DAILY FROM: , CHANDIGARH, DELHI, JAIPUR, KOLKATA, LUCKNOW, MUMBAI, NAGPUR, PUNE,

JOURNALISM OF COURAGE THURSDAY, JANUARY 7, 2021, AHMEDABAD, LATE CITY, 14 PAGES SINCE 1932 `4.00, WWW.INDIANEXPRESS.COM Barring Kerala, all NO STAY, HEARING IN FOUR WEEKS Covid hotspots UP,Uttarakhand‘lovejihad’laws see daily cases fall challenged,SCissuesnotice People being liftedfrommarriagevenues, under attackfrommobs: petitioners AMITABHSINHA DAILYCOUNT PUNE,JANUARY6 PEAK JAN5 The benchofChief Justice of Uttarakhand Freedom of Religion Solicitor General Tushar Delhi 8,593 442 ANANTHAKRISHNANG SABobde, Justices AS Act, 2018.The benchsaid it will Mehtapointed out that the ON MOSTdays in the lastweek, Mumbai 2,848 539 NEWDELHI,JANUARY6 Bopanna and V have to hear the other side as well. Allahabad High Courtwas al- Delhi has reportedless than 500 Ramasubramanian said it will Notice wasissuedafter ready looking intoit. newcases of coronavirus infec- Pune 5,939 507 DECLININGTOgrant anyimme- hear the petitions —one by advo- lawyers forpetitioners made “It is already pending before tions, something that has not Bengaluru 5,121 393 diatestayonthe anti-conversion cates Vishal Thakreand Abhay strong submissions, pointing out the High Courts.Why don't you happenedsince Maylastyear. Chennai 2,358 244 laws of Uttar Pradesh and Singh Yadavand lawresearcher that people were being taken go there? We arenot saying you The numbers in Delhi have de- Uttarakhand, the Supreme Court Pranvesh, and another by NGO away from wedding venues and have abad case. But youmustap- clinedsteadilyfor the lasttwo issuednotice Wednesdayon Citizens forJustice and Peace (CJP) were being targeted by mobs. proachthe High Courtfirstin- months, beginning the second twopetitions challenging the —againstThe Uttar Pradesh Initially, the benchwas of the stead of coming to the SC di- week November when the na- laws whichhaveprovisions that Prohibition Of Unlawful viewthat the petitioners should rectly,”the CJI told the petitioners. tional capital had recordedthe prohibit religious conversion for Conversion Of Religion firstapproachthe respective AdvocatePradeep Yadav, highestsingle dayrise in coron- the purpose of marriage. Ordinance, 2020 and The High Courts. CONTINUEDONPAGE2 avirus cases forany city. The result is that Delhi now Farmer protests: AG has less than 5,000 active cases. Citiespastpeak? It does notevenfigureinthe top 10 cities with highestnumber of IN URBAN centres, like says talks may work, active cases. Delhi, Mumbai or Pune, But Delhi is notalone. All the once struggling against THE EDITORIAL PAGE major urban centres whichwere the coronavirus, the pro- SC defers hearing the epicentres of the coronavirus portion of population in- pandemic in the country—Pune, fected by the virus may SURVIVE,REVIVE Mumbai, Bengaluru, Chennai — have already reacheda ANDTHRIVE farmer unions opposedtothe areshowing similartrends, and levelfromwherethere BY SAUGATA BHATTACHARYA ANANTHAKRISHNANG newlawsare to resume Friday reporting afraction of the cases will be aslowdown in PAGE 8 NEWDELHI,JANUARY6 over twokey demands —repeal that theyusedtodoattheir peaks. further spread, indicat- of the laws and provision of legal Pune, whichduring itsworst ing some community- NOTINGTHATthereis“no im- guarantee on the minimum sup- phase had been reporting close levelprotection. INSIDE provement” in the situation pre- portprice.Thebenchwashearing to 6,000 cases aday,isfinding cipitatedbydifferences between aplea by advocateMLSharma, onlyabout 500cases everyday the Centreand sections of the challenging the laws. now. In fact, it has been more farming community over the It wasinitiallyinclinedto than amonth nowthat Pune’s BEFORE VACCINE newlyenacted agriculturelaws, schedule the next hearing on averagedailydetection of case ROLLOUT, MORE the Supreme Courtagreed January8.But Solicitor General CONTINUEDONPAGE2 DRY RUNS PAGE 10 Wednesdaytohearpetitionschal- Tushar Mehtasaid, “Weare hav- lenging the newlawsand those ing ahealthydiscussion” and 655 CASES RECORDED IN againstthe ongoing protests on urgedthecourttopostthematter DRIVERS, HELPERS January11. to adifferent date. OF PVT SCHOOL AbenchofChief Justice of TheAttorneyGeneraltoosub- Cases drop to six-month India SABobde, Justices AS mittedthatsincenegotiationsare BUSES STARE AT Bopanna and VRamasubra- on, agovernment replytopeti- PENURY IN GUJARAT manian fixedthe matter fornext tions againstthe laws might fore- low, 90% beds at Covid TRUMP RALLY SEES RED OVER BLUE WAVE week afterAttorneyGeneral KK close the talks. “Weunderstand CONGRESS EX-MLA Venugopal informedthe court the situation and encouragethe Supporters of US President Donald TrumpatarallyinWashington on Wednesdayprotest DIES DURING COVID that“thereare chancesof thepar- consultation,” the benchre- hospitals vacant: officials againstthe certification of Joe Biden’s victoryasVice President MikePence pushedbackto TREATMENT tiescomingto somesortofanun- markedand said it will adjourn sayhedidn’t have the powertoover-turn the verdict. Meanwhile, resultsfromGeorgia PAGES 3, 4 derstanding”. thematteronJanuary11aswellif returnedfromthe UK recently. indicated aDemocratic takeover of the Senate. AP REPORTS,PAGES12,13 Talksbetween the Centreand CONTINUEDONPAGE2 EXPRESSNEWSSERVICE According to statehealthde- AHMEDABAD,JANUARY6 partment officials, the open- testing policy (whereanyone THE NUMBER of newcoron- willing can gettestedfor the Gujarat schools to reopen for avirus cases reporteddaily virus) provides all options forRT- Woman gangraped, killed in droppedtoasix-month lowthis PCR tests, and adropinthe num- week,Gujarat health official said beroftests done is a“clear indi- classes 10, 12 from January 11 Wednesday. While the number cation” that fewerpeople were Badaun, police look for priest of testsdroppedbelow50,000 getting infected by the virus. The per dayacross the 89 RT-PCR statewas testing 50,000or more Final-year graduation and all PG courses to resume testing laboratories —42of samples in Augustlastyear. Twoarrested; SHO suspendedfor nottaking prompt action whichare government-run, at Fewerambulance trips for schools forhigher classes was case of mostofthe universities least90per cent of the desig- Covid-19, an averageofaround pendedfor nottaking prompt grape) and 302 (murder) against EXPRESSNEWSSERVICE takenataCabinetmeeting, that areconducting offline ex- nated 50,000 Covid-19beds 20 trips aday,was another indi- AMILBHATNAGAR action in the matter. the three accused. AHMEDABAD,JANUARY6 chaired by the Chief Minister aminations with a98per cent at- across the statealso remained cator of adropinthe cases, offi- BADAUN,JANUARY6 Apostmortemhas con- Amother of five,the woman VijayRupani and Deputy Chief tendance, whichshows that a vacant, theyadded. cials said. Morethan 420 ambu- firmedinjuries to her private supportedthe familyonher in- GUJARATGOVERNMENT has MinisterNitin Patel, Wednesday majorityofstudentswant to Gujarat has recordedaround lance trips were recordedin TWOMEN have been arrested parts and death due to injuries come as alocal health official, decidedtoreopen schools for and will applytoall schools study and attend on-campus 650 newvirus cases eachday Ahmedabad around November while the police arelooking for and excessive bleeding, SP,Rural with her husband mentallychal- classes 10 and 12,aswell as final- across educational boards. The classes,” stateEducation since Mondayand fewerthan thirdweek forCovid-19patients. apriestafter a50-year-old Badaun, RaghvendraSingh said. lenged.Two of the children are year graduateand all post-grad- Kasturba Gandhi Balika MinisterBhupendrasinh five fatalities. On Wednesday, “This is the lowest we have woman wasgangrapedand died Following an examination of the married. uatecourses, from January11 Vidyalayasand other schools Chudasama told The Indian 665fresh cases were recordedin seen, exceptfor March lastyear, of injuriesinBadaun on Sunday crime siteand areportbythe "Wereceivedthe information onwards. Schools have remained under the social justice and em- Express. the state. So far, five cases of the when cases were initiallybeing night. The police said she was Chief Medical Officer,theywere afterthe familyalleged on closedacross the statesince powerment department will While attendance would not newUKstrain have been de- detected (in Ahmedabad). visiting the local temple when treating it as acase of gangrape, Tuesdaythat awoman had been March due to the coronavirus also reopen. becompulsory, and online classes tected in the state, four of which Otherwise, throughout (the pe- the priest, Satyanand, and two he said. The woman had also suf- gangrapedbythree men, which outbreak,evenasclasses were “Till when schools and col- would continue, it is mandatory areinAhmedabad and one in riod of outbreak thereafter) we helpers, Vedram and Yashpal, at- feredafracture. An FIR has been later ledtoher death. Twopeople held forstudentsonline. leges will remain shut. We have forstudentstosubmit aconsent Vadodara. All the patientshad CONTINUEDONPAGE2 tacked her.AnSHO has been sus- filedunder Sections 376D(gan- CONTINUEDONPAGE2 The decision to reopen to reopen them one day. Take the CONTINUEDONPAGE2

BUSINESSASUSUAL Roads closed, fuel rationed as snow shuts Valley 4contract workers killed after BY UNNY tioning of automobile and cook- gas leak at Rourkela Steel Plant BASHAARATMASOOD ing fuels in the Valley. Two- SRINAGAR,JANUARY6 wheelers can getupto3litres of at Ispat General Hospital. They fuel, private cars can get10litres, EXPRESSNEWSSERVICE diedwhileundergoingtreatment. WIDESPREAD SNOWFALL over and commercial vehicles 20 BHUBANESWAR,JANUARY6 “The workers were engaged the lastthree days has cut offthe litres. in maintenance work at the coal Kashmir Valleyand ledto “LPG cylinder shall be issued FOUR CONTRACT workers died chemicals unit when the inci- blockedroads and powerout- to the consumer onlyafter 21 aftertoxic gasleaked at the Coal dent took place. Further investi- ages and, forthe firsttime in days againstproper acknowl- Chemicals Department of the gations areunderway,”apolice decades, rationing of fuel. edgment and receipt”, says a Rourkela Steel Plant (RSP) in official said. The snowhas ledtoclosure government order.Divisional Odisha on Wednesdaymorning. The deceasedhavebeen iden- of the Srinagar-Jammu national Commissioner,Kashmir PKPole The workers of Star tifiedasGanesh ChandraPaila highway,and suspension of pas- has ordered strict adherence to Constructions, amaintenance (59), RabindraSahu (59), senger flights. While over 12 the rationing measures. contractor firm, took ill around Brahmananda Panda (51), and EXPRESSNETWORK inches of snowhas been “On the one hand, the ad- 9amfollowing the leak at the Abhimanyu Sahu (33). “All emer- recordedinnorth Kashmir’s ministration is saying theyare plant operated by state-owned gency protocols have been imme- NOR-DAYCHIEF plains, south Kashmir has seen fullyprepared forthe winter and Steel Authority of India Ltd (SAIL). diatelyactivatedinthe plant. A GUESTTHISTIME up to 5feetofsnow. have enough stocks,and on the RSP officials said the affected high-levelprobeintothe accident PAGE 10 The Jammu-Srinagar National Highway remainedclosedonWednesday, Shuaib Masoodi The Jammu &Kashmir ad- other hand, consumers have to persons were rushedtothe OHS has been ordered,” officials said. ministration has ordered ra- CONTINUEDONPAGE2 Centreinside the plant and later RSP CEO Dipak Chattaraj movedtothe Intensive CareUnit CONTINUEDONPAGE2

PAGE1 ANCHOR Emotions to earthquakes, Einstein waves: Agovtbody’scattle class

"emotions"; cowdung benefits, tice on the websitesays. health. And while the former is as "pious" as Gangajal, the Aayog it, thunderstorms roll through, HARIKISHANSHARMA including in ensuring people The reference material talks kind, warm, active,and hygienic, says,"In 1984,morethan 20,000 the sun dries the muddy paths, NEWDELHI,JANUARY6 were "notaffected"during the at length about the "divinity"of in the reference material's people dieddue to gasleak in flowers riotintobloom, and it all Bhopal gastragedy;the "link" the cow, mentioning the Rigveda words, "no emotion is displayed Bhopal. People living in houses starts over again the next day." ANNOUNCED IN the 2019-20 in- between cowslaughter and to the Bible, adding, "Her face by the latter". It goes on to listall with cowdung coated walls 'CowSlaughter,Catastrophes terim Budget,the Rashtriya earthquakes because of animals epitomises innocence —her eyes the indigenous cattle breeds, and were notaffected.Eventoday, and Earthquakes —An Kamdhenu Aayoglists organisa- generating "Einsteinian Pain reflect peace, her horns, royalty KNOW to explain what a gaushala (cow nuclear powercentres in India Interrelationship' says karma tion of animal husbandry"on Waves"; and howIndia became and her ears, intelligence. Her YOURCOW shelter) is, and the "fivefree- and Russia use shielding dung "sufferedbad press under modern and scientific lines" aleading beef exporterunder "a udders arethe fountain of am- ‘Gaumata’ Jersey doms" it mustaim for. (against) radiation." European missionaries who be- among itsprime objectives. cow-eating leader". brosia in the form of milk; her Some lessons from the referencematerial for Asection called‘Panchgavya The 'Cow—Environment littleditas'fate'and 'fatalism', Now, taking upon itself the mis- On Tuesday, the Aayogup- tail, astairwaytothe higher re- the RashtriyaKamdhenu Aayog exam and itsUsefulness’ has details on Protection &ClimateChange' and todayfinds itself again in the sion "toinfusecuriosity...about loadedonits websitea54-page gions of being." properties and "medicinal sig- section starts by talking about ascendancy as the subtle and all- ■ Quality of ‘Gaumata’ milk ■ Quality notgood, Europe the importance of cows”, it has "reference material" forthe Another section lists howthe best in world; medical benefits neverhas Jerseymilk directly nificance" of cowdung and urine parts of the world"wherepeo- encompassing principle which announcedanonline nation- Kamdhenu Gau-Vigyan Prachar- Indian "desi"cow is vastly supe- ■ Milk yellowfromgold traces ■ Notfound in Jersey’s milk —including fighting "all blood ple live apre-industrial life". "For governs man's experiential uni- wide exam whereparticipants Prasar Examination, to be held rior to the "exotic" Jerseyvariety. ■ ‘Gaumata’ cleverenough to ■ Jerseyverylazy,prone to disorders" and leprosy,asan"an- example, Indonesian Borneo. verse in away likenedtograv- will be tested on, among other on February25. The material Unlikethe Indian cows that have neversit in dirty places diseases as nothygienic tiseptic, skin tonic and toothpol- DailylifeinBorneo’s upcountry ity's governance over the physi- things, knowledge of Indian would help candidates "get manymedicinal benefits, the ■ ‘Gaumata’ stands if ■ No emotions aredisplayed ish”, and for"anti-radioactive is usuallypleasantlydull, as cal plane". And goes on to argue, cows'"superiority" over foreign maximum awareness about reference material says,the for- unknown people approach by Jerseycow and anti-thermal properties". chickens scratcharound, the "Physicists MMBajaj,Ibrahim breeds, including in showing Kamdhenu Gau-Vigyan”, the no- eign breeds areharmful to Calling itsurine agreat elixir and women fanrice on matstodry CONTINUEDONPAGE2 Ahmedabad WWW.INDIANEXPRESS.COM 2 THE SECOND PAGE THEINDIANEXPRESS,THURSDAY,JANUARY7,2021

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Covid hotspots government to carryforwardthe emitted by dying animals." classes can be either dividedinto talks. It also allowedfarmer 'Cow: An Engine of Progress twoequal halvesorinthree sec- has remainedbelow600. groups to implead in the matter. UP, Uttarakhand ‘love jihad’ laws and Prosperity' says, tions of one-thirdstrength in Similarly,Bengaluru, which “Reintroductionof cows candras- each.Collegeprincipalsoruniver- had been powering the rapid Rourkela ticallychangetherurallandscape sity vice-chancellors will have to spreadof thediseaseinKarnataka expresseddeep anguish over in India but the entiregovern- decide the class strength. One in September and October,has the tragedy, and said RSP will ex- challenged, SC issues notice ment machineryisgeared to- batchofstudentswillbecalledfor sloweddownconsiderably, re- tendeverypossiblesupporttothe wardskillingandexportingcows. threedays whiletheothergroups sultinginasignificantdropinthe bereaved families, and inquire AfterIndependence, it took 65 fortheremainingthreedays,”the number of cases being reported intothe incident. appearing forThakreand oth- and is violative of Article 21”. native modify the said Bill”. manifestedinArticle 25 of the longyearsforIndianleadersto re- notification stated. by thestate.Formorethanaweek Ahigh-levelcommitteecom- ers, said the issue is affecting so- The Ordinance, it said, The CJP petition stated that Constitution,” but the alise their cherisheddream -- to On November 18,the state now, Karnataka has been report- prising three chief general man- ciety and the Supreme Court “makes it acriminal offence to provisions of the impugnedAct “Ordinance and the Actimpinge makeIndiaaworldleaderinbeef government had issuedanother ing less than 1,000 cases every agers has been formedtocarry can call records from courts convert aperson by offering and Ordinance violateArticle 21 upon this right by imposing un- export. This feat wasachievedin governmentresolution(GR)out- day, and Bengaluru is contribut- out the inquiry. “The identity of wheresimilar petitions are him/her an ‘allurement’… al- of the Constitutionasthese em- reasonable and discriminatory year 2012 under the able leader- lining the conditions and SOPs to ing between 300and 400. the gasisyet to be ascertained. pending. lurement has been definedvery powerthe Statetosuppress an restrictions on it by mandating ship of acow-eating leader." be followedbyschools, parents, The numbers in Mumbai too Theinquirycommitteewillinves- He said states likeMadhya broadly, to include even provid- individual’s personal liberty. that the administration be in- While RashtriyaKamdhenu andstudentsoncetheschoolsare have comedownto between400 tigatethe matter.Two deputy Pradesh and Haryana areplan- ing agifttothe person who is “The Actand Ordinance”, it formedofsuchintention and a AayogChairman Dr Vallabhbhai reopened. and 500every day, while in general managers from CCD and ning to bring similar laws. sought to be converted”. stated,“seemedtobepremised probebelaunchedinsucha Kathiria did notrespond to email The parents, in their consent Chennai, theyare firmlybelow Energy Management Senior advocateCUSingh, “This means if aperson be- on conspiracy theories and as- personal and intimateexercise or messages, aquerysent to Atul letters to be submitted to the 300now. Department (EMD) have been appearing forCJP,said Madhya longing to one religion, say sume that all conversions areil- of one’s right,” the CJP petition Chaturvedi, Secretary, school, will assurethat theyhave However, Pune continues to suspendedwith immediateef- Pradesh has convenedaspecial Islam, gifts anon-Muslim, a legallyforcedupon individuals stated. Department of Animal gonethroughtheentireSOPsand have thelargest numberof active fect. It has been decidedthat one session to pass the law. book concerning the teachings whomay have attainedthe age The newlaws, it stated,view Husbandryand Dairying, who is guarantee to followthese guide- cases in anycity right now, with familymemberof eachofthevic- Following the submissions, of Islam and the said non- of majority”and “place abur- “all women including econom- the ex-officio vice-chairman of lines.Also, asample consent let- morethan 12,500patientsstill to timswillbeprovidedwithjobsby the benchagreedtoissue no- Muslim person who received den on individuals to justify icallyweak,marginalised, priv- the the Aayog, remainedunan- ter, issuedbythe education de- recover. In the middle of the plant,” an RSP official said. tice. the book afterreading it decides their personal decisions for ilegedwomen to besusceptible swered. partment, asksthe parentsto September,ithad morethan RSPwasIndia'sfirstintegrated Singh sought astayonthe to convertto Islam, the said con- Stateapproval… this is anotion to illegal conversions”. An official, speaking offthe assurethatastudentwillcometo 80,000active cases. steelplantinthepublicsector,and operation of the laws,saying version could be said to have that is constitutionallyrepug- While usually, in criminal record, said the reference mate- the school wearing aface mask, LikeDelhi, even Chennai no currentlyproduces 4.5 MTPA people arebeing liftedfrom takenplace by ‘allurement’ nant and againstacitizen’s right cases, the burden of proof is on rialfortheplannedexamwasnot withawaterbottleandbreakfast, longer figures in the top10cities (milliontonnesperannum)of hot marriagefunctions and mob at- since it occurredafter agiftwas to freelyexercise his/her free- the prosecution to proveguilt approved by the government. andwillnotsharethesewithoth- withmaximumnumberof active metal. tacksare taking place. giventothe convert,” it said. dom of choice” and impinges and the accusedisconsidered “TheRashtriyaKamdhenuAayog ers. cases. This listisnow dominated He said the twolawsimpose If apreacher simplygives a on the “right to lifeand liberty innocent until proven guilty,the is an autonomous body," the offi- To avoid overcrowding in by cities in Kerala, whichhas Badaun areverse burden of proof and discourse about positive tenets as well as right to freedom of re- UP Ordinance states that the cial said. schools,thestategovernmenthad addedmoreinfections than any have been arrested while the intimation to police formar- of his religion, whichprompts ligion”. burden of proof on whether re- Whileannouncingtheconsti- earlierdirectedthemto followan other stateinthe lastthree main accusedwill be arrested riage. “Prima facie it’s an op- anyone hearing it to convert,it The twolaws, it said, “are ligious conversion waseffected tution of the Aayogduring the odd-evenformula. months. Six of the 10 cities with soon," the SP said. pressive clause. It’s anon-bail- toowill amount to illegal “al- unconstitutional as both at- through misrepresentation, presentation of the interim maximum active cases -- The woman’s familysaid she able offence. This is therein lurement” under the tempttocontrol the lifeofthe force, undue influence, coer- Budget onFebruary21, 2019,then Six-month low Ernakulam, Pathanamthitta, had gone to the local temple for both Acts.Dailythereare re- Ordinance, the plea said. residentsofUttarakhand and cion, allurement or by any Finance MinisterPiyush Goyal have neverseen ambulance trips Kottayam, Thrissur,Kozhikode prayers on Sundayevening but ports of people being pickedup It said “though the Uttar Pradesh and to notallow fraudulent means or by mar- hadsaiditwouldseekto "upscale forCovid-19patientsdropbelow and Kollam -- areinKerala. The did notreturn foralong time. by force,” he said, pressing for Impugned Ordinance seeksto them to take charge of the sig- riage, lies on the person who sustainablegeneticup-gradation 100. By November lastweek,we stateitself has the highest num- Around11 pm,theysaid,thethree an interim stay. address the mischief of forcible nificant decisions in their life”. has causedthe conversion and, of cowresources and to enhance were making an averageof200 berofactive cases in the country accuseddroppedher in aBolero But the benchsaid: “You are conversion, howeveritprovides They“allowfor an unnecessary wheresuchconversion has production and productivity of tripsaday,whichfurtherreduced right now, morethan 62,000,or near herhomeinaninjured con- asking forrelief whichwecan- that ‘reconversion’ to aperson’s intrusion in the livesofpeople been facilitated by anyperson, cows”,aswellas"effective imple- to 100-150 trips in the firsthalf of almost25per cent of the coun- dition. The familytook her to a notentertain under Article 32. previous religion is notillegal, who have their autonomycom- on suchother person. mentation of laws and welfare December.This is agood sign but try’s active caseload. nearbydistrict hospital, where Whether the provision is arbi- even if it is vitiated by fraud, promisedbythe State,” the pe- Calling this “dangerous”, the schemes forcows”. we arealso mindful that Scientists saythat in manyof she died. traryoroppressive needs to be force, allurement, misrepresen- tition stated,adding that “when petition stated that “the im- Whiledetailsarenot available Uttarayan(kitefestival)iscoming the urban centres, likeDelhi, Her16-year-olddaughtersaid seen. This is the problem when tation and so on”. the individuals have to ap- pugnedlawsmakethe govern- about expenditureofthe Aayog, up,” an official from GVKEMRI, Mumbai or Pune, the disease theyheardacommotion and youcome directlytothe The plea pointedout that in- proachthe District Magistrate ment assume the role of pro- the government allocated Rs 310 the emergency service that plies prevalence, or the proportion of came out of the one-room house Supreme Court.”. terfaith couples in the country to validatetheir conversion for tecting religious identities of the croreinthe Union Budget 2020- ambulances, said. population infected by the virus, thefamilystays inwhentheysaw Singh said it is obnoxious to oftenbear the brunt of being os- purpose of marriageorother- people and demonstrates intol- 21 fora'RashtriyaGokulMission', From 60 Covid-19dedicated hasalready reachedalevel from the "baba (priest)" with twooth- seek prior permission from a tracisedfromthe community, wise, (it) violates this veryright erance towardsthe religious to “conserveand develop ambulances in the city post- wheretherewill be asignificant ers,andtheirmotherlyinguncon- magistratefor marriage. so muchsothat families engage to privacy and disempowers” choices of the people” which“in Indigenous Breeds in ascientific Diwali,whentherewasaspurtin slowdown in further spread. In sciousinapoolof blood."Shewas “Wewill hear,” the bench in the crime of “honour killing”. them. itself is an attackonthe secular and holistic manner”. virus cases, currently10-15am- the absence of anysero-preva- barelybreathing.Sheappearedto said, issuing notice returnable The petition by Thakreand Pointing out that Article 25 fabric that holds Indian democ- An official pegged the bulances arededicated forferry- lence studies from recent weeks, be hurtverybadly,"the daughter in four weeks. others contendedthat the law of the Constitutionprovides racy together”. RashtriyaKamdhenuAayog’san- ing Covid-19patients, the official the extent of disease prevalence said. Meanwhile, the Jamiat “curtails the Fundamental everyindividualthe‘freedomof It states that anti-conversion nual budget at close to Rs 1crore, added. isnotknownbutitispossiblethat The woman wascremated Ulama-i-Hind has also moved Rightsofthe citizen of India... conscience’andfreeprofession, laws are“essentiallycrimes “mainlyonaccountof salariesand In apress statement in some of these cities, 40 to 50 the next dayfollowing apost- the topcourt, seeking permis- disturbs the Basic Structureof practiceandpropagationof reli- againstthe autonomyof office expenses”. Wednesday, JayantiRavi,theprin- per cent of the population has al- mortem. Afterthe reportindi- sion to implead in the challenge the Constitution as laid down gion,thepetitionstatedthat“the women, dictating terms on po- cipal secretary(health,) said ow- ready been infected. cated rape, an FIR wasregistered to the laws,calling them a by the Law” and “is againstthe Sanatan Hindu faith while not tential suitors from within the Gujarat schools ing to the effortsoverthe past10 The lastround of suchstudies on Tuesday. The familyhas said “graveassault on personal lib- Public Policy and society at obviouslyproselytizing, have, woman’s community,caging letter from parentstoattend monthsanddecisionstakenatthe conducted in Pune, forexample, the police refusedtoregistera erty”. large”.Their plea statedthat the also from the period of Early her constitutional freedoms”. physical classes. corecommittee level, whichin- had shown that notonlyhad the case earlier. The application, filed Actand Ordinance are“against India to MedievalIndia, by co- On November 28, UP On November 11,the state cludesChief MinisterVijay Rupani diseaseprevalenceinsomeareas The twoaccusedwho have through advocateEjaz the provisions of Special option absorbed those from Governor Anandiben Patelgave government had proposedtore- and Deputy Chief MinisterNitin gone beyond 50 per cent of the been arrested,however, have Maqbool, said the Uttar Pradesh MarriageAct, 1954,and it will Adivasi, Indigenous and her assent to the Ordinance open schools forclasses 9to12, Patel,thesituationhasbeen“suc- population, but also that, subse- claimedthat theyhad found the Ordinance “attemptstoregu- createfear in the society” as Subaltern Faiths that were not whichprohibitsconversion andcollegesforfinal-yearunder- cessfullybrought under control”. quently, the rate of spread had womaninsideawell,injuredand lateapersonal decision of each even those who arenot partof until this co-option ‘Hindu’. from one religion to another by graduate, postgraduate, medical, Datashared by Ravi stated come down significantly, point- bleeding,andrushedherto ahos- human being by encroaching anysuchactivity can be falsely Hence, as anecessarycorollary “misrepresentation, force, and paramedical courses from that of the total 7,992 bedsavail- ing to some community-level pital in Chandausi. When it re- upon an individual’s choice to implicated. of thegrouprightof areligionto fraud, undue influence, coer- November 23. The decision was able in Ahmedabad city,cur- protection setting in. fusedtoadmit her,theydropped convert to areligion of his/her The petitioners have urged propagate, an individual must cion, allurement or marriage”. withdrawnonNovember 19. rently606 areoccupied, that is the woman at her home, they choice” and that “scrutinyby the courttodirect the states have the right to convert to any Under the law, amarriagewill “Schools and colleges will thereisabed vacancy of 92 per AG says said. the stateofsuchapersonal de- “nottogiveeffect to impugned religion other than his own”. be declared null and void if the have to followthe SOP (standard cent. Vadodarahas an 82 per cent neededinthe interestofthe con- The police said theywere cision is agrave assault on per- provisions/ordinance and with- “Hence, the right to convert “sole intention” is to changea operating procedure) laid out by bed vacancy of the total 5,890 sultation process. waiting forthe arrest of sonal liberty of an individual draw the same or in the alter- oneself to another religion is girl’s religion. the Centre, whichhas already bedswith over 800ICU bedsva- The bench, whichissuedno- Satyanand to ascertain morede- been conveyedtoall educational cant in the city., too, has tice on Sharma’s plea, is dealing tails, and ateam of four persons institutes. Adecision to reopen manyas97per cent of its7,783 with aclutchofpetitions chal- has been formedtonab him. had shown lapses on the partof “I have heardabout rationing ernmentdepartmenttaskedwith Powersupplytothe city and other classes is under considera- beds vacant. Across the state, she lenging the farm laws and some The police said that the the SHO. "Even though the fam- of fuel forthe firsttime,” Mir said. clearing the main highways of towns wasrestoredrelatively tion and an announcement is said, on an average90per cent of againstthe ongoing protests at woman wasafrequent visitor to ilydid notsubmit awritten com- “The [Srinagar-Jammu] road JammuandKashmir,saidthefail- quickly, but severalvillages in likelytobemadewithin10 days,” the over 50,000 bedsfor Covid- Delhi’s borders. the temple, and the priestwas plaint on the firstday,the SHO would remain closedfor aweek uretoremove the snowwas due south Kashmir continuedtobe Chudasama added. The minister 19 patientsare vacant. Others who have challenged known in the area as he lived should have carriedout an in- at most. Does it (rationing) mean to a“tactical” mistake. darkandcold.“Electricitywasre- also ruledout rumours and de- On Wednesday, Ahmedabad, the farm laws include RJD Rajya there. spectionof thecrimesite.If during that theydon’t have stocksto last “Basically, we cleared the stored today(Wednesday) mands from some section for whichhas been seen to drive the Sabha member Manoj Jha, DMK The woman's familysaid she investigationitisfoundmorepo- even aweek?” roads during the night. We had evening after24hours,” said mass promotion and said there state-wideCovid-19trend RajyaSabhamemberTiruchiSiva, wasveryreligious and had in- lice officers had notperformed The snowand the govern- been told that the weather will AkashAhmad,aresidentof Imam will be “no mass promotion but broadly, reported140 cases. and some residentsof formedthe priestinadvance theirdutiesontime,actionwillbe ment’s seeming failuretoantici- clear up by early Wednesday Sahib Shopian. “But thereare examinations will be basedonly Ahmedabad Municipal Chhattisgarh. about aprayer she wanted to do takenagainstthem as well," he patechallenges despitethe me- morning, so we put all the ma- manyvillages nearbywhichare on the curriculum covered”. Corporation-run SVPHospital, a The courthas already issued at the temple on Sunday. said. teorological department's chineryand men on the job dur- still without electricity supply.” OnNovember13,thestateed- dedicatedCovid-19hospital, cur- notice on these pleas whichraise Contesting the claim of the ac- Chief MinisterYogi warning of heavy to very heavy ing the night,” Chief Engineer ucation department had issueda rentlyhas reservedtwoofthe to- the grievance that the laws act cusedthat theyhad rescuedher Adityanath has sought areport snow, have thrownlifecom- Rashid Ahmad told The Indian Cattle class government resolution (GR) no- tal11floors forCovid-19patients, againsttheinterestoffarmersand from awell, her son-in-lawsaid, from the ADG, Bareillyzone, and pletely out of gear in the Valley Express. “Afterwecleared the andVijayraj Singhhave proposed tifyingguidelinesforreopeningof acivic official said. The hospital put them at the mercy of corpo- "The fact is that therewas no dirt told STFunitstoprovide support and angered people. Manyroads roads, therewas heavy snowfall the theorythat animal slaughter colleges and universities from Wednesdayannouncedspecial ratesbydismantling the on her clothes. She wasgan- to the investigating teams. Are- have beenblockedforthreedays. in the morning. Iadmit, it wasa andnaturalcalamitieslikeearth- November23.PrincipalSecretary mental health services, Agricultural Produce Market grapedbythem on the temple ward of Rs 25,000 has been an- On Tuesday, the government tactical area. We couldn’t strate- quakeshave aninterrelationship... (education) Anju Sharma ‘Santvana’ project, forextending Committees(APMC)mechanism. premises. Whydid the accused nouncedbythe Badaun District madeseveralappealsto peopleto giseproperly,whichcausedsome The theoryexamines the com- Wednesdaysaid,“Thehighered- psychiatric assistance to Covid- Apleaagainsttheprotestswas notinform people nearbyifshe Police forthe captureof stay indoors so that roads could problems.” plexroleof nociceptive waves(or ucation institutes will reopen as 19 patients. filedbylaw student Rishabh had fallen in the well? Whydid- Satyanand, with officials saying becleared.However, anexamina- Manyvillageroads and lanes the waves generated by the ani- per the SOP issuedinNovember. Ahmedabad Civil Hospital at Sharma who cited the Covid-19 n'ttheyalertpeopleinourvillage the administration will consider tionto recruitBankingAssociates remainedunder snowon mals on the vergeofbeing Onlythe dates forreopening will present has fewerthan 100pa- situation and hardship causedto when theycame to knowofher invokingtheNationalSecurityAct forJammuandKashmirBankhas Wednesdayevening. At several butchered)inshearwavesplitting be different. No fresh SOP will be tientsadmitted,according to a commuters and patientsinneed condition? Thereare so many againstthe accused. notbeen deferred, and several places, people complainedthat whichisrelated to seismic issued.” hospital official, of the total 1200 of emergency health care. questionsthatprovethattheyare candidatesinKashmirhave been patientsand pregnant women anisotropy...Thedailybutchering As per the November 13 GR, bedsinthe COVID19-designated Lastmonth, the benchex- lying.We justwantjusticesothat Valley snow unable to appear,fuelling allega- had to walk forkilometres to of thousandsof animalscontinu- according to the requirement of unit. Private quotacritical beds pressedits intention to form a noonecandosuchathingagain." wait forthree weekstoget agas tions of regional discrimination. reachhospitals. J&K Police said allyfor severalyears generates the course and keeping in mind in AMC-requisitionedhospitals committeecomprisingmembers Badaun SP Sankalp Sharma cylinder,”Srinagar resident The Chief Engineer, theyhad carriedseveral patients acoustic anisotropydue to thenumberof students,institutes also recorded15per cent occu- of farmer associations and the said that the preliminaryreport Firdous Ahmad Mir said. Mechanical Engineering, agov- to hospital on foot. Einsteinian Pain Waves(EPW) have to fixtheclassstrength.“The pancy,officials said.

