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JOURNALISM OF COURAGE MONDAY, JANUARY 11, 2021, KOLKATA, LATE CITY, 14 PAGES SINCE 1932 `5.00/EX-KOLKATA `6.00 (`12 IN NORTH EAST STATES &ANDAMAN) WWW.INDIANEXPRESS.COM

THE EDITORIAL PAGE HIGH SPEND SCHEMES LIKELY BUDGET:INDIA’S NEWDEALMOMENT Govtlooksat BY SAJJID ZCHINOY PAGE 6 ‘expenditure’

EXPERT EXPLAINS budgettoaid Siraj Hussain FromTheIndianExpresspanel ofspecialists,exclusiveinsight highergrowth ISSUESIN Healthcare, infrastructure, housing INDIAN Protesters walked through the fields to reachthe venue of the ‘kisan panchayat’ at Kaimla villageinKarnal district of Haryana on Sunday. Jasbir Malhi AGRICULTURE sectors identifiedfor higher spending The protest by farmers PVAIDYANATHANIYER BUDGET ’21 has brought to focus a Protesters disrupt BJP event in Khattar hits back: only NEWDELHI,JANUARY10 range of issues in agriculture in India. One WITH THE UPTICKinthe econ- Karnal, force CM to cancel visit amendments, Govt omybetterthan what most of the country’s leading economists estimated posteas- policy experts provides a ing of lockdown restrictions, the primer on key questions. that severalpersons sufferedin- government is holding meetings won’t repeal farm laws Union Finance Ministryisofthe SUKHBIRSIWACH juries during the confrontation. with farmer leaders while the viewthat higher spending at this EXPLAINED KAIMLAVILLAGE(KARNAL), On Monday, the Supreme BJP is holding functions to mo- stageofrecovery —rather than COUNTDOWN PAGE 10 JANUARY10 Courtisscheduledtohear a bilise supportinfavour of anti- VARINDERBHATIA earlier —will give abigger push clutchofpetitions related to the farmer laws”. CHANDIGARH,JANUARY10 to growth. IN&OUTOFCOVIDSHADOW AROUND 1,000 farm protesters laws,with talksbetween the On Sunday, despitethe police Haryana CM According to sources, the stormedthe venue of ahigh-pro- Centreand farmer unions failing launchingamildlathicharge,us- FORCED TO scrap his visit to Manohar Lal Prime Minister’s Economic file “kisan panchayat” organised to makeany headway despite ing watercannons and tear gas, Karnal Sundayafter farm protest- Khattar AdvisoryCouncil, Niti Aayogand Soon after by the ruling BJP in Haryana protesters camping on Delhi's and setting up sevencheckpoints, ers took over the venue, Haryana the Chief Economic Advisor’s of- Spend Sunday, forcing Chief Minister outskirts foroveramonth. the protesters managed to reach Chief MinisterManohar Lal fice, have pushedfor an expan- morewhen bail, police Manohar Lal Khattar to cancel his The panchayatinKaimla, or- the venue through wheat fields Khattar accusedOpposition par- to the venue of aBJP “kisan pan- sionarybudget to reinforce the E ● growthlow visit to the siteonthe outskirts of ganisedbylocal BJP MLA surrounding the area. Theytook ties and stateBKU leaderGurnam chayat” in Karnal's Kaimla village nascent recovery.All have advo- EXPLAINED Kaimla villageinKarnal district. Harvinder Kalyan, waspartof over the site, and damaged the Singh Chadhuni of inciting peo- wascancelled, Khattar said: “The cated the Keynes mantrato pick up Para The incident also sawclashes the party's plan to hold such stageand atemporaryhelipad set ple to disruptlaw and order,and Government is notgoing to re- Finance MinisterNirmala AFISCAL stimulus in between supporters of the BJP meetings to mobilise supportfor up forKhattar's arrival. insistedthat the Centrewill not peal these laws.Itiscertain. Even Sitharaman during pre-Budget 2021-22 will be mostef- in another event and opponentsofthe the laws.However, the protest- Haryana BKU president repeal itsnew agriculturelaws. if stategovernmentsare to be ex- consultations. fective to spur growth, Centre's newagriculturelaws, ers had warnedthat theywould Gurnam Singh Chadhuni later Addressing apress confer- empted,therewill onlybe British economistJohn particularly with many with leaders on both sides saying blockthe event as “the central CONTINUEDONPAGE2 ence in Chandigarhafter his visit CONTINUEDONPAGE2 MaynardKeynes had argued parts of the economy terror case that free marketscannotbere- showing clear signs of a liedupon to fuel GDP growth nascent recovery.Having when thereisarecession, of the preserved itsspending ARUNSHARMA Covid-19 curve in Kerala Taking steps to give free Covid kind India and the world, has power, the government JAMMU,JANUARY10 witnessedin2020 following the plans to spend morein doesn’t bend but why Covid-19pandemic. In 2020, sectors suchashealth- SOON AFTER he wasgranted bail vaccine to all in Bengal: Mamata consumer confidence hit anew care, housing and con- by theNIAcourtinacaseof terror low, and theyavoideddiscre- struction-heavy infra- funding, PDP youth wing leader state isn’t overly worried Banerjee’s announcement of tionaryspending; this ledtoa structure, which Waheed-ur-RehmanPara wasde- EXPRESSNEWSSERVICE free vaccination foreveryone demand collapse, forcing firms positively impact many tainedagain forquestioning in a KOLKATA,JANUARY10 ‘Frontline comes months ahead of the to stop investing. In depressing industries. separateterror-related case. AMITABHSINHA P5 warriors to be stateelections that arelikelyto CONTINUEDONPAGE2 The Counter Intelligence &LIZMATHEW CHIEF MINISTER Mamata vaccinated on be held in April-May. wing of Jammu and Kashmir PUNE,NEWDELHI,JANUARY10 Banerjee on Sundayannounced priority basis’ “Wehaveseen howyou ded- Police detainedParaimmedi- her government wasmaking icated yourself to your jobs de- atelyafter his release from IN THE lastfour months, Kerala arrangementstoprovide free spitethe fear of the pandemic. District Jail, Ambphalla, on has recordedmorethan 7lakh Covid-19vaccine to the people in free of anycharge,” the chief Keeping that in mind, Iwant to Saturdayevening. coronavirus infections, morethan the state. The Opposition BJP ac- ministerwrote in the letter ad- assureyou that your vaccine “Wehad receivedamessage anyother stateinIndia.For the THEEXPRESS cusedBanerjeeoftryingtotake dressedtothe frontline workers. doses will be sent to youina from Counter last45days,ithas consistently credit forthe Centre’s efforts. Banerjee also expressedher timelymanner,” Banerjee Intelligence been the topcontributor of new INTERVIEW In an open letter,Banerjee gratitude forall suchworkers for added. Kashmir(CIK) cases. The statenow has the high- said that “Covid warriors” or their selfless service to the peo- Earlier,Kerala Chief Minister to collect Para estnumber of active cases in the ‘OUR DAILYTOLL frontline workers suchaspolice ple of the state. “The govern- PinarayiVijayan had made a from jail as he country, comprising almost30 NEVER WENT personnel, home guards, civil ment is taking steps to ensure similar announcement. Kerala waswanted per cent of India’s total. BEYOND 25’ defence volunteers, and correc- that everycitizen of the statere- will also go to the polls along by them for But while Kerala is the worst KKSHAILAJA tional home and disasterman- ceivesfreedoses of the Covid-19 with Bengal. The Bihar Cabinet questioning in hotspotofthe epidemic in the KERALA HEALTH MINISTER agement employees would be vaccine,” she added. has also giventhe nod to provide connection countrynow,what is remarkable administeredthe vaccine on a India is settolaunchaCovid- free vaccines to the state’s resi- WaheedPara with FIR No. is that the rise in cases has notre- priority basis. 19 vaccination drive from dents, apromise the BJP made 31 registered sultedin asimilar increase in the With morethan 8lakh con- “I am happytoinform that January16, with priority given in itsmanifesto forthe Assembly with them in number of deaths.Infact, Kerala firmedinfections so far, Kerala our government is making to nearly three crorehealthcare elections held in October- Srinagar,” asenior jail official said. has one of the lowest death has the fifthhighestcaseload in arrangementsfor reaching the and frontline workers across the November lastyear. The official expressedigno- countsamong the major states. CONTINUEDONPAGE2 vaccine to all people of the state country. CONTINUEDONPAGE2 MaharashtraChief MinisterUddhavThackeray visitsthe rance about the details the FIR. BhandaraDistrict General Hospital on Sunday. PTI While the police's counter intel- ligence wing remainedsilent, sources said the FIR pertains to a Racism stops play in Sydney as India the funding of terror. Explosion in radiant “It is an open FIR and CONTINUEDONPAGE2 draw hard line on abuse from stands warmer likely started WORLD Indian pacers Jasprit Bumrah MIHIRVASAVDA& and MohammedSiraj said racist Bhandara hospital fire SRIRAMVEERA commentsweredirected at NEWDELHI,MUMBAI,JAN10 them as theyfieldedonthe boundaryline. “Wehad decided TABASSUM BUSINESSASUSUAL RACISM STOPPED playatthe Saturdayevening that if some- BARNAGARWALA SydneyCricket Ground Sunday. thing likethis happens again, we MUMBAI,JANUARY10 BY UNNY In line with the recent global will immediatelyidentify them,” trend, wheresportspersons are an Indian team management of- ‘Our cultureis THE FIRE that killed10babies in a DEMOCRATS SEEK starting to draw the line be- ficial told The Indian Express. different.They hospital in Bhandara, Mahara- tween banter and racistabuse On Sunday, Day4ofthe Test, (BJP) can’tcreate shtra,early onSaturdaywaslikely ANSWERS FROM from the stands, the Indian as Bumrah wasabout to start fear of other causedbyanexplosion in one of JUSTICE DEPT ON cricket team put their foot down running in during the 86th over religions here. theseveralradiantwarmersinthe TRUMP’S ROLE and ensured that the Test against of Australia’s second innings, Siraj It won’tworkin SickNew-born Care Unit (SNCU), Australia in Sydneywas halted walked up to stand-in captain believe the officials who carried MASSIVE POWER for10minutes Sundaytill a AjinkyaRahane, and umpires TN polls’ outapreliminaryinspectionatthe OUTAGE LEAVES group of unrulyspectators were Police remove agroup of spectators afterMohammedSiraj PaulReiffeland PaulWilson. KANIMOZHI hospital on Sunday. PAK IN THE DARK evicted. complainedtoumpires, during the India-Australia Test The 26-year-old debutant LOK SABHA MP, DMK The radiant warmer burstinto PAGE 11 The break in playfollowedan matchinSydneyonSunday. Reuters from Hyderabad said that a PAGE 9 flames afterthe explosion –the incident on Saturdaywhen CONTINUEDONPAGE2 CONTINUEDONPAGE2

PAGE 1 ANCHOR LahoretoNYvia India: his unflinching gaze —and prose

neer of Indian writing in English. Punjabifamily, youngVedlosthis and critic Nilanjana SRoy de- whoconsideredMehtaaprotege, blinking”.SheisconvincedMehta “Mamaji”.“Myprocessof writing AMRITADUTTA We will remember him forhis vision at the ageofthree. scribed as Mehta’s “needtoset it calledhis "prose style-airy, ele- is blind, until she is corrected by is assembling details, assembling BENGALURU,JANUARY10 keen insight intoIndian society Remarkablyfor that time, his fa- all down”. “It waswritten out of a gant, marvellouslyclear”. someone:“Thatisn’tVed,that’sV material,” he said. The personal and what it means to bridgethe ther,aLondon-educated public feelingthatIcouldpartlyalleviate Morestrikingly,Mehta’swrit- SNaipaul”. It wasastory that storyalso told alargertale of the IN THE beginning, arguably, was gapbetween the eastand the health officer refusedtobelieve alifeofdeprivation by writing ing carriedasurfeit of visual de- Mehtawasknownto recount,too, north Indian home in pre- VedMehta. Long before writers West,” said Meru Gokhale, pub- thatwasapermanentsetback;he about it,” Mehtawrote. tailthatwouldoftenflummoxhis with awickedchuckle. Independent India, and the big suchasSalman Rushdie, Amitav lisher,Penguin Press, Penguin sent him firsttoaschool forthe In the next twodecades, readers -- and lead to one of the Inthe1970s,achanceconver- subterranean shifts in Indian so- Ghosh and Vikram Seth would Random House India. blindinBombay--andthen,atthe Mehtafound amentor in The mostinteresting cases of mis- sation with his father,Amolak ciety. become the ambassadors of Mehtaleavesbehind are- ageof15, to another blind school NewYorkereditor William takenliteraryidentity.In“The RamMehta, setMehtaoff on the In his subsequent bookssuch IndianEnglishwritingto theWest, markable legacy as amemoirist, in Arkansas, US. Shawn, who encouraged him to WorldisWhatItIs”,thebiography series of books--amillion-plus as “The Stolen Light”, “Upat ayoungmanborninpre-Indepe- and essayistfor The NewYorker- He wasastudent in California writeonsubjectsasvariedasthe- of VSNaipaul by PatrickFrench, wordsinall -- that exploreand Oxford”, “All forLove” and “The ndent India found avoice and sp- -and aman who, early on, seized when he beganwriting his first ology and philosophy, RK the author recounts, “A literary document the lifeofhis parents RedLetters”,Mehtahelduphisre- aceintheNewYorkliteraryscene upon his subject:the remarkable book,“Face to Face” (1957) -- the Narayan and Satyajit Ray. In a groupie is searching forVed and family. Writing at atime markablelife--ofamanwholost in the 1960s. On Sunday, Mehta lifeand times of VedMehtaand autobiographyofayoung man in 2009 Idea Exchangeheld in the Mehta, disbelieving that ablind when, as he recalled, “the image his sight but fashionedarichlife- diedinNew York at the ageof86. his family, whichhewrote about, his 20s, who had overcome great Delhiofficeof TheIndianExpress, writer could produce suchvivid of India wasofaleprous beggar --to asteady,unflinchinggaze.To “Weare extremelysorry to over three decades, in his 12-vol- odds, from blindness to the tu- he recalled: “One thing Ilearnt descriptive prose.Findingadistin- crawling along Calcuttastreets”, thedelightandexasperationof his VED MEHTA learn about the passing of Ved ume autobiography, “Continents mult of Partition, to fashion a from The NewYorkerwas the guishedIndian man sitting on a heturnedthefocusontheuniver- readers in India and elsewhere, it Mehta.Hewasamasteroftheau- of Exile”. sturdy self-independence. It was minuteyou startthinking about 1934-2021 sofa, she waves her hand in front sal experience of home and fam- wasastory that found resonance tobiographical genreand apio- Born in 1934 in Lahoretoa the firstinstance of what novelist yourreadersyouare lost.”Shawn, of his face while he looksonun- ilyinbookssuch as“Daddyji”and in their own. Kolkata WWW.INDIANEXPRESS.COM 2 THE SECOND PAGE THEINDIANEXPRESS,MONDAY,JANUARY11,2021

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WEB the insurrection in US Indian Express EXCLUSIVE ValleyinHouseofCards,herearesomefineexamplesoftechproductplacementinmoviesandTVshows. ★★★★★■4.6 Capitol Hill INPHOTOS EXPLAINED NEWEPISODEEVERYDAY HARYANA CM’S EVENT COVID-19 VACCINE In today’s episode of the ‘3 Things’ podcast, CANCELLED DRIVE AT AGLANCE we analysethe impact of the violence at Protests turn violent at The scramble forshots the Capitol in Washington DC by SCANTHISQRCODETO rallyvenue in Kaimla has accelerated around pro-Trumpprotesters DOWNLOADTHEAPP village the world FROMPAGEONE

