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VOLUME 11, ISSUE 1 | www.orissapost.com BHUBANESWAR | THURSDAY, APRIL 1 | 2021 16 PAGES | `4.00 Capital sizzles at 44.2°C, highest in March

POST NEWS NETWORK Department (IMD) said. Biswas also said that the high- HR Biswas, Regional Director est temperature ever recorded Bhubaneswar, March 31: The of IMD said, “Earlier the record in the state capital was 46.7°C state capital Wednesday sizzled of maximum temperature in June 5, 2012. at 44.2°C making it the hottest Bhubaneswar stood at 42.2°C The met department pre- place in Odisha. This was the which was registered March dicted that the heat wave will highest temperature ever 21, 2016. This is the first time the continue in the city and some recorded in this city in March, temperature in Bhubaneswar other districts of Odisha the India Meteorological has breached 42.2 °C in March.” Thursday also.

IRREGULAR by MANJUL Vaccination for State to review 45+ begins today AGENCIES

New Delhi, March 31: As India prepares to open up its COVID-19 vaccination drive to people above power tariff hike 45 from April 1, the Centre asked Wednesday states and Union Territories (UTs) to identify low Govt will urge OERC to consider rollback vaccine-coverage pockets, partic- ularly in districts reporting a surge in new infections, and take Good bye, COVID-19! corrective action. National Health Authority (NHA) CEO and Empowered Group on COVID-19 Vaccination chair- MARKET WATCH person Dr RS Sharma and Union Health Secretary Rajesh Bhushan chaired a high-level meeting with INDEX VARIATION health secretaries, mission direc- tors of NHM and immunisation of- SENSEX 49509.15 627.43 Members of the youth wing of BJP protest against the hike in power tariff at Cuttack ficers of all states and UTs during the day, a statement said.

BOURSES NIFTY 14690.70 154.40 POST NEWS NETWORK April 4 excluding those in BPL and those The status and pace of the in- DOLLAR 73.72 `0.42 using irrigation facilities. oculation drive across India were Bhubaneswar, March 31: Following Opposition BJP and Congress stalled reviewed at the meeting held EURO 86.23 `0.47 ruckus in the Assembly over power tar- the proceedings of the Assembly sev- through video-conferencing, as CURRENCY iff hike, Energy Minister Dibya Shankar eral times throughout the day over the were the preparations for April GOLD `44,100 `227 Mishra said Wednesday that the state gov- issue leading to numerous adjournments. 2021, when vaccination would be SILVER `63,375 `251 ernment will urge the Odisha Electricity During the Question Hour, Congress extended to cover everybody above BULLION Regulatory Commission (OERC) to re- MLAs disturbed proceedings forcing the age of 45, the ministry said. consider the increase in rates. His an- Speaker Surya Narayan Patro to adjourn “A key theme underlying the nouncement came after the Opposition the House till 11.30am. After resumption meet was the identification of low WEATHER members demanded an immediate of proceedings Leader of Opposition vaccine coverage pockets partic- rollback in power tariff rates. Mishra said Pradipta Kumar Naik raised the matter ularly in districts showing COVID- BHUB CTK the government will submit a petition during Zero Hour. He said the state gov- 19 surge and for taking corrective MAX 44.2° 40.6° before the OERC and request it to ernment should ask the OERC to with- actions there,” the NHA said. reconsider its earlier order. draw the hike on electricity tariff. Congress The Centre also advised the TEMP MIN 25.9° 24.4° Forecast The OERC recently approved a min- legislature party leader Narasingha states and UTs to maintain vaccine Humidity 80% 77% imal rise of 30 paise per unit in energy Mishra also criticised the government on wastage at less than one per cent Heat Rainfall Nil Nil charges for domestic consumers for the the issue. Normalcy returned only after (current National Wastage

wave financial year 2021-22 with effect from the minister’s assurance. Percentage being six per cent).

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k y m c P2 THURSDAY | APRIL 1 | 2021 | BHUBANESWAR anniversary special

FORTUNE FORECAST UTKAL DIVAS SPECIAL

ARIES Do something really Reminiscing makers of modern Odisha exciting today – perhaps you could put on your trekking boots and explore unknown ter- ritories. Ganesha advises you to keep Odisha Day aka Utkal Divas reminds UTKAL GOURAB MADHUSUDAN DAS busy but not to go overboard. In group orn April 28, 1848 at Satyabhamapur in Cuttack district, Madhusudan activities today, everybody will focus each of us of the great sacrifices and their attention on you. Das was the first Odia to fetch a law degree from Calcutta University. struggles undertaken by a few Odia BPopularly known as Madhu Barrister, he was deeply moved seeing the discrimination, made against the Odias by administrative authorities. Madhu TAURUS stalwarts that gave the state a Babu was convinced that the Odias could not stand united only because of People around you will separate political identity their annexation with three different provinces. So, he took a solid stand for be surprised to witness the unification of the scat- Madhusudan was the first Odia to be the the considerate and tered Odias by organising member of Legislative Council and to have the compassionate side of you today, says POST NEWS NETWORK and mobilising strong pub- membership of Central Legislative Assembly Ganesha. Problems may come knocking lic opinion among the Odias. but you, along with support from your loved ones, will handle them with bril- oday is April 1, a He also pressurised the British rulers for the unification of the scattered Odia-speaking liant tact. Enjoy the company of near and glorious day in tracts for their socio-economic and cultural growth. Madhusudan organised Utkal Union Conference to form dear ones and let your presence be felt the annals of The builders of sepa- the channel for discussions and negotiations with the authorities to solve the problems and open avenues for in social outings, suggests Ganesha. Odishan history. rate Odisha province de- a new era of unification and integration. He played a piloting role in engineering the plans and programmes, Under the British voted their entire life for the pioneering the aims and objectives and championing the cause of the Odia movement. rule, Odisha was greater cause of GEMINI part of the Bengal Odisha and Odias. Your health interests will Presidency comprising the pres- ning of a new On Odisha take precedence over T ent-day West Bengal, Bihar and journey for the Foundation Day, career, says Ganesha. There are indications that you will spare Odisha. But it was 84 years ago on state. Orissa POST re- more time working out at a gym. Those this day that the new province of But the amalgamation members some of the in the field of marketing and advertising Orissa came into existence on lin- of Odia speaking tracts was not main architects of will have a fabulous time. A good mar- guistic basis, marking the begin- easy. modern Odisha. keting strategy will bring maximum profits with minimum efforts. FAKIR MOHAN SENAPATI CANCER orn January 14, 1843, at Mallikashpur in Balasore, Fakir Today, you are likely to Mohan played a leading role in establishing the distinct experience something Bidentity of Odia language and literature. He is regarded life-changing. A small as the father of Odia nationalism and the modern Odia liter- incident, an observation, ature. Fakir Mohan’s story is indeed the story of the “Renaissance” a tragedy, a disaster, or a simple thought of Odia literature. He is aptly called as Thomas Hardy of may change the course of your live. You, however, may not be able to take the Regarded as the Father of Odia nationalism, Fakir Mohan changes well. It may have a strong bear- created a new awareness to propagate Odia language ing on your health. You may spend a lot of time with your loved ones, says Ganesha. Odisha. The four novels of Fakir Mohan, written between 1897 and 1915, reflect the socio-cultural conditions of Odisha. While the three nov- els, Chhamana Atha Guntha, Mamun and Prayaschita explore the realities of social life in its LEO multiple dimensions, Lachhma is a historical romance dealing with the anarchical conditions To many, you will seem of Odisha in the wake of Maratha invasions during the 18th Century. He has written quite a few to have got your senses memorable short stories, such as Rebati, Patent Medicine and Randipua Ananta. A great lover back after a long time. Reason? You will finally and a creator of new era in Odia literature, Fakir Mohan was the founder of an organisation have a definite career plan in mind. Utkala Bhasa Unnati Bidhani Sabha in 1867 to create a new awareness among the people of Odisha Although, it's not really a big deal for and to propagate Odia language. you when your mind races and yearns to achieve in two warring directions, it may seem quite jarring and unreal to the SRIRAM CHANDRA UTKALAMANI PANDIT mere mortals. And, considering that you Leos are almost always in two minds BHANJA DEO GOPABANDHU DAS about everything, getting a definite plan of action is quite an achievement, orn in a royal family of princely state of opabandhu Das, born October 9, 1877, was says Ganesha. Mayurbhanj December 17, 1871, Sriram the source of inspiration and ideals for BChandra Bhanja Deo worked not only Ggenerations. He dedicated him- VIRGO for the all-round development of his state, he self completely for the country to that played a pivotal role in unification of scattered extent that he had to lose his only son Leadership is your forte and you shall regions of Odia speaking people. Sriram Chandra in his bid to redress the suffering of oth- receive kudos for the brought about signifi- ers. Recognising the noble standings of manner in which you cant changes in the Gopabandhu, handle your team. Much awaited promo- spheres of lan- Acharya tions will materialise and so will some guage, health and Prafulla extra cash in your wallet. Wisely enough, administration. Chandra you didn't get all this by not effectively balancing home and work, says Ganesha. A narrow gauge Ray, the Don't slip on this tight-rope walk. railway was veteran commissioned scientist between Rupsa - and pa- LIBRA Baripada during triot of You never let a favour his reign. He con- Bengal go unacknowledged, or structed two major reser- conferred let a ridicule pass by voirs at Haldiha and Haladia with an expenditure him with the unanswered. So, it's time to settle those old accounts that are so important to of Rs.6 lakh from royal treasury. Similarly in title of Utkalamani or the Jewel of you, feels Ganesha. This will increase the educational sector he raised the number of Utkal June 28, 1924. His immortal chances of interesting developments primary schools from 44 to 400 in his royal ju- words “Let my body mingle with the that will continue to surprise you risdiction. Although he was the king of dust of this Land, And let my coun- throughout the day. All in all, Ganesha Mayurbhanj, he had great love for the entire trymen walk along my back. Let all wishes you a vibrant day today. Odisha. In 1903, Sriram Chandra presided over the holes in the road of freedom be the 1st session of Utkal Sammilani. Afterwards filled with my blood and bone, And let SCORPIO owing to the concerted efforts of this Sammilani my life be sacrificed when my people the dream of Odisha for becoming a separate awake into freedom” still inspire the You shall probably realise state became a reality. younger generation. the fact that seeing is believing. Learn to trust your own eyes more than what you hear. Don't get lost in the crowd, warns MAHARAJA SHRI KRUSHNA CHANDRA GAJAPATI NARAYAN DEO Ganesha. Strive to stand out and be in orn April 26, 1892, the spotlight, advises Ganesha. Maharaja Shri Maharaja Krushna Chandra BKrushna Chandra Gajapati deposed before the Gajapati Narayan Deo of Joint Parliamentary Committee SAGITTARIUS Paralakhemundi or- for the union of Paralakhemundi Your business may bring ganised the annual ses- with Odisha in 1934 you faster growth rates than bacteria today. sion of the Utkal Union Moreover, banking Conference at Paralakhemundi in 1914. He represented the transactions will fetch returns exceeding case of Odisha at the Round your expectation. Management insti- Table Conference, London, tutes will value your expertise and expe- 1930-31. Deposing before the joint rience, predicts Ganesha. All in all, a day when progressions are on the rise. Parliamentary Committee for the union of Paralakhemundi with Odisha in 1934, he placed a memorandum before the authorities and strongly ad- CAPRICORN vocated fora separate province for Odisha. Unarguably, Maharaja was one of the main architects behind the for- Creativity is your innate trait. But how creative mation of modern Odisha. can you get when deal- ing with day-to-day issues? You will not only answer this HAREKRUSHNA MAHTAB question with utmost modesty, but will orn November 21, 1899 at make a great display of your creative skills by cleverly sorting out problems Agarpada in Balasore with your siblings, says Ganesha. You Bdistrict, Harekrushna will derive pleasure by delving into knot- Mahtab was irresistibly ty problems and solving them with ease. drawn to the National Also, you will reach out to those in need Liberation Movement in and help them in every possible manner. 1921 while studying in Ravenshaw College, AQUARIUS Cuttack. Thereafter his life was a saga of struggle and Money is on your mind dedication to the cause of coun- today! If you want to sort out financial matters, try’s freedom. He joined Salt Movement today is the day. You may and imprisoned in 1930. He was the one who opened his have a good time with friends in the ancestral temple to Harijans for the first time in Odisha. evening. You will also realise how Mahtab participated in Non-Co-operation Movement much your friends value you and the and courted imprisonment in 1941.Even as Mahtab re- respect you command in your wider social circle. Ganesha says maintaining mained the Chief Minister and Union minister on sev- it is important. eral occasions, he is always recognised as an architect of modern Odisha for his pivotal role in the merger and integration of former princely states. He founded PISCES the state’s capital at Bhubaneswar and facilated the Today, you will find your- construction of the multi-purpose Hirakud Dam Project. self partitioning your Mahtab earned distinction as an accomplished writer. time equally, and more The compilation of his popular column Gaon Mazlis pub- importantly, excelling, at lished in vernacular daily Prajatantra received the work as well as at home. So, while you will prove to be the right man for the job Kendra Sahitya Academy Award in 1983. A political assigned to you at the office, at home leader par excellence, Mahtab towered over the time and you will establish yourself as the perfect events to lead the people of the state through years of family man, says Ganesha. transition during independence and thereafter. P3 THURSDAY | APRIL 1 | 2021 | BHUBANESWAR anniversary special Celebrating spring, the tribal way

Baha Parab or the flower festival, celebrated in the beginning of spring, revolves around man’s communion with nature and the celebration of beauty

