbody scrubs for the cosmetic industry.

He has made every young person of thecommunity a stakeholder in the coffeeenterprise so that each knows how to pre-sent his/her products and where to sell. Inshort, the growers collectively dictate themarket than the latter forcing them into astraitjacket. “We need to start a movementin our agriculture sector,” he says, his ideaalready cascading into local fruit buffets atevery tourist hotspot, allied products at everyshopping hub, plantation tourism and moreimportantly international branding of localfruits. The much sought after Durian is aSoutheast Asian favourite but the Thais havemarketed a superior variety that sells at$10,000 a kg! “The dream may not be asbeautiful as you imagined, so I am motivat-ed by new dreams. I have followed theancient wisdom of banana leaves from our

people. This is not a textbook project. Morethan money, social values matter,” Lee tellsus, summing up the resurgent face of Thaientrepreneurship from the hinterland.

But in Bangkok itself, the luxuriant worldcity that’s ever ready to serve your every crav-ing, its repressed underbelly has found a voicein Somsak Boonkam. He has been inspiredby India’s Dharavi to conceive his own slumtourism project at Klongtoey and transformthe community that the city hides under itsflyways. “We are using our backward clustersas a powerful communication tool. We arenot denying but owning up to the reality andhelping tourists get a rounded perspective ofthis city that I was born in and not see itthrough borrowed lenses,” he tells us. He isn’tlooking for sympathy or empathy but is pool-ing limited resources of small host commu-nities and sharpening their collective com-petitive advantage in the booming touristeconomy. He keeps it real, training commu-nities to design travel packages based on localcarrying capacity, skilling local youth as savvytour guides, empowering women to set upcraft and cuisine classes, forming collabora-tive clusters of communities which canshare limited resources and offer homestayfacilities. And he uses social media to mar-ket his tours to keep a steady flow of visitors.

His beehive approach has helped indi-vidual tour operators from getting wiped outin a highly competitive tourism market anddeveloped a system of affordable tourism seenfrom an insider’s perspective of Bangkok, tak-ing you to unknown sights and experiences.Financial sustainability is on the top ofSomsak’s agenda, so he allows local hosts tokeep 70 per cent of the tourism revenue anddiverts five per cent for public projects suchas education and waste management.Through his module, Somsak has been ableto restore pride among local communitieswho tend to become subservient and face-less employees of the large hospitality indus-try in a global tourist destination likeBangkok or set up formulaic home-unit mas-sage parlours. But with the slum redevelop-ment project, locals are for the first timebecoming an equal stakeholder and ownerof the throbbing tourist economy. With 36million tourists coming into Thailand andBangkok being its catchment area, locals con-tinue to be excluded from a lion’s share ofprofits although they lend their resources, cul-ture, heritage and skill sets to define the Thaiexperience for the world. Somsak is contin-uously upgrading his tourist packages and cre-ating specialist groups of tour guides, trans-port operators, pricing experts and hosts. Hehas even created a system of an elected bodyto manage the community development fundthat comes from tourism and allocate it foraddressing the most pressing need of the com-munity that he might have overlooked him-self. That could be something as basic as cre-ating a playground for children of the hostcommunity. This has encouraged a democ-ratic participation in everyday lives amonglocals outside the semi-dictatorial governancestructure at the central level. Somsak believesthat tourism can be a sustainable businessonly if it enhances and does not replace localbusinesses and jobs. Thailand’s young brigadeare applying the rules of Muay Thai andchampioning their own causes that are set-ting off a slow revolution of ideas and inde-pendence. Despite the obstacles.

(The writer is Associate Editor, ThePioneer)

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Sir — At a time when someChief Ministers of non-Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)States are interested only inlocking horns with the Centrerather than concentrate on goodgovernance in their respectiveStates, the bonhomie betweenAndhra Pradesh Chief MinisterYS Jaganmohan Reddy andPrime Minister Narendra Modiis noteworthy.

The two belong to differentparties having different ideolo-gies and principles but settingaside all differences, they haveshown respect for each otherand good mutual understanding.Even though the YSR CongressParty is not part of the NDA, theway Jagan went to meet Modiimmediately after the electionresults were announced andrequested help for his State iscommendable.

Modi was also given a warmreception by Jagan during hisTirumala visit. Only time willtell if Jagan’s party will be partof the NDA, but what really mat-ters is the way in which the ChiefMinister of a state is ready toshake hands with the Centre

keeping in mind only growth,welfare, progress, developmentand prosperity of the people.

It is for this reason thatJagan can be regarded a modelChief Minister. There are somewho have time only to fight andcombat with the Centre becauseof ego and ideological differences.There are some who are mere

opportunists, who start spittingvenom at the Centre when thingsdon’t go their way. Jagan hasshown that he is a leader who isready to carve a niche of himselfin the political world. His goal isto work for the betterment of hisState and its people.

M Pradyu Kannur

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Sir — This refers to the editori-al, “Lessons from Kathua” (June12). It is really sad that incidentsof child abuse, rape, assault onwomen and children are on therise all over the country.Thousands of rape cases are

pending in our courts and victimshave been awaiting justice yearstogether. The Kathua case mustserve as a template for other suchpending cases: Solid investigationand timely delivery of justice.Surely, there is no guarantee ofpreventive and proactive mea-sures to contain such nefariousincidents but expeditious justicecan be dispensed only by increas-ing the number of fast-trackcourts.

Nimai Charan SwainBhubaneswar

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Sir — According to historians,Sonora Smart Dodd came upwith the idea of honouring andcelebrating her father when shewas listening to a sermon in thechurch on mother’s day in 1909.Ever since Father’s Day celebra-tions have gained momentum allover the world. Fathers guide uswith their simple, logical andpractical thinking, which makesthem our role models and heroes.

Jubel D’CruzMumbai

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June 23 is the International Day for Widows. Eventoday, they are perceived as being a burden onsociety and inauspicious to the family. They still

have to contend with the “triple burden” in the formof stigma associated with their status, severe con-straints on access to resources and sexual vulnera-bility. Gender disparities make them one of the mostmarginalised and vulnerable communities in India.This is in stark contrast to their male counterpartswho are not subjected to similar socio-economicexclusion within households. In India, much of thestruggles and multiple vulnerabilities of widows con-tinue because of welfare-driven Government poli-cies. The absence of a rights-based approach inGovernment programmes makes them dependenton doles or pensions. There are about 44 millionwidows in our country. With the joint family struc-ture collapsing, many leave their homes voluntar-ily while some are thrown out by family members.They all gravitate to pilgrim cities like Vrindavan.

The temple town of Vrindavan in UttarPradesh is barely three hours from the national cap-ital New Delhi and is known as a magnet for wid-ows. Although they congregate from all over thecountry, the highest number flocks from WestBengal to worship Lord Krishna. Here, widows aredependent on charity and literally sing for their sup-per while seeking solace in religion. Just like 55-year-old Rupa Dasi, a widow living in Vrindavan for over15 years. She goes to the Bhajan Ashrams to chantprayers and gets 100 grams of rice and 50 grams ofpulses worth �4. Since she does not have the req-uisite documents, she does not have a ration orAntyodaya card. Nor does she get old age or widow’spension. Dasi represents a stream of widows typi-cal of Vrindavan — preferring to spend their timein prayer and living on charity.

But charity does not have to be the first and onlyoption as widows in Rajasthan have shown.Married at 19, Mankanwar became a widow afterseven years of marriage. Uneducated and a moth-er of two, she was thrown out by her in-laws, whohounded her to give up her share in the family prop-erty. But she didn’t give up. She sought help fromthe Ekal Nari Shakti Sangathan (ENSS), an organ-isation that works for single women in several States,including Rajasthan. The collective provided herlegal support to get control of her share in the fam-ily property.

However, Mankanwar also realised that sheneeded to be economically independent. Whilehelping ENSS in finding ways to empower othersingle women get their entitlements, she and theorganisation homed in on the livelihood optionoffered by the Government’s MGNREGA pro-gramme. But since job cards were traditionallymade in the name of the family, ENSS found a largenumber of its widow members being deprived ofemployment after the death of their husbands. Aftera vociferous campaign by ENSS and its membersfor individual ones, separate job cards in their nameswere issued. The Rajasthan Government issuedorders in 2009 that a widow and her children shouldbe considered an independent family unit. It man-dated that a separate job card be given to the widow,irrespective of whether she lived with her parentsor in-laws, and that no supporting documents orration cards should be called for to make the sep-arate job card.

This resulted in a 10-15 per cent increase in sep-

arate job cards for widows, leading to aboost in employment of widows underMGNREGA. Records show that 69 percent of Rajasthan’s 95 lakh job cards arenow being utilised by women, much high-er than the national average of 49 per centwomen benefiting from MGNREGA. TheENSS also suggested that certain cate-gories of work, which do not involve heavymanual labour like watering of plants andmonitoring of sites, should be identifiedand reserved for older widows to enabletheir inclusion within MGNREGA.Consequently, MGNREGA supervisorswere asked to allot less physically stren-uous work to older people at their work-sites.

The Rajasthan ENSS model hasshown that when widows are organisedand are part of a collective, they are lesslikely to be cheated or harassed. This iswhy ENSS was able to successfully lobbyfor an increase in the Government grantgiven to widows at the time of their daugh-ters’ marriage and an extension of thewidow Palanhar scheme for their chil-dren’s education up to the age of 18 as wellas an increase in education allowance. TheState widow pension amount was alsoincreased and preference was given towidows in Government jobs.

But for widows not a part of such col-lectives, life has not been so smooth. A2014 UN Women study on the pro-grammes and policies for widows in India,Nepal and Sri Lanka found that most poli-cies for them lack a rights-based approachand are designed with assumptions andconditions rooted in patriarchy.Government welfare programmes treatwidows as a homogenous group. But thesituation of widows varies considerably,depending on age, societal norms, theirgeographical location, educational levelsand also on who their husbands were.

Social norms around widowhood furthercomplicate their access to basic servicesand welfare schemes, meaning that link-ing them to entitlement would need moreefforts by the Government as well as bycivil society organisations.

Fortunately, India now enumerateswidows in its population census. However,there is a paucity of analytical data — bothquantitative and qualitative — on sever-al aspects such as access to healthcare,inheritance, property ownership, pover-ty levels and crime against widows. Thereis particular dearth of studies that couldelaborate on issues of women belongingto minority groups, those residing in con-flict affected areas and widows residing inremote locations.

A lack of integrated services and com-plex procedures are significant chal-lenges for widows. In India, severalGovernment Ministries implementschemes for widows but there is no con-vergence of services. Further, poor coor-dination and implementation of otherprogrammes for destitute women has ledto the exclusion of particularly margin-alised and illiterate widows. Proceduresand documents required to accessGovernment benefits still remain com-plex. A lack of education as well as finan-cial illiteracy adds to the problems ofaccess for widows. On the part of theGovernment, weak monitoring andreporting systems further add to gaps inimplementation.

The best way to tackle these issueswould be to have a single-window sys-tem to converge services of differentdepartments to facilitate widows’ entitle-ments for shelter, pension, health andfood among other things. TheGovernment/local bodies should be pro-active as well as flexible in implementingthe existing policies and programmes;

providing necessary documents requiredby widows to access all their entitlements,especially pensions.

Giving them a life of dignity is pos-sible if a needs assessment is regularlyconducted for skill and job developmentthat is age-appropriate and in keepingwith the educational level of the widows.If Livelihood Mission and the SkillDevelopment Mission in India as well ascivil society organisations engaged in pro-viding skill training for emerging job mar-kets keep in mind the needs of widows,it can change their lives. The best way toboost their self-esteem and confidence isby helping them move up the economicladder.

A good example already exists in ourneighbouring country Nepal. TheGovernment’s policy there of giving landon lease to groups of widows to build shel-ter homes or chhaharis has helped in theirempowerment. These chhaharis provideskill training, economic and emotionalsupport to help widows become financial-ly independent.

In August 2017, the Supreme Courtconstituted an expert committee on thestatus of widows to suggest how the livesof 44 million of them could be bettered.The committee, comprising severalNGOs like Jagori, Guild of Service,HelpageIndia and Sulabh International,submitted its report to the apex courtwithin three months. The findings andrecommendations by the committeewere similar to those in the UN womenreport. The court directed theGovernment to implement the recommendations. However, even afteralmost two years, no action has beentaken yet. How many more years willwidows have to wait for their right tolive a life of dignity?