Mamata panchayatblockedbypolice, sev- Sydney match rested?This is brazen contempt eral of the protesters walked of court. Request[Lt GovManoj The BJP,meanwhile, took adig through the fields foralmost7 section of the crowdracially Sinha] @manojsinha ji to inter- at Banerjee. BJP IT-Cell chief Amit km to reachthe venue around 1 abusedhim while he wasfield- Govt looks at ‘expenditure’ budget vene so that justice is served.’’ Malviyaaccusedthe chief minis- pm. Soon, clashes brokeout be- ing in front of the Brewongle and Sources in the NIA said the terof“rushing to take credit” for tween agroup of BJP supporters Clive Churchill stands —the same times likethese, Keynes said ernment wasexpected to re- healthcareand construction- glide path forreducing debt agency would challengePara's the Centre’s efforts. and the protesters. The police area of the ground from where onlygovernment intervention duce itsfiscal deficit to 3per related activities, be it infra- levels. bail in the High Court. “Pishi [Banerjee] wasadisas- again usedteargasand launched the racistchantsweremade through higher spending can cent of GDP in 2020-21. But structureorhousing. Public The RevisedEstimatefor (WITHBASHAARAT terwhen it came to managing amild lathicharge to disperse the Saturday. As he pointedto the al- revive demand and restoresta- while presenting the Budget, spending in these activities fiscal deficit forthe current fi- MASOODINSRINAGAR) Covid. From doctors to police- agitators. leged abusers, all the players — bility. Sitharaman had invokedthe have ahugetrickle down ef- nancial year maybearound 6.5 men, everyone protestedagainst With the protesters refusing including the batsmen, Australia With additional spending escape clause forhaving devi- fect, and benefit manyindus- percentofGDP.Inmaking pro- Hospital fire Chief Minister’s apathy. But now to disperse, agroup of men from captain TimPaine and Cameron by India in the pandemic year ated from the target for2019- tries from cement to steel be- jections fornextyear,the gov- firstoftwo loud noises heardby that the Centrehas announced the rallyvenue arrivedarmed Green —stood together at the restricted to less than 1.5per 20 and 2020-21tothe extent sides creating durable jobs,” a ernment maybudget onlynor- hospital staffthat night –and the free priority vaccination for3 with sticks.But the group soon middle of the ground. cent of the GDP,the govern- of 0.5 per cent of GDP; the government source told The mal increases in departmental seven-day-old babyinside “was crorefrontline workers across the fledasthe number of protesters Playresumedonlyafter po- ment has preserved enough Budget Estimateoffiscal deficit Indian Express. and ministerial allocations found burnt likecoal”, officials country, Pishi is rushing to take swelledand the situation esca- lice evicted six people from the gun powder to utilise in finan- for2020-21was 3.5 per cent of With the GDP expected to giventhat capacities to spend said. credit,” he tweeted. lated.At1.35pm, the protesters ground fortheir actions. Cricket cial year 2021-22. “Thereis GDP. postanegative growth of 7.7 cannotimprove suddenly. The babyhad been aban- rushedtothe venue, damaged Australia said theyhavelaunched good clarity on the economic “The FRBM Actisrigid; it per cent in 2020-21, the gov- That be so, Finance Minister donedonaroadside, and brought Karnal the stage, threw out chairs and an investigation intothe incident damageinflicted;inhindsight, takesawaythe flexibility of ac- ernment expectsastrong re- Sitharaman is mostlikelyto to the hospital by police. This and referredto the incident in avideo tore up the tent. “parallel with the NewSouth thereisafeeling the govern- tively pursuing acounter-cycli- boundnextfinancial year.But announce some specific high- nine other babies were killedin messageand said that “wehave Even as the police, ledbyDGP Wales police”. The International ment approachofverytar- cal policy,” asource said. A even a14per cent in 2021-22 expenditureschemes or pro- the fire that brokeout in the gotitdone certainlybecause they (Crime) Muhammad Akil, tried Cricket Council, too, condemned getedspending during the first counter-cyclical policy entails (over2020-21), would mean a grammes forpublic housing, SNCU of BhandaraDistrict (BJP) were holding aprogramme to disperse them, the protesters the incident. twoquarters of 2020-21 ahigherthannormalgovern- growth rate of notmorethan health or other infrastructure. General hospital at 1.30 am on in Kaimla villageparallel to our remainednear the venue till 2.45 Captain ViratKohli said “racial worked.Opening the purse- ment spending when the econ- 5.5 per cent over 2019-20. The resources conserved dur- Saturday. agitation”. “The BJP says theywill pm to ensurethat the panchayat abuse is absolutelyunaccept- strings next financial year will omyispowering down. “In ex- High spending will mean ing the year and the fiscal re- While it is suspected that the hold 700rallies to break farmers' wascancelled. able”. “Having gone through yield maximum gains,” said a traordinarytimes likethese, the high growth, and this itself will straint shown in 2020-21may fire startedafter the explosion in agitation. We will oppose wher- manyincidentsofreallypathetic source, who did notwish to be government has to makeasub- be an antidote to bring deficit give her sufficient elbowroom the radiant warmer,members of ever BJP holds suchrallies be- Khattar things said on the boundarylines, named. stantial intervention on the ex- down,saidasource. Whilethe to go foranambitious expen- the inquirypanel said theywere cause this agitation is to save the amendments. Aresolution can be this is the absolutepeak of rowdy Towardsthis end, the penditureside, especiallywith combineddebt of the Centre ditureprogramme in the com- yettoreachafinal conclusion. country,”hesaid. reachedafter discussion on cer- behaviour.It’s sad to see this hap- Finance Ministryisalso consid- acollapse in demand and no and states as apercentageof ing year. “Inquiryisstill going on. We MLAKalyansaid senior BJP tain points. But Idon't think the pen on the field,” Kohli tweeted. ering areviewofthe Fiscal private sector interesttoin- GDP stood at 72 per cent last Besides, the government will submit the reportinafew leadersonthe stage, including Government is going to with- Kohli’s side wasatthe receiv- Responsibility and Budget vest…,” the source said, under- year,itisexpected to touch85 mayalso consider allowing days.Atthis point we cannot statepresident Om Prakash draw these laws.Iamhopeful ing end of racistchantswhen Management Actinline with lining the Keynesian economic per cent giventhe shrinking of states to borrowmore. In the comment on howorwherethe Dhankar, Education Minister that discussions aregoing in the India toured Australia in 2018. the recommendations of the philosophy. the GDP this year,and higher current financial year,under a fire started. But we will go into KanwarPal Gujjar and Sports right direction, that is whythe Even then, fans were ejected NK Singh panel, whichsug- “It will be morean‘expen- government borrowings. It is special assistance scheme, the eachand everydetail,” Dr MinisterSandeep Singh, were next dateofmeeting has been from the Melbourne Cricket gested that the debt-GDP ratio ditureBudget’than arevenue in this backdrop that the Centrehas already approved Sadhana Tayade, director of the takentoatemple nearby“forse- fixed.” Ground on Day1ofthe Boxing (asopposed to fiscal deficit) be Budget;after consultations Finance Ministrymay an- capital expenditureworth Rs DirectorateofHeath Services curity purposes”. Askedabout the laws,hesaid: DayTest. takenasthe primarytargetfor with various stakeholders, the nounce making debt-GDP ra- 9,879.61crore and releasedRs (DHS), who is heading the six- “Those who entered the rally “Wheneveranew policy is made, Afterthe day’s playSunday, fiscal policy.Under the areas wherethe ministryis tio as the primarytargetfor fis- 4,939.80 croreofthe total Rs member committee, said. venue were anti-social elements, it always takestime to see itsben- when India were 98 fortwo and amendedFRBM Act, the gov- keen to increase spending are cal policy,and provide anew 10,250 croreallocated to states. Chief MinisterUddhav notfarmers. Therewas laxity on efits. Had we waited forsome needed309 moreruns to win, Thackeray visitedthe hospital on the partofpolice although they time, we would have gone to the spinner RAshwin acknowledged Sundayand metthe families of had made arrangements. How Union Government and said that that players had experienced the babies who had died. did they(agitators) reachthe therewerediscrepancies in these “this in the past, especiallyfrom Kerala remains India’s Covid outlier “I offeredmycondolences to venue?” the MLAsaid. laws.Ibelieve we should wait for people in the lowertier” of the the parents. Therewill be astrict However, local farm leader at leastone year to see itsbene- stand at Sydney. the country. But thereare 11 University,agreed. “That can inquiryintothis incident and we Rajender Arya accusedBJP sup- fits.Eventoday, these farm legis- “Theyhavebeen quitenasty states that have recorded CASECOUNT surelybeapossibility.Also, will take action againstthose re- porters of stone-pelting and at- lations arenot binding on farm- and hurling abuses as well. But moredeaths than Kerala, in- the fact that the statehas re- sponsible,” the CM said. tacking farmers. “The Chief ers. Mandis arethere, MSP is this is the time theyhavegone cluding states like ceivedalarge number of Hospital sources said the pre- Ministershould understand thereand shall always be there. one step ahead and usedracial Chhattisgarh, Gujarat, Cases Deaths CFR people from other countries. maturebabywas admittedin the the feelings of farmers and Onlyanalternative has been abuses... It is definitelynot accept- Madhya Pradesh, and Punjab, Maharashtra19,65,556 51,196 2.60% That might be adding to the “out-born” section and kept in a avoid suchfunctions till the giventothe farmers. If theyget able in this dayand age. that have three to five times susceptible population as radiant warmer to help maintain Karnataka 9,26,767 12,157 1.31% matter is resolved. The admin- MSP out of the mandi, why Sometimes this rootsbacktoup- fewercases. well. But it is very difficult to his body temperature. The istration shouldhaveallowed would farmers object to that? It bringing. This mustbedealt with The stategovernment Andhra8,84,689 7,1280.81% explain what exactlyishap- warmers were linedupinarow farmers to stagethe protest will benefit them.” an iron fist and (officials must) says that unlikemanyother Tamil Nadu 8,25,53712,215 1.48% pening without looking at in the SNCU.The one that had the near the venue instead of stop- Referring to the scheduled makesurethis doesn’t happen places,Kerala had managed relevant data. Thereare seven-day-old boywas com- Kerala 8,06,6043,3270.41% ping them at the national high- visit to Karnal, his home con- again,” Ashwin said. to avoid a“sudden peak”, and other states whichreceived pletely gutted,and the adjoining way, whichisseveral kilome- stituency,the Chief Ministersaid The twoincidentsoverthe that has ensured fewer Delhi 6,29,80110,666 1.69% large numbers of internal warmers on either side were par- tres away,” he said. that he “had to makesome an- weekend aresymptomatic of deaths. As on January 9, 2021. Includes deaths that states have migrants, but neverhad such tiallydamaged.Babies in those Karnal Deputy Commissioner nouncementsofRs100-crorede- racism in cricket,especiallyinthe “In other states, the cases assessed to be caused by co-morbid conditions. aprolonged surge,” he said. twowarmers also sufferedburn Nishat Kumar Yadavtold The velopment projectsatthe vil- stands. West Indies legend went up and have startedto Gautam Menon, professor injuries. The other babies died Indian Express:“We had deployed lage”. Michael Holding voicedhis sup- come down,but that resulted of physics and biology at due to smokeinhalation. 1,500policemen to maintain law Blaming the violence on “cer- portfor India's move.“Abuse in higher number of deaths. Ashoka University,offered an- Staffnurses reportedtwo ma- and order during the event.” tain unscrupulous elements,” he happens but once it's racist, it has Our main strategy has been to other plausible explanation. jor and multiple minor explo- Yadavsaid police have notre- said: “Wehaveastrong demo- to becalledout. The days of keep- prevent the spread to very WHEREKERALASTANDS “This is also justanin- sions. Officials believe the major ceivedany information about any cratic set-up in our country, the ing quietabout racistabuse are large numbers of people all at formedguess, but one of the explosions came from the radi- injuries. IGP (Karnal range) Bharti Constitution givesall these rights. over,” he told The Indian Express. once, and limit the numberof possible reasons we can ant warmer and the split air con- 60000 Arorawas seen monitoring secu- We have neverstoppedanyone Recently, asection of the deaths,” Kerala Health Keralahasthefifthhighestcaseload, think is related to Kerala’s ditioning system, while the mi- rity arrangements. from expressing their views.Even crowdinManchesterwas ac- MinisterKKShailaja told The 50000 butranks12thinthenumberofdeaths urbanisation. Because Kerala nor explosions were from the Karnal SP GangaRam Poonia amid Covid-19, we made ade- cusedofsinging aracistsong Indian Express in an inter- 40000 is nowalmostentirelyur- electrical wiring system. 51,138 said police would lodgeanFIR quatearrangementsfor their about England fast bowler Jofra view. 30000 banisedwith very high den- The fire melted the central against71persons for“entering safetyand security.But the viola- Archer during aTestmatch With 3,305 deaths as on sity of population, and there oxygen pipe that runs through the venue with sticks,damaging tion of Constitutional provisions againstAustralia. Former South Saturday(including ones that 20000 arehardlyany open rural the ceiling, and wiring of the 12,153 12,208 10,654 9,902 8,469 10000 7,127

government property,conspir- is unpardonable,” he said. Africa cricketers Hashim Amla the stategovernment hasas- 5,437 spaces in the state, the re- SNCU.“That wasthe cause of the 4,335 3,691 3,305 acy,assault on government em- Hitting out at the Opposition and Mkhaya Ntini, too, had com- sessedtohavebeen causedby 0 3,469 porting of cases could be dense blacksmoke,” an official i t a a h u la al ra ployees and instigating people”. and Chadhuni, Khattar said: plainedinthe pastabout being co-morbidities), Kerala has a rh higher.Inother states, ama- said. lh sh ab ra tr ak es ra ad nj ng dh ga ja de De The incident triggeredapolit- “These people have defamed on the receiving end of racist mortality rate of about 0.4 per sh jority of cases aregetting re- District officials said hospital at ad is lN Ke ra Be Pu ra An Gu rn tt ical firestorm with Khattar later farmers, this cannotbethe be- abuse from spectators in cent, three and ahalf times Pr portedfromthe urban cen- management services firm Faber mi rP st ha Ka ha ya Ta accusing Opposition parties of in- haviour of farmers. Gurnam Australia. lowerthan the national aver- ta tres. Thereisareasonable Sindoori conducted an equip- Ma We Ch dh citing the protesters to break law Singh Chadhuni's video released In October 2007,four specta- age. Maharashtrahas amor- Ut chance that cases emerging ment audit at the SNCU on and order,and describing those twodays ago, wherein he incited tors were evictedfrom Mumbai’s tality rate of 2.6, while the fig- Ma in the villages arenot being September 2, 2020, and found all behind the protests as “un- people, is responsible fortoday's Wankhede Stadium forracially urefor Delhi is 1.7. reportedinthose states. equipment working and in good scrupulous elements”. incident. Ibelieve that the abusing former Australian crick- “In Kerala, our dailydeath statehas reportedmorethan in these numbers in Kerala. It Kerala has no rural areas and, condition. Congress general secretary Congress party and the eter Andrew Symonds during a toll neverwent beyond 35. 5,500cases everyday on av- is possible that because therefore, the cases maynot Abi-annual calibration of Randeep Singh Surjewala ac- Communists have amajor role to one-dayinternational match. And these aremostlyelderly erage. On 70 of these days,the Kerala managed to contain be hidden,” he said. equipment wasconducted on cusedthe stategovernmentof re- playinsuchincidents. Through people or those with co-mor- statewas the single biggest the spread in the firstphase, it “Wecan see some sup- September 16,and the reports sorting to “event management” these agitations, if theythink they Waheed Para bidities. Kerala’s achievement contributor of cases in the is nowleftwith alargerpro- porting evidence in the cases were normal. and organising a“sarkari maha- can spread their wings, theyare Waheed's name is notmen- has been in limiting the country. During this same portion of people who are that arebeing reportedfrom Chief MinisterThackeray told panchayat”. highlymistaken,” he said. tioned. Severalof(PDP chief) deaths. Even now, astate time, dailynumbers in uninfected,and susceptible. Mumbai and Pune, forexam- reporters that “It is possible that “If the government wishes to “People aredying there(on Mehbooba Mufti's relativesand with suchpopulation density, Maharashtracame down In other states, it happenedin ple. In these adjoining cities, some safetyprotocols mayhave communicatewith farmers, they Delhi's outskirts)inthis weather... aides have already been ques- the death rate is less than half from apeak of about 24,000 reverse. Alargerproportion of the numbers have notre- been neglectedover the pastyear should have done it with the an- Iwould suggestthat this protest tionedinthis case,” asource aper cent,” Shailaja said. to about 3,000.Andhra population got infected ini- ducedconsiderablyoverthe since the authorities were busy nadata(food providers) who are should end immediatelysothat said. “This case wasfiledafter But while the death rate Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, and tially, but that meant there lastone month. Of course, tackling the corona pandemic. sitting at Delhi's borders forthe these farmers can go backhome,” Waheedwas arrested by the has been kept in check, rela- Karnataka, whichatone were fewersusceptible peo- theyhavereduceddrastically But no matter what, if anylapse past 46 days.Instead of hearing Khattar said. NIA,” the source added. tively speaking, the continu- point were reporting over ple left. But as Isaid, this is from their peaks. But in the has occurred, those responsible them out, farmers arebeing bru- Asked about the violence in Alok Bambroo, an associate ing trend of averyhigh num- 10,000 cases aday,are now justaguess. It is notbasedon lastone month, these num- will notbeallowedtogoscot- talisedand beaten up,” he said. Kaimla village, Khattar said: of Para’s counsel senior advo- beroffresh infections in finding newcases in the anydataorevidence,” Prof bers seem to have stabilised. free.” Senior INLD leader Abhay “Theyare notour enemies. They catePNRaina, said the docket Kerala, when all other states lowerhundreds. Gagandeep Kang of Christian These urban pocketswould The government's inquiry Singh Chautala said the opposi- arealso our people. Theyare also containing the courtorder have seen their numbers de- “It is intriguing, no doubt. Medical College, Vellore, said. also have better reporting of will be headedbyNagpur tion to “BJP's kisan panchayathas of our state. People had come granting bail to Para wasgiven clining, is something that is And in the absence of sero- Dr Shahid Jameel, director cases compared to the inte- Divisional Commissioner Sanjiv sent aclear signal that the anti- theretohear me but certain un- to jail officials around 4pmon notverywell explained. survey data, it is difficult to of the TrivediSchool of rior areas, forexample,”Prof Kumar,Thackeray said. farmer laws won't be tolerated". scrupulous elementscreateddis- Saturday. However, theyde- Since September 1, the saywhat exactlyisresulting Biosciences at Ashoka Menon said. “Who is responsible, whether In Karnal, the protesters ruption.” layedhis release foranother two anyelectrical equipment had startedgathering at neighbour- Sundaywas notthe firsttime hours saying the documents misfired and whether repeated ing Gharaunda town at 9am. By that Khattar had to cancel a were being prepared,until an complaintsabout it were neg- then, the administration had scheduledprogramme amid the inspectorand some other po- still questioning him,” Bambroo JudgeSunit Gupta said that “of- NIA on November 25 following elections. He wonthe election lected,etc. will beknown onlyaf- parkedloadedtruckson the road farm protests.OnDecember 9, he licemen from CIK reachedthe said. He said the police did not fences, particularly falling un- adisclosurestatement by while in custody. terthe inquiryiscomplete,” he to the venue to blockthem. scrappedavisit to Padha village jail in avehicle and pickedup disclose the grounds of Para's der Unlawful Activities Act Hizbul Mujahideen's Naveed LateonSaturdayevening, said. Also, guidelines would be Around 11.30 am, police usedwa- in Karnal with protesters damag- Para,Bambroo said. detention afterthe bail order. (UAPA), arenot prima facie Baba, who had been arrested PDP chief Mufti postedon framedfor hospitals to ensure tercannons and firedtear gas ing the helipad. On December 22, Bambroo said the policemen Nearly one and ahalf made out againstthe appli- along with then DySP Davinder Twitter:“DespiteNIA Court that an incident suchasthis did shells as the protesters, whose his convoy wasattackedbypro- told Para theyweretaking him months afterhewas arrested by cant/accused”. Singh on January11, 2020. granting bail to @parawahid af- notrecur,hesaid. numbers had increasedtowell testers in Ambala, with the state to the joint interrogation centre the NIA foralleged terror links, Para,who is considered to Para's arrest had come three terthorough courtproceedings, (WITHVIVEKDESHPANDE over athousand, remainedfirm government charging the ac- (JIC) forquestioning. “On Para wasonSaturdaygranted have been instrumental in the days afterhehad filedhis nomi- he has nowbeen detainedbyCIK INNAGPUR) on reaching the venue. cusedwith attempt to murder. Sunday, Ivisited the JIC here, but bail againstapersonal bond and revivalofthe PDP in south nation from Pulwama forthe in Jammu. Under what law&for FULLREPORTSON With all road routes to the officials told me that theywere suretyofRs1lakh each. Special Kashmir,was arrested by the District Development Council what crime has he been ar- www.indianexpress.com

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THEINDIANEXPRESS,MONDAY,JANUARY11,2021 3 WEST BENGAL

Wary of Tiwari, Woman found govt picks new Violenceagainst dead was our administrator worker, she was for Asansol BJPwillbenefit raped, killed: BJP

