0 1 ˝ ˙ ˚) ˚A ˇ&˜ ˝˘˘ A RNI Regn. No. MPENG/2004/13703 ... · 14 hours ago  · Delhi,...

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T housands of protesting farmers spilled on the streets in several parts of the country hitting normal life and rail and road traffic in a big way as part of their “Bharat bandh” protest against the farm bills. Massive protests were seen in parts of Punjab, Haryana, Bengaluru, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Telangana, etc. After holding separate protests, farmers under the banners Bharti Kisan Union Krantikari, Kirti Kisan Union, Bharatiya Kisan Union (Ekta Ugrahan), Kisan Mazdoor Sangharsh Committee and BKU (Lakhowal) with support of political parties, including the Congress, the RJD and the Trinamool Congress, as well as 10 central trade unions blocked highways, railway tracks, dis- rupted traffic and brought life to a standstill in several parts of the country. According to reports, farmers blocked highways which include Chandigarh- Delhi, Amritsar Delhi, Delhi- Dehradun, Ayodhya Lucknow, Baghpat-Badayun, Bommanahalli on Karnataka- Tamil Nadu highway. Meanwhile, farmers from Punjab have extended the rail roko agitation till September 29. In Punjab, agitating farm- ers blocked roads, including highways. Road blockades caused hardships to commuters in both States and life to a standstill in Bathinda, Jalandhar, Patiala, Moga, Ferozepur, Fazilka, Barnala, Faridkot, Muktsar, Mansa, Bathinda and other districts of Malwa belt. Farmers accompanied by their family members, includ- ing mothers, wives and daugh- ters converged in large num- bers at various places in Amritsar, Ferozepur, Barnala and staged sit-in and held demonstrations at all the entry points. Shops, commercial establishments and vegetable markets at many places remained shut. Shopkeepers have been appealed to keep their shops shut in support of farmers. Buses of the State- owned Pepsu Road Transport Corporation (PRTC) remained off-road. The supply of essen- tial commodities was hit badly across Punjab. The supply of milk was also partially affect- ed in many areas. In Muktsar, SAD chief Sukhbir Singh Badal led a trac- tor march from his Badal vil- lage residence. While he drove the tractor, wife and former Union Minister Harsimrat Kaur Badal sat beside him. Sukhbir led a tractor march from his residence in Badal vil- lage to Lambi. Prominent Punjabi singers, including Harbhajan Mann and Ranjit Bawa, took part in a farmers’ protest in Nabha. Farmers at several places in the State start- ed gathering on roads to stop the movement of traffic. Women protesters under the banner of the Kisan Mazdoor Sangharsh Committee took out a protest march in Amritsar. A 33-second video shot on the Amritsar-Pathankot high- way shows some protesters making way for an ambulance. A group of protesters, holding placards, clear up the road as the ambulance followed by a car move ahead. Some of the farmers are seen sitting on a tractor, while some trucks are blocking the road. In Barnala, a tractor was set on fire by pro- testers against the farm Bills. Punjab farmers blocked the Sangrur-Patiala, Chandigarh-Bathinda and Ambala-Rajpura-Ludhiana and Moga-Ferozepur roads. In Patiala, essential supplies, including milk and poultry supply, were hit as farmers held blockades on roads lead- ing to the city. Hundreds of farmers held a protest and blocked the Sangrur-Patiala highway. In Moga, farmers blocked the rail and road traf- fic on the national highway at Dagru village on the border of Moga and Ferozepur districts. Meanwhile, Haryana farm- ers blocked the Rohtak-Jhajjar road. Farmers held protests at several places, including Rewari and Yamunanagar. T he Election Commission of India on Friday announced that elections for 243 Assembly seats in Bihar will take place in three phases — first on October 28, second on November 3 and the third on November 7 — while counting of all votes will take place on November 10. The EC announced the poll schedule rejecting the demand for postponement of the polls by political parties due to coronavirus pandemic and flood in the State. The Assembly polls in Bihar will be the biggest voting exercise in the world to be held in the time of coronavirus. There will be an extra voting hour, separate voting for Covid patients, suspects and those in quarantine, and no physical contact during the campaign. With this announcement, the Model Code of Conduct comes into force in the State. Bihar’s 243-member Assembly is set to expire on November 29, 2020. However, the dates for by- polls to 64 Assembly con- stituencies and one parlia- mentary seat will be announced next week on Tuesday (September 29), after the EC reviews the objections of some States to the timing of the polls. The Bihar Assembly elec- tions are crucial for the BJP as it has suffered electoral setbacks after retaining power at the Centre with a bigger majority in 2019. It was unable to form the Government in Maharashtra despite emerg- ing as the single largest party following disagreements with its oldest ally, Shiv Sena, over power-sharing. S cientists have identified highly effective antibodies against the novel coronavirus, which they say can lead to the development of a passive vac- cination for Covid-19. Unlike in active vaccina- tion, passive vaccination involves the administration of ready-made antibodies, which are degraded after some time. However, the effect of a passive vaccination is almost immediate, whereas with an active vaccination it has to build up first, the researchers said. The research, published in the journal Cell, also shows that some SARS-CoV-2 antibodies bind to tissue samples from various organs, which could potentially trigger undesired side effects. The scientists at the German Center for Neurodegenerative Diseases (DZNE) and Charite - Universitatsmedizin Berlin iso- lated almost 600 different anti- bodies from the blood of indi- viduals who had overcome Covid-19, the disease triggered by SARS-CoV-2. By means of laboratory tests, they were able to narrow this number down to a few antibodies that were par- ticularly effective at binding to the virus. The researchers then pro- duced these antibodies artifi- cially using cell cultures. The so-called neutralising antibodies bind to the virus, as crystallographic analysis reveals, and thus prevent the pathogen from entering cells and reproducing, they said. In addition, virus recogni- tion by antibodies helps immune cells to eliminate the pathogen. Studies in hamsters — which, like humans, are susceptible to infection by SARS-CoV-2 — confirmed the high efficacy of the selected antibodies. S P Balasubramaniam, a leg- endary playback singer, music director, actor, dubbing artist, and film producer, is no more. The 74-year-old maestro breathed his last at a corporate hospital in Chennai at 1.04 pm on Friday. SPB, as he was known among friends and fans, was admitted to the city’s MGM Hospital on August 5 when he was diagnosed with Covid-19. He was later put on ventilator and ECMO. After days, SPB’s condition became stable and he was looking forward to getting discharged from the hospital to watch the IPL matches. But by Thursday evening his condition deteriorated and after a 12-hour fight with the pandemic, the singer, who ren- dered more than 40,000 songs in 16 languages, succumbed to the condition. Balasubramaniam is sur- vived by his wife, son, and daughter. “Humility personified” that was how the film world and music lovers described SPB who was a recipient of Padma Shri and Padma Bhushan awards. O n day the farmers called for a Bharat bandh to protest the Modi Government’s farm sector legislations, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday exhorted the BJP work- ers to create awareness about the Government’s enactments of the new laws and “authentic efforts” made by it for the bet- terment of the lives of farmers and labourers. The Prime Minister said the BJP has fulfilled its “major promises” including that on Article 370 and construction of “Ram temple” at Ayodhya. Addressing BJP workers and leaders through video con- ference on the day of the birth anniversary of the party ideo- logue Pandit Deen Dayal Upadhyaya, the Prime Minister listed progressive laws passed by the Government to improve the lives of farmers, labourers and those in the footpath mar- ket “Rehri-patri wale”. They have been aligned with the banking system, “receiving loan, salary or pension”, he said. He drew the attention of the BJP workers and leaders to the New Education Policy (NEP) which has been brought out after 30 years and asked them to organise meets of five to seven days to analyse NEP and the benefits which could be drawn from it with educated people. Remembering Upadhyaya, Modi said post-Independence when the country was trying to adopt foreign model of devel- opment, the late leader stressed on the indigenous way of eco- nomic, social, and cultural development. B ritish telecom giant Vodafone Group plc on Friday won an arbitration against the Indian Government over a demand for 22,100 crore in taxes using retrospec- tive legislation. An international arbitra- tion tribunal ruled that India’s demand in past taxes was in breach of fair treatment under a bilateral investment protec- tion pact. “Vodafone confirms that the investment treaty tribunal found in Vodafone’s favour,” the British firm said in a statement. “This was a unanimous deci- sion, including India’s appoint- ed arbitrator Rodrigo Oreamuno. The tribunal held that any attempt by India to enforce the tax demand would be a violation of India’s inter- national law obligations.” Reacting to it, the Government on Friday said it will consider all options, including legal remedies, with regard to Vodafone arbitra- tion case. The Government of India’s liability will be restricted to about 75 crore — 30 crore in cost and another 45 crore in tax refund, sources with direct knowledge of the matter said. As per the award, the gov- ernment has to reimburse Vodafone 60 per cent of its legal costs and half of the 6,000 Euros cost borne by Vodafone for appointing an arbitrator on the panel. The arbitration tribunal said India’s “conduct in respect of the imposition” of tax demand on Vodafone “notwithstanding the Supreme Court judgment is in breach of the guarantee of fair and equi- table treatment” in the bilater- al investment protection treaty. T he Enforcement Directorate (ED) has pro- visionally attached assets worth 127 crore in the 3,700 crore Yes Bank fraud case. The attached property is a residential flat of Rana Kapoor at Apartment 1, 77 South Audley Street, London, UK. The market value of the flat is 13.5 million pound ( 127 crore). The property was pur- chased by Kapoor in 2017 for 9.9 million pound (93 Crore) in the name of DOIT Creations Jersey Limited and Kapoor is its beneficial owner. “Information from a reli- able source revealed that Rana Kapoor is trying to alienate this property in London and that he has hired a reputed property consultant. Enquiries from open sources confirmed that this property has been listed for sale on several websites,” the ED said in a statement. The initiated investigation under PMLA against Rana Kapoor and others on the basis of FIR registered by CBI under various IPC Sections like cheat- ing and criminal conspiracy and relevant provisions of the Prevention of Corruption Act. New Delhi: Three persons, including a minor boy, were mowed down allegedly by a speeding cluster bus on Thursday night in Northeast Delhi’s Nand Nagri area. “It was found that the dri- ver of the cluster bus, while going down the Mandoli fly- over towards Bhaupura Border at main Wazirabad Road, lost control over the vehicle,” Deputy Commissioner of Police Ved Prakash Surya said. The bus crossed the foot- path towards left side and hit a truck and later hit an eggs cart, he said. The bus driver managed to escape from the spot. After the incident, the locals gathered at the spot and vandalised the bus. SR C hief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan said that stu- dents of the State should do everything possible to progress in life. The State Government stands with you at every step. 40.52 crore was transferred by single click to the accounts of 16,208 students in ratio of 25,000 per student for pur- chase of laptops under the Pratibhashali Vidyarthi Protsahan Yojana. An amount of 101 crore is to be provided to 40,542 stu- dents under the scheme this year. Chief Minister Chouhan said that this scheme was dis- continued. The scheme which encourages students and cre- ates competitive spirit is being re-launched today on the occa- sion of Pandit Deendayal Upadhyaya’s birthday. This incentive is being given to stu- dents through a virtual proga- rmme due to Covid-19. Otherwise, I would have been delighted on meeting my nephews and nieces in person. Chouhan said that stu- dents should take inspiration from Pandit Deendayal Upadhyaya. He lived in difficult circumstances but never gave up. He formed an organization on the basis of his talent and gave a new concept to the world. Chouhan said that the life of Prime Minister Narendra Modi is also inspiring for the students. Appreciating Modi, a man who survived difficult circumstances, for his organi- zational skills, Chouhan said that a new, glorious, magnifi- cent, prosperous, flourishing and powerful India is emerging under Modi’s leadership. The young generation should move ahead in the fields of their interest and nature with self- respect and self-esteem. Continued on Page 3 RNI Regn. No. MPENG/2004/13703, Regd. No. L-2/BPLON/41/2006-2008 1

Transcript of 0 1 ˝ ˙ ˚) ˚A ˇ&˜ ˝˘˘ A RNI Regn. No. MPENG/2004/13703 ... · 14 hours ago  · Delhi,...

Page 1: 0 1 ˝ ˙ ˚) ˚A ˇ&˜ ˝˘˘ A RNI Regn. No. MPENG/2004/13703 ... · 14 hours ago  · Delhi, Amritsar Delhi, Delhi-Dehradun, Ayodhya Lucknow, ... bers at various places in Amritsar,

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Thousands of protestingfarmers spilled on the

streets in several parts of thecountry hitting normal lifeand rail and road traffic in a bigway as part of their “Bharatbandh” protest against the farmbills.

Massive protests were seenin parts of Punjab, Haryana,Bengaluru, Tamil Nadu,Karnataka, Uttar Pradesh,Bihar, Telangana, etc.

After holding separateprotests, farmers under thebanners Bharti Kisan UnionKrantikari, Kirti Kisan Union,Bharatiya Kisan Union (EktaUgrahan), Kisan MazdoorSangharsh Committee andBKU (Lakhowal) with supportof political parties, includingthe Congress, the RJD and theTrinamool Congress, as well as10 central trade unions blockedhighways, railway tracks, dis-rupted traffic and brought lifeto a standstill in several partsof the country.

According to reports,farmers blocked highwayswhich include Chandigarh-Delhi, Amritsar Delhi, Delhi-Dehradun, Ayodhya Lucknow,B a g h p a t - B a d a y u n ,Bommanahalli on Karnataka-Tamil Nadu highway.Meanwhile, farmers fromPunjab have extended the railroko agitation till September29.

In Punjab, agitating farm-ers blocked roads, includinghighways. Road blockadescaused hardships to commutersin both States and life to astandstill in Bathinda,Jalandhar, Patiala, Moga,Ferozepur, Fazilka, Barnala,Faridkot, Muktsar, Mansa,Bathinda and other districts ofMalwa belt.

Farmers accompanied bytheir family members, includ-ing mothers, wives and daugh-ters converged in large num-bers at various places inAmritsar, Ferozepur, Barnalaand staged sit-in and helddemonstrations at all the entrypoints. Shops, commercialestablishments and vegetablemarkets at many placesremained shut. Shopkeepershave been appealed to keeptheir shops shut in support offarmers. Buses of the State-owned Pepsu Road TransportCorporation (PRTC) remainedoff-road. The supply of essen-tial commodities was hit badlyacross Punjab. The supply ofmilk was also partially affect-ed in many areas.

In Muktsar, SAD chiefSukhbir Singh Badal led a trac-tor march from his Badal vil-lage residence. While he drovethe tractor, wife and formerUnion Minister HarsimratKaur Badal sat beside him.Sukhbir led a tractor marchfrom his residence in Badal vil-lage to Lambi. Prominent

Punjabi singers, includingHarbhajan Mann and RanjitBawa, took part in a farmers’protest in Nabha. Farmers atseveral places in the State start-ed gathering on roads to stopthe movement of traffic.Women protesters under thebanner of the Kisan MazdoorSangharsh Committee tookout a protest march inAmritsar.

A 33-second video shot onthe Amritsar-Pathankot high-way shows some protestersmaking way for an ambulance.A group of protesters, holdingplacards, clear up the road asthe ambulance followed by acar move ahead. Some of thefarmers are seen sitting on atractor, while some trucks areblocking the road. In Barnala,a tractor was set on fire by pro-

testers against the farm Bills. Punjab farmers blocked

the Sangrur-Patiala,Chandigarh-Bathinda andAmbala-Rajpura-Ludhiana andMoga-Ferozepur roads. InPatiala, essential supplies,including milk and poultrysupply, were hit as farmersheld blockades on roads lead-ing to the city. Hundreds offarmers held a protest andblocked the Sangrur-Patialahighway. In Moga, farmersblocked the rail and road traf-fic on the national highway atDagru village on the border ofMoga and Ferozepur districts.

Meanwhile, Haryana farm-ers blocked the Rohtak-Jhajjarroad. Farmers held protests atseveral places, including Rewariand Yamunanagar.

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The Election Commission ofIndia on Friday announced

that elections for 243 Assemblyseats in Bihar will take place inthree phases — first on October28, second on November 3 andthe third on November 7 —while counting of all votes willtake place on November 10.

The EC announced thepoll schedule rejecting thedemand for postponement ofthe polls by political parties dueto coronavirus pandemic andflood in the State.

The Assembly polls inBihar will be the biggest votingexercise in the world to be heldin the time of coronavirus.There will be an extra votinghour, separate voting for Covidpatients, suspects and those inquarantine, and no physical

contact during the campaign. With this announcement,

the Model Code of Conductcomes into force in the State.Bihar’s 243-member Assemblyis set to expire on November29, 2020.

However, the dates for by-polls to 64 Assembly con-stituencies and one parlia-mentary seat will beannounced next week onTuesday (September 29), afterthe EC reviews the objectionsof some States to the timing ofthe polls.

The Bihar Assembly elec-tions are crucial for the BJP asit has suffered electoral setbacksafter retaining power at theCentre with a bigger majorityin 2019. It was unable to formthe Government inMaharashtra despite emerg-ing as the single largest partyfollowing disagreements withits oldest ally, Shiv Sena, overpower-sharing.

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Scientists have identifiedhighly effective antibodies

against the novel coronavirus,which they say can lead to thedevelopment of a passive vac-cination for Covid-19.

Unlike in active vaccina-tion, passive vaccinationinvolves the administration ofready-made antibodies, whichare degraded after some time.

However, the effect of apassive vaccination is almostimmediate, whereas with anactive vaccination it has tobuild up first, the researcherssaid. The research, published inthe journal Cell, also shows thatsome SARS-CoV-2 antibodiesbind to tissue samples fromvarious organs, which couldpotentially trigger undesiredside effects.

The scientists at theGerman Center forNeurodegenerative Diseases(DZNE) and Charite -Universitatsmedizin Berlin iso-lated almost 600 different anti-bodies from the blood of indi-viduals who had overcomeCovid-19, the disease triggeredby SARS-CoV-2. By means of

laboratory tests, they were ableto narrow this number down toa few antibodies that were par-ticularly effective at binding tothe virus.

The researchers then pro-duced these antibodies artifi-cially using cell cultures.

The so-called neutralisingantibodies bind to the virus, ascrystallographic analysisreveals, and thus prevent thepathogen from entering cellsand reproducing, they said.

In addition, virus recogni-tion by antibodies helpsimmune cells to eliminate thepathogen. Studies in hamsters— which, like humans, aresusceptible to infection bySARS-CoV-2 — confirmed thehigh efficacy of the selectedantibodies.

������������� �������

SP Balasubramaniam, a leg-endary playback singer,

music director, actor, dubbingartist, and film producer, is nomore. The 74-year-old maestrobreathed his last at a corporatehospital in Chennai at 1.04 pmon Friday.