(The writer is a senior journalist)

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Healthy women provide thefoundation for a healthy India.To make universal healthcare

a tangible milestone in the country’sdevelopment journey, women’s health-care requirements need to be account-ed for. A key period of health risk inmost women’s lives is pregnancy. AndGovernment-sponsored maternalhealth programmes have been insti-tuted to provide safety and security topregnant women. However, the keymaternal benefit programme of thecountry, the Pradhan Mantri MatritvaVandana Yojana (PMMVY), whichpromises �5,000 to pregnant women,suffers from critical drawbacks in bothdesign and implementation. It isexclusionary by the eligibility criteria

and impedes universal access to thescheme through an ill-designed enrol-ment procedure.

Under PMMVY, pregnant andlactating women are provided �5,000in three instalments. The gapingloophole in the eligibility criteria is thatbenefits are only provided for the birthof the first child. In a country with aTotal Fertility Rate (TFR) of 2.33, thepolicy of restricting the scheme to justthe first child is impractical to say theleast and exclusionary when seen intotality.

In fact, the earlier form of thematernity benefit programme, theIndira Gandhi Matritva Sahyog Yojana(IGMSY), allowed women to accessdisbursement for two live births. Theeligibility criteria have consciouslybeen curtailed in the present scheme.Moreover, it makes no attempt toaccommodate miscarriage or infantmortality. If an eight-month pregnantwoman, who has already accessed thescheme, loses her child, she is not eli-gible for the second or third instalmentfor her next pregnancy.

If a woman loses her child with-in the first 28 days, then, too, she is

deemed ineligible for future pregnan-cies. A NITI Aayog report on IGMSYstated that about 12 per cent of thebeneficiaries under the scheme mis-carried. The same 12 per cent wouldbe ineligible under the present scheme.

By August 2018, only 52 per centof the beneficiary enrolment target(of August 2018) had been met. Asevident, even for women who man-age to comply with these stringenteligibility criteria, there are inherentroadblocks in the enrolment processthat prevent them from accessing thescheme.

This is because one of the crit-

ical documents required for thescheme, apart from the woman’sAadhaar card and bank documents,is the Aadhaar card of her husband.Inclusion of the husband’s Aadhaarcard is problematic as it hindersfinancial autonomy of the woman.It also makes her decisions abouther own reproductive health depen-dent on her husband’s presence orconsent.

This provision ignores the socio-economic realities of rural India.Chanchal Devi, a 21-year-old pregnantwoman in Uttar Pradesh’s Ballia dis-trict, could not access the scheme

because her husband works at con-struction sites in Delhi during the win-ter months. She had to run a house-hold with her in-laws, hence all of herhusband’s income was dedicated to themaintenance of the household, includ-ing daily food and emergency provi-sions. She had no money to take careof her during pregnancy and could notenroll under the scheme.

Her neighbours faced similarproblems in accessing the schemeand, hence, abandoned hope for anyGovernment maternity benefits.Seasonal migration is a well-recog-nised phenomenon in India. About92 per cent, ie 12.6 million, makes upthe majority of short-term ruralmigrants (NSSO 2007-08). Wives ofthese men, who become first-timemothers, would face significant hur-dles in enrolling under the scheme.

What’s surprising and even con-tradictory is that the principle ofwomen’s financial autonomy hasbeen kept in mind in the case ofother Government programmes.Take for example, the much-laudedUjjwala scheme, where LPG connec-tions are provided to BPL households

with only the woman’s Aadhaar andbank account required for registra-tion. Other State-level maternitybenefit programmes like TamilNadu’s Dr Muthulakshmi MaternityBenefit scheme and Odisha’sMAMTA scheme only require thewoman’s Aadhaar card and bankaccount details for disbursement.

In the future, while enrolmentnumbers can still be manipulated toachieve the set targets, the schemestill does not recognise the principleof female financial autonomy orpractical concerns of migration.While PMMVY developed from afunctioning maternity benefit pro-gramme, it does not exhibit any signsof a new and improved version. It isdesired that schemes impacting avulnerable section of the populationlike pregnant women should bepiloted in the first stage to remove orrectify the loopholes. Social sectorschemes when rolled out withoutadequate research do serve the causeof a Government’s achievement butnot one of a universal healthy India.

(The writer is with SwanitiInitiative)

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The Indian r up e e onFriday fell by another

30 paise to close at 69.80against the US currency asstrengthening greenback andrising crude oil prices keptinvestors cautious.

Besides, weak Asian cur-rencies and an intense sell-offin domestic equities also putpressure on the domestic currency.

On weekly basis, therupee saw a fall of 34 paise.

At the interbank foreignexchange (forex) market, thedomestic currency openedhigher at 69.55 per dollar, butlost ground during the dayand fell to 69.85. The rupeefinally settled at 69.80, down30 paise over its previousclose.

The rupee had settled at69.50 against the US dollarThursday.

“The rupee weakened fora second day against US dol-lar, taking cues from the otherAsian currencies,” said V KSharma, Head-PCG & CapitalMarket Strategy, HDFCSecurities.

Brent crude futures, theglobal oil benchmark, climbed0.11 per cent to $61.38 perbarrel.

The dollar index, whichgauges the greenback’s

strength against a basket of sixcurrencies, rose 0.10 per centto 97.11.

Meanwhile, the 10-yeargovernment bond yield was at6.92 per cent on Friday.

Sharma further said thatthe important event to watchout for the next week is USFederal Open MarketCommittee (FOMC) meet-ing, scheduled on June 18 and 19.

“Though Fed interest rateprobability don’t expect anychange in the June meeting,pricing a cut in July meet,” hesaid.

Foreign institutionalinvestors (FIIs) remained netsellers in the capital markets,pulling out �238.64 croreFriday, provisional datashowed.

Benchmark indices set-tled for the day in the negativeterritory. The BSE Sensexclosed at 39,452.07, down by289.29 points, or 0.73 percent. The wider NSE Niftytumbled 90.75 points, or 0.76per cent, to finish at 11,823.30.

Meanwhile, FinancialBenchmark India Private Ltd(FBIL) set the reference ratefor the rupee/dollar at 69.3579and for rupee/euro at 78.3740.The reference rate forrupee/British pound was fixedat 88.0207 and for rupee/100Japanese yen at 64.03.

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The BSE Sensex stayed onthe back foot for the third

straight session Friday asinvestors dialled down equityexposure amid high valua-tions and a fresh spell ofuncertainty in the global markets.

After a subdued opening,the benchmark faced suddenselling pressure in the lasthalf-hour of trade to close at39,452.07, down by 289.29points, or 0.73 per cent.

During the week, theSensex fell 163.83 points or0.41 per cent, while the Niftylost 47.35 points or 0.39 per cent.

Only five of the 30 Sensexstocks finished with gainsFriday. These were L&T,Vedanta, Sun Pharma,PowerGrid and TCS, whichrose up to 0.80 per cent.

Top losers includedIndusInd Bank, Bharti Airtel,Tata Motors, Axis Bank, KotakBank, Bajaj Auto, Yes Bank,HCL Tech, HUL and HeroMotoCorp, falling up to 4.36per cent.

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Wholesale price-basedinflation hit a 22-month

low of 2.45 per cent in Mayhelped by falling prices of foodarticles, fuel and power items,and this in turn may promptthe Reserve Bank to go foranother cut in key interestrates in the current fiscal.

The Wholesale Price Index(WPI)-based inflation was at3.07 per cent in April this year.It was 4.78 per cent in May2018.

Inflation in food articlesbasket was 6.99 per cent InMay, 2019, down from 7.37 percent in April, official datareleased Friday said.

However, onion pricesspiked during the month withinflation at 15.89 per cent, asagainst (-) 3.43 per cent inApril. Inflation in pulses con-tinued in double digit for fourconsecutive months at 18.36per cent in May, up from 14.32per cent in the previous month.

WPI inflation in May is thelowest in 22 months, sinceJuly 2017, when it was at 1.88per cent.

India Ratings & ResearchPrincipal Economist SunilKumar Sinha said the coreinflation at 1.2 per cent is 29months low in May 2019. “Thisis clearly an indication of weak-ening of demand impulse in theeconomy. Dwindling auto andFMCG sales growth has been

pointing towards this for pastseveral months.”

This delayed and less thannormal monsoon could aggra-vate the food inflation furtherin the coming months lest thegovernment monitors the situ-ation proactively, checks spec-ulative activities and inter-venes in the market to stabiliseprices, he added.

“India Ratings believesthere is still a scope of one morerate cut in FY’20. However,besides being dependent ondata it will also take into con-sideration fiscal policy stance ofthe government,” Sinha said.

Vegetables inflation easedto 33.15 per cent in May, downfrom 40.65 per cent in the pre-vious month. Inflation in pota-to was (-) 23.36 per cent, against(-) 17.15 per cent in April.

Inflation in ‘fuel andpower’ category cooled to 0.98per cent, from 3.84 per cent lastmonth on account of softeningof global crude oil prices.

Manufactured items toosaw decline in prices with infla-tion at 1.28 per cent in May,against 1.72 per cent in April.

WPI inflation data forMarch has been revised down-wards to 3.10 per cent fromprovisional 3.18 per cent.

Data released earlier thisweek showed retail inflationspiked to a 7-month high of3.05 per cent in May, on cost-lier vegetables, and protein-richitems.

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Shares of grounded JetAirways continued the

downward trend, plungingnearly 12 per cent on Friday,after stock exchanges, earlierthis week, decided to imposerestrictions on its stock tradingfrom June 28.

The scrip tanked 10.77 percent to close at �82.05 on theBSE. Intra-day, the airline’sstock tumbled 13.37 per cent totouch its multi-year low at Rs79.65.

On the NSE, shares plum-meted 11.80 per cent to closeat �81.05.

In terms of traded volume,19.47 lakh shares were tradedon the BSE, while over 1 croreshares were traded on the NSE.

The shares had crackednearly 18 per cent on Thursdayalso. The scrip has been fallingfor 10 consecutive days, tum-bling 45.60 per cent.

Stock exchanges willimpose restrictions on tradingin Jet Airways shares fromJune 28 as part of preventivesurveillance measures to curbexcessive volatility, according toa circular.

The cash-starved airlinesuspended operations in Apriland lenders are working onways for its revival.

There are restrictions intrading of shares that are underTrade for Trade Segment.

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Shares of Reliance Capitaland Rel iance Home

Finance fell for a third con-secutive day Friday, with theformer plunging up to 9.3 percent after PwC resigned asthe statutory auditor of bothcompanies.

Shares of Reliance Capitaltanked 9.30 per cent to closeat Rs 76.55 on the BSE. Intra-day, the scrip dropped 13.15per cent to hit a 52-week lowof Rs 73.30.

Reliance Home Financeshares fell 4.01 per cent toclose at Rs 14.35. During theday, it plunged 7.35 per centto a one-year low of Rs 13.85.

On Wednesday, shares ofboth firms tumbled up to 7per cent and the followingday the scrips saw a declineof up to 12.3 per cent.

Regulator Sebi andMinistry of Corporate Affairsare looking into the suddenresignation of PwC as audi-tor of both firms and have

asked the stock exchanges tocollect all necessary infor-mation including tradedetails and statements madeby the three entities.

The developmentassumes significance in thewake of the auditors’ rolecoming under scanner ofmultiple agencies in casesinvolving various corporatehouses, including listed com-panies.

The regulator, the min-istry and the exchanges mayalso seek additional detailsfrom the auditor and twocompanies, if required, saidsenior officials.

Anil Ambani- ledReliance Capital and RelianceHome Finance Wednesdaysaid Price Waterhouse & CoChartered Accountants(PwC) has resigned as statu-tory auditor of both compa-nies.

The companies said theydid “not agree with the rea-sons given by PwC” for itsresignation.

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Small Industries Development Bank of India (SIDBI) issupportingCentral Jail, Varanasi to build capacity of prisoners

to adopt entrepreneurship as a way of livelihood. In Central Jailprisoners are imparted various skills which helps them to producevariety of goods including food/bakery items, handicrafts etc.Underthe initiative, SIDBI has recently supported in setting up a mar-ket outlet for displaying and selling products made in the jail.

This will not only provide additional income to prisoners butbuild their capacity in learning nuances of marketing productsincluding revisits/reshape/reposition as per demand of customers.

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With an aim to speed upacceptance and adoption

of digital payments in India,Mastercard and Payswiff havesigned a strategic alliance topromote low-cost paymentsacceptance solutions beyondthe top eight cities in the coun-try. Payswiff ’s SET, a mobileapplication is at the core of thisalliance. It allows individualsand business owners to acceptpayments using more than 60payment options, includingcredit cards and debit cards, e-wallets, e-payment links, UPI,Bharat QR, multi-bank EMI, etc.