Tribal men and women holding a community dance during celebration of a festival inside the forest POST NEWS NETWORK stream society, various festivals play an important role in tribal culture too. around man’s communion with nature plied oil on his feet and then washed them. trend. “At present, people are forgetting ber of the community joins and cele- divasis comprise around eight One such festival is ‘Salei Puja’. The fes- and the celebration of beauty. In Santali A bachelor carries a water pot on his their roots, but we can’t as we are the brates the festival with our traditional percent of India’s population. tival is also known as ‘Baha Parab’ or and Mundari language, ‘Baha’ or ‘Ba’ shoulder and, after exchanging greetings sons of this soil. This forest, the flowers, dance and songs. It’s our happiness and This makes India the largest ‘Bahabong’. Celebrated in the beginning means flower. The festival is celebrated in with her, sprinkles it on the woman. trees and nature are our identity. We can’t it erases all the misunderstandings when country with maximum tribal of spring, ‘Salei Puja’ is one of the most the Odia month Falguna (February and During the festival, the women stick some stay apart from it. We enjoy every festi- we come together to worship nature,” population in the world. That important events in the calendar of the March). Since it is usually organised flowers into their hair and the men behind val with fervour and pomp. Every mem- Tudu pointed out. said,A barring a few like the Sentinelese (of tribals living in Odisha. Communities under the Sal tree, the festival is also their ears. The rest of the Andaman and Nicobar Islands), most of such as – Ho, Santals and Mundas cele- known as ‘Salei Puja’. flowers are kept in the ceil- these communities have adapted to the mod- brate the festival with much fervour. Mohan Soren, a 60-year-old from Kuliana ing of their thatched or ern lifestyle and integrated themselves into Orissa POST catches up with a few mem- village in Mayurbhanj district narrates the tiled roof. Then we sing the mainstream society. However, they have bers from the tribal community to know rituals of the festival they have been cel- ‘Baha’ song. The men play at the same time held on to their roots and more about the festival, rituals and cel- ebrating for a long time now. “The place an instrument called kept their identity intact, thanks to the dis- ebrations. where the puja is organised is called ‘Dhumsa’ and dance to- tinct customs, rituals and fes- ‘Baha Parab’ is also known ‘Jahira’ and the village priest who conducts gether. However, before dark tivities. Much like it as the ‘Festival of the puja is known as ‘Naike’ in our com- all return to the village,” does in main- Flowers’. The munity. The ‘Naike’ takes care of all the Soren stated. ritual re- rituals to be observed during the puja. Soren also informed that volves Before ‘Salei Puja’ we do not touch any the sacrificial animal dur- fruits, flowers or colours. After reaching ing the puja is cooked. ‘Jahira’, the priest first worships ‘Jaher However, only the men are aya’ followed by prayers for other gods. permitted to eat it. After There is also the ritual of sacrificing a white the puja is over all are al- hen or a male goat. The three-day festival lowed to take fresh fruits for is mostly connected with nature. On the the first time in the season. first day the ‘Naike’ goes to the puja site He also stated that relatives and cleans the place with cow dung. The are invited to the celebra- puja starts at night,” Soren said. tions. “We love nature and “The second day, we celebrate and enjoy we worship Mother Nature together. Each and every person of Santal in our own way,” Soren community gathers at a particular place. added. Wearing our traditional attires, we visit Samananda Tudu, a res- the puja place dancing and singing. The ident of Khukundia vil- priest continues the puja and gives Sal flow- lage in Mayurbhanj, said ers to everyone. The ‘Naike’ and other that they are proud about villagers offer a Sal flower to every fam- their traditions and ritu- ily of the village. A Santali woman re- als. “Our forefathers were ceives flowers in the folds of her sari from celebrating these festivals A tribal priest performs a ritual during a puja the priest after she has ceremonially ap- and we have continued the P4 THURSDAY | APRIL 1 | 2021 | BHUBANESWAR downtown Nabarangpur, STATE SPENT Thrust on RT-PCR test Malkangiri report BPGY logo on PMAY houses `6,690 CRORE over 13% dropouts ON KALIA in April guidelines POST NEWS NETWORK POST NEWS NETWORK Bhubaneswar, March 31: School and Mass Education Minister not permissible, says Centre Bhubaneswar, March 31: The Samir Ranjan Dash informed the state government Wednesday in- Assembly Wednesday that the POST NEWS NETWORK formed the Odisha Assembly that dropout rate in upper primary The state government is using If the hard earned money it had spent a total of Rs 6,690 schools in the state stood at 4.75 per New Delhi/Bhubaneswar, March a small size logo for PMAY of Odisha people is being crore in the last three years on cent in 2019-20. 31: Political slugfest between BJP houses and a big size for BPGY ones. spent on the scheme, Krushak Assistance for Livelihood In his written reply before the and BJD intensified over the use of Since last December, we have been what is the fault in using and Income Augmentation House, the minister said that the Biju Pucca Ghar Yojana (BPGY) protesting the use of BPGY logo in BPGY logo in the (KALIA) scheme. government had taken several logo in Pradhan Mantri Awas PMAY houses. We have submitted a PMAY scheme The information was given by the steps to check dropouts in pri- Yojana-Gramin (PMAY-G), a cen- memorandum to the Governor also State Agriculture Minister, Arun mary and upper primary schools. trally-sponsored scheme. SHREEMAYEE MISHRA | Sahoo. He also presented a written PRADIPTA KUMAR NAIK | LOP IN ASSEMBLY BJD SPOKESPERSON The written data hinted that Leader of Opposition, Pradipta reply on the issue where he cited dropout rates in upper primary Kumar Naik (BJP) Wednesday raised data from the last three years. schools were higher than at the pri- the issue in the Assembly, following government should not use BPGY to Rs 12 crore.” In 2019-20 the mary level. It said that Malkangiri the Centre’s letter in this regard. logo in PMAY-G houses. He urged Holding a press conference over In 2018-19, the government government was and Nabarangpur districts saw Union Rural Development Secretary, the Speaker to give direction to the the issue, BJD leader Byomakesh reached out to able to reach maximum cases of students drop- Nagendra Nath Sinha, in a letter to state government on this issue. Ray alleged that the BJP is con- 51.05 lakh out to 51.05 lakh ping out. Nabarangpur with 13.5 the state Chief Secretary, said that BJP members created ruckus in spiring to stop the rural housing beneficiaries beneficaries POST NEWS NETWORK per cent topped the list and was fol- the use of BPGY logo will lead to mis- the House over the issue from the scheme in the state. Odisha gov- and spent a and spent Highest single-day lowed by Malkangiri (13%). interpretation of the scheme among beginning of question hour. ernment is being awarded by the total of Rs around Rs Bhubaneswar, March 31: The In case of primary schools, the PMAY-G beneficiaries. Following several adjournments, Centre as the best performer in 2,175.6 crore 3,243.01 crore state government Wednesday re- spike this year Gajapati district topped the list “The use of BPGY logo is not Speaker SN Patro called an all- this arena. In last five years, over leased Covid-19 guidelines for April with 5.28 per cent dropouts fol- permissible under the provisions party meeting and later said, 15, 73, 000 rural houses have been to contain the spread of the highly Bhubaneswar: Odisha’s Covid- lowed by Malkangiri where the of PMAY-G. I would once again re- “Government may take note of built in the state for which Centre infectious disease. 19 tally Wednesday surged to rate stood at 5.22 per cent. The quest you to use official logo of this.” Speaking to reporters out- has given over Rs 12, 928 crore while The office of Special Relief 3,40,917 after 297 more people government data since 2015-16 PMAY-G only, which is available side the House, Naik said, “The the state has spent over Commissioner (SRC) Wednesday is- tested positive for the infection, hinted that there had been no on AwaasSoft, for all purposes of state government is using a PMAY Rs 8, 518 crore. “If the hard earned sued a notification in this regard the highest single-day spike this major improvement in dropouts PMAY-G,” Sinha said in his letter. logo of small size and a big size for money of Odisha people is being and announced the measures to year, a Health department offi- in the state. Reiterating that the scheme is the BPGY. Since last December, we spent on the scheme, what is the fault The minister claimed that in be followed by the district admin- cial said. Of the 297 new cases, 174 to be implemented in its original have been protesting the use of in using BPGY logo in the PMAY 2018-19, the government reached istrations and the people. were reported from quarantine form under the name of PMAY-G, BPGY logo in PMAY houses. We scheme?” said BJD spokesperson out to 51.05 lakh beneficiaries and The notification empowered the centres, while the remaining were Naveen to inaugurate the Union government asserted have submitted a memorandum to Shreemayee Mishra. spent a total of Rs 2,175.6 crore Collectors in districts and detected during contact tracing, park in Cuttack today that the contribution of the mini- the Governor also.” Earlier, a delegation of BJP MPs while in 2019-20 the government Commissioners in Urban Local he said. Kalahandi district reg- mum state share is a commitment “As the Central scheme has a from the state led by Union Minister was able to reach out to 51.05 lakh Bodies (ULBs) to take decisions on istered 57 new cases, followed by Cuttack: Chief Minister Naveen by the Odisha government and it 60:40 sharing pattern, the state gov- Dharmendra Pradhan had also met beneficaries and spent around Rs declaring containment zones where Sundergarh (38), Khurda (33) and Patnaik is scheduled to inaugurate a park at Belview does not confer the rights to the ernment should not do so,” he said, Union Panchayati Raj Minister 3,243.01 crore. In 2020-21, the ben- higher number of cases are ob- Nuapada (31). Malkangiri district Square here Thursday to state government for use of any adding, “the state government has Narendra Singh Tomar in Delhi eficiaries increased to 53.55 lakh served. It also said that testing of continued to remain Covid-free for commemorate the centenary of other logo. Reading out the letter in recently ordered procurement of February 12 seeking his interven- and a total of Rs 1272.19 crore samples should be ramped up with a week.The states coronavirus Gandhiji’s first visit to Odisha. A the House, Naik said that the state marvel logo of BPGY worth Rs 10 tion in the matter. was spent. special emphasis on RT-PCR tests. death toll remained unchanged at sculpture depicting the historic “Testing shall be carried out as 1,921 as no more fatalities were public meeting of Gandhiji on per prescribed protocol. The pro- reported since Tuesday. Kathajodi riverbank has been portion of RT-PCR tests in the total installed at the park. The Chief mix should be scaled up to the ex- Minister will reach the city tent possible,” the new norms for keeping in mind the size of the through a helicopter at 10.15am. April said. ground. He will unveil a statue of The state government, keeping It has also barred large gather- Utkalmani Gopabandhu Das at the in view the election campaign for ings for social, religious, political Cantonment Road at 10.22am. Pipli constituency, allowed the and sports events. It also said that Naveen is scheduled to District Collector of Puri to frame Utkal Divas celebrations must be inaugurate the park at 10.43am norms for the same accordingly. done while following the proto- and return to Bhubaneswar at “In view of the by-election to cols of Covid-19. 11.10am, sources said. the Pipili Assembly seat in Puri dis- “Congregation for celebration of trict announced by the Election the above festivals and associated nCoV testing at UU Commission to be held April 17, religious and cultural congrega- 2021, political meetings and other tions shall not be allowed in pub- ahead of convocation functions/gatherings in connec- lic throughout the state. Religious Bhubaneswar: Ahead of the 50th tion with the said by-election, as per- rituals in churches/temples/places convocation ceremony of Utkal mitted by the ECI/CEO, Odisha of worship including places where University (UU) here, the or the empowered/authorised of- such rituals are performed tradi- Bhubaneswar Municipal ficers on that behalf, shall be al- tionally will continue as usual Corporation (BMC) Wednesday lowed within the jurisdiction of with limited number of persons as started a Covid testing drive for the said Assembly Constituency permitted by the District those who would be attending the only subject to the following con- Collector/Municipal Commissioner mega event on the varsity ditions,” the notification said. or other authorized persons in premises April 3. Briefing the However, it said that even dur- strict adherence to COVID proto- media at RUSA Bhawan on the university premises, varsity’s Vice ing elections in closed areas not cols,” the norms said. Chancellor Sabita Acharya said more than 50 per cent of the hall The government has also fixed that Vice President M Venkaiah capacity should be filled while the the number of guests for marriage Naidu will grace the event as the district administration may give functions and funerals to 200 and chief guest. Governor Ganeshi Lal Artistes perform at the concluding event of 9th Gotipua Ustav and Aradhana Samman at Utkal Rangamancha in Bhubaneswar, Wednesday OP PHOTO permission for open space meetings 50 respectively. and Higher Education Minister Arun Sahoo will also attend the ceremony which will be held at the 7 held for firearm varsity’s new convocation hall. This blood bank 15% quota for govt school students notified POST NEWS NETWORK for 15 per cent reservation for gov- respective category. Skill trade in Cuttack WASSUP TODAY ernment school students in engi- Development and Technical Cuttack: The Commissionerate Bhubaneswar, March 31: The neering and medical colleges of Education department has issued Police Wednesday claimed to have state government Wednesday is- the state. notification to the above effect. arrested seven persons, including BHUBANESWAR ‘sucks money’ a few aides of gangster Tito, in sued the official notification for The government high schools The department has stated that n State-level Odisha Diwas, Soochana reservation of 15 per cent of seats include the aided high schools, such reservation has been made connection with illegal firearm Bhawan, 6pm GYAN RANJAN MOHAPATRA, OP INACTION BLAMED in medical and engineering higher secondary schools, junior with regard to the recommen- trade in the city. The police also n Utkal Sammilani and Samajwadi colleges. colleges as defined in the Odisha dation of the High-Power seized seven guns and 65 bullets, Party to garland the statue of Utkal Bhubaneswar, March 31: Some Abinash requested the blood Students, who have passed Class Education Act, 1969. Medical Committee. Students studying six mobile phones, a car and a bank staff on duty to provide him Gourav Madhusudan Das, Raj staffers at the Central Red Cross X examination under Board of courses, in relation to in government high couple of two-wheelers from the a unit of O+ blood Bhawan Square, 9am Blood Bank in Cuttack are allegedly Secondary Education, Odisha from a Medical College, in- schools are found to arrested, said Police Commissioner Soumendra n 16th Foundation Day of Odia Bhasha fleecing the hapless patients by The staff allegedly asked him to government high schools and Class clude MBBS, BHMS, ENGG & MED be at a disadvanta- Priyadarshi at a presser here. The Pratisthan, Sanskruti Bhawan, 4pm taking Rs 1,500 for a unit (525ml) of pay Rs 2,000. Following repeated XII examination under Council of BAMS and BUMS and geous position com- COURSES arrested have been identified as pleadings, the staff agreed to n ‘Srestha Odiani’ competition by blood. Higher Secondary Education, Odisha engineering courses pared to their coun- Jagannath Das,39, of Dolamundai give blood packet by taking Sambhabana Trust, Unit-II Primary Abinash Nayak of Banarpal in from any government higher sec- include BTech, BE and terparts in private Das Sahi, Srinath Rout, 39, of Rs 1,500 per unit School, 6pm Angul has lodged a complaint with ondary school or government junior BArch. Such eligible students shall schools while appearing in en- Chauliaganj Gatiroutpatna, Bijay the Red Cross authorities accus- college, will be eligible for it. Such also be entitled to compete for the trance examinations like NEET Samal, 34, and Pyarimohan Das, CUTTACK ing the blood bank officials of fleec- blood bank staff pleaded guilty reservations shall be horizontal cov- unreserved seats. Where adequate and JEE for their career growth, 36, of Samantarapur under Tirtol ing him. The blood bank at and returned the money he had ering all vertical reservations as number of such eligible students as they do not have the access, nor police limits, Tushar Khuntia, 34, of n Inauguration of memorial on Mangalabag in Cuttack is the only taken from Abinash. well as unreserved group. is not available for seats to set the economic capacity to avail Tangi Mathasahi, Bijay Nayak, 41, Mahatma Gandhi’s first visit to blood bank under the Red Cross The victim told Orissa POST, Earlier, CM Naveen Patnaik apart, such unfilled seats shall be coaching for medical and engi- of Kendrapara and Muktar Saha, Odisha, near Odisha Judicial 42, of Biridi, police said. Academy, 10.30am society. “Some other staffers at the blood moved a resolution in the Assembly filled up by the other students of neering entrance examination. According to sources, the father bank told me that a handful of n District-level Odisha Diwas by of complainant sustained severe in- them have been cheating the hap- Cuttack administration and CMC, juries in a road mishap recently. He less people every day but the au- near Gandhi Memorial, 6pm was later rushed to Angul District thorities are yet to take any action Conductor accused of pushing man off ‘Mo Bus’ Headquarters Hospital (DHH). against them.” KHURDA Subsequently, the doctors at DHH Sources in the oldest blood bank POST NEWS NETWORK senger boarded the bus from Shriya hicle at Puri Canal road. The con- “The CCTV footage revealed n Odisha Police Foundation Day, referred the patient to Cuttack for of the state revealed that many Talkies Square and bought a ticket ductor then pushed me out of the that the passenger tried to pull the Reserve Battalion, Taratua, 8am better treatment. staffers have been regularly fleec- Bhubaneswar, March 31: A pas- for Hanspal. The conductor al- vehicle and closed the door imme- guide out of the bus. Nowhere, the The doctors at a private hos- ing the relatives of patients for senger of ‘Mo Bus’ sustained griev- legedly charged fare for the entire diately. I fell down and the bus ran Mo Bus staff pulled or pushed PURI pital, where his father was un- blood. Some complained to have ous injuries after he was allegedly route from Master Canteen Square over my leg,” he added. the passenger during the inci- n District-level Odisha Diwas cele- dergoing treatment, asked been charged as much as Rs 3,000 pushed off the vehicle by the con- to Hanspal. Soon, an altercation Taking cognisance of the in- dent. The bus duly stopped at bration, Gopabandhu Ayurveda Abinash to collect blood from to Rs 4,000 per unit. ductor Tuesday evening. ensued between the duo. cident, the CRUT authorities Hanspal. However, the concerned College, 7am some blood bank as his father As per rule, the blood bank However, authorities of the “The conductor assured me to initiated a probe into the inci- passenger continued arguing with needed urgent administration of charges Rs 410 for the requisitions Capital Region Urban Transport return the extra amount, but he dent and the concerned staffer the guide and did not get down,” n State-level badminton tournament, Indoor Hall, Chudanga Sahi, 3pm the same late March 20 night. of blood received from private hos- (CRUT) denied the allegation and didn’t. The conductor told me that was taken off duty until com- said the CRUT. Abinash requested the blood bank pitals while it is free of cost for claimed that the passenger fell down money could not be refunded after pletion of inquiry. Moreover, The footage further revealed Programmes/announcements staff on duty to provide him a the patients getting treated at gov- from the vehicle after getting stuck issuance of receipt. I argued with the authorities released a CCTV that the passenger got stuck be- for wassup today may be sent to unit of O+ blood. The staff al- ernment owned hospitals. in the automatic doors. him for a while and in the meantime footage of the incident, tween the automatic doors. He [email protected] for record, legedly asked him to pay Rs 2,000. Binayak Prusti, the director of The incident reportedly took the bus passed my destination. I Wednesday, and claimed that was seen banging the door to it must also carry the sender’s Following repeated pleadings, the blood bank, has stated that an place following an altercation be- requested the conductor to stop the the passenger manhandled the open it. The passenger fell down mobile number for our the staff agreed to give blood inquiry has been ordered and ac- tween the passenger and the con- vehicle and allow me to get down conductor and fell down after and sustained injuries when verification, but not for publication. packet by taking Rs 1,500 per unit. tions will follow upon receiving ductor over fare. safely,” the victim said. getting stuck between the au- somebody pressed the emergency Following his complaint, the the report. According to sources, the pas- “The driver slowed down the ve- tomatic doors. button, the CRUT added. anniversary P5 THURSDAY | APRIL 1 | 2021 | BHUBANESWAR special The boar Vishnu HIMANSU ROUT religious leader Chaitanyam who is Dhapa cursed the prince for killing said to have visited the temple. His innocent animals. ajpur town known as ‘Biraja footprints have been preserved on a The prince, sad on being cursed by Kshetra’ on the banks of the marble stone on the temple premises. the sage, prostrated before the sage Baitarani river is also tagged According to Sanskrit scholar and besought redemption of his sin. as a city of temples like Bhupati Bhusan Mishra, the original The sage took pity on him and said: JBhubaneswar. Its iconic iden- temple was of a good height. If people You will be born in a hunter’s family tity is Maa Biraja temple. were to stand atop the temple, they and have darshan of Narayan. Barahanath temple on the bank of could take a bird’s eye view of the far- In next life, the prince was born in Baitarani is another monument that off Gohiratikiri and Dhamnagar in a hunter’s family as Bichitra Dhanwa. makes its presence stand out among Bhadrak. Once Bichitra Dhanwa was hunting temples because of its own unique- According to historians, Kalapahad, birds and animals and forgetfully wan- ness -this is believably the only tem- the commander of Bengal ruler dered deep into the forest. Weary and ple in the state and in the country Suleiman Karnani, had attacked Odisha hungry, he invoked Narayan, the Lord. where Lord Vishnu is worshiped as in 1568. According to some accounts, At this time, a huge boar appeared Baraha (the boar, one of the ten di- Kalapahad was passing by on his horse. from nowhere and charged at him, vine incarnations). Overall, Barahanath His horse was frightened by the huge but got tossed into the hill. To the awe temple adds to the heritage quotient shadow of the Barahanath temple. of the tribal prince Bichitra, the hill of the ancient city of Biraja Kshetra. Upset, he had vandalized the temple instantly sunk downwards. A huge sinkhole was created. Goddess Ganga gushed out of the sinkhole to see the The temple and the deities inside giant boar causing mayhem there. That sinkhole is still existent as a pond near the temple. People call it “Patali Ganga.” Dismayed and terrified, Bichitra Dhanwa raised his bow and arrow and aimed at the boar. At this time, an ora- cle was heard: “Hey, boy! I am here be- fore you. You can ask any boon you wish.” The boar was no other than Lord Vishnu. Since then, he started wor- shiping the Barah. Lord Vishnu was found in four idols as Adi Barah, Jajana Barah, Shweta Barah and Laxmi Barah. It is said that King of Aul (Kendrapara) was a great devotee of Lord Vishnu. He used to come a long way to the Barahnath temple by rid- ing his horse every day. One day, Laxmi Barah appeared in his dream and wanted to go with him to his king- dom. Since, then Laxmi Barah is being worshipped in Aul. The temple grabbed wide glare of to a great extent. Rabindranath Samal, a culture lover, people in May 2015 when six antique Quoting a legend about the mani- says, a lot is to be done for conserva- idols were stolen from there. festation of Lord Bishnu, culture re- tion, protection of sculptures and pub- The temple has interesting legends searcher and writer Narayan Routray licity of the temple while stolen antique about its inception. Located opposite said, there was a hill named as idols of the temple have not yet been to the Dasaswamedh Ghat, the Manichuda Pahad near Baitarani. The recovered. Priests said, Bakula Barahanath temple is believed to be con- area rich with flora and fauna was in- Amabsya is celebrated in a big way structed somewhere between 15th and habited by tribals. A small river named here as the birthday of Lord Barahnath. 16th century AD. It was constructed dur- Kaushik used to flow in the area. Thousands of devotees from far and near ing the rule of Suryavanshi Gajapati A sage namely Dhapa used to do have darshan of the Lord. A day before rulers. Some historians say, the temple penance on the river bank. One day, the Dola Purnima, the Madan Mohan, the was built by king Prataprudra Dev prince of Kamswarup kingdom wan- representative deity of Barahanth, is after his successful military campaign dered to the place while on a hunting brought to the worship alter. A belief is in Vijayanagram in the south. He was expedition. The sage was upset on see- that if Barahanath is seen on the altar, later initiated to Vaishnavism by famous ing the prince killing wild animals. all sins get redemption. POWER DEMO P6 THURSDAY | APRIL 1 | 2021 | BHUBANESWAR SUCI activists staging a demonstration against power tariff hike outside the Kishorenagar state block office in Angul, Wednesday Forest fires in Similipal SUCCULENT SUCCOUR National Park resume