SPB, as he was knownamong friends and fans, wasadmitted to the city’s MGMHospital on August 5 when hewas diagnosed with Covid-19.He was later put on ventilatorand ECMO. After days, SPB’scondition became stable and he

was looking forward to gettingdischarged from the hospital towatch the IPL matches.

But by Thursday eveninghis condition deteriorated andafter a 12-hour fight with thepandemic, the singer, who ren-dered more than 40,000 songsin 16 languages, succumbed tothe condition.

Balasubramaniam is sur-vived by his wife, son, anddaughter.

“Humility personified”that was how the film worldand music lovers describedSPB who was a recipient ofPadma Shri and PadmaBhushan awards.

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On day the farmers calledfor a Bharat bandh to

protest the Modi Government’sfarm sector legislations, PrimeMinister Narendra Modi onFriday exhorted the BJP work-ers to create awareness aboutthe Government’s enactmentsof the new laws and “authenticefforts” made by it for the bet-terment of the lives of farmersand labourers.

The Prime Minister saidthe BJP has fulfilled its “majorpromises” including that onArticle 370 and construction of“Ram temple” at Ayodhya.

Addressing BJP workersand leaders through video con-ference on the day of the birthanniversary of the party ideo-logue Pandit Deen DayalUpadhyaya, the Prime Ministerlisted progressive laws passed

by the Government to improvethe lives of farmers, labourersand those in the footpath mar-ket “Rehri-patri wale”. Theyhave been aligned with thebanking system, “receivingloan, salary or pension”, he said.

He drew the attention ofthe BJP workers and leaders tothe New Education Policy(NEP) which has been broughtout after 30 years and askedthem to organise meets of fiveto seven days to analyse NEPand the benefits which could bedrawn from it with educatedpeople.

Remembering Upadhyaya,Modi said post-Independencewhen the country was trying toadopt foreign model of devel-opment, the late leader stressedon the indigenous way of eco-nomic, social, and culturaldevelopment.

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British telecom giantVodafone Group plc on

Friday won an arbitrationagainst the Indian Governmentover a demand for �22,100crore in taxes using retrospec-tive legislation.

An international arbitra-tion tribunal ruled that India’sdemand in past taxes was inbreach of fair treatment undera bilateral investment protec-tion pact.

“Vodafone confirms thatthe investment treaty tribunalfound in Vodafone’s favour,” theBritish firm said in a statement.“This was a unanimous deci-sion, including India’s appoint-ed arbitrator RodrigoOreamuno. The tribunal heldthat any attempt by India toenforce the tax demand wouldbe a violation of India’s inter-national law obligations.”

Reacting to it, the

Government on Friday said itwill consider all options,including legal remedies, withregard to Vodafone arbitra-tion case.

The Government of India’sliability will be restricted toabout �75 crore — �30 crore incost and another �45 crore intax refund, sources with directknowledge of the matter said.

As per the award, the gov-ernment has to reimburseVodafone 60 per cent of its legalcosts and half of the 6,000Euros cost borne by Vodafonefor appointing an arbitrator onthe panel.

The arbitration tribunalsaid India’s “conduct in respectof the imposition” of taxdemand on Vodafone“notwithstanding the SupremeCourt judgment is in breach ofthe guarantee of fair and equi-table treatment” in the bilater-al investment protection treaty.

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The EnforcementDirectorate (ED) has pro-

visionally attached assets worth�127 crore in the �3,700 croreYes Bank fraud case.

The attached property is aresidential flat of Rana Kapoorat Apartment 1, 77 SouthAudley Street, London, UK.The market value of the flat is13.5 million pound (�127crore). The property was pur-chased by Kapoor in 2017 for9.9 million pound (�93 Crore)in the name of DOIT CreationsJersey Limited and Kapoor is itsbeneficial owner.

“Information from a reli-able source revealed that RanaKapoor is trying to alienate thisproperty in London and that hehas hired a reputed propertyconsultant. Enquiries fromopen sources confirmed thatthis property has been listed forsale on several websites,” theED said in a statement.

The initiated investigationunder PMLA against RanaKapoor and others on the basisof FIR registered by CBI undervarious IPC Sections like cheat-ing and criminal conspiracyand relevant provisions of thePrevention of Corruption Act.

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New Delhi: Three persons,including a minor boy, weremowed down allegedly by aspeeding cluster bus onThursday night in NortheastDelhi’s Nand Nagri area.

“It was found that the dri-ver of the cluster bus, whilegoing down the Mandoli fly-over towards Bhaupura Borderat main Wazirabad Road, lostcontrol over the vehicle,”Deputy Commissioner ofPolice Ved Prakash Surya said.

The bus crossed the foot-path towards left side and hita truck and later hit an eggscart, he said.

The bus driver managed toescape from the spot. After theincident, the locals gathered atthe spot and vandalised thebus. SR

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Chief Minister Shivraj SinghChouhan said that stu-

dents of the State should doeverything possible to progressin life. The State Governmentstands with you at every step.� 40.52 crore was transferred bysingle click to the accounts of16,208 students in ratio of�25,000 per student for pur-chase of laptops under thePratibhashali VidyarthiProtsahan Yojana.

An amount of �101 crore isto be provided to 40,542 stu-dents under the scheme thisyear. Chief Minister Chouhansaid that this scheme was dis-continued. The scheme whichencourages students and cre-ates competitive spirit is beingre-launched today on the occa-

sion of Pandit DeendayalUpadhyaya’s birthday. Thisincentive is being given to stu-dents through a virtual proga-

rmme due to Covid-19.Otherwise, I would have beendelighted on meeting mynephews and nieces in person.

Chouhan said that stu-dents should take inspirationfrom Pandit DeendayalUpadhyaya. He lived in difficultcircumstances but never gaveup. He formed an organizationon the basis of his talent andgave a new concept to theworld. Chouhan said that thelife of Prime Minister NarendraModi is also inspiring for thestudents. Appreciating Modi, aman who survived difficultcircumstances, for his organi-zational skills, Chouhan saidthat a new, glorious, magnifi-cent, prosperous, flourishingand powerful India is emergingunder Modi’s leadership. Theyoung generation should moveahead in the fields of theirinterest and nature with self-respect and self-esteem.

Continued on Page 3

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Page 2: 0 1 ˝ ˙ ˚) ˚A ˇ&˜ ˝˘˘ A RNI Regn. No. MPENG/2004/13703 ... · 14 hours ago  · Delhi, Amritsar Delhi, Delhi-Dehradun, Ayodhya Lucknow, ... bers at various places in Amritsar,

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Governor and ChancellorAnandiben Patel has said

that university should create astrong environment foremployment capacity assis-tance in curriculum.Apprenticeship and internshipprogrammes should be includ-ed in degree courses.

Patel was addressing theinaugural programme of thenewly built Atal BihariVajpayee InternationalConvention Centre of JiwajiUniversity online today fromRaj Bhavan Lucknow. Patelalso remembered Pandit

Deendayal Upadhyaya on hisbirth anniversary. GovernorPatel said that the universityshould provide appropriateculture of self-reliance andeducation to students. She saidthat the construction of theConvention Centre reflectsNew India’s vision, economicprogress through world-classinfrastructure, rich culturalheritage and commitment toenvironment conservation. Sheexpressed hope that the centrewill become a platform toshowcase the creative talent ofthe students as well as theyouth of the region and help inthe development of folk art,culture, business as well asknowledge and science.

Chief Minister ShivrajSingh Chouhan participated inthe inaugural programme,

online from Bhopal. ChiefMinister Chouhan said that onthe occasion of the birthday ofPandit Deendayal Upadhyayaji, the State Government hasrestarted the PratibhaProtsahan Yojana to encouragestudents and to develop a com-petitive spirit in them. The AtalBihari Vajpayee InternationalConvention Centre is also astep in this direction.Government of MadhyaPradesh is always with the stu-dents. Cooperation to studentsin achieving the goal is theresponsibility of the StateGovernment.

The convention centre willprovide world class facilitiesand new opportunities to theyouth of Gwalior-Chambalregion. Now our aim should bethat this university should also

be included in the first hundreduniversities of the country.Chief Minister Chouhanencouraged the students tobuild a strong and self-reliantMadhya Pradesh and India bydeveloping the organizationalskills, taking inspiration fromthe struggles of life of PanditDeendayal Upadhyaya andPrime Minister NarendraModi.

Chouhan said that it is amatter of good fortune that thiscentre is named after the lateAtal Bihari Vajpayee. He con-gratulated and extended bestwishes for the inauguration ofthe convention centre.

Union Minister forAgriculture and FarmersWelfare, Food Processing,Rural Development andPanchayati Raj Narendra Singh

Tomar said that thisConvention Centre is a majorachievement for the Universityas well as Gwalior. Rajya SabhaMember Jyotiraditya Scindia,while participating online inthe programme, said that theInternational ConventionCentre will bring name andfame to the Jiwaji University atthe world level.

Minister for HigherEducation Mohan Yadav alsoextended the best wishes.Minister for EnergyPradyuman Singh Tomar,Minister for Horticulture, FoodProcessing and NarmadaValley Development BharatSingh Kushwaha, Member ofParliament Vivek Shejwalkarand Former MLA MunnalalGoyal were present at the pro-gramme.

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World Pharmacist Day was observed atMadhyanchal Professional University and

Patel Group of Institutions on Friday. At the World Pharmacists Day all students

were connected through the Zoom app, and hada webinar focusing on changing the global healthon the subjects given by the Pharmacy Councilof India. During the webinar, students were toldthat how much the pharmacists have contributedto the epidemic that the world is going throughtoday, in this way, all the youngsters have to beready from now on to deal with such pandemicsin future

On this occasion, as the chief guest AjitSingh Patel Prof. Chancellor MadhyanchalProfessional University and PK Srivastava ViceChancellor Madhyanchal Professional Universityinspired all the students to become successful

pharmacists. Professor Vishal Kapoor, OP Aggarwal and

Ku. Ankita Raikwar told what is the role of uspharmacists at the world level today.

It is to be noted that World Pharmacist Dayis observed globally on September 25 every year.This day is celebrated to create awarenessabout the role of a pharmacist in improvinghealth. The day was an initiative of theInternational Pharmaceutical Federation (FIP)along with the council of this organization.

This year’s theme is “Transforming globalhealth“. The organization announces a differenttheme every year so that associations and indi-viduals in the pharmaceutical industry can orga-nize national campaigns or local projects toshowcase their outstanding work in helpingimprove the health of people around the world .

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SBI Ladies Club, Bhopal hasalways been discharging its

duties towards the deprived andneedy sections of the society. Theclub carries out one social wel-fare activity every month withthe active participation of itsmembers. SBI Ladies Club hasprovided food and ration to alarge number of poor people inthe last few months in this crit-ical phase of Covid epidemic.

These views were expressedby Vijaya Amara, President ofSBI Ladies Club Bhopal Circle,at a function organized in SevaBharati Matruchhayain Bhopal.The Club donated nutritiousfood, cradles, cloths and cannedmilk for infants sheltered in

Matruchaya. Lauding theMatrachhaya project run bySeva Bharti Vijaya Amara saidthat by giving shelter to thesebabies abandoned by their par-ents, Seva Bharti is fulfilling avery essential need of society.

SBI Women's Club PresidentVijaya Amara along with VicePresident Vandana Saxena,Secretary Deeksha Bansal, otherofficials and members of the clubwere also present on this occa-sion.

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Indira Gandhi RashtriyaManav Sangrahalaya on

Friday organised a lecture tocommemorate150th birthanniversary of MahatamaGandhi. Director,Anthropological survey ofIndia, Kolkata Prof VinayKumar Shrivastava, was speak-ing on ‘The Mahatma andTribes of India’. The lecture wasdelivered through theFacebook, YouTube onlinemediums. Vinay KumarShrivastava said that about anaspect which has not beenwritten by the untouchablepeople, nor has it been the sub-ject of discussion.

In today's topic would bediscussed the Mahatma andtribes of India which is alsocalled Aadivashi. And thenthe thoughts of PanditJawaharlal Nehru will be dis-cussed.

It is believed that Gandhijidid not say anything importantabout the tribal problemsbefore the 1940.

In today's, Shrivastava saidthat this is not true, Gandhijiworked with the Zulu societywhich is in South Africa andduring the battle of SouthAfrica, he also served the peo-ple of this society. A depictionof tribal societies can beobtained from the thoughts ofGandhiji.

The work of Gandhiji givesinspiration for the anthropol-ogists. Gandhiji was very muchinfluenced by the self-reliance

of the tribal’s, he took the con-cept of village Swaraj and Khadiinspired by the self-dependenttribal’s.

In his lifetime, Gandhijigreatly influenced two peoplewho gave their lives to tribalsocieties, his name is AmritlalThakahar, who was born intribal society and was truly syn-onymous with freedom, ser-vice, sacrifice, compassion, andVerrier Elwin, who became animportant anthropologistunder the inspiration ofGandhi and Worked for a life-time with tribal’s.

The ideas and methodolo-gy of both of these were alsoincluded in his statement andalso stated that the visit ofGandhiji had a profoundimpact on the tribal societiesand due to this, this society didnot remain separate from thefreedom struggle.

Prof Vinay KumarSrivastava is Director ofAnthropological Survey ofIndia since August 2017. Hewas in the additional charge ofMalulana Abdul Kalam AzadInstitute of Asian StudiesKolkata.

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Kamla Nagar police have nabbed four personsincluding a woman and a minor boy for

planning and setting ablaze a shop at NehruNagar; plot was made by woman inspired byCrime Petrol serial.

The main accused Sheeri Appi master-minded the setting ablaze of shop at NehruNagar run by victim Zaheer who is Sheeri’sbrother-in-law. Using the CCTV cameras of thespot and nearby ITMS cameras police managedto identify the registration number of thescooter used in the crime on which three per-sons were spotted.

Sheeri was detained and quizzed afterwhich she revealed that her husband Zameer’sshop was impacted by Zaheer’s shop due towhich she wanted to damage shop to destroy his

business and provided Rs 2000 to Zaid.Zaid along with Farhan and a minor boy set

the shop ablaze who were later nabbed based onthe details provided by Sheeri. Meanwhile, MPNagar police have nabbed a 25-year-old vehi-cle-lifter and recovered four stolen two-wheel-ers worth Rs 2 lakh on Thursday.

According to the police, acting on a tip-off,a youth was detained and when he was quizzed,he confessed stealing of three motorbikes andone scooter which were recovered from his pos-session.

The nabbed accused was identified asRahul Suryavanshi of Aishbagh, the accusedhails from Umreth Chhindwara. Police haverecovered Suzuki Hayate, Bajaj Pulsar, HondoDio and Passion Pro. Three of the vehicles werestolen in the year 2020 while one was stolen lastyear.

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Baghsewania police havearrested a fraudster

while his wife remainedabsconding who wereinvolved in duping victim tothe tune of �10 lakh in thename of selling land inBerasia; 7.5 acres of landwas offered at �20.27 lakh.According to the police,Santosh Chandra sold land,which was of agriculture useto the victim Rakesh KumarChoubey.

A complaint was lodgedwith the police by the vic-tim and based on the com-

plaint after completing theinvestigation a case wasregistered by the police.The accused was nabbed onThursday while the wife ofaccused Sunita Chandrawent absconding and is stillat large. The police havestarted further investiga-tion and have claimed thatthere is a possibility that theduo was working with anexus in which others aideswere involved and samepiece of land has been soldseveral victims.

The victim stuck deal ofland in Bersia which was 7.5acres worth �20.27 lakh

from the accused in Marchthis year, which was in thename of his wife Sunita. Thevictim provided �10 lakhwhich was in parts. The vic-tim was scheduled to paymoney of the land and afterwhich the owner shipwould be transferred toaccused but whenever thevictim would ask accused orvisit his house Sunita wouldescape with excuses. Theaccused couple refused totransfer the ownership ofthe land.

The victim was not pro-vided with refund and wasnot provided with the land.

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The storytelling competition wasorganized on the 12th day of

Toornayad ‘20. The competition washeld at Maulana Azad NationalInstitute of Technology (MANIT) onFriday. Suyash Tyagi (Writer) andJairam Shukla (Eminent newspapereditor) were present on the occasionin the judge's panel.

In the first phase under the story-telling and narration, all the partici-pants wrote and sent their story in theform of movies. Many students fromall over the country participated in thiscompetition. The 15 contestants select-ed for the final phase presented sev-eral poignant and enlightening stories.

Shivangi Singh, who came fromRewa, highlighted the evils of homo-sexuality and child marriage in thesociety through the story of Gudiya.Deepak Daswani, a student of UIT,RGPV, Bhopal, told about the injus-tice being done to the deserving stu-dents from the scam in the examina-tions in the country through the storySapna Parivartan Ka.

Yogesh Yadav, who came fromIndore, satirized the corrupt gov-ernment system of the countrythrough his story Angare and Ajay.Aditi Mrinal, a student of JanakiDevi Memorial College, DU,inspired her to struggle in life,never give up and believe in Godthrough the story Hurt.

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The folk story ‘RajaBhritrihari’ was presented

under Abhinayan series onFriday at Madhya Pradesh StateTribal Museum YoutubeChannel.

The play was presented inMaach style under the directionof Jitendra Tattwal, Ujjain. In thetraditional Loknatya style(mach) of Malwa, depict thelegend of Raja Bhartrihari whobecame a saint after abandon-ing the kingdom of Ujjain.

In Indian history and folk-lore, 'Raja Bharthari' is the heroof many folk stories in NorthIndia. He was the ruler of Ujjainin the 1st century BC, before

renouncing the world and abdi-cating in the favor of his youngerbrother Vikramaditya andbecame a follower of GuruGorakhnath and along with hisnephew Gopi Chand went to theGuru's hill abode in northernPunjab. Raja Bhartrihari asks hisPrime Minister how humans arealso happy, goats and lions aredrinking water at the same ghatwithout harming each other.

After the discussion, theking goes out for hunting. Theking becomes very depressedafter returning from hunting.When the queen asks for thereason, the king says that he issurprised and amazed at thetruth of the creatures of the for-est.

He talks about a Bhil whopleads with the king for help.The king leaves the forest to helphim. On the way, the king askshis minister to lie to his queenPingala, confusing his confusionthat a mad lion has killed me.

When the minister says thisto the queen, the queen jumpsfrom the fort and gives up herlife. Meanwhile, in the jungle, theking sees a person roaming withhis hundred wives, who was laterslaughtered by the king. After herhusband is killed, the deitiescurse the king and becomeimmortal. At the same time, theking receives information abouthis wife giving up his life, uponhearing which the king becomesunhappy and takes sannyasa.

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The Bhopal Crime Branch nabbed three miscreants who wereengaged in selling of firearms illegally and recovered four coun-

try-made pistols and three cartridges from their possession atBhanpur Bridge on Thursday.