‘Casteist’ shoe: got these and other shoes in bulk to explain that Ididn’t checkthe againsthim over Sections 323 caste,the police said theyhad not group of men standing near shoes with 'Thakur' written on JIGNASASINHA from Delhi. soles, but theydidn’t listen... Ibuy (voluntarilycausing hurt) and detainedorarrestedthe 31-year- Nasir’s stall and checking out the them. "This is casteism... it's very Cops say BULANDSHAHR,JANUARY6 “I workedat ashop in the city, shoes from Delhi, what wrong 504(intentional insult with intent oldbut lethim go afterquestion- shoes on display. In the 57-second insulting to Hindus. When Iwent but lostmyjob in the lockdown. have Idone?" to provokebreachofpeace) will ing at the police station. On video, Nasir can be heardsaying, theretocheck,Ifound afew such never held BOOKED FORselling shoes that It’s been amonth since Istarted Having registeredacase continue. Mondayevening, the police took “I didn’t makethe shoes.” To this, pairs. IaskedNasir nottosell such had ‘Thakur’ written on them, selling shoes. Therewereonly againstNasir under IPC Section While Nasir waspickedupon NasirtoGhaziabadinsearchof the aman in the crowdresponds: shoes but he abusedand as- Nasir,aroadside vendor in three-four pairs with ‘Thakur’ on 153A,dealing with promoting en- Mondaymorningfollowingacom- wholesale manufacturer of the “Then whyhaveyou got them saulted me. Iwent to the police accused, Gulaothi, Bulandshahr,said he them," he told The Indian Express, mity between groups, the police plaint by local Bajrang Dal leader shoes -- in vain. here?” Chauhan told The Indian station and lodged acomplaint." had nevercheckedwhat wasem- adding that men had come to his Wednesdaysaid theyweredrop- Vishal Chauhan, who claimedthe CCTVfootage of the incident Express he had gone to Nasir's FULLREPORTON charge diluted bossedonthe soles, and that he shop and roughedhim up. "I tried ping this charge.The investigation shoeswereanattempttodefamea shared on social media shows a shop on hearing that he kept www.indianexpress.com

Ahmedabad WWW.INDIANEXPRESS.COM

THEINDIANEXPRESS,THURSDAY,JANUARY7,2021 FOR RESEARCH INDIAN AIR FORCE SIGNS MOUWITH IDRS TheIndian AirForce and Institute of Defence Studies and Research(IDSR) signed amemorandum 3 of understanding (MoU) to enable officersofIAF to undertakedoctoral research, and post-graduate GUJARAT programmes on December 29,2020, an official statement said.

Congress ex-MLA dies ONE ARRESTED during Covid treatment FakeGSTinvoices EXPRESSNEWSSERVICE VADODARA,JANUARY6 Tadvi wasa FORMER CONGRESS MLABabar three-term racketworthover Tadvi, atribal leader from MLA Sankheda taluka in Chhota Udepur district, passedawayon Wednesdaywhile undergoing 1990 by amargin of over 9,000 treatmentforCovid-19ataprivate votes, and later in 1995 and 1999 Rs2,400crbusted hospital in Vadodara. He was80. as Congress candidate. Tadvi was Tadvi wasathree-term MLA amongthegroupof JantaDallead- and also servedas astate minister ers who joinedthe Congress Excise department, Ahmedabad- acy and involvement of more forabrief period. He wasadmit- during aparty rebellion in 1995. EXPRESSNEWSSERVICE North, stated Wednesday. persons and fake firms in the city, tedtoaprivate-empanelledCovid- He also brieflydefected to AHMEDABAD,JANUARY6 The total value of the fake in- whichexpandedthe fraudfig- 19 hospital in Vadodarafor treat- the BJP but returnedtothe voices issuedbythe six firms was ures anywherenear Rs 1,000 ment lastweek afterhe Congress fold. THE ANTI-EVASION wing of Rs 2,435.96 crore, whichresulted croreinvolving fake input tax complainedoffever and tested Tadvi had also unsuccessfully Central Goods and Services Tax in fraudulent transfer of input tax credit of Rs 300crore,the depart- positive forthe infection. contestedthe 2002 and 2007 (CGST) Wednesdaysaid it has credit of Rs 72.25 crore, the state- ment movedanapplication be- Aschool teacher by profes- AssemblypollsfromSankheda.He Healthcareworkers conduct door-to-door survey forCovid-19vaccination registration in arrested aNew Ranip-resident ment added. fore the courtonWednesday sion, Tadvi wonhis firstAssembly hadservedasaministerofstate in Ahmedabad, on Wednesday. Nirmal Harindran Bharat Bhagwandas Soni for Input taxcredit is usually seeking remand of the accused election on aJantaDal ticket in Gujarat fortribal affairs. allegedly operating aracket of claimedbyamanufacturer,sup- to CGSTcustody.The remand ap- issuing fake GSTinvoices worth plier,agent, e-commerce entity , plication statedthe investigation Rs 2,435.96 crore. etcwho areregisteredunder GST is at acrucial stageand custodial Probe on after Health dept issues bird flu “Investigation revealedthat while paying taxonthe final interrogation of Soni is necessary CASETRACKER Soni had hatchedawell-orches- product or output. At the time of to confront him with evidence of Places ConfirmedDeaths Newcases trated conspiracy with many paying this taxonoutput, one can documentarytrial and financial migrant advisory to dist authorities other similar fraudsters to enable reduce the taxalready paid on in- transactions,besides to getthe Ahmedabad 57,164 2,261139 various bullion dealers in the city put and payonlythe balance factscorroborated with other worker from Amreli 3,885 34 5 ductperiodicsurveillanceinpoul- to fraudulentlyshowpurchase of amount. persons and witnesses in his Anand 2,331 17 8 EXPRESSNEWSSERVICE tryfarmsandbackyardpoultryin gold, silverand diamond prod- At atime when the govern- presence,” astatement issuedby UP found dead Aravalli 1,172263 AHMEDABAD,JANUARY6 casesof birds’deathsandincaseof uctsand avail bogus input tax ment is already struggling with the department Wednesday Banaskantha 4,642 38 5 reportedbirddeaths in forests- credit in suchpurchase invoices. lowrevenue collection due to the read. THEGUJARAThealthdepartment whether sudden death or due to As apartofthis conspiracy, Covid-19pandemic, cases of fake The prosecution also submit- in Vadodara Bharuch3,958 18 6 onTuesdaycommunicatedto dis- natural death -district depart- Soni floated six different trading GSTinvoices fraudare making a tedthat if custodial interrogation 5,965 70 8 trict health authorities and other mentsintandem with forest de- firms in his name and in names further dent in the government’s is notgranted,the ultimateben- EXPRESSNEWSSERVICE Botad1,035122 concernedhealthofficialsto keep partment mustconduct surveil- of his son, daughters, sons-in-law, pocket and itsability to spend. eficiaries mayescape their taxre- VADODARA,JANUARY6 Chhota Udepur 895 4 aneyeoutforbirdflu,giventhere- lance. etc, and obtainedGST registra- On January3,Soni waspro- sponsibility by influencing and Dahod 3,0977 12 cent outbreak in the neighbour- In case of natural death of tions. He also operated bank ac- ducedbeforethe additional chief tampering with evidence, wit- HARNI POLICE station in ing stateofRajasthan. birds in poultryfarm or among counts, openedinthe names of metropolitan magistratecourtin nesses and other accusedper- Vadodaracity initiated aprobe Dang 1541 Additional director in the backyardpoultry, those working fictitious entities, by using Ahmedabad and wasremanded sons, therebyputting huge intothe alleged murder of a Devbhoomi Dwarka 9,8005 1 health department Dr Dinkar at the said sites or household chequebookssignedinadvance to judicial custody.The accused amount of government revenue 25-year-old migrant worker from 8,217 10520 Ravalwrote to officialsstatingthat members who were in contact by the respective familymem- movedabail application which at risk. Uttar Pradesh, whose body was Gir Somnath 2,348 22 4 incidentsofsuddendeathof birds with the poultrymustbesur- bers and kept by him,” astate- wasslated to be heard The courtissuedanotice to found in apool of blood in an Jamnagar10,232 35 17 were reportedinRajasthan veyediftheyare exhibitingsymp- ment issuedbythe office of the Wednesday. the accusedfor hearing on open plotnear Khodiyarnagar whereafteronedistrictuponsur- tomsof avianflusuchasfever,he- commissioner CGSTand Central “In viewofthe largerconspir- Thursday. area. 5,009 32 15 veillancedetectedcasesof birdflu, adache, body ache, nasal The deceased, identifiedas Kheda 3,009 33 11 thus making it extremelyimpor- congestion,diarrhoea,coughand Anil Yadav, wasallegedly stabbed Kutch4,073 33 11 tant forGujarat to remain “cau- cold. In case the samples of de- to death early Wednesday. Mahisagar 1,988134 tious.” ceasedbirdturnoutto bepositive Police Inspector RS Baria of According to Dr Raval, as of forbirdflu, some steps mustbe 6,704 38 7 Harni police station said it wasa Wednesdayevening,nooutbreak takenimmediately, stated the caseof murder and the police are Morbi 3,124208 of birdflu had been reported communique.These include sur- nowonthe lookout fortwo of Narmada 1,9761 4 across the state. veillance in human and birdpop- Yadav’s friends who have been Navsari 1,6018 6 In this regard,the health de- ulation by the health and the ani- missing since the crime. Panchmahal 4,146236 partment laid down some advi- mal husbandrydepartment, Baria said, “The injuryonthe sorystepsforofficialsto beonthe declaring the radius of at least10 Patan4,183 51 6 neckbehind the right ear indi- lookout forplausible incidences. kilometreoftheaffectedareaasa cates Tadavwas stabbed.Also, Porbandar 1,0794 2 Districtswereadvisedtocon- high-alertzone. thereisaruptureofthe muscular 21,357 202 88 artery.Wevisitedthe area where Sabarkantha 2,853 13 11 his body wasfound. The local res- Surat 50,225 969 124 identshavetold us that the de- Surendranagar 3,465 14 4 ceasedusedtoworkasapainter and wasoriginallyfromUttar Tapi 1,052 62 Pradesh. We have begun Vadodara25,383247 127 tracking his familyand also 1,3758 the twomen, who, local Other states 1483 residentssaid, were lastseen with him.” The police, whichhad sent Cumulative Total New Cumulative the body forautopsy to SSG hos- discharge: cases: cases: deaths: pital, have registeredanoffense 2,36,323 2,48,500 665 4,354 of culpablehomicideamounting to murder under Section 302 of the Indian Penal Code. Baria said that while prelimi- naryinquiryindicates a“personal rivalry”, the motive behind the crime will be known onlyafter the suspectsare arrested. Five arrested for stealing gold from jewellery store

EXPRESSNEWSSERVICE AHMEDABAD.JANUARY6

THEAHMEDABADDetectionof CrimeBranch(DCB)teamWed- nesdayarrestedfivepersons in connection with twoincidents of robberiesinAhmedabadover the lasttwo days,including a heistatajewellerystore. Policehave identifiedtheac- cusedasRajveer Singh Gaur (35),SatyendraSinghGaur(25), SukhendraSingh Narvariya (38), all residentsofNaroda in Ahmedabad, and Deepak Parihar and AjayMaratha, both residentsofUlhasnagar in Mumbai. Police said the accusedhad lootedcash and gold ornaments worthRs6.77lakh ViralGold Palace jewellerystore in Nikol of AhmedabadonSundaynight.The ganghadattackedthestoreowner with butt of ahandgun and fired oneroundintheairbefore fleeing, said the police.The gang had also allegedly targetedGayatriTraders shop in Thakkarnagar on January 2and lootedRs30,000 cash in similar operandi. “Weheld Rajveer,Satyendra and SukhendrafromKDCaterers inNarodaTuesdayandrecovered stolencashworthRs2.7lakh.The accusedrevealedtousthewhere- aboutsofDeepakPariharandAjay Maratha who were then held by ateam from Mumbai,” said apo- lice officer at Ahmedabad DCB adding that three morepersons areabscondinginthe case. Ahmedabad WWW.INDIANEXPRESS.COM 4 GUJARAT THEINDIANEXPRESS,THURSDAY,JANUARY7,2021

RoPax ferry FIRST CASE IN RAJKOT UNDER NEW LEGISLATION resumes Congcriesfoulasworkerbooked service day after snag underanti-landgrabbinglaw

EXPRESSNEWSSERVICE forhelp. On September 30, 2020, Rajkot Municipal Corporation. SURAT, JANUARY 6 EXPRESSNEWSSERVICE Our worker is being 10 men were standing near a “Our worker is being framedby RAJKOT,JANUARY6 framed by officers cabin of steel-sheets on our land officers at the behestofthe BJP to THE HAZIRA-GHOGHA RoPax to show the party in poor and when Lalit Parmar and showthepartyinpoorlightahead ferryservices resumedWedn- ADAY afteralocalcourtinthecity light ahead of the PrashantbhaiJainwentthereand of the election. The case is politi- esdayafter an electrical fault sent Kanaksinh Jadeja, the hus- election. The case is askedustoleave and threatened callymotivatedandwe shallsiton strandedthe vessel forseveral band forformer Congress corpo- us.” She addedJain and Parmar dharnaagainstthisonThursday,” hours mid-sea aday agowith ratorUrvashibaJadeja,andherrel- politically motivated and were member of her staff. Dangar said. nearly 100Ghogha-bound ative Mahavirsinh Jadeja to we shall sit on dharna Mehtafurther said thus, Rajyaguru addedMahen- passengers. Atug from Hazira six-daypolice remand afterthey against this” Mahendrasinh, Kanaksinh, drasih, son of the orginal owner later assistedthe vessel to were arrested forallegedly grab- —ASHOK DANGAR Mahavirsinh and five to six other Natwarsinh, had givenacom- Ghogha in Bhavnagar. bing21-gunthalandinVavdiarea PRESIDENT,RAJKOTCITYCONGRESS unidentifiedpersons grabbed plaint to Rajkot city police com- On Tuesday, the RoPaxferry FIRE DRILL of the city,Congress on 2,125squaremetresout of her missioneronSeptember30,2020, had leftHaziraportinSurat at 8 Wednesdayalleged that its 5,261squaremetresland and at- allegingfraudinthesaidland.“But am forGhogha. Besides 100pas- Mockfiredrill at SSG Hospital to checkpreparedness of staffduring emergency,inVadodara worker had been framedina temptedtoextortbig sum of police did nottakeany action,” sengers, the vessel wasloaded on Wednesday. BhupendraRana “false” case of land grabbing to someone of their land. moneybythreatening her. Rajyaguru, aformer Congress with trucks,cars, and bikes. tarnish the imageofthe party In her complaint filedwith However, at apress confer- MLAfromRajkot(east), alleged. Around 10 am, sources said, aheadof theupcominglocalbody TalukapoliceonJanuary3,Mehta ence on Wednesday, Congress Rajkot city police commis- afault wasreportedinthe steer- elections. stated that her mother Meenak- leaderIndranilRajyaguruclaimed sioner Manoj Agarwaltold The ing of the vessel, as aresult of Kanaksinh, his father umari Parekh had purchased that Kanaksinh’s grandfather Indian Express, “While Idon’t re- whichitwas strandedmid-sea. 10 pvt schools in Surat sealed for Mahendrasinh and their relative 5,261squaremetresofagricul- Natvarsinh had sold only31gun- member the action takeninre- Staffers contacted their counter- Mahavirsinh Jadeja and five turallandbearingsurvey No.38/3 tha (101.18 squaremetresmake spect with that application, they parts in Haziraand experts tried unidentifiedpersons were from Natubha Jadeja, adjoining one guntha) land to Parekh in should nothaveentered the land to fixthe problem. Later,atug not installing fire safety equipment bookedby Rajkot Talukapoliceon the Gondal Highway in the rev- 1970.Hesaid that later on, asur- and threatenedthe owners. wassent from Haziratothe Sundayforrioting,criminalintim- enue jurisdiction of Vavdi village veybythe district inspector of Rather than taking lawintheir vessel forassistance. ong the schools to find out whe- GoverdhandasSonawalaManiba idation,mischief causingdamage inJuly1970. Mehtastatedthatan land records (DILR) found the ac- hands,theyshouldhave takenthe Sources said afterfivehours EXPRESSNEWSSERVICE therfire safetymeasureswere un- VidhyalayatGopipura, Surchand to the tune of Rs 50 as well as un- entrywas made in the recordof tual size of that plotofland was matter to court.” of remaining strandedinthe SURAT,JANUARY6 dertakenbythem. The officials ParamchandJaveriGirlsSchoolat der the Gujarat Land Grabbing rightsofthis land as per order of one acreand 12 guntha (40 gun- Asked if the Jadeja familyhad middle of the sea, the vessel con- had issuednotices to the schools Gopipuraand KSJoshi School at (Prohibition) Act, 2020. deputydirector (land records) of thas makeone acre). right to claim the additional land tinuedits voyagetoGhogha at a THE FIRE department officials of to install the safetyequipment. Shahporeweresealed. Thepolicehadbookedthetrio Rajkot in December 2017. “This KJP (kami-jasti patra, afterthe KJP,Parimal Pandya, res- slowerspeedof3nautical miles Surat Municipal Corporation The fire department officials Aftergetting calls from the afterRajkotdistrict collector However, theaccusedchallenged meaning addition or subtraction ident additional collector of to 4nautical miles. Wednesdaysealed10private Wednesdaycarriedout asurvey schoolauthorities,thefire depart- issuedanorder forpolice action this entryinthe revenue court. in aplotofland) waslegal right of Rajkot,said, “I can’t discuss tech- The vessel waslikelytoreach schools in the city forfailing to in- among those schools whichhad ment officials instructed them to followingacomplaintfiledbyone AfterhermotherdiedonJune theJadejafamilybyvirtueof they nical pointsasthe decision has itsdestination nearly at 2pmbut stall fire safetyequipement on been slappednotice to install fire give anaffidavitonastamppaper Renuben Mehta, aresident of 16,2019,Mehtaappliedformuta- being the original owner of the been takenbythe committee. reachedseveral hours lateinthe their premises even afterthey safetyequipment.Thefire depart- of Rs 300giving their consentto Nana Mava Road in the city,on tion entryinthe records of the land notthe Parekh family. The Investigation is ongoing and the evening. The authorities reim- were issuednotices. mentteamsfoundthattenprivate allowthe fire department to file a December 23 lastyear. landonAugust5,2020,butKana- Jadeja familyhad filedacivil suit courtwill take adecision. One bursedthe ticket faresfor pas- Afterthe Takshashila arcade schoolshad notfollowedthe fire police complaint againstthem if Kanaksinh and Mahavirsinh ksinh and others challenged that about this and it is pending. But can’t comment when the matter sengers who were waiting to fire in Surat, whichclaimedlives safetyguidelines,followingwhich fire safetyequipment arenot in- were detainedSundaynight and entryalso “and thus disputed the now, thedefendantinthatsuithas is sub judice.” Apanel headedby boardthe ferryatGhogha. of 22 students, the fire depart- their premises were sealed. stalledinseven days. were arrested formallyafter they title of the land belonging to us”. become complainant and the theRajkot districtcollectorto dis- Sources said the vessel sailed menthadinstructedalleducation SwaminarayanVidhya School Chief Fire Officer with SMC testednegative forCovid-19infec- In her complaint, Mehtafur- originalcomplainanthasbeenar- pose of applications seeking reg- backfromGhogha to Haziraport institutions, hospitals, commer- atSimada,SadhnaNiketanSchool Basant Pareek said, “Wehave tion. Alocal courtinthe city had ther stated,“On September 29, restedby police.Thisisclassiccase istrationof caseundertheGujarat in the evening. The repairing was cial and residential complexes, at Varachha, Scholar English startedtaking affidavit in which sentthemto policeremandforsix 2020, eight to 10 men trespassed of chor kotval ko dande (the thief Land Grabbing (Prevention) Act, done in the night. On textile markets, factories, malls School at Pandesara, Ankur theyhavetogiveconsent to the days on Tuesday. intoour land afterbreaking asec- punishes the guard),” said 2020, had granted Mehta’s plea Wednesday, the services re- and multiplexestoinstall fire VidhyalayatKatargam, Yogi fire department that theywill be This wasthe firstcase in the tion of compound wall and Rajyaguru. forseeking police action in her sumedand the vessel sailed safetyequipment and ensure VidhyalayatKatargam, ready to face police complaintsif cityunderthenewanti-landgrab- starteddigging holes to install a Ashok Dangar,the president matter.Accordingly,the collector from Haziracarrying 200pas- emergency exit passage. Gurukrupa playgroup and nurs- work is notdone in sevendays. bing Actthat had come intoforce cabin of steel sheets but theyran of Rajkot cityunitof theCongress, office had issuedanorder on sengers, trucks,and cars reached Afew monthsago,thedepart- eryschool at Sagrampura, Pinkle We will continue our drive fora lastmonth and is aimedatpre- away afterpolicereachedthespot alleged this wasaploytodefame January1directing criminal pro- to Ghogha successfullywithout menthadcarriedoutasurvey am- Playgroup at Sagrampura, fewmoredays.” venting forcefullydispossessing afterPrashantbhaiJaindialed100 the party ahead of election to ceedings in the matter. further glitches. This is the second time that the services were disrupteddue AAP leader sends to atechnical fault. In November State saw 27% growth in inter-caste ‘State to get Rs 180 cr with changes to lastyear,due to atechnical fault notice to DyCM the vessel wasstrandedinthe scholarship scheme for SC students’ mid-sea and itsservices were sus- marriages in last 4years: Athawale over farmers’ pendedfor twodays. ments, the ministersaid, “I don’t PrimeMinisterNarendraModiled Calling the central govern- ChetanContractor,the EXPRESSNEWSSERVICE OVERTHEYEARS think religious conversion in protest remark EXPRESSNEWSSERVICE central government forbringing ment’s decision as “big”, Solanki chairman of DetoxGroup, said, AHMEDABAD,JANUARY6 neededinsuchcases. No Hindu GANDHINAGAR,JANUARY6 the changes to the scheme. said, “I consider this as abig deci- “Therewas some electrical fault Year Inter-caste should getconverted to Islam.” Ahmedabad:AGujaratAAPleader The Centrehas recentlyap- sion and it has pavedthe wayfor in the engine in the mid-sea. STATINGTHAToverone lakh in- marriages TakingadigatCongressleader sentalegalnoticeto DeputyChief CABINET MINISTER forSocial provedmajorchangesinthePMS- higher studies forthose students The vessel later sailedatalower ter-caste marriages take place in 2016-17667 RahulGandhi,Athawalesaid,“The MinisterNitin PatelWednesday JusticeandEmpowermentIshvar SCwhilereplacing“committedli- from SC communities who could speedand reachedits destina- India everyyear,Ramdas 2017-18502 moreRahul Gandhi speaks seekinghis“apology”forhiscom- Parmar on Wednesdaysaid ability” system and bringing notgofor the same (earlier).” tion. The fault had been timely Athawale, the Union Ministerof againstPrime MinisterNarendra mentsonthe ongoing farmers’ Gujarat is settoget Rs 180crore greaterinvolvementof thecentral Meanwhile, chief spokesper- repaired at Ghogha portbyex- Statefor Social Justice and 2018-19711 Modi,theleadershipof Modijiwill protestatthe Delhi border. from the Centrein2021-22 with government in the scheme. The son of Gujarat Congress Manish perts and thereisnothing to Empowerment, on Wednesday 2019-20 846 become stronger.” He said that Inanotice,addressedtooffice the changes brought to the Post Centrehas decidedtobear 60 per DoshisaidthattheBJPleadersare worryabout. Today, again said therewas a27per cent Rahul can criticise, “but unneces- of Patel, AAP leader and afarmer MatricScholarshipSchemeforthe cent costofthe scheme in astate. making sudden announcement around 200passengers, trucks, growth in the number of such sarycriticism, likethe stand he BhemabhaiChaudharyfromBan- studentsofScheduledCaste Parmar said that in 2019-20, onscholarshipforSCcommunity and cars were loadedinthe marriages in Gujarat over the last Ahmedabad. took on Rafale issue in 2019,ben- askantha demandedanapology community (PMS-SC). under annual liability,Gujarat re- as if theyhavedone “something vessel, whichreachedits desti- four years. PointingoutthatGujaratgives efitted Modi”. forPatel’s “defamotory speech Parmar,along with senior ceivedRs15crore from the cen- big forthe community”. nation on time.” “The Ambedkar Foundation Rs 1lakh to everycouple in case On upcoming polls in West againstthe farmers”. party leaders ledbystate presi- tral government. However, he He alleged that Modi govern- givesRs2.5 lakh forevery inter- of an inter-caste marriage, the Bengal, Athawale said the “You have said in your speech dent CRPaatil, wasaddressing a added, with newchanges in the ment is the firstgovernment in caste marriageand in one year a Union Ministerstatedatotal of Republican PartyofIndia will be thatfarmers(whoareprotesting) press conference in this scheme,Gujaratissettoget Rs180 Indiaunderwhich60lakhSCstu- minimum of one lakh inter-caste 2,726 suchmarriages took place fighting polls along with the BJP areconnected to China and they regard.Senior BJP leaders from crorein2021-22 from the Centre dentsdid notget post-matric This is the second time marriages take place in the coun- in Gujarat between 2016 and in that state. arelike‘tukhde tukde’gang. You ScheduledCaste in Gujarat Kirit whichisa12-fold rise. scholarshipthisyearowingto lack that the services try. This is important to end the 2020.Duringthisfour-yearperiod TheUnionMinisteralsourged have also made statementsthat Solanki, Vinod Chavda and Solanki, Lok Sabha MP from of budget andlacklustremanage- were disrupteddue casteism in the countryand so suchmarriages grew from 667in farmers protesting againstthe thefarmersareKhalistanis,which Shambhuprasad Tunidyawere Ahmedabad (West), said that ment of the Covid-19pandemic. thattwocastescanbebroughtto- 2016-17to846in2019-20,hesaid. farm laws to end their protest“as istotallyunacceptableanddefam- also present in the press confer- manystudentsfromthe SC com- “TheGovernmentof Indiahas to atechnical fault gether,” Athawale said during an On the “love jihad” lawen- the government will notroll back atorytomeasafarmer(sic),”read ence. munities had to drop out from officiallyadmitted this,” Doshi interactionwithmediapersonsin actedby someof thestategovern- the amendments”. the notice by Chaudhary. ENS The stateBJP also thanked Class 10 owing to financial crisis. said. Industry yet to revive: Drivers, helpers of pvt school buses stare at penury Cold wave to