The raging fires have been cap- tured in satellite image, sources said. The fire has been raging in Jenabila, Naana Uttar, Podadiha, Pithabata in the south and in the tiger conservation project in the north. Similarly, forest fires have also been reported in the forests under Baripada, Rairangpur and Karanjia forest divisions. Four ODRAF teams comprising forest officials have A satellite report Wednesday After a couple of week’s respite, the been deployed in the areas to douse claimed that the fires have been wildfire has engulfed vast areas in the the fire raging at 47 places in the south national park. This has affected several The exact cause behind the for- endangered species of plants and animals division of Similipal National Park. est fire has not been ascertained yet. in the park The heat generated by the fire and The present heatwave condition the blistering condition have made sweeping the state might have set life unbearable for wild animals and The raging fires in Jenabila, Naana Uttar, the Similipal area on fire, a local res- humans in the area. Reports said Podadiha, Pithabata in the south and in ident suspected. With rising heat wave making life miserable, watermelons have been piled up for sale at Gopa haat in Kendrapara OP PHOTO people in the area have stopped the tiger conservation project in the north Notably, the chief of the task stepping out of their houses if they have been captured in satellite image, have no urgent work sources said force on wildfire Sandeep Tripathy said March 13 that the proactive steps taken by the state govern- POST NEWS NETWORK blistering condition have made life ment to curb the spread of forest fire 2 youths held for setting unbearable for wild animals and hu- in Odisha has led to total control of Baripada, March 31: Raging for- mans in the area. Reports said peo- the situation. reserve forest afire 3 top Maoists lay down arms est fires have erupted once again in ple in the area have stopped step- When contacted, field director the Similipal National Park in ping out of their houses if they M Jagajayananda of the Similipal POST NEWS NETWORK POST NEWS NETWORK Mayurbhanj district Wednesday. have no urgent work. Tiger Conservation Project con- A satellite report Wednesday After a couple of week’s respite, firmed the development stating Barbil, March 31: Even as forest Malkangiri, March 31: Three top claimed that the fire had been rag- the wildfire has engulfed vast areas that sweltering heat wave might fires are sporadically breaking Maoists laid down their arms ing at 47 places in the south division in the national park. This has af- be the reason behind the forest out in various forests in Keonjhar Wednesday before Malkangiri SP of Similipal National Park. The fected several endangered species fire which has caught 20 places in district and other parts of the Rishikesh Dnyandeo Khilari and heat generated by the fire and the of plants and animals in the park. the national park. state, forest officials arrested two officers of the Border Security youths on charge of setting afire Force (BSF). The three were iden- Ulliburu reserve forest under tified as Mainu alias Sambhu AP officials conduct Barbil range Wednesday. Dodi of Chinaterem village and The accused were identified as Rama Apka of Ganglur village meeting in Kotia village PM’s praise for local Shankar Munda of Barbil and in Bijapur district of Chhattisgarh Rodo Sawaya of Jharkhand. and Raghu Khara of Beijing vil- as admin stays mum According to reports, as forest lage in Malkangiri district. The fires break out in different forests, SP, while talking to the media The SP said, all three vocational training. POST NEWS NETWORK outfit triggers row the state government has formed said the three were active mem- The ultras said they decided to a special task force to contain the bers of the Andhra-Odisha Border ultras will be properly lay down weapons after witness- Pottangi, March 31: Illegal in- blaze. Forest officials have been try- Special Zonal Committee (AOB- rehabilitated and given ing various developmental activi- filtration by Andhra Pradesh into ing their level best to ward off SZC) of the ultra CPI (Maoist) ties undertaken by the government. the villages in Kotia panchayat fires. Patrolling was intensified faction. monetary assistance as They realised the futility of vio- under this block in Koraput district in Keonjhar. Mainu and Rama were carrying per the ‘Surrender and lence being perpetrated by the continues unabated with the state Some people and hunters al- cash awards of Rs 4,00,000 each on Rehabilitation Scheme’ Naxalites. government failing to curb such legedly set forests afire to flush their heads while for Raghu it was Mainu and Rama had joined the moves, a report said. out wild animals and kill them. The Rs 1,00,000 said an official. of the state government outlawed CPI (Maoist) organisa- The matter came to the fore two youths went to Ulliburu for- The SP said that all three ultras tion in 2009. Raghu on the other after Andhra Pradesh officials est to smoke bidis. For fun, they ig- will be properly rehabilitated and Scheme’ of the state government. hand had joined the CPI (Maoist) conducted a gram sabha at Tala nited dry leaves with bidis, ranger given monetary assistance as per They will get finances to build a party in Gumma Area Committee Ganjeipadar panchayat, Monday. Surjit Sahu said. the ‘Surrender and Rehabilitation house and also pursue education or in September 2017. A team of officials comprising POST NEWS NETWORK more than 99 per cent of saplings VRO Gumpheswar Rao of Salur were found non-existing in these vil- block office in Vijianagaram dis- Kendrapara, March 31: Prime lages by September 17, 2016. Only trict in Andhra Pradesh, secre- Minister Narendra Modi praised the 50 per cent of planted saplings tary Suri Narayan of Tala director of a voluntary outfit in were found existing in Junusnagar Admin vigilant on migrants from hotspot states Ganjeipadar panchayat and his ‘Mann Ki Baat’ Sunday for rais- village MGNREGS assistant Srinu con- ing a mangrove forest on 25 acres Kabi’s outfit had taken the con- ducted an awareness meeting in Kendrapara district to prevent tract to plant the mangrove GANJAM COLLECTOR HAS DIRECTED THE HEALTH DEPARTMENT TO KEEP READY THE BEDS OF and explained the benefits of coastal erosion, a report said. saplings in Goja, Chitakhola, ISOLATION WARDS IN COVID HOSPITAL ON MKCG PREMISES AND OTHER HOSPITALS various welfare schemes for the The Prime Minister in his ad- Debendranarayanpur and people implemented by their dress cited the example of Bijay Charigharia villages under POST NEWS NETWORK uation. Collector Kulange attended government. Kabi, the director of APWA Rajnagar block under Integrated a meeting through video confer- In the meeting, newly elected (Action for Protection of Wild Coastal Zone Management Project Chhatrapur, March 31: The num- encing. sarpanch Gemel Dibakar joined as Animals) in raising a mangrove programme (ICZMP) in 2015. ber of Covid infections in Ganjam He requested people staying out- chief guest and gave away land pat- forest in Badkot of Rajnagar block The report over the missing district was very low till recently, side not to come to the district to take tas to 53 persons in the area. Village which has helped prevent coastal saplings was earlier published by but for the last one week, the rate part in Tara Tarini Yatra. If they elders Gemel Bishu and Gemel erosion. The PM called upon so- vernacular daily ‘Dharitri’. The has been on the rise, leaving the come to the district, chances are Dasu coordinated the programme cial workers to come forward and Prime Minister’s praise for Kabi has administration worrying. The ad- that they will put their family mem- It was alleged that the neigh- raise mangrove forests as these are surprised many when there is no ministration is keeping a close bers in danger and at the same time bouring state continues to tres- able to prevent the coast from sign of plantation by him. watch on people coming from out- cause trouble for others. pass into Odisha territory due to erosion. Kabi’s efforts to take the credit side. Collector Vijay Amruta Those who are coming to the dis- alleged lack of action by the dis- However, the issue has kicked up for the plantation by local youths Kulange held a review meeting here trict due to health issues or any trict administration. The neigh- a row in social media as 99 per cent has become a talk of the town. He Wednesday. other unavoidable work, it is manda- bouring state is reportedly trying of the saplings planted by Kabi’s out- is alleged to have inflated the plan- Details of migrants are being tory for them to come with Covid to grab three villages Ganjeipadar, fit were non-existent. Kabi’s outfit tation on two acres to 25 acres. recorded in registration books at test reports. Fagunsineri and Datusineri under has mentioned in papers to have Social media users said the praise panchayat and civic body levels fection rate. It was alleged that at a time when Two wheelers and four wheel- Kotia panchayat and merge them planted saplings with the funds of by the Prime Minister doesn’t sound Lack of awareness and violation Given the situation, Collector the virus has already made a come- ers have been banned near the in its territory by renaming the vil- Rs 10.72 lakh provided to it. good. of Covid safety guidelines are one Vijay Amruta Kulange asked back, people in the district don’t Tarini temple. Police and RTO of- lages and pronouncing them as The irregularities came to the DFO Bikash Ranjan Dash said a of the factors responsible for the rise sarpanchs, Zilla Parishad mem- seem to be serious. In markets and ficials have intensified vehicle its own panchayats. fore from a reply by the local for- probe has been ordered into the of the infection, it is said. bers and other officials to request other crowded places, people are checking. The neighbouring state is play- est office available through Right irregularities. When contacted, People of the district are re- those staying outside Ganjam to reportedly throwing the guidelines It was decided that Taratarini ing every trick in the book to take to Information Act to Somanath Kabi said his outfit has planted a portedly coming from Covid hotspot not visit the district at this time. to the wind. Yatra and Maa Budhi Thakurani over the Kotia panchayat by ex- Barik of Silapokhari village under total of 1, 05,225 saplings under states like Gujarat and Maharashtra Famous Tarini Yatra kickstarted With an objective to find out a so- yatra will be telecast through social tending the benefits of welfare Rajnagar block. The area of plan- ICZMP programme. However, the in trains to take part in festivals al- from Tuesday. Public congregation lution to tackle the situation, the media so that devotees can watch schemes to the residents in these tation is spread over four villages. saplings have been destroyed due most every day. Their return has trig- and mass participation has the po- Ganjam administration has been it from inside their houses, the villages. However, the reply says that to lack of fencing around them. gered the possibility of more in- tential of blowing up the situation. holding meetings to review the sit- Collector said. ROAD BLOCKADE Villagers lay road, build bridge on their own POST NEWS NETWORK ADMINISTRATIVE APATHY For the last 15 years, Semiliguda, March 31: Upset over villagers have been administrative apathy, people of a remote village in Koraput got to- pleading with the block gether and laid a road to their vil- administration, the MLA, lage with their own funds and efforts, setting an example of community the BDO, for construction effort. of a road and a bridge, According to reports, over years, ministration will never come to people of Lunguli under Semiliguda but nothing was done, our rescue,” the villagers added. block of Koraput district had been villagers alleged Pasi Jani Khara, Laxman Kirsani suffering commuting problem in and Jaga Kirsani led the campaign the absence of a road. Though the and collected Rs 100 from each village is just two km from the dis- villagers. household. trict headquarters, the adminis- They added that their repeated They purchased all construction tration has turned a blind eye to the pleas for a road and a bridge fell flat material. All the villagers, start- commuting issue of the village over route to the panchayat office. This ministration, the MLA, the BDO, for as the administration did not pay ing from children to the elderly years, villagers alleged. The vil- alternative route, a kuchha road, is construction of a road and a bridge heed to the development. contributed their labour to lay the lage has a population of 2000. 6 km from Pakajhola panchayat so that commuting woes will be “We decided to collect money road and using two Hume pipes They lamented that in the ab- headquarters. eased. But nothing was done. A from each house and build the road across the creek. The villagers are Members of a local outfit block NH-16 at Bamapada Chhak in Balasore over sence of road connectivity, the vil- “For the last 15 years, we have creek on the outskirts of the village and the bridge. We realized that if happy as their united efforts re- their demands like a flyover construction and repair of level-crosing roads lagers had to take a roundabout been pleading with the block ad- has been a stumbling block,” said we do nothing on our own, the ad- moved the commuting woes. P7 JAMMU & KASHMIR

WEST BENGAL

THURSDAY | APRIL 1 | 2021 | BHUBANESWAR

k y m BACK TO SCHOOL Mufti rues absence of fundamental rights c

PRESS TRUST OF INDIA “Under BJP’s rule, Indian Constitution is being Srinagar, March 31: PDP president Mehbooba Mufti Wednesday asked where undermined time & again. Only a person goes when the judiciary, the only option & recourse left is the recourse left, “wash their hands off” mat- ters involving fundamental rights judiciary. Once they too decide “Under BJP’s rule, Indian Constitution to wash their hands off matters is being undermined time & again. Only op- tion & recourse left is the judiciary. Once which involve our fundamental they too decide to wash their hands off rights where does one go?” matters which involve our fundamental rights where does one go?” Mehbooba wrote on Twitter. tion for her passport based on an “adverse” Sartaj Madni who has been under custody The PDP chief ’s remarks came after the police verification report. since December last year. Jammu and Kashmir High Court Monday The Regional Passport Office has also re- “Army from RR Camp Devsar raided the dismissed her petition seeking direction to jected the application for a passport for house of PDP’s Sartaj Madni.The place passport authority for issuing a passport Mufti’s mother. was turned upside down and these per- in her favour. Meanwhile, in another tweet, the PDP sonnel also thrashed boys. It's shameful Students undergo thermal screening as they arrive to attend classes on the opening day of new academic session at a school in In a letter to Mufti, the Regional Passport president alleged that the Army raided the that they violated all rules and code of con- Jammu, Wednesday PTI PHOTO Office here March 26 rejected the applica- house of her uncle and senior party leader duct with such impunity,” Mehbooba said. Bengal set for phase II polling, all eyes on Nandigram The stage is set for the second phase of Assembly poll in race in case the BJP is voted to power. For Banerjee, who is running for the West Bengal Thursday when more than 75 lakh voters will third successive term as Chief Minister, decide the fate of 191 candidates in 30 seats a victory is a must to lead the gov- ernment and keep together her party, PRESS TRUST OF INDIA fray in 15 and its alliance partners of which is faced with exodus. Sanjukta Morcha the Congress and ISF For the Congress-Left-ISF alliance Nandigram, March 31: The stage is are competing in 13 and two seats re- candidate Minakshi Mukherjee of set for the second phase of Assembly spectively. Polling will take place amid CPI-M, the challenge is to regain her poll in West Bengal Thursday when strict COVID-19 guidelines in nine party's lost ground. more than 75 lakh voters will decide seats of Paschim Medinipur, eight in While Banerjee had been camping the fate of 191 candidates in 30 seats Bankura, four seats in South 24 in Nandigram for the last four days, BJP as eyes are set on the high profile Parganas and nine in Purba Medinipur fielded its ‘big guns’, including Home Nandigram constituency where Chief – the home ground of TMC turncoat Minister Amit Shah, Uttar Pradesh Minister Mamata Banerjee is pitted and BJP leader Suvendu Adhikari. Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath and against her protégé-turned-adversary The agrarian constituency which superstar Mithun Chakraborty to de- Suvendu Adhikari. shook the foundations of the mighty fend Adhikari's turf, which he had All 10,620 booths where polling will Left regime over the anti-land acqui- won in 2016 and take on ‘Didi’ (as be held this phase have been declared sition movement in 2007, has now Mamata is popularly called). as sensitive by the Election turned into a battleground of titans ‘Apart from identity politics and Commission, which has deployed with Banerjee suddenly deciding to Bengali sub- nationalism, the demand around 651 companies of central forces switch from her Bhowanipur seat to for jobs, inclusion of Hindu backward to provide security, officials said. the constituency held by Adhikari, West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata communities in the OBC category and A total 199 companies of Central her former lieutenant who has switched Banerjee arrives in Nandigram, setting up of agro-based industry have Armed Police Force will be deployed loyalty to the BJP. Wednesday, after campaigning for emerged as main poll planks in the sec- in Purba Medinipur, 210 companies For Adhikari it is a battle for polit- Assembly polls in Hooghly district ond phase of polls. in Paschim Medinipur, 170 in South 24 ical survival as a defeat would be a PTI PHOTO Of the 30 seats which will see vot- Parganas and 72 in Bankura, the devastating blow and might also put ing Thursday, 23 were won by TMC sources said. a question mark on his political graph as one of the tallest leaders in Bengal in the 2016 aAssembly elections, five TMC and BJP are contesting in all in his new party – the BJP. Similarly, but would also push him few miles by Left Front and Congress and BJP the 30 seats, while CPI(M) is in the a victory would not only establish him ahead of others in the Chief Ministerial one each. Docs fear Bengal heading towards severe COVID-19 second wave

PRESS TRUST OF INDIA

Kolkata, March 31: West Bengal is heading towards severe outbreak of the second wave of coronavirus as the people are not adhering to the protocol to check its spread and large numbers of them are participating in the in- numerable rallies and cam- paigns by political leaders across the poll- bound state al- most daily, city doctors fear. They warned that this vi- olation of the COVID-19 pro- tocol may lead to a situation similar to the one in 2020 after the outbreak of the pandemic across the globe. Sanjib Bandyopadhyay, in-charge of the post-COVID follow-up clinic at the Infectious Diseases and Beliaghata General (ID&BG) Hospital, which was a des- ignated COVID-19 hospital, foresees a "severe outbreak" of contagion the state in the near future. Sisir Naskar, the super- intendent of M R Bangur Hospital, another designated coronavirus hospital, blamed the laxity of the common people for the recent spike of COVID-19 cases in the state. "In the case of any pan- demic, second and third waves are inevitable as per the law of the nature. These will eventually go away but there cannot be a careless attitude. In our state, the lax- ity of the common people in fighting the disease is the primary reason behind the rise in the incidences of the disease," he said. Bandopadhyay said the chances of more people being affected by the con- tagion is high in the state as more and more of them are participating in political rallies and meetings with- out wearing masks. Chances of virus transmission are higher in rallies because more droplets come out

from the mouths of lead-

k y m c ers when they address ral- lies and people surrounding him shout slogans - most of them without masks. This puts people near them to risk, he said. P8 THURSDAY | APRIL 1 | 2021 | BHUBANESWAR power post