Acting on a tip off regarding miscreants near Bhanpur bridgecarrying firearms illegally and when they were searched four coun-try made pistols and three live cartridges were recovered. The nabbedaccused were discussing to sell the firearms when they were caught.They were identified as Deepak Mangrale, Sharad Ahirwar andNetaram Panthi. From Deepak one country made pistol, two coun-try made pistol from Sharad and one country made pistol fromNetaram was recovered and three cartridges were nabbed.

After the preliminary investigation the police have registereda case under section 25 and 27 of the Arms Act. Deepak is residentof Chhola Mandir area while Sharad is resident of Sagar and Netramis resident of Vidisha.

Police would check crime record details of the two from the Sagarand Vidisha police while details of the one accused who belongs toChhola Mandir area would be sought from Chhola Mandir police.The three were working as part of nexus.

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Page 3: 0 1 ˝ ˙ ˚) ˚A ˇ&˜ ˝˘˘ A RNI Regn. No. MPENG/2004/13703 ... · 14 hours ago  · Delhi, Amritsar Delhi, Delhi-Dehradun, Ayodhya Lucknow, ... bers at various places in Amritsar,

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From Page 1Shri Chouhan said that if a

person develops a roadmapand constantly strives withdetermination to achieve what-ever goal he/she sets, he/she issure to be successful.

Chouhan said, "I have tobuild an Atmanirbhar MadhyaPradesh under the leadership ofPrime Minister Shri NarendraModi. For this it is necessary tobuild your life." He called uponthe students to move aheadwith courage and enthusiasmmaintaining independentthinking, alert mind, egoless-ness and patience. He said thatthe mantra of “Man ke harehaar hai man ke jeete jeet”-should always be followed.

The Chief Minister sym-bolically presented citationsand cheques to six students ofBhopal namely RajneeshSingrole, Sumit Shukla, AnchalJain, Anjali Mishra, Ilma Khanand Shailya Singh at MintoHall. While presenting the out-line of the programme, SchoolEducation Minister Inder SinghParmar welcomed and thankedChief Minister Shri Chouhanfor restarting the scheme.

Minister for Tribal andScheduled Caste WelfareMeena Singh also addressedthe programme. On this occa-sion, Minister for FarmersWelfare and AgricultureDevelopment, Kamal Patel andBackward Classes andMinorities Welfare, Denotified,Nomadic and Semi-NomadicTribal Welfare, Micro, Smalland Medium Enterprises,Science and TechnologyMinister Om PrakashSakhlecha, Minister of State forPanchayat and RuralDevelopment, Ram KhelavanPatel and Principal SecretarySchool Education RashmiArun Shami were present. Theprogramme began with theMadhya Pradesh Gaan.

It may be noted that thePratibhashali VidyarthiProtsahan Yojana was started in2009. Initially, students of gov-ernment schools, scoring morethan 85 percent marks in ClassXII examinations of the Boardof Secondary Education wereprovided funds to purchaselaptops. Students of privateschools also started being giventhe benefits of this schemefrom the year 2013. This time,40,542 students, who havesecured 80 percent and abovemarks in Class XII examina-tions of the year 2020, arebeing given more than Rs 101crore in ratio of Rs 25,000 perstudent.

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In protest against the FarmersBill, on Friday, farmers in

Mandsaur took out a protestrally and gave a memorandumto the District Collector. Somefarmers demonstrated despitebeing half-hearted, the policealso tried to stop the farmers,but the farmers finally reachedthe Collector office. Let us tellyou that in 2017 too, there wasan agitation by the farmers ofMandsaur district to demandsupport price which had goneup considerably, the farmershad also died.

The farmers havedemanded that they have notreceived the crop insuranceamount of the last years whichthe government should givewith immediate effect.

The farmer leader hasclearly stated that if this blacklaw is not withdrawn, thefarmer should not be repeatedin 2017 due to theGovernment.

Farmer leader Amritram

Patidar said that We are cele-brating this day as Black Day.Farmers in the district havecome from tractors with blackflags and black stripes aroundtheir necks. The Governmenthas launched a movementagainst three new ordinances.How many years of crop insur-ance and compensation has notbeen received. We want thatthe sum assured and compen-sation should be given imme-diately, the farmers are gettingupset by going round the banksand the black government hasenacted to take back theGovernment of India.Otherwise, in the coming time,thousands of farmers will behere, its responsibility will bethe responsibility of the farm-ers of Mandsaur district. Maythe government not have arepeat of the 2017 farmermovement.

Collector Mandsaur ManojPushp said that the farmers'memorandum will be sent tothe President. he said that Inthe memorandum, he has

opposed the three laws intro-duced. We will send it forward.

Compensation and insur-ance work is in the process,which is to come to Rs 381crore, which is to be providedto one lakh 34 thousand farm-ers. Out of that an amount of84 crores has gone to theaccounts of about 35,000 farm-ers. Processing is in next week

or 10 days, the amount will alsoreach. Congress leaderNarendra Nahata said that Thisseason the government hadsaid that it would buy the sup-port price of wheat for thefarmers, but the governmentcould not buy it completely,and the wheat of the farmersold for 300 to ? 400 less. Dueto the competition of traders inthe mandis, the farmers willbenefit, but the governmentwants to end the mandi systemitself. Obviously this will beexploitation of farmers. Modiji is saying that the purchase onthe support price will not bestopped, the opposition saysthat the support price will notstop the purchase, then youshould also put it in the Act butModi ji is speaking but he is notputting it in the act.

This clearly shows the pol-icy of the Government, thewords have been different andare doing something. Like hesaid earlier that the railway willnot be privatized but he priva-tized.

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The State Government onThursday ordered the

posting of Juban Singh Bhide asa new district mining officer inIndore.

The Pioneer in its issue ofJuly 20, 2020 had publishedthat Indore which is the busi-ness capital of Madhya Pradeshis functioning without districtmining officer and due to thevacant post of the district min-ing officer illegally laden sandtrucks coming from all overMP and crushed stones minescould not be checked thus cre-ating a heavy loss of revenue tothe Government.

Around 200 trucks of sandfrom nearby districts comedaily to Indore in which manytrucks are overloaded but theycould not be checked. Presentlyalso 3 mining inspectors andfour home guards are lookingafter the checking of minerals

of Indore district includingsand trucks stone mines andother minerals. Due to theshortage of mining officersand home guards it takes a longtime for the team to reach at thespot of illegal mining and exca-vation from the governmentland. Most of the illegal min-ing is still going on in the out-skirts of Indore city.

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The Delhi Governmentissued a circular for the sec-

ond phase of the ‘OnlineAdmission Process’ (OAP) ofClasses six to nine and 11thunder Non-Plan Admissions2020-21.

The second phase has beenlaunched to address the con-cerns of the parents who couldnot get their wards registeredearlier for online admission.The registration has beenreopened today and will last till3rd October.

“The school allotment andverification of the documentsat the allotted schools is cur-rently on for the applicants ofthe first phase. In the firstphase, the total number ofonline applications receivedby the Directorate of Educationfor classes VI to XII is 64,995.Out of these applicants, 64,450students have been allottedschool till date. The admissionprocess of the first phase will beover by September 30,” a releasefrom the office of the DeputyChief Minister Manish Sisodiasaid.

“The admission on thebasis of application received inthe second phase for which thelast date is 3rd October 2020will complete by 15th Octoberfor classes IX & XI and 26thOctober for classes VI to VIII,”it said. “The link for submissionof the online registration formis available on the homepage ofthe Department's websitewww.edudel.nic.in under‘Govternment SchoolAdmissions’. Applicants who

have applied earlier in the firstphase and allotted schools orwho are already studying orpassed the previous class fromgovernment aided schools ofthe Directorate are not eligibleto apply,” it added.

While registering for class-es VI to IX only one step of reg-istration is required and theRegistration Number will besent to the registered mobilenumber, it said adding that theregistration number will beused for future correspon-dence.

“The registration processfor class XI consists of twosteps. In the first step registra-tion number and passwordwill be generated. In the secondstep, the applicant has to com-plete the registration form afterlogin at the specified link withthe registration number andpassword provided in the firststep. The applicants must com-plete the two steps; else theform will be rejected,” it said.

Applicants will receive thestatus of school allotment ontheir registered phone numberthrough SMS or they can checkthe status of allotment from12th October athttp://www.edudel.nic.in/wel-come_folder/govtadmission.htm

A centralized helpline hasbeen issued for any admissionrelated queries at TelephoneNumber 1800116888 or 10580from 07:30 AM to 07:00 PM onall working days.

“Once the admission isconfirmed, the applicant willhave to visit the allotted schoolwith all the requisite originaldocuments along with theircopies for confirmation ofadmission as per the scheduleprovided to them. Admissionto selected students through theonline module will be con-firmed only after the physicalverification of requisite docu-ments by the concerned gov-ernment school,” it said.

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An eight week online‘Professional Development

for English Teachers’ (PDET)program and four week com-municative language teachingand TESOL methodology forprimary teachers concludedon Friday.

The online program waslaunched by the DelhiGovernment in associationwith the Regional EnglishLanguage Office (RELO) of theAmerican Embassy in India.“Around 600 English teacherstook training whereas around30 mentor teachers of Delhiacted as the co-facilitatorsunder the guidance of RELO’s

English Language specialistsSara Bolton, Dr Lisa Morgonand Barbara Sakamoto,” thegovernment said in a statement.

Unable to join the conven-ing ceremony, Deputy ChiefMinister and the EducationMinister of Delhi ManishSisodia sent his message fromthe hospital where he is admit-ted and being treated forCoronavirus.

Congratulating all the par-ticipating teachers for success-fully completing this course, heasked all the teachers to utilizethis world-class learningopportunity to strengthen theEnglish language teaching-learning approach in theirschools and also share it withtheir peers.

“Delhi Government iscommitted to provide the besttraining opportunity to you as,through you, we aspire for thebest learning opportunities forour students. This is the way wehave to work,” he said in a mes-sage addressing participants.

While attending the onlineconcluding ceremony, MinisterCounselor for Public AffairsDavid Kennedy said, “It hasbeen the honor of the USEmbassy to work with theDelhi Government. This pro-gram reflects the sheer com-mitment of the US Embassyand the Government of Delhito strengthen the educationand equipping teachers forskills to help students succeedin this 21st century and

strengthen our shared value ineducation.”

Kennedy said “I extend myenormous gratitude to theMinister of Education ManishSisodia for the partnershipbetween the DelhiGovernment and the USembassy. It only shows thevision of strengthening Delhi’seducation system. He has givenour partnership a great deal ofsupport. Unfortunately, he isnot here with us today on thiscall. We wish him a speedyrecovery and look forward tocontinuing our collaboration inthe future.”

Director of Directorate ofEducation of Delhi UditPrakash Rai said, “It was veryheartening to see the kind of

energy teachers had through-out the program. I would loveto have this program extendedto other remaining teachers sothat they can also get the worldclass exposure.”

The program was designedfor in-service teachers interest-ed in improving their instruc-tional practices. Participantsutilized many teachingresources offered by theAmerican English website, theEnglish teaching Forum mag-azine, and the Monster Book ofTeaching Activities.

Earlier, the program waslaunched only for the middleand secondary grades teach-ers which were later onextended for the primaryteachers as well.

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Delhi Deputy Chief MinisterManish Sisodia who has

been diagnosed with Covid -19and dengue, is doing better andhis health parameters are stable.

Sisodia is undergoing treat-ment at Max Hospital in Saket

where he was moved onThursday evening from theDelhi Government-run LNJPHospital due to his fallingblood platelet count and lowoxygen level.He is admitted tothe ICU of the private hospitalin South Delhi.

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Ameeting of the DelhiUrban Shelter

Improvement Board (DUSIB)was held on Friday in which itwas decided to provide threefree meals a day to the home-less people living in DUSIBshelters at an annual expendi-ture of Rs 15.31 crores.

The meeting was chairedby the Delhi Chief MinisterArvind Kejriwal and also tookseveral important decisions toimprove the condition of shel-ter homes. Various issues likeproviding various amenities tothe people living in these shel-ter homes were discussed.

The Board has also decid-ed to rehabilitate 784 peopleresiding in Princess Park tofacilitate the use of land by theMinistry of Defence for theconstruction of the NationalWar Museum and Memorial,the government said in a state-ment.

“The families will be reha-bilitated to the transit camps for1-1.5 years, which are located

at Sector 16B Dwarka. Around350 families living in the slumdwellings in Karol Bagh willalso be rehabilitated to thetransit camps. The rehabilitat-ed people will be shifted to theflats that are being construct-ed in Dev Nagar Karol Bagharea,” it said. The DUSIB hasbeen providing three free mealsa day to the homeless peopleliving at DUSIB shelters sinceMarch when the Coronaviruslockdown started. This comesas a big relief to the homelesspeople and will continue till theend of this year and beyond, tillthe end of the winter season.

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A45-year-old man diedwhile two were injured

severely after mini-truckturned turtle near culvert atRaisen road under Bilkhariapolice station area on Thursday.

The injured were rushed tonearby hospital where one ofthem was declared dead whowas identified as Devi Rawatwhile two others were injuredseverely. After receiving theinformation FRV Dial 100police reached the spot andreached the spot and took theinjured to hospital where two

of the injured are criticallyinjured.

Police said that the driverwas speeding and lost controlwhich lead to the accident. Thebody was sent for the post-mortem. The police have regis-tered a case under section 174 ofthe CrPC and have started fur-ther investigation. Meanwhile a50-year-old man police person-nel died under suspicious cir-cumstances at Nehru Nagarpolice lines on Thursday.

The deceased, identifiedas Radhyeshyam Nagvanshiwas rushed to the hospitalwhere he was declared dead.Police said he used to remainalone and was suffering fromillness from September 11.

On Thursday no one spot-ted the deceased and at around6 when his brotherDurgaprasad came andknocked the door he failed toget any response and made theentry forcefully to finddeceased lying in the room.

The deceased was sufferingfrom Jaundice but the reasoncould not be ascertained afterthe post mortem report isreceived. A case under section174 of the CrPC was registered.

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The Director General of DelhiPrisons, Sandeep Goel, has

been tested positive for Covid-19. This came less than a monthafter the Delhi PrisonsDepartment declared there wasno active Covid-19 case amongthe inmates in its three jailcomplexes. TheDG is undergoing treatment andhis condition is stable.

According to a data sharedby the prison authorities onSeptember 13, the number ofactive COVID-19 cases in DelhiPrisons stood at 25, including 20jail staff.

Earlier, on August 21, theDelhi Prisons Department hadstated that none of the inmatesin the three jail complexes ofTihar, Rohini and Mandoli arecoronavirus positive and that thepandemic situation in jails herehas improved.

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Page 4: 0 1 ˝ ˙ ˚) ˚A ˇ&˜ ˝˘˘ A RNI Regn. No. MPENG/2004/13703 ... · 14 hours ago  · Delhi, Amritsar Delhi, Delhi-Dehradun, Ayodhya Lucknow, ... bers at various places in Amritsar,

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Political parties and candi-dates can hold rallies as part

of their campaigning for theBihar Assembly polls and thegrounds where such meetingswill be held will have white cir-cles to ensure distancingnorms. These are among theslew of measures the ElectionCommission is taking in viewof the Covid-19 pandemic.

Addressing a Press confer-ence to announce the schedulefor Bihar assembly elections,Chief Election CommissionerSunil Arora said he wants todispel doubts that there willonly be virtual campaigning inthe State. The “propaganda”that only virtual meets will takeplace during campaigning isway off the mark, he said.

Arora said the district elec-tion officers have already iden-tified places where gatheringscan take place. The exercise ofputting markers to ensure dis-tancing norms is on. Districtelection officers and districtsuperintendents of policeshould ensure that the numberof attendees does not exceedthe limit prescribed by the

State Disaster ManagementAuthority for public gatherings,an EC statement later said.Political parties and candi-dates concerned should ensurethat all COVID-related require-ments such as face masks, sani-tisers and thermal scanning arefulfilled during each of theseelection activities, the com-mission said.

Anyone violating thenorms will face action underrelevant sections of the DisasterManagement Act and theIndian Penal Code, the ECwarned. As part of restrictionsput in place to check the spreadof the virus, the EC has reducedthe number of people who canundertake door-to-door cam-paigning. A group of five peo-ple, including candidates, butexcluding security personnel, isallowed to campaign from doorto door.

For road shows, the convoyof vehicles should be brokenafter every five vehicles insteadof 10 vehicles. The intervalbetween two sets of convoy ofvehicles should be half an hourinstead of a gap of 100 metres.The EC has revised the normsof the number of people

accompanying the candidateand number of vehicles at thetime of nomination.

It has also created anoptional facility to fill the nom-ination form and the affidavitonline and submission of thesame, after taking a print,before the returning officerconcerned.

For the first time, the can-didates will have the option todeposit the security amount forcontesting the elections online.For the first time, the EC hasmade special arrangements toprotect its employees fromcontracting coronavirus duringtheir election duty in Bihar.

It will provide a small kitcontaining N95 mask, sanitiz-er and gloves to protect theemployees on poll duty in thestate. The packet will also con-tain one safety keychain toavoid use of hands while press-ing buttons.

According to ChiefElection Commissioner SunilArora, EC has arranged about46 lakh masks, 6 lakh PPE kits,6.7 lakh units of faces-shields,23 lakh (pairs of) hand glovesarranged. For voters specifi-cally, 7.2 crore single-use handgloves for Bihar polls. Besides,postal ballot facility will be pro-vided wherever required andrequested.

Social distancing normswill need to be followed at pub-lic gatherings during the pollcampaign. He said the worldhas changed significantly sincethe last elections which wereheld for Delhi assembly and theCOVID-19 pandemic hasforced a new normal in everyaspect of our life.

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At least, 75 per cent of newcases of coronavirus in the

country are concentrated in 10States and Union Territories(UTs). But then, there is 74 percent of new recoveries as well.

A senior health official saidif there were 86,052 new casesin the past 24 hours inMaharashtra, Kerala, Karnataka,Andhra Pradesh and a few oth-ers, then the number of recov-eries stood at 81,177.

Maharashtra, AndhraPradesh, Karnataka, UttarPradesh, Tamil Nadu, Odisha,Kerala, Delhi are some of thestates that continue to be worst-hit from the pandemic.

On Friday, the country reg-istered 86,052 fresh Covid-19cases in the last 24 hours, asIndia moves towards the 60-lakh mark. The active cases haveclimbed to 9,70,116 whereasover 4.75 million have recoveredso far, said a statement from theUnion Health Ministry.

For the past six days, thenumbers of recoveries loggedper day in the country havebeen exceeding the number offresh cases. But in the last 24hours, the number of recover-ies stood at 81,177, said theMinistry.