therewerenot manytakers,” the operational manager of stay, Naliya RITUSHARMA Chauhan adds. On Tuesday, he CharteredTransportservice, AHMEDABAD, JANUARY 6 receivedaseizurenotice from one of the largest transporters shivers at one of the private banksafter in Ahmedabad, says. AFTER LOSINGhis job as a failing to paythe EMI against AmitaSatware(30), aresi- 5.6 degrees C driverand sitting at home for the bank loan. dent of Chandkheda has not over six months, 47-year-old S Referring to the recent ex- been able to paythe school fees NSaiyed had no choice but to emption forvehicles registered forher son, aClass 3student, EXPRESSNEWSSERVICE begin looking fordaily-wage before April 1, 2017,inthe since May. She wasearning Rs AHMEDABAD, JANUARY 6 work to supporthis familyof SNSaiyed losthis job as a names of schools, colleges and 9,000 per month working as a four.“Nobody wasready to offer driverinMay lastyear. Express other educational institutions helper in the school bus em- COLD WAVE conditions is likely that too, and those who did, from the MotorVehicle Taxfor ployedbythe Chartered to continue in parts of Gujarat were ready to exploit,” Saiyed non-use from April 1, 2020, to Transport. even as minimum temperature says. December 31,2020, Chauhan “My husband, who was droppedto5.6 degrees Celsius Fornine years, Saiyed says,“Whoeverhas takenthis working with aliftrepair and in Naliya, the lowest in the worked at the Urban Transport, decision, has notconsidered all maintenance company, is un- state, on Wednesday. The India acompanythat provides school the aspects. What about vehi- employedfor over twomonths Meteorological Department buses on hire, and drew a cles registeredafter April 2017, now. The house is running on (IMD) issuedawarning that monthlysalaryofRs15,000. and whyonlyfor vehicles reg- my father-in-law’s income as a cold waveconditions will con- The lastsalaryhereceivedwas isteredunder the schools. It is a construction labourer,and tinue to prevail at isolated in Maylastyear,whichwas Rs known fact that in mostcases mother-in-law’s earnings from pocketsinPorbandar, 10,000short. Soon after, he and these vehicles areoperated by afew sewing worksshe gets,” Junagadh, Bhavnagar and the other staffwereasked to AmitaSatwarehas lostjob contract transporters. In away, Amitasays. KutchonThursday. leave as his employercould no School buses usedfor pre-primaryclasses parkedatCharteredTransportcompany’s depot as abus helper at Chartered the stategovernment hasof- ForTarulataRajput, her first Minimum temperatures longer paythem salary. on the outskirts of Ahmedabad foroverlastnine months. Express Transport. Express feredarelief to schools onlyand job as ahelper or caretaker on a droppedtwo to five degrees be- With mostcompanies fac- notthe transporters.” school bus, taking careofchil- lownormal at other parts with ing losses or closuredue to the Schools, too, have ques- dren and ensuring theyreach Keshod recording 9.3 degrees, coronavirus induced-lockdown, mentswhichare due,” she says. January11, the stategovern- aprivate security guardand bankruptcy. tionedthe relief offeredbythe school and home safely, was Kandla airport9.5, he had to toil hardtoget anew Nilofar would sewtradi- ment has announcedreopening salesman, respectively. Under debt of Rs 22 croreac- stategovernment.“It is very satisfying as she could finally Gandhinagar 10,Amreli 10.2, job. And it wasnot until October tional skirtand blouse foranad- of classes 10 and 12 across “I have been hunting fora quired forexpansion over the rare that schools or education supporther husband, who Porbandar 10.3, 10.4, lastyear that Saiyed got one, ditional income that would pay boards. job since lastfour months. Iwas lastthree years from nearly a instituteshavethe ownership earnedRs12,000 per month as Deesa 10.5, Rajkot 10.8, Valsad this time as adriverwith the fortheir children’s education. Mahesh Prajapati (33) also willing to work as asecurity dozen financial institutions, in- of these vehicles as majority of amarketing agent in atea com- 11,Surendranagar 11.5, Ahmedabad Municipal But with no garba, large-scale losthis job as aschool bus driver guardatresidential colonies, cluding five private banks, the them have outsourcedtotrans- pany. Ahmedabad 11.6, and Kandla TransportService (AMTS). “The weddings and festivals due to in March.Already under aRs1.5 but nothing materialised. companyhas outstanding porters. “Wehavenot celebrated any Port 12. job pays nearly 15-daysalary, at the pandemic, she has got few lakh debt, whichhetook forhis EverywhereIwent, Iwas told monthlyinstalmentsofRs72 Schools arestill able to bear festival this entireyear.Our sav- Barring Valsad (33) and Diu Rs 390 per day, as contract driv- orders in the lastfew months. wife’s fertility treatment, he that theywill getbackintwo- lakh. Chauhan claims to have the costs with 75 per cent of the ings driedupwhen we both lost (30.2), the maximum temper- ers areassignedroutes on alter- To coverexpenses, their 15- says,“AfterIlostmyjob during three days but none did,” Patel metdifferent stategovernment tuition feetheyare charging but our jobs. My husband took Rs aturerecordedacross Gujarat natedays.The monthlysalary year-old son is nowworking at the lockdown, Itook Rs 50,000 says. officials who offeredonlyassur- with zeroper cent revenue for 10,000 on credit from his wasless than 30 degrees. of around Rs 8,000 in cash is anearbyshop. “I knowitisnot from relatives. But howlong Saiyed,Prajapati and Patel’s ances but no supportorrelax- transporters it is atough for friends on Diwali, as we had al- As per the IMD forecast, is- hardlyenough,” he says. right, but Ihavenoother op- will theybear with my financial employer, VirbhadraChauhan ation. “If no miracle happens, them to survive,” Manan ready takenloan againstmy suedWednesday: “Nolarge Afterpaying 5,000 as rent tion,” Saiyed says. woes?” He nowworks as a is the second generation to take we will be filing forbankruptcy Choksi, president of Association jewelleries,” she says. changeinminimum tempera- foraccommodation, besides Since mid-March,schools daily-wage welder at Telavvil- charge of the 35-year-old family soon,” he says. of Progressive Schools (AOPS), Living in the walledareaof tureisexpected over other charges, the familywas across Gujarat have been phys- lageonAhmedabad’s outskirts. business of transportation -- In better times,the company says. Gomtipur,she had looked for -Kutchduring next reducedtopenury. Saiyed’s icallyclosedand areonlyim- BinalPatel (32), aresident of Urban Transport. usedtorun over 180buses and While drivers, mostlymale, jobs at the severalgarment fac- 2-3 days and, thereafter, agrad- wife, Nilofar,has had to mort- parting online classes that has Bopal area, also droveschool The 30-year-old says 2020 vans for15schools across have been able to take odd jobs, tories in the apparel parkbut ual rise in minimum tempera- gage the little jewelleryshe had. in turn put the transportserv- vans at Urban Transportfor 15 wasthe worstyear businesses Ahmedabad. women employedashelpers in she said no one is ready to hire turemay be recorded.” For “I had juststarted sewing work ice providers out of job. Several years. Afterhereceivedhis last had seen. The company, which Over lastnine months, the transportfirms have been ma- newpeople amid Covid-19. She other parts of Gujarat, it stated, from home with the machine I parking lots,The Indian Express salaryofRs11,000 in June, his has once employed150 drivers buses and vans have weathered jor sufferers. “Mostofthe male received50per cent of her no major changeinminimum bought lastyear on Rs 25,000 visited sawdusty school buses familyofeight has been depen- and an equal number of out in the open yard wherethey drivers have takenodd jobs but salarybetween April and June, temperaturewas expected over loan from aprivate shop. The coveredwith wild vines, telling dant on the earnings of his fa- helpers, all female, along with have been parked. “Wealso it is the female helpers of these before she waslaid offwith as- next 24 hours and thereafterit shopkeeper has been demand- the tale of asector bearing the ther and brother,who makea eight supervisors and two triedtouse these buses as staff school buseswho have very surances: “wewill call you could go up by 2-3 degrees ing the Rs 1,700monthlyinstal- brunt of the pandemic. From total of Rs 17,000 per month as cleaning staff, is nowstaring at buses forprivate companies but limited options,” Akash Sharma, when things getbetter”. Celsius.

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GUJARAT ACB ‘Anti-conversion law TAMIL NADU geNerATIoN AND DIsTrIbUTIoN CorPorATIoN LTD. ‘ASI held in bribe case has NoTICe INVITINg TeNDers (e-TeNDerINg ProceSS) sl. No Tender Inviing AuthoritySpeciicaion No. Total not passed just like that... properties, restaurants’ 1 CE/MM M-35 1 2 CE/Ch/North E-118 1 EXPRESSNEWSSERVICE Fordetails of works/Procurement/Due date of submission/opening,viewing and downloading of e-tenders,please visit websites: www.tangedco.gov.in, survey showed need’ AHMEDABAD,JANUARY6 www.tenders.tn.gov.in ,htps://tntenders.gov.in/nicgep/app DIPR/61/Tender/2021 UTTAR PRADESH Governor ANANDIBEN women in the statethat have been DAYS AFTER an assistant sub-inspector with Rapid PATEL talkstoMAULSHREE SETH on the highlighted quiteoften... Response(RR)cellof GujaratPolicewascaughtaccept- COUNCIL OF SCIENTIFIC AND newanti-conversion lawand security of Thereare various ills in society,fami- ingabribeof Rs50lakhby theGujaratAnti-Corruption women. Edited excerpts: liesandindividuals.Whentheseillscome BureauinAnand, the anti-graftofficials found restau- INDUSTRIAL RESEARCH (CSIR) out, they lead to suchincidents. Then we rants,luxurycarandpropertiesregisteredwiththeac- Anusandhan Bhawan, 2, Rafi Marg, Soon aftertaking charge,you took think that justice is given, proper action is cusedinAnand, Ahmedabad and Jaipur. strict measures to improveand taken. But Iwould saythat it is also the re- According to ACBofficials, ASI Prakashsinh Raol New Delhi-110001 streamline university education. sponsibility of the familytohandle chil- (46)washeldonJanuary1fromarestaurantinAnand Advt. No. 04/2020 Then, everything changed once the dren. At home, caution should betakento accepting abribeofRs50lakh. As per officials of ACB CSIR is looking for Scientist 'H'/Outstanding pandemic started? keepawatchonwhatsonsanddaughters Ahmedabad rural, the accusedofficer had demanded Aftertakingcharge,Istartedenquiring aredoingoutside,whetheranyuntoward the bribefromacomplainant whose godown in Scientist at CSIR-Fourth Paradigm about the functioning of uni- incidentsmight happen. Khambat area of Anand wasrecentlyraidedbythe Institute (CSIR-4PI), Bengaluru. versities, the appointment of Gujarat Police over irregularities. CSIR invites applications/nominations for the position of vice-chancellors etc. Ithen re- Recently, the newanti- Afterhis arrest,asessions courtonTuesdaysent alisedthat260fileswere pend- conversion lawcame into Raol to three daypolice remand till January8. Scientist'H'/Outstanding Scientist, at CSIR-Fourth ing since 2014 and once I force. But therehave As per the ACB, multiple teams have started Paradigm Institute (CSIR-4PI), Bengaluru in Level 15 of startedlookingintothesefiles, THEEXPRESS been instances where searching forproperties of the ASI in Gujarat pay-matrix (Rs.1,82,200-2, 24,100) plus allowances as Irealisedtheanomaliestaking women said theyhave and Rajasthan to makeacase of disproportionate applicable in CSIR. Foreligibility criteria and other condi- place. Things startedgetting the right to decide their assets (DA). GOVERNMENT OF ODISHA streamlined. But then corona INTERVIEW partner. “e”-PROCUREMENT NOTICE tions,please see the detailed/complete advertisement OFFICE OF THE SUPERINTENDING ENGINEER, came,andtheresultsthatwere WITH WheneveraBill comes, No.04/2020 on CSIR website www.csir.res.in. KHORDHA (R&B) CIRCLE, KHORDHA expected could notcome and ANANDIBEN it does notcome justlike STEM WATER DISTRI. &INFRA Applications/nominations may be sent alongwith com- B-602 WORKS DEPARTMENT the year wascompleted. PATEL that. Thereisasurvey con- CO. PVT.LTD. plete bio-data and list of publications/patents etc. by GOVERNOR, ducted that shows how E-TenderNotice No. 5for 2020-21. Tender call Notice Youmade lots of field visits UTTAR PRADESH manygirls married, how E-EOI are invited by STEM water Dist. &Infra. Co. Pvt. Ltd. E-mail: [email protected] email on email ID [email protected] or by post to Director Thane. For the following work. Bid Identification No. SE-Khordha (R&B) Circle-11/2020-21 before the pandemic manyfacedproblems, how Name of Work- Supplying, Lowering,laying 1850 mm Dia. Memo No- 1780 Dt. 28.12.2020 Recruitment Cell, Council of Scientific &Industrial began... What wasyour feedback manygirls came back, howmanygirls (OD) pipeline for shifting work and provision of 1850 mm Dia. The Superintending Engineer,Khordha (R&B) Circle, Khordha on behalf of Research (CSIR), Anusandhan Bhawan, 2, Rafi Marg. (OD) Pipe Duct for future expansion of pipeline due to across Governor of Odisha inviting percentage rate bid in double cover system in regarding lawand order? lodged complaints. the kalyan ring road of 45 m. R.O.W.AtAdharwadi, Kalyan New Delhi-110001 on or before 15.02.2021. Iinteracted with women during my Even parentscome forwardseeking Estimated Cost Rs. 1,38,55,272/- The details can be viewed ONLINE MODE form eligible contractors for Building work as detailed in the and downloaded online directlyfrom STEM'swebsite table below: visits, went to villages and wassatisfied arrests, alleging that the boychanged his https://stem.abcprocure.com from Dt.08.01.2021 to Dt. davp 36202/11/0016/2021 withthework undertaken.Peopletoldme name. When suchincidentsare increas- 22.01.2021. upto 1500 hrs. Received E-EoI will be opened on 1. Name of the Work : Building Work dtd 22.01.2021 at 1510 Hrs 2. No of Work : 1No thatlaw-and-ordersituationwasverybad ingly reportedduring asurvey,insucha Sd/- 3. Tender Cost : Rs. 10000.00 (On-Line) earlierbuttheyfinditokayandbetternow. situation suchaBill is Managing Director 4. Class of Contractor : AClass &BClass People told me that earlier industries did brought and is pursued. notcome here, but nowindustries have Women come to me 5. Available of Bid document in : From Dt. 11.01.2021 10.00 AM to Dt. the Website 20.01.2021 05.00 PM also startedcoming, whichmeans that with different issues 6. Date of opening of Bid : Dt. 21.01.2021 at 11.30 AM theyfeelthatthelaw-and-ordersituation and if required,Irefer has improved compared to the past. issues to the govern- 7. The Bidders have to participate in ONLINE bidding only.Further details ment. But thereare not can be seen from the Website: https://tenderodisha.gov.in.Any Therehavebeen crimes against manycomplaints. Addendum/ Corrigendum /Cancellation of tender can also be seen in the said website. Superintending Engineer, NEW CIVIL HOSPITAL IN SURAT Khordha (R&B) Circle, Khordha OIPR-34127/11/0015/2021 Contract staffers call off strike after one-month salary cleared NarmadaWater Resources Water Supply & their bank accountsThursday. KalpsarDepartment EXPRESSNEWSSERVICE Parimal Vyas, aspokesper- TENDERNOTICE No. 05 of 2020-21 SURAT,JANUARY6 son of VishwaEnterprise, said, In the name of Governor of Gujarat Online Tenders (E-Tendering System) “The salaryorNovember and are invited by the ExecutiveEngineer,Drainage Division Gandhinagar ATWO-DAY strikebyclass 3and December wasstoppedasa State Water Data Center,Sector-8, Gandhinagar -382008 (Phone No. 4contract employees of Surat’s newpolicy wasintroduced. The 079-23248006). Theeligible contractors are invited for Twoworks NewCivil Hospital, including employees were facing finan- (Amounting Rs.74.70 Lakh to Rs.114.03 Lakh) who are registeredin Covid hospital, over twomonths’ cial problems and even we appropriate class of R&B Department and Narmada Water Resources pending salarywas calledoff failedtoconvince them to call and Water Supply and Kalpasar Department. Detail of work is as under. Wednesdayafter the salaryfor offthe strike. Now, the situation November wascredited to their is under control.” (1) Tender documents downloading/uploading will be available from bank accounts. The medical superinten- Dt. 11/01/2021 to Dt. 31/01/2021 upto 18.00 hrs.onwebsite Morethan 500contract em- dent said, “Lastmonth, the gov- www.nwr.nprocure.com. ployees, including pharmacists, ernment issuedalettertous (2) Pre-bid meeting held on Dt. 18/01/2021 @12.00 p.m. at State laboratorytechnicians, and x-ray saying that paymentstoall the Water Data Center,Sector-8, Gandhinagar (For O&M Work). technicians, of the hospital had contract employees should be (3) Submission of Tender Document, Tender Fee, Solvency -minimum sat on dharna from Tuesdayaf- done through an Escrow ac- 20% of Tender amount of Current calendar year 2021 and E.M.D. ternoon demanding the pending count. The work foritwas in (Minimum180 days require from last date of tender upload) will salaries forNovember and progress and forthat, therewas be accepted by RPAD/SPEED POST/Courier from Dt. 01/02/2021 to December.OnWednesday, work adelayinopening accounts. Dt. 05/02/2021 upto 16.00 hours. at OPD and operation theatres Afterthe contract employees (4) Tender will be opened online on Dt. 06/02/2021 at 12.00 Hrs.(if wasdisruptedfor afew hours went on strike, we requestedthe Possible) (Only qualified bidders). More details will be available on due to the strike. government to paythe salaries website www.nwr.nprocure.com NewCivil Hospital medical of November and December as Name of work and Tender ID must be write on Cover. superintendent Dr SMPatel per the old format as the INF/1679/20-21 along with other doctors triedto amount will be directlysent to placatethe staffers but in vain. the bank account of the contrac- Even officials from Vishwa torwho could then clear the Enterprise, the firm whichholds salaries of the contract employ- the contract to supplystaffers to ees. Now, salaryfor Januarywill Classifieds NewCivil hospital, failedthe be paid through an escrow ac- calm the agitating employees. count.” Around 5pm, afterPatel held In theescrowaccount, Patel PERSONAL talkswith the higher-ups in said, thereare three parties -- Gandhinagar,Rs1.40 crorewas payers, contractors, and bank. I have changed my name releasedinsalaryfor November. “Wecan directlydeposit the from RAHIL ISMAILBHAI The staffers calledoff the strike salaryinthe bank accountsof PINJARA to RAHIL afterthe hospital authorities as- the contract employees and pay ISMAILBHAI MANSURI. sured them that salaryfor the contractor separatelyunder R/o: 84/1, Royal Park, Nr. December will be deposited in this newsystem,” he said. Hariyali Society,Juhapura, Ahmedabad-380055 1held with explosives in Aravalli 0040559427-1

EXPRESSNEWSSERVICE AHMEDABAD,JANUARY6

THE POLICE in Aravalli arrested one person forallegedly possessing explosivesand detonators on Wednesday evening. According to police, Narayan Bhil, anative of Bhilwada in Rajasthan, washeld by the special operations group of Aravalli Police on Wednesdaywith packetsofblasting gel- atin explosivesand detonators. "Basedonspecific input, we held Bhil from Undvavillage in Aravalli with 13 packetsofblasting Gelatin and 30 detona- torcaps. He has been bookedunder ExplosivesAct as of now and further probeisgoing on," said apolice officer of Aravalli SOG. According to police sources, Bhil wasillegallyselling explosives that areusuallyusedfor explo- sions in mining sector.

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OVER THE HEDGE by Michael Fry &TLewis CROSSWORD4321 DAYTODAY BYPETERVIDAL

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Tourism Corporation of Gujarat Ltd (A Govt. of Gujarat Undertaking) Regd Office: PSEB Head Office,The Mall, Patiala -147001 Nigam Bhavan, 1st Floor,Sector–16 Phone No. 0175-2207649, Email ID: [email protected] CIN: U40109PB2010SGC033813, Website: www.pspcl.in Gandhinagar –382016, Gujarat Tender EnquiryNo. Sr.Xen-I/MHP Rohti/ROT/2020-21/03 PSPCL is inviting e-tendertolease out its existing 2x400 KW MHP at Tender Notice Rohti on Renovate,Operate and Transfer (ROT)basis.The cost of RFP Document is Rs.5,900/-.Last date fordownloading the RFP document is Thetenders are invited by Tourism Corporation of Gujarat Ltd. 01.02.2021 upto 1700 Hrs.Bid can be uploaded upto 02.02.2021 on or (TCGL), for the "Selection of agency to Design, Prepare before 1200 Hrs.Technical bid shall be openedon02.02.2021 at 1230 and Install Creative Signage's on Tourist Circuit Hrs.RFP,LAand PPAdocuments will be uploaded by PSPCLonPSPCL e-tender portal on or before 11.01.2021. Route/Destination on Running Rate contract (RRC) in Fordetailed terms and conditions of the tender,refer to website all Gujarat". Theinterested bidders/agencies may download www.eproc.punjab.gov.in.Tender specificationscan only be downloaded from this Website.Prospectivebidders are requested to get their digitalsig- the tender document form the website: www.nprocure.com natures, register themselves on Website www.eproc.punjab.gov.in and get from 08/01/2021 onward. Last date of submission on online: conversant with the process of On-Line submission of tenderwell in time so as to submitthe tenderbydue deadline.Norequestfor extensioninthe 29/01/2021 up to 3.00 pm. Tender may also be referred on due date of tenderopeningonthe above grounds shall be entertained. www.gujarattourism.com. Bidders mayget anyclarificationregarding uploading of the tenderfrom PunjabGovt. E-procurement System at toll Free Number 0172-2970263 Managing Director of TCGL reserves the right to reject or accept or from this office Contact No.96461-12974/96461-18766. NOTE: It is informed that in case tender processisnot completed due to any any or all tenders without assigning any reason thereof. reason, no corrigendumwill be published in newspapers.Any other ■ Managing Director corrigendumwill not be published in newspaper.Details regarding Nana KapayaVillage Water and corrigendum maybeseen on offical,PSPCL Website www.pspcl.in Sanitation Committee C-04/11 Sd/- Dy.CE/Civil Design, PSPCL, Patiala. 535/Pb Taluka: ,District.Kachchh Tender Notice No. 43, Year -2020-21 Nana Kapaya VWSC invites e-tenderfrom eligible agencies/ parties for implementation/execution of approvedcivil works UTTAR GUJARATVIJ COMPANY LIMITED Estimated cost of Rs.44.72 Lacs (e-tender I.D.No. 442805) CIN –U40102GJ2003SGC042906 pertaining to in-villagewater supply scheme under "Shree www.ugvcl.com www.guj-epd.gov.in Shyama Prasad Mukharjee Rurban" Programme.The last CircleOffice :Palanpur date of submission of bid for eligible bidders as per tender Tender Notice No.28 TENDER NOTICE No. PLN-2 DO-05 &06, norms is 19/01/2021 up to 18:00 hrs.For further information rd DEESA-1 DO-07 &08, DEESA-2 DO-8/2020-21 the interested bidders may contact the Adyaksh/Sarpanch of (Reinvites 3 Time) 2020-21 Tenders are invited, Hiring vehicle forvarious Sdn under Palanpur 2DO, Nana Kapaya Pani Samiti on +91 97124 13430. All the Panchayat (R&B) Division Providing and fixing of chain link cages surrounding T/C forvarious Sdn uploaded documents are to be sent/submitted to Unit under Palanpur 2DO, Replacement of failed transformer forvarious Sdn Manager,DWSU-WASMO,Bhuj within prescribed time limit District Panchayat -Valsad under Palanpur 2DO, Erection work forvarious Sdn, Hiring ladder vehicle through RPAD/Speed post only.Ifany changesinthis tender In the name of State the fordeesa town Sdn and Replacement of failed and burnttransformer &aug- will be uploadedonline through concerned website.The ten- Executive Engineer,Panchayat (R&B) Division Dharampur mentation work forShihoriand WawSdn, Supply of CC Block, Hiring vehi- cle truck, fabrication work of various items forvarious sdn under Deesa 1 der submitted through post/offline will not be considered.The Road Valsad Ph. No.(02632) 253694 Invite Tender DO,Fabrication work of various items forvarious Sdn under Deesa 2DO. authority to accept/reject all the bids without giving any rea- through E-tendering process for below stated work From The details of the tender can be viewedonwww.ugvcl.com & son lies with Nana Kapaya Pani Samiti. Website: Eligible approved registered contractor in R&Bdepart- http://ugvcl.nprocure.com Addl. C. E. ,UGVCL, CO,PALANPUR www.wasmo.nprocure.com. ment, Government of Gujarat, the details of E-tender (DDI/KUTCH/1037-2020) ** UGVCL Customer Care 24x7 Toll Free No. 1800 233 155 335 OR 19121 ** notice is available on http/nprocure.com in for further ''REGISTER YOUR MOBILE NUMBER TO GET THE INFORMATION OF BILL ISSUED &PAYMENT MADE" Nara Village Water and Sanitation Committee Details Please Contact Above Address During office time. Taluka: Lakhpat, District: Kachchh It can be visible on www.statenders.com. GUJARATSTATEELECTRICITY CORPORATION LIMITED Tender Notice No:- 40, Year: 2020-21 Sikka Thermal PowerStation, Sr. Name of work Est. Amount E.M.D. At PO Sikka, Dist. -361141. NaraVWSC invites e-tender from eligible agencies/ No. Tender Fee e-mail: [email protected] Website: www.gsecl.in parties forimplementation/execution of approvedcivil CIN:U40100GJ1993SGC019988 1 (1 )Constrycting aC.C. Road Rs.1,95,92,368.07 worksEstimated cost of Rs. 25.82 Lacs (e-tender Tender Notice No. 178 I.D.No.- 442387) pertaining to in-village water supply on Bilpudi Samajmandir to Rs.1,96,000 Tenders are invited for1)Maintenance of ash dykearea at Sikka scheme under "Augmentation in tap connectivity in Zariya Road. km. 0/0 to 1/0, Rs.3600 TPS… As &when required 2) Cleaning of drains in various loca- ruralArea/JJM Programme". The last date of submis- B-Class &Above tions in plant premises at GSECL Sikka TPS (As &when Ta.Dharampur,Dist. Valsad. sion of bid foreligible bidders as per tender norms is (2) MandavaVarolitalat Kothar required) 3) Work of “Fabrication of Operator Cabin forDozer 707 &Repairing/Patch work of Existing Operator Cabin forDozer 709 16/01/2021 up to 18:00 hrs.For further information the Amdheti Vapi Road (ODR) km at CHP,Sikka TPS.4)Tocarryout Tube leakage attending work interested bidders maycontact the Adyaksh/Sarpanch 0/0 to 13/2 (section chainage in HP heaters of Unit-no.3 &4onasand when required basis.5) of NaraPani Samiti on +9198790 33069. All the 11/2 to 12/2) Taluka-Kaparada Work of Monitoring the environmental parameters.6)Supply of uploaded documents are to be senti submitted to Unit Dist. Valsad. "POWERTEC" makeDCS Powersupply module at Sikka TPS.7) Manager-WASMO-Bhuj within prescribed time limit Supply of Endless rubber belt for36" inlet, 7"C.D.MPGFC gravi- (Reinvites 3rd Time) metric feeder forunits 3&4atSTPS.8)Supply of various size through RPAD/ Speed post only.Ifany changes in this of SS shims and split pins forBoiler Maintenance Department at tender will be uploaded online through concerned web- Consider GST rules before tendering the rate. Sikka TPS. site.The tender submitted through post/offline will not Tender online submission last date: 20/01/2021 Tender documents available on GSECL Website www.gsecl.in & be considered. The authority to accept/reject all the Sd/- E&P Dept. GoG: http://guj-epd.gov.in (for view, download and bids without giving anyreason lies with NaraPani Executive Engineer submission in hard). Vendor,Manufacturers,Contractors are Samiti. requested to locate the same from above website.Please be in Panchayat (R&B) Division, touch with our above site forany future Amendment / WebSite: www.wasmo.nprocure.com No.INF/VALSAD/587/2021 Valsad Corrigendum Chief Engineer (G), STPS. (DDI-KUTCH-1034-2021)