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India’s service sector exportsrose by 2.8 per cent to $18.06

billion in the first month of thecurrent fiscal, RBI data showedFriday.

The services receipt orexports during April 2018stood at $17.56 billion.

Services payments orimports in April 2019 were at$11.4 billion, up by 4.6 per centfrom $10.92 billion in the samemonth of 2018-19, according tothe RBI data on India’s inter-national trade in services forApril 2019.

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Venezuelan shopkeeperManuel Saavedra says new

US sanctions are stranglinghim — and lots of other every-day people.

A video game store ownerin Caracas, Saavedra has beenforced to raise prices as prod-ucts became harder to importfrom May 15, when the USTransportation Departmentsuspended passenger and cargoservices between the US andVenezuela.

Washington has imposedthat and other punishment inhopes of undermining PresidentNicolas Maduro and helpingopposition leader Juan Guaido,who is recognized as interimpresident by more than 50 coun-tries, force him from power.

But Saavedra says thosenew sanctions hurt averagecitizens more than they do theMaduro regime.

“They’re suffocating us,ordinary citizens,” he said.

“I don’t know how long itwill last. In any country (sanc-tions) affect everyone (but)less so those in government.”Air courier companiesincreased their charges from

$3.50 to $4.50 per pound fol-lowing the latest US sanctionswhile maritime shipments wentfrom $8 to $10 per cubic meter,says Saavedra.

Packages can no longer besent directly from the US andmust now first pass throughPanama or the DominicanRepublic in order to circum-vent the sanctions.

“That pushes up the costsand means that you sell less,”Saavedra told AFP.

It’s one of a number ofextra hassles facing ordinaryVenezuelans as a consequenceof US sanctions, such as fuelshortages and sky-high air-fares. Even before that latestembargo, Venezuela’s cripplingeconomic crisis weighed heav-ily on its businesses and citizens.

Five years of recession andinflation which theInternational Monetary Fundsays will reach a staggering 10million percent this year havetaken their toll.

The United Nations says aquarter of the 30-million-strong population is in need ofhumanitarian aid and 3.3 mil-lion people have fled the coun-try since the end of 2015.

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Government think tankNITI Aayog’s proposal to

decontrol foodstuffs, includingedible oils, oilseeds, fertilisersand seeds of agricultural prod-ucts from the EssentialCommodities Act (ECA), 1955has irked several Ministries,including Agriculture,Petroleum, and Chemicals andFertilisers. Prime MinisterNarendra Modi is expected todiscuss the issue at the NITIAayog meeting on Saturday.

The ECA gives consumersprotection against irrationalspikes in prices of essentialcommodities. The Governmentinvokes the Act to ensure adequate supplies by crackingdown on hoarders and black-marketeers of such

commodities. According to officials, if

control is removed, there wouldbe no control or check over saleof spurious seeds, drugs, petro-leum products and fertilisers orhoardings in the case of suddenprice rise. On the other hand,NITI Aayog has sought classi-fications of controlled com-modities and de-controlledcommodities. The Aayog saidthat control can be placed onlyin case of war, for safe opera-tion of defence forces, extraor-dinary instances related nation-al security or in times ofnational disaster or inordinateprice rises or inordinate supplydeficiencies.

NITI Aayog says the Act isnot in tune with present times.“It made sense at a time when

the transport infrastructureacross the country was poorand markets not integrated. Soa production shock in onepart of the country could leadto hoarding and black market-ing. That’s not the case any-more. Shortages in one part ofthe country can be counteredif there is ample supply some-where else,” said officials.

“The periodic requirementor removal of licensing etcdissuades the trade from build-ing any long term relationship,domestic or international andkeeps the agricultural market-ing chain opportunities innature, unorganized in func-tioning and unplanned in itsgrowth. The controls so placedalso tend to impose unwar-ranted diktats on cultiva-tion/production and disallowsbuilding the capacity to accessnew markets for aproposgrowth that the agriculturalvalue system possesses. The ecosystem remains limited in itsmarket range, market accessand cannot even conceive or

properly monetising its output,”the NITI Aayog said in its let-ter to the agriculture ministry.

“In the context of ongoingliberalization of Indian econo-my and in order to facilitatefree flow of market forces, therationalizing and progressivedismantling of the system ofcontrol and restriction in theagricultural economy is war-ranted for the overall benefit ofboth farmers and consumers,”it added.

The ECA was enacted wayback in 1955. It has since beenused by the Government toregulate the production, supplyand distribution of a whole hostof commodities it declares‘essential’in order to make themavailable to consumers at fairprices.The list of items underthe Act include drugs, fertilis-ers, pulses and edible oils, andpetroleum and petroleumproducts. The Centre caninclude new commodities asand when the need arises andtake them off the list once thesituation improves.

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BJP vice-president and for-mer Madhya Pradesh Chief

Minister Shivraj SinghChouhan on Friday announcedthat the mammoth member-ship drive of the party wouldcommence from July 6, thebirth anniversary of BharatiyaJana Sangh’s founder SyamaPrasad Mukherjee.

Even as the membershipdrive would go cross-country,the BJP leader said some Stateswould come in for special focus. This includesWest Bengal, Tamil Nadu,Ponducherry, Odisha,Telangana, Andhra Pradesh,Sikkim and Jammu & Kashmir.There would be booth-levelfocus in all the States.

Addressing a Press confer-ence a day after he was put in-charge of the membership drive,Chouhan said the party has topass many milestones and inthis endeavour it would like toadd 20 per cent more- 2.20crore-members this time round.

“But this target is theminimum required, weare aiming at muchbigger target,” he said.

The membershipdrive that BJP startedlast time in 2015 hadculminated with the party turn-ing the largest political party inthe world with a membershipof over 11 crore.

Choudhan saidMukherjee’s birthday, July 6,was the most auspicious day tostart the membership drivecampaign and party has alreadydrafted in-charge and deputy-in-charge from each State toassist the drive and their nameswould be out by Friday night.

He said a detailed previewof the task would be done onJune 17 when party presidentAmit Shah too would attendthe discussions. On June 26, theState in-charge and deputy in-charge of each state for themembership task would meethere for further deliberations.

The BJP leader said thoughPrime Minister’s popularity

coupled with thesharp strategy ofShah led BJP to anstupendous victoryin the Lok Sabhapoll, the hard worldof workers at all

level from booth to State-levelcontributed to this great suc-cess. He said there was need tostrengthen party organisationfrom the lowest level to thehighest tier.

He said membership isalways at the core of party’sexpansion plan. He said alongwith BJP’s slogan ‘sabka Saath Sabka Vikas’ would go organisation’s other ‘mantra’ “Sarvsparshi BJP andsarvayapi BJP”.

Chouhan said after theLok Sabha polls, the BJP hasidentified “weak booths” anddecided to deploy party work-ers for special membership dri-ves in all such booths. He saidmembership drive would be bymissed-call but this time partywould also get forms filled bythe new members.

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Taking suo motu cognisanceof an incident in which a

journalist was allegedly beatenup by police in Uttar Pradesh’sShamli district, the PressCouncil of India has set up afact-finding committee andsought a reply from the StateGovernment, among others.

The fact-finding commit-tee, comprising JaishankarGupta and Uttam ChandraSharma, Members, PressCouncil of India, will visitShamli on Saturday to ascertainthe details of the incident.

The Press Council of India(PCI) has taken suo motu cog-nisance of the alleged attack onAmit Sharma of News 24 channel, at Shamli, a PCI state-ment said.

It has sought reply fromthe chief secretary, directorgeneral of police, the UttarPradesh Government, and theSenior Superintendent ofPolice, GRP, Shamli. The coun-cil expresses concern over suchincident, which tends toundermine the freedom ofpress, the statement said.

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Six Governors and four ChiefMinisters met Home

Minister Amit Shah on Fridayand discussed with him various issues concerning theirrespective States.

Talking to reporters afterthe meeting Andhra PradeshChief Minister YS JaganmohanReddy said “we are trying toconvince for the need for spe-cial category status” and willdiscuss Saturday’s NITI Aayogmeeting with all Chief Ministers.

Jagan said he requestedShah to “soften PM’s heart” onthe issue of granting special

category status to the �2.58lakh crore debt-ridden state.Asked if the post of deputyspeaker in Lok Sabha wasoffered to YSRCP, he said,“Please don’t speculate on allthese things. First of all, thereis no offer... We have not askedand we have not spoken. Andneither any such proposal hascome from any quarter. As ofnow, there is no conversation ortalk on that.”

Assam Chief MinisterSarbananda Sonowal met theHome Minister s also DefenceMinister Rajnath Singh anddiscussed with them various

issues concerning the state.During the 15-minute meetingwith the home minister, theChief Minister briefed himabout the prevailing situation inAssam, where the final list ofthe National Register ofCitizens (NRC) will be pub-lished on July 31.

“It was a courtesy call andI have congratulated him onbehalf of the people for beingchosen as the home minister ofthe country. I have also briefedhim about the prevailing lawand order situation in Assam,”he told reporters after themeeting with Shah. Sonowal is

also believed to have discussedwith Shah about the situationwhich may arise after the pub-lication of the final list of theNRC. During his meeting withthe Defence Minister, the Chief Minister discussed with him certain issues con-cerning Assam.

The Governors who metthe Home minister were UttarPradesh’s Ram Naik, Haryana’sSatyadev Narayan Arya, Goa’sMridula Sinha, Assam’s JagdishMukhi, Meghalaya’s TathagataRoy and Sikkim’s GangaPrasad. Among the chiefministers who met Shah wereGoa’s Pramod Sawanta andSikkim’s Prem Singh Tamang.

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The Information andBroadcasting Ministry has

directed all satellite TV chan-nels to display the casting,credits and titles of Hindi andregional language serials inthe respective languages also.The Government said this is topromote Indian languages,enhance outreach and benefitTV viewers of the country.

It has come to the notice ofthe Ministry of Informationand Broadcasting that severalHindi and regional languageTV channels display the cast-

ing, credits, titles of Hindi andregional language TV serialsonly in English, an officialstatement said.

This practice tends todeprive people versed withHindi and regional languagesof the valuable informationabout casting of TV serials orprogrammes, it said.

“With a view to enhanceoutreach and benefit TV view-ers of the country, the ministryhas advised all private satelliteTV channels to consider dis-playing the casting, credits,titles of Hindi and Regional lan-guages TV serials in the respec-

tive languages also,” the state-ment said. “Today we are issu-ing an order to all TV channelsthat whatever the serials theybroadcast or whatever the pro-grammes they conduct at theend or beginning titles are givenand many times the titles are inEnglish. To promote Indianlanguages, we have asked chan-nels to give those titles in thelanguage in which the broadcastis made,” I&B Minister PrakashJavadekar said.

In addition to that lan-guage, if they want to give titlesin English also, they are free todo so, he said.

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New Delhi: The Supreme Courton Friday refused to entertain aplea which sought quashing ofthe answer keys of some ques-tions in the NEET(UG)-2019examination saying that anexpert body has duly applied itsmind and revised answers were issued.

The top court, however,allowed the four Hyderabadbased students who have challenged the answer keys, toapproach the high court for the relief.

It said that courts are notexperts in each and every sub-ject and time has come when theinterference in this arena shouldbe stopped.

A vacation bench of Justices

Ajay Rastogi and Surya Kantallowed the four medical aspi-rants to withdraw their plea andgranted them liberty to approachthe high court with their griev-ances.

At the outset, senior advo-cate Abhishek Manu Singhvi,appearing for the students, saidthat wrong answer key weregiven by the National TestingAgency which conducted theexam on May 5.

He said the five questions

having four marks each hadmore than one correct answersor had an answer which was different from answer key issuedby the NTA.

“All multiple choice answerscannot be scrutinized by the thiscourt. We are not experts. Wethink somewhere some line needs to be drawn,” thebench said.

It said that interfering withthe answer key would mean thatSupreme Court has become anappellate body above the NTA.

The bench said that after theanswer keys were issued to thequestions asked in the May 5examination, several studentshad made representation aboutthe correct answers and subse-

quently revised answer key were issued.

“We see, an expert body hasapplied its mind and revisedanswer key was issued. In somecases, the answers were corrected. There does not seemsto be a case of mala fide intent,”it said.