It also pointed out that aminimum of 14 States demon-strated better Covid-19 responseon the basis of higher tests permillion population and corresponding lower positivityrate than the national average.

A total of 68,928,440 sam-ples have been tested for Covid-19 so far out of whichnearly 1.5 million sampleswere tested on Thursday, asper data released by the IndianCouncil of Medical Research(ICMR).

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The EnforcementDirectorate (ED) has

issued a provisional attach-ment order under thePrevention of MoneyLaundering Act (PMLA)attaching assets worth�255.17 crores in a case relat-ed to cheating of investors bySree Kanva Souhardha Co-Operative Credit Limited(SKSCCL), Benagluru andothers through a Ponzischeme.

The attached assets are inthe form of immovable prop-erties in Karnataka (agricul-ture and non-agriculture land, buildings and resorts)and movable properties inthe form of balances in bankaccounts in the name of NNanjundaiah and his familymembers, Kanva Group of companies andother entities, the agency said.

The accused advancedloans out of deposits, workingcapitals and shared reserves

without gett ing any security and not followingexist ing Rules andRegulations, it said.

Searches under PMLAwere conducted in thepremises of the accused NNanjundaiah and otherDirectors of SKSCCL andKanva group of companieswhich resulted in seizure ofincriminating documents.

N Nanjundaiah wasarrested on August 25 and isnow undergoing judicial cus-tody.

“Investigation conductedunder PMLA so far hasrevealed that N Nanjundaiah,founder/ common Director ofSree Kanva Souhardha Co-operative Credit Limitedand Kanva Group of compa-nies collected �650 croresthrough unauthorised collec-tion centres and collectionagents from about 13,000 gullible investors by luringthem to pay higher rate ofinterest (from 12 to 15 per-cent),” it further said.

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More than 10 per cent ofyoung and healthy people

who develop severe Covid-19have misguided antibodies thatattack not the virus, but theimmune system itself, accordingto a study published in journal‘Science’. Another 3.5 per cent,at least, carry a specific kind ofgenetic mutation, causing earlydeath of the Covid afflictedpatients, as per the study.

In both groups, the upshotis basically the same: Thepatients lack type I interferon,a set of 17 proteins crucial forprotecting cells and the bodyfrom viruses. “Whether theproteins have been neutralizedby so-called auto-antibodies,or were not produced in suffi-cient amounts in the first placedue to a faulty gene, their miss-ing-in-action appears to be acommon theme among a sub-group of Covid19 suffererswhose disease has thus far beena mystery,” said the researchers.

The findings help explainwhy some people develop a dis-ease much more severe thanothers in their age group--including, for example, indi-viduals who required admissionto the ICU despite being in their20s and free of underlying con-ditions. They may also providethe first molecular explanationfor why more men than womendie from the disease.

“These findings providecompelling evidence that the

disruption of type I interferonis often the cause of life-threat-ening Covid-19,” said Jean-Laurent Casanova, head of theSt. Giles Laboratory of HumanGenetics of Infectious Diseasesat The Rockefeller Universityand a Howard Hughes MedicalInstitute investigator. “

The study participantsincluded various nationalitiesfrom Asia, Europe, LatinAmerica, and the Middle East.“Covid-19 may now be the bestunderstood acute infectiousdisease in terms of having amolecular and genetic expla-nation for nearly 15% of criti-cal cases across diverse ances-tries,” Casanova said.

In one study, the researchersgenetically analyzed blood sam-ples from more than 650patients who had been hospi-talized for life-threatening pneu-monia due to SARS-CoV-2, 14percent of whom had died.They also included samplesfrom another group of over 530people with asymptomatic orbenign infection. They initial-ly searched for differencesbetween the two groups across13 genes known to be critical forthe body’s defense against theinfluenza virus. These genesgovern type I interferons.

It soon became obviousthat a significant number ofpeople with severe disease car-ried rare variants in these 13genes, and more than 3 percentof them were in fact missing afunctioning gene.

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Highlighting the scourge ofterrorism, India on Friday

said terrorists are trying toexploit financial and emotion-al distress caused by the ongo-ing corona pandemic andCovid-19 lockdowns.Moreover, the terrorists aretrying to collect funds underthe garb of charitable activitiesbut it is feared this money willbe used to finance terror activ-ities, India said.

Making these assertions atthe ongoing 45th UN HumanRights Council session inGeneva, First Secretary PawanBadhe, Permanent Mission ofIndia to UN in Geneva, saiddue to widespread COVID-19,terrorists are making malevo-lent attempts to exploit thefinancial and emotional distresscaused by lockdowns to disturbthe cohesiveness of societies.

In his statement, he said“Terror groups have alsoexhorted supporters to targetsecurity forces and healthworkers. Another disturbingtrend has been the collection offunds by proscribed terroristoutfits ostensibly for under-taking charitable activities, butwhich, in reality, would beused to finance terror.”

Speaking on the topic

“Human rights situations thatrequire the Council’s atten-tion,” the Indian envoy said“The increased presence ofpeople online and on socialmedia has been targeted by ter-rorists to disseminate misin-formation through hatespeeches, fake news and doc-tored videos. The intent hasbeen to entice and establishlinks with vulnerable individ-uals and recruit them in theircadres.”

He also said “We under-score the need to foster a soci-ety in which individuals andcommunities are able tocounter the spread of terroristideologies and challenge thosewho espouse them.”Underlining the challengeposed by terrorism, India alsourged the Council to play amajor role in preventing radi-calization of impressionableminds.

India stressed that theCouncil cannot remainimmune to the devastatinghuman rights impacts causedby terrorism. The Council hasto spread awareness about theprotection of the rights of themost vulnerable groups, par-ticularly children and youngpersons, in order to preventtheir indoctrination by terror-ist ideologies.

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The CBI has registered a caseagainst a private person

on the allegations of sharingchild sexual abuse material.

The agency has registeredthe case under Section 14 ofProtection of Children fromSexual Offences (POCSO) Actand provisions of InformationTechnology Act, 2000.

“It was alleged that theaccused was advertising overInstagram Account for sale ofobjectionable material includ-ing child pornographic mate-rial,” the agency said in a state-ment.

The accused Neeraj Yadavis a B. Tech. degree holder. Hewas working as a professionalin a private firm in Delhibefore the lockdown.

It was further alleged thatthe accused opened differentaccounts over cloud storageand file hosting service byusing different email IDs and

storing such objectionablematerial including child porno-graphic material, the agencysaid.

It was also alleged that onreceipt of payments from thecustomer (s), the accusedshared the said objectionablematerial with them throughWhatsapp, Telegram,Instagram and other socialmedia platforms.

The agency conductedsearches at the premises of theaccused in Anpara, DistrictSonbhadra, (Uttar Pradesh)which led to the recovery of amobile phone. The mobilephone is being analysed andfurther investigation is contin-uing, the agency added.

A Special Unit “OnlineChild Sexual Abuse andExploitation Prevention/Investigation (OCSAE)” hasbeen created in CBI, New Delhifor matters pertaining to onlinechild sexual abuse and exploita-tion.

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Against the backdrop of theunruly behaviour of MPs

with the Deputy Chairman ofthe Rajya Sabha, Lok SabhaSpeaker Om Birla on Fridayemphasised that the dignity ofthe House and its Chair is animportant aspect of the par-liamentary system and it isthe duty of all members torespect the highest values

that our democracy repre-sents.

Birla was talking to mediaon the aspects of conclusionof the Monsoon Session of theParliament where he referredto various historic achieve-ments of the Session at theParliament conducted amidstthe Corona pandemic.

Birla added that with thehelp of all political parties andMembers, the productivity of

Lok Sabha was at a historic167 percent. He also informedthat despite the threat ofCOVID-19, the average atten-dance of MPs during thisSession was very high, whichsends a very positive messageand strengthens peoples’ faithin the democratic institu-tions.

Referr ing to recentreports on Question Hour,Birla said that members weregiven regular opportunities toraise matters concerning peo-ples’ welfare. He highlightedthe enhanced participationof members in Zero Hour andother legislative business.

On a quer y on thedemands of members for therestoration of the MPLADScheme, Birla said that thematter was raised byMembers across the politicalspectrum and hoped that theGovernment and other stake-holders would examine theissue as per merit.

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The Supreme Court onFriday refused to enter-

tain a plea seeking to post-pone the upcoming BiharAssembly elections in thewake of the COVID-19 pan-demic.

A three-judge bench ofJustices Ashok Bhushan, R.Subhash Reddy and M R Shah also refused togrant liberty to the petition-er to give representation to the ElectionCommission in this regard.

“We can’’t permit every-body to go to the ElectionCommission. We can onlypermit you to withdraw thepetition,” the bench said.

The matter was then dismissed as withdrawn.

The EC announced the schedule forBihar assembly elections lateron Friday.

The top court was hearingthe plea filed by one AjayKumar who contended thatthe general assembly elec-tions cannot be held smooth-ly due to the pandemic.

The plea sought to holdthe Bihar Assembly electionstill the situation becomes normal.

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The Supreme Court onFriday said it will consid-

er the Centre’’s suggestion ofmaking transferable therefund vouchers to be given tothe passengers in lieu of thetickets booked for the flightswhich were cancelled due tothe Covid-19 lockdown.

The top court reserved itsverdict on a batch of petitionsincluding by NGOs and pas-sengers associations seekingrefund of ticket fare for the

flights which were cancelleddue to the Pandemic. Â

A bench of Justices AshokBhushan, R Subhash Reddyand M R Shah was told bySolicitor General TusharMehta, appearing for Centreand Director General of CivilAviation (DGCA), that trans-ferrable refund vouchers canbe issued to the passengers, which can be usedby the travel agents who hadbooked their tickets for theflights which were cancelledlater.

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Page 5: 0 1 ˝ ˙ ˚) ˚A ˇ&˜ ˝˘˘ A RNI Regn. No. MPENG/2004/13703 ... · 14 hours ago  · Delhi, Amritsar Delhi, Delhi-Dehradun, Ayodhya Lucknow, ... bers at various places in Amritsar,

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The Left and Congress onFriday launched a joint cam-

paign against Farm Bills organ-ising road-blockades in at leasta hundred places in the State.

Roads were blocked atCoochbehar, Jalpaiguri, Malda,Raiganj, Murshidabad, Nadia,Birbhum, Burdwan, Bankura,Hooghly, Kolkata and else-where with the leaders vowingto continue the movementindefinitely.

Earlier, the Left andCongress asked Chief MinisterMamata Banerjee to call a spe-cial Assembly session to pass aunanimous resolution againstthe farm Bills and other legis-lations including the amend-ment in essential commoditylaws. The TMC had yet torespond to the proposal.

At the end of a jointlyorganised “central rally” fromShyambazar crossing in NorthKolkata to Esplanade in centralKolkata CPI(M) politburomember Biman Bose said “theBJP Government has beenintroducing anti-people lawsone by one with no regard forthe opposition views. Theyhave decided to ruin the farm-ers as they have done in Gujaratwhere the farmers are brutallysuppressed. Now a time hascome when a prolonged move-ment will have to start through-

out the country to assert therights of the farmers.

The Trinamool Congresshad failed to provide a directionto the farmers’ cause he saidadding “the onus now fell on theLeft, secular and democraticparties to launch a pan-Indianmovement in the country tosecure the poor man’s rights.”

State Opposition Leaderand senior Congress manAbdul Mannan walked along-side the CPI(M), Forward Bloc,

RSP, CPI, RCPI and other Leftparties in a long procession toregister their solidarity.

Congress leader in LokSabha Adhir Chowdhury said“the BJP Government’s anti-farmer laws would save it Rs 1lakh crore which is why it isbringing the anti-farmer lawswhich will finally destroy thepublic distribution system andmake life more impossible forthe Indian farmers.”

The ruling TMC’s Kisan

Khet Mazdoor Cell too organ-ised processions in North andSouth 24 Parganas and else-where in the State.

Reacting to the Left-Congress’ proposal for a jointAssembly session State MinisterPartho Chatterjee said “they aretrying to steal the show withoutfighting on the streets. I askthem as to why they are notgoing all out against the farm billand why they are trying playpolitics in Assembly.”

Pune: The Congress andNationalist Congress Party(NCP), which are part of theruling coalition in Maharashtra,on Friday said they would tryto ensure that the farm sectorreform bills are not imple-mented in the state.

Speaking in Pune, deputyChief Minister and NCP leaderAjit Pawar said farmers as wellas the NCP and other parties areopposed to the new bills. “Farmers think that the laws are

not beneficial for them. Therewas no hurry (to pass them),” hesaid. Asked whether they wouldbe implemented in Maharashtra,he said, “We will try to ensurethat they are not implemented,but at the same time we will haveto see what new issues crop up.

“We are studying what canhappen if the matter goes to thecourt,” Pawar said, adding thatthe government has soughtopinion of the legal depart-ment too. He had held a meet-

ing on the issue where WaterResources Minister Jayant Patil,Cooperation Minister BalasahebPatil, leaders of Mathadi work-ers (head-loaders who work inAPMCs) and other stake-hold-ers were present, he added.

Earlier in the day, stateCongress chief and RevenueMinister Balasaheb Thorat saidthey will “work together andtake a decision on non-imple-mentation of the new farmbills.” PTI

Jaipur: Rajasthan ChiefMinister Ashok Gehlot onFriday targeted the Centre overthree farm bills, saying theywere were introduced inParliament without consult-ing mandi traders andOpposition parties, and werepassed in a shameful manner.

He claimed that all theprovisions made in the bills areanti-farmer and the mandis willbe destroyed.

“Why was the law made?Why was the minimum sup-port price (MSP) not pro-posed? You can understandfrom it that the situation is veryserious and the way these threebills were passed, it was alsodone in a shameful manner,”Gehlot told reporters.

Attacking the government,he claimed, “These are peopleof fascist thinking and they donot believe in democracy. Allthe work is being done so thatpublic attention can be divert-ed.” He said the bills wereintroduced without consult-ing mandi traders and opposi-tion parties. PTI

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In a sensational breakthroughthe Bengal Police on Friday

unearthed arms from an erstwhile Maoist-hit regionof Goaltore in West Midnapore,district administration sources said.

About 30 muskets, electricwire and tin containers werefound after the police acting ondefinite sources dug out a 40feet area inside dense forests ofOkhla in the Goaltore region.

The guns rapped in rags andplastic could have been buriedabout ten years ago and had rust-ed and become dysfunctional,senior officials said adding thefinds would be sent for forensictesting. The police had to useJCB machines to excavate thearea after some “specific infor-mation,” sources said.

Political gunfight resumedsoon after the arms wereunearthed even as seniorTrinamool Congress MPSaugato Roy alleged “gong bythe age of the arms it seems thatthey could have been buried bythe CPI(M) harmads or maybethe Maoists … but the mostlikelihood is that the CPI(M)

cadres might have buried themafter their government wentout of power,” reminding how“skeletons were dug out fromthe village of then CPI(M)minister Sushanto Ghosh.

Reacting vehemently to hissuggestions CPI(M) LegislatureParty Leader SujanChakrabarty said, it was hightime the Trinamool Congressstopped spreading lies. “Talkingabout skeletons which hadbeen planted by one of theirleaders who is now in a BJPgeneral secretary… and whycould not they prove a singlecharge against the LeftGovernment… so Sougato Roybeing such a senior politicianshould stop peddling lies…The Left has suffered the max-imum at the hands of theTMC-Maoist clique … theymurdered hundreds of ourcadres in cold blood.”

The BJP on the other handsaid the guns might belong tothe Maoists given the history ofultra-Left movement in Bengalhowever he would not rule outTrinamool Congress hand inthe incident. “All angles mustsbe probed to get to the truth,”he said.

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Aforeign terrorist fromPakistan along with his

local associate,belonging to theproscribed terror outfitLashkar-e- Tayyeba (LeT) wereneutralised by the joint teamsof security forces in Sirhamaarea of Anantnag on Friday.

The operation in the areawas launched late on Thursdayevening after receiving inputsabout the presence of these ter-rorists in the area.

According to a policespokesman, “ Due to darknessthe operation was suspended inthe area while a tight cordonwas maintained to plug theescape routes”. He said, “In thewee hours, the operation wasresumed and in the ensuingencounter two terrorists were

killed and their bodies wereretrieved from the site of theencounter”.

The police spokesman saidthe killed terrorists have beenidentified as Adil Ahmad Bhatresident of Pulwama and AbuRehan @Towheed a Pakistaninational. Both the killed ter-rorists were commanders andaffiliated with proscribed ter-ror outfit LeT.

According to policerecords, Adil was involved incase FIR No. 117/2020 of PS

Nowgam pertaining to thekilling of two JKP personneland weapon snatching atNowgam Srinagar on 14-08-2020. An Insas rifle snatched inNowgam attack was also recov-ered from the encounter site.

According to a policespokesman, Pakistani terroristAbu Rehan was an importantmotivator and influencedyoung minds for joining terrorranks in the areas of SouthKashmir. He was involved inmotivating local youth to carryout ‘fidayeen’ attacks onPolice/SFs. He was alsoinvolved in providing logisticsupport to the newly infiltrat-ed terrorists and strengtheningthe LeT outfit throughout thevalley by distributing newlyjoined/infiltrated terrorists tovarious areas.

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Kerala overtook Tamil Naduby Friday evening in the

number of new patients diag-nosed with Covid-19. While Kerala diagnosed 6,477new patients on Friday, Tamil Nadu’s tally for the daywas 5,679.

According to the depart-ment of health, Government ofKerala, the State had 48, 892Covid-19 patients undergoingtreatment in hospitals. But inTamil Nadu, the number ofactive patients undergoingtreatment for the pandemicstood at 46,386.

This is the first time Keralahas overtaken its neighbor in

the number of patients diag-nosed with the pandemic aswell as the total number ofCovid-19 patients.

Out of the 14 districts inKerala, seven has more than500 patients each. The State saw22 persons succumbing to thepandemic while Tamil Naduwas ahead in the number ofdeaths. The State registered 72deaths during the last 24 hours.

The Kerala Governmentrelease said 2.16 lakh personswere under observation in theState as on Friday evening.“Kerala’s population is less thanhalf of Tamil Nadu which isalmost four times the size ofKerala ,” said Dr C VKrishnaswamy, eminent physi-cian who is monitoring the sit-

uation in South Indian States .He said there was something seriously amiss inthe way Kerala has been han-dling the issue.

“Tamil Nadu situation hasstabilised as the mortality ratehas come down and there areonly few areas which are show-ing upward trend. But, as ontoday situation in Kerala war-rants concern,” said DrKrishnaswamy who alsoexpressed his reservation onthe race for vaccine. “You waittill the vaccines are out.Meanwhile there are physi-cians in Tamil Nadu and Keralawho are curing hundreds ofCovid-19 patients with nativemedicines,” said the octoge-narian diabetologist.