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Tender Notice No. 13 of 2020-21 TAMILNADU CIVIL SUPPLIES CORPORATION TENDER NOTICE NO.6OF YEAR 2020-21 Save Energy for Benefit of Self and Nation On Behalf of Governor of Gujarat the On-line Tender are invited by the Executive HO.No: 12 THAMBUSAMY ROAD, KILPAUK, CHENNAI -600 010 (Re-invite) (Corrigendum-2) UTTAR GUJARATVIJ COMPANY LIMITED Engineer,A'bad Store (R&B) Division, C-BIock, 3rd Floor,M.S.Building Nr. aMenDMenT TheCorrigendum in the Tender Notice No.6of Year 2020-21, Dt. CIN -U40102GJ2003SGC042906 Vastrapur Govt. Colony,Drive-in Road, Ahmedabad -380052 ForTotal: 1(One) Due to administraivereasons, the following amendment 25/11/2020 issued by the Executive Engineer,Surat (R&B) Div.No. 2, Regd. &Corporate Office Work Costing Rs. 21.32 Lacs From the appropriate Registered Contractors of is issued forthe e-tendernoiicaion publishedunder (R&B) Bhavan, 4th Floor,Opp.Dutch Garden,Nanpura, Surat, Ph. No. Visnagar Road, Mehsana -384001 irrigation and (R&B) Department of Gujarat state.Tender documents can be seen DIPRNo.4521/Tender/2020, Dt.05.12.2020and e-tenderreference 2471097isasunder. E&PDept: GEB: http://guj-epd.gov.in on www.nprocure.com from Dt. 07/01/2021.Tender documents may be down- No. ME5/64885/2016, TNCSC/20-21/ET/16. Thebid documents for work at Sr.No. 1&2will be available on website Tender Notice loaded up to Dt. 21/01/2021 at 18:00 hrs.And if possible tender will be opened Thetender to be opened on 08.01.2021 is postponed ''www.nprocure.com'' upto 18.00 hrs.onDated 15/01/2021 which on-line on Dt. 22/01/2021 at 12:00 hrs at Concern office.Tender will not be to 25.01.2021.Tender documentcan be downloaded upto may please be noted other details remainsunchanged. Invitation for Tender Notice No.UGVCL/SP/II/1064/11 KV composite received through hand to hand/ regd. Post. Any Addition/Alteration/Corrigendum 10.30 a.M. on 25.01.2021. Forfurther details please visit our above mentioned website. Pin Insulator is put up for on line tendering on www.ugvcl.com & issued by this Office till the last Date of Uploading will be Only on online and will Further anyamendments regarding the modiicaion of e-tender have to be considered by the agency before quoting the rate in the tender.The No.Mahiti/Surat/1153/2021 www.ugvcl.nprocure.com.Interested Vendors are requested to condiions,postponement of e-tender, cancellaion of the e-tender agency himself will be held responsible in this matter. locate the same from above mentioned WebSite. (if any) will be communicatedonly through MSTC website. Gujarat Water Supply &Sewerage Board Also Detailed tender notice can be seen on www.statetenders.com of informa- ManagIng DIRecToR Note: -Beintouch with our web site till opening of tender. tion dept. Website And office Notice Board. Interested Contractors are requested to DIPR/ 105 /Tender/2021 Tender Notice No.6 of 2020-21 (V.M.Shroff) contact personally at above office in working days except public holidays for more Chief Engineer (P) TENDER NOTICE NO.8 OF 2020-21 information about this tender notice. ExecutiveEngineer,Public Health Mechanical Division, 201, Jal ''UGVCL Customer CareCentre24x7 Toll Free Number: 19121'' No.INF/ABD/1212/21 ROAD &BUILDING DEPARTMENT Bhavan, Vijapur By Pass Road, Himatnagar,Sabarkantha Mo:- On behalf of Hon'able Governor of Gujarat Executive Enaineer Mahisagar R&B 9978406577 invites tenders by E-tendering process forthe work Division, Near Cottage Hospital, Lunawada -389230, Dist.Mahisagar Ph.No. of Sixteen (16) Mini PocketScherne of diff.villages of (02674-250486 invites online tenders from the approved contractors registered NOTIFICATION Khedbrahma, Poshina &Vijaynagar Taluka in Sabarkantha REVENUEDEPARTMENT in the appropriate categoryfor the works listed below till Dt.01/02/2021 by District under N.G.P.Programme.(Deposit Work)for 6Month 18:00 hrs. Sachivalaya,Gandhinagar with 4years M&Ramounting to Rs.54,51,229.00 as per Mile Date :- 5SEP 2020 CIN-U40102GJ2003SGC042906 Sr.Name of Work Estimated Cost Stone data from qualifying Contractors.The detailed Tender (The Right to Fair Compensation and Transparency in Land Acquisition, Circle Office: Sabarmati-380005, www.ugvcl.com www.guj-epd.gov.in No. (Rs.in lacs) Notice &tender documents are available on website Rehabilitation &Resettlement Act, 2013) (30 of 2013) Dist: Mahisagar 1Construction of New Court Building at Virpur Ta.Virpur Rs.500.00 TENDER NOTICE www.gwsb.procure.com.via Tender Id No. No:AM-2020-517-M-LMS-14-2020-769-CH Dist. Mahisagar Tender Notice No.UGVCL/SBT CO-e-Tender-33 &SBT Dn.- 442837 Last Date of on-line submission dt:20/01/2021 at 18.00 In exercise of the powers conferred by sub-section (1) of section 11 of the Right to Fair 24, e-Tender-23, BVL-13 &GNR (U)-e-Tender-30 &Kalol-e- 2Construction of Government Resi. Quarters (Judge Rs.48.99 hour.The last date of submitting document by RPAD/SPEED Compensation and Transparency in Land Acquisition, Rehabilitation &Resettlement Act, Quarters) CategoryD-1 type 1Unit at Virpur,Dist.Mahisagar POST/HAND DELIVERY/COURIER on dt:-21/01/2021 at 15.00 2013 (No.30 of 2013) (hereinafter referred to as "the Act''), the Government of Gujarat here- Tender-13 &Bopal-16/2020-21 forLaying of 3core 185/240 by declares that the land/Iands mentioned in the Schedule annexed hereto is/are required for SQ mm2 11 KV XLPE cable,U/G 11KV 185mm2 XLPE cable 3Construction of Kumar Chhatralay at Lunawada, Dist. Rs.535.20 Hrs.Amendments if anynow afterward will be disbursed on the purpose of acquisition for the public purpose of Construction of infrastructure project of Mahisagar fault detection &Labour work forinsulated Hot dip GI strip/ same website.Sanctioning authority reservesthe right to reject Wideing and Strengthening of Bayad - road and improvement of curves for road Tender for the above works has to be filled online from the website anyorall tenders without assigningany reason. Forvillage level safety under World Bank aided Gujarat state Highway Project-2. LST earthing, Hiring of manpower, AMC contract service & 2. It is notified that, - https://rnb.nprocure.com. Detailed notice of this works will be available on the Drinking water complainToll Free No.1916 Office and toilet cleaning/mopping, Providing of LT spacers, 1) The area of land/lands required for the above project is 0-20-15 Sq.mt. and is an Information Department swebsite www.statetenders.com and on the notice INF/HMT/441/2021 Ucharpi Village of Lunavada Taluka of Mahisagar District. Hiring of vehicle &Erection work of HT/LT,T/C line is put up on board of this office. For more information the interested bidder may visit this 2) The public purposes involved in the above project is Construction of the infrastructure company's website.Interested Suppliers/contractors are office on working days other than public holidays. If an corrigendum / project Wideing and Strengthening of Bayad -Lunavada road and improvement of requeted to see the company's website. Amendment regarding the tender matter will be seen only on the website. Institute of Hotel Management &Catering Technology curves for road safety under World Bank aided Gujarat state Highway Project-2. INF/Godhra/688/2021 3) Under Section 10A of the Act vide of 12 of 2016, exemption is given under Section 10A Shri R. D. Zala DR. B.B.A. POLYECHNIC CAMPUS,SRV NO.137/P,KARAD–SILVASSA–39623 of the Act vide Revenue Department, Government of Gujarat Notification AM-2020- Supdt. Engr.CircleOffice,Sabarmati U.T. ADMINISTRATION OF DADRA AND NAGAR HAVELI, Tel: 026–268001 436-M-LMS-14-2020-769-Ch Dated:04/08/2020. it is not required for the summaryof [email protected] www.ihmsilvassa.in the Social lmpact assessment report. UGVCL's 24x7 Toll Free Customer Care No. 1800233155335 OR 19121 (Affiliated to National Council for Hotel Management &Catering Technology,NOIDA) 4) The particulars of the Administrator appointment under section 43 of the Act are as “pay your energy bills through e-payment facility” No.IHMOSERV/2019-IHMCT/05 Date: 4-01-2021 Under -Special Land Acquisition Officer,Collector Office Dist. Mahisagar Lunavada. 3. All the persons interested in these lands are hereby notified not to obstruct and disturb e–Tender (Online)InvitationNotice(2nd Call) any Surveyor or other staff to enter upon and survey the land. Any transactions in respect ThePrincipal &Member Secretary,Institute of Hotel Management &Catering of whole or part of these lands in whatsoever manner including by sale, lease, mortgage, change of name, exchange entered into after the date of this Notification made without Technology,Karad (D.P), Silvassa, invites online tender on https://dnhtenders.gov.in permission of the Collector shall not be taken into consideration by the officer assessing from eligible contractor/supplier for providing Perishable Materials at Institute of the compensation under section 27 of the Act for aparticular portion of the land as may Hotel Management &Catering Technology,Karad. be finally acquired. 4. The Government of Gujarat, if satisfied about acquisition of the land for aforesaid public Sr. Particulars EMD (Earnest Tender Fees e-Tender purpose, may publish final declaration under section 19 of the Act in this regard in the No. Money (Non- ID No. manner and timeframe so prescribed under the Act. In case the acquisition is dropped Deposit Refundable) partially or entirely,such facts shall be notified in aproper manner as provided under the Act. 5. In exercise of the powers under clause(g) of section 3ofthe Act the State Government 1 Providing Perishable/ Grocery Rs.139000/- Rs.2000/- 2020_UTDNH_ is pleased to designate Special Land Acquisition Officer,Collector Office Dist. Mahisagar materials at Institute of Hotel (Rupees One (Rupees two 5053_1 Lunavada and discharge the duties as Collector under the provisions of the Act in respect Management &Catering Lakh Thirty Nine thousand only) of these lands. Thousand only) Technology,Silvassa. 6. Objection to the acquisition, if any may be filed by the person interested within 60 (sixty days) from the date of the publication of the notification as provided under section-15 of Sr.No. Item Deadline the ACT before the Collector or Competent Authority. Public Purpose:- 1 Issue of tender document 01/01/2021 Wideing and Strengthening of Bayad -Lunavada road and improvement of curves for road 2 Tender fees (non–refundable) Rs.2000/- safety under World Bank aided Gujarat state Highway Project-2. 3 Earnest Money deposit (EMD) Rs.139000/- SCHEDULE 4 Submission of tender 21/01/2021upto 17.00 Hrs District :Mahisagar Ta.: Lunavada Village :Ucharpi 5 Opening of technical bid At 11.00 hrs on 22/01/2021 Sr.Survey No. Approximate of the land acquired He.Ar.Sq.M 6 Opening of financial bid 23/01/2021 1196 0-07-08 *For further details and e-tendering schedule/documents,may visit https://dnhtender.gov.in 2189/2 0-13-07 Sd/- TOTAL 0-20-15 Principal By order and the name of Governor of Gujarat, No.IP/DNH/ADVT/2021/04 Institute of Hotel Management &Catering Technology, Sd/- Sd/- Silvassa Silvassa Special Land Acquisition Officer (H. J. Rathod) Date: 06/01/2021 E-mail id: [email protected] Mahisagar INF/Godhra/348/2020 Under SecretarytoGovernment

Uttar Gujarat VijCompany DELHI JAL BOARD :GOVT.OFNCT OF DELHI OFFICE OF THE EXECUTIVE ENGINEER (CIVIL) PLANT SDW S/E Limited SRINIWASPURI :NEW DELHI :110065 CIN-U40102GJ2003SGC042906 Press N.I.T.No. 24 (2020-21) Regd. &Corporate Office : “STOP CORONA :Wear Mask, Follow Physical Distancing, Maintain Hand Hygiene” Visnagar Road, Mehsana -384001 S. Name of work Estimated Cost Date of release Last date/ time of E&P Dept. GEB: http://guj-epd.gov.in N of tender in E- receipt of tender procurement through e- Tender Notice solution procurement solution Invitation for Tender Notice No.1) UGVCL/SP/I/1065/11KV CTPT is put up for 1 Cleaning of Gravity Duct No. 3from Taxi 2,10,81,670/- 04/01/2021 03/02/2021 up to on line tendering on www.ugvcl.com & www.ugvcl.nprocure.com. Stand behind Cambridge School to Okhla (Based on DSR 2016 3:00 P.M Interested Vendors are requested to locate the same from above STP. (Re-Invite) 2021_DJB_198227_1 and approved rates) mentioned WebSite. *Further detail in this regard can be seen at https://delhi.govtprocurement.com Note: -Beintouch with our web site till opening of tender. ISSUED BY P.R.O. (WATER) Sd/- (V.M. Shroff) Advt. No. J.S.V.296 (2020-21) EX. ENGINEER (CIVIL) PLANT SDW S/E. Chief Engineer (P) ''UGVCL Customer CareCentre24x7 Toll Free Number: 19121 or Toll Free Number 1800-233-155335

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THEINDIANEXPRESS,THURSDAY,JANUARY7,2021 WORDLY WISE Facts arelike cows.Ifyou look them in the face hard enough theygenerally

8 THE EDITORIAL PAGE runaway. —DOROTHY L SAYERS Path to the next normal

§ FOUNDED BY § RAMNATH GOENKA Signals of astrongeconomic recovery arebroad-based. BECAUSETHE TRUTH INVOLVES US ALL Budget proposalswill be keybeacons forcoming phase

DISCOMFORT ZONES SaugataBhattacharya

Delhi mustheedAmbassador Juster’s concerns. US anxieties THE FIRSTADVANCE estimates of GDP One of the keymetrics we trackinthis in- formance of the largest,strongestand most growth forthe current financial year aredue dexiselectricity consumption. Basedonthe resilient companies.Yet the impact of the mayfind morevigorous expression under President Biden from the National Statistical Office on 2019 demand patterns, residential electricity public health crisis response is likelytohave NHIS FAREWELL address in the capital on Tuesday, the outgoing US Ambassador January7.InDecember lastyear,during the wasup25per cent;extreme cold weather is been disproportionatelyfelt on smaller and Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) meeting, likelytohavepusheduphousehold heating informal enterprises. An economic shockof to India,Kenneth Juster,celebrated the significant progress in bilateral rela- the ReserveBank of India (RBI) had revised consumption in the north andpartsofthe this magnitude is bound to have deep nega- tions over the lastfew years. He also pointed to the lingering challenges that upwards itspreviousforecast, pegging the east. But approximatelyhalf of the demand tive residual impacts—“scarring” —onac- could test ties in the days ahead. Juster’s tenureofalittle over three years saw contraction at 7.5per cent. The growth esti- is from industry, suggesting that activity has tivity,behaviour,confidence and resilience. I the unprecedented expansion of defence and security cooperation and some mates forthe firsttwo quarters of thisyear accelerated across all geographies. All of these will have effectsonsustaining unflinching American supportfor India in itsongoing conflict with China in the high were -23.9 per cent and -7.7 per cent, respec- Second, acritical sector in the recovery the momentum of recovery andIndia’spo- Himalayas. Forwardmovement on the trade front, however, hasbeen elusive.Justeralso tively.Itisimportant to note that the firstad- storyisresidential real estate,given the large tential growth. vance estimates for2020-21growth are backwardand forwardsector linkages. Despitethe best effortsofforecasters, the underlinedthe emergingdiscomfort in the United States over the perceivedgrowth of basedonprojections from aseven month pe- Mumbai, aweathervane of overall housing levelofuncertainty remains high. The gov- religiousintolerance and decliningcommitment to diversity in India. Delhi needs to pay riod (April–October), usingamix of the first demand, recordedamassive increase in reg- ernment and the regulators, particularly the attention to Washington’s anxieties that mayfind morevigorous expression under and secondquartercorporate results,agri- istrations (and hence sales) of housing units. RBI, have been proactiveand dynamic,re- President Joe Biden. cultureproduction data, transportand Contributoryfactors would include acut in sponding aggressively in implementing a The lastfew years have seen significant convergenceofIndianand US strategic in- freightestimates, theindexofindustrial pro- stampdutyrates from the normal5per cent palpable “survive, revive and thrive”strat- terestsinthe extendedregion of theIndo-Pacific. Delhi has accelerated induction of duction, bank credit and deposits, and mul- of the sale value to 2per cent (whichisquite egy.Given the shifting natureofpublic the advancedUSweaponssystems intothe Indianarmoury, improved interoperabil- tiple other indicators. Thesecond advance significant givenMumbai’srelatively high health markers, despitethe eventual spread estimateswill be released in end February, home prices), steep cutsindevelopers’ sale of vaccines,policy will have to “cross the ity between the twoarmedforces, and supportedrenewal of the moribund quadri- basedonamorecomprehensive setofdata. offerprices and lowhome-loan rates. riverbyfeeling the stones”.But the main pol- lateral security framework involving the US, Japan and Australia. When China occu- We have retainedour owngrowth fore- Residential demand is also evident in home icy narrative in 2021, as the growth momen- piedterritoryinthe Ladakh frontierlastApril, Washington wasamong the firsttocall castfor thecurrent financial year at -7.6 per loan off-takefrombanks, even as credit from tum gains traction, will be thepath to nor- out Chinese aggression and offersustainedmilitarysupport. But the enhancedde- cent, but thereare signs, beginning in late NBFCs has begun to increase, afteranalmost malisation from the extreme fence partnership is notwithout wrinkles. Justerflagged India’s continuing purchase November of astronger economic recovery. complete shutdown in 2019-20. accommodative monetary and fiscal policy of advancedconventional weapons from Russia amidstdeteriorating ties between Our 2021-22 GDP growth forecastisat11per The thirdisdigitalisation and the big-tech stance, with measuresbalancedbetween cent plus. developmentsofthe lastfew years: App- continuingatargeted stimulus forthe most Washington and Moscow. First, aset of recent news from govern- basedmobility metrics provide valuable in- vulnerable and impacted segments, and While Delhi hopes to finesse the emerging tension between India’s longstanding de- mentand industryreleases: In December, sightsonacitybasis.Googlemobilitydata normalisation of the extraordinarymeas- fence cooperationwith Russia and deepening security partnership with America, it has GSTcollections were at arecordhigh, pas- across different geographies also pointstoa ures to counter the deeplycontractionary afar largerchallengeathand on trade policy.The frustration at the inability to conclude senger vehicle dispatches to dealers were normalisation of activity.However, work effectsofthe pandemic. even asmall trade deal that Justerhighlighted is nowcommon to all of India’s major com- fairly robust, and the Manufacturing from home is likelytobecome embeddedas Past experience has shown the likelihood mercial partners. Asia is disappointed by India’s decision to walk out of aregion-wide Purchasing Managers Index(PMI)continued indicated by trends in travel to workplaces. of inflationaryand financialsectorriskspost to remain strong. Coupledwith positive re- This is supportedbymultipledataseries the adoption of aprolonged loose policy.The free trade agreement. Trade talkswiththe European Union have been stalled forlong Despite the best efforts of ports of theorder book of aleadingmanu- basedonthe digitalisation initiativestaken RBI has demonstrated adeep ability to man- and Delhiisnow trying to decouplefromthe Chinese economy. This is notanenviable sit- facturer of akey intermediateinput of man- forecasters, the level of by the government, RBI and ancillaryinsti- agethe crisis and will nowhavethe difficult uation to be in. India has an equallydaunting challengeofrestoring itsimageasathriv- ufacturing machineryand automobiles — uncertaintyremains high. tutions. Paymentsdata, whether via UPI or task of initiating and communicating the ing plural society.Animportant section of US opinion has already begun to tagIndia as ball bearings —the signals of astrong recov- Thegovernment and the FastAG paymentsorGST E-way bills, also normalisation strategy,particularly thegrad- an “illiberal democracy”. Concerns about India’s domestic politics arenot limited to the eryare quitebroad-basedwith apositive regulators, particularly the suggestastrong activity recovery,basedon ual draining of the surplus liquidity over the momentum. transportdata. course of 2021, especiallywith all major cen- US. ManyofIndia’s friends and well-wishers in the neighbourhood and the worldare RBI, have been proactive and anxious about the direction of India’sdomestic politics. Official Delhi might believe that This inference is reinforcedbysignals One strong setofinputsintoour under- tral bankslikelytocontinuewith their own from an extensive setof39leading and con- dynamic,responding standing of activity arethe reported finan- loose policies. On thegovernment’s side, we India’seconomicsizeand geopolitical salience give it the option of dismissing these con- current indicators whichwetrack.These can aggressively in implementing cial resultsofcompanies forthe July- have already seen the initiation of deep cerns. But in the current fluidinternational environment,the costs of being seen as a be broadlygroupedintodomestic and exter- apalpable ‘survive,revive September quarter. Excluding petroleum and structural reforms to getIndia backtoasus- closedeconomyand intolerant society could be high forIndia. nalactivities (manufacturing and services, trading companies, netsalesofthe largest tainablehigh growth trajectory. Theforth- consumption and investment), fiscal num- and thrive’ strategy.Given companieswas flat relative to the same quar- coming budget proposals for2021-22 (and bers, mobility,employment and payments. the shifting nature of public terlastyear,while operatingprofits were up beyond) arelikelytobekey beacons forthe Early indicators forDecember activity based health markers, despite the 17 per cent (year-on-year). This leads to ques- “thrive”phase. on acompositeindexofaweighted mix of eventual spread of vaccines, tions on akey implication of the recovery and these indicators suggests that economic ac- the consequent crafting of the evolving stim- The writer is executivevice-president, FADING LINES tivity has pretty muchcome backuptopre- policy will have to ‘crossthe ulus response —anunevenand unequal re- Business and Economic Research,Axis Bank. lockdown levels. river by feeling the stones’. covery.The financial resultsreflect the per- Viewsare personal. On conflict of interest, BCCI needs to acknowledge the problem, act in amanner befitting itspower andstature

AN SOMEONEWHO is directlyresponsible forselecting the Indian team invest in acommercial enterprise whosebusiness model is basedonfans picking the right or wrong playing eleven? Will the cricketboardprobe if THE WRONG ANSWER India captain ViratKohli’s linkswith Mobile Premier League, an online Cfantasy league game thatpromises millions in rewards forgamersand also sponsors the national team’s kit, pass the propriety test?Kohli, as this paper reported, Punitiveresponses to sexual violence need rethink,given perverse consequences along with his agent, is an MPL investor;the twoare also business partners. But going by the present BCCI dispensation’s more-than-lenient stand on the conflict-of-interestissue and the prevailing lackoftransparency,it’s highlyunlikelythat the office staffatMumbai’s Neetika Vishwanathand Preeti Pratishruti Dash Cricket Centrewould compose a“showcause” notice to the Indian skipper anytime soon. This, in an institution that is headedbyapresident, former skipper Sourav Ganguly, who ON HUMAN RIGHTS Day2020, the does notaddressthese concerns. ment by women through words, gestures or is abrand ambassador of acorporateentity that owns an IPL team. Fading lines between Maharashtracabinetapproved theShakti Second, harsh penalties oftenhavethe anyform of verbal or non-verbal communi- Bill, enlarging the scope of harsher and consequence of reducing the rate of convic- cation.Inasharp departure, thebill stipu- commercial and cricketing interests have suited this cronyclub forages. Nothing, not mandatorysentences —including the death tion forthe offence. Forinstance, astudy by latesthat valid consent can be presumed even aSupreme Courtorder,has been able to changethat. penalty—fornon-homicidal rape, to pur- one of us publishedinthe Indian LawReview from the “conduct of theparties” and the SevenSupreme Courtjudges, includingtwo Chief Justices of India, triedtolay down portedlydeter sexual offences. The Bill also basedonrape judgmentsinDelhi shows a “circumstances surrounding it”. Rape trials some lines. Theyspecificallynotedthat the real villain wasconflict of interest. The call to introduces aproblematic standardofcon- lowerrateofconviction afterthe removalof continue to be guidedbymisogynistic no- clean up the system has, however, flared intoayet moresophisticated interlocking of sent and allowsdecision-makers to presume judicial discretion in 2013.Introducing tions, expecting survivors to necessarilyre- overlapping roles by the principal players. There’s notevenasmidgen of disclosureinsight. consentfromthe conductand circumstances harsher penalties does notremove systemic sist the act, sufferinjuries and appear visibly surrounding the incident. Harsher sentences prejudices from the minds of judges and the distressed.The vaguelywordedexplanation The problem is notthat cricket’s mostcredible faces can’t be trusted. It lies in their obsti- have hadperverse consequencesonthe al- police, who might refuse to register com- in the bill holds dangerous possibilities of ex- natedoubling down, with notathought forhow wrong an example theyset forevery- ready lowrates of rape convictions. Besides, plaints, or acquit offenders in cases theydo pectingsurvivors to respond only in acer- one down the chain. the newstandardofconsent poses the seri- notconsider as “serious” enough to warrant tain manner,thus creating the stereotype of The Indian boardcan do better.Ithas just finished hostingablockbusterIPL, clear- ous risk of reinforcing myths, including re- amandatoryminimum. an “ideal” victim.Italsooverlooksthe fact ing the pandemic hurdles and transporting the megacricket carnivalacross the Arabian gressive notions about “ideal” rape victim. Third, studies on child sexual abuse have that perpetratorsare known to thesurvivors Sea. It needs to setgoodgovernanceexamples.Itisthe richestboard, theenginethat TheShakti Bill comes amid the recent leg- shown that in the fewcases of convictions, in nearly 94 per cent of rapes, whichoften islative trend to invoke the death penalty for the minimumsentence wasthe norm and do notinvolve anybrutal violence. fuelsthe game internationally. The BCCI can no longer be runbyacoterie that watches sexual offences, beginning with the intro- Themost severe gaps in the the awardofthe maximum punishmentwas The Shakti Bill, while serving the populist eachother’s backs.Itneeds to urgentlydrawsome lines,act in amannerthatbefitsits duction of the death penalty forchild rape in justice deliverysystem are an exception. Moreover,crime data from the agenda of making the public believe that the powerand stature. 2018.In2020, the AndhraPradesh govern- related to reporting apolice National Crime Records Bureaushows that stateisdoing “something”, does notachieve ment passed the Disha Bill, pending presi- in 93.6 per cent of these cases, the perpetra- morethan that. Tackling crimes against dential assent, that provides the death complaint. Thefocus of the tors were known to the victims. Introducing women and children requires broader social penalty forthe rape of adult women. criminal justice system, capital punishment would detercom- reforms,sustainedgovernance effortsand Thedeath penalty is the lastphase of a therefore,needs to shift plainantsfromregistering complaints. The strengthening investigative andreporting criminal trial while rape survivors face serious from sentencing and Shakti Bill ignores crucial empirical evidence mechanisms, instead of merelyenhancing THE COWTEST obstacles muchearlier,especiallyatthe time on these cases. punishment. Punitive responses to sexual vi- of registration of the complaint. The mostse- punishment to the stages of The other anti-women assertion in the olence needserious rethinking,given the Howmuchdoyou reallyknowand love the desi cow? vere gaps in the justice delivery system are reporting,investigation and bill is the move away from the standardof multitude of perverse consequences and Amultiple choice sample paper related to reporting apolicecomplaint. The victim-support mechanisms. affirmative consent in cases involving adult their negligible role in addressing the actual focus of the criminal justice system, there- TheShakti Bill does not victims and offenders. Significant advocacy needs of rape survivors. fore,needs to shiftfromsentencing and pun- from the women’s movement ledtothe in- ELCOME TO THEfirstKamdhenuGau-VigyanPrachar-Prasar ishment to thestagesofreporting, investiga- addressany of these troduction of an affirmativestandardofcon- The writers arewithProject39A at the Pareeksha conducted by the Department of Animal Husbandry tion and victim-supportmechanisms. The bill concerns. sent, rooted in unequivocal voluntaryagree- National LawUniversity,Delhi and Dairying, Government of India. This is ahistoric moment. W And so, without further ado, let’s proceedtothe test.Remember, thereare no wrong answers —onlyanti-national ones. 1. Howcan youtell the difference between the foreign-importJerseyand the Indian desi cow? a) The desi cowiscalm, loving and hygienic, and stands up wheneverthe national JANUARY 7, 1981, FORTY YEARS AGO anthem is played; b) The Jerseycow is lazy and unclean. It has high fatcontent in milk be- cause of decades of appeasement by pastgovernments. Udderly unmoved by strains of ASSAM TALKS invitation to them. the city.The policerushedtothe spotand national anthem; c) All of the above. THE CENTRAL GOVERNMENT did notre- brought the situation under control. 2. Who playedthe role of Mother India in the1957film directed by Mehboob Khan? spond to theAssam agitators’ willingness to KASHMIR RALLIES a) Ms JerseyfromChannel Islands,Britain; b) Nargis; c) GaumatafromGorakhpur. participateintripartitetalksbut said itsoffer VIOLENT INCIDENTS OCCURRED in Srinagar LEFT UNITY to them fordirect negotiationswas still open. and Sopore(north Kashmir) on the occasion THELEADERSHIP OF the CPI and CPM have 3. Whyismyglass of cowmilk yellowincolour? a) Sign of adulteration; b) That’s turmeric An official spokesman told newsmen that of the “protestday”observed by the state agreedinprinciple on the needfor forging a lattefor the Khan Market gang; c) Rejoice, those aretraces of gold. With help from ancient severalrounds of discussions had already Congress(I) in Kashmir againstwhatitcalled broad unity among Leftand democratic Vedic shastras, nationalistscientists areclose to cracking amethod to extract the metal takenplace and the government had made it “politicalinterference of the ruling party in forces to counter the Congress (I), whichlooks from milk,therebyturning India intoa$5trillion economy. clear time and again that itsdoors were open. the day-to-dayadministration, increasing poisedtooverthrow CPM-dominated gov- 4. What is the mosteffective argument againstcow slaughter? a) It causes devastating Expressing the government's keenness to corruption and unemployment” in the state. ernmentsinWestBengaland Kerala.While earthquakes; b) Thereisnone if youare in Kerala, Goa or the Northeast; c) Bisara, Dadri settle theissue, he said that it stood by the The Kashmir Youth Federation (the youth theidea has been endorsedbythe CPI, whose offermadebyHome MinisterZail Singh of wing of theruling National Conference) held central executiveconcludedits four-dayses- 5. Howcan youshowlovetoacow? a) Feed it grass and grain; b) Letitout on the negotiations without pre-conditions. counter-demonstrations againstthe sion in Delhi,the CPM politburomeeting from streetswhen it is tooold. It can feed on plastic and garbage; c) Spread communal vio- Informedsources said the government felt Congress (I) “tactics”. Therewas an exchange January11willhavethis on topofthe agenda. lence in itsname. therewas no needfor aformal invitation to of brickbatsbetween workers of the Youth CPM sources in NewDelhi seemedconfident 6. Agovernmentofbovine worshippers leads itscitizens towardsprosperity. the agitators forresuming the dialogue. The Federationand the stateCongress (I) in front that the politburowill be able to draw up a a) True; b) False;c) Moo. Home Minister’s statement amounted to an of the Pradesh Congress (I) headquarters in programme forsuchunity.