Singhvi said that studentscareer will be affected if theanswers key were not correctedand suggested that an expertbody should be constitutedwhich shall look into the correctanswer keys as the counsellingis yet to start from June 19.

“Now a days, there is toomuch interference going on inthis arena which is creating lotof problem,” the bench said. PTI

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The EnforcementDirectorate (ED) has filed

a case of money laundering inan alleged ponzi scheme in thegarb of Islamic banking inKarnataka, involving the firmIMA Jewels, which dupedthousands of Muslim investorsof an estimated over �1,500 crore during the lastover one decade.

The ED has taken cogni-sance of the complaints regis-tered by the Karnataka policeand the subsequent creation ofa special investigation team(SIT) to probe the alleged fraudby the dubious firm IMAJewels led by MohammedMansoor Khan.

ED’s zonal office inBengaluru filed anEnforcement Case InformationReport (ECIR), FIR in policeparlance under the criminalcharge of Prevention of MoneyLaundering Act (PMLA).

The Central agency is nowgathering documents related tothe case and will summon theaccused persons after scruti-nizing the gathered materials inconnection with the probe bythe State police.

The cheated investors ofthe ponzi scheme filed as manyas 26,000 complaints with thepolice against the ‘I MonetaryAdvisory (IMA) jewels’ storeafter an audio clip surfacedwith a person namedMohammed Mansoor Khan,

alleged to be its founder andmanaging director, heard say-ing he is going to commit sui-cide as he was fed up with cor-ruption.

Khan had also alleged theShivajinagar Congress MLARoshan Baig took �400 crorefrom him and was not return-ing it. However, Baig rub-bished the charge, alleging thathis political adversaries hadorchestrated the “series ofevents” to tarnish his character.

The investors of the ponzischeme are mainly vendors,small businessmen and frommiddle and lower middle class,essentially of the MuslimCommunity.

Khan is suspected to havefled to Dubai earlier thismonth.

Taking advantage of theIslamic postulation againstearning interest, Khan hadreportedly turned the investorsinto shareholders of his busi-ness and promised distributingthe profit from his earnings andin the process packaging thedubious scheme as an accept-ed Islamic system.

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What if you are in a situation whereyou are punished and brutally tor-tured for something that you are

not responsible for? Or how do you reactif you are imprisoned for seven years for acrime you did not commit? You have noway to get out and nobody to go to for help.You are in the most helpless situations ofall times. Isn’t the very thought of it terri-fying? However, what one needs to under-stand is that such situations are beyond ourcommon imagination until they are feltwithin their veins.

When actress Dia Mirza heard thescript of her latest web series Kafir, whichwill be streaming on ZEE5, she got goose-bumps and also, tears. “Did you experiencegoosebumps when you watched the trail-er?” she asks me with curiosity in her eyes,while I nod a yes.

“That is exactly what happened to mewhen I heard the narration from BhawaniIyer (screenwriter). And when I got to knowthat the story was inspired by a real person’slife, it was all the more reason for me to doit. I was very motivated and challenged asan artist to take it up. It is the first time Ihave hungered for a part like this,” she saysand goes on to add, “My core was shaken.I felt like it was the best thing that happenedin a long time. The story is so timely andnecessary because only a few people arespeaking the language of love right now andthe world needs it.”

Set in the backdrop of the border con-flict between India and Pakistan, more thanthe geographical boundaries, the story cov-ers the journey and life of a 21-year-oldPakistani woman Kainaaz, who, because ofher circumstances, jumps into a river andis washed ashore on the Indian side. She islabelled a militant and imprisoned for sevenyears during which she births a child onIndian soil. When journalist and lawyerVedant, (played by actor Mohit Raina), dis-covers her plight, he decides to help her getjustice. “So the story is about how she getsthere, why is she there and how was thatchild born. It talks about what is the ideaof freedom, identity, and most important-ly, love,” says Dia.

When I get curious to know moreabout the story, she laughs and says, “Letme hand over the script to you so that youknow it even before the show airs.”However, it’s the way she tells a story thatmakes you want to keep listening to her. It’sher eyes, with their deep empathy, that tellthe tale and at the same time revive mem-ories of Reena from Rehna Hai Tere DillMein (2001).

Talking about the show’s theme, shesays, “It explores prejudice and how theworld is full of it, whether we speak aboutprejudice between two nations or againstreligions, class and culture. But also prej-udice that we have for ourselves. And in away, we are fortunate that it was not madeearlier. Since right now is actually the per-fect time.”

Kafir was intended as a feature film, thescript of which was written 13 years ago and“it took Siddharth (Malhotra, producer)eight years to finally decide to tell it as a webseries. With that, we got the luxury of show-ing the story through eight episodes wherewe can show the narrative with all its intri-cacies and nuances. There is more time toinvest in the humanity of each of the char-acters and their humaneness. I don’t thinkthe film would have done justice to it. I amthankful to the universe that it chose us,”says Dia as she talks about how online plat-forms have an advantage when it comes totelling stories with greater depth.

It really struck a chord within Bhawaniwhen she met Shahnaaz, the woman whois the inspiration, and heard her story. Sheexplains, “She said there were three thingswhich struck her — her sense of peace, calmand grace, despite her experience. Also,patience plays a very important role. Andone thing that I would like to lend to thisnarrative was the ability to love.”

She feels that the story had had its ownjourney and took its own time to reachwhere it is today. “However, it has been anamazing one. It has come out so beautiful-ly. When Bhawani saw the first bit of thepresentation, she said ‘how did you guysknow what I wanted to show and say!’ Thatwas just divine. There could be no otherword to describe it, for it is so powerfulwhen a writer’s story comes out in the sameway as s/he had imagined.” And after amoment’s notice, Dia exclaims with asmile, “You write, you would know.”

There is one thing that the actress wantspeople to feel and understand here, whilewatching her character — the role andimportance of empathy. She says, “It isimportant for you as a human being toallow yourself to feel what that person hadactually felt. We did some exercises to openour hearts, minds and bodies to experiencethe most in-depth empathy. We attendedworkshops to allow ourselves to feel andexpress those emotions because as humanbeings, we try to protect ourselves. We don’tgo to certain places or allow certain emo-tions to ever emerge because we feel theyweaken us. The whole effort of the work-shop was to really bare our souls to theabsoluteness and allow ourselves to expe-rience everything that this person felt. Soit makes you feel the part as opposed to act-ing the part.”

It’s also the other team members, castand crew, who play a constant role in bring-ing out those emotions, she feels. “Whenyou are a team that is so encouraging, what-ever the emotion is, whether its your co-actors, Mohit or that six-year-old child(Dishita), who is the most aware kid I haveever come across. She never acted. She wasthere in that very moment, feeling whatev-er she was experiencing and bringing thatout and expressing herself then and there.And then there is director, Sonam Nair, whois constantly facilitating it. It gives you the

freedom and room to just be. She never letus feel the presence of the camera. It almostfelt like she was bearing witness to what ishappening to us,” says the actress.

About having a kid around such anintense atmosphere, she says, “It made allthe difference.” She goes on to add, “Asadults, we struggle to present something inan honest way, we might not be present hereand now. But that child is so present. It’s likeshe was born of meditation,” (laughs).

She says that Dishita made her amother. “You don’t need a biological childto feel what a mother could be. She reallyevoked the most intense maternal instinctin me. I have always been a nurturer andcare-giver for my friends and family, andfans, but what that kid made me feel wassomething else. I really went into withdraw-al and couldn’t stop crying on the last dayof our shoot. I didn’t feel like I could livewithout her. And she still calls me DiaAmmi while we are talking on Facetime(laughs).”

While one would think about the storyand how it has been presented afterwatching any film or show, one oftenignores what goes into making it. She says,“It all begins with writing. Only after thatother things fall in place. There are cos-tumes, which are a very important factor.It matters a lot that what clothes you arewearing, how much mud you are pushinginto your fingernails because there is nomanicure in jail. You are engaged in hardlabour everyday. All these small thingsdon’t come into sharp notice but go a longway in building up the character and theshow.”

She talks about how Kainaaz haschanged her life. “I am deeply impacted bythis role. There are two things that I havediscovered — Kainaaz has empowered meand made me realise everyone’s life haschallenges to a high extent. It’s only yourresponse to those challenges that makes thedifference. After this role, a lot of peopleask me how will I get out of that experi-ence or leave Kainaaz, but I don’t want herto leave me ever. It has transformed me asa human being.”

Lately, there has been a lot of Kashmir-related content that vividly portrays theconflict, the most recent example being, NoFathers in Kashmir and Raazi. She explainsthat it is because “it needs to be there.Cinema is one of the biggest media ofchange and if these can impact the relationsbetween India and Pakistan even a little,why not?”

The actress, who is known for hersocial work like working for cancer aid,PETA, Cry and Greenathon, and has alsoserved as an ambassador for the WTI andthe goodwill ambassador to the UN,hopes that people through these storiesrealise that “hate exists because of fear. Wejust need more acceptance and lovetowards each other to make it a betterworld.” "��"��

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When we say single parent,the automatic assump-

tion that many people make isthat we are talking about awoman. However, there aredads who could be in con-tention for the best single par-ent award, if these were ever tobe handed out. Single fathers canmanage their homes and work-places dexterously. Of course, thejob of a parent is not easy andthat of a single one naturallymeans a multiplication ofresponsibilities.

Golmaal actor TussharKapoor, who is a single parent,believes that embracing father-hood has made him more self-less and organised. “After thebirth of Laksshya, my daily rou-tines have changed drastically. Ihave become more focussed onwork and also towards my child.I have scheduled my timetableaccording to my son’s routine,”says the proud father who willsoon star in the forthcomingALTBalaji series Booo: SabkiPhategi.

Single fathers go throughsimilar hassles as single moth-ers, the only difference beingthat they are hardly talked about

as we tend to celebrate mother-hood and give it primacy. Theytoo have to deal with theirchild’s tantrums and unendingdemands single-handedly. Theabsence of a companion leavesmany single parents with agnawing sense of self doubtabout whether they are up to thetask or not. It was an unfortu-nate summer in 1992, whenLondon-based Dr PrakramKothari lost his wife. Ever since,he has been a sole care-giver forhis 12-year-old son and six-year-old daughter. He says, “As a sin-gle parent, it becomes extreme-ly difficult to manage work andhome since both consume timeand are essential for the stabili-ty and well-being of the family.The job does not come with afixed set of rules and directions

— irrespective of whether it issingle parent or a couple. Asecure job, financial stability,close relatives living in the vicin-ity and their support — all playa crucial role, when you are sin-gle and have kids to look after.”

However, issues still surfaceespecially, when one is the fatherof a girl. The common notionthat a father is less likely to act‘mommy’ is a construct of themale-dominated society.Moreover, it also suggests that agirl will always need a mothersince it might be difficult for adaughter to share certain issueswith her father.

Delhi-based marketing spe-cialist Aamit Sharma, father offour-year-old Aruhi, who’s beenliving with him for a year, dis-agrees. He makes sure to doeverything for his daughter thata mother would do. “Beginningfrom buying her clothes andaccessories, dressing her upevery morning before school toplaiting her hair, I do it all,” hesays. Sharma adds that since hisdaughter is quite young, shedoesn’t have anything to share asyet. However, he wants to makesure to raise her in a manner that

he could be the first go-to per-son for her in future “withoutfeeling any hesitation or depri-vation that she doesn’t have amother.”

Arvind Nanda, CEO of asteel construction company,who fathers two boys, 16 and 23,feels that parenthood is notabout numbers but a balance oflove and devotion, confidenceand pride as well as friendshipand guidance. Even though hedoesn’t deny the fact that theresponsibility is doubled withouta partner, he says, “Becoming afather of two boys, managinghome chores, social life and trav-el were not really a big issue asI enjoyed it all and was fullyengrossed in it. In fact, I feelbeing a single father made me abetter person subconsciously.”

Kothari agrees with Nandathat having the sole responsibil-ity of a single parent has its ownpleasure. He says, “Despite issuesor maybe because of them webecome stronger since we areaware that we will stand againstall those pitfalls together. I cansee it now, how it brought allthree of us closer since we havegrown and learnt things togeth-

er.” Today, even at 64, Arvindfeels young and energeticbecause of his kids and work. Heis proud of himself that his chil-dren don’t feel the need for a sec-ond parent. “I am a blessedfather as my children have nevereven once expressed the need ordesire to have another parent. Infact, this has organised all theaspects of my life to a level whereI am able to give my best, espe-cially to my children,” he says.