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Questioning the very deci-sion to hold the Assembly

elections in Bihar in the midstof Coronavirus crisis, ShivSena leader Sanjay Raut onFriday charged that the rulingJD(U) and BJP would makeSushant Singh Rajput as themain issue in the elections.

Talking to media personshere, Raut took serious excep-tion to holding the BiharAssembly elections at a time

when the country was still totide over the Coronavirus crisis.

“Such has been the gravity ofthe situation that the Assemblyand Parliament sessions have hadto be curtailed. So far a minis-ter and three MPs have died sofar. That being the case, why isthe state Assembly poll beingheld in Bihar?,” Raut asked.

“I have no objection what-soever for the conduct of elec-tions. But, is this right to holdelections?,” Raut said.

Raut charged that the rul-

ing JD(U)-BJP alliance wouldgo whole hog to cash in on thedeath of actor Sushant SinghRajput, who hails from Bihar.“ I am told that JD(U) hasprinted posters of SushantSingh Rajput in a big way forthe elections. The JD(U) hasmade Sushant death probe anissue with a clear eye on theelections,” Raut said.

“It was a long-planneddrama. The Bihar governmentdoes not have any develop-mental or governance issues to

talk about in the elections. Nowonder, the JF(U) has startedcampaigning with posters ofSushant. Hence, Sushant andthe drugs matters relating tothe incident are blown out ofproportion,” Raut said.

Wondering as to what hadhappened to the CBI probe intoSushant’s death, Raut said:“The NCB is handling thedrugs case. I would like toknow as to what has happenedto the CBI probe in the Sushantcase, now that the former Bihar

DPG Gupteshwar Pandey quitIPS to contest the state polls”.

When his attention wasdrawn to the proposed film cityin Uttar Pradesh, Raut said: “It’sa welcome development andthe entertainment industry cancreate huge employmentopportunities”. He, however,dismissed speculation that afilm city in UP would reducethe importance of theBollywood capital of Mumbai.

Replying to a question,Rau6t said: “Nobody is going

to leave Maharashtra and go toUP… People will all remainhere. Mumbai’s film industryhas been set up with blood,sweat and tears and it cannever lose its importance…Merely by shifting the film cityor a few government depart-ments cannot impact the sig-nificance of Mumbai’’.

Raut had a dig at theCentre for its failure to set upa film city in Jammu andKashmir after the abrogation ofArticle 370.

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Farmer leaders here onFriday led a farmer curfew

in protest against the CentralGovernment’s Farm Bills. Thedemonstration was proposedin Tappal, Akarabad, Iglas,Atrauli, Pisawa. Farmers didchakka jam sitting on thestreets. The district adminis-tration and police were com-pletely on alert.

The anger against theAgriculture Bill is not ending.On one side, the farmers areraising objections, on the

other hand the Opposition isprotesting.

On Friday, farmers cameon the road from all over thedistrict.

In Iglas, the peasantsmarched on foot, which wasstopped by the police.Duringthis time, farmers also gotangry with the police.

In Gabhana, activists ofthe Indian FarmersOrganisation blocked thehighway for about 15 minutes.Later the SDM opened thejam by handing the memo-randum to the President.

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Lucknow: The Samajwadi Partyon Friday held a statewide protestagainst the farm sector andlabour reform Bills and sent amemorandum to GovernorAnandiben Patel, requesting herto ensure that these are notimplemented in the State.

Various farmer outfits havebeen protesting against the con-tentious bills passed by theParliament recently.

“On the directives ofSamajwadi Party’s national pres-ident Akhilesh Yadav, party

workers sent a memorandum tothe Governor thorough therespective district magistratesdemanding that the ‘anti-farm-ers’ and ‘anti-workers’ billsshould not be implemented inthe State,” SP chief spokesmanRajendra Chowdhury said.

Akhilesh Yadav, in a state-ment issued here, said the SPhas always been in the forefrontof raising issues of public inter-est and had stood against theruling party for their “anti-people” stand.

He said under the presentregime, the youth is unem-ployed and big capitalists haveset their eyes on farmers’ land.

“Laws are being made onlyfor multinational companiesand a few industrialists. The BJPgovernment has first intro-duced a bill of exploitation offarmers to benefit capitalists andnow a bill of labour exploitationto benefit industrialists. Theybrought these bills without tak-ing any suggestions,” the state-ment said. PTI

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Page 6: 0 1 ˝ ˙ ˚) ˚A ˇ&˜ ˝˘˘ A RNI Regn. No. MPENG/2004/13703 ... · 14 hours ago  · Delhi, Amritsar Delhi, Delhi-Dehradun, Ayodhya Lucknow, ... bers at various places in Amritsar,

It sounds pretty heartless toworry about the economyand livelihoods and appearless concerned with peoples’lives. It is difficult to weigh in

golden balance whether lives orlivelihoods are more important.

On December 31, 2019, Chinafirst told the World HealthOrganisation (WHO) that 41patients in Wuhan had contracteda mysterious pneumonia notamenable to conventional treat-ment. Beginning January 23, firstthe city of Wuhan, then the entireHubei province and then someother cities were locked down. Theunprecedented quarantine wasimposed on 50 million peopleacross 15 cities.

After a 6.8 per cent contractionin January-March 2020 quarter,China’s economy recorded 3.2 percent growth in April-June 2020.China is the first major economyto return to growth after the pan-demic.

For us, the pandemic is animported calamity. The main gate-ways to India have been worstaffected. Major democracies,including India, have failed toemulate the ruthless measurestaken by China (and could betaken by China alone) to containthe damage. Maybe there is morethan what meets the eye here.

With confirmed infections ofover 50 lakh, albeit with a some-what modest case fatality ratio of1.64 per cent and a significantlyhigh 78 per cent recovery rate, thefirst peak is not in sight at thenational level although there is sig-nificant disruption of economicactivity. Individual estimates varywidely with observers’ biases asexpected because the pandemic hasfooled all forecasting tools. A gen-eral sense is that we face stagnationif not outright contraction in eco-nomic growth in the current year.

The GDP at current marketprices was �45.51 lakh crore,�49.18 lakh crore and �38.08 lakhcrore during April-June 2018,April-June 2019 and April-June2020, respectively. The GDP at2011-12 prices was �26.89 lakhcrore during April-June 2020,compared to �35.35 lakh crore dur-ing April-June 2019. This is thedirect effect of the lockdown thatwas in force for almost two out ofthree months in the first quarter.Experts are divided as to how theGDP is going to behave in theensuing quarters due to the impact

of the pandemic on jobs andincomes.

Another way to analyse theeconomic impact of the pan-demic is to look at GST collec-tions which indicate the quan-tum of documented sales ofgoods and services. MonthlyGST collections during April-August have been �32,172 crore,�62,151 crore, �90,917 crore,�87,422 crore and �86,449 crore.In August 2019, GST collectionwas �98,202 crore, so, obvious-ly we are far away from reach-ing pre-lockdown levels ofspending and registering adecent growth on that level. Theshortfall from August 2019 GSTcollection is 12 per cent inAugust 2020. Obviously, GSTcollections would not measurethe impact of the pandemic onthe informal economy whereundocumented sales take placeon kutchha bills.

The first quarter GDP con-traction affected almost all sec-tors. The only sector that post-ed positive growth (3.4 percent) was agriculture, withbumper Rabi crops. High-con-tact sectors like tourism andhospitality are very badly affect-ed.

Past years’ trends show thatthe GDP is almost equally divid-ed in the four quarters withsome increase in the last quar-ter. In 2017-18, the contributionof the four quarters was 23.4,24.4, 25.3 and 26.9 per cent forquarters one, two, three andfour. In 2018-19, it was 24, 24.5,25.4 and 26.1 per cent. In 2019-20, it was 24.2, 24.2, 25.4 and26.2 per cent. This year’s quar-terly GDP trends are going to beabnormal.

If the four quarterly GDPsdon’t add up to �204 lakh crore,we are going to have negativeannual growth. Just to catch upwith the 2019-20 GDP of �204lakh crore, and quarter one isjust �38 lakh crore, we need toadd �166 lakh crore in theremaining three quarters.

The catch-up target is stiffbecause we have to offset a bigshortfall of �11 lakh crore inquarter one. Something likeGDP of �50 lakh crore, �55 lakhcrore and �60 lakh crore wouldbe needed in quarter two, threeand four just to maintain the2020-21 GDP at the 2019-20level sans growth. With trainand air services suspended andlocalised lockdowns, normalcyhasn’t returned.

The pandemic and the lock-down have reminded most well-off people that they can live withfewer wants. The cost-cuttingausterity measures byGovernments and corporatesmean incomes and even jobs areon the chopping block.

In a crisis like this, borrow-ings are inevitable to move for-ward. Long ago, popular culturestigmatised lenders and borrow-ers. An indebted person feltembarrassed and lenders werereviled. But attitudes havechanged over the years and“borrow and spend” is anaccepted way of life.

Major economies are surviv-ing on people buying things thatthey don’t really need and livingon borrowed funds. It is a para-dox that the richest countries arealso the most indebted coun-tries. New aspirational needs arefelt or created, new technologyis developed to fill those needs

and finance is arranged byprinting money or borrowings.Governments in particular bor-row and spend, leaving theburden of debt servicing onfuture Governments/genera-tions.

The total worldwide debtwas close to a record high of$253 trillion (September 2019),a whopping 322 per cent of theworld GDP. It was about 100 percent of the world GDP in 1961.There is also unreported debt.

The US Government has thehighest debt of over $ 24 trillion.Among foreign lenders of theUS Government, Japan andChina top the list. Of course, afuller picture emerges not justby looking at the size of debt butalso on the ability to repay, rollover/re-finance, to print moneywithout backing of gold and tocontrol good quality productiveassets. That is how the game hasbeen going on.

In 1961, the nominal GDP ofthe whole world was 1.4 trilliondollars and the population was3.09 billion. By 2017, it hadgrown to 80.9 trillion dollarsand the population hadincreased to 7.55 billion. Percapita income had grown from$3,827 to $10,632. The total debtin emerging and developingeconomies climbed to a record$55 trillion in 2018, marking aneight-year surge that has beenthe largest, fastest and mostbroad-based in nearly fivedecades.

To offset the pandemic’shuman and economic costs,Governments need to spendmore. If consumers andGovernments stop spending,livelihoods will be lost andthere are too many of them atrisk. This is no time to fret aboutGovernment debt. We arecursed to keep borrowing andspending, particularly during acrisis. It is a fate akin to that ofthe mythical Sisyphus movingthe boulder up the mountain.Stop rolling it up and it willcome down crushing. Ridingthe tiger is another apt analogy.

The present generation isforced to borrow prosperityfrom future generations. It willbe morally right only if wespend borrowed money wiselyand leave scope for future gen-erations to be prosperous. Tomitigate the economic distress,we need to facilitate banks tolend more. Unlike the situationin 2008-09 during the globalfinancial crisis, we have bettermacro-economic fundamen-tals. Bank credit is just 50 percent of the GDP. We need a sup-portive policy regime and mon-itoring of end-use of credit.

(The author is an IAAS offi-cer, superannuated as SpecialSecretary, Ministry of Commerceand Industry)

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����������� ��Sir — The local authorities ofLapcha-Limi region in Humlahave alleged that China has con-structed nine buildings one kilo-metre inside the territory ofNepal. Lapcha-Limi is of greatstrategic importance to Nepal asKailash Mansarovar can be clear-ly seen from this point. This sortof expansionist move isn’t thefirst by China. Earlier in June thisyear, the Nepal Government hadcomplained that China was usingroad construction in Tibet tooccupy its land. While Nepal isprotesting against the encroach-ment, maybe it should also pon-der on its move of releasing anew political map that claimedKalapani, Limpiyadhura andLipulekh of Uttarakhand as partof its sovereign territory, osten-sibly at China’s behest.

Rahul ChouhanUjjain

�������� Sir — The Minister of State forExternal Affairs, VMuraleedharan, provided detailsof the Prime Minister’s visitsabroad since 2015, includingtheir outcome. According to thedetails furnished, Prime MinisterNarendra Modi has visited 58

countries since 2015 and a totalexpenditure of �517 crore wasincurred on them. He visited US,Russia and China five timeseach and made multiple trips toother countries like Singapore,Germany, France, Sri Lanka andthe United Arab Emirates.

To what extent did these vis-its help India with its bilateral,regional and global issues? Today,India is facing multiple territor-

ial challenges from three of itsneighbouring countries —China, Nepal and Pakistan. Thefinding by the Comptroller andAuditor-General of India (CAG)that French aerospace majorDassault Aviation and Europeanmissile maker MBDA havedefaulted on offset clauses of theRafale deal puts a question markon the Government’s negotiationcapabilities. The same amount

should have been put to betteruse elsewhere.

Bhagwan ThadaniMumbai

����������� ������ Sir — The Comptroller andAuditor-General of India (CAG)has slammed French firmsDassault Aviation and MBDA —the main companies in the

�59,000 crore contract for 36Rafale fighter jets — for their fail-ure to transfer advanced technol-ogy to India. As per the deal, theFrench firms are required toplough back 50 per cent of thecontract value to India as offsetsor re-investments.

India, being the world’s sec-ond-largest arms importer, suf-fers from shortages of criticalweapon platforms. TheGovernment should ensure thatforeign vendors aren’t allowed toview Indian contracts as easycash cows.

N Sadhasiva ReddyBengaluru

��������������� ��Sir — According to the 2018annual report of the NationalCrime Records Bureau(NCRB),33,356 rape cases were reportedacross the country, or an averageof 91 rapes a day. The numbersare disturbing and the legislativereforms haven’t been of muchhelp. Our society needs to re-awaken and more seriousreforms should be undertaken.

Urvi JainUjjain

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Page 7: 0 1 ˝ ˙ ˚) ˚A ˇ&˜ ˝˘˘ A RNI Regn. No. MPENG/2004/13703 ... · 14 hours ago  · Delhi, Amritsar Delhi, Delhi-Dehradun, Ayodhya Lucknow, ... bers at various places in Amritsar,

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Even as the world is grappling with theCOVID-19 pandemic, geopolitics is under-going a seismic shift. The Indo-Pacific

region, which accounts for almost 40 per cent ofthe global Gross Domestic Product (GDP), hasemerged as the epicentre of the “New GreatGame,” especially between the US and China, forinfluence. The rule-based international order isbeing contested in the Indo-Pacific reportedly bynone other than a UN Security Council (UNSC)member, the People’s Republic of China (PRC).Speaking at the Munich Security Conference onFebruary 14, the German Federal PresidentFrank-Walter Steinmeier said, “…(China) isselective in accepting international law only whereit does not run counter to its own interests. Itsactions in the South China Sea are unsettling theneighbours in the region.”

Beijing’s constant hammering on the exist-ing global order has caused alarm in the US andamong its allies. Compared to China, India hasbeen endorsing the prevalence of a rule-basedworld order in the Indo-Pacific region.Delineating New Delhi’s vision for the region,Prime Minister Narendra Modi, in his speech atthe Shangri-La Dialogue on June 1, 2018, said,“India stands for an open and stable internation-al trade regime. We will also support a rule-based,open, balanced and stable trade environment inthe Indo-Pacific Region...”

Re-ordering the world: After the collapse ofthe Soviet Union in 1991, what emerged was aunipolar world order dominated by the US. It wasbelieved that post-1991, the emergence of the USas the sole world power would expedite therestoration of global peace, security and stabili-ty and strengthen Pax Americana.

That is, the post-World War-II internation-al order shaped and maintained by the USemploying its overwhelming might. However,instead of growing in strength, Pax Americanahas been fraying since the collapse of the SovietUnion. The strategic space ceded in the Indo-Pacific by the US, thanks to its “America First”policy, has been occupied by regional powers, thusturning it into a multi-polar region and the cen-tre of a major geopolitical tussle for dominance.The fear among the world powers is that if therules of the international order are disobeyed anddisowned, the already fragile global form mightcollapse. What would happen next? A chaosresulting out of world disorder? Or a global re-order leading to resuscitation of peace and secu-rity?

Wary of the consequences that might ensue,India has been championing for a world basedon a new global security architecture supportedby multi-lateralism and mutual cooperation.During his recent visit to Russia, in a meeting ofthe Shanghai Cooperation Organisation onSeptember 4, Defence Minister Rajnath Singhdeclared New Delhi is committed to this as it will“be open, transparent, inclusive, rules-based andanchored in international laws.” Earlier in May,in his address to the Non-Aligned Movement(NAM) countries, Modi had appealed, “In thepost-Corona world, we need a new template ofglobalisation, based on fairness, equality, andhumanity. We need international institutions thatare more representative of today’s world.”

Indo-US partnership: In recentyears, India has come strategically clos-er to the US and its allies to containChina through diplomatic and militarymeans. The Indian Navy’s participationin the Malabar naval exercise led by theUS Navy is one such example of thegrowing partnership between the twonations.

But it has not come to terms withthe “America First” policy. UnlikeWashington DC, New Delhi has beena proponent of multi-lateralism to pro-mote peace and security in the Indo-Pacific and beyond. And that is why itis treading a fine line in the region bynot squarely aligning with the US in itsbalancing act, making no explicit ref-erence to China and opposingAustralia’s entry into the Malabar navalexercise.

However, amid the growing bordertension with China, India may “aggres-sively” pursue the Indo-Pacific balanc-ing act together with the US, Japan andAustralia. Though so far New Delhi hasopposed Australia’s entry into theMalabar exercise, it might considerinviting it to the next one. This wouldstrengthen the Quad (the US, India,Australia and Japan strategic partner-ship) further and probably make it anti-China. In 2015, Japan had alreadybeen elevated as a permanent memberof the Malabar exercise group.

China as a sea power: In his bookPrisoners of Geography, Tim Marshallnotes, “Until now China has never beena naval power…and it was rarely ideo-logically expansive…It was always aland power with a lot of land and a lotof people.” However, Beijing now har-bours ambitions of becoming a globalpower and setting the international ruleson its own terms. To fulfil its ambitions,it simply follows in the US’ footsteps togain control over the seas.

It has already taken measures todominate the South China Sea (SCS)

and the Indian Ocean. Beijing is alreadymaking efforts to set up an Air DefenceIdentification Zone in the SCS anddevelop a Blue Water navy to defend itssea controls. Tim Marshall furtheradds, “China…intends to become a twoocean power (Pacific and Indian). Toachieve this, China is investing indeep-water ports in Myanmar,Bangladesh, Pakistan and Sri Lanka…”

The great American naval strategistof the 19th century, Alfred Mahan, oncesaid, “Whoever rules the waves, rulesthe world.” His naval strategy findssupreme place in China pursuing itsstrategic ends. Just like other globalpowers, Beijing, too is Mahanian, prob-ably with Maoist tactics. China isexpanding its sea controls in a piecemealmanner, mouthful by mouthful, a typ-ical Maoist strategy to wipe out enemyforces one by one. Mao asserted, “In war,battles can only be fought one by oneand the enemy forces can only bedestroyed one by one.” Tacticisation ofstrategy is doomed to fail againstChina’s well-designed strategy of piece-meal expansion in the Indo-Pacificregion. Only a coherent grand contain-ment strategy can counter Beijing’sexpansionism in the region.