EXPRESSNEWSSERVICE EXPRESSNEWSSERVICE KOLKATA,JANUARY10 party:Suvendu KOLKATA,JANUARY10

DAYS AFTER TMC leader Jitendra AN ADIVASI woman in her 40s Tiwari resignedfromhis post, Clashes between BJP,TMC workers wasfound dead in Paschim the stategovernment on break out in East, West Midnapore Medinipur’sDebraareaon Saturdayappointed Amarnath Sundaymorning. While the BJP Chatterjee as the newcivic ad- claimedthat she wasaparty ministrator of the Asansol EXPRESSNEWSSERVICE member and alleged that she Municipal Corporation. KOLKATA,JANUARY10 had been raped, the police did Chatterjee is the outgoing notconfirm either,saying it was councillor of ward number 30 BJP LEADER and former state waiting forthe autopsy report. and amember of the nominated ministerSuvendu Adhikari on “The body has been sent for BoardofAdministrators. The Sundaysaid everyincidence of autopsy.Therewas no injury tenureofthe current Municipal violence againstBJP workers found on her body.Reason of Boardhas run itscourse, and ad- would benefit his party as south- death is notclear.Ifanyone is ministrators arehandling the western parts of the statere- Suvendu urgesBJP workers found spreading lies with dis- day-to-dayworkofthe civic portedfresh clashes between to ensureaclean sweep of torted facts, legal action will be body. supporters of the TMC and the Purulia’s nine seatsduring taken,” asenior police official As per party insiders, TMC’s saffron fold. the Assemblypolls told The Indian Express. topleadership is nothappywith Addressing party workers at Sources said the woman’s the wayTiwari had resigned apublic meeting at Kashipur in husband leftfor work on from all posts.Therewereru- Purulia district, he said, “With Saturdayevening, and on return- moursthatthe TMCMLA was everyattackonour party work- happened. But nowyou have to ing home at night found that she likelytoswitchtothe BJP. ers, morepeople will come out ensurethat the BJP makes a wasmissing. The body wasre- Sources said due to his differ- BJP workers protestagainstthe stategovernment over itshandling of lawand order,atabikerallyinKolkataonSunday. PTI in our support." clean sweep in this district. The coveredfromDebra’s Khola ences with Union MinisterBabul Adhikari alleged that the people of Purulia will notbewith Bazar area on Sundaymorning. Supriyo, he could notjoin the BJP. TMC government waslodging the TMC this time. Theywill vote The husband also alleged that Anumber of BJP leaders op- false cases againstBJP workers. forthe BJP now,"hesaid. the woman had been rapedand posedTiwari's inductionintothe Shekhawat: Bengal needs to "It is unfortunatethe wayBJP Meanwhile, clashes broke murdered. party. TMC holds counter-rally, workers arebeing targeted in the out between TMC and BJP sup- Afterthe news of the DespiteTiwari's apology to state. We strongly condemn it. porters in severalareas of East woman’s death came to light, BJP Chief MinisterMamataBanerjee, regain its anti-injustice DNA repeats ‘outsider’ swipe Afterfailing to counter us in a and West Midnaporedistricts leaders launchedasocial media topTMC leaders arereluctant to democratic way, the TMC is re- on Sunday, leaving afew of campaign demanding justice. assign him an important party Shekhawatsaid, “The people of is showing that Mamata sorting to suchpractices," he them injured.InEast Lashing out at Chief Minister postorwork, sources said. EXPRESSNEWSSERVICE Bengal have always been among EXPRESSNEWSSERVICE Banerjee will come to power said. Midnapore, workers of the two MamataBanerjee, BJP IT Cell However, the TMC is said to be KOLKATA,JANUARY10 the firsttoraisetheir voice KOLKATA, JANUARY 10 forthe thirdtime. Iamchal- Adhikari has been attacking parties clashedatBhajachauli in chief Amit Malviyatweeted, keeping an eyeonhim. againstinjustices. It is nowupon lenging JP Nadda that theycan- the TMC and itschief Mamata Contai area and Marishda. Local “Crime againstwomen has risen Tiwari wassaid to be follow- UNION JALShakti Minister the people to restorethat DNA. ADAY afterBJP national notdoanything in Bengal," said Banerjee foralleged corruption BJP leaders alleged that afew of sharplyunder ‘Pishi’. Instead of ing the footsteps of former TMC GajendraSingh Shekhawaton The same Bengal that has made President JP Nadda held aroad- the Tollywood actor,address- and the law-and-order situation their workers were injured in acting againstcriminals, she leader and ministerSuvendu Sundaysaid Bengal needs to re- everyIndian proud with itscon- showinBurdwan, the TMC on ing the roadshow. in the statesince he jumpedon the attackevenasthe TMC stoppedsending datatoNCRB. Adhikari. gain its“DNA” of opposing injus- tributions in the development of Sundayheld acounter rallyon The actor also said the BJP the saffron wagonlastmonth. faulted infighting forthe vio- In this case, criminals come from Within 24 hours of his resig- tice. the country, the same Bengal the same route. wasforcing people to attend its The stateisdue forthe Assembly lence. In West Midnapore, BJP Pishi’s votebank,soexpect no nation, Tiwari returnedtothe The ministerwas hereto that has givenbirth to many Bengali film actor and TMC rallies. polls in April-May. and TMC supporters allegedly action.” TMC fold, saying he had made a awardthe Vivekananda Seva great personalities is whereto- youth wing vice-president On Saturday, Nadda held a The former TMC leader attackedeachother with bricks BJP MP from Balurghat Dr mistake and urgedthe party Samman to businessman dayaperson cannotexpress his Soham Chakraborty took part roadshowinBurdwan and said urgedBJP supporters to ensurea and sticks at Keshpur. SukantaMajundar tweeted, leadership to notaccepthis res- Banwari Lal Soti forserving soci- views with freedom. One may in the roadshowand described the BJP would win morethan clean sweep forthe party in Denying the BJP's allegation, “Three moremonths and we will ignation. etywith utmostcommitment. notevenraise the slogan of BJP leaders as “outsiders”. 200out of the 294Assembly Purulia, whichhas nine TMC's EastMidnaporedistrict show‘Pishi’ howBengal is ruled “I took the decision (leave the The ceremonywas organisedby ‘Bharat MatakiJai’ and ‘Jai Shri “BJP leaders areoutsiders as seats. Assemblyseats. president Ajit Maity said, "Our and crime is controlled.” party) out of my pain. Mamata Shri Barabazar Kumar Sabha Ram’ on the road.” theydon’t knowthe language He further said the saffron “During the 2018 panchayat party workers were notinvolved Adelegation of the party led Banerjee had always been my Libraryonthe occasion of World The ministersaid the role of and cultureofWestBengal. party would “restore the lost polls, the TMC wonelections by in the clashes. In fact, theyhave by stateMahila Morchapresi- role model. Italked to senior Hindi Day. an institution suchasthe Those who arenot awareofour glory” of Bengal. indulging in malpractices. Ican been showing restraint in the dent AgnimitraPaulisscheduled leaders of the party and decided Expressing concern about Barabazar Kumar Sabha and the culturecan neverform agov- The Assemblypolls are tell youthis because Iwas with face of provocation by saffron to visit the victim’s familyon to come back,’’ he had said. the stateofaffairs in Bengal, youth wasimportant. ernment here. People's support likelytobeheld in April-May. the TMC then and howthings party supporters." Monday. Anti-farm law resolution apoll gimmick: Ghosh

Kolkata: West Bengal BJP chief Dilip GhoshonSundaycalledthe TMC government's decision to bringaresolutionagainstthenew farm laws a“poll gimmicktofool the masses”. The TMC, on the other hand, said the BJP's concern forfarmers was“fake”asthe Centrewas not heeding the demands of the agi- tating farmers. Ghosh wondered that if the TMC wassoconcernedfor the farmers, then whyitwas “creat- ing roadblocks"for the imple- mentationof thenewagriculture THE SHOW GOES ON laws.Healso said that CM MamataBanerjee had agreedto An audience attends asession on the thirdday of the 26th KolkataInternational Film Festival implement the PM Kisan on Sunday. CM MamataBanerjee had on Fridayappealedtocinema hall owners to follow Samman Nidhi Yojna in the state Covid-19rules during movie screenings. PTI as the party waslosing ground among farmers. "Thedecisionto bringaresolu- tion againstthe newfarm laws is STATECOUNT apollgimmicktofoolthemasses. ‘Vengeful’: Academics TheTMChadearlierpassedares- TOTAL CASES olution againstdemonetisation andGSTbutthatdidnotyieldany 560709 want VBU professor’s result. This, too, won't have any INCREASE DEATHS impact," Ghosh told reporters. 823 9941 "Thereare morethan 70 lakh suspension revoked farmersinthestate.Theywerede- 542887 RECOVERED niedthe benefitsofthe PM Kisan 7441500 SAMPLES Bhattacharyya, the academics SammanNidhiYojna.Butnowthe TESTED TILL JAN 10 EXPRESSNEWSSERVICE wrote, “Suchanaction also MamataBanerjee government KOLKATA,JANUARY10 smacks of vengeful action from has agreedtoimplement the the university authorities partic- scheme aftersuchalong time as Active Covid MORETHAN500academicshave ularly since Prof. Bhattacharyya, she has realisedthat the TMC is condemnedVisva-Bharati as an office-bearer of the faculty fast losing ground," he said. PTI University’s(VBU)decisionto sus- association,hasbeenconsistently cases decline pend economics professor raisingquestionsaboutseveralir- SudiptaBhattacharyya,andurged regularities in the university.” below 8,000 the institution to revoke the sus- Among the signatories are pension. DelhiUniversityassociateprofes- Kolkata: West Bengal’s active Bhattacharya wassuspended sor Abha DevHabib, Jawaharlal caseload droppedbelow8,000 on January7for alleging irregu- Nehru University (JNU) professor to 7,881onSundayasthe recov- larities in the appointment of the emeritaZoyaHasan, Kyoto eryrateincreasedto96.82 per principalof PathaBhavana,oneof University associateprofessor cent. the university’s institutions. Rohan D’Souza, JNU professor According to the statehealth Theeconomicsprofessoristhe emeritus Prabhat Patnaik. bulletin, the stateregistered823 president of the Visva-Bharati The academics accusedthe newcases in 24 hours, while 957 UniversityFacultyAssociationand VBUExecutiveCounciloftakingan patientsweredischarged. recentlyfoundhimself inthemid- arbitrarydecision on flimsy Nineteen deaths in 24 hours dle of acontroversy involving the grounds. Theyadded, “This seems Change Of Name pushedupthe toll to 9,941 university’s vice-chancellor tobethelatestexampleofhowuni- I, No -13946322-F, EX-HAV, Among the newpositive Bidyut Chakraborty and Nobel versitiesareincreasinglybeingrun GOUTAM BANDHYAPADHYAY, cases, 231werefromKolkata laureateAmartyaSen. On in an authoritarian manner in this AMC.ARMY.Residingat15/3, DESHPRAN SASMAL ROAD, while 226 cases were reported December9,Chakrabortyreport- country. Universities as critical HOWRAH-711101.W.B. Retiredon from North24Parganas district. edly claimedatameeting with spacesofacademicinquiryneedto 14.12.1993, Igot marriedtoREKHA Of the 19 deaths, sevenwerefrom over 350faculty members that preservethe freedom of raising MAZUMDERon9.12.1990. After marrige her name has become North24Parganas district, four the renownedeconomisthad in- questions.Anycurbingoftheseba- REKHA BANERJEE according to were from Howrah district and troducedhimself as“BharatRatna sicrightsandfreedomsamountsto Hindu rites and rituals.Wealso have two daughters, viz Simpee Banerjee three were reportedinKolkata. AmartyaSen” in aphone call and dismantlingthefoundationalprin- and Sum Banerjeee. Ideclare that The health department said urgedhim nottoevict hawkers ciples of auniversity.Itisindeedof my wife REKHA MAZUMDER and 35,123 testswereconducted in around his house. After greatironythatauniversityinspired REKHA BANERJEE is same one and identical person. Hencefourth my wife 24 hours, pushing up the num- Bhattacharryasoughtclarification by the lifeand work of an interna- name changed to REKHABANERJEE berto74,41,500. The test positiv- from Sen, the Nobellaureatedis- tionallyacclaimedpoetlike vide afidavit on 04.01.2021 before ity rate droppedto7.53 per cent. missedthe V-C’s claims. RabindranathTagorehaschosento the court of Ld. Judicial Magistrate 1st class at Howrah W.B. Sadar Court. ENS In the letter defending revoke the right to ask questions.” Kolkata THEINDIANEXPRESS,MONDAY,JANUARY11,2021 4 EXPRESS NETWORK