Kothari recommends thatevery single father should ensurethat their children should notfeel that their fathers are sacri-ficing anything for them.“Initially when the circum-stances change and the job ofparenting falls on one person,children are the ones who bearthe brunt of the change the most.However, they might not sharetheir views with the parent forthe fear of troubling him. Undersuch a scenario, it becomesimportant to keep the lines ofcommunication open and pro-vide them with love, affectionand advice,” he adds. Clearly itis not a matter of gender but thatof the heart that makes for awhole parent.

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He swayed millions of heart withhis new single Zindagi Di Paudiand is riding the crest of suc-

cess. But it has not been an easy ridefor Millind Gaba despite having rootsin the industry. He shares “I imbibedmusic since childhood because myfather is a music producer and has beena part of the industry for the last 35years.” He says when he stepped outfor a job, no option other than musicwas open to him as he was not goodat sports or academics. Moreover, hetoo was determined to make a mark inthe industry. He adds, “My family washappy to see me continuing the lega-cy. They made me aware about theintricacies and uncertainties of thefield.” He was taught to strike a balancebetween success and failures evenbefore he stepped into the world ofmusic.

Initially, though it was music pro-duction that he ventured into. But hisheart lay in singing and he oftenrequested producers to allow him toperform for free but they did not com-ply. “All I wanted was a chance to provemyself but I was always rejected as theyfelt that I was a child,” he says. Alongwith music, he was keen to act as well.Here too, he faced so many rejectionsthat he started questioning his destiny.The only thing which kept him goingwas his patience.

He wanted to make his music thetalk of the town, which ultimately didhappen in 2014 when he sang, DaruParty. “It turned out to be a gamechanger. I won appreciation and recog-nition everywhere. It gave me theopportunity to perform and connectwith people from all walks of life allover India.”

The excitement in his voice is pal-pable when he talks about how he per-formed four roles in his song Four MenDown which was inspired by Mannbehka in Ghajini where Aamir Khanplayed 11.

Gaba has been partial to Punjabisongs and he has sung most of his num-bers in the language. He says, “I am a

hardcore Punjabi. After singing inHindi, I decided to switch to mymother tongue to make people awareof my Dilli wali Punjabi.” He sharesthat he has an inclination towardsBhojpuri.

An allegation that has doggedGaba often is that of his lyrics beingsexist in nature. However he countersand talks about the double entendrethat he finds implicit in the songs ofpast, “People have started question-ing the lyrics now. In the past therewere songs like Aao huzoor tumkobaharo mei le chalu and Aaj ki raatmere dil ki salaami le le.’ Aren’t thesesexist? Kaun leta hai raat mei salami?Tell me? These songs were neverquestioned. Songs can be interpret-ed according to our intentions. I don’tpay attention to all this as I feel songsare made for entertainment. The onesI sing were created as dance numbersto enjoy. Listen, dance, enjoy, go backand sleep. I am not giving you anyadvice or suggestions through mysongs”

Talking about his recent release,Zindagi Di Paudi he says, loveinspired him to sing it. He had notsung any love song by far so hethought this was a good one to showhis versatility. He showcased his act-ing alongside his music skills throughit. He expressed his happiness overthe success of the song and also thatit had struck a chord with boys. “I hadhoped that the song would have thiseffect,” he says.

While choosing a song he makessure that it syncs with his personali-ty as he is well aware that he can’t por-tray a gangster or even a negative role.

His favourite actor is RanveerSingh. “I can identify myself with himespecially when he is on the stage. Hehas a volcano of energy.” He alsoadmires Aamir Khan for his actingand professionalism and wants towork with him. His list of favouritesingers include Hariharan, NusratFateh Ali Khan and Sonu Nigam.

Besides being a music addict, heis a travel junkie. His next songis a lively friendship anthemwith his friends. Besides this, hewill also share the screen withTulsi Kumar soon.

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Actress Parineeti Chopra isset to begin the official

remake of Hollywood thriller,The Girl on the Train. Theactress will reprise the role ofthe protagonist essayed byEmily Blunt in the original andshe is fine with people com-paring her performance withHollywood superstars.

She said, “Emily Blunt’sperformance in the film hadblown my mind. It is a privilegefor me to play the character thatshe has essayed so brilliantly onthe screen. The restrain andrange she showed as an actorwhile playing a girl, who istroubled and battling herself inthe film, showed what a fan-tastic actor she is. When anyactor does a remake of a lovedfilm, there are high expecta-tions. So, Irealise that theaudience willcompare myportrayal ofthe protag-onist vsEmily’s.”

T h ea c t r e s sa d d e d ,“The bestway toa p p r o a c hthis film forme is toembrace thefact that paral-lels will bedrawn. Sincethe originalfilm was so wellreceived by peo-ple, I’m hop-ing the same formy film, without thinking toomuch about the comparisons.”

Based on the 2015 best-seller by Paula Hawkins, thefilm narrates the story of adivorcee woman who getsentangled in a shocking miss-ing person’s investigation thatthrows her life to the brink.

Parineeti complimentedEmily, “Her performance is asuper reference point for me.She has brought to life a char-acter from paper and she wasgenius at it. I will look to tryand add my own rendition tothe character that people haveloved so much. I hope this rolegives me an opportunity toshow my versatility and that itwill be interesting for people tosee how Emily and I per-formed the same role with ourindividual uniqueness.”

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Dubai: The US military onFriday released a video showingIran's Revolutionary Guardremoving an unexploded limpetmine from one of the oil tankerstargeted near the Strait ofHormuz.

The US Navy rushed toassist the stricken vessels in theGulf of Oman off the coast ofIran, including one that was setablaze on Thursday by an explo-sion. The ships' operators offeredno immediate explanation onwho or what caused the damageagainst the Norwegian-ownedMT Front Altair and theJapanese-owned KokukaCourageous.

Each was loaded with petro-leum products, and the FrontAltair burned for hours, sendingup a column of thick, blacksmoke. Iran has denied beinginvolved in the attack, calling itan "unfounded claim" in the US'"Iranophobic campaign."However, Iran previously usedmines against oil tankers in1987 and 1988 in the "TankerWar," when the U.S. Navy escort-ed ships through the region.

The black-and-whitefootage, as well as still pho-tographs released by the U.S.Military's Central Command,appeared to show the limpetmine on the KokukaCourageous. A RevolutionaryGuard patrol boat pulled along-side the ship and removed themine, Central Command

spokesman Capt. Bill Urbansaid.

"The US and the interna-tional community stand ready todefend our interests, includingthe freedom of navigation,"Urban said. "The United Stateshas no interest in engaging in anew conflict in the Middle East.However, we will defend ourinterests." Iran earlier deniedinvolvement via a statementfrom its mission to the UnitedNations. "The US economic warand terrorism against the Iranianpeople as well as its massive mil-itary presence in the regionhave been and continue to be themain sources of insecurity andinstability in the wider PersianGulf region and the most sig-nificant threat to its peace andsecurity," the statement said.

The suspected attacksoccurred at dawn Thursdayabout 40 kilometers (25 miles)off the southern coast of Iran.The Front Altair, loaded with theflammable hydrocarbon mixturenaphtha from the United ArabEmirates, radioed for help as itcaught fire. A short time later,the Kokuka Courageous, loadedwith methanol from SaudiArabia and Qatar, also called forhelp.The US Navy sent adestroyer, the USS Bainbridge, toassist, said Cmdr. Joshua Frey, a5th Fleet spokesman. Hedescribed the ships as being hitin a "reported attack," withoutelaborating. AP

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Dubai: Iran dismissed as "base-less" on Friday US accusations itexecuted twin attacks that lefttwo tankers ablaze in the Gulf ofOman, raising fears of conflictin the strategically vital water-way.

China called for all sides to"resolve the conflict throughdialogue" as oil prices jumped,while the European Union andthe United Nations called forrestraint.

Secretary of State MikePompeo warned Washingtonwould defend its regional inter-ests after US Central Commandblamed Iranian forces for theattacks — the second in a monthin the strategic shipping lane.

CENTCOM released grainyblack-and-white video it saidshowed crew members of anIranian patrol boat removing an"unexploded limpet mine" fromthe hull of Japanese-ownedtanker Kokuka Courageous.

No proxy group could beresponsible, Pompeo said. ButForeign Minister MohammadJavad Zarif tweeted that the UShad "immediately jumped tomake allegations against Iranwithout a shred of factual or cir-cumstantial evidence". AFP

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Bishkek: Iranian PresidentHassan Rouhani said on Fridaythe United States present aserious threat to global andregional stability as tensionssoar in the Gulf.

"The US government overthe last two years, violating allthe international structuresand rules and using its eco-nomic, financial and militaryresources, has taken an aggres-sive approach and presents aserious risk to stability in theregion and the world," Rouhani

said, in translated comments.He was speaking at a meet-

ing in Bishkek of the ShanghaiCooperation Organisation -- aEurasian security alliance thatincludes China, India andRussia.

Rouhani criticised the USfor withdrawing from the 2015nuclear deal with Iran, sayingWashington is forcing otherparties and countries to breacha UN Security Council resolu-tion on normalising trade con-tacts with Tehran. AFP

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So, it's finally India-Pakistan, theICC's biggest moment plannedfor this Sunday at Manchester,

the platinum-ticket event which noone wants to miss, apparently not eventhe rain!

On the weather chart, the precip-itation is slated to rise to an alarming60 per cent with at least one and a halfhour of rain predicted on match day,June 16. Otherwise, it is to be a cloudyday with spotty showers on a humid-ity level of 75 per cent, meaningPakistani pace battery Amir after hisfifer burst against Australia will be rar-ing to go.

All fingers, thus, are crossed andprayers in place that the skies give thisblockbuster safe passage. A day-and-a-half before the match it rained theentire morning with the sun decidingto come out only towards the after-noon, giving huge sighs of relief, tillthe next cloud came to cover up thesunshine moment.

The India-Pakistan tie has drawnfans from all over the world, includ-ing both sides of the border, America,

Canada, Australia and the Middle Eastto name a few regions. “We are hereall the way from Bahrain for thismatch and we will lose � 1 lakh inmatch ticket money if the match getsimpacted by the rain,” said VK Georgewho just checked into Manchester onMonday.

Rain has been unreasonablyintense this season, so much so thatlocals call it unprecedented. But if onewere to check the rain records ofEngland, June has always been itswettest summer month, raising manyeyebrows on the scheduling of theCup in this month. “Barring last year,for five summers, June has rained likenever before and this June is no dif-ferent so I don’t know why ICC oranyone else should be so surprised,"said James Barry, a Nott who feelscloud seeding like China did duringthe Olympics could keep some of therain at bay.

Besides disrupting player readi-ness for the match, a downpour playshavoc on the points table too. Asmany as seven teams, including India,have lost a point to rain, Lanka beingthe most unlucky one to have lost two.

India was on a winning spree, havingdefeated South Africa and Australiaon the trot, before being put on holdby the weather at Trent Bridge.

“It is frustrating to wait in thedressing room on a rainy day. It’s achallenge for the players and the sup-port staff to switch down but not real-ly switch off, because the matchcould start at any time, so they haveto be prepared in the back of themind. At the same time, not think toomuch about the game and keepyourself a little busy, reading, somemusic, or chatting with friends. Butwe deal with it all the time,” India'sfielding coach R Sridhar said atTrent Bridge.

Asked by a journalist if ICCshould be discouraged from holdinga World Cup in a country which hasso much rain, New Zealand coachGary Stead said: “I don't think so. Ifyou took the UK summer from lastyear, then I’m not sure it did rain atall from the sound of things. It’s a bitof bad luck really. It can rain any-where in the world. My first tour wasin Dubai and it rained there in thedesert and I never thought it was

going to rain there either,” he added.Rain downtime management has

also been a challenge for the teams.“The first thing we're going to do ishave a couple of days off. We don'tplay again for about six days now andit's important that you manage yourbreaks. It’s quite ironic. Our last fourtrainings have all been indoors. It'sjust what we have to deal with. We tryto pride ourselves on our adaptabil-ity,” Stead said.

The other challenge becomes thechange of strategy and tactics for anunder the weather game. “If thematch is short, the planning has to bechanged. With the weather overcastlike that, every team would want towin the toss and bowl first,” Pakistancaptain Sarfaraz Ahmad said beforethe match against Australia.

But as West Indies head coachFloyd Relfer concluded: “It’s England.90 per cent rain. Nothing we can doabout it. So just take the one pointand look forward to the other games.”