Let us offer our work to the FOCUS ODISHA FOUNDATION DAY Divine; this is the sure means of progressing. Go and prepare yourself and the best preparation is to be useful to the Divine’s work THE MOTHER ASPIRATIONAL ODISHA

oday on 1st April, when cessful at the elite civil services ex- Odisha Day is celebrated aminations. Through sheer hard by the state and the Odia work, honesty and diligence some Flexitarianism Tcommunity everywhere, it of them have distinguished them- is propitious to make an intro- selves and have come to occupy top ven though people have been vegetarian for centuries (Confucious, spection of the Odia identity. Thanks echelons of government bureau- Plato, Jesus and his brother John, Leonardo da Vinci and Einstein are to the presiding deity of Odisha cracy. How does one explain the Esome that I can think of outside India), the term vegetarian was coined Lord Jagannath, the temporal and craze of an average middle class in 1839 and referred to people who ate a plant-based diet. the spiritual Lord is now universally or lower middle class Odias for For the last 200 years, since commercial slaughterhouses were invented, worshiped. Perhaps there is no the Civil Services? The reason is people became strong meat eaters and the result has been devastation on the major city in the world or for that not far to seek. Firstly, it is the planet. Now both realisation and reaction has set in all over the world. matter no major towns in India lack of other avenues of career Being vegetarian is fashionable. Few people will now insist in public that where there is no temple of Lord such as engineering which, how- they are die hard meat eaters. Most say apologetically “we don’t eat meat at Jagannath. If Jagannath is the ever, has improved in last few home” or “we don’t eat it very often”. Many people will say they are vege- iconic deity of the state, whose fol- years. Secondly, lack of resources tarian – but they eat some fish, others eat eggs, others milk. I know one veg- lowing is now spreading the world to pursue such an expensive career etarian who eats the gravy of meat dishes with the excuse that it is made of over, the intricate and yet expres- option and finally the low levels of vegetables!! Everyone has a different definition of what they do and don’t sive Odissi dance is the hallmark of socio- economic development. The want to eat - as vegetarians. the culture of the state. The ex- Civil Service thus becomes the You must have heard this answer from a lot of people, whom you ask whether quisite Sambalpuri saree in its var- easy catchment area for bright they are vegetarian or non-vegetarian: “Both”. ious shades of colours is the fash- middle class Odias. The gain of The road from carnivore to vegan is paved with small concrete steps, Rup Narayan Das ion statement with its niche clientele Civil Service is sometimes a loss each with their own designation and description. Here are a few: among the intelligentsia and the to other challenging vocations Omnivore: One who eats everything. intellectuals. The silver filigree such as industry, entrepreneur- Carnivore: One who eats meat. TODAY ON 1ST works of Odisha is yet another ship and creative field. Given their Pescatarian: Someone who doesn't eat meat but eats fish. The term sought after gift items for the guests innate intelligence and drive this pescatarian was coined in the early 1990s and is a combination of the Italian APRIL, WHEN and visitors from home and abroad. category of people can simply do word for fish, “pesce,” and the word “vegetarian.” Some Bengalis call them- ODISHA DAY IS The Odia pride received yet an- marvelously in other areas of selves vegetarians because they won’t eat meat, and fish are labeled Jal other accolade when the Union human endeavor including teach- Torai or “vegetables of the sea”. Even with pescatarians there are sub- CELEBRATED BY Cabinet recognised Odia as one of ing and research. What has hap- groups: for example, Jews eat fish, but are not allowed to eat shellfish. Some THE STATE AND the chosen six classical languages pened is that some of these bright people eat fish but are allergic to shellfish. of India along with Tamil, Sanskrit, youngsters after their success at Vegan: No meat, poultry, fish, seafood, eggs and dairy products — and foods THE ODIA Kannada, Telugu and Malayalam Is it possible to typecast an average Odia in terms the covetous examinations, with that contain these products. No honey, gelatin, albumin, rennet. No wear- COMMUNITY in February 2014. This is a vindi- of common traits? Now that they are ubiquitous all a few exceptions, shrink to low ing of animal products like leather, wool, silk cation of the rich cultural and lin- over the country, is it possible to profile them with abyss of lethargy, mediocrity, and The word most currently in vogue is "flexi- EVERYWHERE, IT guistic heritage of the state. indolence, sometimes ignominy tarian,” which means “semi-vegetarian”, -- pri- IS PROPITIOUS Is it possible to typecast an av- some common characteristics or attributes? The of suspension and dismissal. marily a plant-based diet but can include meat, erage Odia in terms of common honest answer will be perhaps a subdued ‘no’ In spite of some aberrations, dairy, eggs, poultry and fish on occasion, or in TO MAKE AN traits? Now that they are ubiqui- however, the state in recent past has small quantities. Someone who has just started tous all over the country, is it pos- produced some of finest achievers the journey towards self awareness; a meat- INTROSPECTION sible to profile them with some different parts of the country and its people which is not very dif- in diverse fields ranging from pol- less Monday is the beginning. OF THE ODIA common characteristics or at- also abroad for a livelihood. Their ferent from other states of the itics to poetry. Quite a few well- When a trend starts, obviously scientific tributes? The honest answer will intelligence, honesty, sincerity country. They have, it seems, woken meaning politicians from the state study follows. An interesting study on the psy- IDENTITY be perhaps a subdued ‘no’. I being and hard work impress owners of up from the slumber of the past. have made their mark in chology of flexitarianism has been done by an Odia, my impression of Odia companies, who employ them in Incidentally it may be mentioned Parliament. While the Chief Rosenfeld, Rothgerber and Tomiyama (pub- Maneka Gandhi identity will tend to be biased and different capacities. Still one notch that the then BBC correspondent Minister Nabin Patnaik, the il- lished in Food Quality and Preference Feb 4, 2021). prejudiced. Still at the risk of being higher in the ladder you will find in India Daniel Lak on a visit to the lustrious son the indomitable Biju Flexitarians are omnivores who attempt to The word most ridiculed let me make an attempt them in the labyrinthine of Delhi’s state capital Bhubaneswar some Patnaik carved out a niche for limit the amount of animal products they con- currently in vogue to profile the identity of an aver- Bhabans – Krshi Bhaban, Sashtri year’s back described the state as himself as a suave and astute sume. While the number of vegetarians and age Odia. Be that as it may, like any Bhaban to Rail Bhaban – work- ‘siesta country’, in one of his reg- politician holding his head high vegans remains low in most countries, the num- is “flexitarian,” other community the Odias are a ing as Section officers or under sec- ular columns in India Today, when among his peers, ber of flexitarians is far larger, with numbers which means heterogeneous group. In Delhi if retaries enjoying the absolute con- he found shops closed in the af- It is time now to have many as high as 14% in the UK, according to a recent you call a plumber, more often fidence of their IAS bosses, many ternoon in order to enable owners more Ritesh Aggarwal of Oyo poll done by YouGov, a UK polling company. “semi-vegetarian”, than not, you will find him to be of them by chance could be Odias. to take a nap. The laid-back attitude fame, Dutee Chand, the Olympian, According to the YouGov poll, 18% of women - primarily a an Odia. No one really knows how Incidentally, currently there are of the people and their home- or Sudarshan Pattnaik, the in- from 18-24 are flexitarian, and 3% are vegan. For they have mastered this hydro en- about a dozen Odia secretary-level sickness have now given way to up- ternationally-acclaimed sand artist, men in the same age range, 10% are flexitarian plant-based diet gineering. Is it a tradition with officers either from Odisha cadre ward mobility, particularly in to create a new Odisha, second to and 1% is vegan. For men and women, individuals them or endemic to the region? of the IAS or from other state niche service sector both in gov- none to uphold the name and fame below 35 are more likely to be vegan or vegetarian. but can include Move a step ahead in the social lad- cadres of the Civil Service. ernment and private sectors ver- of iconic figures like Madhusudan But vegetarianism isn’t just a diet choice. meat, dairy, eggs, der, you will find them as office boy Thus the identity of the state and tically and horizontally. While tak- Das, Subash Chandra Bose or the It’s a lifestyle and identity chosen for a variety or as an office assistant in corpo- its people has been evolving in re- ing up a secured government job legendary Biju Patnaik. of reasons, including moral, environmental poultry and fish on rate houses, small or big. As job op- cent times and there has been a has always been a sought after ca- The writer is a Delhi-based and health. Vegetarians differ psychologically occasion, or in portunities are not plenty in churning of socio-economic and reer opportunity for an average scholar and writer. Views are from omnivores. So what is the psychology of Odisha, educated Odias migrate to political processes of the state and Odia, quite a few have been suc- personal. flexitarians? small quantities Researchers recruited 564 flexitarians and 154 vegetarians and asked them why they avoided meat, and whether the flex- itarians intended to go vegetarian in the future. This is what they found: SPECTRUM CURRENCY There were no age or income differences between flexitarians and vege- tarians on average. Both had a large number of vegetarians in their social network. But they found, unlike vegetarians, flexitarians were much less likely to say that avoiding meat was central to their identity. They were less judgmental of omnivores’ choice to eat meat, and less likely to feel that eating meat was The dollar’s fragile hegemony morally wrong. However, the flexitarians in the study believed that society judged them he mighty US dollar con- nomic ravages of COVID-19, the Moreover, former US President ernment a window into digital ren- far more positively for avoiding meat. The researchers found that flexitar- tinues to reign supreme in sustainability of its debt might be Donald Trump’s policies to check minbi users’ transactions, just as ians were less likely to be avoiding meat for a cause beyond themselves, like Tglobal markets. But the called into question. China’s trade dominance are not the current system gives the US a animal welfare or the environment, or even personal benefits like health. greenback’s dominance may well The long-standing argument for going away anytime soon. This is great deal of similar information. Vegetarians were much less concerned about how their diet was viewed be more fragile than it appears, a more flexible Chinese currency one of the few issues on which Will other Asian countries in- by society. They had adopted the diet for causes outside themselves – and a because expected future changes in is that China is simply too big to let Democrats and Republicans broadly deed follow China? The US will few for health reasons. China’s exchange-rate regime are its economy dance to the US Federal agree, and there is little question certainly push hard to keep as The researchers asked flexitarians whether they intended to go vegetar- likely to trigger a significant shift Reserve’s tune, even if Chinese that trade deglobalisation under- many economies as possible or- ian at some point. Almost all of them said yes, and one of the main reasons in the international monetary order. capital controls provide some meas- mines the dollar. biting around the dollar, but it they gave was that society looks favourably on vegetarians. For many reasons, the Chinese ure of insulation. China’s GDP Chinese policymakers face many will be an uphill battle. Just as Both the study and the poll showed that flexitarians are nearly three Kenneth Rogoff authorities will probably someday (measured at international prices) obstacles in trying to break away the US eclipsed Britain at the end times more likely, than the general public, to say that they are “actively try- stop pegging the renminbi to a bas- surpassed that of the US back in from the current renminbi peg. of the nineteenth century as the ing to reduce their meat consumption.” The poll showed that flexitarians, ket of currencies, and shift to a 2014 and is still growing far faster But, in characteristic style, they world’s largest trading country, also tend to rely more on online media than print or television, and use so- THE MIGHTY US modern inflation-targeting regime than the US and Europe, making the have slowly been laying the ground- China long ago surpassed America cial media at a higher rate. This suggests that they are in the under-30 de- under which they allow the ex- case for greater exchange-rate flex- work on many fronts. China has by the same measure. mographic. DOLLAR change rate to fluctuate much more ibility increasingly compelling. been gradually allowing foreign True, Japan and India may go Flexitarians are also more likely to engage in general socially-conscious CONTINUES TO freely, especially against the dollar. A more recent argument is that institutional investors to buy ren- their own way. But if China makes behaviour. They are generally more concerned with a brand’s social views When that happens, expect most of the dollar’s centrality gives the US minbi bonds, and in 2016, the the renminbi more flexible, they will and ethics, than the general population. Flexitarians and pescatarians con- REIGN SUPREME Asia is likely to follow China. In due government too much access to International Monetary Fund added likely at the very least give the cur- sume dairy or meat substitutes at a far higher rate than the general popu- time, the dollar, currently the an- global transactions information. the renminbi to the basket of major rency a weight comparable to that lation. They are also willing to try out new foods. IN GLOBAL chor currency for roughly two- This is also a major concern in currencies that determines the of the dollar in their foreign-ex- The problem lies now with defining flexitarianism. A vegetarian and a MARKETS. thirds of world GDP, could lose Europe. In principle, dollar trans- value of Special Drawing Rights (the change reserves. pescetarian are clearly defined. But a flexitarian eats everything. People are nearly half its weight. actions could be cleared anywhere IMF’s global reserve asset). There are striking parallels be- unreliable when it comes to assessing their own behaviour. Someone who BUT THE Considering how much the in the world, but US banks and In addition, the People’s Bank of tween Asia’s close alignment with eats meat daily also describes himself in public as a flexitarian. GREENBACK’S United States relies on the dollar’s clearing houses have a significant China is far ahead of other major the dollar today and the situation So, how does one turn a flexitarian into a vegetarian? If one goes by this special status – or what then-French natural advantage, because they central banks in developing a cen- in Europe in the 1960s and early data, I would think the best way to do it would be to make the word flexitarian DOMINANCE Finance Minister Valéry Giscard can be implicitly (or explicitly) tral-bank digital currency. Although 1970s. But that era ended with high far more popular, and bring it up constantly when introducing, or talking MAY WELL BE d’Estaing famously called America’s backed by the Fed, which has un- currently purely for domestic use, inflation and the collapse of the to, someone who has decided to lessen their meat habit. You need to solid- “exorbitant privilege” – to fund limited capacity to issue currency the PBOC’s digital currency ulti- post-war Bretton Woods system of ify their meat avoiding identity, and to encourage them to take pride in it MORE FRAGILE massive public and private bor- in a crisis. In comparison, any dol- mately will facilitate the renminbi’s fixed exchange rates. and bring it up in their own conversation. rowing, the impact of such a shift lar clearing house outside the US will international use, especially in The writer is a Professor of These are people who are very aware of “society” and its trends -- which THAN IT could be significant. Given that always be more subject to crises of countries that gravitate toward Economics and Public Policy mean that personal benefit is a strong psychological factor. So, pushing the APPEARS the US has been aggressively using confidence – a problem with which China’s eventual currency bloc. at Harvard University . health benefits to them would be helpful as a backup tool. deficit financing to combat the eco- even the eurozone has struggled. This will give the Chinese gov- ©PROJECT SYNDICATE To join the animal welfare movement contact [email protected], www.peopleforanimalsindia.org Tasteless remarks WHO report on Wuhan

LOL Sir, Chief Ministers and ministers are no ordinary people, at least for the common Sir, A joint study by World Health Organisation (WHO)- man. When all is said and done, they are the elected representatives of the common China on COVID-19 says that in the most likely case BUNGEE-JUMPING Jack saw etters man with an onerous responsibility of shaping the governance of a state. Therefore, transmission of coronavirus took place from bats to that his shirt when these men and women show poor refinement of language and shocking un- human through another animal. The study also says wo entrepreneurs, Jack and John, was torn and his hair derstanding of history, then the confidence in their qualities of head and heart is that laboratory leak of the virus is extremely un- decided to start a bungee-jumping was mussed. TOL THE EDITOR shattered. The new Uttarakhand Chief Minister Tirath Singh Rawat’s recent remarks likely. No doubt, the findings have left everyone dis- T business south of the border. John came down again and Readers of Orissa POST on “ripped jeans of women” and “families with 20 children” have stirred a hornet’s satisfied and unanswered. The matter is extremely sen- They went to Casa del Sol, Mexico, sprang back up. are most welcome to contribute letters nest. Tripura Chief Minister Biplab Kumar Deb’s “roots of Internet going to the sitive since China bristles at any suggestion that is it built a huge platform, and This time he had several bruises and (200 words), articles and Mahabharat era” and “Diana Hayden not representing true Indian beauty” are to blame for the spread of the virus and causing the columns (between 750-1250 opened for business. his clothes were ripped to shreds. words). Contributors are only two examples of politicians’ misogynistic and bigotic utterances. Verbal insanity pandemic. Repeated delays in research have raised many By noon the first day, they both The third time down and back up, and requested to send their is deeply engraved on the minds of those who target others. People in power have questions as China was trying to align the conclu- noticed that while everyone was he had several open wounds, a broken contact numbers and full to be very selective in words because they are under constant public scrutiny. These sions in its favor. The report is based largely on a visit watching, no one was buying tickets. arm, and was bruised over postal address/email ID. They may also politicians would do no damage to their reputation at all if they shed their “controversy’s by a WHO team of international experts to Wuhan, the send in their valuable comments, opinion Jack told John to go up and jump, so most of his body. and suggestions, preferably by email, favourite child” tag. Rawat and Deb are not the only ones who have displayed the Chinese city where COVID-19 was first detected. The everyone could see how much fun it Jack quickly raised John to the to: [email protected] foot-in-mouth syndrome. Many contemporary, and past, politicians, young and old, mission was never meant to identify the exact natu- was, and then they would platform and asked him what in the have unabashedly gone off the track while revealing their chronic contempt towards ral source of the virus, an endeavour that typically takes buy tickets and try it. world was going on. niceties in public life through their tasteless comments. Unfortunately, the younger years. Hence, the world leaders should take a re-look John jumped, almost reached the John replied, "I’m not sure. Do you B-15, Rasulgarh Industrial Estate, lots are ‘reassured’ by the parties’ inability to rein them in. The likes of Rawat should into the issue and help to unearth the truth behind the ground, and sprang back up. know what 'pinata' means?" Bhubaneswar-751010 not be allowed to commit one gaffe after another. Ganapathi Bhat, AKOLA spread of the disease. Anshita Rochwani, UJJAIN I haven't come here P9 (Assam) to lie to you. NCB SEIZES HEROIN, THURSDAY | APRIL 1 | 2021 | BHUBANESWAR My name is not AK-47 FROM SL BOAT Narendra Modi. If you wish to hear him lie about Assam, The Narcotics Control Bureau farmers or any other issue, (NCB) has taken custody of a Sri switch on the television. He lies Lankan fishing boat and seized national to India 24/7. If you want to listen 300.323 kg of heroin along with to the truth, hear me out five AK-47 rifles and 1,000 RAHUL GANDHI | CONGRESS LEADER rounds of 9 mm ammunition

SHORT TAKES NO RESPITE Deve Gowda, wife Farmers plan march test Covid-19+ve Bangalore: Former Prime Minister H D Deve Gowda Wednesday said he and his wife Chennamma have to Parliament in May tested positive for COVID- 19. "My wife Chennamma ment,” another farmer leader and I have tested positive said. An event to honour the for COVID- 19. We are self- farmers who have lost their isolating along with other lives during the agitation will family members," the 87- be organised May 6. "Soil from year-old JD(S) patriarch different parts of the country tweeted. "I request all will be brought to these bor- those who came in contact ders and a memorial will be with us over the last few created for all our brothers who days to get themselves tested. I request party have lost their lives while par- workers and well-wishers ticipating in this movement," a not to panic," he added. The farmer leader said. couple are currently Separate events will also be undergoing treatment at organised to commemorate the city's Manipal Hospital, Ambedkar Jayanti, and Labour hospital sources said. Day. Enacted in September, the three farm laws have been pro- jected by the Centre as major re- A CISF personnel walks under an umbrella while guarding at Taj Mahal on a hot day in Agra Spurious liquor forms in the agriculture sec- tor that will remove the kills 8 in Bihar middlemen and allow farmers to sell their produce anywhere Patna: Eight persons died in Youth killed for PRESS TRUST OF INDIA pened January 26 is not re- in the country. two separate incidents in peated”. The leaders also shared The protesting farmers, on Bihar -- six in Nawada and No news of Rohingya putting colours two in Begusarai -- after New Delhi, March 31: their plans of forming a com- the other hand, have expressed they reportedly consumed Announcing their plans for the mittee to control protesters if apprehension that the new laws on female relative spurious liquor in the last 24 upcoming two months, farm- there is police action in par- would pave the way for elimi- hours. The family members ers, who have been protesting liament march. nating the safety cushion of boat in Andamans AGENCIES of the deceased claimed against the new farm laws at the “We will form a committee to the Minimum Support Price that they consumed liquor Delhi borders, said they will let the protestors know what (MSP) and do away with the INDO-ASIAN NEWS SERVICE Ballia (UP), March 31: A young on the day of Holi Monday, march to the Parliament on to do in case there is police ac- "mandi" (wholesale market) man was killed in UP's Ballia dis- after which their health foot in May, the Samyukt Kisan tion during the march. It will system, leaving them at the Kolkata, March 31: Fifty days after they trict for allegedly smearing colour conditions deteriorated by Morcha said Wednesday. also be made clear to them that mercy of big corporates. sailed out of Bangladesh's coastal re- on a distant female relative during the night. “The Sanyukt Kisan Morcha SKM condemns all kinds of vi- SC-APPOINTED PANEL gion of Cox's Bazar, more than 80 Holi. The body of Durgesh Paswan, met yesterday, and decided that olence. So the protestors will ON FARM LAWS SUBMITS Muslim Rohingya refugees were re- 19, with stab wounds on his back Woman gangraped the farmers will be undertak- know that if there is any dam- REPORT: The Supreme Court- ported stranded in a boat in the and chest, was found late Tuesday ing a march to the Parliament. age of property by them, they appointed committee to study Andaman sea. "But there is no news night from Chhotaki Seria village. Agra: A young couple has The date for the march is yet to will have to serve the penalty,” the three new controversial from the boat in the last 10 days. Two men belonging to the same lodged a report with the be decided.” a farmer leader said. agricultural laws has submit- The Indian coastguard seem to have village have been arrested in con- police, claiming that the 19- “It will be joined not just by Farmer leaders also an- ted its report to the apex court snatched the one satellite phone on the tion of anonymity. The activists said 50 nection with the crime. year-old woman was gang farmers, but also by women, nounced their plans to block March 19 in a sealed cover, one boat. There are rumours that the Indians days at sea in a ramshackle boat may According to reports, Durgesh raped by three men in the and unemployed individuals, the Kundli-Manesar-Palwal ex- of its members said Wednesday. have pushed the boat into Bangladesh be 'a real tough proposition' for anybody. had smeared colour on the sister- presence of her husband and labourers who have been pressway for 24 hours April 10. The Supreme Court had, or Myanmar territorial waters while Eight of the ninety Rohingyas who in-law of the accused, Karan, dur- while they were on their way supporting the movement,” “We will be blocking the KMP January 11, stayed the imple- some say it remains anchored off the set sail (65 women, 20 men and 5 minors) ing Holi celebrations Monday after to meet relatives on Holi. The farmer leader Gurnaam Singh expressway April 10 for 24 hours, mentation of the three laws till coast of northern Andamans," said have already died of diarohhea and which they had a quarrel. victim, in her complaint, Chaduni said. that is from 11 am April 10 to 11 further orders and appointed a Chris Lewa, director of "Arakan Project", dehydration after the boat's engine de- Superintendent of Police Vipin alleged that she was dragged Addressing a press confer- am on the next day. We will be four-member panel to resolve which monitors conditions of Rohingyas veloped trouble on Feb 18, a week into Tada said: "On Tuesday night, to a nearby jungle where she ence, he said that the march both in refugee camps in Bangladesh and the journey towards South-east Asia. Karan called Durgesh for a meet- was gang raped. Her husband doing this because the gov- the impasse. The committee was beaten up by the would be carried out in a “peace- ernment has not been listen- was given two months to study other parts of South-east Asia. Eighty-one Rohingyas, mostly women, ing and then killed him with the attackers as he ful” manner, and special care ing to us. It has been sleeping. the laws and consult all stake- She and other human rights activists were reported to be on the boat with three help of his friend, Sanjeev. They tried to fight them off. would be taken that “what hap- This is to wake up the govern- holders. say the Indian coast guards have pro- Bangladesh crew members when the then dumped his body near a tube vided the refugees with food, drinking rights activists lost contact with the boat. well." On a complaint filed by the water and medical attention but not The survivors confirmed eight deaths victim's father, a case was regis- allowed the boat ashore. on the boat before they lost contact. tered against Karan and Sanjeev. "That is perhaps because India was "We thank the Indian Coast Guard The accused were taken into cus- negotiating with Bangladesh to take for providing immediate relief but tody for interrogation during back these refugees. But since Delhi should either negotiate the boat's which they confessed to the crime. Bangladesh has refused to take them return to Bangladesh with the The SP said that Durgesh's back as their boat was tracked far away Rohingyas or take them ashore to a mobile phone and the knife used from the Andamans, the fate of the camp for better medical care. This is in the crime have been recov- Rohingyas is uncertain," said a Thailand- a humanitarian situation," the Thailand- ered. The body has been sent based human rights activist on condi- based activist said. for post-mortem. Fire breaks out in Safdarjung hospital