India as the pivot State: Given theexpansionist agenda of China in theIndo-Pacific and beyond, countries inthe region are forming a strategic part-nership to contain it. The success of thealliance, however, depends on howIndia responds to the emerging geopol-itics in the region. Can New Delhi playa pivotal role in arresting Beijing’sgrowing influence? Does its geograph-ic position allow for that?

Quoting naval strategist AlfredMahan, Robert Kaplan writes in hisbook The Revenge of Geography,“Mahan thought that instead of theHeartland of Eurasia being the geo-graphical pivot of empires, it was con-versely the Indian and Pacific oceans

that constituted the hinges of geopolit-ical destiny.” Mahan sees India’s locationin the centre of the Indian Ocean littoral,with the Himalayas protecting its rearflanks, as critical for the seaward pen-etration of China, adds Kaplan. Thisexplains precisely the strategic signifi-cance of India’s geography in regionalgeopolitics, making it a pivot of theIndo-Pacific. Kaplan has rightly predict-ed, “As the US and China become greatpower rivals, the direction in whichIndia tilts could determine the courseof geopolitics in Eurasia in the 21st cen-tury. India, in other words, looms as theultimate pivot State.”

Germany’s return to realpolitik:On July 1, Germany took charge of thepresidency of the Council of theEuropean Union (EU). In Septemberit articulated its strategy on the regionthrough a document titled “Policyguidelines for the Indo-Pacific region.”In his statement, German ForeignMinister Heiko Maas declared: “We aresending a clear message today, the Indo-Pacific region is a priority of Germanforeign policy…We want to help shapethat order, so that it is based on rulesand international cooperation, not onthe law of the strong. That is why wehave intensified cooperation with thosecountries that share our democratic andliberal values.” In fact, this is indicativeof Germany’s return to a realpolitikapproach towards its foreign and secu-rity policies from its so-called “moralpolitics” and “political escapism.”

This augurs well for India, as bothnations believe in a multi-lateralistapproach to foreign policy and interna-tional politics. Just like Germany, multi-lateralism is key to transforming Indiainto a global power. Their beliefs indemocratic and liberal values makethem natural allies and together theycan play a vital role in ensuring peaceand security in the Indo-Pacific region.

(The writer is a policy commentator)

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On September 26, 200 years ago, anextraordinary personality was born ina village in south West Bengal. By the

standards of his time, why, even by today’sstandards, Ishwar Chandra Vidyasagar wasunique in every respect. As RabindranathTagore once said, “One wonders how God, inthe process of producing 40 million Bengalis,produced a man.”

The 19th century Bengali society was inan advanced state of decay brought about bya lethal cocktail of superstition, depravity andexploitation, being trapped inside a complexhierarchy of castes and sub-castes embeddedwithin each other. One half of the society —women — was excluded from education andeconomic activities, being confined to homeswhere they had no voice. They were treatedas intellectually and morally inferior, andhence unworthy of education. Superstitionproclaimed that a girl’s education wouldinevitably beget her widowhood. Her best con-tribution to society was to become one of thecountless wives of Kulin Brahmins, whose

main aim was collecting handsome dowriesfrom multiple marriages — one had as manyas 156 wives as per records. She would be luckyto enjoy her absentee husband’s company afew nights a year. She would attain salvationby burning on the same funeral pyre with herhusband, who was 50-60 years older than her.Through the efforts of Raja Rammohan Roy(1772-1838), the horrendous practice of Satiwas abolished in 1829, nine years afterVidyasagar’s birth.

Child marriage was the order of the day.Girls were married before attaining pubertyin a custom called gouridan. Born into a KulinBrahmin family, Vidyasagar himself wasmarried at the age of 14 to a girl eight yearsold. Bankimchandra, who was born 18 yearsafter Vidyasagar, was married at 11 to a girlonly five years old. Female infanticide was alsothe order of the day. Female foetuses wouldbe destroyed brutally through what wascalled “ghat murder.” These monstrosities stillexist in many pockets in rural India despiteall the laws we have in our books.

Women had no right to property or inher-itance. Once they became widows, a lifetimeof misery awaited them. They were forced toa single stringent vegetarian meal a day to robthem of their sexuality, youth and beauty.Sexual exploitation by relatives and termina-tion of unwanted pregnancies leading to deathwere not only common but met with society’stacit approval. Legal abolition of sati did notend women’s miseries. The daily privations,

insults and misery of existence forced manyto join the brothels that were there to sustainthe perverted Babu culture of Bengal. In 1853,the population of sex workers in Kolkata was12,419 and by 1867 it touched over 30,000.And 90 per cent of them, according to theAmritabazar Patrika, were widows. By a crudeestimate, the sex worker population increasedfrom about five to nearly 10 per cent ofKolkata’s population over this period.

This, then, was the society Vidyasagar wasborn into, and this was the society he hadsought to reform. He did so with a gusto anda fearlessness we have not seen in any otherpersonality ever since. To fight the orthodoxsociety steeped in deep superstition and ruledby the semi-literate Brahmins, Vidyasagarknew he would have to beat his adversariesat their own game. So, in January andOctober 1855, he wrote his two famous trea-tises on the Marriage of Hindu Widows, draw-ing upon the Sutras (literary compositions)and the Sastras (scriptures) to establish his log-ical argument that there was no prohibitionon remarriage of widows in the Sastras.

Rather the Parashara Samhita sanc-tioned widow remarriage: “Women are at lib-erty to marry again if their husbands areinsane, dead, have renounced the family or areimpotent or outcasts.” About 2,000 copies ofthe first book were sold in the first week itself,followed by 3,000 and then a third reprint of10,000 copies got sold out too. But the salesfigures did not indicate society’s response. He

was heaped with criticism, insults, motives,ridicule and even threatened with death.

The Hindu Widows’ Remarriage Act wasfinally passed on July 26, 1856 and the reformdid not remain limited to Bengal alone. In1864, Jyotiba Phule succeeded in persuadinga Saraswat Brahmin widow to remarry. In1866, Vishnu Shastri Pandit translatedVidyasagar’s book on widow remarriage intoMarathi. But passing of the statute was onlythe first of the many obstacles. Vidyasagar per-sonally presided over the first remarriage ofa widow, Kalimati, with SrishchandraVidyaratna, and then many others at his ownexpense, in the process gathering significantpersonal debt.

He even got his only son,Narayanchandra, married to a widow,Bhavasundari. Not many have the courage topractise what they preach. As he wrote to hisbrother: “Remarriage of widows is the noblestdeed of my life. I don’t think I shall be ableto accomplish a greater one, ever. I have sac-rificed everything for this cause and won’tmind even laying down my life for it.”

He was also propagating women’s educa-tion. In 1849, he set up the Calcutta FemaleSchool along with Drinkwater Bethune foreducating the girl child. In 1856, appointedSpecial Inspector of Schools, he established 30schools exclusively for girls. Between 1857 and1858, when the Mutiny was ravaging the coun-try, he was fighting a different kind of battle,opening 35 girls’ schools all over Bengal.

After widow remarriage, it was the turnof polygamy. In 1857, he orchestrated a peti-tion to the Government with 25,000 signaturesfor the prohibition of polygamy among KulinBrahmins. The Mutiny postponed any actionon this petition but in 1866, he inspired anoth-er petition, this time with 21,000 signatures.The Government, reluctant to interfere inIndian customs, refused to take any legisla-tive measure, instead allowing time and edu-cation to bring an end to the practice.

In 1871 and 1873, he wrote two brilliantcritiques on polygamy, arguing that it was notsanctioned by the sacred texts, but wasopposed by five eminent scholars, led by hisfriend Taranath Tarkavachaspati of CalcuttaSanskrit College. Outlawing polygamy amongHindus, however, had to wait till 1955, eightyears after Independence, through the HinduMarriage Act. As regards child marriage, theIndian Penal Code, 1860, had fixed the ageof consent to 10 years for girls, which wasraised successively to 12 (1891), 14 (1925), 16(1940) and 18 (2013). The Child MarriageRestraint Act, 1929, also known as the SardaAct, fixed the age of marriage at 14 for girlsand 18 for boys, that was later raised to 18 and21 respectively in 1978. This has since beenrepealed and replaced by the Prohibition ofChild Marriage Act, 2006.

In 1873, disgusted with the so-calledbhadralok society, Vidyasagar went to live withthe Santhals at Karmatar, a sleepy hamletabout 20 km from the district headquarters

of Jamtara now in Jharkhand, where he wouldspend the last 18 years of his life till his deathin 1891. There he set up a girls’ school and anight school for adults on the premises of hishouse, which he called Nandan Kanan. Thehouse today lies in shambles.

The irony is that though in this village 24tribal child widows were remarried byVidyasagar, just two years ago, a tribal boy waskilled in Karmatar because he wished to marrya widow. Has anything really changed in mod-ern India?

Sati was abolished only in name.Countless satis continue to get burnt in 21stcentury India, though not on pyres. Countlessbrides get burnt to death in their nuptialhomes for dowries, the faces and minds ofcountless more are scarred forever by acidattacks inflicted by spurned lovers and oth-ers. Scores of girls are murdered in “honour-killings” in rural India for marrying intoanother caste or community, by defying theirfamilies’ diktats.

Sati has actually metamorphosed intoanother form that is equally brutal andvicious. It is not about burning a woman. Itis about denying her the choice to decide thecourse of her life. She is continued to be treat-ed as morally and intellectually inferior tomen, as she was 200 years ago. We need anoth-er Ram Mohan Roy and a Vidyasagar now,more than ever.

(The author is a retired Director-Generalfrom the Office of the CAG)

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Paris: French terrorism author-ities are investigating a knifeattack that wounded at leasttwo people on Friday near theformer offices of the satiricalnewspaper Charlie Hebdo inParis, authorities said. A sus-pect has been arrested.

The area in eastern Parisremained cordoned off bypolice two hours after theattack. Children were beingsequestered in nine schoolswhile police worked to deter-mine no other suspects were onthe run, according to education

and police officials.It is unclear what motivat-

ed the attack or whether it waslinked to Charlie Hebdo, whichmoved after its offices were tar-geted in a 2015 Islamic extrem-ist attack that left 12 peopledead.

Police cordoned off the area,including the former CharlieHebdo offices, after a suspectpackage was noticed nearby,but the package was found to beharmless and no explosives werefound, according a police official.

An investigation was

opened into “attempted murderin relation with a terroristenterprise,” according to anofficial at the prosecutor’s office.

Authorities did not releasethe identity of the suspectarrested in the area of theBastille Plaza.

“I saw a guy that was in his30s or 40s with an axe in hishand who was walking behinda victim covered in blood...I canttell you how many victims therewas, I just saw one,” witnessKader Alfa told The AssociatedPress at the scene. AP

New York: The JusticeDepartment is seeking animmediate ban on downloadsof WeChat in Apple andGoogle app stores, saying theChinese-owned messaging ser-vice is a threat to the securityof the United States.

Last week the U.S.Commerce Department movedto ban WeChat from U.S. Appstores but on Saturday,Magistrate Judge Laurel Beelerin California agreed to delayU.S. Restrictions, saying theywould affect users’ FirstAmendment rights.

In a filing Friday, theJustice Department askedBeeler to allow for an imme-diate ban while the case worksits way through court.

WeChat is a messaging-focused app popular with manyChinese-speaking Americansthat serves as a lifeline tofriends, family, customers and

business contacts in China. It’sowned by Chinese tech giantTencent.

The Justice Departmentsays WeChat allows theChinese government to collectand use personal data onAmericans to advance its owninterests. The filing statesWeChat has approximately 19million active daily users in theU.S. In a range of formats,including text, images, video,and audio.

The Justice Departmentargues that the U.S. Will sufferirreparable harm, both sub-stantive and procedural, if thecourt does not stay its decision.

The Trump administra-tion has targeted WeChat andanother Chinese-owned app,TikTok, for national securityand data privacy concerns, inthe latest flashpoint amid ris-ing tensions betweenWashington and Beijing. AP

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The man portrayed as a heroin the movie ‘Hotel

Rwanda’ has admitted in courtthat he backed a rebel group,but denied that he supportedany violence or killings.

Paul Rusesabagina, in apink prison uniform for his bailhearing on Friday, told thecourt in Kigali, the capital,that he helped to form theNational Liberation Front inorder to help Rwandanrefugees, but he never sup-ported violence.

The judge has postponedruling on his application forbail until October 2.

Rusesabagina, a Belgiancitizen and U.S. Permanentresident who has been a criticof President Paul Kagame, ischarged with 13 offenses thatalso include financing terror-ism, complicity in murder,recruiting child soldiers, andforming a rebel group.

Beijing: A Chinese health offi-cial said on Friday that thecountry’s annual productioncapacity for coronavirus vac-cines will top 1 billion dosesnext year, following an aggres-sive government support pro-gramme for construction ofnew factories.

Capacity is expected toreach 610 million doses by theend of this year, ZhengZhongwei from the NationalHealth Commission said. “Next

year, our annual capacity willreach more than 1 billiondoses,” he said at a news con-ference.

American pharmaceuticalgiants Pfizer and Moderna aimto produce a billion doses eachin 2021 as well.

Zheng said distribution ofthe vaccines would prioritizegroups such as medical workers,border personnel and the elder-ly before they are made availableto the general public. AP

Kyiv: Authorities in Belarusdetained a lawyer representinga top opposition activist whowas jailed this month amidmass protests against the coun-try’s authoritarian president,who won a sixth term in a dis-puted election.

The lawyer, LyudmilaKazak, went missing onThursday, with police con-firming later in the day that shehad been detained.

According to Kazak’s

lawyers, she faces administra-tive charges of participating inan unauthorized rally andresisting a police officer.

Kazak was defendingMaria Kolesnikova, a key mem-ber of a council Belarus’ polit-ical opposition set up to pushfor a new presidential election.

Kolesnikova is facingcharges of undermining statesecurity that could bring afive-year prison term, if she isconvicted. AP

Washington: President DonaldTrump will accept the results ofa “free and fair” election, hispress secretary has said, allay-ing fears triggered after he yetagain sowed doubts about thelegitimacy of mail-in ballotsand refused to commit to apeaceful transfer of power if helost the November 3 presiden-tial polls.

Asked whether he willleave the White House peace-fully if he loses the election,Trump responded: “Well, we’regoing to have to see what hap-pens.”

“We are going to have tosee what happens, you knowthat. I have been complainingvery strongly about the ballots,and the ballots are a disaster...,”Trump told reporters at aWhite House news conferenceon Wednesday.

Trump’s remarks causedan uproar, with lawmakersfrom the Democratic Party aswell as from the president’s ownRepublican Party rejecting hiscomments, insisting the winnerof November’s election will besworn in next January.

Responding to a questionfrom a reporter on Trump’srefusal to commit to a peace-ful transfer of power, WhiteHouse Press Secretary KayleighMcEnany said on Thursday:“The president will accept theresults of a free and fair elec-tion. But I think that your ques-tion is more fitting to be askedof Democrats, who havealready been on the record say-ing they will not accept theresults of an election.

“I am referring to the pres-ident being asked if therewould be a peaceful transfer ofpower and he did not say yes.So I am asking, will there be apeaceful transfer of power if heloses this election?” thereporter asked.

“I believe that questionasked by the Playboy reporter- in fact, I think, have it righthere - he (Trump) was askedwin, lose or draw, whether hewould accept the transfer ofpower. I am not entirely sure ifhe won, why would he accepta transfer of power. That ismaybe the deranged wish ofthat reporter, but that is nothow governing works,”McEnany said.

Trump has questioned thelegitimacy of voting by mail-inballot in the past, claimed thatit is susceptible to massivefraud.

During an interview withFox News earlier this year,Trump didn’t commit toaccepting the election resultseither, saying “I have to see.”

Trump’s attacks on the bal-loting have led to concerns thathe is undermining the trust inthe election process and willcontest the results if he loses.

McEnany referred to sev-eral comments made by theDemocrats in the past, appar-ently questioning the validity ofan election. PTI

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China appears to be expand-ing its network of secret

detention centres in Xinjiang,where predominantly Muslimminorities are targeted in aforced assimilation campaign,and more of the facilitiesresemble prisons, an Australianthink tank has found.

The Australian StrategicPolicy Institute used satelliteimages and official construc-tion tender documents to mapmore than 380 suspecteddetention facilities in the farnorthwestern region, high-lighting internment camps,detention centers and prisonsthat have been newly built orexpanded since 2017.

The report builds on evi-dence that China has made apolicy shift from detainingUighurs and other largelyMuslim minorities in makeshiftpublic buildings to construct-ing permanent mass deten-tion facilities.

This is despite Chinese

state news agency Xinhuareporting late last year that“trainees” attending “vocationaleducation and training centers”meant to deradicalize themhad “all graduated.”

Regional government chair-man Shohrat Zakir was quotedas saying that foreign mediareports of 1 million or 2 millionpeople attending these centerswere fabricated, though hewould not provide any figures.

Chinese foreign ministryspokesperson Wang Wenbin onFriday dismissed the report as“pure disinformation and slan-der,” saying the Australian insti-tute had “no academic credi-bility.”

China does not operate“so-called detention camps” inXinjiang, Wang told reportersat a daily briefing.

Citing media reports andinvestigations by internet users,Wang said one of the sites inthe report had been identifiedas an electronics manufactur-ing park and another as a five-star residential complex.

Seoul: North Korean leaderKim Jong Un apologized Fridayover the killing of a SouthKorea official near the rivals’disputed sea boundary, sayinghe’s “very sorry” about theincident he called unexpectedand unfortunate, South Koreanofficials said.

It’s extremely unusual for aNorth Korean leader to apolo-gize to South Korea on anyissue. Kim’s move will likely de-escalate tensions between theKoreas as it’s expected to easeanti-North sentiments in SouthKorea over the man’s death aswell as mounting criticism of itsliberal President Moon Jae-in.

“Comrade Kim Jong Un,the State Affairs Commission

chairman, feels very sorry togive big disappointment toPresident Moon Jae-in andSouth Korean citizens becausean unexpected, unfortunateincident happened” at a timewhen South Korea grappleswith the coronavirus pandem-ic, Moon adviser Suh Hooncited the North Korean mes-sage as saying.