Hopefully, Virat Kohli on June 16would not be forced to talk on hind-sight about the weather and yetanother point lost.

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As the day for the big matchapproaches, albeit under a

rain threat on Sunday, India isin top form having won two ofthe three games thus far, losingone to rain and abandonment.Pakistan, on the other hand,have been battling woes of allkinds, besides the weather, andhave won only one of the fourmatches they have played so farin the tournament.

While India defeatedAustralia summarily at TheOval in their second match, afterrunning all over the strugglingSouth Africans in their openingclash, Pakistan lost to theAustralians by 41 runs in therun-up to the clash against

India. Skipper Sarfaraz blamedunsupportive and bad fieldingfor the defeat despite Amir’sfiery fifer.

Add to that, India havinghistory on its side, that of neverbeing defeated by Pakistan in aWorld Cup event, and Kohli willfeel sorted. Though the OldTrafford pitch is known to aidboth pace and spin, the overcastconditions and breeze expectedon match day will make naviga-tion of the famed Pakistanipace battery a niggle to dealwith, especially for the top orderwhich will be missing ShikharDhawan. Pakistan, on the other

hand, have a much higher quo-tient of vulnerability with thebat, making the likes of JaspritBumrah and BhuvneshwarKumar forces most likely to jointhe elements in troubling them.

While the full Pakistanicontingent was in the stadiumfor practice two days ahead ofthe match, they were forced totrain indoors due to constantrain. It was mostly their bats-men padding up for the session.Team India used up the morn-ing half of the day to travel fromNottingham to Manchester andpreferred to hit the hotel gymover coming to the Old

Trafford, though the sun wasout in the afternoon and therain remained at bay tillevening.

As pressure talk goes, itsmore on Pakistan than on India,with the former staring at yetanother step to imminent ousterfrom the tournament if theirbad run continues against India.In any case, a clash against Indiacomes with the highest intensi-ty on both ends, and in thestands, with the chatter off thestadium gaining wings on bothsides of the border. Besides thead battle that India and Pakistanhave unofficially launchedthemselves into, Manchester isexpected to bring the stands onfire with the city having boththe populations in high andalmost equal measure.

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PITCH TURNED AROUND

The Old Trafford CricketGround, home to the

Lancashire County Cricket, hasa habit of sitting on history,making history and turningheads with unmatched mile-stones over the decades. Asgreat moments go, the turningof the pitch 90 degrees came inas a mega project approved bythe Government in 2010 to keepthe old man in the internationalbooks. So the pitch we have nowwas turned from its originalEast-West layout to North-South, mostly to guard againstnot the infamous Manchesterdrizzle but the low sun whichmade it dangerous for batsmenif the bowler was running inwith the late afternoon sunbehind him. Perhaps, this is theonly ground in the world where“good light stopping play” was aworrying phenomenon. But thathas since changed and what wehave now is a 23500-strongexpanded, modernised andspruced up facility which is oneof the most ancient and yet themost modern in England. It isone of the sport’s most enduringmysteries why a pitch would, atall, be laid in an East-Westdirection. Cricket pitches, muchlike tennis courts, must runnorth/south to minimise therisk of batsmen or bowlers fac-ing a low sun.

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MAIDEN SACHIN MOMENT

The big India momentshave been more than

one on this ground, whatwith the maestro SachinTendulkar, at a tender andwinsome 17, cracking hismaiden Test century for theworld to get up andapplaud. He made anunbeaten 119 off 189 ballsagainst England in a matchthat was drawn. He was thethird youngest batsman everto score a Test centuryagainst England at the OldTrafford. Batting first,England posted 519 onboard with Graham Gooch,Michael Atherton andRobin Smith scoring cen-turies. In reply, India man-aged 432 with skipperMohammad Azharuddinleading the charge with a179, supported by 17-year-old Tendulkar who scored68. Allan Lamb 's century in

England's second inningshelped the hosts put up 320runs, and India were bat-tling to save the matchwhen Dilip Vengsarkar wassent back by ChristopherLewis for Tendulkar tocome in. Azhar departed inquick succession, butTendulkar battled on in the

harsh English conditions for225 minutes and saved theTest match with his unbeat-en ton helping India to343/6. After the matchEngland skipper GrahamGooch said: "Tendulkarplayed an excellent innings.He is a superb player for hisage, just like an old pro".

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BALL OF THE CENTURY

That Ball’ has 1.1 crore viewson You Tube! Termed as the

“Ball of the Century” this legbreak beauty by Shane Warnewas bowled to England’s MikeGatting on none other than theOld Trafford east-west pitch in1993. It turned as never beforeor afterwards till now 26 yearshence and analyses are still rifeon how the then young Warnecould have managed the impos-sible turn. The ball pitched wayoutside leg stump and as a con-temptuous Gatting moved hisbat in defence to chide it away, itdrifted first to the middle andthen on to the off-stump gettingthe bails up in air even asGatting gave a long stunnedlook first to the pitch and thento the umpire who was asshocked as perhaps even theyoung blond boy from Down

Under who became an instantcelebrity that summer day ofAshes. This ball happened in thedays of blistering pace, whenspin bowlers were looked downupon. But it not only opened theworld to the power and subtletyof spin bowling but also wentdown in history as the mostanalysed moment in cricket.During the Old Trafford Test ofthe 2005 Ashes series, the long-retired Gatting re-created thisBall of the Century with anautomated bowling machineprogrammed to deliver leg spin.In 2009, the Irish chamber popgroup The Duckworth LewisMethod wrote a song called"Jiggery Pokery" about this inci-dent. Warne and others still talkabout this ball of his openingover of Day 2 at Old Traffordwhich eventually led to Australiawinning the Test.

MORE WITH JIMMY & VIV

Then there are manymore. Like Viv

Richards’ blistering 189against England in a 1984ODI, a personal score thatwas so unheard of in thegame. Closer heart andhome, like MohinderAmarnath’s all-roundexcellence which stunnedhosts England and helpedIndia to a six-wicket victo-

ry in the 1983 World Cup.India eventually went on tobeat mighty carriers of thegame the West Indies to liftthe World Cup trophy atLord’s. And last but not theleast, Jim Laker taking all10 wickets in an inningsdestroying Australiandefence and spirit wayback in 1956, going on totake 19 wickets in thatmemorable match.

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After two washed out games, SriLanka will be desperate to come outall guns blazing but defending

champion Australia's depth will be hard tobeat when the two sides clash in a WorldCup fixture here on Saturday.

Sri Lanka have not played a match atthe World Cup since June 4, forced to split

points with Bangladesh and Pakistan fol-lowing two washed out games.

The island nation, who won the tour-nament back in 1996, stands fifth with justone win — against minnows Afghanistanin a rain-hit match — from four games.

Defending champions Australia, on theother hand, have been simply unstoppablewith their loss against India being the onlyblemish in an otherwise professional per-

formance so far in the tournament.The five-time winners are placed sec-

ond with three wins from four games.With two fifties and a hundred, David

Warner has been simply outstanding,helping Australia post 300-plus scores in thelast two matches.

The opener hasn’t yet looked hisdestructive best but the 107 off 111 ballsagainst Pakistan will ease his mind. The

knock was his first century since makinga comeback after the ball-tampering scan-dal and he would look to play with morefreedom now.

Skipper Aaron Finch too has two fiftiesto show in the last four innings. He andWarner gave Australia a rampaging startagainst Pakistan in their last match and theduo will back themselves for an encoreagainst Sri Lanka.

However, Australia have looked vulner-able against quality pace bowling — theywere reduced to 79 for five by West Indies.

Their middle order is brittle andsquandered superb starts against Pakistanand India. Sri Lanka will look to exploitthese weaknesses on Saturday.

Sri Lanka will hope that fast bowlerNuwan Pradeep, who had injured himselfahead of the Bristol game, returns Saturdayto strengthen the bowling attack.

Veteran pacer Lasith Malinga, who hadto fly home following the demise of moth-er-in-law, is also likely to play Saturday andthe onus would be on the pace duo to getwickets.

In the batting department, the DimuthKarunaratne-led side has failed to last thefull 50 overs against New Zealand andAfghanistan.

They lost five wickets for 14 runsagainst New Zealand and then sevenwickets for 36 runs against Afghanistan.

The former champions will have to

address their batting woes before they takeon the likes of Mitchell Starc and PatCummins, both of whom have taken ninewickets each so far.

�C(��Australia: Aaron Finch (capt), DavidWarner, Usman Khawaja, Steve Smith,Glenn Maxwell, Marcus Stoinis, AlexCarey (wkt), Nathan Coulter-Nile, PatCummins, Mitchell Starc, Adam Zampa,Jason Behrendorff, Nathan Lyon, ShaunMarsh, Kane Richardson.Sri Lanka: Dimuth Karunaratne (capt),Dhananjaya de Silva, Nuwan Pradeep,Avishka Fernando, Suranga Lakmal, LasithMalinga, Angelo Mathews, Kusal Mendis,Jeevan Mendis, Kusal Perera, ThisaraPerera, Milinda Siriwardana, LahiruThirimanne, Isuru Udana, JeffreyVandersay.

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�Is Stonis fully fit?He won't be available today. He has-

n't bowled yet in his recovery over the lastcouple of days. So having four daysbetween this game and the next game, Ithink that will be the ideal time to testhim out and assess him. But I think overthe next five, six days, there will be a callmade on that, just based on what he canand can't do. �Sri Lanka have not played any gamefor the last few days. Do you think it’san advantage for your team?

It’s not ideal, is it, when rain plays abig part in a tournament like this. I thinkSri Lanka have been unlucky with a cou-ple of games they have had watched out.You look down their side, and there's alot of experience there. There's a lot ofworld-class players. You can never takeany team in this competition lightly, butI think the fact that we've been playingconsistently, basically every three days forthe last two weeks, has been — has beenreally positive that we're in cricket modeat the moment. �Going off last game, would you bemore confident or less confident goingfour quicks again?

Like I said it's really tough at aground like Taunton being so small. Ithought that the wicket would actuallyspin a little bit as the game went on, butit didn't. So that was probably tougher ata ground like Taunton. I think here at TheOval, you see one that there’s a lot biggerside so you can play a little bit more defen-sive with your fifth bowler, as opposed tohaving to try and attack with him. Andthat's what the four quicks allows you todo. It gives you an opportunity to attackfrom one end while being defensive at theother. It's just that, so small, Taunton, thatit's tough to even be defensive as a spin-ner there.�The team’s fielding looks a lot sharp-er now. Can you take us through theamount of work put it?

I think having Smith and Warner,back in the ring there, that creates a hugeamount of presence. They are both — orDave, in particular, is so quick. Hemightn't have the best arm at the momentbut he's so quick to the ball that you can'trun. Maxwell, we know how good he canbe. He's up there with the best in theworld when he's hitting the stumps likehe did the other day, at a crucial time. Allour quick bowlers are really good. All ourspinners are good. Zams has really safehands. So it gives you an opportunity thatyou can keep the guys in; the fast guys,the guys who anticipate the play, you cankeep them in the circle for longer. Butwhen you have got confidence in every-one, anyone can field all around thegrounds. That's been a big change is to getthem world-class fielders staying in thering for longer.�You want to build towards your bestcricket in World Cup. When do youwant to see the batting lineup click?

Every game would be nice. Obviouslyit's tough. You are coming up against dif-ferent opposition all the time and Italked about it in terms of changing yourpreparation, and adapting game by gamebecause you don't get into a original manyagainst the same team like you do forthree and a half years in between WorldCup. To come up against different oppo-sition, you're facing different challengesall the time. So it would be nice for ourbatting to just keep improving. I don'tthink we've gone anywhere near our best,which is still a good thing; that we've gotsix points on the board while not playinganywhere near our best cricket, which isa real positive. But as long as we'reimproving, and continue to go up and notgo backwards, I think that's the key.