PRESS TRUST OF INDIA

New Delhi, March 31: A fire broke out Wednesday morn- ing in the ICU of the Safdarjung Hospital here following which 50 patients were evacuated, fire officials said. No casualty has been reported in the blaze that broke out around 6:30 am, they said. Nine fire ten- ders were rushed to the spot. Around 50 patients were im- mediately shifted to other wards with the help of hospital staff, the officials said. The hospital said that the fire proba- bly broke out due to high voltage fluctu- ation and a short cir- cuit. "There was a minor fire incident in medicine ward 11 (HDU) in Safdarjung Hospital Wednesday probably due to high voltage fluctuation and short circuit. All the patients admit- ted in HDU and the ward were evacuated immediately to other wards by our nurs- ing staff and secu- rity personnel. "There was no loss of life. The fire was controlled im- mediately by our hos- pital fire safety team," the spokesper- son of the hospital said. P10 THURSDAY | APRIL 1 | 2021 | BHUBANESWAR Suniel Shetty | Dia Mirza | First #Simlipal Abhishek Bachchan | Behind Fitness is a now #Bandhavgarh. Urgent every mastermind, there is a pillar journey, and the help to douse these fires of strength. Meet #TheBigBull's first step towards required. 2 Days On, Fire brother, the shadow and his it is to stay forever Rages At Madhya Pradesh's strongest support, glitterati TWEET SPOT >> hydrated. Bandhavgarh National Park @s0humshah as Viren STORIES Elli looks top for versatility CINE BITS

BRITNEY CRIED AFTER New Delhi: Elli AvrRam says she wants to be a ver- Kriti Sanon wakes up satile actress who is able to portray just about any WATCHING FRAMING BRITNEY... role. The Swedish-Greek origin actress was craving for chocolate lauded for her role in Malang last year, and is currently seen with superstar Aamir Mumbai: Actress Kriti Sanon is craving Los Angeles: Pop star Britney Spears has Khan in the song number Har Funn Maula for chocolates at wake-up time, going by shared that she “cried” after watching that the two actors shot for their up- her new post on “bits” of the recently- coming film social media. Kriti released documentary Pehla Satyagrahi turns Koi Jaane Na. On what would she like to posted a picture Framing Britney on Instagram of a Spears, which revolves pages from Bapu’s life be referred to as — a dancer or an actor — Elli told chocolate around her career, coloured, layered POST NEWS NETWORK IANS: “I’m an actress. An popularity in American dress paired with a actor for me is not only culture, and the green bralette. conservatorship that Bhubaneswar: National School of Drama(NSD), supposed to know how to Kriti wrote: “Just... she has been living New Delhi, presented Pehla Satyagrahi, a Hindi play, deliver dialogues. An woke up craving under since 2008, which has sparked the here at Rabindra Mandap, Wednesday. actor should have many (chocolate,eyes fan-driven Free Britney movement. “My The event was organised by Odisha Sangeet skills, only then is he/she and crazy emoji).... Morning everyone.” life has always been very speculated Natak Akademi(OSNA) in collaboration with a great actor. In my case On the work front, the actress has a slew watched and judged really my whole life the Department of Odia Language, Literature it’s only a plus point that of films coming up, including Bachchan !!!” she began the caption which she and Culture, Govt. of Odisha, to mark the I’m great in dancing. Pandey, Bhediya, Mimi, Ganpath, Hum Do wrote alongside a video of herself 75th year of India’s Independence. Tomorrow I might show Hamare Do and Adipurush. dancing to the tune of Aerosmith’s Crazy Written by Rabindra Tripathy and di- my other talents, for ex- on Instagram. rected by Suresh Sharma, the play ample I’m a previous fig- was about the story of Mohandas’ ure skater, or I train mix journey of truth and non-vio- martial arts, now that does NIKKI TRYING HER ‘LEVEL lence. Gandhi’s life and his per- not take away from the fact Lucky Ali’s Amaraya sonality were quite dramatic. that I’m an actress.” BEST TO BEAT’ ANOREXIA And his death was unprece- She added: “I want to be with Eliezer Botzer dented. What kind of life a versatile actress who will did the Mahatma lead and be able to portray any role, New Delhi: Singer-songwriter Lucky Ali Los Angeles: Big Brother UK star Nikki what were the challenges he which means whatever skills and Israeli musician Eliezer Cohen Botzer Grahame, who is currently in a faced while spearheading is required for that role, I have specialised facility for India’s freedom struggle, is will learn it and per- released the the treatment of second anorexia, is what the team attempted to ex- form it as an ac- press and showcase through this tress.” single, determined to win Amaraya play. IANS against the condition. from the Her mother, Sue, The guests who attended the event in- Aahana opens cluded OSNA president Manaswini Sahoo, duos shared that Nikki is hugely- its secretary Prabodh Kumar Rath and eminent grateful for the love anticipated album, Lemalla. “Amaraya is she is getting from NSDian Dolgovind Rath. Theatre director Abhinna one of the songs we composed in that people and is working towards a better Routray conducted a meeting ahead of the play. up on digital space space, it talks about all of us being life. “I heard from Nikki this morning, and reflections of each other,” says Lucky Ali. she said, ‘Mum, please stress how Mumbai: Actress Aahana Kumra, Plus, let’s face it, in films only the “While we were working on the project overwhelmed I am at people’s kindness who plays the female lead in the superstars call the shots. (The) we also realised we had similarities towards me. I just don’t get it. But I am so upcoming web series The Digital (medium) also gives you free- culture-wise as well. We all went through grateful’. “Tell everybody that I am going Honeymooner, has her theory on dom to tell whatever the hell you our own process of discovery and they to try my level best this time to beat this. why actors like her are getting their want to say. Actors like me, who were came with the project, we added to it and I want to get my life back,” Sue said in an dues in the digital space than in not getting their dues earlier, have got became a part of it,” he adds. interview with The Morning. Hindi film industry. “The web space a fresh lease of life courtesy this is giving all characters their due. It emerging medium,” she said. is no longer the norm to have The show tells the story of a hus- young girls, whose only pre- band-wife relationship. “When di- Sunny’s younger son RUSSELL SHOOTS FOR requisite is to rector Madhur Agarwal approached look good, as me with the subject, I loved the to debut in Hindi film THOR: LOVE AND THUNDER leads. concept and said yes im- mediately”, she Mumbai: Sunny Deol’s younger son shared. IANS Melbourne: Australian actor Russell Rajveer Deol will make his Hindi film Crowe has joined the cast of Thor: Love debut in a coming- And Thunder, the fourth of-age love story instalment in the Thor backed by Rajshri franchise of films. The Productions. The series stars Chris film also marks Hemsworth as Thor the directorial along with actress debut of Sooraj R Natalie Portman plays Barjatya’s son Jane Foster. British Avnish S Barjatya. actor Christian Bale will Rajveer’s be playing the villain in the new film. grandfather Crowe’s role is being kept under wraps Dharmendra tweeted the news and the hope was to surprise fans with a Wednesday. “Introducing my grandson fun cameo when the film was released, #RajveerDeol to the world of cinema according to a report in Deadline. along with #Avnishbarjatya’s directorial However, photos of Crowe hanging out debut. I humbly request you all to shower with the cast as they shot in Australia the same love and affection on both the were out on the Internet recently. kids as you have on me. Good luck and Godbless. #Rajshrifilms #barjatyas #Deols #RajveerDeol,” wrote Dharmendra on Twitter. PHARRELL DEMANDS JUSTICE FOR HIS COUSIN Virginia: Grammy award-winning singer PEANUTS SUDOKU Pharrell Williams has demanded justice for his cousin, who was To solve the Sudoku puzzle, each row, one of the two people column and box must contain the numbers shot dead in the 0 to 9 and the letters A to E. Virginia Beach post shootings March 26. “The loss of these lives is a tragedy beyond CROSSWORD measure. My cousin Donovon was killed during the shootings. He was a bright light and someone who always showed up for others. It is critical my family and the other victims’ families get the transparency, honesty and justice they deserve,” he wrote on Instagram on CALVIN AND HOBBES Tuesday (India time). “Virginia Beach is the epitome of hope and tenacity and, as a community, we will get through this and come out even stronger,” he added. SOLUTIONS AMY SCHUMER’S FATHER HOSPITALISED

Los Angeles: Actress-filmmaker Amy Schumer has shared that her father is in hospital. The 39-year- old took to Instagram

BREVITY CROSSWORD and posted a selfie alongside her father on the hospital bed as she shared the news. “I have terrible news. My father was in an unfortunate magician sawing accident. He has a good spirit through it all and we’re still hoping the magician will turn back up,” she captioned the selfie. Recently the actress SUDOKU got vaccinated for Covid-19. CHECK FOR SOLUTIONS OF THE PUZZLES TOMORROW P11 THURSDAY | APRIL 1 | 2021 | BHUBANESWAR PAN-AADHAAR LINKING LAST DATE EXTENDED The government on Wednesday extended the deadline for linking PAN with Aadhaar by three months till June 30. The income tax department said it has received representations from taxpayers that the last date for intimating the Aadhaar number may further national be extended in the wake of the on-going COVID-19 pandemic of the day uote CBI court discharges POLITICKLE by MANJUL FB doubles down on three cops in Ishrat There is nothing more Jahan encounter case farcical than quoting the lines of efforts to protect PRESS TRUST OF INDIA Jesus on a political stage and unleashing the Ahmedabad, March 31: A spe- prosecution on those whose lives cial CBI court here Wednesday are spent on serving the poor Assembly elections discharged police officers G L Singhal, Tarun Barot and Anaju PRIYANKA GANDHI VADRA| CONGRESS LEADER Chaudhary in the 2004 Ishrat Jahan alleged fake encounter case. Special CBI judge V R Raval al- The high lowed the discharge applications polling of Singhal, Barot (now retired) percentage and Chaudhary. "The CBI has not shows that people mentioned anything specific are yearning for against the sanction order (in change. (Chief which the Gujarat government Minister) Mamata declined sanction to prosecute the Banerjee is worried as the elections were peaceful and the TMC goons three accused) which also leads to could not have a field day believe the act of applicants/ac- cused was in discharge of official J P NADDA | BJP CHIEF duties," the court observed. tinues to closely partner with elec- The Central Bureau of The company tion authorities, including to set up Investigation (CBI) March 20 con- If there are said that it is a high priority channel to remove veyed to the court that the state any corrupt content that breaks our rules or government had declined sanc- practices taking steps to enhance is against local law after receiving tion for prosecution of the three during my civic engagement, combat valid legal orders. accused. The court in its October stewardship and on Facebook said that it may de- 2020 order observed that they had the part of the DCGI extends shelf life of hate speech, limit ploy technology to identify new "acted in their official duties," so previous Congress words and phrases associated with the probe agency was required to government, a probe could be misinformation and ordered by the Prime Minister hate speech, and either remove obtain sanction for prosecution. remove voter suppression posts with that language or reduce Under section 197 of the Criminal instead of making off the cuff Covishield from 6 to 9 months allegations at the rally their distribution. Procedure Code, sanction is re- AGENCIES "In addition to our standard prac- quired for prosecuting government AGENCIES V NARAYANASAMY | SENIOR tice of removing accounts that re- servants for anything done in the CONGRESS LEADER New Delhi, March 31: Based on peatedly violate our Community discharge of official duty. New Delhi, Mar 31: India's drug lessons learned from past elec- Standards, we will also temporar- Ishrat Jahan, a 19-year-old regulator DCGI has extended the tions in India and globally, ily reduce the distribution of con- woman from Mumbra near shelf life of Covishield, the Oxford- SHORT TAKES Facebook has doubled down on tent from accounts that have re- Mumbai, was killed along with AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine, its efforts to support and protect cently and repeatedly violated our Javed Shaikh alias Pranesh Pillai, from six to nine months from its assembly elections in Tamil Nadu, policies," it added. Amjadali Akbarali Rana and manufacturing date. 2 LeT terrorist West Bengal, Assam, Kerala and The company is currently work- Zeeshan Johar by Gujarat police In a letter to the Serum Institute Pondicherry. ing with eight partners in India in an 'encounter' near Ahmedabad of India (SII), Drugs Controller associates held The company said Wednesday who are certified by the June 15, 2004. The police claimed General of India V G Somani said Srinagar: Two terrorist that it is taking steps to enhance International Fact-Checking the four were terrorists who were the SII is permitted to apply the associates linked with civic engagement, combat hate Network, to provide people with planning to assassinate the then vaccine's shelf life of nine months proscribed terror outfit speech, limit misinformation and additional context about the con- Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra to unlabelled vials available on ject to the condition that the de- talities, the highest single-day spike Lashker-e-Taiba (LeT) were remove voter suppression. tent they're seeing on Facebook. Modi. However, a high court-ap- hand. Shelf life is the length of time tails of such stock, batch-wise, shall so far this year, took the death toll arrested in Jammu and "To decrease the risk of prob- In addition to English, these pointed Special Investigation Team for which an item remains fit for use. be submitted to this office and to 1,62,468, according to Union Kashmir's Budgam and lematic content going viral in these eight partners fact-check in 11 concluded that the encounter was The Drugs Controller General Central Drugs Laboratory, Kasauli," health ministry data updated incriminating materials states and potentially inciting vi- Indian languages including Bengali, fake, after which the CBI regis- of India (DCGI) said it has no ob- Somani said in the letter. Wednesday. The country had seized from their possession, olence ahead of or during the elec- Tamil, Malayalam and Assamese. tered a case against various po- jection in respect of 'Extension of According to an update by UK recorded 355 deaths December 17. police said Wednesday. tion, we will significantly reduce In 2019, led by the industry body lice officials. Inspector General of Shelf Life of Covishield Vaccine' in drug regulator dated February 22, The active caseload increased to Police said acting on specific the distribution of content that IAMAI, Facebook had set up a high Police Singhal, retired police offi- multi-dose glass vial (10 dose-5ml) the shelf-life of the AstraZeneca 5,52,566 and accounts for 4.55 per cent inputs, Budgam police along our proactive detection technol- priority channel with the Election cers Barot and J G Parmar, and from six months to nine months. COVID-19 vaccine is six months. of the total infections. The recov- with the army's 53 Rashtriya ogy identifies as likely hate speech Commission of India (ECI) for Chaudhary had filed applications "You are permitted to apply the Meanwhile, as many as 53,480 fresh ery rate further dropped to 94.11 Rifles and the Central or violence and incitement," the Facebook, Instagram and before the court seeking dropping shelf life of nine months to unla- infections pushed India's COVID-19 per cent, the ministry data updated Reserve Police Force's 43rd company said in a statement. WhatsApp, to receive content-related of proceedings for want of the req- belled vials available on hand, sub- tally to 1,21,49,335, while 354 new fa- at 8 am showed. Bn apprehended two terrorist associates in a joint operation The company said that it con- escalations. uisite sanction to prosecute them. at Laloo Sheshgari, Hyderpora.