Ahmedabad WWW.INDIANEXPRESS.COM

THEINDIANEXPRESS,THURSDAY,JANUARY7,2021 WHATTHE OTHERSSAY “The court’s decision not to extradite Julian Assange is no cause forcelebration forthoseconcerned about pressfreedom.The ruling offersnoprotection to any journalist who might find themselvesinhis position. It is no victoryfor the 9 THE IDEAS PAGE righttoshare material of clear public interest.” —THE GUARDIAN Plugging the privacy gaps Healthofanation Early NFHS-5 dataindicates severalmaternal and Personal DataProtection Bill 2019 needs to be debated thoroughly. It providesanopportunity forIndia to child health interventions have ledtoimproved forgeanagenda that willact as astandard-setter in national dataprotection legislation outcomes.And pointstoworkstill to be done than90per cent of newborns beingdeliv- eredin institutional facilities. Similarly,14out of 22 states/UTshaveseen adecline in neona- talmortality. While women’sempowerment is awide construct,indicators like household decision making, control over personal hygiene choicesand assets likebank accountsand mobile phones aregood proxies forevalua- tion. As per the NFHS-5 data, majority of Christophe Jaffrelot women (80 per cent) participated in at least AnanyaAwasthi threehousehold decisions.More than 64per and AdityaSharma cent of younger women in eachofthe 22 states/UTs, exceptBiharat59per cent,are POPULATION-BASED SURVEYSformthe nowusing hygienic methods of protection IN RECENT YEARS,the question of privacy bedrock of thecountry’s health information duringmenstruation.Morewomen now has loomedlarge over the global legal, polit- systems. Use of accurateand nationallyrep- ownapersonal mobile phone and the per- ical,and commercial imagination, and India resentative datacan be instrumental in pol- centageofwomen with bank accountshas is no exception. icy planning, programme design, health sys- jumpedtoover70per cent across eachofthe As per Puttuswamy vIndia (2017), privacy temmonitoring and management of 22 states/UTsofIndia(exceptNagaland) in is afundamental right. This wasanimpor- financial and human resources. Hence, the 2019-2020. tant development. When previous cases on releaseof the NationalFamilyHealthSurvey- It is heartening to see almostall statesand privacy had come before the Supreme Court, round 5(NFHS-5), whichcovers about 6.1 UTsreportadrastic increasein the number of mostnotably MP Sharma v. Satish Chandra lakhsamplehouseholds to provide estimates households withaconstructed toilet, im- (1954) and Kharak Singh v. UttarPradesh for707 districts, servesas alitmustest to eval- proveddrinkingwateraswell as cleancook- (1962),the judgeshad declaredthatwhile in uateIndia’s prospectsforachieving improved ingfuel. All three indicators arecritical inim- certain circumstances the privacy of individ- health and well-being forits population. In proving public health in India, especiallyfor uals wastobeprotected,therewas no con- thefirstphase, datafrom22statesand UTs women. While indoor air pollution hasbeen stitutional righttoprivacy in and of itself. has been releasedfromthe latestsurvey con- linkedwithmajor respiratorydisorders with But aSupreme Courtrulingiscertainly ducted in 2019-2020. women being disproportionatelyaffected, notenough. The relentless march of global The biggesthighlight comes from the data population-levelcoverageofsanitation facil- technologyand the implementationofthe on TotalFertility Rate (TFR),whichhas come ities has been associated with areduction of Aadhaar biometricprogramme, in particu- down to 2.1orbelow(replacement level) in infectious disease likediarrhoea, whichcan lar,havecreated the needtotakeanew look all states and UTs, exceptBihar (3), Meghalaya take asubstantialtollonchild mortality. at the legal positionofprivacy in India. (2.9) and Manipur (2.2). This finding is sub- Additionally, women arespending moretime The main battleground of privacy today, stantial givenIndia’slongstanding invest- inschool withthepercentageofwomenwho as demonstratedbyAadhaarand manyoth- mentinpopulation control, whichhas also completedatleast 10 years of schooling erscases,isdata, an intangible product that been instrumental in our povertyalleviation jumping by at least6per cent pointsinthe nowforms the basis of muchofthe world CRSasikumar efforts. This correlates with the dataonthe pastfiveyears across states and UTs, except economyand carries staggering political cap- Protection Authority(DPA), whichwill be ing app, developedtotrack thespread of the overall use of modernmethodsof contracep- Daman &Diu and Tripura. ital. The rising importance of datahas pushed chargedwith managing datacollected by the COVID-19 pandemic. The government first tion, whichhas increasedin20out of 22 While states have shown an increase in over 80 countries to pass national laws pro- Aadhaarprogramme. It will be ledbyachair- made the app mandatory, but reactions from states,though female sterilisation continues exclusive breastfeedingand adequacyofdi- tecting the collection and use of their citi- personand six committee members, ap- opposition parties and civil-societygroups to bethe mostdominant method. Since uni- ets, abouthalf of them have shown an in- zens’ databycompaniesand the govern- pointed by the central government on the forced it into backtracking. Technology ex- versaluptake of contraceptionin developing crease in ratesofmalnutrition, wasting and ment. Sometime in the near future, India will recommendation of aselection committee. perts criticisedthe app forits apparently countries maytakemoretime, other socio- underweight children. To act upon the un- join them as thePersonal DataProtection Bill But this committee will be composedofsen- wanton datacollectionand itslackofade- demographicvariables likeage at marriage derlying determinants, we have to under- 2019 (DPB) is currentlyunder consideration ior civil servants, includingthe Cabinet quatedataprotection measures. Whereare playanequallyimportant role in reducing stand that indicators likestunting, forex- by aparliamentarycommittee. Secretary, raising questions about the board’s these datastoredand who has access to fertility rates. The datashowthat the num- ample,can be multifactorial. Stunting can The DPB will have hugecommercial and independence. The government’s powerto them remain open questions. berofwomen marrying before the legal age be affected by variables likeindicators of the political consequences forIndia. According appoint and remove members at itsdiscre- These developmentsdonot augur well has fallen in 17 outof22statesand UTs, with mother achild is born to,economic situa- to Ernstand Young, emerging technologies tion also stokes fears about itsability to in- forthe Indian government’sresponsibility Nagaland,Maharashtra, Jammu &Kashmir tion of the household, adequacyofdiets,wa- in Indiawill create$1trillionineconomic fluence this ostensiblyindependent agency. when it comes to mass datacollection and and Sikkim as the topperformers. Also, indi- terand sanitation facilities, as well as inter- value by 2025. Muchofthis value will be Unlikesimilar institutions, suchasthe protection. This is whythe privacy bill is such cators on teenagemarriageand childbearing ventions fornutrition promotion and health. foundedonthe creation, use, and sale of data, ReserveBank of India or the Securities and an important piece of legislation. The DPB is have improved in 17 states/UTs. An encouraging example is from Bihar, and the DPB will have immenseimplications ExchangeBoard,the DPAwill nothaveanin- aunique opportunity forIndia, acountry In terms of antenatal care, 17 of 22 whichhas shownadeclineofstunting rates as firms scramble to meet newprivacy reg- dependent expertormember of the judici- with some 740million internetusers, to forge states/UTssaw anincreaseinANC visitsdur- by about 5.4 per cent pointsoverthe past ulations. aryonits governing committee. The UIDAI, apathbreakingagendathatwill act as astan- ing the firsttrimesterwith Nagaland, Bihar five years. The bill establishes anumber of condi- forits part, has achairperson appointed by dard-setter in the still-developing field of na- and West Bengaldemonstrating the highest At thesame time, NFHS-5 dataalso tionsfor companies to follow, andfor large the central government and reporting di- tional dataprotection legislation. Strangely increase. But whenwelook at the dataonin- showanincrease in the ratesofobesity in international tech firms that wish to operate rectlytothe Centre. enough, it will notbediscussedbythe parlia- terventions foranaemia reduction in moth- children and risk factors forchronic diseases in Indian territory. Forone, it would require The needtoprotect individual freedom The bill does not protect mentarycommittee on Information ers, consumption of IFAtablets by pregnant in adultslikehypertensionand blood glu- digital firmstoobtain permission from users is particularly acuteasrecent developments individuals against the Technology chaired by Shashi Tharoor,but women for180 days or morehas increased cose, whichrepresent the flip slide of the before collectingtheir data. It also declares have suggestedthat India wasacquiring Indian government as by aJoint ParliamentaryCommittee (JPC) of in almostall states/UTs(exceptKarnataka), malnutritionproblem. that users who provide dataare,ineffect, the some features of asurveillance state. Forin- 30 MPs, 15 of whom arefromthe BJP,that is though this has notresulted in aparallel re- In conclusion, we should fall shortof owners of their owndata. This has major im- stance, the government of India has resorted effectively. It stipulates that headedbyMeenakshi Lekhi. Tharoor has ar- duction in anaemia levels among pregnant generalising these resultsfor the country plications,suggestingthatusersare able to increasingly to facial recognition whereas us- ‘critical’ or ‘sensitive’ guedthat his IT committee holds the man- women.Thesefindingsdoreflecttheneedto both because datafromphase 2isyet to control the datatheir online selvesproduce, ing this technique violates privacy rights. personal data, related to datetoexaminethe DPB, and has calledthe consider complementing IFAtablets with the comeand summaryfiguresmay overlook and mayrequestfirms to deleteit, justas Afterthe anti-CAA protests and the Delhi ri- government’sdecision to referittothe JPC a provision of morenatural sources of iron,folic howcontextual health and nutritional out- European internet-users areable to exercise ots, Home MinisterAmit Shah declared, information such as religion, “wilful exercise of undermining the House” acid and other micronutrientsinthe diet. comes of the population can be.Though a“right to be forgotten” and have evidence “Policehaveidentified1,100people through or to matters of national that shows a“brazen disregardfor the Acase wherematernal and child health overall trends do suggestanimprovement of theironline presence removed. facial recognition technology.Nearly 300 security, must be accessible Standing Committee”. Will atransparent de- interventions have translatedintoimproved in population control, use of modern con- But the bill does notprotect individuals people came from Uttar Pradesh. It wasa to the government if needed batetakeplace in theJPC and then in healthoutcomes is the uptake of institutional traception, reproductive andchild health, againstthe Indian government as effectively. plannedconspiracy.” Howcould the police Parliament forpromoting transparency? deliveries. According to the WHO, nearly immunisation and social determinants of It stipulates that “critical” or “sensitive”per- know? It seems that the footageprocured to protect national interest. Suchadebate would makeParliament an 3/4th of the neonataldeaths areattributable health, acomplete overhaul is neededto sonal data, relatedtoinformationsuchasre- from CCTV, media persons and the public Critics have suggested that important powercentreagain, afterthe can- to pretermbirths,intrapartumcomplications identify and address the multidimensional ligion, or to matters of national security,must wasmatchedwith photographs stored in the such open-ended access cellationofthe winter session, and the can- and sepsis—mostofwhichcanbeaddressed aspectsofchildmalnutrition. be accessible to the governmentifneededto database of Election Commission and e- could lead to misuse. Even cellation of the question hours in the previ- through appropriatemedical careatthe time protect national interest. Critics have sug- Vahan, apan-India database of vehicle regis- ous session. of delivery.Inthis regard,therehas been a The writer is assistant director,research & gested that suchopen-endedaccess could tration maintainedbythe MinistryofRoad B N Srikrishna, who chaired consistent increase in institutional delivery, government partnerships, HarvardSchool of leadtomisuse. Even BNSrikrishna, who Transportand Highways. the committee that drafted Jaffrelotissenior research fellowatCERI- with14out of 22 states andUTs havingmore Public Health-India Research Centre chaired the committee that draftedthe orig- Asidefromthe controversy surrounding the original bill, warned that Sciences Po/CNRS,Paris, professor of inal bill, warnedthat government-access ex- the Aadhaarprogramme, the mostrecent in- government-access Indian Politics and Sociology at King’s India emptions risk creating an “Orwellian state”. dication of the Indian government’scasual Institute, London; Sharma is astudent Thereisenough reason to worryindeed. treatment of itscitizens’ privacy wasthe exemptions risk creating an of political scienceatColumbia University, LETTERSTOTHE EDITOR The bill outlines the establishment of aData backlash to the AarogyaSetucontact-trac- ‘Orwellian state’. NewYork

LET TRUMP GO THIS REFERS TO theeditorial, ‘The IDEAS system works’ (IE, January6). US PresidentDonald Trump’snever-end- ONLINE Friends and partners ing effort to overturn the result of an election that he has lost has comea ONLYINTHE EXPRESS cropper.His challenges aimedatsow- ● ANEWPARLIAMENTFOR Thereisahugeopportunityto move UK-Indiaeconomicagendaforwardinkey areas ing doubtshavebeen summarilydis- missedbyjudgesright across the NEWINDIA: country.Whatthe country’s elected ARJUNRAMMEGHWAL Richard Heald representatives mustdoinCongress on Wednesdayistoformallydeclare ● SECURING THE THE NEW YEAR is atime to identify newbusi- mous decision in favour of Cairn Energy PLC commitment of significantrisk capital to drill long the agonyfor allparties. And forwhat Joe Biden as the winnerand ask TELECOM SECTOR: nessopportunities andplanontheircapture. in the arbitration courtinthe Netherlands numerous wells to fullyexplorethe fields in gain? Challengingthe ruling will be costly. Trumptodepart from the White SUBIMAL BHATTACHARJEE The rollout of the Oxford/AstraZeneca vaccine, marksan end to the long-running disputebe- Rajasthan. Once oil wasdiscovered, Cairn And anegative impact could extend beyond House. whichhas been approved in the UK and else- tweenCairn Energy PLCand theIndian gov- Energy PLCthen developedthese fields and “credibility” withinthe global investment SSPaul, Nadia www.indianexpress.com where, is in large part due to thecollaboration ernment over aretrospective $1.2 billion tax deployed innovative worldbeating technol- sentiment. between the Pune-basedSerum Institute of demandleviedin2015. Thishas been apainful ogy to extract the oil and transportittorefiner- And what of thoselooking from the side- ILLOGICAL APPROVAL India and the Wockhardt factoryinthe UK. and protracted processfor both parties. ies. All the time, Cairn Energy PLCnot onlypaid lines?The boardsofcompanies thathavenot With the UK-EU trade agreement finallycon- In 2006,Iwas vice-chair forSouth and all taxesand dues in atimely fashion, but also yetinvestedinIndia will belooking forclarity, THIS REFERS TO the report, ‘Minutes cluded, the UK can fullydevoteall itsefforts to South EastAsia forthe advisors to Cairn Energy investedin the localcommunity,creatingvalu- as will international FDI and FII investors —not showhow panel changed mindon NOT COMMUNAL concludeothertrade agreementswith key PLCinrelation to theirIndianexplorationas- able infrastructure and jobs. leastasthe Indiangovernment has publicly Covaxin’ (IE, January6). The Drugs THIS REFERS TO theeditorial, ‘The MP strategic and economic partners, of which sets.Ican recall the deliberations amongstthe Mostboards, then andnow,that arelook- statedin the past that thedecision of the tribu- Controller GeneralofIndia approval letdown’ (IE, January5). The editorial is a India is at the topofthe list. Cairn Energy PLCBoardonmaintaining asub- ing at makingnew and substantial invest- nalwould be honoured. forthe indigenously-developed false narrative of an anodyne incidentin As chair of UK India Business Council (UK- sidiaryinIndia or spinning the Indian assets mentsinany overseas environmentgo On the otherhand, atimely andpragmatic Covaxin,that has yettoshowefficacy the MalwaregionofMPresulting in a IBC), Iamveryconfident that great things can offintoCairn India and listing them on the through similar processes, notleastbecause settlement of this dispute wouldleadtoanim- resultsfromphase 3trials, forre- communal flare-up. Therewas asimple be achieved between Indian and UK busi- BombayStock Exchange. governancenorms and their investors require mediate confirmationofthe attractiveness of stricted emergency usein“clinical case of arally by some Hindus —pejora- nesses. Thereisahugeopportunity to move Everyone recognisedand celebrated the them to do so, but alsobecausethe “indigeni- India as an investment destination and impor- trial-mode’’ basedonsafetyand effi- tively referredto asHindutvagroups—to the bilateral economic agenda forwardinkey newresurgent, self-confident India. Indeed, sation” of their overseas assets oftenresultsin tantlyonIndia’s status in the international and cacy on non-human primates andcit- raise awareness about fund collection areasofcommoninterestsuchasclimate Cairn Energy PLCwas one of the firstmajor greater success. And the encouragement of domestic debt and equitymarkets. ing itsyet-to-be-proven potential drive forthe construction of RamMandir changeand the green economy, ourmutual global investors to realise that itsassets in India this thought process, plays to Prime Minister Howshould onecontextualise this in the againstmutant variantsofthe coron- at Ayodhya.Asthe rallywas passing economic recovery from COVID-19and the neededtobeheld in an Indian companyin NarendraModi’s policiesofMakeinIndia and current environment of bilateral economic avirus, defies logic. If the available data through the designated routes ear- further accelerationofUK-India tradeand in- whichIndians sat on the board, whichhad Atmanirbhar Bharat. discussions? Both the UK andIndiangovern- wasgood enough then approval ought markedalready by the administration, vestment ties. The UKIBC, on behalf of UK busi- Indian senior management, wheremanyof Having madethat decision,Cairn Energy mentshavedeclaredtheir joint ambition to to have been givenmuchearlier in mostlyinhabitedby Muslims,it wascon- ness, is fullysupportive of this. the engineers were Indian andwhereIndians PLC, athen FTSE 100companyonthe work towardsaUKIndia Free Trade “public interest” when therewas a frontedwith ahail of unprovokedstone- Critically, businesseslook to governments could invest theirsavings and benefitdirectly LondonStock Exchange, executed the strat- Agreement via an enhancedtrade partnership. surge of cases. The SEC’s (Subject pelting from neighbouring Muslim to createthe right environment forbusinesses from itssuccess. egywithfull transparency and with the full This is alaudableambition and one that UKIBC Experts Committee) turnaround in houses, whichgaverise to communal —“to do what businessesdo” —and,atthe Letusalso remember thatthe success of approval of the relevant regulatoryauthor- fullysupports.Atimelyand pragmatic solu- 24 hours created the groundfor ques- strife. It is wrong to suggestthat the stone same time, to engender confidence inthe qual- CairnIndia arose from asignificant, albeit cal- ities in both the UK and in India. The judge- tion to theVodafone and Cairn Energy judg- tions being raisedonthe sanctity of pelting wasthe result of provocative slo- ity and consistency of decision-making which culated risk.These were assets whichCairn ment in favour of Cairn Energy PLCshould mentswould enhanceIndia’s position at the due process. ganeering by the rallyists. underpins multibillion-dollar investment de- Energy PLCbought from an international ma- finallybethe end of the matter,allowing all toptable of global economic powers. LRMurmu, Delhi Ravi Mathur, Noida cisions in boardrooms around the world. jor whichhad failed to find hydrocarbonson parties to move forward. As such, one hopes that the recent unani- the acreage. The acquisition also required Dragging this out further will onlypro- The writerisgroup chair,UKIBC