Looking for lithium KarnatakaCMmeetsShah,Nadda Security of Fadnavis toehold, India finds a inDelhi,cabinetrejiglikelysoon and Raj Thackeray deposit in Karnataka downgraded mineral content areestimated While his rivals have been ANILSASI onlywith alow levelofconfi- LIZMATHEW Bidto mobilising leaders againstthe NEWDELHI,JANUARY10 dence basedoninformation gath- NEWDELHI,JANUARY10 boost veteran, he has been playing his EXPRESSNEWSSERVICE ered from locations suchasout- E strength cards carefully. Recently, when MUMBAI,JANUARY10 ● ALONGSIDE Amovetotap into crops, trenches, pits, workings, WITH KARNATAKA Chief EXPLAINED the central leadership stalledhis the global lithium value chain, and drill holes that maybeoflim- MinisterBSYeddyurappa meet- plan to grant backwardcastes TWOFORMERCMs,aformerGov- India has initiatedaconcerteddo- itedor uncertain quality,and also ing the BJP leadership Sunday, ALTHOUGH Yediyurappa status to Lingayats, the commu- ernor,two servingUnionministers mestic exploration push forthe of lowerreliability. the long-awaited cabinetreshuf- has always enjoyedthe nity he belongs to and his key andtheMaharashtraBJPpresident alkali metal, avital ingredient of Second, the lithium find is fle in the stateisexpected soon, backing of Prime supportbase, the Chief Minister were amongthosewhosesecurity Thackeray,Fadnavis to have the lithium-ion rechargeable bat- comparatively small, considering party sources said. MinisterNarendraModi, told the media that he would do coverwas either withdrawnor ‘Y-Plus security with escort’ . teries that powerelectric vehicles the size of the proven reserves in Yeddyurappa had an hour- Home MinisterAmit Shah his rivals in stateBJP have it afterthe central leadership downgradedbyMaharashtragov- (EVs), laptops, and mobile Bolivia (21million tonnes), long meeting with Union Home with BJP chief JP Nadda, CM recentlyintensifiedtheir givesagreen signal. ernment on Sunday, inviting crit- phones. Argentina (17million tonnes), MinisterAmit Shah, BJP presi- BSYediyurappa, and BJP demand forareplace- Meanwhile, asection of party icism from the Opposition. defeatedRaneinthe2014 Assem- Preliminarysurveysbythe Australia (6.3 million tonnes), and dent JPNadda and party general Karnataka in-charge Arun ment at the toppost. The leaders aretalking about the WhilethesecuritycoverofCM blypolls. It also downgradedthe Atomic Minerals Directoratefor China (4.5 million tonnes). secretaryin-charge forthe state Singh in Delhi, Sunday. PTI CM wantstostrengthen possibility of aleadership UddhavThackeray’s predecessor security coverofthe CM’s cousin Exploration and Research (AMD), Lithium can be extracted in Arun Singh during his daylong his position by inducting change. The BJP leadership, they and current Leader of Opposition andMNS chief RajThackeray from an arm of the Department of different ways,depending on the visit to the national capital. some leaders of his argue, could makesome offers DevendraFadnavis wasdown- ‘Z’ categoryto‘Y+’ with an escort. Atomic Energy,islearnt to have type of the deposit –itisgener- Afterthe meeting at Shah’s and anumber of aspirantsare choice intohis govern- to Yediyurappa, including asuit- graded, the ‘Y+’ coverenjoyedby Thesecuritydetailof BJPlead- shown the presence of 1,600 allydone either through solar residence, when asked about the waiting in the wings. Besides ment. Amit Shah’s pres- able position forhim and aUnion former CM Narayan Rane was ers —including Union Minister tonnes of lithium resources in the evaporation of large brine pools reshuffle, Yeddyurappa told re- representativesfromdifferent ence in Sunday’s meeting Ministerberth forone of his withdrawnfollowingathreatper- Raosaheb Danve,state BJP presi- igneous rocksofthe Marlagalla- or by hard-rockextraction of the porters, “The party leaders will factions and the old guards, the is being seen as apositive sons, in exchangeofhim allow- ception reviewexercise carried dent Chandrakant Patil, former Allapatna region of Karnataka’s ore. In India, alongside the rock give good news soon. Ihavedis- Chief Ministerwould have to ac- signal from the BJP lead- ing achangeofguard. out by stateHome department. AssemblySpeaker Haribhau Mandyadistrict. mining at Mandya, thereissome cussedthe political situation in commodatesome of those who ership in favour of “Noclear plans have been As per the government order, Bagade,formerstatefinancemin- Agovernmentofficial said the potential forrecovering lithium the state. The party leadersasked entered the Assemblythrough Yediyurappa. drawnupyet about aleadership Fadnavis, who wasearlier enjoy- isterSudhirMungantiwar,former AMD is carrying out surface and from the brines of Sambhar and me to send alistofparty candi- recent bypolls. The aspirantsin- change. Therehas to be aplan to ing ‘Z+’ security,will nowbeget- social justice ministerRajkumar sub-surface exploration for PachpadrainRajasthan, and Rann dates to BelagaviLok Sabha, clude BJP MLCs AHVishwanath, rehabilitateYediyurappa before ting only‘Y+’ security with an es- Badole as well as legislators Ram lithium in potential geological do- of Kachchh in Gujarat. The major Basavakalyana and Maski RShankar and MTBNagaraj, party to “unseat” him. anything is done since he is a cort. Sources said that abullet KadamandPrasadLad—hasbeen mains of the country. The find in mica beltsinRajasthan, Bihar,and Assemblybypolls. Iamhappy whose resignation as MLAs in However, the central leader- mass leader,” aBJP legislator proof vehiclethatwasapartofhis withdrawn. Mandyaisextremelysmall in AndhraPradesh, and the peg- with the meeting with party the previous Cong-JD(S) com- ship, sources said, wasofthe stated twomonths ago. convoy will nowbewithdrawn. BJP’s Praveen Darekar,Leader quantitative terms, but it marks matitebeltsinOdisha and central leadership.” bine brought the government viewthat the 78-year-old is the Recently, BJP in-charge Singh The government also down- of Opposition in the Legislative some initial success in the at- Chhattisgarhapartfrom Sources said the central lead- down and pavedthe wayfor the best betfor the party as thereis had ruledout anyleadership gradedthe security extendedto Council, wasnewly assigned‘X’ tempttodomesticallymine the Karnataka, arethe other potential ership is expected to inform BJP coming to power, said no one else in the Karnataka unit changeplan, but party MLA his wife, Amruta, and daughter, categorysecurity. silver-whitemetal by wayof geological domains. Yeddyurappa of itsdecision by sources. to matchhis popularity. BasavarajPatil Yatnal had said Divija,from‘Y+’categoryto‘X’cat- BJPleaderRamKadam,whose hard-rockextraction of the ore. In the middle of lastyear, Monday. Once the national lead- As manyas11ofthe Yeddyurappa’s son BY the central leadership is consid- egorywhile striking offthe one security coverwas withdrawn, India currentlyimports all its India, through anewly-floated ership clears the names, the Congress and JDS rebels have al- Vijayendraaccompaniedhim to ering achangeofguard. On previouslyenjoyedbyhis aunt, said, “This is revengepolitics.” lithium needs. state-ownedcompany, had Chief Ministerisexpected to ready been inducted in the cab- Delhi. While some of Sunday, Yatnal said big changes Shobhatai Fadnavis —aformer Fadnavissaid,“Ineverdemanded The domestic exploration signedanagreement with an reshuffle the council of ministers inet. Yediyurappa’s rivals had labelled arelikelyafter Sankranti but did ministerand asitting MLC. securityevenaspartychief,itwas push, whichalso includes ex- Argentinian firm to jointly later this month. Sources close to the Chief him “super CM”, the central notelaborate. The government newlygran- onlyasCM, when therewere ploratoryworktoextract lithium prospect lithium in the South The state, whichcan have a Ministersaid therehavebeen leadership has appointed him as WITHINPUTSFROM ted‘X’ categorysecurity coverto threats, Iwas givensecurity.This from the brine pools of Rajasthan American countrythat has the total of 34 ministers, has 27 now fresh movesbyhis rivals in the vice-president of stateBJP. ENS,BENGALURU ShivSenaMLAVaibhavNaik,who won’taffectmy movementatall.” and Gujarat and the mica beltsof thirdlargest reserves of the Odisha and Chhattisgarh, comes metalinthe world. The new at atime when India has stepped company, KhanijBidesh India Don’t assign up itseconomic offensive against Ltd, wasincorporated in August Bengal woman held Bustingterror, sniffing China, amajor source of lithium- 2019 by three state-owned ion energy storageproductsbe- companies, NALCO, Hindustan poll duty to ing importedintothe country. Copper,and Mineral Exploration for ‘drowning’ kids The Marlagalla-Allapatna area, Ltd, with the specific mandate those charged outCovid:Govtwants along the Nagamangala Schist to acquirestrategic mineral as- Belt, whichexposes mineralised sets suchaslithium and cobalt EXPRESS NEWS People told police that complexpegmatites (igneous abroad. The companyislearnt SERVICE with lapses: rocks), is seen as among the most to be also exploring options in KOLKATA, JANUARY 10 the woman wasunder security dogs to do more promising geological domains for Chile and Bolivia. pressurefromher EC to states potential exploration forlithium India is seen as alatemover in AWOMAN wasarrestedin husband forgiving and other rare metals, officials attemptstoenter the lithium Anup NagarinMalda district’s DEEPTIMANTIWARY said. value chain, coming at atime Chanchal area on Sundayfor al- birth to girls NEWDELHI,JANUARY10 Thereare,however, two when EVs arepredicted to be a legedly drowning her two PRESSTRUSTOFINDIA caveats. First, the newfind is cat- sector ripe fordisruption. 2021is daughters, one aged 10 and the NEWDELHI,JANUARY10 FROM RECEIVINGinstructions egorisedas“inferred”, one of the likelytobeaninflection point for other 8years, following an ar- said Chanchal Mandal, the ac- on radio frequency sets and three categories intowhichmin- batterytechnology –with several gument with her husband. The cused’s husband. GEARINGUPfor elections in five walking alone intoterrorsitua- eral resources aresubdivided, in potential improvementstothe li- woman’s mother-in-lawwas He added, “As soon as I statesinthe coming months, the tions, to detecting infection with order of increasing geological ion technology,and alternatives also arrested on suspicion of in- heardthe news,Iran towards Election Commission has re- the novelcoronavirus and the confidence. The ‘inferred’ mineral to this tried-and-testedformula- volvement in the alleged mur- the pond, whichisafew metres mindedthese states nottoassign onsetofcancer,the government resource is the partofaresource tion in advancedstagesofcom- der. away.Isaw the bodies floating anypoll-related duty to officials is looking at utilising the poten- forwhichquantity,grade and mercialisation. Local people told the police in the pond.” who have been chargedfor any tial of security dogs formuch that the woman, identifiedas The police arenow trying lapse in anyelection in the past. morethan sniffing and tracking. Afterthe Home Ministryset up a‘Police K9 Cell’, an exercise Mampi Mandal, wasunder to find out if anyone else was In an advisorytothe chief Following the establishment has begun to expand the role of dogs. Express pressurefromher husband for involvedinthe incident. secretaries of Assam, Kerala, of a“Police K9 Cell” in the Police giving birth to girls. Sources said theywerelikely West Bengal, Tamil Nadu and Modernisation Division of the “When Icame backhome to interrogate Chanchal too. Puducherry,the poll panel has Home Ministry, the government quainted/familiarizedwith the capabilities of itsdog squads by IN PROUDMEMORYOFTHE 36 VEER BIHARIS OF THE on Saturdayevening, Ihad a “The bodies have been sent for also said that officers against has begun an exercise to bring handler’sradiodevicevoicerecog- settingbenchmarks,trainingpro- 2ND BATTALION,THE BIHAR REGIMENT,WHO LAID heated argument with my wife post-mortem. The actual whom it had recommendeddis- existing capabilities of dog nitionby theK9sandfurtherease tocols,andguidelines;alsosothat DOWN THEIR LIVES ON 11 JANUARY1948, WHILE over dinner.After that, we all cause of death can onlybeas- ciplinaryaction in the pastand squads up to international lev- to deployK9s with K9 Vision squads across the countryhave ESCORTING AREFUGEETRAIN FROM PAKISTAN, AND, went to sleep. My elder daugh- certainedafter that,” said a whichispending or has resulted els, and to help the animals ac- System and Canine Remote the same capabilities. This, they THROUGH THEIR SACRIFICE, SAVED THE LIVES OF terwas sleeping by my side,” police official. in apenalty should also notbe quirenew capabilities suchas Deployment System,” the Police said,willhelpinteroperabilityand 1200 REFUGEES. deployedfor poll-related work. medical diseasediagnosis, K9 Journal says about the new sharing of resources. Capt GurbachanSingh Grewal,SC, Jem Shyam Bahadur Singh,KC, The advisory, sent last wildlifeprotection, and anti-traf- tech and training. “Weare also looking at de- Sep Shankar Hembrom,SC, Nk Rama Pati Singh, L/Nk Sita Ram, Eight vultures month, said anyofficer,who is ficking work in the long run. Col (Dr) PK Chugh, who veloping dual purpose dogs. Sep Hari Charan, Sep Dharam Nath Singh, Sep Manki Jarika, Sep due to retirewithin the coming Home MinisterAmit Shah headedthis training programme Currentlymostforces have two Barnabas Soy,Sep Pothlu Singh, Sep Junas Dangwar, Sep Ram released in WB six months, should notbeasso- recentlylaunchedthe first at the NSG and is currently sets of dogs —sniffers and at- Autar,Sep Sena Bhadru Singh, Sep Harnand Singh, Sep Bala Din, ciated with anyelection-related “Police K9 Journal” in whichbest Consulting Director at the Police tackers. But thereare breeds Sep Roen Surin, Sep Ram Raj Singh, Sep Jawahar Singh, Sep Sheo Charan Birua, Sep Ishwar Dutt Topno, Sep Joseph Tuti, Sep Sani Kolkata/Alipurduar: Eight vul- duty. practices and innovative ideas K9 Cell, said the innovation suchasGerman shepherdand Charan Karwa, Sep Jamuna Singh, Sep Budhwa Munda, Sep Sheo tures have been releasedin The terms of the legislative forimproving dog squads will be would go along wayinnot only Belgian malinois, whichhave Kumar,Sep Pirthi Singh, Sep Gopi Nath Singh, Sep Sheo Nandan Rajabhatkhawa in the Buxa assemblies of West Bengal, Tamil discussed. saving soldier’s lives, but would both capabilities and can be Rai, Sep Dwarka Singh, Sep Babuni, Sep Lal Dhari Singh, Sep TigerReserveinnorth Bengal, Nadu, Assam, Kerala and “Dogs areagreat forcemulti- also provide crucial information usedfor both purposes,” Chugh Sheo Prasad Singh, Sep Ram Prasad, Sep Sudarshan Singh, Sep aforestofficial said on Sunday. Puducherry arecoming to an plier with aproventrack record about the location of terrorists or said. Muni Lal, Sep Paika Dhan While twoofthem arecap- end on different dates in May overcenturies.Somehowwehave explosive devices inside avenue. In the long run, the Ministry Your gallantry will always serve as an inspiration for tive bred white-backedfitted and June this year.Assembly notfocusedonthem as muchas “If we look at precedence, also plans to develop capabili- us. We,the fraternity of The Veer Biharis,salute you. with satellitetransmitters, the elections arelikelytotakeplace we should. Arecent Bureauof mostsoldier deaths happen in ties suchasdisease-detection The Bihar Regiment Association rest areHimalayangriffon sometime in April-May. PoliceResearch andDevelopment the firstburstoffirewhen we are dog squads. “A model is being species, said Chief Wildlife The poll panel has also asked (BPR&D) reportsaid we need notaware of the situation inside developedinternationallyfor Warden VK Yadav. PTI these states to ensurethat offi- 35,000 moredogs. At the same abuilding or hideout. In this case, even detection of cancer,hyper- cers directlyconnected with the time, our training facilities, mod- atraineddog with aradio setcan tension, seizures and nervous conduct of elections arenot ules and care-giving has notfixed go in with his handler passing on disorders. Theyhavebeen suc- TAMIL NADU geNerATIoN AND DIsTrIbUTIoN CorPorATIoN LTD. postedintheir home districts even the basics. So we aretrying directions. The dog can relayback cessfullydetected by dogs. We expression of Interest Noice:TANgeDCo/PP-01/2021 and those who have spent three to createanecosystem where crucial information to the control will certainlycatchuptothat TANGEDCO invites Expression of Interest (EoI) from the eligible consuling irmsacross years in adistrict in the pastfour things getstandardised, and we room or even wristdevices of sol- standardinthe long run,” the naion to indicate their interest in providing assistance/support to TANGEDCO forthe years. can become world-class,” asen- diers who can then storm the Chugh, who is also amember of efeciveload forecasing,suggesing schedule of power,opimizingpurchase/sale of power It is usual forthe poll panel ior Ministryofficial said. place. If aterroristissighted,the the International K9 Working and Deviaion SetlementMechanism. The prescribed formatofthe applicaion form, EoI documentand anyother details required maybedownloadedfromTANGEDCOwebsite to issue suchdirections ahead The country’s elitecounter- dog can be instructed to attack Group forCovid Detection Dogs, (www.tangedco.gov.in)from11.01.2021 /12:00 hrs. of Lok Sabha or assemblypolls terror force, the National him,” Col. Chugh said. said. Lastdatefor submission of eoI: 10.02.2021 before 15:00 hours. to ensurethat officials do not Security Guard(NSG), has al- During the 26/11attacks,one Everydisease has avolatile Chiefengineer/PPP, TANgeDCo DIPR/ 112 /Tender/2021 interfereinthe election ready trainedits dogs to walk of the challenges that security organic compound (VOC) asso- OFFICE OF THE BOARD OF ADMINISTRATORS process. “Toensurefreeand fair alone intoanongoing terror at- forces facedwas the enormity of ciated with it. The VOCs give a election, the Commission has tack or hostage situation, and re- the TajPalace Hotel, and the ab- specific odour to body fluids, BUDGE BUDGE MUNICIPALITY been following aconsistent layinformationbacktocontrol sence of information on the lo- whichcan be detected by dogs. Tender ID- 2020_MAD_308143_1&2020_MAD_308148_1 policy to the effect that officers room and to soldiers preparing cation of terrorists and IEDs. Maj. Currentlythis is being done in- under DMA Fund. For details, interested bidder may visit directlyconnected with con- to storm the scene. AMotorola Sandeep Unnikrishnan of the ternationallythrough sweat and duct of elections in an election radio setpouchisfixed on the Indian Army, then serving in the urine. In the case of Covid, due to www.wbtenders.gov.in Last date of Submission of BID is going state/UT arenot posted dog's collar to conveyvoice com- NSG, had losthis lifewhile administrative difficulties of col- 31.01.2021 up to 6.00 pm. in their home districtsorplaces mands when it is farand out of storming the hotel. lecting urine, body odour is be- Sd/- Phulu Dey wheretheyhaveserved for itshandler's sight. Home Ministrysources said ing reliedupon. Chairperson considerablylong period,” the “Thishashelpedinsettingthe thegovernment is currentlyfo- FULLREPORTON Board of Administrators, advisorysaid. foundation forgetting ac- cussedonimprovingthesecurity www.indianexpress.com Budge-Budge Municipality Farmers to discuss R-Day tractor march after January 15 meeting with govt

Ugrahan, president of BKU Ugrahan, Sundayeveningsaidthatif talksfailyet RAAKHIJAGGA said, “The issue of tractor parade on R- again, tractor parade will notonlybe LUDHIANA,JANUARY10 Daywas kept pending forthe time-be- held in Delhi but in all 718districtsof ing.ItwasdecidedunanimouslybySKM India. Krishanaprasad, member of FARMERSWILLplantheJanuary26trac- to discussitaftertheJanuary15meeting Working Committee of AIKSCC and a torparadeaftertheirJanuary15meeting with the Union Government. We will former Kerala MLA, said, “It will be the with the Union Government. This was have an exclusive meeting on this sub- biggestpublicmovementinIndiapost- decidedatameeting of Sanyukt Kisan ject afterJanuary15.” Independence. Over 500unions are Morcha(SKM) at Singhu border on The All India Kisan Sangharsh with AIKSCC. Thereismobilisation of Sundayevening. Joginder Singh Coordination Committee (AIKSCC) farmers in everydistrict...” Kolkata WWW.INDIANEXPRESS.COM

THEINDIANEXPRESS,MONDAY,JANUARY11,2021 5 EXPRESS NETWORK

BRIEFLY J&K: Heavy snowfall ‘Dailytollneverwentbeyond25...Kerala’s declared state-specific achievementhasbeenlimitingdeaths’ natural calamity

KERALAHEALTH Minister KK with comorbidity.Kerala’s section of people will always In the meeting on vaccine, I EXPRESSNEWSSERVICE SHAILAJA speakstoLIZ achievement has been limiting flout protocols. We cannotex- told them that Kerala should get JAMMU,JANUARY10 The teachers’ protest MATHEW on whythe stategov- deaths. Even now, astate with pect 100per cent compliance in it on an emergency basis. Ialso Manoj ernment is notworriedabout suchpopulation density,the anysociety.With widespread demandedthat keeping the TO EXPEDITE disbursement of Sinha the high number of active cases death rate is half per cent. and intense campaign, 80 per population and itsvulnerability relief and ex-gratia fordamage TRIPURA being reportedfromthe state. cent of the population started in mind, the stateshouldget causedbysnowfall, Jammu and Joblosses: Kerala’s surge startedin wearing masksand using hand morevaccines. Kashmir’sLieutenantGovernor lic due to heavy snowfall and the Kerala has the highest September and the festival sanitisers. Iinformedthem the stateis Manoj Sinha on Sundaydeclared futurecourse of action. Anotherteacher number of active cases, it is season of Onam and some Otherwise, the statewould ready forvaccine distribution ‘Heavy Snowfall’ as astate-spe- On being apprisedabout reporting the maximum political activities were have been worse than and waiting. Therewas no denial cific natural calamity under the shortage of small rescue vehicles diesbysuicide number of cases everyday, blamed. Other states also had Maharashtra. We have good from their side, nor wastherean StateDisasterResponse Force formovement of people requir- almostone fourth of the festivals likeDiwali and health facilities, but we have assurance. Ithink we will get (SDRF) norms. ing medical assistance, particu- Agartala: The mass national tally. Whyare the Chhath etc, but no other state three big challenges –popula- priority. The Lieutenant Governor larly in remote areas and areas retrenchment of numbers notcoming down? facedthis kind of asituation. THEEXPRESS tion density,the high number of waschairing avirtual meeting with narrowlanes, the Lt teachers has allegedly Kerala has been making a Actually, therewas no such oldage population,and lifestyle Has the outbreak of other with all DCs and SSPs of Kashmir Governor directed that 4x4 res- ledtoasecond suicide systematic effort to control the rise in the festival season. In a INTERVIEW diseases. diseases likebirdflu or division to take stockofthe ad- cue vehicles /ambulances be by an educator even as pandemic. In apandemic, there pandemic, it gets spread to max- mutated strains complicated ministration’s winter manage- providedtosnow-affected dis- WITH asit-in stir in Agartala will be apeak,nomatter howwe imum number of people and The stategovernment has the state’s efforts? ment measures, especiallysnow trictswith immediateeffect. KKSHAILAJA entered its35th day trytocontrol it... And our strat- then comes down. In other requestedthe Centretogive Kerala’s terrain is fertile for clearance efforts. He asked the officers to be KERALA HEALTH MINISTER Sunday. Rumi egy has been delaying the peak, states, cases went up and started Kerala priority in providing infectiousdiseases. It is our ef- Earlier,‘Heavy Snowfall’ did moresensitive and responsive to Debbarma,30, died to avoid asudden peak which coming down, but resulted in the vaccine. What is its fective health system and the notfigureinthe listofNatural the issues of the public and take afterconsuming poison would lead to crisis in hospitali- moredeaths. Our main strategy deaths due to infectious dis- response? stategovernment’s effort that Calamities under SDRF norms, necessarymeasures. on Saturday. While sation andariseinthe number wastoprevent the spread to eases. In fact, the number of The Centrepointsout Kerala prevent gravecalamities in the due to whichdisbursement of “Be visible and take early authorities blamed of deaths.With our tracing- maximum number of people at deaths in Kerala in 2020 is less still has the highestnumber of state. relief and ex-gratia fordamage measures. Need morefeetonthe familyissues, her quarantaine-break the chain once and limit the number of than that of the previous year. cases. But thereisanother issue The number of waterbodies due to heavy snowfall wasnot ground. Quicklyreachout to the colleagues claimedshe programme, we delayedthe deaths. We neverfacedacrisis That’s what the statistics till -- the reporting system. It will get in Kerala attract alot of migra- possible forthe districts’ disas- people to address their needs wasdepresseddue to peak whichhelpedustoim- with hospital bedsorshortage of November showed. We arewait- exposedsoon. While we were tory birds and the statebecomes termanagement authorities. and requirements,” the Lt job loss. On January2, proveour health system –more health workers... ing forthe December tally. Once told about other states whichdo prone to diseases likeavian flu. Now, processing of ex-gratia Governor told the officials. Uttam Tripuram 32, beds, moreICUs, oxygen flow it is done, we will publicise the notproject the actual number of Thereisalsoanissue —asin- relief under SDRF will become Taking cognizance of media wasfound hanging in etc. We got that time. In some Areyou satisfiedwith the data. cases, Kerala’s reporting system gledeath in Kerala is reported faster,therebygiving hugerelief reports,social media posts and South Tripuradistrict. states likeMaharashtraand resultsofyour efforts? is reallyeffective. nationallyand internationally. to the affected people living in grievances receivedfromthe Both were among Tamil Nadu, the peak came quite We have takenmaximum Arepeople following social We do notleave asingle case Some other states had so many snowbound areas, said an offi- public, the Lt Governor asked the 10,323 teachers who fast and the number of deaths careand efforts. Idonot feel distancing and wearing unnoticed. The Centreisaware deaths, but it nevergot suchat- cial statement. administration to identify gaps lostjobs over a“fauly” went up... But in Kerala, our daily guilty at all. But we did notwant masks? of it also. Even in Thursday’s tention from the media… During the meeting, the Lt and take immediatemeasures to recruitment process. death toll neverwent beyond 25 anydeaths to happen. However, No matter howintense our meeting, the Centredid not FULLINTERVIEWON Governor sought adetailedre- fill them to redress the issues Protesting teachers -- mostly elderly people or those in anormal year,wehavemany awareness campaign is, asmall blame the state... www.indianexpress.com portonissues facedbythe pub- facedbythe people. meanwhile, blockeda road near the protest siteonSunday. ENS Cave-in halts movement on TRACKING INDIA’S COVID CURVE ACTIVECASES:223,335 Jammu-Srinagar highway RAJASTHAN 314 CASES: DAYSSINCE 10,450,284 DEATHS:150,999 cleared the strandedvehicles Manarrested PANDEMIC BEGAN TESTS: 181,096,622 | RECOVERIES: 10,075,950 EXPRESSNEWSSERVICE and those carrying essential sup- onespionage JAMMU,JANUARY10 plies to the Valley. CASES DEATHS RECOVERIES TESTS On Sundaymorning, the road charge JAN9 18,645 20119,299 843,307 WITHIN HOURS of the restora- wasopenedfor movement of all tion of vehicular trafficfrom vehicles from Jammu side to- Jaipur: Rajasthan Police Jammu to Srinagar on Sunday, a wardsSrinagar.The vehicles has arrested a42-year- nearly 150-ft-long stretchof were plying smoothlyuntil old man on the charge of road cavedinnear Ramban, evening, when anearly 150-ft- spying forPakistan, police snapping the surface link be- long stretchofone lane of the said. Satyanarayan tween the twocities again. road connecting avital bridge Paliwal, aresident of The 300-km highway,con- cavedinatKela Morhnear Jaisalmer,was pickedup sidered the lifeline to the Ramban. by police and interro- STATESWITHRISINGACTIVECASES Kashmir Valley, wasopenedfor “Thereshall be no vehicular gatedbyintelligence ACTIVECASES RISEINLASTWEEK movement of all vehicles in the movement on Jammu-Srinagar agencie. He wasarrested Meghalaya163 27 morning afterseven days. national highway towards under the Official Secrets Daman 36 -6 The road had been blocked Kashmir Valleyand vice versa Act, police said. Paliwal Puducherry 328 -11 due to heavy snowfall and land- due to sudden damageofbridge wasintouchwith a slides lastweek,sources said, at Kela Morh, Ramban. Thereis Pakistani intelligence STATESWHEREACTIVECASESAREDECLINING adding that during Fridayand no optional carriageway avail- agency and wassharing ON ARRIVAL ACTIVECASES DECLINEINLASTWEEK Saturdaythe authorities had able," said atraffic advisory. information related to the West Bengal 8,0342,974 Indian Armythrough so- Passengers who arrivedfromthe UK undergo Covid-19tests at Kempegowda International Rajasthan 6,730 2,065 cial media, Additional AirportinBengaluru on Saturday. ANI Uttar Pradesh 11,422 1,894 Director General (intelli- Yogi: Land mafia leaders gence) Umesh Mishra STATESREPORTINGMAXIMUMCASES said. Documentsonthe ONJAN9TOTAL troubled by demolition Armywerefound on his Kerala 5,528 806,604 phone, he said. PTI Vaccine to arrive this week, 89 Maharashtra3,5811,965,556 EXPRESSNEWSSERVICE Uttar Pradesh 1,286 592,896 MAHARASHTRA LUCKNOW,JANUARY10 sites in Delhi finalised for drive STATESREPORTINGMAXIMUMDEATHS Yogi Sailordieson ONJAN9TOTAL IN AN apparent dig at his prede- Adityanath warshipfrom vaccines free of costtoevery one Maharashtra5851,196 cessor and Samajwadi Party(SP) ASTHASAXENA The Delhi government across the country: "Weare Uttar Pradesh 24 8,493 president Akhilesh Yadav, Chief bulletinjury NEWDELHI,JANUARY10 monitoring the situation very MinisterYogi Adityanath on ards around their necksand beg- Kerala 22 3,327 has prepared alistof carefully. From our side, every Sundaysaid leaders of the land ging formercy while bulldozers Mumbai: ANavysailor THE DELHI government has fi- 2,25,000healthcare decision regarding Covid vacci- DataasonJanuary9,releasedbyUnionMinistryofHealthandFamilyWelfare,IndianCouncilofMedical mafia were troubledthat land raze down the properties of Researchandstategovernments.Often,thenumbersreleasedeverydaycontaindatafrompreviousdays wasfound dead on nalised89sites —including gov- workers who will be nation willbefor the benefit of aswell.Assuch,trendsbasedondailynumbersareonlyindicativeandnotdefinitive belonging to the poor and mafiosos and their henchmen. boardawarship on ernment and private hospitals — the citizens of Delhi." traders wasbeing freedbyhis He added, “Earlier,the mafia Sundaywith abullet forthe Covid-19vaccination vaccinated in the first Meanwhile, the city reported administration. usedtocapturethe land of the injury, an official said. drive,set to begin from January phase 399 newcases of Covid-19and 12 MoE suggests survey to enrol On Friday, Yadavhad said poor and businessmen. Today, Ramesh Choudhary 16 across the country. deaths in 24 hours, taking the to- that the government’s drive to when bulldozers arerunning (22) waspostedon Health MinisterSatyendar talnumber of cases and the death students, relaxing detention norms demolish illegallyconstructed over the chests of these land boardINS Betwa, a Jain said, "The central govern- nated in the firstphase. "The first toll to 6,30,200and 10,678 re- houses and buildings seemed mafiosos, the criminals have run Navy spokesperson said ment has finalisedaround 5,000 batchofvaccines will arrive by spectively.The overall positivity NewDelhi: The Education learning loss due to the shut- likeaction targeting political ri- away but their ‘rehnuma’ [lead- in arelease. The sailor's sites across the country. As per TuesdayorWednesday. In the rate has been recordedat0.51%, Ministryhas asked states to con- down of schools. vals. He warnedthat the party ers] arefeeling troubled. They service issue rifle was the Centre's instructions, Delhi firstphase, healthcareworkers while the death rate basedon duct adoor-to-door survey to The move is particularly that comes to powerinnext did notfeel troubledwhen the found next to him, the government has prepared these will be vaccinated.Thereafter, datafromthe last10days is 2.94%. identify out-of-school children aimedatidentification, admis- year’s stateelections would take land of the poor,oftraders or a release said, but did not 89 sites —40government and49 frontline workers and those aged Jain said the city has been and prepareanaction plan for sion and continuededucation of similar action againstthose in common person wastaken. specify if it wassuicide. private hospitals. Therewill be above 50 will be giventhe dose," witnessing less than 1,000cases their enrollment as partofefforts migrant children, theysaid. poweratpresent. Theyare having problems when The sailor,who recently one vaccination centreinevery Jain further said. The listoffront- aday forthe last15days."The to mitigateimpact of the pan- Exploring the option of class- Responding to the SP chief these properties arefreed from returnedtothe warship hospitaland 10 healthcarestaff line workers will also include positivity rate was0.65%. Forthe demic, especiallyonmigrants, room-on-wheels and classes in while inaugurating the suchcriminals…The leaders of afterleave,hailedfrom will be deployedateachcentre teachers who worked during the last15days,Delhi has continu- according to officials. smallgroupsatthe villagelevel, ‘Mukhyamantri ArogyaMela’ in these criminals have uneasiness, Jodhpur in Rajasthan. to handle the drive." pandemic. ouslywitnessedalowerpositiv- The ministryhas also recom- increasing access of children to Farrukhabad district, Adityanath because their henchmen areto- The matter is under The government has pre- Jain said Chief Minister ity rate... The Covid-19situation mendedrelaxing detention online and digital resources, are said those who usedtospread daybegging fortheir lives. They investigation by the pared alistof2,25,000 health- Arvind Kejriwal has already re- in Delhi has improved alot and norms to prevent drop-outsthis among the recommendations fear among people were now arescared that the bulldozer police. ENS careworkers who will be vacci- questedthe Centretoprovide is nowunder control," he added. year and measures to address made by the ministry. PTI visiting police stations with plac- might turn towardsthem.”