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Aaron Finch's captaincy has earnedhim the praise of Michael Vaughan,

who hailed Finch's tactical nous, follow-ing Australia's 41-run victory againstPakistan. Vaughan hailed Finch's shrewdand brave decision-making, and calledhim the best captain at the World Cup2019 so far. "I have to say Aaron Finch,so far in this tournament, has been thebest captain tactically," Vaughan told theBBC. "I think he manoeuvred his teamagainst the West Indies well to win thatgame. And just over the last hour (againstPakistan), when it started to get a little bitpanicky for Australia, he manoeuvred hisbowling attack, knowing that he had toget these overs of spin [in]." Vaughan,who had led England to a historic Ashestriumph in 2005 also praised Finch's rota-tion of bowlers. "He left one [over of spin]late because he wanted to go for the glorywith [Pat] Cummins and Starc, and it paidoff. That's what you have to do as a cap-tain," he said. "He got a lot of things rightin the field, in terms of squeezing at theright time, putting the catchers in at theright time and then spreading them outwhen a partnership started to develop. Ithought he was outstanding as a captain.”Vaughan also believed that the defendingchampions would be among the final fourremaining teams in the competition. "Ican't see how they won't be in the semi-finals," he said. "Can they win the WorldCup playing to the standard they playedtoday? I don't think so. But do they haveenough in the locker to improve and winwhen it really matters? Absolutely." ��

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David Warner has overcomethe challenges of reintegrat-

ing himself into the Australianteam and with the explosive open-er nearing his best, he could wellend up as top scorer in thisWorld Cup, feels assistant coachRicky Ponting.

After struggling for rhythm inearly matches, Warner came closeto his damaging best in a match-winning knock of 107 off 111 ballsagainst Pakistan on Wednesday inhis fourth game back in Australiancolours.

The 32-year-old right-hand-ed batsman sat out for one year,serving a ban imposed by the ICCon ball tampering charges inSouth Africa last year. He cameout of that ban on March 29, alongwith his former captain SteveSmith.

Asked if other sides will nowbe more fearful of Warner, includ-ing Sri Lankans whom Australiaface on Saturday, Ponting said: "Ithink they should. You know

with David Warner at his best, ifyou miss your line and lengththen he's going to make you pay.

“Every game is a different setof challenges for every player.Davey capitalised on Pakistannot executing as well as theycould have. We know against SriLanka, they’ll be well-planned.But Warner at his best is difficultto bowl to and I think he was backto somewhere near his best,”Ponting was quoted as saying by'cricket.Com.Au'.

Ponting said the handbrake isoff for a rejuvenated Warner andif “he keeps playing like that(against Pakistan) for the rest ofthe tournament, he's probably

going to be the leading run scor-er” in this World Cup.

The assistant coach, however,conceded that the challenges of

reintegrating himself back into ateam after being out of it for overa year weighed on Warner.

“We'd all seen that he(Warner) probably had not beenbatting as fluently as we're used toseeing. It was more of a mentalthing than anything, he was justholding back a little bit and notplaying with the freedom we'reused to seeing him play with,”Ponting said.

“It was just about being a bitfreer in everything he did. I thinkhe was just trying a bit too hard,making a statement coming backin a World Cup. Wanting to doeverything right and impresseverybody rather than just going

out and hitting the ball and scor-ing runs like we've seen him do for10 years,” he said.

Ponting said Warner in earli-er matches (before the matchagainst Pakistan) seemed a littlebit more worried about getting outthan scoring runs but he was toldby the Australian support staff tojust go out, see the ball and hit theball.

"We said to him after the lastgame, 'mate, just go out and seeball, hit ball.' He got off to a goodstart (against Pakistan) and con-tinued on for 30 or 40 overs,"Ponting, who spoke to Warnerafter Australia's 36-run defeat toIndia on June 9, said.

"You could see by the way hemoved into his shots and pickingup the length early, he hit a lot ofpull shots early in his innings,which is always a good sign forhim.

"He'd taken the handbrake offwhich has allowed himself toplay with a bit more freedom," theformer captain said of Warner'sinnings against Pakistan.

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� If there's a doubt that Lungiis not 100 percent fit, would you still keephim?

Tricky one, because we're in a positionnow where we need to win five games outof five. So you want to have your best guysavailable for selection. We are trying tomake sure that if he's not 100 percent oreven 90 percent ready for the game, andeven if it's going to shorten game or a bitrain around, is it worth the risk. So that isthe conversation that we have spokenabout. Yes, so probably the right call tomake would be to say that if he's not ready,you just give him a little bit more time tosee if he can play the next four games,which is going to be big. �How much are you drawing on yourexperience from the IPL and facingAfghanistan’s spinners?

I think what's clear in the world ofcricket now is that you can't call teamsminors anymore. You can't call themweaker sides because they have the abili-ty and the players in their dressing roomto change a game. You need two or threeguys in any game to stand up and win youa game. And they've got those players.Obviously Rashid Khan is probably thestandout for them in the fact that he'sproven in T20 cricket that he's certainly,probably the best leg spinner in the worldin T20 cricket. In 50-over cricket, it giveshim a bit more time but you also don't haveto attack him as much as you do in one-day cricket. So it's really important for usto make sure that the learnings there isfrom the players that's played against himin the IPL, that we share that knowledgein the dressing room and just make surewe annihilate that threat. If he bowls andhe's not getting wickets, then it gives us anopportunity to make sure that we can getsome players towards other bowlers.�How different is it to prepare and alsoplay a day/night game?

We've played a lot of day/night crick-et. You just try to alter your preparation,just get used to the lights, because everyplace you play day/night cricket the lightsfeel different. This ground looks likethere's a few pockets that are not as brightas the middle. So it goes a little bit darkertowards the end of the — so it was goodto have a night practice on Thursday to seewhat was going on.�Could you explain what changes froma batting and a bowling point of viewwhen you have such short, straightboundaries?

I think from a spinning point of view,guys would generally want to attackstraight. That sounds obvious. But that tellsyou that spinners will probably drag theirlength, try to drag their length and makeyou hit square. So if bowlers do bowl likethat they actually take a little bit of theirweaponry away because they're just shortof that perfect length. And then you canscore naturally off any spinner. So, there isa pro to it, but there's also a negative to that.And hopefully we can take it to ouradvantage. And from a seamless point ofview, yeah, you want to be making sure thatyou are making the guys play square. Butalso there's no point in just bowling shortall the time.�This is the venue where you guys lost.How much are you drawing on that expe-rience?

We did — the nice thing is we played,we've batted on this wicket. I suppose a pos-itive from playing under the conditions likethis is the last time we played here the balldidn't spin much. So that is a weapon thatAfghanistan has or have. They've got a verygood spin attack. And if you get them ona surface that is a bit slow it does spin a bit.They just as dangerous as WI, England,Australia with their bowling attacks becausethey've got guys that can get wickets all thetime. Hopefully that's the same tomorrow.Hopefully the spin doesn't assist too much.

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Winless so far in the tournament,both South Africa andAfghanistan will be eagerly

looking to tick the victory box when theytake on each other in a World Cupencounter here on Saturday.

Down and out, the two bottom-placed teams know that this will be theirbest chance to post their first win in theongoing 50-over showpiece.

This is perhaps the first time thatSouth Africa, from the very beginning,were never in contention to make it tothe semifinals but remaining winless afterfour matches is something unexpected.

After three straight losses againstEngland, Bangladesh and India, theirfourth match against the West Indies wasabandoned due to rain.

Afghanistan faced a similar fate, los-ing all three of their matches till now todefending champions Australia, SriLanka and New Zealand. However, theplayers of the war-torn nation can takeconfidence from the fact that they gavea good account of themselves against theSri Lankans and almost pulled it off.

While Afghanistan will be fancyingtheir chances against a lowly SouthAfrica side, the Proteas would be morethan keen to live up to their past repu-tation and make a statement against theAsian minnows.

South Africa have been mostly donein by their inexperienced batting line-up,coupled with injuries to a few of their keyplayers. The Protea batsmen have beenstruggling, and even in the wash-outgame against West Indies, they weredown at 29/2 before the match was calledoff.

Experienced Hashim Amla has beenis in dismal form and the semi-finalistsof the 2015 edition can only hope thattheir veteran batsmen start to fire.

The responsibility rests on the shoul-ders of skipper Faf du Plessis andQuinton de Kock and the two will beexpected to bring their 'A' game into thefore against Afghanistan.

Batting remains a concern forAfghanistan as well and withMohammad Shahzad back home due tofitness issues, they will have their backagainst the wall.

It would be an uphill task for theAfghanistan batters against the likes of

Kagiso Rabada and Imran Tahir.Just like their rivals, the Afghans

would also be banking on their bowlersled by leg-spinner Rashid Khan.

�C(��South Africa: Faf du Plessis (c), AidenMarkram, Quinton de Kock (wk),Hashim Amla, Rassie van der Dussen,David Miller, Chris Morris, AndilePhehlukwayo, JP Duminy, DwainePretorius, Beuran Hendricks, KagisoRabada, Lungi Ngidi, Imran Tahir,Tabraiz Shamsi.Afghanistan: Gulbadin Naib (c), NoorAli Zadran, Hazratullah Zazai, RahmatShah (wk), Asghar Afghan,Hashmatullah Shahidi, NajibullahZadran, Samiullah Shinwari,Mohammad Nabi, Rashid Khan, DawlatZadran, Aftab Alam, Hamid Hassan,Mujeeb ur Rahman, Ikram Ali Khil.

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Rassie van der Dussen, the man whoreplaced A B de Villiers in South

Africa's World Cup squad, is not sur-prised that the legend wanted to comeout of retirement for the ongoing bigevent but feels the swashbuckler shouldhave handled things better.

Middle-order batsman der Dussenhas appeared in 13 ODIs since makinghis debut in January this year.

The selectors saw him as a replace-ment for de Villiers, who retired in Maylast year but expressed a desire to comeback on the eve of South Africa's WorldCup squad announcement in April.

That request was turned down byCricket South Africa, which had “plead-ed” with him to not retire last year butdidn’t get the desired response at thattime.

“It’s not necessarily the best questionto ask to me because I am involved init but had he not retired it definitelywould have influenced me directly,” derDussen was quoted as saying by‘ESPNCricinfo’.

“But you can’t, on the day before theannouncement and a team that’s beenworking for something for year and evenlonger than a year, come and say, ‘I wantto make a comeback now’.”

Van der Dussen has scores of 50, 41and 22 in the World Cup so far.

“I am not saying he was wrong orhe was right; so don’t misquote me. Butit would have set a difficult precedent —not necessarily a wrong one, because it’sstill AB, he is still one of the best play-

ers in the world — I just think it washandled maybe not in the correct wayfrom his side,” he said.

“I wasn’t surprised that he wouldwant to make a comeback on theworld's biggest stage. That’s the thing allthe biggest players in sport have in com-

mon. They want to perform when thepressure is on and when the stage is atits biggest,” he added.

Van der Dussen said de Villiers gothis chances and should have taken it ear-lier.

“As I believe it, Ottis (Gibson, thehead coach) and Faf (du Plessis, the cap-tain) gave him opportunities to, say, ‘Let’smanage your workload going into theWorld Cup because we want you to playa World Cup’.

“He had a fair chance to manage thatand he said no and that he is happy toretire and that's fair enough. And Fafaccepted it, Ottis accepted it and theystood by it,” van der Dussen said.

Asked if the media frenzy that fol-lowed the revelation of de Villierscomeback bid, affected him, van derDussen said it didn't.

"In terms of did it affect me? No. Iam quite happy to be mentioned in thesame sentence as AB. He is obviouslyone of the best there has ever been,” vander Dussen said.

“So do I have to replace him? I don'tfeel I have to. Can I play match-winninginnings for my country? I believe I can.Is that what he did? Yes, he did. It did-n't have as big an effect as I think peo-ple would like to believe it had,” headded.

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Afghanistan captainGulbadin Naib insists his

side won't let the row overMohammad Shahzad's contro-versial World Cup exit over-shadow the rest of the tourna-ment.

Shahzad played inAfghanistan's first two WorldCup matches, but the wicket-keeper-batsman was removedfrom the squad after sufferinga knee injury that the coun-try's cricket board said wouldnot allow him to play any fur-ther part in the tournament.

The 31-year-old, whoscored just seven runs in loss-es to Australia and Sri Lanka,claimed medical advice hehad received said he wouldhave been fit to play in a fewdays after having his kneedrained.

"If they don't want me toplay, I will quit cricket," anemotional Shahzad wasreported to have told localmedia after returning toKabul.

Shahzad, Afghanistan'shighest run-scorer in one-dayinternationals with 2,727 runs,was not selected for the 2015World Cup due to a lack of fit-ness.

Asked about the rowahead of Saturday's clash withSouth Africa, Naib made itclear he didn't want to dwellon the situation.

"We looked forward, so wedidn't go to the past. We hadone week off. We got plenty ofgood things in this last week,"Naib told reporters on Friday.

"Obviously we missedShahzad. We have goodyoungsters on the team nowon the side, so we're excited forthe next game."