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TRACKING INDIA’S COVID CURVE Forfirsttimein55years,chief HC refuses to 310 CASES: ACTIVECASES:2,27,546 DAYSSINCE 1,03,74,932 DEATHS:1,50,114 quash 2probes PANDEMIC BEGAN TESTS: 17,74,63,405 | RECOVERIES: 99,97,272 guestunlikelyatR-Dayparade CASES DEATHS RECOVERIES TESTS JAN5 against BSY 18,088 26421,3149,31,408 SHUBHAJITROY NEWDELHI,JANUARY6 EXPRESSNEWSSERVICE FORTHE firsttime in 55 years, BENGALURU,JANUARY6 India is unlikelytohaveany chief guestfor the Republic Daypa- IN FRESH setbacks to Karnataka rade, The Indian Express has Chief MinisterBSYediyurappa, learnt. the Karnataka High Courthas re- NewDelhi has come around fusedtoquash the LokayuktaFIR STATESWITHRISINGACTIVECASES to this decision, aday after in a2015corruption case per- ACTIVECASES RISEINLASTWEEK British Prime MinisterBoris taining to his earlier tenureas Ladakh 23525Johnson on Tuesdaycalledup CM and also allowedrestoration Puducherry 37310Prime MinisterNarendraModi of a2014private complaint BSYediyurappa and expressed“regret”that he againsthim. STATESWHEREACTIVECASESAREDECLINING would notbeable to visit India On December 22, the court ACTIVECASES DECLINEINLASTWEEK to be chief guestfor the Republic had refusedtoquash another Kumaraswamyhavebeen ac- Maharashtra 49,067 5,470 Daycelebrations. Johnson took corruption case registeredin cusedofmisusing their positions West Bengal 9,293 3,495 this decision in viewofthe fresh Rehearsals forthe Republic Dayparade amid rain at Rajpath on Wednesday. GajendraYadav 2015 by the Lokayukta. and colluding with others on the Chhattisgarh9,111 3,361 national lockdown in his coun- The courtonTuesdayrefused basis of fake documentsfor “un- try, as it responds to the new, to interferewith acorruption case justmonetary gain” and causing STATESREPORTINGMAXIMUMCASES morecontagious mutant strain sent out due to the demise of An invitation to be chief guest Oman’s Sultan Qaboos bin Said registeredagainstYediyurappa in losses to BDA. ONJAN5TOTAL of the novelcoronavirus. Prime MinisterLal Bahadur at India's Republic Dayisaspe- Al Said could notcome due to a 2015 on acomplaint by activist In itsorder rejecting Kerala 5,615 7,84,489 Sources said that it will be Shastri on January11, 1966 in cial honour forthe visiting for- communication issue, and Jayakumar Hiremath, accusing Yediyurappa's plea to quash the Maharashtra3,160 19,50,171 difficult to inviteany foreign Tashkent. The newgovernment eign dignitary. NewDelhi has Bhutan’s King Jigme Khesar him of releasing land acquiredby FIR,asingle-judgebenchofJustice leader at atime when countries headedbyIndiraGandhi was been weaving strategy with hos- Namgyal Wangchuk,came for the government to members of JohnMichaelCunhaTuesdaysaid Chhattisgarh1,0212,84,536 arestill dealing with the pan- sworn in on January24, 1966 – pitality while deciding on the the Republic Day. Similarly,in the familyofformer CM HD “theallegationsmadeinthecom- STATESREPORTINGMAXIMUMDEATHS demic. This is also tooshortano- onlytwo days ahead of the chief guest. The choice is dictated 2019,after US President Donald Kumaraswamyin2010. plaint and the material produced ONJAN5TOTAL tice forany foreign leader to be Republic Dayparade. by anumber of factors —strate- Trumpcould notcome, India in- Kumaraswamyisalso an ac- in supportthereof, in my view, Maharashtra6650,915 invited.Also, it could be seen as This year,Republic Daycele- gic and diplomatic, businessin- vited South African President cusedinthe case. prima facie disclose the ingredi- Chhattisgarh253,437 an undiplomatic gesturetoin- brations maybetruncated on ac- terests, and geo-politics. Cyril Ramaphosa, who attended According to the case regis- entsoftheoffencesallegedagainst vitesomeone else, afteraleader count of the pandemic. Last In the past, the Indian gov- the Republic daycelebrations. teredbyLokayuktapolice, the the petitioner warranting athor- Kerala 24 3,292 has refusedtoattend the cele- year's Independence Daycele- ernment had to look foranalter- But, this time, in viewofthe stategovernment acquired 1.11 ough investigation”. Counsel of DataasonJanuary5,releasedbyUnionMinistryofHealthandFamilyWelfare,IndianCouncilofMedical brations. brations had been scaleddown native guest, as the firstchoice Covid-19pandemic, that seems acres through Bangalore Yediyurappa have contended Researchandstategovernments.Oftenthenumbersreleasedeverydaycontaindatafrompreviousdays aswell.Assuch,trendsbasedondailynumbersareonlyindicativeandnotdefinitive In 1966,noinvitations were as well. could notmakeit. In 2013, unlikely. Development Authority (BDA) in that the land wasnot eventually Bengaluru to createalayout in handedovertothe beneficiaries, 1976-77after paying landown- making the case redundant. Centre to form SONIA FORMS FOUR GROUPS FOR POLL-BOUND STATES, UT ers compensation, but the land Justice Cunha also imposeda wasdenotifiedinfavour of apri- fine of Rs 25,000 on the CM. Rollout countdown: panel to resolve vate party in 2010 when In the second case, the High Gehlot, Baghel Cong observers Yediyurappa wasChief Minister. Courtallowedaplea forrestora- issues relating As per the complaint, the tion of acorruption complaint more vaccine move to denotify the land began againstYediyurappa and former to Ladakh for Kerala, Assam elections in 2007 when Kumaraswamy stateministerMurugesh Nirani wasCMafter arequestwas filed forallegedly reneging on acom- storage points, dry land, culture by one MRajashekharaiah, who mitment to grant 26 acres to pri- MANOJ CG Bankingon claimedtobeinpossession of the vate investor Alam Pasha in 2011. NEW DELHI, JANUARY 6 seniortoiron land. Later,when Yediyurappa The private complaint case filed DEEPTIMANTIWARY became CM, arequestwas made by Pasha wasquashedbyases- runs, extra training E outglitches ● NEWDELHI,JANUARY6 GEARINGUPfor the forthcom- EXPLAINED again and denotification wasex- sions courtin2016. ing round of Assemblyelec- ecuted,itisalleged. Pasha,MDof afirmPashSpace looking at notjustlargernum- THE CENTRE has decidedtoform tions and underlining the im- THE CONGRESS believesit Afterdenotification, the land InternationalLtd,hasallegedthat KAUNAINSHERIFFM bers but avaccination drive that acommittee under Ministerof portance of the electoral battle Rajasthan CM Ashok Gehlot has arealistic chance of wasallegedly transferredto he participated in aglobal in- NEWDELHI,JANUARY6 might lastthrough the year."In Statefor Home GKishan Reddy in Kerala and Assam forthe and ChhattisgarhCM winning in Kerala, but the Vimala S, mother-in-lawof vestors’ meetand proposedaRs the coming days,the vaccine will to find asolution to issues asso- Congress, party chief Sonia Bhupesh Baghel poorshowingintherecent Kumaraswamy, who had ob- 600-crorehousing project for ■Setting up of additional 19 vac- be procured and transportedto ciated with preservation of Gandhi on Wednesdaydrafted local body elections has tainedpowerofattorneyfor the whichhewas granted 26 acres in cine stores in remote terrains like the four GMSD (Government Ladakh’s land, cultureand lan- Rajasthan Chief MinisterAshok come as asetbackfor the land. She executed asale deedin June 2010,but the grant wascan- Ladakh or those with poor logis- Medical StoreDepots,located in guageapartfromdemands from Gehlotand ChhattisgarhChief polls, the party is nowtrying to party.The defeat also re- favour of her son Dr TS celledinMarch 2011. tical supportlikeNortheast Karnal forthe northern region, the region to be includedunder MinisterBhupesh Baghel into makeamends by reaching out sulted in the resurfacing of Chenappa, as per the complaint. FULLREPORTON states, followedbycold chain Mumbai forwest, Chennai for the Sixth Schedule of the service, appointing them as to various Christian leaders. For afactionalfeud.Byappoint- Yediyurappa and www.indianexpress.com testing at the stores south and Kolkatafor east), run Constitution. “senior observers” forcam- instance, AICC in-charge of ing aveteran leader and ■ Vaccine dryrun in at leastone by the Centre, and to the 37 state A10-member delegation paign management and coor- Kerala Tariq Anwar, who is in seasonedpolitician like vaccination centreinevery dis- vaccine stores, apartfromthe 19 from Ladakh metHome Minister dination in Kerala and Assam, the state, metMajor Ashok Gehlot, the party trict of the countrytoassess the additional statevaccine stores." Amit Shah Wednesday. The del- respectively. Archbishop of Syro-Malabar high command hopes to load on the flagship Co-WIN IT The additional stores will egation is learnt to have ex- The Congress president MalankaraCatholic Church, iron out the differences. platform (the Covid Vaccine come up in regions like pressedconcern over threat to constituted four groups –one Cardinal Baselios Mar Cleemis, Intelligence Network, whichwill Nagaland, whichcurrentlyre- the region’s unique culture, lan- eachfor poll-bound Assam, on Tuesday. Senior leaders also have all required information re- ceive the vaccines coveredunder guageand demographydue to Kerala, Tamil Nadu and metMar Thoma Church epis- garding the vaccination drive) the UIP from Kolkata. Vaccine recent changes brought about by Puducherry,and West Bengal – copa Joseph Mar Barnabas. Bodoland Territorial Council ■Additional training to vaccina- manufacturers areresponsible the Centretothe status of the re- comprising three senior lead- In Assam too, the Congress (BTC) and Tiwa Autonomous tions team basedonthe feed- forthe delivery.Ladakh nowhas gion. Sources said fears have also ers each. is hoping to put up agood fight Council (TAC). Twoofits MLAs backreceivedfromthe dryrun alocal vaccine storetoo, as does been expressedabout land rights In Kerala, wherethe though manyparty leaders be- –AjantaNeog and Rajdeep These arethe three tasksthat Srinagar. and demand forinclusion in the Congress eyes achance but re- lieve it is an uphill battle. The Goala –had joinedthe BJP,de- will be undertakenbystakehold- Sources said these extra Sixth Schedule wasdiscussed. ceivedajolt in even Christian party had sufferedasetbackin livering another blowtothe ers at the Centreand statelevels stores will be up and running in The delegation includedfor- beltsinthe recent local body the recent elections to party. in the 10-odd days before the three-four days,including test- MPs ThiksayRinpoche and largest immunisationdrive inthe ing to see working of the cold ThupstanChhewang, former BJP countryisrolledout, against chain and their temperaturelog- ministerChering Dorjay, Leh Jaishankar asks Lanka to fulfil hopes of Tamils Covid-19. On Tuesday, the Union gers. chief executive councillor Tashi Health Ministrysaid it waspre- The officials will also use the Gyalson and sitting BJP MP Farmers at Delhi's Ghazipur border,Wednesday. Praveen Khanna paredto startvaccinatingpriority coming days to conduct more Jamyang Tsering Namgyal. process and an “inclusive politi- said. groupswithindays,thoughthefi- dryruns across the country(two “A meeting washeld today EXPRESSNEWSSERVICE cal outlook” that encourages Jaishankar said it wasin naldecisionrestswiththeCentre. have been held already,moni- under the chairmanship of the NEWDELHI,JANUARY6 ethnic harmony. Acknowledging Colombo’s owninteresttofulfil Topgovernment sources, toredbythe Centre), including UnionHomeMinisterAmitShah, the immediatechallengeof the Tamil minority’s hopes for who arepartofthe team moni- on January8.“Lasttime (on whereinitwasdecidedthatinor- INDIA WEDNESDAY calledupon post-Covid recovery,Jaishankar “equality,justice, peace and dig- East of Delhi, the other toring preparations forthe roll- January2), 130-odd districts derto findanappropriatesolution Sri Lanka to meetits Tamil mi- said India will “always be ade- nity within aunited Sri Lanka”. out, said theyneededthe time to were involved. Nowweare plan- to the issues related to language nority’s expectation of greater pendable partner and areliable He added: “That applies equally protest: UP’s sugarcane iron out anyglitches. Asource ning to have asiteeachinall the of Ladakh, cultureofLadakh and devolution of powers as partof friend” that is open to strength- to the commitmentsmade by pointed out, “It has to be clarified 700-plus districts, to examine conservation of land in Ladakh, a the reconciliation process, even ening ties on the basis of “mu- the Sri Lankan government on that when we said 10 days,it what kind of load it generates on committeewillbeconstitutedun- as it committed itself to greater tual trust, mutual interests,mu- meaningful devolution, includ- farmers awaiting dues means we needaminimum of the Co-WIN digital platform,” dertheleadershipof Sh.G.Kishan cooperation aimedatboosting tual respect and mutual ing the 13th amendment of the 10 days.This could be longer too. sources said. Reddy,MoS(Home).Thecommit- theislandnation’spost-Covid- sensitivity”. Constitution. The progress and sentingabuffalobuggicartloadof However, it cannotbeless than Additional training of vacci- teewould comprise of members 19 recovery efforts. “As we promote peace and prosperity of Sri Lanka will HARISHDAMODARAN 18 quintals) to the Ramala coop- 10 days." nation teams has startedtofills of the delegation who metthe External Affairs MinisterS well-being in the region, India surelybeadvancedasaconse- NEWDELHI,JANUARY6 erative sugarmillthatcrushedtill One of the primarytasksbe- gaps found during the previous Hon’ble Home Ministertoday, Jaishankar,inSri Lanka forhis has been strongly committed to quence.” Gunawardena, mean- June 2inthe 2019-20 season. He fore the rollout is setting up of dryruns. An official said, “The elected members from Ladakh, firstoverseas visit of the year, the unity,stability and territorial while, said President Gotabaya THE FARMERS’ agitation, until still hasn’t got payment for4 additional cold chain and stor- operation guideline itself is an members of the LAHDC Council spokeabout the country’s Tamil integrity of Sri Lanka. Our sup- Rajapaksa had firmlystatedhis now, has been about Punjab and parchis,which,atlastseason’sSAP agepoints. As the official said, 108-pagedocument, and there and ex-officio members repre- population during amedia inter- portfor the reconciliation commitment to the well-being, Haryana, wheat and paddy,and of Rs325perquintalforearly-ma- while asystemisalready in place were certain things theymissed. senting the Government of India action with his counterpart process in Sri Lanka is long- progress and opportunities of all concerns over the futureofmin- turing cane varieties, is worthRs due to the Universal We communicated with the and the Ladakh administration,” Dinesh Gunawardena. standing, as indeedfor an inclu- Sri Lankan citizens—including imum supportprice (MSP)- 23,400. This, even as he has sup- Immunisation Programme teams regarding specific para- astatement from the Ministryof He reiterated India’s backing sive political outlook that en- Sinhala, Tamil and Muslim peo- basedprocurement and agricul- pliedanother 6parchis so farin (UIP), with Covid-19, theyare graphs." Home Affairs (MHA) said. forSri Lanka’s reconciliation courages ethnic harmony,”he ple. tural produce market committee the newseason since the startof mandis. But there’s one elephant crushing on October 28. intheroom:Sugarcane.Itisacrop Anuj Kalkhande has come to grownmoreinUttarPradesh,not Ghazipur afterdelivering abuggi Modi earned, achieved Prime Ministership, Pranab wrote in memoir soldinmandisand,moreover, has of 20.05 quintals (netweight) to astate advised price (SAP) that is the Upper Doab Sugar Mill at He disclosedthat ahead of his mode... He has earnedand contravention of the convention forsome time to speak with me. statutory. UnlikeMSP,sugar mills Shamli on January3.Lastseason, EXPRESSNEWSSERVICE visit to Russia in 2015,“Iwas ad- achievedthe prime minister- establishedbythe former presi- Using anewspaper clipping that arelegallybound to payit. this7-acregrowerfromBanatvil- NEWDELHI,JANUARY6 visedbyPMModi to have de- ship,” he wrote. dent, Shankar DayalSharma, of had reportedonmyearlier Mostfarmers protesting at lageofShamli district and tehsil taileddiscussions with Interestingly,Mukherjee ex- inviting the single-largest party speech(2014 Republic Dayad- Ghazipur on the Delhi-UP border supplied2,400quintalsto themill DESPITE BEINGaCongressman (President Vladimir) Putin on as- pected a“hung Parliament” in to form the government. He had dress) hoping forapoliticallysta- —asagainstthose camping at that rantill June 14.“We have, all his life, Pranab Mukherjee as pectsranging from civil nuclear 2014 with the BJP emerging as invitedVajpayeetoform the gov- ble mandate, he assertedthat he Singhu and Tikri bordering however, notgot anypaymentaf- President enjoyed“very cordial cooperation and space to the the single largest party and was ernment afterahung House in had achievedthe objective of a Haryana —are sugarcane grow- terApril 6. Forthe 2020-21sea- relations” with Prime Minister process of delivering defence preparing to invitethe Congress 1996, despitelackofclarity on clear majority that Ihad envis- ers.Butnotwithstandingthelegal son,ourparchisareshowingzero NarendraModi during his tenure. hardware, including Sukhoi-30 even if it had fewerseatsbut Vajpayee’s numbers. Iwas con- aged.Thereafter, he requestedfor requirement formills to paySAP price and zeropayment, even So muchsothat Mukherjee used and other sensitive equipment, promisedastable government. vincedevenbeforethe 2014 elec- aweek’s time before the swear- within 14 days of cane delivery, though our mill begancrushing to have discussions with the as well as higher education.” In the event of ahung tions that Iwould notbeneutral ing-in ceremony. Iwas surprised manyhaven’t receivedmoney from November 5,” he said. Prime Ministerbeforeheem- Mukherjee also believedthat Pranab Mukherjee Parliament, Mukherjee wrote, “It between stability and instability.” at his request. He insistedthat he even forthe crop theysuppliedin UP mills, as of January5,owe barkedonaforeign visit and the Modi “earnedand achievedthe would have been my constitu- According to Mukherjee, he neededtime to address the issue the 2019-20 sugar season farmers Rs 2,470 croreout of the Prime Ministerwould send him prime ministership” unlikehis tional responsibility to ensure was“greatlyrelievedoverthe de- of his successor in his home state, (October-September). And the Rs 35,898crore SAPvalue of cane anotedetailing the corepointsof predecessor. UPA, but she declinedthe offer,” stability.Had the Congress cisive mandate” and wasdisap- Gujarat. He, however, confirmed Yogi Adityanath-ledUPgovern- that theycrushedinthe 2019-20 relations with that country, the “The routetoprime minister- he wrote. emergedwith fewerseatsbut pointedat the same time over his to me that he had no suchprob- ment is yettoannounce the cur- season.Theyhavefurthercrushed latePresident revealedinhis ship forthe twoPMs Iworked “He (Singh) did well as aPM. promisedastable government, I “one-time party’s performance”. lems in cabinetformation at the rent season’s SAP, despitemills 363.20 lakh tonnes of cane in the memoir. with wasverydifferent. Dr Modi, on the other hand, became would have invited the leader of Modi made an impression on Centre.” undertaking crushing operations current season, whichisworth “He would send me aletterin (Manmohan) Singh wasoffered PM through popular choice after the party to form the govern- Mukherjee at his firstmeeting it- Modi also sought since end-October. aboutRs11,660croreatlastyear’s whichthe corepointsofour bi- the postbySonia Gandhi; she leading the BJP to ahistoric vic- ment, keeping in mind their pre- self when the PM-designatemet Mukherjee’s advice on his plan Rakesh Tomar,aone-acre SAPofRs315/quintal forgeneral lateral relations were mentioned. had been chosen as the prime tory in 2014.Heisapolitician to vious trackrecordinmanaging him formallyalong with senior to inviteSAARCheads of statefor farmer from Kasimpur Kheri in and Rs 325/quintal forearly-ma- It wasapractice initiated by PM ministerial candidatebythe thecoreand had been namedthe coalition governmentssuccess- BJP leaders to stakeclaim forfor- his swearing-in ceremony. Barauttehsil of western UP’s turing varieties. Of the Rs 11,660 Modi,” Mukherjee wroteinhis Congress ParliamentaryParty BJP’s prime ministerial candidate fully.” mation of government. “I con- FULLREPORTON Baghpat district, supplied15 crore,theyhavepaidjustRs2,427 book, The Presidential Years. and other constituentsofthe as the party went intocampaign “This would have been in gratulated Modi, who requested www.indianexpress.com parchis(caneindents,eachrepre- croreasondate. Ahmedabad WWW.INDIANEXPRESS.COM

THEINDIANEXPRESS,THURSDAY,JANUARY7,2021 @ieExplained #ExpressExplained 11 If thereare questions of current or contemporaryrelevancethat youwould like E EXPLAINED explained, please [email protected] How horizontal, vertical quotas work; what SC said

It appliesseparately foreachofthe groups categorywill have to be women, and so on. categories.However, in the General-Female cannotbeexcludedfromthe horizontal The courtdid the math. Examining a APURVAVISHWANATH specifiedunder thelaw. The interlocking of the twotypes of reser- (unreserved-female)category, the lastqual- quotainthe general category. number of hypotheticalscenarios, it con- NEWDELHI,JANUARY6 Horizontal reservation refers to the equal vation throwsupahost of questionsonhow ifying candidatehad secured274.8298marks, Asimilarquestion had arisen in the case of cludedthat if both vertical and horizontal opportunity providedtoother categories of certain groups aretobeidentified. Forexam- ascore that waslower thanTomar's. vertical reservations in the past, and the law quotas were to be applied together—and THE SUPREME Courtlastmonthclarified beneficiaries suchaswomen, veterans,the ple, would an SC woman be putinthe cate- The question before thecourt wasthat if had been settledsimilarly:Ifaperson in the consequently, ahigh-scoring candidate who the position of lawonthe interplay of ver- transgender community,and individuals gory of women or SC? Since quotas arefixed the underlying criterion formaking selec- SC categorysecures ahigher scorethan the would otherwise qualify without one of the tical and horizontalreservations.The with disabilities, cutting through the verti- in percentages, whatpercentage of quota tions is “merit”, shouldTomarbeselected cut-offfor the general category, the person tworeservations is knockedoff the list— December 18 decision by atwo-judge cal categories. would be attributed to each? under General-Female quotainstead of the would be counted as having qualifiedunder then the overall selection would have candi- Bench in Saurav Yadavversus StateofUttar OBC-Female categoryfor having secured a the generalcategoryinstead of the SC quota. dates with lowerscores. Pradesh dealtwithissues arising from the Howare the twocategories of quotas What wasthe Saurav Yadav case about? higher score? On the other hand, if ahigh-scoring can- waydifferent classes of reservation were to appliedtogether? The case wasonthe technicalities that What wasthe government’s argument? didateisallowedtodropone category,the be appliedinthe selection process to fill The horizontal quotaisappliedseparately form asubstantial question of law. It wasthis: What did the courtdecide? The government’s policy wastorestrict courtfoundthat the overall selection would posts of constables in the state. to eachvertical category, andnot across the Sonam Tomar and RitaRani had secured The courtruledagainstthe UttarPradesh and contain reserved category candidates to reflect morehigh-scoring candidates. In board. Forexample, if women have 50% hor- 276.5949 and 233.1908 marks respectively. government, holding that if aperson belong- theircategories, even whentheyhad secured other words, the“meritorious” candidates What arevertical andhorizontal izontalquota,then half of the selected can- Theyhad appliedunder the categories of OBC- ing to an intersection of vertical-horizontal higher grades. The courtsaid this wastanta- would be selected. reservations? didateswill have to necessarily be women Female and SC-Female respectively.OBC and reserved categoryhad secured scores high mount to ensuring that the general category The rulingstrikes at the heartofthe de- Reservation forScheduledCastes, in eachvertical quotacategory—i.e., half of SC arevertical reservation categories, while enough to qualify without the vertical reser- was‘reserved’for upper castes. bate on “meritversusreservation”, where ScheduledTribes, and Other Backward allselected SC candidateswillhavetobe Female is ahorizontal reservation category. vation, the person would be counted as qual- reservation is sometimes projected as being Classesisreferredtoasvertical reservation. women, half of the unreserved or general The twocandidates did notqualify in their ifying without the verticalreservation, and What wasthe court’s reasoning? anti-merit.

CORONAVIRUS DASHBOARD EXPLAINED SCIENCE INDIA ACTIVE CASES 227,546 New investments in science 300,000 Thedraft Science, Technology and Innovation Policy releasedonJan 1contains radical and progressive proposals that could be game-changers fornot justthe scientificresearch community,but also forthe 277,301 250,000 wayordinary Indians interact withscience. The chief author of thepolicy explainshow and why. 227,546 work to supportgender equality in higher education and research,especiallyinsci- LAST 10 DAYS EXPERT ence, technology,engineering, mathemat- Dec 27 Jan 5 ics and medicine) is needed. The STIP has 200,000 EXPLAINS made recommendations suchasmandatory positionsfor excludedgroups in academics; Note:The Jan 5figure in this graph is based on thegovernment updateonJan 6 Dr Akhilesh 30% representation of women in Gupta selection/evaluationcommittees and deci- INDIA TOTAL CASES WORLD TOTALCASES sion-making groups; addressing issues re- From The Indian Express panel lated to career breaks forwomenbyconsid- 10,374,932 86,752,314 ering academic agerather than of specialists, exclusive insight biological/physical age; adual recruitment Source:MinistryofHealth&Family Source:JohnsHopkinsUniversity, policy forcouples; and institutionalisation Welfare,updatedat11pmonJan6 updatedat11pmonJan6 of equity and inclusion by establishing an What is the overallphilosophybehind Office of Equity and Inclusion, etc. the government’s draftScience, Technology and Innovation (STI) policy? What arethe learningsfromthe Covid- Unlikeprevious STIpolicies whichwere 19 pandemic forIndia’s science and Half of people aged 45 and largely top-driveninformulation,the 5th na- At theInternational Science Festival in Lucknowin2018. STIP proposestoincrease technology sector? Howdoes the draft tional STIpolicy(STIP)follows coreprinci- interaction between the producers and users of scientificknowledge. Archive policy addressthose learnings? older have abnormallung ples of being decentralised,evidence-in- 2020 has been ayear of science forIndia formed, bottom-up, experts-driven, and and the world. Thereisagrowing realisation inclusive.Itaims to be dynamic, with aro- Output from research that is notfunded The STIP envisions free access to all jour- thatsciencecan addresssome of thepressing function, says large study bustpolicy governance mechanism that in- by the government will be outside the nals, Indian and foreign, forevery Indian problems of society,insectors suchashealth, cludes periodic review, evaluation, feedback, purviewofthis framework.However, they againstacentrally-negotiated payment energy,andwater. Sciencebroughtquick and Research Foundation, Pune, among adaptation and,mostimportantly, atimely will be encouraged to participateinthis mechanism.This amount maybehigher effective solutions againstthe challengeof ANURADHAMASCARENHAS others. exit strategy forpolicy instruments. framework.Sincethe scheme of providing than what our institutions together payto- Covid-19, by producing protective anddiag- PUNE,JANUARY6 The goal of the study is to provide The STIP will be guidedbythe vision of open access is applicable to everyIndian, pri- day, but will facilitateaccess to India’s over nostic kits, and developing vaccines. In India, reliable and continuous scientific data positioning India among the topthree scien- vate-sector researchers, students, and insti- 1.3billion people. the pandemic presented an opportunity for ALMOST50% of people aged 45 years on the health, and social, mental and tific superpowers in the decade to come; to tutions will also have thesame accessibility. R&D institutions, academia, and industryto and above have abnormal lung func- economic well-being of India’s older attract, nurture, strengthen, and retain crit- The draftSTIP contains very progressive work with ashared purpose, synergy,collab- tion, resultsofthe Longitudinal adult (aged 45 andabove)population. ical human capital through apeople-centric What is the point of buying bulk ideasoninclusionand equity.Why is a oration and cooperation, whichhelpedthe Ageing Study in India (LASI) released The aim is to continue forthe next 25 STIecosystem; to double the number of full- subscriptions forall journals andgiving policy neededfor such things? countrydevelop the capability to produce on Wednesdaysay. years, withrespondentssurveyed time equivalent (FTE) researchers, gross do- everyone free access? Howfeasible is India has valuedthe participation of thesekitsinrecord time. The STIP draftfocuses LASI, Wave 1, carriedout in 2017- everytwo years, principal investigator mestic expenditure on R&D(GERD) and pri- this proposal? women in science and education from an- on the needtoadoptsuchlearnings forgreater 18,covered abaseline sample of Dr TVSekher told TheIndian Express. vate-sector contributiontoGERD everyfive The largeridea behind cienttimes.Some of the efficiency and synergy in future. 72,250 individuals of age45orolder LASI in India is the world’s largest years; and to build individual and institu- One Nation, One earliestwomen scientists, and their spouses from all states and longitudinal ageing study in terms of tional excellence in STIwith the aim of reach- Subscription is to democ- including Leelavati, Gargi, Howdoesthe government propose to Union Territories other than Sikkim. sample size and reach, Dr Sekher said. ing the highestlevels of global recognition ratise science by provid- THEEXPERT and Khana, made signifi- increasefunding in R&D? Of these,55,186people under- Similar studieshavebeen carriedout and awards in the coming decade. ing access to scholarly cant contributions to At 0.6% of GDP,India’s gross domestic ex- DR AKHILESH GUPTA, went spirometrytests to in 41 countries;inAsia, The policy outlines strategies forstrength- knowledge to notjustre- mathematics,naturesci- penditure on R&D(GERD) is quitelow com- Adviser&Head, Science, checkthe health of their China, Korea, Japan, and ening India’s STIecosystem to achieve the searchers but to everyin- ence,and astronomy. pared to other majoreconomies that have a Technology,and lungs. Only51% reported Indonesia have takenup larger goal of AtmanirbharBharat. dividualinthe country. Over the lastsix years, GERD-to-GDP ration of 1.5% to 3%.Thiscan be Innovation Policy-2020 normal lung function the exercise. Scientists areproducers the participation of attributedto inadequateprivate sectorinvest- Secretariat, ledthe values, while 40% The high burden of Whyhas thedraft STIP proposed an of scientific knowledge in women in S&T has dou- ment (lessthan 40%) in R&D activitiesinIndia; formulation and showedevidence of are- abnormal lung function Open Science Framework,with free the form of scholarly ar- bledinIndia; however, intechnologically advancedcountries,the pri- consultation process of strictive lung disease (49%) reportedinthe access forall to findingsfrompublicly ticles, but the consumers overall participation of vate sector contributes close to 70%ofGERD. the STIpolicy.Healso pattern, indicatingsmall PAPER study is worrying, said fundedresearch? of this knowledge —such women in R&D continues STIP has made somemajorrecommenda- heads the ClimateChange lungs. This wasslightly Dr Sundeep Salvi, former Open Science fosters moreequitable par- as line departments, in- to be onlyabout 16%. tions in this regard,suchasexpansion of the Programmeofthe moreprevalent in urban CLIP director of Chest ticipation in science through increasedac- novators, industry, theso- While therehas been STIfunding landscape at the central and state Department of Science areas than in rural areas. Research Foundation, cess to research output;greater transparency ciety at large,etc., —are considerable improve- levels; enhancedincentivisation mechanisms and Technology,and was Nine per cent re- NEWRESEARCH and head of Pulmocare and accountability in research;inclusive- severaltimes largerin ment in the participation forleveragingthe privatesector’sR&D partic- amember of the National portedthe presence of Research and Education ness;betterresource utilisation through number.But in the pres- of women in science edu- ipation through boosting financialsupport Coordination Team that obstructive airways diseasessuchas (PURE) Foundation. minimal restrictions on reuse of research ent mechanisms, theydo cation both at the and fiscal incentivesfor industry and flexible draftedIndia’s National asthma/COPD; this wassomewhat “Thisneedsto betakenseriouslyto output and infrastructure; and ensuringa nothaveaccess to this Bachelor’s and Master's mechanisms forpublic procurement;and cre- Action Plan on Climate moreprevalent in rural areas thanin find the causes and associatedrisk fac- constant exchangeofknowledge between knowledge. levels (53% and 55% re- ative avenues forcollaborative STIfunding Changein2008. urban areas. tors,” he said. Dr Salvi and his team the producers and usersofknowledge. R&D institutions in spectively as per AISHE throughaportfolio-basedfunding mecha- The report wasreleasedbyHealth trainedfield workers across India to It is important to make publiclyfunded India spend huge 2019), thereisapersist- nism calledthe AdvancedMissions in Minister Dr Harsh Vardhanonavir- performspirometry, carriedoutquality research output andresources available to amountsofmoneysub- ent gapatthe doctoral Innovative Research Ecosystem (ADMIRE) tualplatform. The study wasfunded assuranceof allthereports,andhelped all to foster learning and innovation. STIP pro- scribing to journals, especiallythe interna- levelbetween male (56%) and female grad- programme to supportdistributed and lo- by the Union MinistryofHealth and in dataanalysis and report-writing. vides aforward-looking, all-encompassing tional high impact-factor ones. As per a uates (44%). calisedcollaborativemission-orientedproj- FamilyWelfare, and wascarriedout The burden of obstructive airways Open Science Framework to provide access rough estimate, this amount comes to The Department of Science and ectsthrough along-term investment strategy. by theInternational Instituteof disease is moreprevalent in the to scientific data, information, knowledge, nearly Rs 1,500crore per annum. But still, Technology has initiatedseveral schemes in Anational STIFinancingAuthority,along Population Sciences (IIPS) in collabo- northernstates. This seems to corre- and resources to everyone in the country, and onlyathirdofthe country’s total 3.5 lakh- recent years to promoteand encouragethe with an STIDevelopmentBank,needtobe ration with HarvardTHChanSchool latewith high levels of ambient air to all who areengaging with the Indian STI odd researchers getaccess to these jour- participation of women in science. While setuptodirect long-term investmentsinse- of Public Health, University of pollution in these states,DrSalvi said, ecosystem on an equal partnership basis. nals. Researchers in remote areas, poor stu- the schemes have made great progress, pol- lect strategic areas. Southern California, National AIDS adding, however, that moreanalysis This framework will be largely commu- dentswho cannotpay forsucharticles, or icy interventions will bring transformative The STIP also suggestsmodification or Research Institute, and Chest of this aspect wasneeded. nity-driven, and supported withnecessary those who arenot partofgovernment in- change. To address the issue of inclusion and waiver of GeneralFinancialRules (GFR), for institutionalmechanisms and operational stitutions, do nothaveaccesstothisschol- equity in aholistic way, an Indian versionof large-scale mission mode programmes and modalities. arly knowledge. the Athena SWAN Charter(aglobalframe- projectsofnational importance. HowSaudiandQatarrestoredties,endinga3-yearMiddleEastcrisis

portblockade againstQatar,ostensiblyto which is an incentive forittoretain good re- did an about-turn in 2018,however, and NEHA BANKA punishDoha forits ties with radical Islamist Saudi Crown lations with the Shiiteregime in Tehran. This praisedQatar’s effortstocombat terrorism. KOLKATA,JANUARY6 groups.The bigger motivation probably was Prince is astrongirritant forSunniSaudi Arabia, The breakthrough came in late2020, the to pressureQatar intoreducing diplomatic Mohammedbin which seekstocontrolthe geopolitics of the resultofsustainedKuwaitimediationefforts APPROXIMATELYTHREEyears afteraSaudi and economicrelations with Iran, Saudi Salman welcomes Middle East. Qatar’s supportfor the Pales- andintensifiedUSpressureontheGulf coali- Arabia-ledcoalition of four Middle Eastern Arabia's great rivalinthe region. Qatar’s Emir tinianHamasinGaza,MuslimBrotherhoodin tion. Trump’s senior advisor Jared Kushner countries cut ties with Qatar,the Saudi Coalition countries put 13 demands as Sheikh Tamimbin Egypt, and Islamistgroups in Syria arealso visitedSaudiandQatarinDecember. Kushner Foreign MinisterannouncedonTuesday conditions to resumerelations, including Hamad al-Thani in major areasofcontention. Qatarhas denied wasamong the senior US officialspresent at that Riyadh and itsthree Arab allies would shutting news organisationssuchasAl al-Ula on Tuesday. backingal-QaedaandIslamicState,however. the GCC summitinal-Ulathis week. restorefull ties with Doha. Qatar’s emir Jazeera, closing aTurkishmilitarybase in the Saudi TV grab via AReuters reportonTuesdayquoted Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al-Thani at- country, and downgrading ties with Tehran. Reuters Breakthrough in crisis Kuwaiti Foreign MinisterAhmadNasser al- tendedagathering of Gulf Arab states ear- Qatar called the embargo aviolationof United States President Donald Trump Sabah as saying that “an agreement has lier this week,and wasphotographedin- international laws and instead,strength- had expressedsupportfor the Saudi-ledem- been reachedtoopenairspace and land and sideavehiclewithSaudi CrownPrince enedties with Iran and Turkey.Importantly, Qatar in the Middle East nificantlyinhelping it to become an influ- bargo,and calledQatar a“funder of terror”. sea borders between Saudi Arabia and Qatar Mohammedbin Salman. Gulf Co-operation Council members Kuwait Over the lastfour decades, Qatar has entialplayerinthe region’s politics. Qatar This wassurprising givenQatar's close ties as of thisevening”. Bloombergreported that and Oman brokerankswiththe Saudi group, gone from being one of the poorestGulf has also usedits wealth and influence on with the US and itsallies, and the fact that Saudi Arabia’s Rotana Media Group had Riyadh-Doha break andKuwait sought to assume the role of me- states to one of the wealthiest—the pres- the wider global stage. the countryhosts amassive American mil- deletedahatesong againstQatar from In 2017,Saudi Arabia ledanArabtrans- diatorbetween thecoalitionand Qatar. ence of large gasreservescontributingsig- Qatar shares ahugegas field with Iran, itaryfacility at the al-Udeid air base. Trump YouTubethat wascreated in 2017.