GUJARAT Manheldover Ahead of minister’s India visit, Oli says 65% turnout for Former MLA Umesh Kushwaha trafficking issues should be settled by dialogue civic body polls racket in Himachal appointed Bihar JD(U) president tions to reachanew height, and Rajkot:The police have YUBARAJGHIMIRE things aremoving in that direc- Shimla: Local body elections party's statepresident, the JD(U) positions in the party and in the arrested aman from KATHMANDU,JANUARY10 tion,” he said. recordedaturnout of 65.80 per SANTOSHSINGH appears to be trying to cater to government.” Giridih in Jharkhand for Oli addressedthe 59-mem- cent with severalCovid-19pa- PATNA,JANUARY10 itscoreLuv-Kush supportbase, Kushwaha, who won his alleged involvement NEPAL PRIME MinisterKPOli on berUpper House amid the boy- tientscasting their votes, state as the combination of the two Assemblyelections from in the trafficking of Sundaysaid the countryisdeter- cott by 23 members from the ri- election commission officials BARELYAfortnight afterRajya caste groups has come to be Mahnar in Vaishali in the 2015 women. According to minedtobring backthe 370sq- valCommunistParty of Nepal in told reporters. Sabha member RCPSingh was known in statepolitical circles. elections, losttoRJD's Veena the police, Rakesh Singh km area of Kalapani- protestagainstthe dissolution of With Covid protocol in place, made the national president of JD(U) spokesperson Neeraj Singh in the 2020 polls. Sources (30), from Kodarma Limpiadhura-Lipulek at the KPOli the House of Representativeson around 1.97 lakh people cast the JD(U), the party on Sunday Kumar told The Indian Express: said theparty firstdiscussedthe district in Jharkhand, trijunction of Nepal-India and December 20. their votes for401 wardsin29 pickedformer MLAUmesh “Umesh Kushwaha has been a name of former minister wasinvolvedinsending China (Tibet)under itsposses- The issue is being fought in municipal councils and 21 nagar Kushwaha as itsnew statepres- committed party worker.His el- RamsevakSingh, also from the women to people in sion through dialogue with been “under possession of India the Supreme CourtofNepal and panchayats of the state. ident, replacing the ailing evation to the postofstate pres- same caste,for the statepresi- Gujarat, Delhi and other India. during the last58years belongs Oli has assertedthat the House Though municipaland pan- Bashistha Narayan Singh. ident has shown that asmall dent postbut settledfor states. Police officials in Addressing the Rastriya to Nepal”. “It wasunder Nepal’s cannotbereinstatedbythe chayat elections in the hill state The elevation of low-profile worker can rise to asenior level Kushwaha in the final moments Rajkot said that they Sabha, the Upper House of Nepal possession during the previous court. arenot held on party symbols, Vaishali leader to the postofthe in the party structure.” at itsstate executive. were tippedoff about Parliament, Oli said the issue 146years,” he said. “Some peo- Oli has been criticisedbyhis Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister statepresidenthas come as a Asked if the party has been Although the JD(U) had full- the presence of Singh in would be raisedduring the pleblame me forthe downslide political opponentsand the civil Jai RamThakur thanked voters surprise to manyashewas not focusing toomuchonthe Luv- time statepresidentinBashisha Jharkhand afterafew Foreign Affairs MinisterPradeep in Nepal-India relations. Do I society over the dissolution of forthe BJP’s “historic win”. counted among even second- Kush factor,Kumar said: “The JD Narayan Singh, he wasnot able arrestsweremade in Kumar Gyawali’s visit to India have to seal my lips and main- the House. “Howcan aPrime Himachal Congress chief rung JD(U) leaders. (U) givesrepresentation to all to look afterday-to-dayaffairs of Rajkot in the pastthree starting January14and hoped tain silence on issues?” he said. Ministernot dissolve the House Kuldeep Singh Rathour too With RCPSingh, an OBC sections of society.Thereisno the party because of ill-health. days in connection with that the issue will be resolved “I believe all pending issues in ademocracy? Howisit claimedvictoryin70per cent of Kurmi leader,asthe party na- needtoread between the lines Ashok Kumar Choudharyhad the trafficking case. ENS peacefullythrough negotiation. should be settledthrough dia- againstthe Constitution?,” he the civic bodies wherethe tional president and Kushwaha, as the party has leaders from all been functioning as the state He said the area that has logue as Iwant Nepal-India rela- asked the RastriyaSabha. polling washeld on Sunday. PTI an OBC Koeri leader,asthe caste groups holding prominent president forsometime. Kolkata WWW.INDIANEXPRESS.COM

THEINDIANEXPRESS,MONDAY,JANUARY11,2021 WORDLY WISE Those who favour freedom and deprecate agitation want crops without ploughing

6 THE EDITORIAL PAGE the ground —FREDERICK DOUGLASS India’s new deal moment

§ FOUNDED BY § RAMNATH GOENKA Givendemand uncertainties, budget is opportune BECAUSETHE TRUTH INVOLVES US ALL moment foralarge physical and social infrastructurepush