Illicit liquor claims Pak-based LeT militant jailed for 10 years four lives in UP INDO-ASIAN NEWS SERVICE with the intention to carry Ali, along with his two as- them by their handlers based Pratapgarh (UP): Four out terrorist attacks at dif- sociates Abu Saad and Abu in Pakistan or Pakistan-oc- persons died in Udaypur area New Delhi, March 31: Four ferent places in India, in- Darda -- all trained Lashkar cupied Kashmir (POK). here allegedly after years after his arrest, cluding Delhi, has been sen- terrorists -- illegally infil- Security forces arrested consuming spurious liquor, Pakistan-based Lashkar-e- tenced to 10 years of trated into the valley to Mansoor July 25, 2016, from officials said Wednesday. The Taiba terrorist Saifullah rigorous imprisonment and carry out terrorist attacks Yahama Mukam village in local police station in-charge Mansoor, who infiltrated fine. at different places in India Kupwara district in Jammu has been suspended following into Jammu and Kashmir Mansoor, alias Bahadur as per instructions given to and Kashmir. the incident for alleged laxity, they said. Three of the deceased were from the same family and were residents of Katariya village. The fourth Only 25% parents willing to was from Aahar Bihar village. Four people -- Dilip Kori (48), his brother Pradeep Kori (35), maternal uncle Siddhanath send kids to school in April (65) and one Dharmendra (45) -- consumed liquor INDO-ASIAN NEWS SERVICE long as active cases are less protection of schools more Tuesday night, Additional than 100. As far as the front and centre than with Superintendent of Police New Delhi, March 31: As scheduled Board Exams the original virus. Dinesh Dwivedi said. India experiences a fast- for Class 10 and 12 in the The day after she said growing second wave of month of May is con- this, the city of Bengaluru Covid-19, only 25 per cent cerned, the Central and in the month of March Hottest March in parents are willing to send State Boards will need to reported approximately their wards to school in make a decision based on 500 cases of Covid in chil- Delhi since 2010 April, as per a survey by the national situation. The dren under the age of 10. New Delhi: Delhi recorded a LocalCircles. feasibility of conduct- mean maximum temperature With B.1.1.7 known for ing the board exam both of 33.1 degrees Celsius this high transmissibility online and offline does month, making it the “hottest” within children, the ma- deserve consideration. March in the last 11 years, jority of parents have ex- The survey found the India Meteorological pressed concerns. that three data points Department said Wednesday. There are 73 per cent of released last week are Normally, the mean parents who believe that of great concern. First, maximum temperature for physical schools must not the Chief Minister of the month of March in the operate if active cases in the Punjab announced that national capital is 29.6 district are above 100. of the genome testing degrees Celsius, it said. This As per feedback in the done by the state, 81 is the highest mean survey and given the mas- per cent of the Covid- maximum temperature in sive surge in the Covid 19 samples were found March since 2010, when it cases experienced in the to be of B.1.1.7 i.e., the was 34.1 degrees Celsius, last three weeks, the de- UK variant of SARS- said Kuldeep Srivastava, the head of the IMD's regional fault option for the schools COV2. The next day, forecasting centre. should be closure from Germany's Chancellor April to June. Angela Merkel an- Exceptions may be taken nounced that the B.1.1.7, on the basis of active case which is fast spreading 4 Naxals held numbers in a particular in the country, is more Dantewada: Four Naxals, one district along with the vari- transmissible than the of them carrying a reward of ant-type reported, the daily original strain and is Rs 1 lakh on his head, were case curve to authorize more dangerous to chil- arrested from two districts of District Magistrates to per- dren and young people, Chhattisgarh's insurgency-hit mit schools to operate as and we need to put the Bastar division, police said. Cadres Mannu alias Motu Barsa (24) and Sitaram Oyam (20) were apprehended from the Barsoor police station area of Dantewada district Wednesday, while Vetti Hunga (30) and Kunjam Hadma (29) were nabbed from neighbouring Sukma district Tuesday, an official said. The people of NEPAL 1ST IN ASIA-PACIFIC Pakistan should urge P12 their government to offer a TO VACCINATE REFUGEES THURSDAY | APRIL 1 | 2021 | BHUBANESWAR formal apology to the people of Nepal started to inoculate the Covid Bangladesh for all the vaccine to the Bhutanese refugees atrocities committed by the living in eastern part of the country Pakistani military in 1971 becoming the first country in the HUSAIN HAQQANI | Asia-Pacific region to provide international FORMER PAKISTANI DIPLOMAT Covid-19 jabs to refugees of the day uote Pak to import sugar, China dodges WHO’s call for further probe No one can PRESS TRUST OF INDIA Hua Chunying said while answer- take a single ing a volley of questions on the ex- drop of water COVID ORIGIN PROBE Beijing, March 31: China from Egypt, and perts team report and Dr Tedros’s whoever wants to Wednesday called for expanding In response to the comments. try it, let him try. No cotton from India the search for the origins of the WHO report, the US Instead, Hua harped on the expert one imagines that it coronavirus in other countries, team’s remark that the lab leak the- will be far from our capabilities The decision was taken at the meeting of the Economic mainly America, as it sought to and 13 allies ory is extremely unlikely. sidestep the WHO chief ’s assertion In response to the WHO report, ABDEL FATTAH EL-SISSI | Coordination Committee (ECC), which was chaired by that further probe is required on al- including South the US and 13 allies including South PRESIDENT OF EGYPT Pakistan Finance Minister Hammad Azhar legations that the deadly virus may Korea, Australia and Korea, Australia and the UK, voiced have leaked from a bio-lab in Wuhan, the UK, voiced concern over its findings and urged It is saying he may have not been ac- China to provide full access to ex- indispensable curately quoted. concern over its perts. BBC quoted a statement by to carry out Releasing the much-awaited re- findings and urged the 14 countries stating that the prompt, independent port of an experts team which mission to Wuhan was significantly and experts-led probed the origin of COVID-19 after China to provide full delayed and lacked access to com- investigations that visiting the controversial Wuhan access to experts plete, original data and samples. are free of Institute of Virology (WIV) in the Scientific missions like these surveillance. We are concerned that central Chinese city of Wuhan, should be able to do their work the investigation faced delays and World Health Organisation chief cialist experts, which I am ready to containing it in Wuhan the asser- under conditions that produce in- the lack of access to virus samples Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus deploy,” Dr Tedros, who was earlier tion that it requires further probe dependent and objective recom- KATSUNOBU KATO | reopened the Trump era allega- accused by the previous Trump ad- caught Beijing by surprise. mendations and findings. The group CHIEF CABINET SECY OF JAPAN tion, saying that it required fur- ministration as ‘pro-China’, said I don’t think the quote is very pledged to work together with the ther probe. in Geneva Tuesday. accurate because what I see is the WHO. PRESS TRUST OF INDIA with India. Although the team has concluded Coming from the WHO chief expert mission said they cannot Former US president Donald I am hopeful Azhar also said that Pakistan that a laboratory leak is the least with whom China had built a close exclude the possibility of lab leak- Trump was among those who sup- that those Islamabad, March 31: Pakistan will import cotton from India start- likely hypothesis, this requires fur- rapport while battling the allegations age but they have found no scien- ported the theory that the virus elected by the will buy sugar and cotton from ing June this year. ther investigation, potentially with that it suppressed facts related to the tific evidence for that, Chinese might have escaped from a lab in public will succeed India, newly appointed Finance Adviser to the Prime Minister of additional missions involving spe- deadly virus early and acted late in Foreign Ministry spokesperson China. in hearing the Minister Hammad Azhar an- Pakistan for Commerce and people of Israel, be nounced Wednesday, lifting a ban Investment, Dawood welcomed the wise enough to hear on their import from the neigh- decisions taken by the ECC. its plea for unconventional unions, bouring country imposed in the All steps will be taken through WIELDING WINGS for cooperation crossing sectors, wake of heightened tension over cross-border imports of cotton for constructive and devoted work Kashmir in 2019. for the sake of Israeli citizens yarn including by land. A sum- The decision was taken at the mary will be presented at the next REUVEN RIVLIN | PRESIDENT OF ISRAEL meeting of the Economic ECC to ensure availability of cot- Coordination Committee (ECC), ton and yarn in the coming months, which was chaired by Finance Dawood tweeted. SHORT TAKES Minister Azhar. Finance Minister Azhar told the Azhar said that the meeting dis- media that demand for cotton in cussed 21 items on the agenda, in- Pakistan was increasing but it had SA bans Easter cluding import of cot- not produced quality ton and sugar from cotton last year hence liquor sales India, which it allowed it had given the green Johannesburg: South Africa after detailed discus- signal for the product will restrict the sale of sion. to be imported from alcohol and limit the size of The resumption of other countries. religious and social import of these goods The import of cot- gatherings over Easter to will lead to partial re- ton from India was prevent the holiday from vival of bilateral trade banned and this had a contributing to a new surge relations, which were suspended direct effect on our SMEs, he said. of COVID-19, President Cyril after the August 5, 2019 decision However, at the recommendation Ramaphosa has announced. of India to revoke the special sta- of the Ministry of Commerce, we “Given the role of alcohol in tus of Jammu and Kashmir. have also decided to resume the fuelling reckless behaviour, The private sector was allowed trade of cotton with India, he added. we will put in place some to import 5 lakh tonnes of white Tension has come down between restrictions over the Easter sugar from India, he said. the two nations after the restoration weekend,” Ramaphosa said in an address broadcast He also said that the govern- of ceasefire on the Line of Control nationwide. He said retail ment had allowed sugar to be im- last month. It was followed with sales of alcohol will be ported from other countries, how- an exchange of letters by the prime banned Friday through ever, the price of the commodity in ministers of the two countries. Monday. other countries was also high. It is said that the two sides are However, in our neighbouring working behind the scenes to restore country India, the price of sugar their full diplomatic ties which China launches is quite cheap, he said. Hence, we were downgraded after August, have decided to resume sugar trade 2019 action in Kashmir. A woman trains her pet parrot in Primrose Hill, following the easing of lockdown restrictions in London, Britain REUTERS new satellite Beijing: China sent a new Earth observation satellite US completes H-1B into space from the Jiuquan Pfizer says its COVID vax Satellite Launch Center in Russian Embassy officials initial registration northwest China at 6.45 am Wednesday. The satellite, effective on adolescents Gaofen-12 02, was launched PRESS TRUST OF INDIA aboard a Long March-4C expelled in Italy for spying rocket and entered its Washington, March 31: The US PRESS TRUST OF INDIA planned orbit successfully, has received enough electronic Xinhua news agency REUTERS with another Russian Embassy of- applications during the initial reg- Washington, March 31: Pfizer reported. The satellite will be ficial allegedly involved, Di Maio told istration period to reach the 2022 announced Wednesday that its used in land surveys, urban Rome, March 31: Italy Wednesday lawmakers. Di Maio didn’t provide fiscal year cap for the H-1B for- COVID-19 vaccine is safe and planning, road network ordered two Russian Embassy of- details about the suspected role of eign workers visa, the most sought- strongly protective in kids as design and crop yield ficials expelled and arrested an the second Russian. after work visa among Indian pro- young as 12, a step toward possibly estimation, as well as Italian Navy captain on spying Italy’s special operations forces fessionals. beginning shots in this age group disaster relief. charges after police caught the in Rome staged the sting “during The US Citizenship and before they head back to school Italian allegedly giving classified doc- a clandestine operation between Immigration Services, the federal in the fall. uments to one of the Russians in ex- the two, surprising them red-handed agency which screens and allo- Most COVID-19 vaccines being Migrants drown change for money. operation” to exchange the docu- immediately after the handing over cates H-1B applications, said it rolled out worldwide are for adults, of COVID-19 among fully vacci- Foreign Minister Luigi Di Maio ments late Tuesday. of classified documents by the was randomly selected from among who are at higher risk from the nated adolescents compared to 18 in shipwreck told a joint session of the Italian Italy’s Carabinieri paramilitary Italian official in exchange for a the registrations properly sub- coronavirus. Pfizer’s vaccine is among those given dummy shots, Cairo: A boat carrying dozens Parliament’s foreign relations com- police said in a statement that the sum of money,” said the Carabinieri mitted to reach the cap. authorised for ages 16 and older. Pfizer reported. of Europe-bound migrants mittees that the alleged incident Italian naval officer, who is a frigate statement. The H-1B visa is a non-immi- But vaccinating children of all It’s a small study, that hasn’t yet capsized off Libya’s coast, was a “hostile act of extreme grav- captain, had been arrested. The Carabinieri said both were grant visa that allows the US ages will be critical to stopping been published, so another im- drowning two women and ity.” The Russian observed with him, accused of “serious crimes con- companies to employ foreign the pandemic — and helping portant piece of evidence is how three children, a UN official The Italian Foreign Ministry a member of the Russian armed cerning espionage and state secu- workers in speciality occupa- schools, at least the upper grades, well the shots revved up the kids’ said Wednesday. It was the said it summoned Russian forces stationed at the Russian rity.” tions that require theoretical or start to look a little more nor- immune systems. Researchers latest shipwreck involving Ambassador Sergey Razov to protest Embassy in Italy, was initially de- The Russian Embassy in Rome technical expertise. The tech- mal after months of disruption. reported high levels of virus- migrants seeking a better life the “grave incident” after a sting op- tained but not immediately placed confirmed the detention of a diplo- nology companies depend on it In a study of 2,260 US volun- fighting antibodies, somewhat in Europe. Safa Msehli, eration on the outskirts of Rome al- under arrest given his diplomatic mat who was part of the military to hire tens of thousands of em- teers ages 12 to 15, preliminary higher than were seen in studies spokesman for the legedly caught the Italian and one status. attache’s office but wouldn’t com- ployees each year from countries data showed there were no cases of young adults. International Organization of the Russians in a “clandestine He was ordered expelled along ment on the incident. like India and China. for Migration, said the maritime mishap took place late Tuesday. A fishing boat and Libya’s coast guard managed to rescue some 77 migrants and returned them Beer production in Pak to cater to Chinese workers to shore, she said. An official of the provincial ex- been issued to the Chinese com- Lasbela, a coastal district in the Alcohol is banned in cise and taxation department told pany in 2018 as it had submitted province, the News International re- Pakistan for Dawn newspaper that the company an application to the authorities ported. Sources said the Hui Coastal SL gets donated had been granted a licence which concerned in 2017, pleading that Brewery and Distillery Limited vax from China consumption of the it had applied for in 2017. the beer and liquor brand which made an investment of Rs 3 mil- Muslims but there are The company registered itself the company produces in China is lion for installing a modern liquor Colombo: Sri Lanka received with the Securities and Exchange not available in Pakistan. “The plant on a five-acre plot of land in 600,000 doses of the some exceptions for its Commission of Pakistan (SECP) application took over a year for ap- Hub. It is learnt that for the time Sinopharm vaccine from use for the April 30, 2020, after completing in- proval and in 2018 the former being, the Chinese company would China as a donation stallation of the liquor plant. Balochistan government agreed to produce beer to fulfil the require- Wednesday. Sri Lankan non-Muslim population “The company formally started issue a licence to the Chinese ment of Chinese nationals working authorities said the of the country which is its beer production last week, which company,” the DG Excise and in Pakistan. supplied doses will go first product will be supplied to Chinese Taxation South said. Hundreds of Chinese workers to Chinese citizens in Sri less than 5 per cent nationals working at various proj- With vast experience of manu- and engineers are engaged in dif- Lanka, where thousands of ects launched in different areas of facturing liquor in China, this will ferent development projects in people from China are PRESS TRUST OF INDIA Pakistan under the China-Pakistan be the first Chinese company to es- Pakistan including the ambitious working. Sri Lankan Economic Corridor (CPEC) and tablish its plant in Pakistan. The China-Pakistan Economic Corridor President Gotabaya Islamabad, March 31: A Chinese from China to establish its unit in commenced production at its plant mines and mineral projects in company is famous for producing (CPEC). Chinese interest in Rajapaksa accepted the liquor company which was granted the Islamic nation, according to in Balochistan’s industrial town of Balochistan,” Mohammad Zaman world famous brands and it would Balochistan has spiked in recent vaccine from Chinese a licence in 2018 for making beer has media reports Wednesday. Hub. The beer produced at the plant Khan, director general, Excise and introduce its two famous brands years after the announcement of Ambassador Qi Zhenhong at formally started production at its Hui Coastal Brewery and will be supplied to Chinese na- Taxation South, told the Dawn in Pakistan. The entire process, the USD 50 billion CPEC, which the airport after the doses plant in Pakistan’s Balochistan Distillery Limited, producer of tionals working at various projects newspaper. from manufacturing to packaging, plans to connect Pakistani port of were flown in Wednesday. province, the first such alcohol firm some of the famous alcohol brands, launched across Pakistan. He confirmed a licence had would be carried out at its plant in Gwadar to Xinjiang in China. The inflation target ‘MOVING TO 100% P13 for the period April RENEWABLE ENERGY’ 1, 2021 to March 31, 2026 THURSDAY | APRIL 1 | 2021 | BHUBANESWAR Apple has announced that over under the Reserve Bank of 110 of its manufacturing India Act 1934 has been kept partners globally are moving to at the same level as was for 100% renewable energy for previous five years their Apple production, with TARUN BAJAJ | ECONOMIC AFFAIRS SECRETARY nearly 8GWs of planned clean business energy set to come online of the day uote HCCB aims zero ‘India bounced back big way but not out of woods’ accident working Hyatt remains PRESS TRUST OF INDIA Given the significant said. “It is amazing how far India focused on has come compared to a year ago. thoughtfully environment Washington, March 31: India's uncertainty pertaining If you think a year ago, how deep accelerating its brand growth and economy has bounced back amaz- to both epidemiological the recession was…unprecedented momentum by ingly from the Covid-19 pandemic declines in activity of 30 to 40%, no transforming the and nationwide lockdown over the and policy developments, clarity about vaccines, huge un- hotel landscape in India with last one year, but it is not out of the real GDP growth for certainty about the disease. And planned openings in some of the the woods yet, according to the then if you compare it now, India most frequented and desirable World Bank, which in its latest re- FY21/22 can range from is bouncing back, has opened up destinations in the country port has predicted that the country’s 7.5 to 12.5%, depending many of the activities, started vac- real GDP growth for fiscal year cination and is leading in the pro- DHRUVA RATHORE | VP, REAL ESTATE & on how the ongoing POST NEWS NETWORK DEVELOPMENT, HYATT HOTELS CORPORATION 21/22 could range from 7.5 to 12.5%. duction of vaccination,” Hans The Washington-based global vaccination campaign Timmer, World Bank Chief lender, in its latest South Asia Economist for the South Asia Bhubaneswar, March 27: Economic Focus report released proceeds Region, told PTI. Hindustan Coca-Cola Beverages There are just ahead of the annual spring meeting However, the situation is still in- (HCCB), one of India's top FMCG too many of the World Bank and the real GDP growth for FY21/22 can companies, has for the first time col- categories the credibly challenging, both on the Public Procurement International Monetary Fund (IMF), range from 7.5 to 12.5%, depend- pandemic side with the flare up laborated with Indo German Focal Order is attempting said that the economy was already The slowdown was caused by a compounded pre-existing weak- ing on how the ongoing vaccina- that is being experienced now. It is Point (IGFP), a leading non-profit to facilitate, without slowing when the Covid-19 pan- decline in private consumption nesses in investment, it said. tion campaign proceeds, whether an enormous challenge to vacci- organisation aimed at promoting even considering demic unfolded. After reaching growth and shocks to the financial Given the significant uncertainty new restrictions to mobility are re- nate everybody in India, the official safety, health and social protection the technological complexity and 8.3% in FY17, growth decelerated to sector (the collapse of a large non- pertaining to both epidemiologi- quired, and how quickly the world said. “Most of the people underes- of workers in enterprises, state the time which will be required to 4% in FY20, it said. bank finance institution), which cal and policy developments, the economy recovers, the World Bank timate the challenge,” he said. and non-state institutions; in order import substitute to raise awareness on industrial safety and social security. PAVAN CHOUDARY | CHAIRMAN & DIRECTOR GENERAL, MTAI In line with this vision, HCCB conducted an event in association ` Core sectors’ output with IGFP, supported by the gov- ernment of Odisha that included We had 10,900 cr PLI push for started with trainings for companies in the just Khorda Industrial Estate to en- contracts 4.6% in Feb sure a “zero accident” working mattresses and post that, expanded into AGENCIES environment. all sleep products. The event was inaugurated by Last year, we food processing industry New Delhi, March 31: The out- Niranjan Sahu, member of Odisha expanded into the complete home put of eight core sectors declined Public Service Commission and solutions range. We have been by 4.6% in February, the steepest sub-collector, Khorda fortunate to grow very fast this The Union Cabinet, contraction in the last six months Administration, presided over by financial year and are on track to hit which experts said could drag the Sanat Kumar Mohanty, (OAS) about `450 crore chaired by PM Narendra overall industrial production in the Collector & DM - Khordha. CHAITANYA RAMALINGEGOWDA | Modi, approved the month into the negative territory. G Ganesh, Khorda Factory Head CO-FOUNDER AND DIRECTOR, WAKEFIT.CO scheme which will help All the key segments, including HCCB, said, “HCCB and IGFP coal, crude oil, natural gas, and re- THE STEEPEST have similar visions when it comes create 2.5 lakh jobs by finery products, witnessed a de- to ensuring worker safety and we 2026-27, boost exports and cline in production, according to the CONTRACTION are leveraging the synergy to relay SHORT TAKES official data released Wednesday. the importance of industrial safety he 4.6% decline is the steepest facilitate expansion of The growth rate of the eight in- and social security to other play- Tcontraction in last six months Manufacturing food processing capacity frastructure sectors -- coal, crude which experts said could drag the ers as well.” oil, natural gas, refinery products, overall industrial production into The workshop also included a rebounds in China cabinet decisions. cessing industries has been ap- fertilisers, steel, cement and elec- negative territory virtual presentation made by AGENCIES The effort is to take the coun- proved," he added. tricity -- stood at 6.4% in February Bernard Treichel, Speaker from Beijing: China's factory try's food processing to a next level According to the government, 2020. Last time in August 2020, the he growth rate of the eight International Social Security activity rebounded in March New Delhi, March 31: The gov- amid the rising global demand for the first component under the sectors had recorded a negative Tinfrastructure sectors stood at Association (ISSA) Geneva on from a three-month ernment Wednesday approved Indian ready to eat foods, organic scheme relates to incentivising growth of 6.9%. In January this 6.4% in February this year “Vision zero – For a safe work- slowdown as export orders a production-linked incentive rose, a survey showed products, processed fruits and veg- manufacturing of four major food year, the segments have registered ccording to the data, coal place” which focused on meas- Wednesday. A monthly index (PLI) scheme for the food pro- etables, marine products and moz- product segments: ready-to- a positive growth of 0.9%. Aproduction declined by 4.4%, crude ures that can be implemented to of manufacturing issued by cessing sector, entailing an out- zarella cheese, he said. cook/ready-to-eat foods, processed According to the data, coal pro- oil by 3.2%, natural gas by 1%, refinery ensure accident prevention and the China’s statistics agency lay of `10,900 crore. The government said the objec- fruits and vegetables, marine prod- duction declined by 4.4%, crude products by a steep 10.9%, fertilisers zero accidents in industries. and an industry group rose to The Union Cabinet, chaired by tives of the scheme are to support ucts and mozzarella cheese. oil by 3.2%, natural gas by 1%, re- by 3.7%, steel by 1.8%, cement by 5.5% 51.9 from February’s 50.6 on a Prime Minister Narendra Modi, food manufacturing entities with Innovative and organic products finery products by a steep 10.9%, and electricity by 0.2% 100-point scale on which approved the scheme which will stipulated minimum sales and that of small-to-medium enterprise fertilisers by 3.7%, steel by 1.8%, ce- MoU signed by numbers above 50 show help create 2.5 lakh jobs by 2026-27, are willing to make minimum stip- (SMEs), including eggs, poultry ment by 5.5% and electricity by in March 2021, which should re- activity expanding. boost exports and facilitate ex- ulated investment for expansion meat, egg products in these seg- 0.2% in February. sult in a modest growth of around NALCO, others on pansion of food processing capac- of processing capacity and brand- ments, are also covered under the According to Commerce and 2% in Q4 FY2021. ity to generate processed food out- ing abroad to incentivise emer- first component. Industry Ministry data, during "The lead indicators such as ‘tech development’ MG to support put worth `33,494 crore. The gence of strong Indian brands. The second component relates to April-February 2020-21, the eight sec- the core sector, auto output and incentive under the scheme would Information and Broadcasting support for branding and market- tors’ growth declined by 8.3% as non oil exports have revealed a de- POST NEWS NETWORK eight startups be paid for six years ending 2026-27. Minister Prakash Javadekar, who ing abroad to incentivise emer- compared to (+) 1.3% in same pe- cidedly mixed trend for February "The PLI for the food processing was also present at the briefing, gence of strong Indian brands. riod of the previous fiscal. 2021. Based on the available data, Bhubaneswar, March 31: A New Delhi: MG Motor India sector with `10,900 crore-incentive said that the government in the Highlighting key features of the Commenting on the figures, we expect the contraction in the Memorandum of Understanding Wednesday said it has further extended support to eight has been approved. The decision is Budget had announced a PLI scheme scheme, Food Processing Industries ICRA Ltd Principal Economist IIP (index of industrial produc- (MoU) was signed on “Technology startups with which it could a fitting tribute to our farmers," for 12-13 sectors. Already, PLI has Secretary Pushpa Subrahmanyam Aditi Nayar said that given the tion) to deepen to 2-3% in development for holistic utilisa- explore synergies. These Food Minister Piyush Goyal said been announced for six sectors. said, "The government will issue an sharp base effect, the core sector out- February 2021 from 1.6% in tion of red mud for extraction synergies could be in the while briefing the media about the "Today, PLI for the food pro- EoI by the end of April." put is expected to expand by 9-11% January 2021," she said. of metallic values and residue areas of customer service, utilisation” between Research iSMART and telematics, and development (R&D) organi- battery management, sations (CSIR-Institute of blockchain, augmented LPG cylinder price to fall by `10 from today Now, book mini-trucks online through ezTruck Minerals and Materials reality and virtual reality, and Technology (CSIR-IMMT), autonomous technologies, INDO-ASIAN NEWS SERVICE POST NEWS NETWORK from play store or IOS store. The app Bhubaneswar; CSIR-National the company said in a is easy to handle and they can reach Metallurgical Laboratory (CSIR- statement. "This is part of the New Delhi, March 31: State-run Bhubaneswar, March 31: A new to their nearest truck at a short NML), Jamshedpur; Jawaharlal MG Developer Program & oil marketing companies (OMCs) venture ezTruck has been launched span of time. According to the Nehru Aluminium Research Grant programme that aims will reduce the price of domestic Wednesday aiming at providing founder, the startup has occupied Development and Design Centre at nurturing start-ups. LPG cylinder by `10 per cylinder easy Mini Truck booking platform over 500 vehicles and they are ex- (JNARDDC), Nagpur and from April 1. Domestic LPG cylin- for commercial transportation. pecting to register over 5,000 vehi- Aluminium Industries (National der will cost `809 per cylinder in international prices resulted in in- The founder of the startup Kali ence in a new and fresh way to cles during the months of June Aluminium Company Ltd. Interest rates on Delhi, effective April 1. crease in the domestic price of pe- Prasad Rath said, “We provide serv- book moving deliveries in and July, 2021. Rath aims to avail (NALCO), Hindalco Industries In a statement Wednesday, OMC troleum products," the statement ices such as lorry transport, pro- Bhubaneswar and Cuttack. three bookings every day. Ltd., Vedanta Ltd) at CSIR (IMMT) PPF, NSC slashed major Indian Oil Corporation said said. "However, due to growing fessional house moving and office Rath said that trucks will be avail- The company has the high am- auditorium here Wednesday. New Delhi: A big cut in small that prices of crude oil and petro- worries about rising Covid-19 cases moving. We have also partnered able on time, on-time delivery to bition to be present in other parts Bauxite residue (red mud) is savings schemes will deliver leum products in the international in Europe and Asia and concerns with reputable and experienced the client, priority on safety, secu- of the state as well. “At present, produced in the process of alu- a blow to savers who depend market have been on a constant over the side effects of the vaccine, drivers to ensure that your goods rity, hygiene, quick recovery in case we will provide service in Cuttack mina extraction from bauxite. on these schemes for income uptrend since November 2020. prices of crude oil and petroleum will be transported safely and se- of technical/mechanical failure. and Bhubaneswar. But after two Bayer’s process is the principal and social security. "As India is largely import-de- product in the international mar- curely to your destination.” Booking will be starting from months, we hope to be present in industrial means of processing Conversely, this will reduce pendent on crude oil and the prices ket softened in the second fort- The new initiative and first in April 1 through online platform. other part of the state. We will bauxite to produce alumina (alu- interest rates, bring down the are market-linked, the increase in night of March 2021." Odisha aims to provide an experi- People can download the ezTrick app focus only in Odisha,” he said. minium oxide). cost of capital and spur capex and stock markets. The government revised the interest rates on small savings with effect from April 1 with a massive cut India tops in real-time digital transactions in 2020: Report Wednesday. The interest on savings deposit will be cut from 4% to 3.5% annually, INDO-ASIAN NEWS SERVICE the second spot with 15.7 billion different users and volume growth shift to digital to protect current while Public Provident Fund transactions. South Korea took the driven by mass adoption, recur- revenue streams, and searching for (PPF) is down from 7.1% to Mumbai, March 31: India retained third spot, followed by Thailand ring payments, transit payments new ones through a fully digitised 6.4%. Similarly, 1 year time the top spot in terms of digital pay- and the UK in the fourth and fifth. as well as cross-border transac- customer experience. deposit has been cut from ments in 2020 with 25.5 billion real- "More than 70.3 billion real-time tions," he added. With millions of people globally 5.5% to 4.4% quarterly. The time payment transactions, showed payments transactions were As the pandemic continues to having to change the way they work senior citizen savings a report by ACI Worldwide and processed globally in 2020, a surge drive changes in consumer and and live - and the way they shop schemes rate is cut from GlobalData. of 41 per cent compared to the pre- business behaviours, banks, mer- and pay - mobile wallet adoption 7.4% to 6.5%. In 2020, the transaction volume vious year, as the Covid-19 pan- chants and in- rose to an historic high of 46 percent share in India stood at 15.6% and demic dramatically accelerated India’s termedi- in 2020, up from 40.6 per cent in 22.9% for instant payments and trends away from cash and cheques journey of creating a aries 2019 and 18.9 per cent in 2018. Hitachi acquires other electronic payments respec- towards greater reliance on real- digital financial Countries like Brazil, Mexico and tively, while paper-based payments time and digital payments," it said. infrastructure has been Malaysia where many people his- GlobalLogic had a considerable share of 61.4%, The second installment of 'Prime- characterised by collaboration torically relied on cash are now it showed. "This is poised to change Time for Real-Time,' first launched between the government, the Tokyo: Hitachi Ltd. is buying some of the fastest adopters of mo- US digital engineering by 2025 where share of volume by in 2020, analyses global real-time, ac- regulator, banks and fin-techs. This bile wallets. services company instant payments and other elec- count-to-account payment volumes has helped to advance the country’s "The pandemic has cast the spot- GlobalLogic Inc. for $9.6 tronic payments is expected to rise and forecasts across 48 global mar- goal of enabling financial inclusion light on the importance of digital billion, the Japanese to 37.1% and 34.6% respectively, kets. It projects a Compound Annual regulator, banks and fintechs. This Roy added that the pan- and also provided rapid payments’ payments and robust payment in- industrial, electronic and leaving the volume of paper-based Growth Rate (CAGR) for real-time has helped to advance the coun- demic has further acceler- digitisation for citizens frastructures, condensing a decade transactions at 28.3%," it said. payments of 23.6 per cent from 2020 try's goal of enabling financial in- ated adoption of digital pay- of anticipated innovation into one construction conglomerate KAUSHIK ROY, VP AND HEAD OF PRODUCT said Wednesday. Tokyo-based Furthermore, by 2024 the share to 2025. clusion and also provided rapid ments with many first-time MANAGEMENT, ASIA, ME AND AFRICA, year and creating human behav- Hitachi said the acquisition of of real time payments volume in "India's journey of creating a payments digitization for citizens," users adopting digital payments ACI WORLDWIDE ioural changes that will not reverse the Silicon Valley company overall electronic transactions will digital financial infrastructure has said Kaushik Roy, VP and head of and significant uplift by merchants. as we emerge from the crisis," said will strengthen Hitachi's exceed 50%, according to the re- been characterized by collabora- product management, Asia, ME "As the industry evolves, we expect across the payment ecosystem are Jeremy Wilmot, Chief Product digital operations. port. China followed India and held tion between the government, the and Africa, ACI Worldwide. to see increased adoption across responding rapidly, prioritizing the Officer, ACI Worldwide. health & fitness P14 THURSDAY | APRIL 1 | 2021 | BHUBANESWAR Depression Diabetes drug may be affects visual new weapon against HIV perception New York: A team of researchers has discovered an important vul- nerability of the AIDS-causing retrovirus HIV, and has shown in preclinical experiments that a London: A team of researchers non-depressed subjects, while the ing in patients,” Salmela said. widely used diabetes drug, met- has found that the processing of corresponding figure for depressed Perception tests could, for ex- formin, seems able to exploit this visual information is altered in de- patients was roughly 5 per cent,” ample, serve as an additional tool vulnerability. pressed people, a phenomenon Salmela explains. when assessing the effect of var- The findings, published in the most likely linked with the pro- Identifying the changes in brain ious therapies as the treatment pro- journal Nature Immunology, sug- cessing of information in the cere- function underlying mental dis- gresses. gests that HIV (human immunod- bral cortex. orders is important in order to “However, depression cannot be eficiency virus), when it infects im- In the study, published in the increase understanding of the identified by testing visual per- mune cells called CD4 T cells, helps Journal of Psychiatry and onset of these disorders and of ception, since the observed dif- fuel its own replication by boosting Neuroscience, the processing of vi- how to develop effective thera- ferences are small and manifested a key process in the cells’ produc- sual information by patients with pies for them, the team specifically when comparing tion of chemical energy. depression was compared to that said. groups,” Salmela They also found that the diabetes of a control group by utilising The re- noted. IANS drug metformin inhibits the same two visual tests. searchers con- process and thereby suppresses In the perception tests, the study sider it neces- HIV replication in these cells, in subjects compared the brightness sary to carry both cell-culture and mouse ex- and contrast of simple patterns. out further re- periments. “What came as a surprise was search on al- “These findings suggest that met- that depressed patients perceived tered processing formin and other drugs that re- the contrast of the images shown of visual infor- duce T cell metabolism might be use- differently from non-depressed mation by the brain ful as adjunct therapies for treating individuals,” said researcher caused by depres- HIV," said researcher Haitao Guo Viljami Salmela from the sion. University of North Carolina. signs of residual viral replication mittently. Thus, despite progress, They then found that drugs and University of Helsinki. “It would be ben- About 38 million people around and immune impairment. there is still much room for im- other chemical compounds that in- Patients suffering from de- eficial to assess and the world are living with HIV in- Even patients who respond well provement in HIV treatment. hibit oxidative phosphorylation in pression perceived the visual il- further develop the fection, according to the World to antiretroviral drugs must take For the study, the team analyzed CD4 cells can inhibit HIV’s ability lusion presented in the patterns usability of percep- Health Organization’s most recent them indefinitely, since HIV in- CD4-cell gene expression data from to replicate in these cells. as weaker and, consequently, the tion tests, as both re- estimates. scribes itself into the DNA of some a study of HIV-infected people and The team confirmed with fur- contrast as somewhat stronger, search methods and Doctors currently treat these in- infected cells, and the drugs cannot found that the gene-expression pat- ther experiments in primary than those who had not been di- potential ways of fections with combinations of an- clear this viral genetic “reservoir.” terns most closely related to poor human CD4 cells, and in mice agnosed with depression. identifying distur- tiretroviral drugs to suppress HIV Moreover, the toxicity of anti- outcomes among these patients in- with human CD4 cells, that met- “The contrast was suppressed bances of infor- replication. However, many pa- HIV drugs means that many pa- volved an energy-production process formin suppresses HIV replica- by roughly 20 per cent among mation process- tients despite this treatment show tients can take them only inter- called oxidative phosphorylation. tion in these cells. IANS Gum infection Caffeine intake during pregnancy may cause linked to smaller babies regnant women who con- 0.44 centimeters shorter (about .17 elevated BP sumed caffeine as little as half inches), and had head circumfer- Pa cup of coffee a day on an av- ences 0.28 centimeters smaller dults with periodontitis, a erage had slightly smaller babies (about 0.11 inches). severe gum infection, may be than pregnant women who did not Based on the women’s own esti- Asignificantly more likely to consume caffeinated beverages, a mates of the beverages they drank, have higher blood pressure (BP) new study revealed. women who consumed about 50 compared to individuals who had The study found corresponding milligrams of caffeine a day (equiv- healthy gums, a new study revealed. chronic health conditions. reductions in size and lean body alent to a half cup of coffee) had in- The findings, published in the The median age of the partici- mass for infants whose mothers fants 66 grams (about 2.3 ounces) journal Hypertension, indicate that pants was 35 years, and 52.6 per consumed below the 200 milligrams lighter than infants born to non-caf- diagnosis of gum disease was as- cent were female. All participants of caffeine per day -- about two cups feine consumers. Similarly, infants sociated with higher odds of hy- to investigate the association be- underwent comprehensive peri- of coffee -- believed to increase risks born to the caffeine consumers pertension, independent of com- tween severe periodontitis and high odontal examinations including to the fetus. also had thigh circumferences 0.32 mon cardiovascular risk factors. blood pressure in healthy adults detailed measures of gum disease Smaller birth size can place in- centimeters smaller (about 0.13 “Patients with gum disease often without a confirmed diagnosis of severity, such as full-mouth dental fants at higher risk of obesity, heart inches). present with elevated blood pressure, hypertension,” Aguilera added. plaque, bleeding of the gums and disease and diabetes later in life. The researchers noted that caf- especially when there is active gin- Periodontitis is an infection of the the depth of the infected gum pock- “Until we learn more, our re- feine is believed to cause blood ves- gival inflammation, or bleeding of gum tissues that hold teeth in place ets. sults suggest it might be prudent to analyzed data on more than 2,000 pound produced when caffeine is sels in the uterus and placenta to con- the gums,” said lead author Eva that can lead to progressive in- Blood pressure assessments were limit or forego caffeine-containing racially and ethnically diverse broken down in the body. strict, which could reduce the blood MuAoz Aguilera from the University flammation, bone or tooth loss. measured three times for each par- beverages during pregnancy,” said women at 12 clinical sites who Compared to infants born to supply to the fetus and inhibit College London in the UK. For the study, the team included ticipant to ensure accuracy. researcher Katherine L Grantz were enrolled from 8 to 13 weeks of women with no or minimal blood growth. Similarly, researchers be- “Elevated blood pressure is usu- 250 adults with generalised, severe Individuals with gum disease from the NIH’s Eunice Kennedy pregnancy. levels of caffeine, infants born to lieve caffeine could potentially dis- ally asymptomatic, and many in- periodontitis and a control group were twice as likely to have high sys- Shriver National Institute of Child From weeks 10 to 13 of preg- women who had the highest blood rupt fetal stress hormones, putting dividuals may be unaware that they of 250 adults who did not have se- tolic blood pressure compared to peo- Health and Human Development. nancy, the women provided a blood levels of caffeine at enrollment infants at risk for rapid weight gain are at increased risk of cardio- vere gum disease, all of whom were ple with healthy gums, the re- For the study, published in the sample that was later analyzed for were an average of 84 grams lighter after birth and for later life obesity, vascular complications. We aimed otherwise healthy and had no other searchers said. JAMA Network Open, the team caffeine and paraxanthine, a com- at birth (about three ounces), were heart disease and diabetes. IANS