Ahmedabad WWW.INDIANEXPRESS.COM

THEINDIANEXPRESS,THURSDAY,JANUARY7,2021 12 THE WORLD

TOPOFTHE WINS WOULD GIVE DEMOCRATS CONTROL OVER BOTHCHAMBERS OF CONGRESS AS WELL AS WHITE HOUSE WORLD GeorgiaoncuspofdeliveringSenatetoDems WarnockbeatsGOP’s Loeffler;Ossoff(D)-Perdue (R)race tooclose to call Pence defies Trump, says he can’t RICHMCKAY& MILESTONES NATHANLAYNE discard Electoral College votes JacobBlakeSr, father ATLANTA,JANUARY6 of Jacob Blake, at a ■Reverend Raphael rallyinKenosha DEMOCRATSWONoneUSSenate Warnockbecame the Monday. AP race in Georgia and ledinanother firsteverBlackSenator onWednesday, movingcloserto a from Georgia and the surprisesweep in aformer firstBlackDemocrat to USA Republicanstrongholdthatwould be elected to the Senate Nocharges give themcontrolof Congressand from the US South. greater powertoadvance againstcopwho President-electJoeBiden’sagenda. ■ Jon Ossoff, 33,will Reverend Raphael Warnock, TheDemocratic candidatesJon Ossoffand Raphael Warnockat becomethe youngest shotJacobBlake aBaptistpreacher from Martin arallyinAugusta,Georgia, on Monday. AP member of the current AWISCONSIN prosecutor Luther King Jr’s formerchurch, Senateifheholds on to declined Tuesdaytofile beat Republican incumbent his lead over David chargesagainstawhite KellyLoeffler to becomethe first Bidenpicks Merrick Garland as A-G Perdue. policeofficerwho shota Blacksenator in the deep South Blackman in the backin state’s history. Washington:USPresident-elect process said Wednesday. In ■If Ossoffgoes on to Kenosha, concluding he Jon Ossoff, adocumentary Joe Biden has selected picking Garland, Biden win, Democratswill take couldn’t disprovethe offi- filmmaker who at 33 would be- MerrickGarland, afed- is turningtoanexperi- control of the Senate, cer’s contention that he come the Senate’s youngest eral appeals courtjudge encedjudgewho held making Donald Trump acted in self-defence be- member,also declared victory who in 2016 was senior positions at the the firstUSPresident cause he feared theman with anarrowlead over incum- snubbedby Republicans JusticeDepartment since 1932 to lose the TRUMP SUPPORTERS RALLY: US President Donald Trumpspeaksatarally in Washington on would stabhim. The deci- bent David Perdue, although foraseat on the Garland decades ago, including WhiteHouse and both Wednesday. Thousands gathered forthe rallytoprotest againstthe resultsofNovember’s sion, metwith criticism media had yettodeclareawin- SupremeCourt,ashisat- as asupervisor of the chambers of Congress in presidential election.Trumpand his allies continue to saythere waswidespread fraud from rights advocates and ner in that race. torneygeneral,twopeo- prosecutionofthe1995 asingle term. during the election. AP some officials, threatened If upheld,the resultswould ple familiar with the selection Oklahoma City bombing. AP to reigniteproteststhat give Democratsnarrowcontrolof rocked the city afterthe bothchambersof Congress,mak- Congress convenes to formalise presidential electionresult Aug. 23 shooting thatleft ing it easier to appoint liberal- “Georgia’s voters delivereda He said he would work with DonaldTrump, who stands to be JacobBlakeparalysed.Gov. leaningjudgesand advanceleg- resoundingmessageyesterday: both parties to confirm keyad- the firstUSPresident since 1932 In the days before the joint startofthe joint session, Pence Tony Evers, aDemocrat, islative prioritiesfromcoronavirus theywant actiononthe crises ministrationofficials quickly. to losethe WhiteHouse and JILLCOLVIN& session, Trumphas pressuredhis made clearinathree-pageletter calledthedecision“further relief to climatechangewhen we face and theywant it right That would amount to afinal both chambers of Congress in a ZEKEMILLER vice president to toss electors releasedtothe media that he evidence that our work is Biden takesoffice on January20. now,”Biden said in astatement. defeat foroutgoing President single term. REUTERS WASHINGTON,JANUARY6 from battleground states that would followthe Constitution, notdone” and calledfor voted forBiden to overturn the notthe commander in chief. people to work together DEFYINGUSPresident Donald will of voters in adesperateand Beginning at 1pm, Pence be- forequity. AP Trump, Vice President Mike futile bid to undo President-elect gantoopenthe certificates of the Democratslook forward to ‘bold change’ Pence said Wednesday that he Joe Biden’s victoryinthe electoral votes from eachstate does nothavethe powertodis- November election. and present them to the ap- Democrat Jon Ossoffleading in a Democrats 50 seatsinthe Senate demic. “Weare united in want- cardelectoral votes that will “If MikePence does the right pointed “tellers” from the House PAKISTAN THENEWYORKTIMES pair of runoffelections in and leave Republicans with the ing big, bold change, and we are makeDemocrat Joe Bidenthe thing we win the election,” and Senateinalphabetical order. 3childrendie JANUARY6 Georgia, the topDemocrat in the same number,handing going to sit down as acaucusand next president on Jan. 20. Trumptold thousands of sup- At the end of the count, Pence, Senate, ChuckSchumer of New Democratsaworking majority discussthe best ways to getthat Pence said in astatement is- porters who ralliedWednesday seated on theHouse of playingwith DEMOCRATS EXULTED on York,proclaimedonTwitter: because Vice President-elect done,”hesaid. suedminutes before he wasto on the Ellipse,justsouth of the Representatives’rostrum, hasthe Wednesdaymorning as they “Buckle up!” Kamala Harris will be empow- Speaker Nancy Pelosi said in begin presiding over ajoint ses- WhiteHouse, an hourbeforethe taskof announcing whohas won handgrenade appeared poisedtowrest con- “For the firsttime in six years, ered to break ties. astatement:“We will pursue a sionofCongress to count those count in Congress wastobegin. the majority of votes forboth THREE MINOR brothers trol of the Senate, afeat that Democrats will operate amajor- Schumer told reporters that science and values-basedplan to votes thatitwas “myconsidered Pence did notattend the event. president and vice president. diedand twoother chil- would hand them unifiedcon- ity in the United States Senate — he had already spoketoBiden crush the virus and deliverrelief judgement that my oath to sup- “All Vice President Pence has Despitehislargely ceremonial dren were seriouslyin- trol of Congress —albeit by ra- and that will beverygood forthe and Congress’s firstorder of to struggling families, safeguard portand defend the Constitution to do is send it backtothe states assignment, Pence has facedin- jured in Pakistan's restive zor-thin margins —aswell as American people,” Schumer said. business would be approve the right to quality affordable constrains me from claiming to recertify and we become pres- tensepressure fromthePresident Khyber Pakhtunkhwa the WhiteHouse. Should Ossoff’s lead over $2,000 direct paymentstosent health careand launchaplan to unilateralauthority to determine ident and youare the happiest and legions of supporters who province on Wednesday, With the Rev. Raphael David Perdue hold, twin victo- to Americans struggling in the build backbetterpowered by fair whichelectoral votes should be people,” Trumpsaid. want him to use themomentto whenanabandonedhand Warnockvictorious andfellow ries in Georgia would give face of the coronavirus pan- economic growth.” counted andwhichshould not.” Shortlybeforethe 1pm(EST) overturn the election. AP grenadetheywereplaying withexploded,policesaid. Superintendent of Police, PeshawarSaddar Circle, 53 held for trying Waqar Ahmedsaid a China plays down WHO concern UK court denies bail to Assange group of children found to ‘overthrow’ thehandgrenadeinafield fail to return to court if freed. of suburban Zangali area, about delay in virus experts’trip HK govtwith JILLLAWLESS OnMonday, Baraitserrejected Peshawarcity.Not know- LONDON,JANUARY6 an American requesttosend ing what the object was, unofficial vote Assangetothe US to face spying

ED EU regulator the children startedplay- REUTERS Chinaand ABRITISH judgeonWednesday chargesoverWikiLeaks’ publica- ing with it, when it sud- BEIJING,JANUARY6 WHOinrare gives nod for deniedbailto WikiLeaks’ founder tionof secret militarydocuments denly exploded. PTI PLAIN E REUTERS JulianAssange,ordering him to adecade ago. She deniedextradi- ● publicspat CHINAPLAYEDdownon EX Modernashots HONGKONG,JANUARY6 remain in ahigh-security prison tiononhealthgrounds,sayingthe USA Wednesdaythe WorldHealth while UK courts decidewhether An Assangesupporter outside 49-year-oldAustralian waslikely Organisation’sconcerns about a THE WHO has receivedcriti- HONGKONGpolice arrested 53 he will be sent to the United the courtinLondon. Reuters to kill himself if held underharsh FBIavoids delayinauthorisation foravisit cism, particularly from the US, BARTHMEIJER people in raids on democracy ac- States to face espionagecharges. US prisonconditions. terrorlabelfor by ateam of expertslooking into forits repeated praise of AMSTERDAM,JANUARY6 tivists on Wednesday, with au- District JudgeVanessa The ruling means Assange the originsofthe novelcoron- China’s handling of the Covid thorities saying lastyear’s unof- Baraitser said Assangemustre- traditehim. mustremain in London’s Nashvilleblast avirus, saying arrangements outbreak despitewidespread EUROPE’S DRUG regulator gave ficialvote to choose opposition main in prison whilethe courts The judgesaid Assange “has Belmarsh Prison wherehehas THE FBI investigation into were being worked out. agreement that the country the green light to Moderna’s candidates in city elections was consideranappealbyUSauthor- an incentive to abscond” and beenheldsincehewasarrestedin whether the Nashville The headofthe WHO, Tedros should have handledthe ini- Covid-19vaccineonWednesday, partofaplan to “overthrow”the itiesagainstherdecisionnot to ex- thereisagood chance he would April 2019 forskippingbail. AP bombing wasaterrorist AdhanomGhebreyesus, said on tial days of the pandemic dif- the second shotithas approved, government. act has sparkedcriticism Tuesdayhewas “verydisap- ferently. The public expression as authorities accelerateinocu- Dawn raids on 72 premises RULING PARTY CONGRESSKICKS OFF about apossible racial pointed” thatChina had notau- of disappointmentinChina by lation effortsamid fears about sawmanyofHong Kong’s most double standardand thorisedthe entryofthe team for the WHO chief is ararefissure moreinfectious variantsofthe prominent pro-democracy ad- drawnquestions from the investigation, whichhesaid in arelationship that critics coronavirus. vocates arrested in the biggest NKorea’s Kim admits policy failures downtownbusiness own- wasaWHO priority. have said allowedBeijingto The approval comes as coun- crackdown since Beijing im- ers whose insurance cov- The novelcoronavirus was sweep itsearly mistakesun- tries areracingtocontain two posedanew,controversialsecu- eragecould beaffectedby firstdetected in the Chinesecity der the carpetand push un- variantsfound in SouthAfrica rity lawinthe former British thepainful lessonsfrom being re- the bureau’s assessment. of Wuhan in late2019and has verifiedtheoriesabout the and Britain that aremoretrans- colonyinJune 2020. HYUNG-JINKIM Kim Jong Un peated,”hewasquotedassaying. Morethan aweekafteran sincespread around the world. virus’ origins. missible and have driven asurge The massarrests were linked SEOUL,JANUARY6 at the ruling The Workers’ PartyCongress, explosionthat struck at Muchremains unknown in infections. to an unprecedented,independ- party one of the North’s biggestpropa- the heartofamajor about itsorigins and China has TheEU’sEuropeanMedicines entlyorganised and non-binding NORTHKOREANleaderKimJong congress gandaspectacles, is meant to American city,the FBI has been sensitive about anysugges- been a“misunderstanding” and Authority (EMA)said it had given votelastJulytoselect opposition Un admitted that hiseconomic help Kim showaworriednation resistedlabelling it an act tion it could have donemorein the twosides were stillindiscus- the go-ahead forthe use of the candidatesforasince-postponed developmentplanshavefailedas that he’s firmly in control and to of terrorism,an indication the early stages to stop it. sions over the timingand other Moderna vaccine on people aged legislative election. he openedthe nation’s firstfull year development plan estab- boostunity behindhis leadership that evidence gatheredso Foreign ministryspokes- arrangements. “There’s no need over 18 following an assessment About 1,000 policetook part rulingpartycongressinfive years, lished at the 2016 congress, ac- in the face of Covid-19 andother fardoes notconclusively womanHuaChunying,toldareg- to overinterpret this,” she said. of thedataonquality, safetyand in the raids, whichincluded statemediareportedWednesday. cording to theNorth’s official growing economicchallenges. establish that the bomber ular news briefinginBeijing that China’s expertswerealso busy efficacy.Thefinalstepbefore itcan searches of the offices of apoll- In an opening speechatthe Korean Central News Agency. Kim, 36, is holding the con- wasmotivatedby political the problem was“notjustabout dealing with arenewed spurtof berolledout across the European ster and alaw firm. Secretaryfor congress that beganTuesday, “Weshouldfurther promote gress, whichisexpected to last a ideology. AP visas” forthe team. Askedabout coronavirusinfections,withmany Unionisapprovalby thebloc’sex- Security John Lee said the group Kim said that “almostall sectors and expand the victories and suc- fewdays,amid what maybethe reports that the dates had been locations entering a“wartime ecutive body,whichisexpectedto had plannedtocause “serious fell alongway short of the setob- cesses we have gainedatthe cost toughestchallengeofhis nine- agreedupon, she said therehad footing”to stopthevirus,shesaid. followsoon. REUTERS damage” to society. jectives” under aprevious five- of sweat and blood, and prevent year rule. Iran moves to outlaw sexual AFTER YEARS OF DEBATE violence, harassment of women Germany agreestoquota for womenonfirms’ boards

passedbythe Cabinet, mustnow dards and did notaddress allthe Franziska Giffeysaid. whereboards with morethan FARNAZFASSIHI be adoptedbythe country’s con- aspectsofviolence that women REUTERS “Wehaveseenfor years, not twomembers will have to have JANUARY6 servative parliamenttobecome face. Still, manyIranian rightsac- BERLIN,JANUARY6 manychanges aremade volun- at leastone woman on them. law, but women’sadvocates are tivists andlawyers said it marked tarily, and progress is very slow.” TheDIWeconomicthinktank AFTER Adecade of deliberation, hopeful of success. astepforward and reflectedthe GERMANY’S CABINET approved Thenewlaw affectsaround70 saidthenewquota willhave alim- Iran’s government approveda “The eventsoflastyear,both shifting dynamics of Iranian soci- on Wednesdaylegislation to companies, of whicharound 30 ited impact. “It won’t turn the Bill Sundaythatcriminalises vi- ‘honorkillings’thatgot nationalat- ety, whichtheydescribeassteps forcelargerlistedcompaniesto currentlyhavenowomenontheir minimumparticipationof olence and sexual misconduct tention and the #MeToo move- ahead of the government on is- have at leastone woman on their managementboards at all, women on boards on itshead againstwomen and specifies ment in Iran, have increasedthe sues of violence againstwomen. managementboards, following Germany’sfamilyandjusticemin- right away.Itapplies to toofew punishmentsfor perpetrators. pressureonthe government to The complete draftofthe Bill years of debateoverthe issue. istries said in ajoint statement. companies to do that,” Katharina Thedecision to move ahead push this Bill that wasinthe mak- has notyet beenmade public, but The lawbuilds on a30% quota The percentageofwomen on Wrohlich, head of Gender with the Bill —which, if ap- ing foralmostadecade,” said Tara asummarypostedonthe govern- forsupervisoryboardsintroduced corporatesupervisoryboards Economics at DIW,told daily proved by the Parliament, willbe Sepehri Far, aresearcher for ment’s websitestatesthat “any in 2015 andwillapply to listed crossedthe30%thresholdin2017, newspaper Rheinische Post. the firstlaw of itskind in Iran’s Human Rights Watchbasedin act that causes physical or emo- companies with morethan three and stood at 35.2% in November Women makeupone thirdof penal code —comes in the after- NewYork,referringtothemurders tional or reputational harm” to a management boardmembers. German ChancellorAngela Merkelwith ministers in Berlin 2020. On management boards of executive boardsinEurope’s math of agroundbreaking of womenbymalerelativesfor woman or resultsincurbing her The measurehas longbeen a on Wednesday. AP thelargestroughly100listedcom- biggestcompanies but occupy #MeToo movement and shock- supposedlyshaming their fami- freedom and social rightsiscon- demand of the centre-leftSocial panies,womenaccountedforonly onlyasmall minority of leader- ing reports of so-calledhonor lies,evenif thewomenthemselves sidered acrime. It also addresses Democrats(SPD),but Angela 11.5% of positions. The German ship roles,according to astudy killingsthathavegrippedthe were victims of sexual violence. sexual harassment and coercing Merkel’s Christian Democrats frustration thatcompanies were “This lawisamilestone for legislation also sets out stricter publishedlastyear,with Norway public over the pastsix months. Sepehri Farsaid that the Bill women intosexual actsshort of long resistedthe move.However movingtoo slowly to appoint more women in leadership po- gender equality rules forgovern- ranking topfor gender diversity, The Bill, whichhas been stillfellshortofinternationalstan- intercourse as crimes. NYT the chancellor has expressed woman leaders. sitions,” SPD Family Minister ment-controlledcompanies, followedbyFrance.

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Note:Gold, silverrates at Delhispotmarket;gold per 10 g, silverper 1kg; Brent crudeasof2330IST SENSEX: 48,174.06 ▼ 263.72 NIFTY: 14,146.25 ▼ 53.25 NIKKEI: 27,055.94 ▼ 102.69 HANGSENG: 27,692.30 ▲ 42.44 FTSE: 6,774.78 ▲ 162.53 DAX: 13,769.99 ▲ 118.77

Internationalmarket data till 1900IST 700, 800, 900, 1,800, 2,100,2,300 &2,500 MHz BANDS ON THE BLOCK Irdai to roll out standard 4Gspectrumauctionstostartfrom home insurance policy