OWNINGTHE CRISIS Sajjid ZChinoy Solution to impasse on farm laws lies primarilyinpolitical domain —morewith government than court INDIA’S ECONOMICRECOVERYisbeing char- substitution effect as muchasthe pace of the sustain. With manufacturing utilisation rates acterisedbythree distinct forces that needto recovery.Greater scaleand formalisation un- below70per cent pre-COVID, an investment bedisentangled.First,Indiahasbrokenthelink doubtedlyaugurwell formedium-term pro- revival,inturn,willdependcruciallyonthede- HE NARENDRA MODIgovernment,itseems, is turning to the Supreme Court between virus proliferation and mobility ear- ductivity but could increase near-termlabour mand dynamics. Exports shouldbenefitfrom to extricateitselffromthe political mess arising from the farmers’ protests lierandmoresuccessfullythanmanycountries. market frictions and boostpricing power. strengthening global growth as the worldgets againstits agricultural reform laws.AtFriday’s failedtalkswith the farm Rising mobility and normalising economicac- Allthis, therefore, increases prospectsofa progressively vaccinated and the Georgia-in- unions, the government side is reported to have suggestedthat the farmer tivity,rather thansparking another wave of in- K-shaped recovery from COVID, aphenome- ducedbluewaveresultsinmoreUSfiscalstim- Tunions can go to the court, whichcan be requestedtohold dailyhearings fections, have coincidedwith COVID cases nonplayingoutglobally. Householdsatthetop ulus.But willthis be enough to stokeaprivate falling by 80 percent since September.India’s of the pyramid arelikelytohaveseentheir in- investment revival? Or willfirmslook through to decideonthe constitutional validity of the three laws.Onthe face of it, nothingwrong cumulative deathtoll permillionisnow less comes largely protected, andsavings rates thenextfewquartersandremaincautiousgiven —courtsare the onlyplace where anylaw can be challenged.But this lobbing of the ball thanhalf the emergingmarket average,andan forcedupduringthelockdown,increasing“fuel the stillelevateduncertainty? to thecourt—withthe Union AgricultureMinister, NarendraSingh Tomar,saying that the order of magnitude belowdeveloped in the tank” to drive future consumption. It’s againstthisbackdropthatthe upcom- apexcourthas the right to examine legislation enacted by Parliament —isfraught.More economies. Consequently, the progressive re- Meanwhile,householdsatthebottomarelikely ingbudget presentsIndiawithitsNew Dealmo- so with the unions claiming theyaren’t interestedinthe court’s intervention in what is a turn towardspre-COVID activity levels has oc- to have witnessedpermanent hitstojobs and ment. An unprecedented infrastructure push “policymatter”. In astrangereversal of roles, thegovernment is theone seeking judicial curredmuchsooner thanexpected.Activity incomes. These cleavagesare already visible. undertheNewDealin1935 createdmillionsof review whereas the purportedly affected party insists on an out-of-courtresolution. jumpedbackupto95per cent of pre-COVID Passengervehicle registrations (proxying up- jobsandregeneratedregionaleconomicdevel- levelsby October,andhasbeeninchingupsince. per-endconsumption)have grownabout4per opment in the US.India mustseek inspiration What the current standoffclearly reflectsisapolitical failureonthe partofthe gov- Thisisbeing complementedbythe much- cent since Octoberwhile two-wheelers have from this. Giventhe prevailing demand uncer- ernment beginning with the unseemlyhaste with whichthe three laws were passed, awaitedpick-upincentralgovernmentspend- contracted 15 per cent. tainties, thebudget representsanopportune firstvia the ordinance routeand then in Parliament, with littledebateand no proper ing,whichsurgedinNovemberandisexpected What arethe macroimplications of aK- momentfortheCentre,inconjunctionwiththe stakeholder consultation during drafting and then the badmouthing of critics as rogue el- to remain strong forthe rest of the year.These An unprecedented shapedrecovery?With the top10per cent of states, to embarkonalarge physicaland social ements. The laws,ofcourse, arewell-intended. Allowing crop purchases outside state-con- dynamics should reduce the full-year growth infrastructure push under India’s householdsresponsible for25-30per (healthandeducation)infrastructurepush.The trolledmandis, creating alegal framework forcontract farmingagreementsand remov- contraction to 6.5 per cent,lessthan the NSO’s the NewDeal in 1935 centoftotal consumption,one could argue benefitsare self-evident. This will simultane- advance estimateof7.7percent and muchless consumption would getaboostasthispent- ouslyboostnear-term aggregatedemand, ing stockholding and movement restrictions on produce aremuch-neededreforms for thanpreviouslyfeared. created millions of jobs up demand expresses itself. But it’s important crowdinprivate investment,createjobstosoak Indian agricultureinthe 21st century. The ultimatebeneficiaries of these reforms, which These areveryhopeful developments but, and regenerated regional nottoconflatestockswith flows,and levels up the unemployed, and improvethe econ- address the reality of the country’s transition from astructurallydeficit to surplus producer, juxtaposedwith astronger-than-expected re- economic development in with changes. Upper-income households have omy’s external competitiveness. Job creation, arethe farmers themselves. The government’s readiness to discuss thefarm laws “clause- covery,isconfirmation of labourmarket scar- the US.India must seek benefitted from higher savingsfor twoquar- health and education,inturn, will be astart to by-clause” with the unions, and even to undertake amendments, could well have been ring. CMIE’s labour marketsurvey still reveals ters. What we arecurrentlywitnessing is a helpmitigateCOVID-inducedinequalities. inspiration from this. Given shownatthe time of introducingthe bills.Equallyironicalisthe Supreme Court nowpro- 18 millionfeweremployed(about5percentof sugar rushfromthosesavings beingspent. Thequestionis: Howwill this befinanced? thetotalemployed)comparedto pre-pandemic This is, however, aone-timeeffect. To the ex- With the consolidated fiscal deficit projected posingan“independent” expertpanel to break the impasse —overthe same billsthat the prevailing demand levels. The employment rate gradually im- tent that households at the bottom have ex- above 11 per cent of GDP,gradual near-term the government refusedtorefer forscrutinytoParliament’sown select committee. A uncertainties, the budget proved till September but has weakenedsince represents an opportune perienced apermanent loss of income in the consolidationcoupledwithacrediblemedium- court-appointedpanel sittingonjudgment on alaw passedbyParliament has itsown then, even as the economy has progressively forms of jobs and wage cuts, this will be are- term fiscal plan willbekey to anchoringthe consequences, intendedand unintended. openedup. This also shows up in the PMI sur- moment forthe Centre,in curring drag on demand, if thelabourmarket bond marketand underscoring an adherence The situation at Delhi’s borders is taking amounting toll. The Centre’s strategy to tire veys whereemploymentislaggingactivity,and conjunction with the states, does notheal faster. to macro stability. Howthencan public invest- out the protesters does notseem to be working. With Republic Dayapproaching and in demand forMGNREGAjobswhichare still to embark on alarge physical Second, to theextent that COVID has trig- mentincrease meaningfullyifthe headline Parliament convening forthe Budget session,the images of protesting farmers, already 50percenthigherthanthepreviousyear.These geredaneffectiveincometransferfromthepoor deficit mustcome down?Onlyifthe publicin- labour marketpressures increase risks of and social (health and to therich,thiswillbedemand-impedinginthe vestment push is financedbyaggressiveasset braving winter nightsout in the open, areespeciallydisquieting. Theyalso send out dis- medium-term economic scarring, and arenot education) infrastructure steadystate,becausethemarginalpropensityto sales (strategic sales, disinvestment, land and turbing signals in the midstofthe world’s biggestanti-COVID-19drive.The government incompatible with asharpernear-term re- push. Thebenefits are self- consume at the bottom is higher than that at infrastructure monetisation).Inthismanner, mustfind apractical solution—whichcan onlybepolitical.And it should do this quickly. bound because the recovery appears to be led evident. This will the top, justasthe marginal propensity to im- expenditure to GDP can actually risenextyear Hopingfor thecourts to do it is notpolicy. by capital and profits, notlabour and wages. portatthe topishigher than at the bottom. —generatinganexpansionaryfiscalimpulseto Even within labour,blue-collar workers are simultaneously boost near- Third, if COVID-19reducescompetitionor the economy—whileautomatic stabilisers (a likelytohavebeendisproportionatelyimpacted term aggregate demand, increasestheinequalityof incomesandoppor- normalisation of taxrevenues next year) are vis-à-vistheir white-collar counterparts. crowd in private investment, tunities, it could impingeontrend growth in usedtoreduce the headline fiscal deficit. Athirdphenomenonislarge firmshave en- create jobs to soak up the developingeconomiesby hurtingproductivity India’sfaster-than-expectedreboundisvery TOWARDS RECONCILIATION dured thecrisisbetterand aregainingmarket andtighteningpolitical economyconstraints. encouraging.Butgivenlabourmarket pressures shareattheexpenseof smallerfirms.To theex- unemployed,and improve Policy will,therefore,needtolook beyond and prospectsofaK-shapedrecovery around Suspension of hostilities by Qatarand Arab Quartetcould be tent thereisamigration of activity from the in- the economy’sexternal the next fewquarters and anticipatethe state the world, the economywill needtobecare- formal/SMEfirmsto largerfirms,taxcollections of themacroeconomypostthesugarrush.The fully nurturedandstoked.Thebudget presents firststepinending heightenedconflict among Gulf kingdoms competitiveness. Jobcreation, and Sensex/Nifty earnings shouldget aboost, health and education, in turn, key, of course, is whether the private sector acrucial opportunity to makeabig down pay- even holding the economic pie constant. It’s, starts re-investing and re-hiring, and thereby ment towardsthis end. T IS NOT yetareal reconciliation,but Qatar and itsGulf Arab neighbours have therefore,importantto interpret thedatacare- will be astart to help mitigate sets theeconomyontoamorevirtuous path. agreedlastweek to suspend three years of intense hostilities. Nudged by the fullybecause some variables will reflect this COVID-induced inequalities. Barringthat,thelabour-market hysteresiscould Thewriter is Chief IndiaEconomistatJPMorgan UnitedStates and local mediation from Kuwait, the Arab Quartet—Bahrain, Egypt, ISaudi Arabia, andthe United Arab Emirates —liftedtheir unsuccessful blockade againstQatar at the summit of the Gulf Cooperation Council. The agreement to nor- malise relationswas part of thesharedcommitment to “solidarity and stability”. Pessimists saythe agreement to normalise relationsbetween theArabQuartet and Qatar merelypa- pers over deepening mutual distrust. Optimists would hope that is thefirststepinending THE SAVARNA GAZE adestructivephase of internecine conflict among the Gulf kingdoms. Qatar,once deferential to Saudi political guidance, has in recent years carved out an in- dependent regional path. Doha’s dalliance with Iran, Turkey,and the Muslim Brotherhood Whycan’t mainstream filmmakers imagine Dalits as people, notstereotypes? —all of whomarelockedinintenseideologicaland political conflictswiththe Arab Quartet —had steadilybuilt up regional resentment. The negative coverage of the Arab Quarteton the popular Al Jazeera TVchannel,ownedbyQatar,addedinsultto injury. Ledbyanirate UAE Rehnamol Raveendran and the impetuous Saudi crownprince, Mohammedbin Salman, the Arab Quartetactedde- cisively in 2017 to cut offdiplomatic ties with Doha and enforce ablockade. The Quartet THE POSTER OF Richa Chadha’s upcoming prejudices and stereotypical attitudes against broom norcan the valour of the Battle of also issuedalistof13conditions forending the siege. Theyincludedanend to Al Jazeera’s movie, MadamChief Minister, stands out for marginalisedcommunities. By reducing Dalit Koregaon be underminedbyuntouchability itscrudity in aworld of politicalcorrectness. identity to abroom,the makers of Madam imposedonMahars. Theportrayal of aDalit hostile propaganda, downgrading of diplomatic ties withIranand ending of militaryco- The movie apparently narratesthe storyof Chief Minister proveRajamani right. character in Pa Ranjith’s Kaala displays thein- operation with Turkey.Qatar rejected theallegations, refusedtoimplement the demands, an “untouchable” woman, who becomes the In contrast, mainstream filmmakers rep- trepidityofthe hero.Infilms such as Ranjith’s and found ways to dodgethe blockade with the supportofIranand Turkey.But as the costs chief ministerofastate. The filmmakers de- resent upper-caste protagonists bereft of any Pariyerum Perumal andNagraj Manjule’s of theconflictsmountedandthegeopoliticallandscapeof the regionbegantochange,Qatar cidedtocommunicatetheir theme of aDalit caste prejudices and stereotypes, and as fig- Sairat,bothstories of Dalit-savarna love,you and the Quartethaverecognisedthe urgency of ending the standoff. woman’s success in the posterbydepicting TheDalit imagination of ures with authority and agency.That’s nota will neverfind Dalits depicted with degrad- With the Joe Biden administration determinedtorestore relations with Iran, the Arab the protagonistholding abroom with the coincidence.Itisbecausecasteconsciousness ingsymbols. tagline “untouchable, unstoppable”. The their ownidentity, conspicuouslyshapes the imagination. Case Moreimportantly, the upper-caste imagi- Quartetsaw the importance of restoring ameasureofGulf unity.Qatar might bepleasedthat posterhas arousedthe indignation of many undoubtedly,isdifferent in point:The Brahminheroofthe movie Article nation appears to promote acultureof it hassuccessfully stood upto pressures, but itcan’t afford apermanent conflict with itsGulf foramplifyingastereotypicalportrayal of from howthe upper castes 15. Similarly,the posterofabiopic on former gaslighting Dalit voices. It is unfortunatethat Arab neighbours. India, whichhas hugestakesinthe bilateral relations with all Gulf coun- Dalit identity. perceive them. They seek Tamil Nadu Chief MinisterJJayalalithaa, Chadha dismissedthe criticism againstthe tries and morebroadlyinthe stabilisation of aregion, wasquick to welcome the movesto- The cognitive structures of upper-caste Thalaivi, depictsthe subject of the biopic with casteistposteras“cancel culture”. Instead of wardsregional reconciliation. The Gulf hosts morethan 8million Indian migrants, who filmmakers, unfortunately, butunsurpris- their identities in the respect and authority. defendingthe stereotypicalportrayal of ahith- send home billions of dollars in remittances everyyear.The Gulf is also one of the biggest ingly,seem unable to think beyond abroom portrayal of gallantry, The Dalitimaginationoftheir owniden- erto marginalisedcommunity andgaslighting as afundamental symbolofDalitidentity. tity,undoubtedly,isdifferent from howthe the voices of criticism,the actor and others as- marketsfor Indian goods and is the mostimportant supplier of hydrocarbons to itsecon- virtuousnessand sacrifices The usageofthe word “untouchable”inthe of Dalit leadersand assertive uppercastesperceive them. They seektheir sociated with themovie mustcommit to a omy. Whilethe dangersofinstability have easedfor the moment, Delhi needs to sustain posterhintsnot onlyatthe moral bank- identities in the portrayal of gallantry, vir- genuine introspection. thecurrent intense levels of political engagement with the Arab Gulf. ruptcy of the overrepresented upper-caste symbols of resistance. Badri tuousness, and sacrifices of Dalit leaders and Thecontentof the postercan’t beinsulated folk in the showbusiness but reveals the Narayan’s2006 book, assertive symbols of resistance. Badri from criticism citing the transformative con- marketing strategy as one that sells dehu- Wo menHeroesand Dalit Narayan’s 2006 book, Women Heroes and tent of the movie. The DiscreetCharm of manising wordsfor profit. Dalit AssertioninNorthIndia, Culture, Identity Savarnas couldserveasareferencefor allthose The posterhas onlyvindicated the prem- AssertioninNorth India and Politics, exploredhow Mayawati’s im- who ventureintocreative spaces, to unlearn Freeze Frame EPUnny iseofRajesh Rajamani’s TheDiscreetCharmof explored howMayawati’s ageasaDalitleader wasbuilt up by identi- their preconceivednotions. Toni Morrison’s Savarnas,asatireonupper-caste prejudices image as aDalit leader was fying her withalongline of historical Playing in theDark: Whiteness and theLiterary againstDalits. In the shortfilm,the characters built up by identifying her women figures knownfor theirvalour, like Imagination should bemandatoryreadingfor embarkonadesperatesearch foranactor Jhalkaribai, Udadevi, Mahaviridevi, filmmakers. who “lookslikeaDalit” and, thus, fits intotheir with along line of historical AvantibaiLodhi and Pannadhai. imagination of a“Dalit”. Rajamani’s film calls women figures known for In anyofthe Dalit imaginations,Udadevi The writer taught political science at Delhi outthe deep-rooted,often normalised, caste their valour and Jhalkaribaican neverbeseen witha University

JANUARY 11,1981, FORTY YEARS AGO

ANJAIAH ACTS and members of Parliament from the state. been worked out, thevisiting monarch said. THE ANDHRA CHIEF MinisterTAnjaiah has He had formal talkswith the PM and infor- asked his entirecabinettoresign to help him CHINALAUDS PM mal discussions at adinner hostedbyher. reconstitutehis ministry. He will consult the CHINAHAS WELCOMED the statement of high command before finalisinghis team. Prime MinisterIndiraGandhi that India and POLISH WORKERSSTRIKE This is in line with the thinkinginthe high Pakistanshould stand together rather than get MILLIONS OF POLISH workers defiedthe gov- command that his team is oversizedand re- embroiledinthe big powerrivalryinthe ernment and stayed offworkdemanding a quires pruning. He has startedconsultinghis IndianOcean. “It’shardfor others to guess five-day, 40-hour week.Small shops, depart- cabinetcolleagues about the process. The whatshe meant by ‘getting embroiled’ but the ment stores and some other offices remained CM’s decision comes afteranassurance from necessitydoes existfor thesubcontinental na- open in Warsawand othercities. But in other the high command that no dissident activ- tions to stand together,” notedthe Xinhua. major enterprises, including shipyardsand ity will be tolerated if some of the ministers steel-making units, the workers heeded the aredroppedinthe pruning process. Anjaiah AIRLINK WITH BHUTAN call by theindependent union Solidarity and himself is nothappywiththe size of his cab- BHUTAN AND INDIA will soon be linked by joinedthe strike. Labour MinisterJanusz inet, the constitution of whichowesalot to air,Bhutan’s king Jigme SingyeWangchuk Obodowski warnedthat workers who had the suggestions of former CM Chenna Reddy said. The outlinesofthe proposedlink have abstainedfromworkwill lose aday’s pay.

Kolkata WWW.INDIANEXPRESS.COM

THEINDIANEXPRESS,MONDAY,JANUARY11,2021 WHATTHE OTHERSSAY “The crisis theUSiscurrently facingcannotberesolved through violence,but 7 THE IDEAS PAGE only through peaceful, legal and democratic means.” —THEDAILYSTAR America’sbroken democracy The open

To heal itself, it will needtointrospect about howanarcissistic leader wasable to expose classroom the fragilityofits institutions and push themtothe brink The pandemic is an opportunity to reimagine schools as places forcommunity learning, where childrenofall backgrounds can study together