Most of us feel bloated after a heavy meal, when we have some digestive problems or when we are Yoga asanas to stressed out. There is a feeling of fullness and tightness in the abdomen which may cause abdominal pain. Practising yoga improves digestion by increasing blood flow to your relieve bloating digestive tract and twisting poses compress and massage your internal organs, which help relieve bloating and gas Setu Bandha Sarvangasana feet flat on the floor. Fold your knees Also known as the Bridge Pose, it and keep your feet hip distance apart and gas will open up your gut, allowing blood on the floor, 10-12 inches from your to flow smoothly and subsequently, pelvis, with knees and ankles in a will help relieve bloating and straight line. Keep your arms beside Apanasana pain. Setu Bandha your body, palms facing down. On in- This asana is also known as the ‘wind relieving pose’. It not only helps to Sarvangasana. Lying halation, press the back of your shoul- release the build-up of gas and improve digestion but also helps in detoxi- Malasana on your back, place ders and your feet into the floor and fying the entire system. Lie down on your back and place your hands on the Also known as the Garland your lift your hips up. knees. As you exhale, hug your knees to your chest. Rock your knees from Pose, it is good for digestion as side to side to maximise stretch. Do this for five to ten breaths and release it helps you release all the gas your knees. When you inhale, loosen your grip to allow your legs to move out of your system that is block- away from your stomach. ing your intestines from func- tioning normally. Begin in the Mountain Pose (Tadasana), with your feet slightly wider than hip distance apart. Bend your knees deeply, sinking down until your hips are lower than your knees, a few inches off the floor. Bring your palms together Supta Matsyendrasana twisting the spine and lower at heart center and wedge your back. Gently push your right elbows one at a time, to the in- Also known as the Spinal Twist, this pose knee using your left hand to side of your knees. Push your is great for digestion as it helps your touch the ground. Make sure elbows into your knees to open blood flow through your body, especially your right arm is extended out your hips and gently press the your gut. Lying on your back, bring to the side at shoulder height. inside of your knees into your your arms out to the sides with the Breathe and hold for 6-10 breaths. elbows. Stay in this pose for 30 palms facing down in a T position. Bend To release, inhale and roll the seconds to a minute. To get out the right knee and place the right foot on hips back to the floor, and exhale of the pose, either sit back onto the left knee. Exhale and drop the right the leg back down to the floor. Repeat the your buttocks or push back up knee over to the left side of your body, same process on the other side.