On Thursday, South Koreaaccused North Korea of fatal-ly shooting one of its public ser-vants who was likely trying todefect and burning his bodyafter finding him on a floatingobject in North Korean waterson Tuesday. South Korean offi-cials condemned North Koreafor what they called an “atro-

cious act” and pressed it pun-ish those responsible.

According to the NorthKorean message, North Koreantroops first fired blanks afterthe man found in the North’swaters refused to answer otherthan saying he’s from SouthKorea a couple of times. Then,as he made moves to flee, theNorth Korean troops fired 10rounds. When they came nearthe floating object, they onlyfound lots of blood but no signof him.

The troops determined hewas dead and burned the float-ing object in line with anti-coronavirus rules, according tothe North Korean messageread by Suh. AP

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Shortly after reaching theGreek island of Lesbos, a

group of Afghan migrants say,their hopes for a new life inEurope were cut short whenGreek authorities roundedthem up, mistreated them,shoved them into life raftsand abandoned them at sea.

Associated Press journal-ists on a Turkish government-organized coast guard ride-along were aboard the patrolboat that picked up the 37migrants, including 18 chil-dren, from two orange liferafts in the Aegean Sea onSeptember 12.

Two other media organi-zations on similar govern-ment-organized trips in thesame week witnessed similarscenes.

“They took our phonesand said a bus will come andtake you to the camp,” OmidHussain Nabizada said inTurkish. “But they took us

and put us on a ship.They left us on the water in

a very bad way on these boats.”Turkey, which hosts about

4 million refugees, accusesGreece of large-scale push-backs — summary deporta-tions without access to asylumprocedures, in violation ofinternational law.

It also accuses theEuropean Union of turning ablind eye to what it says is ablatant abuse of human rights.

The Turkish coast guardsays it rescued over 300migrants “pushed back byGreek elements to Turkishwaters” this month alone.

Citing what they say arecredible reports, internationalrights groups have calledrepeatedly for investigations.

Greece, which lies on theEU’s southeastern border andhas borne the brunt of migra-tion flows from Turkey, deniesthe allegations and in turnaccuses Ankara of weaponisingmigrants.

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London: A lawyer for JulianAssange said on Friday that theWikiLeaks founder’s situationwill be worse if PresidentDonald Trump is re-elected inNovember than if Democratrival Joe Biden wins.

Edward Fitzgerald said atAssange’s extradition hearing inLondon that Assange will suf-fer if he is sent to the US to facespying charges regardless ofwho wins the November 3election. “Much of what we sayabout the fate which awaits MrAssange remains good becauseit’s about systemic faults in theprisons and his underlying

conditions,” he said. But, headded, “it will be all the worse”if Trump is re-elected. US pros-ecutors have indicted Assangeon 17 espionage charges andone charge of computer misuseover WikiLeaks’ publication ofsecret American military doc-uments a decade ago. Thecharges carry a maximum sen-tence of 175 years in prison.

Assange’s defense teamargues that he is a journalist andentitled to First Amendmentprotections for publishing leakeddocuments that exposed USmilitary wrongdoing in Iraqand Afghanistan. AP

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Page 9: 0 1 ˝ ˙ ˚) ˚A ˇ&˜ ˝˘˘ A RNI Regn. No. MPENG/2004/13703 ... · 14 hours ago  · Delhi, Amritsar Delhi, Delhi-Dehradun, Ayodhya Lucknow, ... bers at various places in Amritsar,

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The Government on Fridayissued a notification oper-

ationalising ‘Faceless IncomeTax Appeals’ system whichseeks to honour honest tax-payers of the country and pro-mote transparency in tax col-lection.

Under faceless appeals, allIncome Tax appeals will befinalised in a faceless mannerunder the faceless ecosystemwith the exception of appealsrelating to serious frauds, majortax evasion, sensitive andsearch matters, internationaltax and Black Money Act, theFinance Ministry said in astatement.

Necessary Gazette notifi-cation has also been issued inthis regard, it added.

Prime Minister NarendraModi on August 13, whilelaunching the faceless assess-ment and taxpayers’ charter aspart of “Transparent Taxation- Honouring the Honest” plat-form, had announced launch-ing of faceless appeals onSeptember 25 on the birthanniversary of Pandit Deen

Dayal Upadhayay.In recent years, the Income

Tax Department has carriedout several reforms in directtaxes for simplification of taxprocess and ease of compliancefor taxpayers.

“Under the FacelessAppeals, from now on, inincome tax appeals, everythingfrom e-allocation of appeal, e-communication of notice/ques-tionnaire, e-verification/e-enquiry to e-hearing and final-ly e-communication of theappellate order, the entireprocess of appeals will beonline, dispensing with theneed for any physical interfacebetween the appellant and theDepartment,” the ministry said.

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Equity benchmark Sensexrallied 835 points on Friday

after six days of declines asinvestors returned to buyingmode amid a modest recoveryin global markets.

A strengthening rupee -- which spurted 28 paiseagainst the US dollar - addedto the momentum, traders said.

The 30-share BSE Sensexopened higher followingThursday’s selloff and stayed inthe positive territory through-out the session.

It finally closed at37,388.66, up 835.06 points or2.28 per cent. Similarly, theNSE Nifty vaulted 244.70points or 2.26 per cent to fin-ish at 11,050.25.

All Sensex componentsended in the green, with BajajFinserv, HCL Tech, BhartiAirtel, IndusInd Bank, L&T,TCS, ICICI Bank, ONGC,Infosys and Bajaj Finance gain-ing up to 6.64 per cent.

On a weekly basis, theSensex lost 1,457.16 points or3.83 per cent, while the Niftytumbled 454.70 points or 4.04per cent.

Global markets stabilisedfollowing an overnight pullbackon Wall Street after reports saidUS lawmakers were working ona stimulus deal that could bevoted on as early as next week.

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The CAG has found that theUnion Government in the

very first two years of the GSTimplementation wronglyretained �47,272 crore of GSTcompensation cess that wasmeant to be used specifically tocompensate states for loss ofrevenue.

In its audit report ofGovernment accounts, theComptroller and AuditorGeneral (CAG) flagged that theamount was to be credited tothe non-lapsable GSTCompensation Cess collectionfund for payment to states forloss of revenue due to imple-mentation of GST since 2017,

but the Government did not doso, and thus violated the GSTlaw.

“The GST CompensationCess Act, 2017 provides for levyof cess for the purpose of pro-viding compensation to thestates for loss of revenue aris-ing due to implementation ofGST for a period specified inthe Act,” CAG said. As perthe Act and the accountingprocedure, the entire cess col-lected during the year isrequired to be credited to anon-lapsable Fund (the GSTCompensation Cess Fund)which shall form part of thePublic Account and shall beused for the purpose men-tioned i.E., for providing com-

pensation to states for loss ofrevenue.

CAG said out of the Rs62,612 crore GSTCompensation Cess collectedin 2017-18, �56,146 crore wastransferred to the non-lapsablefund. In the following year(2018-19), �54,275 crore out of�95,081 crore collected wastransferred to the fund.

The short transfer in 2017-18 was �6,466 crore and in2018-19 it was � 40,806 crore,CAG said adding the Centreused this money for “other pur-poses” which “led to an over-statement of revenue receiptsand understatement of fiscaldeficit for the year”.

The short-crediting was a

violation of the GSTCompensation Cess Act, 2017.

The issue of compensationcess is driving a wedge betweenthe Centre and states at theGST Council - the highestdecision making body of the

GST regime that had sub-sumed 17 different central andstate taxes such as excise dutyand VAT.

States have not been paidtheir promised compensationfor letting go their powers to

levy taxes on goods and ser-vices since last fiscal.

The Centre says a slow-down in the economy hasmeant that not enough moneyis being collected by way of cessthat is levied on luxury and singoods. The Centre has askedstates to borrow for meeting therevenue shortfall. States ruledby Congress, Left, TMC andAAP have opposed the movecompletely arguing that theCentre should borrow and pro-vide to states, since states havegiven majority of their taxationpowers to the Centre underGST regime introduced in July2017. The CAG findings runcontrary to Finance MinisterNirmala Sitharaman’s submis-

sions in Parliament last weekthat states could not be com-pensated for revenue shortfallfrom the Consolidated Fund ofIndia (CFI) relying on an opin-ion from the Attorney Generalof India which stated that therewas no such provision in thelaw. “Audit examination ofinformation in Statements 8, 9and 13 with regard to the col-lection of the cess and its trans-fer to the GST CompensationCess Fund, shows that therewas short crediting to the Fundof the GST Compensation Cesscollections totalling to �47,272crore during 2017-18 and 2018-19,” CAG said in the auditreport.

The short-crediting, CAG

said, was a violation of the GSTCompensation Cess Act, 2017.

“The amount by which thecess was short credited was alsoretained in the CFI and becameavailable for use for purposesother than what was providedin the Act,” it said. Accordingto CAG, the Finance Ministryaccepted the audit observation

and stated in February2020 that the proceeds of cesscollected and not transferred toPublic Account would be trans-ferred in the subsequent year.

“Short crediting of cesscollected during the year led toan overstatementof revenuereceipts and understatement offiscal deficit for the year,” CAGsaid.

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Google on Friday saidGoogle Pay does not share

customer transaction data withany third party outside thepayments flow.

The clarification fromGoogle came after reports citedthe company’s submission tothe Delhi High Court saying itis allowed to share customerstransaction data with thirdparties with the prior permis-sion of NPCI and payment ser-vice providing (PSP) banks.

“This is to clarify that pressreports on the basis of the affi-davit filed by Google before theDelhi High Court, do not rep-resent the complete facts,” aGoogle spokesperson said onFriday. The spokespersonadded that Google Pay is in fullcompliance with UnifiedPayment Interface (UPI) pro-cedural guidelines, issued bythe National PaymentsCorporation of India (NPCI)and the applicable laws.

“...And does not sharecustomer transaction data withany third party outside the

payments flow,” the spokesper-son further said. The submis-sion by Google was filed beforea bench of Chief Justice D NPatel and Justice Prateek Jalanin response to a PIL seekingaction against Google Pay forallegedly violating the RBI’sguidelines related to data local-isation, storage and sharing.

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Inflow of Chinese goodscould see a rise in the

October-December quarter asitems worth about �20,000crore - primarily comprisingelectronics and electrical items,gifts, toys, footwear, home andkitchen appliances - still lie atthe Indian ports waiting forclearance.

The traders and importerswho had placed their orders inNovember and December lastyear are yet to receive a chunkof their consignments. Theunprecedented delay in deliv-ery is due to the shutting downof Chinese borders in Januaryand February, followed by thecoronavirus pandemic and thesubsequent lockdown in Indiawhich lasted for about twomonths beginning March 25.

Official data reveal India’simports from China during theApril-August period of thecurrent financial year stood at$21.58 billion-a drop of 27.63per cent, compared to the cor-responding period in the pre-vious year.

“Chunks of orders placedby our traders in December lastyear are still to arrive. Thegoods have not yet reached asChina was initially closed dueto coronavirus and subse-quently from March 25, Indiawent into a stringent lock-down for about two months.So, a great deal of Chinesegoods -- essentially electronicsand electrical items, gifts, toys,footwear, home and kitchenappliances -- still lying at theports. Thus there could be aslight increase in the inflow ofChinese goods in the comingquarter,” Praveen Khandelwal,secretary general,Confederation of All IndiaTraders (Cait) said.However,Khandelwal said that tradershave not placed fresh orderswith China for these itemssince March.India’s moves toshun Chinese goods India’sgrowing clamor to reduceimports from China - especiallycheap electronic and electricalitems including mobile phones,home appliances, gifts and toys-- will deal a big blow to thedragon.

Surender babbar , GeneralManager ( Finance) of Delhi

Transco Ltd has joined PowerTransmission Corporation ofUtrakhand, Govt of Utrakhandas Director ( Finance). Babbaris a Chartered Accountant byProfession having enrolled asthe member of the Institute ofChartered Accountants OfIndia in 1990. Having deeppassion and flair in law, Babbargraduated in Law( LLB) fromUniversity of Delhi in 1994 andMasters in Law(LLM) in 2006from University ofKurukshetra. He has a multi-farious experience of 30 yearsin the fields of Contract law,Tax laws, electricity laws .

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In order to give impetus tovarious important projects of

Greater Noida IndustrialDevelopment Authority, areview meeting of variousdepartments of the Authoritywas convened today, whichwas given by the ChiefExecutive Officer of GreaterNoida Industrial DevelopmentAuthority, Narendra Bhushan

to all the Heads and ProjectHeads through video confer-encing. While addressing,issued necessary guidelines.Officers associated with ProjectDepartment, HealthDepartment, Urban ServicesDepartment participated inthis meeting. Additional ChiefExecutive OfficerDeepchandra, Additional ChiefExecutive Officer KrishnaKumar Gupta.

New Delhi: India’s second-largest public sector bank,Punjab National Bank (PNB)commenced the Phase-3 of itsnationwide CSR campaign tocreate awareness against themenace of COVID-19 pan-demic and provide its preven-tion materials. The third phasecampaign titled “Jai Jawan JaiKisan” is to honour the ex-ser-vicemen and farmers throughits rural and semi-urbanbranches in 662 districts, acrossIndia.

In the third phase, PNBsenior officials across the coun-try distributed facemasks andsanitizer kits through its rural

and semi-urban branches. As apart of its CSR initiative, PNBalso believes that such actionscan motivate other establish-ments to come forward to con-tribute for the betterment ofour society in many ways.

After its successful Phase 1and 2 countrywide CSR cam-paign, to fight against COVID-19, which was initiated with alot of fervour, PNB in Phase -3 of CSR campaign honouredretired soldiers and farmersacross India for their unflinch-ing commitment & servicesoffered to the country withutmost generosity and gallant-ly throughout their entire life.

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The Ministry of Housingand Urban Affairs

(MoHUA) unveiled the firstlook of the Delhi-Ghaziabad-Meerut regional rapid transitsystem (RRTS) on Friday. The82 km-long RRTS corridorwill be the first of its kind inIndia with a design speed of180 kmph.

According to the ministry,with a stainless steel outerbody, these aerodynamic RRTStrains will be lightweight andfully air-conditioned. Each carwill have six automatic plug-intype wide doors, three on eachside (Business Class will havefour such doors, two on eachside) for ease of access and exit.The RRTS trains will havetransverse 2x2 seating withadequate legroom, optimizedaisle width with grab handles,and grab poles for a comfort-able journey for standing pas-sengers, overhead luggage rack,mobile/laptop charging socketsand onboard Wi-Fi amongother computer-centric fea-tures. “New Delhi’s iconicLotus Temple is an epitome ofsustainability as its designallows flow of natural sourcesof light and air circulation.

On similar lines, RRTS

rolling stock will have lightingand temperature control sys-tems to enhance the passengerexperience with less energyconsumption.

Equipped with modernamenities, the RRTS rollingstock will be a unique amalga-mation of new-age technologyand India’s rich heritage,” theministry said. The prototype isscheduled to roll off the pro-duction line in 2022 and will beput into public use after exten-sive trials.

Unveiling the first look ofIndia’s first RRTS train today,MoHUA Secretary DurgaShankar Mishra said that theenvironment friendly, energy-efficient rapid transit trainswill improve the quality of lifein and around NCR by accel-erating economic growth. Theproject will also create eco-nomic opportunities by reduc-ing air pollution, carbon foot-print, congestion, and acci-dents Bombardier was award-ed the contract by NCRTC ear-lier this year to design, buildand deliver the regional com-muter and intra-city transittrains with comprehensivemaintenance services for theDelhi-Ghaziabad-Meerutsemi-high-speed rail corridorunder RRTS Phase 1.

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In order to resolve issues andincrease the pace of con-

struction of highway projects,the National HighwaysAuthority of India (NHAI) hasagreed to most of the sugges-tions made by the NationalHighways Builders Federation(NHBF) related to projectdelivery. The suggestions weremade pertaining to nine areasthat included Covid relief, bid-ding process, contract man-agement, old & new modelEPC agreements, Improvementof Concession Agreement ofHybrid Annuity Model(HAM), Improvement ofConcession Agreement Based

on BOT (Toll) and ProjectPreparation.

As per the Road TransportMinistry, the NHAI has report-ed that the suggestions made byNHBF were deliberated uponby them for proper redressaland the Authority has agreed to25 suggestions which wererelated to it.

“The Central road makingagency has also assured that allgood suggestions will be posi-tively considered in future too.NHAI has further reportedthat other suggestions pertain-ing to policy related mattershave been sent to the Ministryof Road Transport & Highwaysfor consideration,” said a NHAIstatement.

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New Delhi:Gold prices roseby �324 to �50,824 per 10gram in the national capitalon Friday, halting its four-daydecline on recovery in inter-national price of the pre-cious metal, according toHDFC Securities. The pre-cious metal closed at �50,500per 10 gram in the previoustrade. Silver prices alsobounced back and gained�2,124 to �60,536 per kilo-gram from previous close of�58,412 per kilogram.”Spotgold prices for 24 carat inDelhi halted decline by risingRs 324, in line with recoveryin international prices,”HDFC Securities SeniorAnalyst Tapan Patel said.

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At an empty Rajpath, therewas stillness, one that thecity had never breathed. Atthe Anand Vihar BusStation, there were crowds of

migrant labourers, unprotected andunsanitised, betrayed by people’s apathyand denial of their plight. At theNigambodh Crematorium, KashmereGate, there were COVID dead bodiesarriving in crowded ambulances. At theMuslim Burial Ground, Dilli Gate, ayoung widow read the fatiah for herdead husband. At the ChristianCemetery, an infant waited for anunknown gravedigger to perform hislast rites as he was abandoned by hisparents when they learned he wasCOVID-positive. Outside the TraumaCentre of AIIMS, there were doctors fullof courage preparing to enter the CovidCare Unit, wearing PPE, just to witnessanother day of victory and loss at thesame time.

Amid all these unusual sights, therewas author-photographer Parul Sharmacapturing this horror show by a dead-ly pathogen and the frozen reality of lifethat the world had left behind while hid-ing from the Coronavirus during thelockdown. The photographs, now pub-lished into a book, Dialects of Silence:Delhi Under Lockdown, present a visu-al narrative of a locked-down capital anda chronicle of lives paused, lives lost andlives regained.

When asked, “Were you afraid?”Parul said, “Of course, I was... Of miss-ing that one shot that I would never findagain!” For her, the rush was to coverthe city before its stillness shattered andthe struggles for being alive turnedgraver.

Excerpts:

�What made you go for it? Was it pre-decided that you would publishthese photographs into a book?