With Afghanistan stilllooking for their first win inthis year's World Cup, Naibsaid star leg spinner RashidKhan should be fit to playagainst South Africa.

Rashid suffered a headinjury and failed a concussiontest, leaving him unable tobowl after he was struck by abouncer from New Zealand'sLockie Ferguson.

"He's quite good now. Hejoined yesterday's practise ses-sion as well. Now he's feelingmuch better now," Naib said.

"It's not that serious.Obviously when you are hithard on the head you havesomething like a problem, likethe head is sore. But now he'sfeeling well."

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Eden Hazard said onThursday he wants to

become a ‘Galactico’ at RealMadrid and believes he is join-ing the club at the perfectmoment in his career.

Hazard was unveiled infront of around 50,000 fans at theSantiagio Bernabeu after theBelgian’s long-awaited movefrom Chelsea was confirmed lastweek.

“I’m not a galactico, not yet,but I hope I will be one day,”Hazard said in a press confer-ence afterwards.

“Despite everything I’vedone in the past, it will be likestarting again from zero. I’m nota galactico, I’m Eden Hazard,just a very good player.”

Madrid will pay Chelsea aninitial 100 million euros forHazard, with another 45 milliondue in potential add-ons for the28-year-old, who has signed afive-year contract with his newclub.

Hazard admitted Madridmade a move for him after theWorld Cup last year but insist-ed this was the right time to leaveChelsea.

“I don’t think it is too late, Iam 28 years old, the bestmoment for a player,” Hazardsaid.

“I have had various phasesof my career, at Lille andChelsea, and now I felt the timewas right to join the best club inthe world.”

Madrid struggled withoutCristiano Ronaldo last seasonand Hazard will be tasked withhelping to fill the void.

Despite the arrivals of EderMilitao, Luka Jovic and FerlandMendy this summer, he is thefirst statement signing sinceZinedine Zidane was reappoint-ed in March.

“When you play for a teamlike Real Madrid there is not onesingle star, the team is the star,”Hazard said.

“I have been at Chelsea forseven years, but now I am the

new guy in the team and I willtry to contribute as much as pos-sible.”

Asked if he wanted tobecome the best player in theworld at Real Madrid, Hazardsaid: “I will try but first I will tryto be in the best team in theworld.

“It is a different level. I hada lot of success with Chelsea andI want to win a lot with Madridas well. Just to be here is a newchallenge.”

Hazard admitted Zidanewas also a key factor in his deci-sion.

“Everyone knows Zidanewas my idol growing up,” he said.“That he is the coach has beenan important factor but not theonly one. I already wanted toplay here.

“I was a kid playing footballin the garden with my brotherswhen I began to be a Real

Madrid fan.“Then I went to France,

then to England, but being aReal Madrid player, wearingthis shirt, it is an honour. I can’twait for the season to start.”

The shirt Hazard wore infront of the fans came withouta number and he admitted hehad told Mateo Kovacic atChelsea to ask his fellowCroatian, Luka Modric, aboutthe number 10.

“I have been able to talk toModric through Kovacic and Iwas joking when I asked him tolend me the number 10,” Hazardsaid. “He said no, so I’ll have tofind another number.”

Hazard scored 110 goals inseven seasons at Chelsea andwas named in the PFA PremierLeague team of the year fourtimes.

At the end of the 2014-15season, he was awarded both the

PFA Players' Player of the Yearand the Premier League Playerof the Season.

“In football you can alwaysimprove, you never reach yourlimit,” Hazard said.

“There is always room to dobetter, both individually andcollectively. I am in a goodmoment of my career, but thisteam can allow me to raise thebar even further.”

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Star forward Neymar’s injuryabsence changes nothing

for Brazil at the Copa America,midfielder Casemiro said onThursday, insisting that thehosts must triumph come whatmay.

Neymar will miss theSouth American showpieceafter injuring ankle ligamentslast week in the Selecao’s penul-timate warm-up friendly.

His injury came as theParis Saint-Germain forwardfaced accusations from aBrazilian model that he sexu-ally assaulted her in a hotel inthe French capital.

“Regardless of the compe-tition we’re in, Brazil arefavorites and must win,”Casemiro said ahead of Friday'stournament opener againstBolivia in Sao Paulo.

“Without a doubt, evenwithout Neymar — Brazil’smain star — we’re still verystrong,” the Real Madrid play-

er added.Brazil are aiming for a

ninth Copa America suc-cess and have claimed vic-tory on all four previousoccasions as hosts: in 1919,1922, 1949 and 1989.

But they haven’t lifted thetrophy since 2007 when win-ning for a fourth time in fiveeditions from 1997.

“We cannot hide from thatresponsibility,” said coach Tite.“We knowthat wehave tobuild stepby step forthe title.”

And whilehe admitted that it was a blowto be missing “one of the bestthree in the world,” he said thatthe squad is not thinking aboutNeymar’s absence.

“When it comes to us, wetalk more about Neymar here(in press conferences) thatthere in (training.) We talkabout preparation as a whole,”

Tite told reporters at theMorumbi stadium whereBrazil will play minnowsBolivia.

“We know it’s going to bea tough match, we know howBolivia play,” said Casemiro ofBrazil's first Group A oppo-

nents.“They’re very well orga-

nized, particularly defensively.”Brazil warmed up for the tour-nament with victories last weekover Qatar (2-0), who willmake their Copa Americadebut as invitees on Sunday,and Honduras (7-0).

“The team is very strong.You can see with those sevengoals, the whole team was cel-ebrating together,” said Tite.

His squad are hoping toerase the painful memories oftheir crushing disappointmentfive years ago when hosting theWorld Cup.

A 7-1 semi-final humblingat the hands of Germany putpaid to their hopes of landinga first global crown since 2002.

“We are ready, we showedit in these two (friendly)games, which in my opinionwere the best we’ve playedsince the World Cup” in Russialast year, added Casemiro.

There Brazil lost 2-1 toBelgium in the quarter-finals.

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India outplayed reigning Asian Gameschampion Japan 7-2 to storm into the

summit clash of the FIH Series Finals hock-ey tournament here on Friday, assuringthemselves a place in the year end's Olympicqualifying event.

Returning to the side after a longinjury lay-off, Ramadeep Singh (23rd, 37thminutes) finally got his mojo back with adouble strike, while Harmanpreet Singh(7th), Varun Kumar (14th), Hardik Singh(25th), Gursahibjit Singh (43rd) and VivekSagar Prasad (47) also registered theirname on the scoresheet.

Japan's goals were scored by KenjiKitazato (2nd) and Kota Watanabe (20th).

India will face South Africa in Saturday'sfinal while Japan will square off against USAin the third-fourth place play-off match.

South Africa had earlier defeated USA2-1 in the first semifinal.

For the first time in the tournament, theIndian defence was literally tested as world

No 18 Japan gave a good account of them-selves in patches.

To the dismay of the home crowd, Japantook the lead in the second minute from acounter attack. Kitazato slammed home pastIndian goalkeeper Krishan Bahadur Pathakafter receiving a pass from Kenta Tanakafrom their first attack.

The stunned Indians got their acttogether quickly and created a flurry ofopportunities. India secured back-to-backpenalty corners and Harmanpreet equalisedfrom the second chance.

The Indians kept up the pressure andearned three consecutive short corners inthe 14th minute and this time Varun beatJapan defence with a powerful groundedflick to hand the hosts a 2-1 lead.

But the Japanese caught the Indiandefence off-guard once again in the 20thminute with another fine counter-attackwhen Watanabe scored after being set up byKazuma Murata.

Japan's joy was shortlived as Indiarestored their lead three minutes later

through Ramadeep, who scored his first goalfor the country after returning from a year'sinjury hiatus.

Minutes later, India made the scoreline4-2 when Hardik scored with a slap shotfrom the top of the D.

India secured their sixth short cornersoon but Varun's effort was defended byJapanese goalkeeper Yusuke Takano.

Next it was PR Sreejesh's turn to showhis skills in front of the post when he deniedShota Yamada with a diving save fromJapan's first penalty corner.

After the change of ends, the play wasmostly on the Japan half as India kept upthe pressure to score three more goals.

First Ramandeep scored his second ofthe day in the 37th minute with a reboundfrom a penalty corner and then Gursahibjitand Vivek Sagar Prasad also sounded theboard from field efforts to register anemphatic win for India.

The FIH Series Finals provide two spotsin the Olympic Qualifiers to be held inOctober-November this year.

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Real Madrid confirmedthe signing of Japanese

teenager Takefusa Kubo onFriday.

The 18-year-old joinsfrom FC Tokyo and will playfor Madrid's B team, Castilla,next season.

"Takefusa Kubo will joinCastilla next season," a RealMadrid statement read.

"He is one of the mostpromising young players inworld football, an attackingmidfielder with excellenttechnique and great vision forthe game."

Kubo, who has beendubbed the “Japanese Messi”,made his full internationaldebut against El Salvadorearlier this month and wasalso linked with Barcelona,Paris Saint-Germain andManchester City. Kuboearned his nickname afterjoining Barca's youth acade-my aged 10 but returned toJapan in 2015 as a result ofFIFA sanctions handed to theclub for breaching rules onsigning under-age players.

Barcelona have kept tabson Kubo ever since butMadrid stole a march on theirLa Liga rivals with an offer oftwo million euros ($2.25 mil-lion) a year, according toJapanese media.

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Joe Root hit his second century ofthe tournament after England pacebattery tormented the West Indies

batsmen to set up a thumping eight-wicket win in their World Cup matchhere on Friday.

West Indies got a taste of their ownmedicine — they had troubled thePakistanis with bouncers in their onlywin thus far — as the England pacebattery unleashed fiery spells to bun-dle them out for 212 in 44.4 overs.

England overhauled the targetwith remarkable ease, completing thewin in 33.1 overs as Root remainedunbeaten on 100, which came off 94balls.

In his 16th ODI hundred, Rootfound the boundary rope 11 times.

West Indies owed their total toNicholas Pooran (63), who chose thebiggest stage to strike his maiden ODIfifty, and Shimron Hetmyer's (39) sen-sible batting on a pitch which had nodemons.

They added 89 runs for the fourthwicket but West Indies' big guns failedto fire.

Extravagance, when the situationdemanded patience, resulted in ChrisGayle (36) and Andre Russell (21)throwing their wickets away. The T20style batting in the longer format costtheir side dear.

Young pacer Archer (3/30) had theWest Indies batsmen dancing on thepitch, troubling them with the steepbounce.

Archer, Mark Wood (3/18), ChrisWoakes (1/16) and Liam Plunkket(1/30) delivered the goods for thehome favourites after home skipperEoin Morgan opted to field.

For defending 212, West Indiesneeded early wickets but openersRoot and Jonny Bairstow (45) punc-tured all their hopes with a command-ing 91-run stand.

It seemed the two batsmen werecompeting to hit most the elegant shotsone can hit. Their cover and straightdrives were like unrestrained stream ofa river.

Left-arm pacer Sheldon Cottrelldid ask a few tough questions to theEnglish duo but Root and Bairstowwere up for the task.

Bairstow departed when his squarecut off Shannon Gabriel landed straightinto the big hands of Carlos Brathwaite.

Root and Woakes (40), promotedto number three, then added 104 runsfor the second wicket to push the sideto the doorstep of a comfortable win.

The result catapulted England(6) to the second spot in the tablebehind New Zealand (7).

Earlier, the ball was hurrying onto the batsmen and whether it was aShai Hope (11) or the big-hittingGayle, the Caribbeans found thegoing tough as timing the ball was achallenge. They had already lost EvinLewis (0), bowled by Woakes off a

yorker.Gayle, out of frustration, pulled

one from Woakes, just managed anedge but escaped as Wood grassed asitter. The marauding batter did hit afew big shots, including a massive

straight six off Woakes, but did not lastlong, edging one straight to JonnyBairstow off Plunkett.

Hope's torturous stay was endedby Wood when he had him trappedafter reviewing the umpire's not outdecision.

Pooran and Hetmyer then choserestrain over flamboyance, steadingthe innings.

The duo did all the hard work,working the ball around to keep thescoreboard going in their partnership,which got broken when Joe Root hadHetmyer caught off his own bowling.

The part-time off-spinner struckin his next over too, dismissing the

rival captain Jason Holder (9) in sim-ilar fashion.

In came Russell and the ball wassoon flying into the stands. He twicedispatched leg-spinner Adil Rashidinto the crowd after being droppedbut was dismissed, attempting anoth-er big shot off Wood.

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