to standing. AGENCIES P15 ‘LOOKING FORWARD TO ANOTHER UNBEATEN TOUR’ THURSDAY | APRIL 1 | 2021 | BHUBANESWAR With their morale high after an unbeaten tour of Europe, the Indian men’s hockey team left for a competition trip to Argentina Wednesday. The six-match tour against Argentina includes four games apart from the back-to-back FIH Pro League matches April 11 and 12. “Though I missed out the Europe tour due to personal reasons, I was closely following the matches and it was very encouraging to see how the team sports performed against Germany and Great Britain. We are looking forward to yet another unbeaten tour,” captain Manpreet Singh said in a Hockey India press release. CR7 scores in Portugal win ASSOCIATED PRESS Aleksandar Mitrovic. against Serbia. Both teams are tied with kept the Netherlands largely at bay before After being held scoreless in the first seven points each from three matches. the break but collapsed in the second Cristiano Ronaldo celebrates Madrid, March 31: Belgium and the two qualifiers this year, Ronaldo scored Ireland, the other Group A team, played half on the artificial turf of Victoria his goal against Luxembourg, Netherlands scored 15 goals combined in his 31st goal in World Cup qualifying a friendly against World Cup host Qatar Stadium. Tuesday big routs in World Cup qualifying, while early in the second half in Portugal's and was held to a 1-1 draw, staying win- The visitors added to their 1-0 half- Portugal got one from Cristiano Ronaldo victory at Luxembourg. less in 11 games under coach Stephen time lead with four goals by the 64th, in its victory against a Luxembourg team He has now scored for Portugal in Kenny. then got two more closer to the end. that tinkered with another shock result. every calendar year since his first in- BELGIUM CRUISE Memphis Depay had a double for the Belgium crushed Belarus 8-0 to stay at ternational goal in 2004, and moved six Hans Vanaken and Leandro Trossard Dutch, which trails Turkey by a point the top in Group E, while the Dutch away from tying the all-time scoring both scored a pair of goals as Belgium after three matches. trashed Gibraltar 7-0 to go second be- record for a men’s national team. The trounced Belarus with four goals in each Turkey missed a chance to earn its hind Turkey in Group G, Tuesday. record of 109 goals is held by former Iran half. The home victory left Belgium three third straight win after squandering a 2- Minnow Luxembourg, which opened striker Ali Daei, the only other male soc- points ahead of the Czech Republic, 0 lead in a 3-3 draw with Latvia. with a surprising win against Ireland, cer player to surpass the 100-goal milestone. which lost 1-0 at Wales thanks to a late Mitrovic continued his hot streak by looked on its way to pulling off another Gerson Rodrigues had put the hosts Daniel James goal after an assist by scoring a double in Serbia’s win at upset after it took the lead against Portugal, ahead in the 30th minute but Diogo Jota Gareth Bale. Azerbaijan. He has scored five goals in but the visitors came from behind to stay equalized for Portugal in the second minute Wales and Belarus are a point behind the first three qualifiers. He also had a dou- at the top of Group A along with Serbia, of stoppage time before Ronaldo and Joao the Czech Republic with a game in hand. ble in the opening 3-2 win against Ireland, which earlier defeated Azerbaijan with Palhinha added second-half goals. DUTCH ROUT and found the net once in the 2-2 draw another double by Fulham forward Portugal was coming off a 2-2 draw Gibraltar, ranked 195th in the world, against Portugal. Barty, Medvedev rise to challenge tough Miami heat

ASSOCIATED PRESS the quarterfinals. Rublev beat Marin Cilic 6-4, 6-4 on Tuesday Miami, March 31: Aryna night. Sabalenka clearly labored in the After some early clouds cleared final set of her match. Frances out and bright sunshine starting Tiafoe seemed to barely have the en- pounding down, the mid-afternoon ergy needed to reach the post-match temperature reached the mid-80s handshake. Conditions were tough Fahrenheit (upper 20s Celsius) at at the Miami Open. The top seeds, Hard Rock Stadium and the hu- however, were up to the challenge. midity made it feel even hotter. World No.1 Ash Barty of Barty didn’t wilt, ousting Australia won the final nine points Sabalenka 6-4, 6-7(5-7), 6-3 for her to finish off the seventh-seeded third three-set win in four matches Sabalenka in a three-set women’s at the tournament. Medvedev beat quarterfinal Tuesday, while men’s Tiafoe 6-4, 6-3, and has gone 10-1 top-seeded Daniil Medvedev of in sets against the American in Russia reached the quarters with their past four head-to-head a straight-set win over Tiafoe — matchups. part of a day where the American Barty faced seven break points men’s contingent was pared from in the match and saved them all. four to one, with Sebastian Korda She’ll meet No.5 seed Elina Svitolina the lone round-of-16 survivor for the in Thursday’s semifinals; Svitolina U.S. eased past Anastasija Sevastova The 20-year-old Korda stunned 6-3, 6-2 Tuesday night to make the fifth-seeded Diego Schwartzman final four in Miami for the first of Argentina 6-3, 4-6, 7-5 for the time. biggest win of his career to date. Tiafoe was a quarterfinalist at And it’ll make for an interesting Miami in 2019 and couldn’t repeat Thursday for the Korda family: that feat, nor John Isner. He wasted he'll be in the Miami quarterfinals a match point during a third-set that day while his sisters, Jessica tiebreak and fell to seventh-seeded and Nelly, will be playing in the Roberto Bautista Agut of Spain 6- first round of the first women's 3, 4-6, 7-6(9-7). golf major of the year, the ANA Bautista Agut will face Medvedev Inspiration. in the quarterfinals. Medvedev had Korda, whose father Petr Korda 11 aces and showed no signs of reached No.2 in the world during wear, two days after cramping in the his stellar career, put on a show to heat during a third-round win. delight the evening crowd. He was It was Isner’s earliest Miami exit broken at 5-4 in the third to give since 2017, when he lost in the third Schwartzman hope, then responded round. He won the tournament in by breaking the Argentine right 2018 and lost the final in 2019 to back and finally serving out the Roger Federer in straight sets. match. Tiafoe needed a medical time- By then, it was maybe a bit cooler out in the second set of his match, than the brutal conditions that the heat and humidity taking its toll. players endured in the day session He was up a break at the time, and — but still tough, which Korda ap- the match simply slipped away preciated. Korda will face fourth- from there. seeded Andrey Rublev of Russia in No.22 seed Taylor Fritz of the US also bowed out, falling to No.32 Alexander Bublik of Kazakhstan 6-7(5-7), 6-3, 6-4. Bublik will face No.21 seed Jannik Sinner of Italy in the quarterfinals; Sinner ad- vanced with a 6-3, 6-2 win over Emil Ruusuvuori of Finland. No.26 seed Hubert Hurkacz of Poland pulled off a mild upset, beating No.12 Milos Raonic of Canada 4-6, 6-3, 7-6(7-4). Hurkacz is off to the quarters to face No.2 seed Stefanos Tsitsipas of Greece, a 6-2, 7-6(7-2) winner over No.24 Lorenzo Sonego of Italy in the final match Tuesday night. sports P16 THURSDAY | APRIL 1 | 2021 | BHUBANESWAR Kohli on top spot in SIGH OF RELIEF FOR SHAMI ODIs, Bumrah slips ing the home series against England. “What do I say about him. He is the best guy around. Doesn’t give you the feeling that he has played dou- ble of what you have played. When I had come in, he had already played about 50 games. “Since day one he never behaved like a senior. He likes mingling and laughing around. His behaviour has taught me to how to treat a youngster. “When a youngster joins, it is imperative that an established player talks to him about everything under the sun, it lifts his confidence. If you have someone like Ishant around, I don’t you think can feel down for a long time.” Talking more about the bond PRESS TRUST OF INDIA Thakur’s haul of four for 67 in the they share, Shami added: “It is a same match has enabled him to game of confidence and how you Dubai, March 31: India captain move up to 80th spot from 93rd. can execute plans. We have dif- Virat Kohli retained his top spot in For England, all-rounder Ben ferent skills, Ishant, Jassi and I the ICC rankings for ODI batsmen, Stokes has advanced four places and we keep reminding each other while pacer Jasprit Bumrah slipped to 24th, scoring 99 off 52 balls in the (From L) Mohammed Siraj, Navdeep Saini, T Natarajan and Shardul Thakur have impressed Mohammed Shami (bottom) in Australia tour of our respective skills and per- a place to fourth position in the second ODI and is up to second sist with them. bowler’s list released, Wednesday. among all-rounders, while Jonny PRESS TRUST OF INDIA got unexpected opportunities which with Shami, Bumrah, and Umesh comes in has an open mind, talks “We are pushed by each other Kohli, who had scores of 56 and Bairstow has retained the seventh they grabbed with both hands. getting injured during the series frankly and is supremely confi- when we are tired. This fast bowl- 66 in the first and second ODIs place after touching a career-high New Delhi, March 31: Senior “The youngsters will be ready and Ishant not being around. dent. They are ready to bowl with ing group is just wonderful. The against England, has 870 points 796 rating points with his player of India pacer Mohammad Shami to take over from us when our time Asked what impressed him the the new ball or old ball. The way last four five years with them have in his kitty. Bumrah, who was the match effort of 124 in the same says the performance of the team’s (to retire comes). The more they most about the likes of Siraj and they performed in Australia shows been really special. We have en- rested from white-ball series match. Moeen Ali is up nine places ‘net’ bowlers in the historic tri- play, the better they will get. I think Thakur, Shami said: Whoever their character. joyed each other’s success and this against England, slipped a place to 46th among bowlers. umph in Australia has shown that the transition will be very smooth “Beating Australia in Australia is something you should learn from to fourth among bowlers and has In the T20 batting list, both Rahul the transition will be smooth whenever we are done with the once is a very big achievement, the Indian team. There are no talks 690 points. and Kohli have dropped a rung and when the current attack walks game,” Shami, who was ruled out we were able to do it twice, that too behind the back.” India limited overs vice-captain are now placed fifth and sixth re- into the sunset. of the series after the Adelaide Test with no senior bowlers around. It While Shami broke his wrists Rohit Sharma is ranked third, be- spectively. No other Indian fea- The pace quartet of Shami, Ishant due to a wrist injury, told this agency. has shown we can rely on the while batting in Australia, he has hind Pakistan’s Babar Azam, while tured in the top 10 among bowlers Sharma, Jasprit Bumrah and Umesh “The team won’t suffer even if one youngsters.” not had any major fitness issues KL Rahul has moved up from 31st and all-rounders in the latest T20I Yadav, arguably India’s best ever, has big name retires. The bench is ready. Shami said the success of the ever since he changed his regimen to 27th spot. rankings. been instrumental in the team’s Experience is always required and current group boils down to the post 2014. All-rounder Hardik Pandya has In the Test rankings, spinner success overseas. However, none the youngsters will have that in joy they share in each other’s suc- With the IPL and a busy inter- achieved a career-best 42nd position Ravichandran Ashwin retained of them were available when India due time. The trend of carrying cess. Giving his own example, Shami national season lined up, Shami among batsmen after scores of 35 his second spot behind Australia’s breached fortress Gabba to win net bowlers in the bubble environ- said he was helped massively by is focussing on getting fitter as a and 64, and Rishabh Pant has en- Pat Cummins. In the ODIs’ all- their second consecutive Test se- ment has helped them massively Ishant when he made his debut cricketer. “Skill stays with you so tered the top 100. rounders’ list, Ravindra Jadeja is ries Down Under. and given them valuable exposure,” and that taught him to share his wis- I just try to better my fitness. The Seam bowler Bhuvneshwar ranked third with Ashwin occu- Someone like a Mohammad Siraj he added. dom with the youngsters coming training schedule changed mas- Kumar, who took three for 42 in pying the fourth spot. became the leader of the attack in Barring Kartik Tyagi, all the into the side. sively post 2014 and the way I have the final match, has gained nine Kohli remained fifth among bats- his debut series and injuries meant bowlers who were part of India’s The highly skilled Shami also changed my eating habits (no more slots to reach the 11th position, men while swashbuckling wick- that net bowlers like Shardul Thakur, jumbo squad in Australia got to shed light on his relationship with biryani) are also a big achieve- which is his best since being 10th etkeeper batsman Pant and Rohit T Natarajan and Washington Sundar play in extraordinary circumstances Ishant, who played his 100th Test dur- ment,” Shami added. in September 2017. Shardul shared the seventh spot. 30 COVID-19 positive in SAI at Patiala, Bangalore

PRESS TRUST OF INDIA coaches and support staff in ration of India’s Olympic- mind, the SAI conducted pre- bound athletes. New Delhi, March 31: Thirty cautionary RT-PCR tests at “There is no question of sportspersons and support National Centre of Excellence training being suspended. The staff across disciplines were in Patiala and Bangalore. The COVID positive cases have found to be COVID-19 positive reports received today indi- been isolated separately in- after 741 precautionary tests cate that all Olympic-bound side the colour-coded SAI cam- were conducted at the National athletes at both centres are puses and they are doing fine Centres of Excellence in COVID negative,” the SAI state- with no serious medical is- Patiala and Bangalore, the ment read. sues,” the source said. Sports Authority of India (SAI) It is learnt that out of 26 pos- The NIS Patiala is primarily said Wednesday. itive cases in Patiala, 16 are the base of Olympic-bound However, the positive re- sportspersons and rest are sup- boxers, track and field ath- sults in both the centres do port staff. The 16 quarantined letes and weightlifters along not include any Tokyo Olympic- sportspersons include 10 box- with sportspersons from some bound athlete. India’s men’s ers and six track and field ath- other disciplines. boxing chief coach CA letes, the SAI source said. The boxers who have tested Kuttappa and shot put coach In Bangalore, a race walk- positive include Asian silver- Mohinder Singh Dhillon are ing coach is among those who medallist Deepak Kumar and among those who have tested have tested positive for the India Open gold-medallist positive for the virus in the virus. “The good thing is that Sanjit. “Some more test re- recent drive at the National all positive cases are not sults are awaited at this point,” Institute of Sports (NIS), a SAI Olympic-bound athletes. The another source stated. source confirmed to this agency. positive athletes have been The Olympic Games are Later, SAI also issued a state- isolated and the entire campus scheduled to be held in July- ment which said that 313 and has been sanitised.” August later this year. The 428 tests were conducted in All weightlifters housed at athletes gearing up for the big Patiala and Bangalore re- the premier sports institute event have begun travelling spectively. While 26 were found have returned negative for outside the country for train- to be positive in Patiala, the the virus. The SAI source also ing and competition after Bangalore count stood at four. confirmed that the positive spending several months either “Keeping the safety of cases in both the centres will staying at home or being con- Olympic-bound athletes, have no bearing on the prepa- fined to their hostel rooms. Ponting backs new skipper Pant

PRESS TRUST OF INDIA out of the tournament after he The highly-rated Pant has injured his left shoulder dur- been in sensational form across Mumbai, March 31: Delhi ing the recently-concluded formats this year. He played Capitals head coach Ricky England’s tour of India. match-winning knocks of 97 Ponting is convinced that lead- “Unfortunate that Shreyas and unbeaten 89 in the third ing the side in the upcoming will miss the tournament, but and the fourth Test against season of the Indian Premier looking forward to seeing Australia to help India clinch League will make swash- @RishabhPant17 grab his op- the Border Gavaskar Trophy buckling wicketkeeper-bats- portunity. It’s well deserved Down Under. man Rishabh Pant an even for his recent performances He followed that up with a better player. and he’s coming in with a lot brilliant century against Pant was named the cap- of confidence. I’m convinced England in the fourth Test in tain of Delhi Capitals for the captaincy will make him an Ahmedabad, forcing the se- upcoming IPL after regular even better player,” Ponting lectors to include him in the skipper Shreyas Iyer was ruled tweeted. white-ball squads. Roy replaces Marsh for SRH PRESS TRUST OF INDIA first game of the 2020 edition and playing for Gujarat Lions and could not play thereafter. later featured for Delhi New Delhi, March 31: “Sunrisers Hyderabad have Daredevils (now Delhi Capitals) England opener Jason Roy signed up England batsman in the 2018 edition. Wednesday replaced Mitchell Jason Roy as replacement for He has played a total of eight Marsh in the Sunrisers Mitchell Marsh, who has made matches and scored 179 runs Hyderabad (SRH) squad for himself unavailable for the en- with one half-century to his the Indian Premier League tire season owing to personal name. SRH have acquired Roy (IPL) beginning April 9 after reasons,” read an IPL update. at his base price of Rs 2 crore. the Australian all-rounder Marsh, who made his IPL Roy showed decent form in made himself unavailable due debut in 2010, has played a total the recent ODI and T20 series to personal reasons. of 21 games. His replacement against India but was not able Marsh had got injured in the Roy made his IPL debut in 2017 to convert starts.

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