public schools, or hand over theirprecious land and managementstoprivate organisa- tions.Whyisthegovernmentgoingheadlong with this privatisation? Doesn’t it know that inAmerica,England,JapanandFinland--the Peter Ronald mostadvancedcountries —the best schools aregovernmentschools?The digitaldivide deSouza betweentherich andpoorhasalsowidened. The poor do nothaveaccess to mobiles,lap- tops and internetconnectivity. ONE IS TEMPTEDtosee thebizarrerioting Arvind Gupta In suchascenario, one can tryand con- in the US Capitol by thousands of Donald ceive of neighbourhoodlearningspaces.The Trumpsupporters seeking to stall pandemic forced millions of adultstowork President-elect Joe Biden’scertification by THECRITIQUEOFschoolasaninstitution has fromhome.Manypeoplerealisedthatanof- Congress as aone-off event, aunique de- developedand growninthe pasthalf acen- fice is notneededtodoproductivework. In scentintomadnessbyanessentially robust tury. Education theoristEverett Reimer the process, somehaverealised the boring democracy.Suchareading is fundamen- wrote School is Dead in the1960s. Danger natureofroutine office and factoryjobs and, tallywrong. The mobs storming the hal- School, aclassic publishedbyBrazilian edu- simultaneously, discoveredtheirownpoten- lowedprecinctsofAmerican democracy,on catorPaulo Freire’s group in the late1970s, tial. Manyhaveleftbusy, pollutedcities,and January6,werenot an exceptional lapse but captured through scathing cartoons the returnedtosmall towns andvillages. were,infact, asymptom of asickdemoc- harm whichschools inflict on our children. We muststrive formoreneighborhood racy.American democracyiscriticallyill. It Mostschools arecaged jails,whereanalien learning spaces as we reimagine the school. suffers from five disorders. curriculum designed by some “experts” is Large housingsocietiesalreadyhave commu- The firstmalady, and perhaps the one thrustdownachild’s gullet. nity halls. Smaller ones caneasilyallocatea mostdifficult to treat, is the breakdown in Today, manyschools aregargantuan dedicatedspace,whereadultscansharetheir the cultureofbipartisanshipthat wassoin- corporateenterprises with thousands of skillsandexperienceswithyoungones.Every trinsic to American politics. It kept the sys- CRSasikumar children on their rolls, and forall practical housingsocietyshouldhave an“activitiescen- temworking. Difference and consensus, in- purposes theyare run likefactories, or bet- tre”, wherechildren can makeand do things. tense competition and compromise, all “winner takesall”stake since defeat is forlos- discourse. Muchhas been written about terstill like mini-armies. Thewebsiteofa Inthe1960s,Englandhadalot of commu- producedapolitical pragmatism thatwas at ers. In suchapolitics,institutions getenfee- elitecapture of institutions, so letmedwell private school in Lucknowboasts of nitycolleges. Here, anyone who had anyskill the heartofAmerican democracy.This has bled, democraticconventions getignored, hereonthe captureofdiscourse. Gaetano 56,000 students, forinstance. couldofferacourse.Andanyonewhowanted nowbeen abandoned. The speeches deliv- and the locus of powershifts from the office Mosca, the Italian theoristofelites, referred Butprogressive thinkershavealwaysen- to learn askill or subject could join in. No de- ered by Republican senators on the floor of to thepoliticalleader.Officials,seen as to it as “politicalformulas”. Theseare argu- visioned“freeschools”forchildren.Thegreat greeswererequired.Thecourseswere wide- the house, minutes afterthe assault on the Wilhelm Reich’s “little men”,develop an at- mentsand explanationsusedbyelites to Russiannovelist,LeoTolstoy,foundedaschool ranging,fromhaiku,Chineseart,limerickwrit- Capitol, were hostile and unyielding. Instead titude of complicity with the leader.In getthose overwhom theyrule to accept forthechildrenof poorpeasantsathishome, ing, potterytobicycle repairs! We needto of closing ranksand accepting the logic of Trump’s America, the little men have come their ideas and arguments. Political formu- Yasnaya Polyana,withoutanystrictschedule, reimagineschools–asplacesforcommunity defeat, of embracing the national interest to the centreofgovernment. las give legitimacy to eliterule. American homework or physical punishment. Maria learning.Schoolshave averynarrowvisionof whichtheir leader MitchMcConnell had ear- The thirdpolitical illness, whichthrives democracytodayisatextbook illustration MontessoriwasthefirstItalianwomanto be- ateacher—someonewithaBEddegree.How lier in the dayarticulated,alarge number of in tandem with the above two, is the debili- of howthe political formula of neo-liber- come adoctor;she went on to work out the aboutenvisioningtensof thousandsof retired Republican Congressmen chose to pander to tation of institutions. Institutions arethe life alism has been usedbycapitalistelites to “stagesofdevelopment” in children which professionals as teachers? Theywill bring the President’s narcissistic delusion of a and soul of ademocracy.Theycheckthe ex- notjustaccumulate wealth but to makethe became the basisfor hereducational philos- years of practical experience to learning. stolen election. Partisan interestgot mor- cesses of power, socialiseelectedrepresenta- non-elitefeel that suchaccumulation is in ophy,which tooemphasisedchildren’s free- The government canuse thepandemic phedwith the national interest. Forthem, tivesintothe do’sand don’tsofdemocratic the public interest. From the World dom and choice. Tagore’s critiqueofrote to better itsown schools. First, by improving the enemywas the Democratic party and not politics. Theyembody the rules and conven- Economic Forum to the humble corridors learningisarticulated in the classic tale The the infrastructureand makingthe schools the mobs,the electoralsystemand notthe tions that maintain thebalance betweenpri- of Niti Aayog, the “political formulas” of Parrot’s Training (Totaakahini). Asmall pro- morewelcoming.Cleantoilets,drinkingwa- hooligans who were undermining it. vate andpublicinterests.Trumptoreinto neo-liberalism economics rule. As Jean Paul gressive school in Japan run by avisionary ter, library, atinkering lab, and aplayground Bipartisanship in America is dead, killedby thesechecks and balances.When his chiefs Satrewould have said,Davos speaks and principalhasbeenimmortalisedinthe best- will help. Second, by making learning fun. an ideologicalchauvinism thatsees competi- of staff, andseveral of hissecretaries opposed Niti Aayogprovides the echo. Trumpisneo- sellingTottochan.Perhaps,thelongestlasting Instead of segregating children by agethey tors as theenemy within. This is amindset his views,hejustreplaced them.When the liberalism’s loudestspokesperson. libertarianschoolintheworldisSummerhill. can have classeswith mixedagegroups. The that is difficult to treat. It is built on apsychol- mainstreammedia, such as CNN, TheNew The above maladies have gainedalife, and It wasfoundedin1921, ahundred years ago children can also learn at their ownpace. ogy of hatethat residesdeep in the soul of its York Times and The Washington Post,wrote becomepossible, becauseofthe fifthmalaise in England, by ASNeill with thebelief that Third, locatethe champions —the “heroes” proponents. It is incapableofcompromise about his transgressions, he mockedthem Themore appropriate term in American society —its increasing inequal- school should be made to fitthe child rather within the government system —and use and challenging to cure. describingthem as purveyors of “fakenews”. is to see Trump not as a ity.Itprovides the soil forTrumpianmobilisa- thanthe other wayround. them as effective resourcepeople.Without The second maladyfeeding the first, and In his drive to dominateinstitutions, Attorney tion. This increasing inequality of American Usually,governmentschoolshitheadlines anycashincentives,simplybybringinginno- perhaps dependent on it, is the rise of the GeneralWilliam Barrbecame hisbulldog. populist leader but as a capitalism needed aspokesmanand acover, forall the wrong reasons —awall cavesin, a vatorsto thefore,manyteacherswillfeelmo- plebiscitaryleader.The moreappropriate The leader of the Senate, MitchMcConnell, plebiscitaryone. A to convert alie into atruth. Trumpprovided roof collapses,orchildrenfallsickafteramid- tivated.Fourth,by invitingestablishedNGOs term is to see Trumpnot as apopulistleader becamehis praetorian guardand Lindsey plebiscitaryleader speaks both. He changed the vocabularyofpolitics, daymeal. But theAAP government in Delhi to help bring in best practicesfromall over. but as aplebiscitary one. Aplebiscitaryleader Graham his dancing cheerleader.Mark directly to his followers over making it respectabletomock, deride, de- vowedtomakegovernment schools better During the pandemic, 1.5millionpeople speaksdirectlytohis followers over the Milley, the Chairman of the Joint Chiefsof nounce and heap scorn on one’s political ad- thanprivate ones.Theyachievedthissuccess logged into archive.org everyday.Itisthe heads of institutions that aresupposedto Staff, who accompaniedTrumpfor aphoto- the heads of institutionsthat versaries. Attention had to bedistractedfrom by improving infrastructure(no stinky toi- largest repositoryofbookswith 28 million constrain him but have,asshown, little op to achurch in Washington, afterithad are supposed to constrain the real challenge of increasingequality. lets), giving dignity to teachers,constituting booksfor free downloads. We needtobuild powertodoso. Arelationshipofdevotion been forciblycleared of protesters, apolo- him but have,asshown, little Trumpmade vigilantepolitics, especiallyof school management committees and by in- suchafreearchive forIndian languages. The develops between the leader and followers gisedfor this compromise. the Whitesupremacistvariety,alegitimate volving many good NGOs forinnovating recent announcementthat the government that is unmediated by the institution’s tem- One has, over the lastfouryears, watched powertodoso. A aspect of American politics. It is worrisome learning methods. In 2015,therewereonly will buy bulk subscriptions of scientific jour- pering logic. The leader provides the follow- with horrorand disbeliefasthe custodians relationship of devotion thathis model of politics is nowavailablefor 17,000 classrooms. In just three years, AAP nals so that everyone can access them is a ers with meaning, with aviewofthe world of America’s democratic institutions suc- develops between the leader other plebiscitaryleaders. With his politics of added another 8,000 classrooms; 11,000 step in the right direction. that speakstotheir anxieties and insecuri- cumbed to the narcissism of their plebisci- and followers thatis hate, in this climateofinequality, it is little moreclasses areunder construction. Once We need schools wherechildren with ties. This is essentially Max Weber’s thesis tary leader.Evensmall conventions, although wonder that the masterofvituperative social completedtherewill be 36,000classrooms. different backgrounds —class,caste,reli- on the charismatic personality.Trumpfitsit symbolicallysignificant, that establishedthe unmediated by the media posts brought the Capitol under siege. InIndia,schoolshave always beendeeply gions, abilities —can study together and learn to aT.Hebuilt his constituency withphrases principle of conflict of interestwerecast institution’s tempering logic. To heal itself, American democracy will need segregated.The 1966 Kothari Education to careand empathise. In DavidHorsburgh’s and slogans suchas“makeAmerica great aside by Trumpwhen he appointedfamily Theleader provides the more than justthe replacing of Trumpwith Commission’s recommendation foracom- Neel Bagh School in Kolar,Karnataka,chil- again”,“drain the swamp”,“lockher up”, members to high office andrefusedtore- followers withmeaning,with Biden. It will needtoexamine whyanarcis- monschoolsystemwasneverimplemented. dren could learnattheirown pace. They “stopthe steal”, that created apartisan con- lease his income taxreturns as had been the sistic leader,with plebiscitarypower, wasable Today, which school achild goes to depends could study Class VTelugu, Class III English stituency both in thestreetand within the convention with previous presidents.Trump aview of the world that to expose the fragility of itsinstitutions and onhersocio-economicstatus.Thepandemic andClass VIImathall at the same time. They elected chambers. It waswilling to walk with took asledgehammer to institutions. They speakstotheir anxieties and push them to the brink. has furthered and exacerbated this divide. learnt to work with people with different him to the endsofthe earth. Social media were unable to corralhim. He exposedthe insecurities. This is COVID-19hit parentseconomically.Many skillsandabilities.Theyalso learnt coopera- aided theprocessofpartisan constituency fragility of their checks andbalances. Biden essentially Weber’sthesis on The writer is DDKosambi Visiting Professor were unabletopay school fees. Some re- tion,group work,compassion, human dig- formation. It exaggerated the feeling of griev- will have to work hardtorepairthem. at GoaUniversity.Hehas justpublished with movedtheir children from private schools nity andplurality of opinions. anceand promisedthatthe leaderwould ad- The fourth malaise is the elitecapture the charismatic personality. Rukmini Bhaya Nair abook titled Keywords andputthemingovernmentschools.Butthe dress the problem. Trumpwas playing fora of notjustinstitutions but of the political Trump fits it to aT. forIndia. Viewsexpressed arepersonal governmentistryinghardtowithdraw from Arvind Gupta is atoymaker and educator Areform for the future LETTERSTOTHE EDITOR US TRUMPED IDEAS Newfarmlawsare meantto usherinmodernpracticesinagriculture THISREFERSTOthe article, ‘The attack on America’ (IE, January8).The audacity ONLINE of Donald Trump-inspired goons to be- Syed Zafar Islam siegethe US Capitolplaces an indelible ONLYINTHE EXPRESS stain on the world’s oldestdemocracy. THE LATESTROUNDoftalksbetween the gov- forms forthe benefit of his allegedcapitalist bone of India’s economy, contributes amas- erations.PMModi’s vision should be seen in True to hisname, he did trumpthe ● SMARTTESTS ernment and farmers’ representativeshas friends. But nothing can be farther from the sive 55 per cent while the shareofindustries thisbackdrop. democracy.The country which is con- MUSTGOON: once again concludedwithout an agreement. truth. PM Modi has launchedthesereforms is 26 per cent. The twotogether makeup In fact,it’s notall doomand gloom. We sidered abeacon of light forother AMARPATNAIK The good news is that thetwo sides have forthe benefit of the farmers and their future much of the GDP but the populationdepend- have bits of everything going in thefarmsec- democracies nowmustbeitselfgroping agreedtomeetagain on January15. Let’shope generations. The newlawsare meant to take ent on them is justabout 40 per cent. tor, largely due to market forces. Forexample, in the darktoknowwhy this has hap- ● REDEFINING AGRI the farmers from the country’s northern states notjustthe farm sector forwardbut benefit Year afteryear,the GDP contribution of big private players already operateinthe pened. The answer is notfar to seek.The MARKETS: showflexibility in understanding whythe the entirecountry. agriculture andalliedservices is going agriculturesector.The ITC’s annualfarming country, rivenbycontradictionsand con- SHIRISH JOSHI government hasundertakentoreform the Even if the Modi government had not down. We should have arrested the decline sector turnoverisRs7.5 thousand crore. They flictsonvarious issues, did nottakeno- agriculturesector. framedthese newlaws, Iwould have de- along time ago. The UPAgovernment never have been doing contract farming of sorts tice of the shadows being castby www.indianexpress.com Time is non-partisan and it judges us ruth- manded reforms in the farm and alliedsec- did so.The Narendra Modi government has through the “E-Choupal”scheme that has Trump’sdemonic demagogy and ac- lessly. If we do notembarkonreformsinagri- tors. We need reformsbecause much of our done that. brought 40 lakh farmers under it. The com- tions. This assault is also amessagefor cultureand alliedsectorsnow,wewill have agricultural practicesare trappedinthe past. Consider thisaswell:Onlythe US has pany aims to hit the one croremarksoon. other countries, wherehis counterparts failedthe future generations. Theywill not The productionofcrops is lopsidedand dis- morecultivablelandthan us. But we produce Thereare privateplayers in agro-businesses aretrumpeting him as arole model. BEHOLDEN TO OPTICS forgiveuswhen theylook backattoday’s tribution is even moreskewed. We produce four times less crops than the US. China has tooand thus farit’s been ahappy relation- Tarsem Singh, Mahilpur THISREFERSTOtheeditorial,‘Discomfort stubborn but misguidedopposition to the muchmorewheat and rice than we need. But less arableland than us and yet, as agriculture ship betweenthe twosides —cases of ex- zones’ (IE, January7). The quantifiable newfarm laws. our fruit, lentils and vegetable production is expertAshok Gulati says,itproduces three ploitation, if any, arenegligible. BUILDERS’HOUSE achievementsinthe India-US relation- The needfor reform has been felt forthe much less than our requirement. We do not times morecrops than us. Afew start-ups areusing newtechnolo- ship duringthe Donald Trumpadminis- lastthree decadesand that’s whythe MS find muchuse forscience, modern machines Fortyper centofour arable land is afflicted gies suchasdrones and satelliteimages to THIS REFERS TO the article, ‘A House tration wasthe outcome of astrongbi- SwaminathanCommittee wasset up to come and satellite imagesfor data analysis andare with degradation and infertility.Itproduces analysethe quality of soiland seedsand deter- fornew India’ (IE, January8). While lateral partnership built over years. This up with solutions to address the malaise in notimaginative about irrigation. The sector is fewernutrientcrops and at less than itsca- mine howmuchwater aparticularcropneeds the GDP is likelytocontractby7.7 per administrationhas narroweddownthe thesector. Youneedhugepolitical will and starved of capitaland bereft of start-ups. pacity.Deforestation is chipping away at cul- at whattime. cent this financial year and 1,663“ma- scope of this engagement to atransac- courage of conviction to initiatereforms in Thepaddy andwheat farmersappear to tivable land. Monsoon rains bring floods and But the developmentisunevenand not jor projects” worthRs25.47 lakh- tionalrelationshipthatisveryhighonop- agriculture, on whichnearly 60 per cent of have little or no regard forthe demand and deficient rainfall causes drought. Our water spread across the country.Itneededgovern- croreare pending foryears(as per the tics, alignedtoservedomestic political the country’spopulation is dependent.The supply cycle in the market because theyknow management system is outdatedand uses a ment intervention. It neededtobegiven a latestMoSPI report), what explains interests.Contrarytothe submission twoUPA governmentshad neither anyinter- that the government will buy their produce, lotofthe underground water, causing the wa- direction. Hence the newfarm laws.Infact, the logic —and the hurry —behind made by Ambassador Justerthat US estinthe welfareoffarmers nor the political demand or no demand.This is notanideal tertable to deplete fast. we need morereforms. This should justbe splurging Rs 20,000 croreonanew CAATSA sanctionswerenever designed will to implementthe Swaminathan farm practice. China beganits farm reforms in 1980. the beginning. Hopefully, the entireagricul- Parliament andother buildings unless to harm friends,theyhavedirectlyim- Committee report. Justimagine this: The farm and alliedsec- Agriculturescientists believe it takesmore tural system is remodelledtoservethe farm- it’stoappeasethe builders? pacted India’s strategic interests. If Prime MinisterNarendraModi had so tors contributeonly17per cent to our GDP, than 30-40 yearsoratleast twogenerations to ing community. Varin Dhir, Ahmedabad Sudip Kumar Dey, Kolkata desired,hecouldhaveeasilylet things drift. while theyconstitute60per centofthe coun- enjoythe fruitsofreform. If we startnow,we He is being accusedofinitiating these re- try’s population. The services sector,the back- will bedoing agreat service to our futuregen- ThewriterisaBJP MP

Kolkata WWW.INDIANEXPRESS.COM

THEINDIANEXPRESS,MONDAY,JANUARY11,2021 8 EXPRESS NETWORK Student with adrone turns saviour for four fishermen lost at sea