No, when I took to the streets, therewas no thought of getting a book pub-lished in my mind. It was just my obses-sion with photography and my passion.It was very frightening because therewas nobody on the streets. Everythingwas shut, and not a single soul was seenin miles. I began with capturing thearchitecture and the deserted roads but

then the narrative changed when theCOVID death rate started rising. Therewas one thing — either I stopped thereor I continue shooting. And so it hap-pened. I continued capturing themigrants, doctors in the COVID wardsand the burial grounds and crematori-ums.

In June, we decided to turn this allinto a book.

�Why did you call it Dialects ofSilence?

There is a conversation right fromthe beginning of the book, which ismore architectural. I went out in pur-suit of having a conversation with mycity. I have been born and brought uphere. My parents have grown up in thiscity. And I just went out there to cap-

ture the undisturbed view of the archi-tecture of my city, the stillness whichhad creeped in due to the lockdown, andabove all, the beauty of Delhi. The cityactually looked very beautiful duringthat time.

I just did not know that I’ll be turn-ing it into a book. I became a news pho-tographer over night when the migrantstory broke and when I started captur-ing the deaths.

�It kind of highlights how even silencehas its own language and speaks volumes...

Yes, that’s how it actually came —the idea of having a conversation withsilence. There was absence everywhereand when I interpret dialects of silence,

it also means its different kinds — someconversations were joyous and somewere completely opposite, some had sor-rows, some had hope, some had anxi-ety, some were full of fear while somehad courage.

When I was shooting the doctors, itwas not that I was having some long-drawn conversations with them. I wasdocumenting them doing their job. Eventhough there was silence in the wards,but there was courage in the air whichwas speaking to me. They did not haveto tell me that now they are headingtowards the COVID wing to check onthe patients. They didn’t tell me thatthey had courage, it was written on theirfaces, in their demeanour and in theirbody language. I’d say, even their PPE

couldn’t conceal it. And therefore, the‘dialects’.

�What were the on-ground challenges?

There were many challenges, ofcourse. But I didn’t allow them tocome my way. I kept trying to absorbthem as they came. I don’t like anythingto come in between my determination.So I didn’t focus much on that part.

�Do you think witnessing such aphenomenon would have been possible without a lockdown ever?

I don’t think so. It’s Delhi we aretalking about. Walking down thoseempty lanes, I saw police guards onduty; monkeys taking over the emptystreets, having the whole road to them-selves; crows and birds, in flight, unper-turbed. Once some guards also asked meif I could feed the stray dogs as peoplehave stopped stepping out and feedingthem. Such gestures proved how nobodywas there for each other and at the sametime, everyone was. They were con-cerned for each other. It’s both the waysand it began a dialogue between me andthose dogs I fed, and the guards whowere the only humans I came across. Ihave never seen or captured Delhi insuch a frame.

�You’ve captured the COVID burialgrounds, and bodies being crematedin electric crematoriums. Witnessingsuch a saddening sight so closely, didit impact you personally?

Oh my god, yes! It had psycholog-ical implications. I think that’s the firstthing that gets hit in such scenarios —psychological health. There are peoplewho may capture a great tragedy but atthe same time, they won’t be personal-ly moved by it as that varies from per-son to person. But for someone like me,it affects psychologically. I could notsleep for those nights.

There are also other factors hittingyou — how did the people contract thevirus? What if you also contract it? Andend up the same way? How active is thevirus even now? Should you be nearthese bodies? What if it’s more potentright now? How long before it dies com-pletely? There’s a constant conflict.And with this virus, you can neverknow. People are contracting the viruseven while sitting inside their homes.You do feel scared.

Then come the sensory aspects —sight, sound, smell. Especially, when youvisit a place like a crematorium, smellplays a huge role because the air is soputrid, nobody wants to be inside.Capturing such a place is not likeshooting architecture or a beautifullandscape. You can leave it there andcome back with a relaxed mind. Youhave enjoyed that moment and it lingerson with you. But after returning homefrom a place like this, it’s difficult toswitch off. You don’t forget it as easily.Your coping mechanism has to bestrong.

�Reconciling something tragic is difficult...

Indeed. I don’t know whether Iwould ever be able to forget thoseimages in my head. Especially, thoseepisodes where I saw a young widowreading the fatiah of her husband beingburied and how the last rites of aCOVID-dead child were being per-formed by a stranger. I remember I wasinside an electric cremation centre andafter a point of time, I was all alone andthere were two COVID dead bodieslying three feet away from me. Theywere wrapped in plastic sheet. When I

turned back, I saw another ambulancearriving, which had five more dead bod-ies. Similar to a war-like scenario, afterone round of disposal, quickly, therewere more of them coming and more...

It was tough to navigate things. Attimes you’re also fearful that somethingmight happen to you or your family. Alot of composure was required to alsocapture the dead bodies with an aesthet-ic and giving them the due respect. Youcan’t make it look bizarre or dramatic.

�In the book, there’s a caption —“June was the cruelest month...”

There were many deaths in June.The migrant crisis had broke out, theShramik Special started, a lot ofmigrants died in road accidents and ontracks, and the COVID death rate inIndia started rising and people weredying. And it’s still continuing.

�You have captured how the pandemic gave birth to a migrantlabour crisis in India. How do youthink photographs create a history oftheir own?

Photographs create history. I got oneof the biggest compliments recentlywhen I was told that my photographsremind them, especially the migrantmother-and-child series, of the famousAmerican photographer DorotheaLange, who had shot a lot of migrantsin America during the GreatDepression. Lange said that ‘if you’retaking a picture, take it as if you wereto become blind tomorrow. Don’t shootfor the sake of it.’

Not that I was governed by her aes-thetics but I looked for hope and beau-ty. The migrants that I have shot werenot in motion. I didn’t shoot them dur-ing movement. I saw some sitting wait-ing at bus stands, railways junctions orunder a flyover. It was very heartbreak-ing to see a family of six who had a dis-abled, malnourished child. They couldnot travel with her back to their villagebecause it was difficult to carry thechild. That image has now been pickedby Getty images.

�What’s your take on the migrant crisis?

As a Delhiite, I feel, we should havedone something for those people. Busesand food supplies were organised laterbut as a society, there is a collective apa-thy we have for situations like these. Welove to play the blame game — the gov-ernment doesn’t do its job — and justpresent a drawing room view of the cri-sis. I think the migrants were notbetrayed by the government, they werebetrayed by their employers. The peoplejust washed their hands off them whenthe lockdown began. And no govern-ment could be prepared for a crisis likethis!

�Was there a specific reason of keep-ing the photographs black and white?

It’s raw. First section of the book —architecture — reminds me of Delhi ofthe ‘40s, devoid of people, cars, and pol-lution, which is why I tried to give thema retro touch. I didn’t want to give colourto the deaths I’ve captured. The doctors,whose courage gave hope to millions, andthe scenario they are in, it’s devoid ofcolours.

There is also a special photograph,the last one, the only one which has beencomposed. It shows how the virus tooka toll on even romance and love. I hadto make a couple pose to make that frameI imagined come alive. It makes the bookend on a hopeful and a positive note.

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Young Prithvi Shawstruck a fluent half-century and shared a

a 94-run opening standwith Shikhar Dhawan toguide Delhi Capitals to 175for three against ChennaiSuper Kings in an IndianPremier League match hereon Friday.

Shaw made 64 off 43balls in the company ofDhawan (35 off 27 balls, 3fours, 1 six) to provide asuperb start to DC's inningsafter being put into bat.

The duo started slowly,scoring just 36 runs of thefirst six overs of powerplaybefore opening up to stitch94 runs for the openingwicket in 10.4 overs.

Shaw got into hisstride, hitting two consec-utive boundaries offDeepak Chahar.

The Mumbai young-ster didn't appear to rushthings and played some attrac-tive shots.

Once CSK skipperMahendra Singh Dhoni intro-duced the spin duo of PiyushChawla and Ravindra Jadejain the seventh over, bothShaw and Dhawan went onthe offensive.

Chawla, who was takenapart by Sanju Samson in theirprevious game againstRajasthan Royals, came in forsome rough treatment as didJadeja who went wicketless inhis four overs (0/44).

Dhawan after playingsecond fiddle for a while,joined the party and hit acouple of attractiveboundaries and sloggedJadeja's first ball for a sixover mid-wicket.

The DC openershammered 58 in thenext 4.4 overs afterthe slow start.

Chawla broke thedangerous-lookingpartnership by remov-

ing both Dhawan and Shaw inconsecutive overs.

Rishabh Pant (37 not out, 25balls) and captain Shreyas Iyer(26, 22 balls) pushed the score-board along before the latter wascaught by a diving Dhoni off Sam

Curran as CSK managed to pullthings back.

CSK players also paid tributeto veteran singer S PBalasubrahmanyam and formerAustralian cricketer Dean Jonesby wearing black armbands.

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Javi Martínez is BayernMunich’s Mr Super Cup.

Seven years after scoring anextra-time goal to help Bayernwin its last UEFA Super Cup,Martínez netted the winner inthe 104th minute on Thursdayas the German club beat Sevilla2-1 in the European curtain rais-er in a stadium partially filledwith fans.

Martínez rose above acrowd of players to head in therebound when Sevilla goalkeep-

er Yassine Bounou parriedDavid Alaba’s speculative shot.

Bayern midfielder ThomasMüller hailed Martínez as “MrSuper Cup,” recalling the 2013goal which sent a game againstChelsea to a penalty shootoutwhich Bayern won.

It could be one of Martínez’slast games for Bayern after eightyears and eight Bundesliga titles.Chairman Karl-HeinzRummenigge told Germanmedia last month that the ver-satile defensive player was seek-ing to leave.

“When I play in a Bayernshirt I want to give everything,100%, and I showed that today,”Martínez told Sky, leaving aquestion about his future open.

Playing extra time was farfrom ideal for either team in aseason which has started laterthan normal and will have amore congested calendar amidthe coronavirus pandemic. Forboth Bayern and Sevilla it wasthe start of a run of four gamesin 11 days and came barely amonth after Bayern beat ParisSaint-Germain in theChampions League final.

Europa League championSevilla took an early lead whenDavid Alaba fouled Ivan Rakiticand Lucas Ocampos convertedthe 13th-minute penalty.Champions League winnerBayern leveled when LeonGoretzka hammered in a ballexpertly cued up for him byLewandowski in the 34th.

Bayern was largely in con-trol of the second half but sawtwo goals ruled out — one foroffside, one for a shove byLewandowski — and neededNeuer to save Youssef En-Nesyri’s shot on the counterat-tack in the 87th minute.

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Liverpool teenager CurtisJones scored twice in a 7-2

victory over Lincoln in theLeague Cup, and defendingchampion Manchester Cityedged past Bournemouth 2-1.

Liverpool advanced to afourth-round meeting nextThursday with Arsenal, whichalso plays at Anfield in thePremier League on Monday.

Phil Foden’s late goalsecured City’s progress to amatch next week with Burnley.

The 19-year-old Jonesscored Liverpool’s third andfourth goals before halftime, cut-ting in from the left on bothoccasions to curl in right-foot-ed shots, and was the visitors’main creative force in midfield.

Jones also won the free kickfrom which Xherdan Shaqiriwhipped in the opener for hisfirst goal in over nine months.

Takumi Minamino contin-ued his promising start to theseason with a first-time shot inthe 18th minute.

All of Liverpool’s four first-half goals were scored from atleast 20 yards.

Eighteen seconds after thebreak Minamino added anoth-er, stabbing in Harvey Elliott’s

smothered effort.Marko Grujic scored his

first for the club almost five yearsafter joining, and Divock Origiwrapped up the rout in the 89thwith his ninth goal in 12 LeagueCup matches. Tayo Edun andLewis Montsma had made it 5-1 and 6-2 by scoring for third-tier side Lincoln.

SPURS AWARDED BYETottenham have been

awarded a bye into the fourthround of the League Cup aftertheir tie with Leyton Orient wascalled off on Tuesday following

a spate of coronavirus cases atthe League Two club.

Fourth-tier Orient tried torearrange the game but LeagueCup rules mean that they mustforfeit the tie, allowing Spurs togo through to play Chelsea.

Spurs will now prepare forfour games in eight days, start-ing with the visit of Newcastle onSunday.

Jose Mourinho’s men thenhost Chelsea on Tuesday, hostMaccabi Haifa in Europa Leaguequalifying on Thursday andtravel to Manchester United aweek on Sunday.

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Skipper Dinesh Karthik’s tacticalnous will once again be put to

test when Kolkata Knight Riderstake on a depleted SunrisersHyderabad in their second IPL fix-ture on Saturday.

Much was expected from arevamped Kolkata Knight Ridersset-up but it seemed Karthik didnot learn from his past mistakesand made some inexplicable deci-sions that led to their completecapitulation against MumbaiIndians.

Once again, the batting posi-tion of their biggest hitter AndreRussell became the talking point intheir 49-run loss to MumbaiIndians.

The Jamaican, who was theirhighest run-getter last season with510 runs from 249 deliveries and

the tournament’s highest strikerate of 204.81, was seen atNo 6 but by then the taskhad become extremelydifficult.

World Cup winningcaptain Eoin Morgan,who was roped in tobolster the wobblymiddle order, alsocould not domuch as the ask-ing rate had shotpast 13 by thetime he cameto bat at No 5.

In bowlingtoo, there was a tacticalblunder by holdingback their ace spinnerSunil Narine till thelast over of power play.

On a day, theirbiggest buy Pat

Cummins failed miserably, Narinewas given a go only when his IPL‘bunny’ Rohit Sharma was well set.

It really defied logic to see sucha defensive strategy by a team nowcoached by Kiwi great Brendon

Mccullum who is knownfor his aggressive mind-

set.Known to put up

a balanced side onthe park, Hyderabadlacked strength andexperience in theirmiddle-order, fail-

ing miserablyagainst Royal

Challengers Bangalore.Needing just 43 runs from last

five overs, SRH lost their last sevenwickets for 32 runs to lose the gameby 10 runs.

If that was not enough, injuryto their all-rounder Mitchell Marshhas compounded their misery.

Skipper David Warner, afterbeing run out in an unfortunatemanner at the non-striker’s end, willbe keen to get into the act, while itremains to be seen whether KaneWilliamson has recovered from hisinjury to bolster the batting depart-ment.

SRH bowling has always beenimpressive and it seems thethink tank may bring inMohammed Nabi to bowlalongside his fellow mateRashid Khan whileBhuvneshwar Kumar willspearhead the pace attack.

Dubai: Sunil Gavaskar on Fridayfound himself in the midst of acontroversy for a comment onIndia skipper Virat Kohli and hiswife Anushka Sharma but thelegendary batsman asserted thathis remarks, construed as sexist,were misinterpreted.

Kohli had a bad day inoffice on Thursday when he ledRoyal Challengers Bangaloreagainst Kings XI Punjab. Hedropped two catches of rivalskipper KL Rahul and managedonly a run off five balls in chase.

While Kohli was still atcrease, Gavaskar said ‘India cap-tain is keen to improve and heknows that he can do so only bypracticing more and more’. Hethen added that ‘during thelockdown Kohli faced onlyAnushka’s bowling and it isshowing that it did not helpmuch’.

Gavaskar was speaking inHindi when he made the com-ment.

However, the comment didnot go down well with Kohli andAnushka’s fans and some evendemanded his sacking from StarSports commentary panel, lash-ing out at him on social media.

Reacting to it, Anushka alsoissued a statement on herInstagram page and said thatGavaskar’s message was “distaste-ful”. She was livid that her namewas unnecessarily mentionedby a respected personality likehim.

She wrote, “That, MrGavaskar, your message is dis-tasteful is a fact but I would lovefor you to explain why youthought of making such a sweep-ing statement on a wife accusingher for her husband’s game?.”

“I am sure over the years youhave respected the private livesof every cricketer while com-mentating on the game. Don’tyou think you should have equalamount of respect for me andus?”

“I am sure you can havemany words and sentences inyour mind to use to comment onmy husband’s performance fromlast night or are your words onlyrelevant if you use my name inthe process?”

“......Respected Mr Gavaskar,you are a legend whose namestands tall in this gentleman’sgame. Just wanted to tell youwhat I felt when I heard you saythis.”

Gavaskar though said hiscomments were not understoodin right context.

The remark according toGavaskar was in reference to avideo clip where Kohli andAnushka were seen enjoyingsome tennis ball cricket in theircompound.

“Firstly, I would like to say,where am I blaming her, I’m notblaming her. I am only sayingthat the video showed she wasbowling to Virat. Virat has only

played that much bowling in thislockdown period,” Gavaskar toldIndia Today.

“It is tennis ball fun gamethat people have to pass timeduring the lockdown, so that’s all,so where am I blaming her forVirat’s failures.”

Gavaskar also rubbishedallegations on social media thathe made a “sexist comment”.

“I’m the one who has alwaysbatted for wives going with hus-bands on tours. I am the onewho has always said that like anormal guy going to office for a9-5 job, when he comes backhome, he comes back to his wife,similarly why can’t cricketershave their wives with them,”Gavaskar said.

He also tried to explain hiscomment.

“As you can hear from thecommentary, Aakash was talk-ing about the fact there has beenvery little chance for any prop-er practice in the lockdown, foreverybody...

“.....That has actually shownin rustiness of some of the play-ers in their first matches. Rohit(Sharma) didn’t strike the ballwell, now in the second match hehas got runs, MSD (MahendraSingh Dhoni) didn’t strike theball well in the first match.”

“.....Anushka was bowling tohim, so that’s what I said, that’sthe only bowling, I have not usedany other word. She was bowl-ing to him, that’s all, where amI blaming her, where I am beingsexist in this.”

“I’m just only stating whatwas seen on the video which wasmaybe recorded by somebody inthe neighbouring buildings andput up and that’s the only thingI’m doing, but the point I’mmaking trying to make is thatthere was no practice for any-body including Virat in thelockdown. “...I have not beensexist, if somebody has inter-preted it, what can I do,”Gavaskar said. PTI

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Shreyas Iyer, who washanded the captain-

cy of Delhi Capitals in2018, on Friday sur-passed GautamGambhir and becamethe second most cappedcaptain of the franchise.

Iyer's side on Fridayplayed their secondgame of IPL 2020

against Chennai Super.

This is Iyer’s 26th gameas Delhi Capitals’ cap-tain. The 25-year-old isnow just behindVirendra Sehwag whohas played 52 IPL match-es for Delhi as captain.

Iyer was one of theplayers retained by thefranchise in 2018. OnApril 25, 2018, the man-agement of the DelhiCapitals announced Iyeras the new captain of the

team, replacing GautamGambhir. The franchisehas had 11 captains sofar.

Iyer, who is theyoungest captain in thisyear’s IPL, so far hasbeen successful skipperfor the Delhi Capitals. In2019, Iyer also led DelhiCapitals to the playoffs ofthe season where theylost against MS Dhoni’sChennai Super Kings.

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