ancebusiness from April 1. ENSECONOMICBUREAU ED Toboost The regulator also announced March1,DoTinvitesapplications MUMBAI,JANUARY6 Bharat Sookshma Udyam property PLAIN E coverage Suraksha, that provides coverfor ● state-ownede-commerce com- to pay25per cent of the bid then wasRs65,789 crore. THE INSURANCE Regulatoryand EX thebuilding/structures,plantand ENSECONOMICBUREAU panyMSTCLimitedisadvisingthe SUCCESSFULBIDDERS amountnow, andthe rest later.In Forthe auctions this time, Development AuthorityofIndia machinery,stock and other assets NEWDELHI,JANUARY6 DoTonthe auction and will also TOPAYWITHIN10DAYS the above-1 GHz bands of 1,800, mostanalysts expect Reliance Jio (Irdai) has decidedtointroducea WITH THE introduction of of enterprises wherethe total be theauctioneer,the DoTsaid. 2,100, 2,300,and 2,500MHz fre- Infocomm’s to bidfor the800 standardhome insurance policy the standard home policy, valueatriskacrossallinsurableas- THEDEPARTMENTof Telecomm- Earlierlastmonth,theCabinet, ■ Following the quency bands, bidderswill have MHz spectrum band as the com- thatwillcovertherisksassociated the regulator aims to setclassesatone location is up to unications (DoT) on Wednesday on December 16,cleared the sale auctions on March1, to pay50percentupfront,andcan pany’s licences in nearly 14 with natural calamities likecy- boostproperty coverage Rs 5crore.This policytoo offers issuedthenoticeinvitingapplica- of 2251.25 MHz of spectrum all the successful opttopay the rest in equated an- LicensedSpectrum Access circles clone,flood, earthquakeand also againstnaturalcalamities coveragainstawide rangeofper- tions from companies willing to acrosssevenfrequencybandsata bidders will have to nual instalments. The successful is settoexpire by Julythis year. fire.Italso announcedtwo sche- as well as damages from ils, quitesimilartothe policy participate intheforthcoming4G reservepriceofRs3.92lakhcrore. paythe amount bidderswill,however, have to pay Bharti Airteland Vi,meanwhile, mes that coverinsurance coverto fire or other catastrophes. meant fordwellings, Irdai said. spectrumauctionsinthe700,800, The spectrum, to be allocated for within 10 days. an AGRof3per cent as spectrum have expressedtheirreservations microand small enterprises. Twoother policies,intro- It alsoannouncedBharat 900,1,800,2,100,2,300,and2,500 20 years, is likelytoprovide a usagecharges,excludingwireline and inability to shellout alot for Besidesoffering coverage for ducedfor microand small Laghu Udyam Suraksha that pro- MHzbands.Theauctionswillstart boosttogovernmentrevenuecol- services. The lastspectrum auc- newspectrum.Bothprovidersare home building, theproposedpol- enterprises,are aimedat videscoverforthebuilding/struc- fromMarch 1, whileallcompanies lectionsatatimewhenitsinflows choose to paythe entirebid tions were held in 2016,inwhich underpressurefollowingtheSC’s icy —Bharat Griha Raksha —cov- financial protection of the tures,plantand machinery, stock whichwish to bid forthe spec- from other sources suchasdirect amount upfront, or payacertain the government had offered October 2019 ruling on adjusted ers generalhomecontentsauto- MSME segment. and other assets of enterprises trum can submit their applica- taxes,indirecttaxessuchasgoods amount nowand the remaining 2,354.55MHzatareserve priceof grossrevenue.Thecourthadruled matically(without anyneedfor wherethetotalvalueof riskacross tions till February5,the DoTsaid. and servicestax, have fallen in16 equatedannualinstalments Rs5.60lakhcrore.Butthegovern- that Bharti Airteland Vi mustpay declaration of details) for20per allinsurableassetclassesatonelo- Following the auctions on sharplyonaccountof restrictions afteramoratorium of 2years. As ment wasable to sell only965 long-pending AGRdues, the cent of the sum insuredfor the days fromtheoccurrenceof anyof cationexceedsRs5crore butdoes March 1, allthesuccessfulbidders to preventthespreadof Covid-19. partofthedeferredpaymentplan, MHz, or about 40 per cent of the penaltyfornon-paymentoverthe buildingsubjecttoamaximumof the events. notexceedRs50crore at the pol- will have to paythe amount Telecom service providers bidders forthe sub-1 GHz bands spectrumthatwasputupforsale. pastyears, and the intereston Rs 10 lakh. “One can also optfor a “Thepolicyofferstwooptional icy commencement date. within 10 days.Kolkata-based (TSPs)and otherbiddersmay of 700, 800and 900MHz can opt The totalvalue of bids received penalty fornon-payment. higher sum insured forgeneral covers:insuranceforvaluablecon- “It’s awelcome move from contentsbydeclaringthedetails,” tentslikejewelleryandcuriosand the regulator to introduce stan- the regulator said. The initiative personal accident of theinsured dardproducts againstfireand al- POTENTIALDEMOCRATICCONTROL OF US SENATE comes afterthe country hadwit- andspousedueto aninsuredperil liedperils risksfor dwellings, mi- nessedmassive loss of human under the policy,” Irdai said. crolevel and small level Shift in US markets, Nasdaq volatile, ‘NBFCs maywitness 7-9% livesand properties in natural The policy givescomplete enterprises.Property insurance calamitiesandfire inrecentyears. waiver of underinsurance. “In is notgiven muchsignificance in growth in AUMnextfiscal’ According to the Irdai,Bharat other words, if the sum insured India, and itsimportance is re- dollarhitslowest level since Apr ’18 Griha Raksha will offercover declared by apolicyholder is less alisedonlywhen metwith an Non-banking financial companies (NBFCs) arelikely to againstawide rangeofperils, thanwhat ought to have been de- unfortunateevent,” said Tapan comeisnotexpecteduntillateron see a7-9% growth in their assetunder management namelyfire, natural catastrophes clared forthe property in ques- Singhel, MD &CEO, BajajAllianz REUTERS Sensex snaps Wednesday. (AUM) in FY22, says areport by IcraRatings (storm,cyclone,typhoon,tempest, tion, the policyholder’s claim will GeneralInsurance. NEWYORK,JANUARY6 The DowJones Industrial hurricane,tornado,tsunami,flood, notbesettledproportionately but Irdai said the BharatSooksma winningrun Averagerose531.56points,or1.75 `1.9-2.2lakhcrore inundation, earthquake, subsi- up to the sum insured that is de- Udyam Suraksha and Bharat GLOBAL STOCKindices rose and percent,to30,923.16,theS&P500 AdditionalfundinglinesthatNBFCs dence,landslide,rockslide),forest, clared,” it added. Laghu Udyam Suraksha policies 10-yearUSTreasuryyieldstopped Mumbai: Aftertouching its gained47.55 points, or 1.28 per —excludinginfraNBFCsand jungleandbushfires,impactdam- IrdaisaidtheStandard Fire and will be usefulfor financial protec- 1per cent forthe firsttime since recordintra-dayhigh of cent, to 3,774.41and theNasdaq includinghousingfinance ` ageofany kind, riot, strike, mali- Special Perils Policy providedfor tion of MSMEs. All the three retail March on Wednesdayas 48,616.66inearly trade, the Composite added61.46 points, or companies(HFCs)—wouldrequire, cious damages, actsofterrorism, intheerstwhileAllIndiaFire Tariff productshavekey features docu- Democratic control of the US Sensexpared allgains to end 0.48per cent, to 12,880.42. apartfromtherefinanceofthe burstingandoverflowingof water 2001 will be replacedbythe new ments(KFD) whichgivebasic in- Senatefollowing Georgia’s runoff 263.72points, or 0.54 per Britain’sFTSE100indexended existinglines,toachievetherequisite tanks, apparatus and pipes, leak- policy.Itwill be mandatorilyof- formation about the products. elections appeared morelikely. cent, lowerat48,174.06 — at itshighest since Februaryon AUMgrowth agefromautomaticsprinkler in- feredbyallgeneralinsurerscarry- Full report on TheS&P500wasupmorethan therebysnapping its10-ses- Wednesday, ledbybankingand stallations and theftwithin seven ing on fire and alliedperils insur- www.indianexpress.com 1percentasinvestorssnappedup sion rally. Similarly,the energy stocks as investors beton CAGRregisteredby Declineincertainexposures: financialand industrialstockson Nifty50 fell 53.25points, or moreUSstimulus and crude oil 16% thesegmentoverthe NBFCexposurestocommercialreal bets that aDemocrat-controlled 0.38percent,to14,146.25.PTI prices jumpedafter Saudi Arabia March2016-March2020period estateandotherlargecorporate/ Senatewould lead to more fiscal agreedtocutmoreoutputthanex- wholesalesexposuresarelikelyto ‘Services PMI slows down in Dec’ stimulus and infrastructure pected.Theindexrose3.5percent. Survey details: Theagencydida registeradeclineinFY22,afterthe spending.The Nasdaq wasalso theybemorelikelytoactonregu- The dollar bouncedafter sink- surveyacrossnon-banks,involving ■~15%declineinFY20 The PMI datareleasedbyIHS ingcame to ahalt due to liquidity higher but underperforming the lation on big tech,” saidQuincy ingtoitslowestlevelinnearlythree about60entities,whichtogether ■~10%expectedcontractionin ENSECONOMICBUREAU Markit showedthat the Indian concerns, labour shortagesand other twomajor US indices on Krosby, chief marketstrategistat years. As marketspricedin accountforover50%ofthesectoral ongoingfiscal MUMBAI,JANUARY6 services sector continuedtore- subdueddemand, while business fears of increasedregulatory Prudential FinancialinNewark. Democratswinningbothseats,the AUMandabout23investors Source: IcraRatings/PTI coverfromthe coronavirus-in- optimism faded. scrutinyoftechnologymega-caps DemocratswononeUSSenate dollar indexhit itslowestsince THE SERVICES sector activity ducedcontractions seenthrough Pricedatashowedapick-up if the Democratsgain control. raceinGeorgiaandledinanother, March2018 at89.206,butwaslast sloweddowntoits lowest levelin mostof2020, with output and in input costinflation, the “What investors aretrying to movingcloserto asweepinadeep up0.294percentat89.726.Aftera Why is it important: Profitability indicators are expected three months in December with newbusiness rising forthe third strongestsince February, butare- figureout is howquickly the South statethat would give them fallof nearly7percentin2020and to be impacted this fiscal as the provision and credit cost the Purchasing Managers’ Index straight month in December. newedfall in selling prices as Democratswouldbeableto intro- controlof Congressandthepower dropping nearly 0.9 per cent in rose sharply in view of the expected portfolio stress; it would (PMI) forthe sector dropping to However, in both cases the some firms sought to beat com- duce their taxagenda if theytake to advance President-elect Joe 2021, thedollar turnedhigher as a continue to remain at similar levels even in FY22 52.3 in December from 53.7 ratesofgrowth softenedtothe petition andsecurenew work, control of the Senate, and would Biden’s policy goals. Afinal out- crowdedtrade begantounwind. in November. weakestoverthis period. Staffhir- IHS Markit said. BRIEFLY NationalInfra Pipeline: Construction ‘PMtointeract FM reviewsprogress of premiums witheconomists’ halved in NewDelhi: Prime Minister NarendraModi will Friday projectsworth`3.6Lcr interact with leading econ- Maharashtra omists andsectoral experts, agovernmentofficialsaid. ENSECONOMICBUREAU SANDEEPASHAR NEWDELHI,JANUARY6 MUMBAI,JANUARY6 GOVERNMENT OF ODISHA, “e”-PROCUREMENT NOTICE FinebySebi:SC FINANCE MINISTER Nirmala BETTINGBIG on real estate forthe staysSATorder Sitharaman on Wednesdayheld revivalofthe economy, the WORKS DEPARTMENT ameeting to review the progress Maharashtra government on 592-B E-mail- [email protected] NewDelhi: The Supreme of 34 projects in thehealth and Wednesdayannounced aspecial Bid Identification No. CE-DPI &R-04/2020-21 CourthasstayedaSecurities waterresourcessectorsinvolving fiscalstimuluspackageforallcon- 1. The Chief Engineer (DPI &Roads), Odisha on behalf of AppellateTribunal(SAT)or- investmentsofRs3.6 lakh crore struction projectsin2021. Governor of Odisha invites percentage rate bids in double cover der,whichhad replaced undertheNationalInfrastructure Finance Minister In astepthat will significantly system in ONLINE MODE from eligible contractors for Road Government of Karnataka work as mentioned below: Sebi’s directive of monetary Pipeline (NIP). Nirmala Sitharaman. PTI bringdownconstructioncosts,the (Infrastructure Development, Ports &Inland Water Transport Department) 2. Nature of work : Road work penaltywith awarning, in a While 24 of these projects Cabinet announcedlowering of Directorate of Ports &IWT,Baithkhol, Karwar -581 302 fraudulent trading case. worthRs80,915 croreare under constructionpremiumsby 50per No.PIWT-24/WKS-II/2020 Date: 04.01.2021 3. No. of work : 2Nos. thesupervisionof thehealthmin- Withtheeconomybatteredby cent across Maharashtra till SHOR TERM TENDER NOTICE(Call-3) 4. Tender Paper cost : Rs. 10,000.00 istry, thedepartmentofwater re- thepandemic,agovernmenttask December31.Accordingto thede- 5. Class of Contractor : Super Class. Toyotadrivesin sources, rural development & forcehadinAprilfirmeduparoad cisionthatwillcomeintoeffectim- (Only in E-Procurement) (TWO COVER SYSTEM) Tender is invited by the undersigned in E-Procurement Portal to 6. Available of bid : From 10.00 A.M. of 12.01.2021 to newFortuner Gangarejuvenation oversees 10 map forcapital investmentsofRs mediately, allnew projectssanc- document in the 5.30 PM of 29.01.2021 large projectsworth Rs 2,79,604 111 lakhcroreininfrastructureun- tionedbeforethe December 31 execute below mentioned work as per the details given below.To participae in this tender and to obtain more information, please visit the website NewDelhi: Toyota Kirloskar crore, the Finance Ministrysaid. dertheNIPoversixyearsthrough cut-offcan avail the benefit forall website www.eproc.karnataka.gov.in (Work Estimate Number 7. Date of opening of Bid : Dt. 01.02.2021 at 11.30 AM Motorlaunchedanew vari- Secretariesof waterresources FY25, pledging 71 per cent of the premiums and levies paid during KPWD/ 2020-21/OW/WORK_INDENT132791/Call-3) antof SUVFortuner,starting andhealthattendedthemeeting, expenditureforenergy,roads,ur- theyear.Thegovernmenthasalso 8. The Bidders have to participate in ONLINE bidding only.Further Name of work: (1) Maintenance Dredging in Front of Wharf, details can be seen from the website: at Rs 29.98lakh, as well as a whichfocussedontheimplemen- ban development and railways, extendedthe benefit to ongoing Turning Circle, Inner &Outer Approach Channel at Karwar Port in https://tenderodisha.gov.in.Any addendum/ corrigendum/ high-end trim of the model, tation of the projectsand bottle- and envisaging akey role forpri- projects, whichcan avail the con- Uttara Kannada District. Amount put to Tender: Rs. 327684481.14 cancellation of tender can also be seen in the said website. Legender, at Rs 37.58 lakh. necks,ifany.“Theagendawas to vate investors. Sitharaman has cessionfor premiums paid till be- EMD: EMD declaration has to be submitted along with the tender Sd/- discuss the progress of NIP proj- asked the twoministries/depart- tween nowand December 31. as per the prescribed format uploaded in the e-Procurement Portal. ects, expenditureincurredsofar mentstopush infrastructure ex- In the backdrop of allegations Chief Engineer (DPI &Roads), Odisha TataMotors’ Last date for quarries: 13.01.2021 @17.00 hours. Last Date for OIPR-32069/11/0003/2021 and the initiativestaken to expe- penditure by effectivelyimple- raisedbyDevendraFadnavis,for- receipt of Tender: 15.01.2021 @17.30 hours. Safarireturns ditetheprojectimplementation,” menting NIP projects in time. mer CM and current Leader of For further details kindly refer the e-Procurement Portal for Addendum the ministrysaid in astatement. Manyministries and depart- Opposition in the Assembly, the and other relevant information regarding this tender.For general GOVERNMENT OF ODISHA NewDelhi: Tata Motors said Thiswasthesecondreview meet- mentshaveshown substantial government has, however, ruled enquiries, prospective bidders may contact the undersigned office DEPARTMENT OF WATER RESOURCES it is bringing backits brand ing by Sitharaman with various progress in project implementa- that the ready reckoner values of phone No.: 08382 221035 during working hours, before last date of A-438 ‘Safari’ withits upcoming ministries and departmentsto tion and expenditure, especially 2020or2019,whicheverishigher, queries. Sd/- Port Engineer, Office of the Superintending Engineer, flagshipSUV,whichiscode- monitor andacceleratethe NIP in thesecond quarter, according will be considered forpremium DIPR/ADK/MCA/574/20-21 dt. 5.1.2021 Ports &Inland Water Transport, Karwar Drainage Circle, Balasore. namedasthe Gravitas. PTI project implementation. to thestatement. FE calculationfor the scheme. "e" PROCUREMENT NOTICE NO.- SEDCBLS -02/2020-21 1. Name of work:- Drainage Projects(Under D.I.P. Sebifloats Scheme) Rolling back reversal, NYSE 2. TotalNo. of Projects:- 3nos. individual work. discussionpaper 3. Estimated cost of individual Variesfrom Rs.1,10,53,537/- to works:- Rs.1,68,44,681/- (Excluding G.S.T.) NewDelhi: Sebihas invited commentsonaconsultation to delist three Chinese telcos 4. Period of completion:- 11 (Eleven) )Calendar months paperproposingdetailedre- 5. Bid Identification Number SEDCBLS/ DDBLS -02/2020-21 forms on ownership and time in less than aweek the Big it had reversedadecision made governance norms to facili- JOHNMcCRANK& Boardhas ruledonthe matter. days earlierto delistChinaMobile 6. Date &Time of availability of From Dt.08.01.2021 at 10.00 hours Bid document in the Portal to Dt.25.01.2021 at 17.00 hours tate newentrantstoset up ANIRBANSEN The flip-flopping highlights Ltd, China Telecom Corp Ltd and bourses and depositories. NEWYORK,JANUARY6 the confusion over whichfirms China Unicom Hong Kong Ltd,af- 7. Date of Opening of technical Dt.27.01.2021 at 11.30Hrs in the bid O/O The S.E.D.C. Balasore were includedinanexecutive or- terconsulting with regulators in THE NEW York StockExchange derissuedbyPresidentDonald connectionwiththeUSTreasury’s 8. Procurement Officer/ Name & Superintending Engineer,Drainage RInfrasellsstake said on Wednesdayitwilldelist TrumpinNovember barring US Office of Foreign AssetsControl. address of the officer inviting Circle, Balasore. Bids. inDAtollroad three Chinese telecom compa- personsfrominvestinginpublicly The reversal drew arebuke nies,confirmingitslatestreversal tradedcompanies Washington from Mnuchin, who calledNYSE Further details can be seen from the Govt. Website NewDelhi:RelianceInfrastr- on the matteraday afterUS deems to be tiedtothe Chinese PresidentStaceyCunninghamon www.tendersorissa.gov.in uctureLtd(RInfra)saidithas TreasurySecretarySteve Mnuchin military. Tuesday to express his concerns, Sd/- completedsale of itsentire told the NYSE chief he disagreed It also comes amid escalating as the exchangesought further Superintending Engineer stakeinDelhi-Agra (DA)Toll withanearlierdecisionto reverse tensions within Washington on confirmation on the matter,ac- Roadto CubeHighways and the delistings. Chinapolicyinthefinaldays of the cording to sources, who askedfor Drainage Circle, Balasore. Infrastructure IIIPteLtd.ENS The latestmove, whichisef- Trumpadministration. anonymity due to the sensitivity OIPR-32190/11/0002/2021 fective January11,marksthethird TheNYSElateonMondaysaid of the matter. REUTERS Ahmedabad WWW.INDIANEXPRESS.COM THEINDIANEXPRESS,THURSDAY,JANUARY7,2021 SPORT 14

HowWagnercrackedtheSmithcode 116 balls, 14 runs, 4wickets In the one-sided duels with Neil Wa gner,all four of SteveSmith’s NewZealand fast bowler’s legside short-ball barrage aclue to curb Australian stalwart dismissals came offbouncers THE LENGTH: Neil Wagner wasnot lasso-likeforehand againstFederer,orsuffo- trying to bounce SteveSmith out, SANDIP G cateMessi likeMourinho, or shimmydown rather he wasmaking him ride the JANUARY 6 thesurfaceto Warne,therate of successwould bounce. So he didn’t quitebang it in Smith be negligible. It’s likethe Phantom curse: short, but closer to the back-of- Slight tends WHENNEILWagnerdevisedtheleg-sidetrap Imposters shall face the wrath. length zone. It ensured that Smith deviationoff toshuffle, to rattle SteveSmith, four years agoin In the same vein, to be likeWagner,one could notaffordtoduckunder the theseam endsupon Christchurch,his motive wasnomorethan to has to be Wagner.One has to be aleft-armer ball or getunder it to cut. He either containtheAustralian.Gettinghimoutwasan comfortable bowling from around the had to defend, or pull or hook.Also, middle/off afterthought. “Weneededtodosomething to stumps, one has to be strong in mind and he wassuffocated of room to roll his Left-arm dryhim up and stop him from scoring the body,beprepared to bowl 10-overspells of wrists over it and keep the ball on pacerNeil quickruns. So Idecidedtogoleg-side short that mostexacting delivery -the shortball - the ground. Wagner ball,” he told The NewZealand Herald. without compromising on pace and aggres- fromaround So Wagner decidedtocome around the sion, be prepared to be patient, be content to THELINE: Don’t bowl intohis body, thewicket wicket,commissionedabevyofclose-in compromise beauty foreffectiveness. goes awell-worn piece of advice. But fielders behind and around Smith’s legs and Wagner has notcreated aniche; he is aniche almostevery Wagner delivery unleashedashort-ball barrage of relentless himself. Almostabowling equivalent of landedonoff-and-middle, bursting hostility.Afew balls in, afiendish bouncer Smith, in the uniqueness of their methods. intoSmith’s chest. The trajectory, sometimes, Wagner found slight smashedintothe Aussie’s helmet, knocking combinedwith his robustpace, inward movement offthe seam too. him ontothe ground. Thereweregasps all Will it work forIndia? snuffedout the room to pull in front He would oftenshuffle the angles, round, before Smith gingerly stood up. Later, The injury-wrackedIndian fast bowling of square. Neither could he sway sometimes bowling from wide of the he admittedto being shaken. The ball had hit firm would find it difficult to emulateWagner away from the line of the ball and cut crease and sometimes getting closer him perilouslyclose to whereithad struck or reap similar rewards. Even if it’s employed, it through the off-side. The jailbreak to the stumps. Phil Hughes. The memorywas nottoo far it could notbeanything morethan ashort- stroke could be Smith’s flap-pull, in away either. term plan. Jasprit Bumrah would be the obvi- whichhegetscompletely outside SMITH’SCOPINGMECHANISM: That wasthe moment when the utility of ouscandidatetoexecutetheplan,butsustain- the line of the ball and pulls it First, He triedtodefend his wayout the tactic creptintoWagner’s mind. “Some of ingitforasignificantperiodcouldtirehimout behind square. It’s astrokeheplays of trouble, but realisedthat all it his favouritechannels were cut out and he of the attack. India could ill-afford it, as three superbly, but the presence of fielders takesisone ball that bounces too looked uncomfortable when defending with of theirmostexperiencedpacers arenursing aggravated the risk.Often, therewas muchortoo little to defeat him. So fielders on the legside,” he elaborated. injuries.Thus,abouncer-barrage couldbeone aleg-gully, shortleg, afiner square- he sought the other extreme, to hit The strategy still required refinement. For of the ploys.Not their mostdefinitive one. leg and asquarer fine-leg. his wayout of trouble, but the Smith weathered the storm and ground out a Post Wagner’srougheningup,bowlersare fielders were so astutelypositioned hundredinthefirstinningsbefore strokingan targetingSmith’slegswithshrewdfieldplace- THEANGLE: Wagner usuallybowled that even perfectly-timedshots unbeaten half-centuryinthe second to wrap The back-of-length zone ensured SteveSmith could notaffordtoduckunder the mentsintow.Not necessarilywithshortballs, from around the stump. So the endedupascatches. Smith opened up the matchand series forAustralia. More ball or getunder it to cut. AP file but with good length and back-of-length (like inward angle is morepronounced, up his stance even moreand reduced fielders, morehostility and early exposure, theway Bumrah bowled him at MCG) deliv- and even if the ball straightens the stride of his shuffle so that he’s Wagner made mental notes. “The next time I eriestoo. Notjustpacers, but spinners too. fractionally, it becomes adifficult notcaught on the move.Nothing, playedagainsthim,Ihadadefiniteideaonhow It’s notlikeSmith has adiceybackfoot proposition to handle. And though, quiteworked. to bowl andclarityinsettingthefield.Ihadthe ‘Hard surface with lot of grass prepared’ game,butjustthathisbackfootshotsaretooin- licence too,” he told The OtagoTimes. stinctive.Hecan pull or hook,but theremay Ittookanotherfouryearsfortheirnexten- Sydney: Ahardsurface with lotofgrass ahead.We justdidourpreparationaround be fielders lurking at fine-leg and backward EMULATINGWAGNER: counterinaTestmatch.Buttheleft-armpace- awaitsthe Indian and Australian players the weather and we think we have rolled square; he can’t defend all the time, because It’s difficult to emulateWagner,but man had his plans designedtoperfection this at the SydneyCricket Ground (SCG), the up areallygood wicket." thereare catchers stationedatshort-leg and the short-ball trickcould be triedon time. So the moment Smith would stride in, venue forthe thirdTest, curator Adam Askedwhetherthesurfacewassimilar leg-gully. He can’t leave the ball alone, likehe and off, especiallybeforeSmith’s skipper Kane Williamson would summon Lewis said on Wednesday. Lewis said to the one when Australia took on New does those outside the off-stump, forit’s re- entrenchedatthe crease. But long Wagner.Inturn, Wagner would wink in a hosting aTestisthe biggeststage forthem Zealand lastyear,Lewis said, "The keyis flexive to playthose spearing at the body. periods of sustainedshort-pitch close-in ring of fielders on the legside and and considering the fickle weather this that everyyear,itissodifferent with the As aresult, his legside game seems shack- bowling will be difficult forIndia in launcharuthless short-ball onslaught. year,theyhaverolledout apretty good weather.So, we trytogivethem (the ledall of asudden. The hands aresuddenly the absence of MohammedShami Smith still found run-making outlets —he wicket forthe match, starting Thursday. teams) that hardsurface with agood harder,the feet areunmoving, the wrists and Ishant Sharma. However, leg- still returnedanaverage of 42 (disappointing "The weather wasour main concern amount of grass. leaden, and the mind frozen. Even to deliver- side fields could still be productive as by his60-plusgoldstandard)—butrunscame and justthe talk about notgetting the "Three-years agowehad England ies that arenot quiteshort. Smith seems to be Smith has grownincreasingly notinastream but by atrickle. Againstthe Sydney Test.Weunderstand that the (here), we had late30degrees (Celsius) afflictedwith amind blockthan ridden with a susceptible to onside deliveries. The mostprolificswingandseamduetofthisgen- amount of effort that goes intopreparing days,hot-gustywinds,thatistotallydiffer- technical glitch. merepresence of fielders could sow eration, StuartBroad and James Anderson, he aTestlike,yougot to understand,thisisour ent to this year,when we had reallyhigh Theself-admonishingaftergettingbowled seeds of doubt. It could work as a hadscoredatafree-flowing64.71. Againstthe grandfinal,"Lewissaid."Thisisourbiggest humidity,rain(and)cover. We hadgot first around the stumps by Bumrah captured the decoyploytoo. understatedNew Zealanders,Smithmanaged stageofthe year and we put so muchin bit of direct summer light on to the wicket essence of his struggles. He wasmorefrus- an earthly34. puttingontheday. Lookto beawardedthe onlythree days ago, so we arejustdoing trated than defeated.But the frequency of his We needed to do something The duels with Wagner read: 116balls, 14 Test by NewSouthWalesgovernmentand thebest we canwiththeelementsthatare legsidedismissalsmightbedisturbinghim.He to dry him up and stop him runs, 4wickets. Australia wonthe war, but Cricket Australia, we were foreseeing dished out to us," he said. PTI needsrunsbefore thepatternspookshimout. from scoring the quick runs. I Wagnerthebattle.Allfourdismissalscameoff SinceWagner’svisit,hisaveragehasplum- decided to go leg-side short bouncers; devoured at leg-gullyand deep metedto28infiveTests,strippedoff hisbatting squareleg in Perth; at gullyand backward otherswantto take thatkindof approach,then Mourinho’spark-the-airplanetacticcouldstop divinity.How he recovers from the slump ball. Some of his favourite square-leg in Melbourne. great. It’s notthe same as what Neil does, the himfromscoringagoal.OrShaneWarnecon- wouldbethetruesttestofhismettleto becon- channels were cut out.” By the end of the series, Smith spokeof wayhebowls it.” fessing that onlySachin Tendulkar could di- sidered the “bestsince Bradman.” Wagner glowingly.But awarethat more Itwasakinto RogerFedereradmittingthat shevelhim. The rest,the imposters and pre- NEIL WAGNER, NZ PACER bowlerswouldbeencouragedto adoptasim- onlyRafael Nadal on aclaycourtcould topple tenders, would be delusional in thinking that LIVE India vs Australia 3rdTest: Live on Sony ilar strategy,hesoundedout awarning: “So if him. Or Lionel Messi confiding that onlyJose theycould be similarly successful. Trythe Networkfrom5:00am IST Kiwis rout Red cards, no green screens: How After disappearing Pakistan to sweep series, new rules define new normal in chess act in Russia, Querrey seal top ranking EXPRESSNEWSSERVICE JANUARY6 returns to court

REUTERS THE INTERNATIONAL Chess Federation WELLINGTON,JANUARY6 (FIDE) has come up with aset of rules and SHAHIDJUDGE regulations forofficial online competitions. MUMBAI,JANUARY6 KYLE JAMIESON took his second five-wicket The needfor these rules wasfelt since the haul of the matchasNew Zealand beat pandemic beganand various countries went AT THE Delray BeachOpen starting on Pakistanbyaninningsand176runsinthesec- intoalockdown, impeding movement across Thursday, Sam Querreywill step on atennis ond test on Wednesdaytosweep the series 2- borders and thus pushing competitive chess courtfor acompetitive matchfor the firsttime 0and topthe worldrankings forthe firsttime. intothe online sphere. The requirement for since the FrenchOpen in lateSeptember. Theyoungpacemantook6-48toaddto his these rules wasespeciallyfelt during the Butitwasn’tthattheAmericanWorldNo.53 5-69 from the firstinnings as the BlackCaps International Chess Olympiad. didn’tsignupforany tournamentsinbetween. dismissedthetourists for186to sealaneighth Multiple problems arose at the event – He had travelledwith his wifeand then eight- straighthometest seriestriumphwithvictory poor internetconnections, poweroutages month old son to the St PetersburgOpen in insidefourdays atChristchurch’sHagleyOval. and aworldwide global server outagedur- Russia in October.But when all three of them The win also pushedthe BlackCaps firmly ing the final between Russia and India. While tested positive forCOVID-19, instead of enter- Sam Querreywas sanctionedbythe ATP intocontention forone of twoberths in June’s the newrules continue to followthe same ing the mandatory14-dayperiod of self-isola- forbreaching COVID-19protocols. AP inaugural WorldTestChampionship final at setofinstructions that were usedfor that tion, the Querreys snuckout of their hotel, Lord’s. tournament, newerrules on cameras, video boardedaprivate jetandallegedly leftthecoun- Querreyhad travelledwith his As muchasplayer-of-the-match conferencing softwareand playerconduct in With online competition taking precedence, FIDE came up with rules to deal with try. The ATPhas since then been investigating Jamieson’s fine bowling, the win wasbuilt on anewer,online worldhavetaken prece- internetdisconnections and playersurveillance. File the case. And the governing body finallycame wifeand then eight-month old themagnificent238skipperKaneWilliamson dence. to aconclusion on December 30. son to the St PetersburgOpen in scored in NewZealand’s onlyinnings, which “Theinvestigationreviewedthefullcircum- Russia in October.But when all enabledthe hosts to declareon659-6. Complete surveillance Asian Nations tournaments. The handling of might needtoallowclothes, bags and bodies stances surrounding the incident and con- “Eventhoughtheresultonpaperwasvery Article 14 of the newcharterdeals with disconnections has been brought to ayel- to be privately checkedinorder to ascertain cludedMr. Querrey’sconductto becontraryto three of them tested positive for muchinour favour,weknowthat when you camerasand microphones. Specifically, that low/red cardsystemwherein multiple dis- that no devices forcheating arecarriedinto theintegrityof thegameunderthePlayerMajor COVID-19, instead of entering the areplaying quality opposition, it’s the small no virtual backgrounds or green screens are ruptions in internetconnection might result the venue. Afurther addition on the rule Offense provision in the ATPCode of Conduct. mandatory14-dayperiod of self- margins,” Williamson, who wasadjudged allowedand players’ faces and surroundings in the arbiter ruling the matchinfavour of states that the arbiter or the person autho- Asaresult,theATPhasissuedafineof $20,000,” player-of-the-series, said afterthe win. have to be clear and well lit. The same arti- the opponents. risedbythe arbiter mustbeofthe same gen- read an ATPstatement. isolation, the Querreys snuckout “Wewon those small margins and had a cle also states that extracameras might be “This is something in the natureofa derasthe player.Personal electronic devices “Taking intoconsideration Mr.Querrey’s of their hotel, boardedaprivate bit of luckgoour wayaswell.” required in order to keep atrack of the play- warning and is up to the discretion of the ar- maybecarriedand stored in the player’s bag, manyyears of otherwise good standing with Pakistanmanaged 297inthe firstinnings ers’ eyemovements. Their mi- bitertoenforce it. Thereare no but under the condition that theyare theATPandothermitigatingfactors,thefineis jetand allegedly leftthe country. and onlyanextraordinaryrearguardaction crophones mustbeable to good solutions currently switchedoff. suspendedand will be liftedsubject to Mr. wasgoingto preventaheavydefeatwhenthey transmit anyaudible sound againstinternetoutages/bad Querreycommitting no further breaches of along with his familyleftthe hotelwithout in- resumedon8-1 afterJamieson had removed around the player–and cru- internetinonline events. There Blackorwhite health and safetyprotocols related to COVID- forming the reception –aswas filmedbythe opener Shan Masood on Tuesdaynight. cially, the clickofthe mouse arealot of grey areas.... forin- Usuallyinanover-the-boardgame, the 19 within aprobationarysix-month period.” hotelsecuritycameras,”readthestatementby MohammadAbbaswascaught behind off mustbeaudible forbothplay- stance, people of aparticular table is setand players directlysit on the side Inotherwords,if Querreydoesn’tbreakany Formula TX, the companythat had organised aTrentBoultdeliverybefore Jamiesongot into ers and the arbiter so that all region can gethit by an outage of the table of whichevercolour theyare sup- quarantine rules forthe next six months, the the ATPevent. “As Querreytold the ATPrepre- theswingagainto sendbackAbidAliandleave parties areaware that amove in aparticular video conference posedtotake. But FIDE’s newrules deal with 33-year-old, who has wonover$12 million in sentative,heflewout of Russia on aprivate jet. the tourists labouring to lunchat69-3. hasbeen played. system or the chess playing apossible softwareerror if the game begins prize money, will nothavetopay the fine. TheATPrepresentative passedonthisinforma- Jamieson secured his fourth five-wicket haul Indian GrandmasterSrinath platform. Ithink it is possible to with wrong colours assignedtothe players. Themanner,however, inwhichtheformer tion to the tournament management afterthe insixtestsinthesecondsessionby dismissing Narayanan spoketoThe Indian Express re- improveonthese problems onlywith prac- Both parties can complain to the arbiter Wimbledon semi-finalistfledfromRussia it- doctors made arepeat abortive attempt to ex- Haris Sohail, Azhar Ali and stand-in skipper garding the necessity of this rule and howit tice,” said Srinath. within 10 movesand afresh game can be self hadbeenanalarming.Accordingto astate- amine the family.” Mohammad Rizwan. would continue to be adeterrent foronline Hybrid chess rules started. But if the game has gone past10 ment releasedbythe organising committee, a Hehadn’tsurfaced–forany tournamentor BoultdismissedZafarGohar,whomade37, cheating in chess. movesand both players haven’t realisedor doctor and paediatrician had attempted to otherwise–eversince.UntilNovember4,when to seal the victoryfor NewZealand who re- “Therereallycannotbeany compromises strengthened choose to continue, the resultsstand. meettheQuerreys twiceaftertheytestedpos- American screenwriter and director Douglas mainunbeatenathomesincebeingbestedby on the playerbeing visible on the video con- Hybrid chess –whichmanages to fuse According to Srinath, this rarely happens itive forthe virus. But the health officials were Ellin uploadedavideo on his Instagram ac- South Africa in 2016-17. ferencing system through multiple angles at over-the-boardstyle of playwith online op- over-the-boardbut might be anecessity in deniedentrybytheplayeronthefirstoccasion count. Querreywas seen playing Pickleball on “I’mverydisappointedthatIdidn’tgetare- alltimes.Thisissimplyanecessarypartofanti- tions, in particular is whereFIDE has solidi- online chess. (Querrey“justifying his refusal by the fact that atennis courtinSantaMonica, California. sult forPakistanastheyput their faith in me,” cheating. To be honest, although this is not fied the rule book.Itessentiallyisaformat “In mostcases the playershould be aware his child wassleeping”) on October 12,and In October,the ATPissuedastatement, ruedRizwan,wholedintheabsenceof theirin- something Ican supportwith concretedata, whereone playercan be over the board of the incorrect colour within 10 moves. In therewassimplynoansweratthedoordespite without naming the player, claiming that the jured regular skipper Babar Azam. thereare probablymoreinstances of fair-play while the other chooses to playonline. It has OTB,wegoand physicallysit on the side of bothpartiesagreeingto meetthefollowingday. body was“taking this matter extremelyseri- BRIEF SCORES: NewZealand 659 for6dec violationthaninstancesof badinternetitself.” become particularly prevalent in the time of the colour we areon.... in away choosing our It later emergedthat the Querreys had al- ouslyand an investigation is underway.”The (Williamson 238, Nicholls 157, Mitchell 102*) the pandemic as it manages to keep the rel- owncolour.Inonline chess, we getpaired ready leftthe countrybeforethe second visit. GuardianalsoreportedthatQuerreycouldface beat Pakistan297 (Azhar 93, Jamieson 5-69) Yellowand redcards evance of long-standing tournamentsand automatically. So it’s fair enough as long as “Instead of acting in accordance with the afineof upto $100,000alongwithathree-year and 186(Gohar 37,Jamieson 6-48) by an in- The newrules also reaffirm aruling that traditional clubs alive. the instances with incorrect colours remain ATPrules and the tournament sanitaryproto- suspension forthe breachofhealth and safety nings and 176runs waspresent during the Online Olympiad and One of the rules states that the arbiter minimal,” said Srinath. col, at 5:45 AM on October 13,Sam Querrey protocols, deemedasa‘serious offence.’”

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