seas, making him the toastofhis Within minutes, teams of Dewang made up his mind. He of the expensive dronegetting Local panchayatmember A gether,trying to keep afloat. SHAJUPHILIP coastalvillage, Thalikulam, in fishermen ventured intothe sea, wanted to pitchinand help lo- lostinthe sea were high. Mehaboob says thevillageisin- Later,wegot tired andone of us, THIRUVANANTHAPURAM, Thrissur district. launchingtheirsearch operation. catethe fishermen, and he knew However, he insistedand debted to Dewang.“He hasno Vijayan, felt he would drown. JANUARY10 According to Dewang, The CoastGuardwas also in- his drone can help. we allowedhim to tryhis drone linkswiththefishingcommunity Othersalso startedfloating away around noon on January5,he formed and they sent arescue “Atfirst, Ithought about fly- to help locate the fishermen,” norourcoast.Yet,inanhourof cri- in different directions. Finally, we AFTER THE Covid lockdown was heardfromhis father Subil EJ, boat.But the search teams re- ing from the shore. But forbet- says Gopi. sis, the young man extendedhis were spotted by adrone, leading announcedlastyear and cam- who owns ajewelleryshop, turnedempty handedhours later. terresults, Idecided to venture Dewang says the fishermen helpinghand.Had it notfor him, to our rescue,” says Iqbal. puses were shut, 19-year-old about avesselwithfourfisher- “I heardfrommyfatherabout in the sea,” he says. on the rescue vessel guidedhim the missingfishermenwould Dewang says it did cross his Dewang Subil returnedtohis vil- menfromthe villagegoing miss- theincident around noonand Afterobtainingpermission initiallyabout the possible loca- have floatedaway,’’ he says. mind thathemay losehis drone, lageinKerala from Bengaluru. ing in the high seas. sevenhours had elapsedbythen from the authorities, Dewang tion of the missingpersons. “They Kappam Veettil Iqbal, 49,one whichcostRs1lakh, in the wa- Four months ago, the computer The fishing vessel had leftthe [since the fishermen went miss- hoppedontoavesselalong with told me the incident might have of the rescuedfishermen, says ter. “While flying it, twice Ifeared science student with apassion for villageinthe early hoursofthe ing]. When Irushedtothe coast, afew fishermen foranother happenedaround 11 nautical aftertheir vessel sank,theyclung that the drone would be lost photographybought abattery- day. Hours later,itwas caught in Isaw thedejectedfishermenwho search operation. miles from the shore. Though I on to floatingwreckageand while landing. But then my operateddrone —hewantedto rough sea, and got damaged. had returnedafter failing to trace Local legislator Geetha Gopi flew thedronetowards thedirec- emptykerosenecans forhours. thought wasonlytofind the fish- capturethe best images. Beforethe hugewaves sank the the four,” says Dewang, afourth says initiallytheywerereluctant tions theysuggested, nothing Iqbal wasonthe vessel with ermen,” he says. Lastweek,Dewangand his vessel, one of the fishermen on semesterB-Tech student at Christ as Dewang wasnew to sea. could be spotted. In aflash,Ide- Chembanadan Kuttan, 59, The DJIMavic Air 2drone has drone did muchbetter. They boardmanaged to makeadis- University,Bengaluru, who is cur- “Wedissuadedhim from go- cidedtotryanother direction.” he Chembanadan Vijayan, 58 and arangeof8km and can flyata savedthe livesoffour fishermen tress call to afellowfisherman in rentlyattending classes online. 19-year-old Dewang Subil ing intosea as he does noteven says.“This ledtothe spotting of Puthanparan Subramanian60. height of 500m.Ithas 30- who went missing in the high mainland. Almostimmediately, knowswimming. Also, chances the four missing fishermen.” “For some time, we were to- minutebatterybackup. UP:Rapevictim Bastar visit: Baghel nephewstill unveils projects missing,police worth Rs 328 crore EXPRESSNEWSSERVICE Puducherry Chief Minister BIJAPUR,JANUARY10 V. Narayanasamyduring the Bhupesh protest. PTI filecharges CHHATTISGARH CHIEF Minister Baghel Bhupesh BaghelonSundayan- nouncedand inaugurated works All five accusedare kin of those of over Rs 328 croreinBijapur estland, we will work on Puducherry: district of Bastardivision. schemes to provide them with arrested over the gangrape,murder Baghel, who is on atwo-day land parcels," he said. visit to Bastardivision,interacted Speaking to the public, the Cong, allies with children afterinaugurating CM said that the stategovern- MANISHSAHU ArewardofRs1lakh abio-diversity parkinthe LWE- ment is working to provide elec- call off stir LUCKNOW,JANUARY10 has been announced hit district. tricity to the entireregion. "We The CM announcedthat the arealready fighting and winning POLICE HAVE filedachargesheet forinformation on the ON CAMPAIGN TRAIL statewouldpurchase millets againstmalnutrition. Our prior- against Bedi againstfivepeople arrestedin boywho went missing grownlocallyunderthe ity is to makethe people of connection with the alleged kid- on October 2 Ahead of the Tamil Nadu elections, Makkal Needhi Maiyam (MNM)chiefKamal Haasan MinimumSupportPricefromthe Bastar self sufficient by linking napping of asix-year-old takesout arallyinCoimbatoreonSunday. PTI next sowing season. He did bhu- them to small businesses, so that PRESSTRUSTOFINDIA nephewofthe Unnao gangrape mipoojanof tworiveroverbridges theyhaveenough opportunities PUDUCHERRY,JANUARY10 victim who wasburnt to death tion to transfer the investiga- and morethan10rural roads. to grow economically,"hesaid. in 2019. tion to the CBI is pending in the While inauguratingthe Loha The CM visited Atmanand THE RULINGCongress-led All five accusedare the fam- High Court. Dongri bio-diversity parkin English medium school, where Secular Democratic Alliance ilymembers of those arrested in “The reportofapolygraph Bird fluin8states; culling Bijapur city,Baghel playedsoft- he stressedthe importance of (SDA) in Puducherry on Sunday connection with the gangrape test conducted on theaccused is ball and volleyball with school learning English as it is aglobal endedits three-day agitation de- and murderofthe 23-year-old awaited.Wehavebeen sending children. "PeopleofBastarhave language. He also visited manding the recall of Lt woman, who wasset on fire letters to theForensic Science immense talent and skills. We Gothans and metself-help Governor Kiran Bedi, aday ahead while she wasonher wayto LaboratoryinLucknow to send ops on, advisories issued will provide platforms and all groupsofwomen involved in of schedule, citing Pongal festiv- court to attend ahearing in her us the polygraph test report,” help possible to maketheir tal- making compostout of cow- ities. case. SHO Singh said. ent shine," he said. dung among other businesses Chief MinisterV Although the boyisstill miss- The boy, aClass Istudent, Solan district on Saturday. A itive”and addedthat the steps The CM also handedout likerearing of fish and chicken Narayanasamy, who addressed ing, sources said the policefiled went missing on October 2last EXPRESSNEWSSERVICE number of crowshavebeen takenare “mainlypreventive”. Forest Land Rightcertificates to and growing mushrooms. "In participantsonSunday, said that the chargesheetas90days of year while he wasplaying out- LUCKNOW,PUNE,LUDHIANA, found dead in different parts of “Our basic effort is to stop the tribals. "In Bastar, no one will be Bijapur,morethan8,000people as Pongal festival wasbeing cel- stipulated time from theday of side his house withfriends. In SHIMLA,JANUARY10 thestate over the lastfew days. spread to humans at anycost,” landless. If because of some rea- arebenefitting from bamboo-re- ebrated in the Union territory, the arrestswas ending. Unnao her complaint to thepolice, the In Maharashtra,whichlastre- he said. sons the applicantsdon't getfor- lated activities," Baghel said. the number of days of the Superintendent of Police rape victim's sisterallegedthat THE BIRD flu outbreak has been portedcases of avian Influenza in Earlier,inalettertoall protestwas reducedfromfour to SureshraoAKulkarni said the twolocal residentshad seen the confirmedineight states. 2006,Animal Husbandry Divisional Commissioners and three. chargesheetwas filedonthe ba- boylasttime with the accused. The Centre’s Department of Commissioner said orders have District Magistrates, the depart- The protest waslaunchedon sis of circumstantial evidence Afterthe boywent missing, Animal Husbandryand Dairying been issuedfor culling birds ment directed that strict surveil- Varanasi: BJP ex-MLA January8with the ruling party againstthe accused. three police constables, who put out astatement on Sunday, within 1kmofthe epicentrein lance of migratorybirds coming accusing Bedi of "impeding de- “Theaccusedare lodgedin were deployedfor thesecurity confirming the outbreak in Parbhaniand Latur.“A10-km sur- near waterbodies and poultry velopmental plans and welfare jail and we filedachargesheet of the rape victim’s family, were sevenstates--Kerala, Rajasthan, veillance zone has been created farms should be ensured.Itsaid thrashedfor remarks measures of the elected govern- underIPC Section 364(kidnap- suspended. Madhya Pradesh, Himachal and we arekeeping very strict poultrybirds and eggs should ment." ping or abducting in order to Although theaccusedwho Pradesh, Haryana, Gujarat and watchonthe situation,” he said. notbetransportedinopen vehi- about college student Narayanasamysaid the agi- murder) lastweek.Efforts are have been arrestedin connection Uttar Pradesh. The Uttar Pradesh animal cles and all poultrymarkets tation againstBediwouldbecar- being still made to trace the boy,” withthe rape-murdercase were Lateinthe evening, husbandrydepartment is put- should be closed at leastone day riedout in different modes, said Santosh Kumar Singh, also questionedinconnection Maharashtra’s Animal ting in place severalprecaution- in aweek forsanitisation. addingthat asignaturecam- Station House Officer of Bihar with the kidnap, theydeniedany HusbandryCommissioner arymeasures, while urging peo- Meanwhile,the state-run EXPRESSNEWSSERVICE paign would be held on January Police Station. involvement, thepolice said. Sachindrapratap Singh told The ple to avoidgoing to zoos and Guru Angad DevVeterinaryand LUCKNOW,JANUARY10 22 and ademonstration on ArewardofRs1lakhhas The23-year-old woman was Indian Express that samples birdsanctuaries and coming in Animal Sciences University in January29. He said aday-long also been announcedfor any rapedinDecember2018but the from the statehavetestedposi- contact with anykind of bird. Punjab on Sundayissuedanad- VARANASI police have begun an bandh between February15and information on the missing case wasregisteredinMarch tive forthe avianinfluenza virus. Authorities have been asked visoryfor poultryfarmers and inquiryafter avideo emergedin 20 wasamong the other protests boy. Severalpolice teams have 2019.OnDecember 6, 2019,she Results of samples from Delhi to ensurethat anyunnatural chickenconsumers. whichformer BJP MLAMaya plannedbythe SDA. been formedand searches are diedinaDelhi hospital, aday af- areawaited. death of abirdisreported. The advisorysaid that Shankar Pathak is seen holding He lashedout at Bedi who al- being carriedout, sources said. tershe wasset ablazewhile trav- On Sunday, as many as 215 Twored jungle-fowls found though thereisnoreportofany his ears and seeking forgiveness legedly hadbeen "impeding all Awrit petition seeking adirec- elling to thecourt. migratorybirds were founddead dead at Kanpur Zoological Park birdflu case in Punjab, poultry from agroup of people beating Ascreengrab of the incident developmental plans..." in Pong Dam Lakewildlifesanc- earlier this week tested positive farmers needtobemorevigilant him forallegedly passing re- "Thereisaclearplan on the tuaryinHimachal Pradesh, tak- forthe influenza. and followproper personal hy- marks aboutacollege student. part of the NDAgovernment at ing the total number of migra- Kanpur Chief Veterinary giene and safetymeasures. The police found that the in- gising to themob while theyas- the Centretodismantle the sep- Man shot dead in tory waterbirds suspected to Officer RPMishra, the culling of “Proper cooking on more cident occurredonthe campus sault him. aratestatus of Puducherryand have diedofbirdflu to 4,235, of- birds in aone-km area of the zo- than70°Ckills influenza viruses. of acollege in the Chaubepur PindraCircle Officer to mergeitwith neighbouring ficials said. ological parkhas started. Farm-to-farm transmissionusu- area of Varanasi on Saturday. The AbhishekKumar Pandeysaid Tamil Nadu," he alleged."We will Meerut;kin, MLA Meanwhile, forthe fourth Principal Secretary(Animal allyoccursthrough the move- 70-year-old formerlegislator is that aftercoming to knowabout notlet this happen." dayinarow, alarge number of Husbandry) Bhuvnesh Kumar ment of the live birds, people and the chairman of the institution. the video apolice team went to Theopposition AIADMK and dead poultrybirds were found said the outbreak “isn’tatalarge contaminated vehicles,equip- The police said theycame to the collegeand found it locked. BJPdescribed the agitation as "a dumpedbythe side of the scale in the state as justtwo birds ment etc,” the advisory said. knowfromlocal people that The police failedtocontact politicallymotivated initiative seek policeaction Chandigarh-Shimla highway in in Kanpur have been tested pos- WITHPTIINPUTS Pathak wasattackedfor al- Pathak. "Pathakhas conveyed and an attempttocover up the legedly making remarksabout a that he does notwant to lodge Congress government'sfailureto woman student of the college. anycase,”said apolice officer. fulfill poll promises." EXPRESSNEWSSERVICE On reachinghome, she informed The police contacted the stu- The Centrehas deployed MEERUTJANUARY10 BJP MLA Dalai Lama, Greta Thunberg her familyabout the incident. A dent’s familybut they also re- CAPF and CISF personnel to Sangeet group of people, includingthe fusedtolodgeacomplaint. The maintain lawand order here. TENSION PREVAILED at Meerut’s Som woman’sfamilymembersand police claimedthat the former The SDAhad plannedto Sardhana town on Sunday discuss need for climate action neighbours, then went to the MLAand his alleged attackers picket RajNivas,the office-cum- morning as dozens of local resi- collegeand accostedPathak. kneweachother foralongtime. residence of the Lt Governor, as dentsand familymembers led lackofpolicing in the area. We habitsofthinking of themselves In the video doingthe rounds BJP Varanasi chief Hans Raj partofthe protestagainstBedi by theBJP MLA,SangeetSom, re- arenot ready to toleratelaxity on EXPRESSNEWSSERVICE as partofasmall circle of indi- on social media, agroup of peo- Vishwakarma said, “Pathak forher allegedfailure to approve fusedtoperform the lastrites of partofthe lawenforcers espe- SHIMLA,JANUARY10 viduals. “According to today'sre- ple areseen pushing Pathak and twice wonthe Assemblyelec- the proposals of the government a25-year-old man who wasshot ciallywhen our Chief Minister ality,thinking in termsof'my thrashing him. The former BJP tions from Varanasi. He is notac- forvariouswelfareand develop- dead by twounidentified per- Yogi Adityanath has repeatedly PEOPLENEED to enhance their self, my family, my nation' has MLAisrepeatedly heardapolo- tive in party activities.” mental schemes. sons on Saturdaynight. The been assuring people of the state knowledgeabout the environ- become unrealistic. An individ- restivecrowd raisedanti-police to provide acrime-free society. ment and demand action against ual's future is nowlinked to the slogans and put up ablockade by We will notsit idle till thekillers climatechange,said young en- GretaThunbergand the entirehumanity and planet, to a placing the dead body near the arearrested,” the ruling party vironmental activistGreta Dalai Lama happier humanity and ahealth- Hindu Mahasabha opens Godse library: bus stand, demanding immedi- MLAtold the SP (Rural) Keshav Thunberg while virtuallyinter- ier world,” he said, adding that atearrestofthe culprits. Kumar Maurya,who along with actingwith TenzinGyatso, the it's an encouraging sign that ‘Will show that he was true nationalist’ Sachin Prajapati,aresidentof other officers, reachedthe spot 14th Dalai Lama, and climate social norm. Because if we are young peoplelikeThunbergare Sardhana’s Khewanlocality,was afterSom intervened changescientists Sundayduring enough people who demand genuinelyconcernedfor thefu- Jaiveer Bharadwaj,vice-pres- Godse as the assassination of shotdead by twobike-borne as- The protesters were placated alivestream event. changeand advocateclimate ac- ture of the planet. IRAMSIDDIQUE ident of the Mahasabha, said, Gandhi wasplotted in the city— sailantsaround 10 pm on Saturdaynight but tempers ran During adiscussion on 'The tion, we will reachacritical mass He said that when he was BHOPAL,JANUARY10 “The librarywas openedtoput with apistolalso being pur- Saturdaywhen he wasreturning high again on Sundaymorning Crisis of ClimateFeedbackLoops' and will no longer be possible to young, he sawplenty of snowin before theworld the true nation- chasedthere. home afterhavingdinner witha when the familymembers –self-perpetuating natural ignore.” the high mountains of Tibetbut TO MARKthe occasion of alist that Godse was. He stood Previously, atemple dedi- friend at alocal restaurant. The backedbylocal residents refused warming systems whichfeed “It's notasmalltask but it's it had starteddecreasing gradu- VishwaHindi Diwas, the Akhil and died foranundividedIndia. cated to Godse wasset up by the killers firedtwo bulletsathim, to perform lastrites of Sachin af- uponthemselvestoamplify –at something that we simplyneed ally, and asimilartrend is notice- BhartiyaHindu Mahasabha on The purpose of the libraryisto Mahasabha at theirGwalior of- causing instant death, the police terthe police handedoverthe awebcastorganisedbythe Mind to do because there's no other able around Dharamshala, his Sundayopenedalibraryin instil true nationalism which fice. It wasremovedfollowing an said. body to them afterthe post- and LifeInstitute, she said: “We option. Restoring Natureisnot present home. “EventuallyTibet Gwalior dedicatedtothe lifeand Godsestood forintoday’s igno- uproar by the Congress. As news of the killing spread, mortem. needtoeducateourselvestoun- onlyasolution to theclimatecri- maybecome adesert, some sci- ideology of Mahatma Gandhi's rant youth.” Meanwhile, protem Speaker Sachin'sfamilymembers and lo- “Wehavelaunchedamas- derstand the global processes sis, but also to the biodiversity entists say,”hesaid. The Dalai assassin Nathuram Godse. Bharadwaj said India wasdi- Rameshwar SharmaonSunday cal residentsmarched to the sive manhunttotrace the killers linked to the climatecrisis, to see crisis and so on,” added Lama suggestedthat areassuch The GodseGyanShala was videdtofulfill the ambitions of calledthe partitionofIndia a Sardhanapolice station where and arehopeful of getting suc- what's happening to our planet. Thunberg. as Australia and Western Africa inaugurated at the Jawaharlal Nehru and mistake by Mahatma Gandhi. “It theywerejoinedbythe local BJP cess very soon.The blockade was People mustlearn as muchas Speaking during the event, whichhavevastdeserts may Mahasabha's office at Daulat Mohammad Ali Jinnah, who wasMahatma Gandhi’s mistake legislator,SangeetSom. liftedafter around twohours on theycan –there's unlimited the Dalai Lama said that all 7.8 startconverting sea waterinto Ganj. It contains literatureon both wanted to govern anation, that Mohammad Ali Jinnah suc- “He (Sachin) has been killed a Sundayafternoon,” said Vinay amount of information –and billion humans mustact as a potablewater on alarge scaleto howGodseplotted the assassi- while Godseopposedit. ceededindividing India intotwo short distance from the local po- Kumar ,the acting in-charge of spread thisinformation to create singecommunity to battlethe support human populations and nationofMahatma Gandhi, his Gwalior waschosen as the parts,” he told reporters in lice outpost...Thishas exposed Sardhana police station. asocial movement and shift the climatecrisis, and shedtheir past cultivation in desert areas. articles and his speeches. siteofthe librarydedicated to Bhopal. Kolkata

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9 THEINDIANEXPRESS,MONDAY,JANUARY11,2021 IDEA EXCHANGE Newsmakersinthe Newsroom KANIMOZHI, LOK SABHA MP & SECRETARY, WOMEN’S WING, DMK ‘ Our culture is different. They (BJP) can’t create fear of other religions here.Itwon’t work in TN polls

The‘DMK leader talksabout fighting polls without Karunanidhi, says DMKisatforefront of fighting BJP’s polarising tactics in TN,claims Rajinikanthwould nothave been afactor,and rules out anytension with the Congress over seat-sharing talks. The session wasmoderated by National Editor (Mumbai) Nirupama Subramanian

NIRUPAMA SUBRAMANIAN: Youhave happens on social media. And, it’s politi- The needs, the problems, the issues, alreadystarted campaigning in the cal parties likeuswho still take to the everything changes,and everyparty has to westernand southern districtsof streetsand meetpeople. Nobody is keep reinventing and adapting to changes. Tamil Nadu. This willbethe first againstlearning another language, That cannotbedenied... The DMK is a

Assemblyelection that the party will whether it is Hindi, Malayalam, German cadre-basedparty and we reachout to peo- contest without your father and or anything... We aresaying don’t impose ple directly. Now, of course, with modern formerDMK chief MKarunanidhi. alanguageonus. Don’t take away our technology,and we know that theBJP uses Howdifficultwill this election be for right to choose. You social media... we also the party as youtakeonthe AIADMK don’thavetomake have to adoptsocial that has the BJP’ssupport? thechoice forus, It’snot even twoyearssince ‘ media to reachout. We have already facedthe Lok Sabha WHY whether we have to Lok Sabha elections... As We have to make it election without him (M Karunanidhi), learn Hindi or partofour election under the leadership of MKStalin. He KANIMOZHI Sanskrit. If people time goes by,Opposition process... This is one steered theparty to an amazing victory. justwant to learn thingwe have to keep Exceptfor one seat, Theni, we wonevery- he DMK’s face in onlytwo languages, will come together and workingat. This elec- thing else. The difference in votes between Delhi, Kanimozhi has theyhavethe right to work out howtodeal with tion, investment and the winning and the losing candidates T choose… Ithink we ‘ employment arethe wasinlakhs. So, Ithinkwehavealready emerged as a still believe in social issues facing the nation mostimportant is- proven that we can win... Our founding prominent woman leader in justice. That is the sues in Tamil Nadu. leaders have made sure that the coreide- coreofthe Dravidian We have to talk to ology of the party is very firm in theminds Tamil Nadu in recent years. As ideology.Idon’tthink people about it and of the cadreand all the leaders... It is well- we have movedawayfromthat. give them the confidence that Tamil Nadu established... Our present leader has been the state gearsfor polls, the will be put backonthe growth path. in the party formanyyears, he knows how Thoothukudi MP has begun MANOJ CG: Do youthink the Congress to guide us in these elections.Wehave has failedtoprovide leadership for NIRUPAMA SUBRAMANIAN: The DMK faith in his leadership. campaigning,raising the Opposition at the nationallevel? is focusing alot on women’s rightsin Of course,thereare going to be chal- employment,women’s issues All the opposition parties have to come itscampaign. AfterJayalalithaa’s lenges. The AIADMK is going to com- together to work towardscreating a death, thereisnobig womanleader in pletely depend on moneyfor votes. The strong Opposition. We can’t expect only Tamil Nadu politics.Doyou see BJP, we all know, nevershies away from one party to do that... Ithinkit(the yourself taking that place? using anything to win an election. So that Opposition coming together at the na- I’vealwaystaken up women’s and hu- will be achallenge. They(the BJP) will use tional level) will happen as time passes by man rightsissues… Thereisaneedfor their usual techniques of polarisingvot- because it has notevenbeen twoyears morewomen’s participation in politics, ers, bringing in religion, whichhas never since the Lok Sabha elections. Parties are and that is whythe DMK has been insist- happenedinTamil Nadu... This is notjust also concentrating on stateelections. We ing on 33 per cent reservation for achallenge in these elections, it is alarger have elections in Kerala, Tamil Nadu and women… Idon’t understand whythe BJP, issue that the entirecountryhas to deal in West Bengal... As time goes by,the whichmade it apart of itsmanifesto,is with. The DMK will be at theforefront of Opposition will come together more refusing to bring it in. working againstit. strongly and work out strategies on how Idosee women coming in largernum- What Ihaveseen duringcampaigning bers forour election campaignbecause is that people arequitefed up with the thereare alot of issues whichhavenot AIADMK. Theyalwaysgiveintowhat the been addressed. The self-help groups, for Centre wants, theynever stand up forour example, had created asolid base for rights. Take thefarmers’ issue. Even manywomen, especiallyinrural areas, though thereare no protests in Tamil and enhancedtheir social participation. Nadu,when youspeaktofarmers individ- But because the SHGs arenot getting loans ually, theyfeel very letdownbecause of and supportfromthe government, they the AIADMK government’s support to the arenot functioningasbefore. Thishas farm Bills. People aredisillusionedwith takenawayempowerment from these the AIADMK government, and theybe- women and theyare quitedisillusioned. It lieve that aDMK governmentisthe an- is amajor issue in this election. swer... Employment is ahugeissue in these elections and when theDMK comes PVAIDYANATHAN IYER:InDecember backtopowerwewill bring in invest- 2018,Stalin had proposedRahul mentsand industrysothat thereismore Gandhi as the prime minister employment.Administration will alsobe candidatefor the 2019 Lok Sabha muchbetterunder aDMK government. elections. Since then,therehas been a lotofconfusion about the UPA LIZ MATHEW:Sofar it seems that in alliance. Do UPAmembersmeet? the Tamil Nadu elections youare The UPAinTamil Nadu is very strong going to followthe Bihar formula, and we areworking together.Wedo wherethe DMK will contesttogether meet... We shared thestage in supportof with the Congress andthe Left.But the farmers protestinginDelhi. Our leader giving the Congress more seatsin hadinvited leaders from all partiesto Bihardidn’t work very well forthe come and be partofit. As farasTamil Opposition’s alliance. Will youkeep Nadu goes, Idon’t think there’s anyconfu- that in mindduring seat-sharing sion. We work together and thereare reg- talks? ular meetings. At thenational level, in Idon’t think therewill be anyissue Delhi, leaders meetwhen thereisaneed over allocationofseats. Thereisagood to... When Parliament is in session,we understandingbetween theleadership of have regular meetingsabout howweare the Congress and the DMK. We willbe going to respond to aBill etc. able to work around it (the seats) to every- body’s satisfaction. Everybody under- Illustration: Suvajit Dey NIRUPAMA SUBRAMANIAN: Recently, stands thatitisanimportant election for MKStalin’s son Udhayanidhi Stalin the statealso. lem here... They(the BJP) will notbeable ARUN JANARDHANAN: But do you ARUN JANARDHANAN: Where do you to deal with the issues facing the nation. waselevatedtostarcampaigner.He to createfear of other religions... That is think the BJP has made parties place Kamal Haasan in Tamil Nadu has also become the secretary of the LIZ MATHEW:The BJP wastryingto whattheyplaywith, and that will not such as the DMK and the CPM in politics, giventhat an alliance with his AMRITH LAL: Tamil languageand youth wing of the party.Are these woosuperstarRajinikanth. Will his work in Tamil Nadu. Kerala morecareful while talking partydoesn’tseem likely? cultureusedtobeaveryimportant signs of aleadership progression in decision to exit the poll fray before about religion? With Kamal Haasan or without him, aspect of theDravadian movement the DMK? even enteringitaffect the BJP’s PVAIDYANATHAN IYER:The BJP has the DMK is winning this election. If and Dravadian assertion. Now, Idon’t think we should be discussing prospectsinthe state? found resonance amongsome NIRUPAMA SUBRAMANIAN:Also, how Haasan wantstoworkwith the DMK or increasingly, both theDMK and the leadershipright now. We have aleader Mr Rajinikanth has givenastatement sections in Tamil Nadu. Over the next do yourespond to the charge by the the latter withhim, it is adecision that the AIADMKgenerallytend to speak more and everybodyisfocusing on hisleader- saying thathewill notenter politics, and five years, do yousee the party BJP,and by manyothers on social leadership has to make.Wedid very well about governance.The emphasis on ship. This whole election is about the DMK

whyitisnot right and fair to do it nowand emerging as an important playerin media platforms, that the DMKisan in the Lok Sabha elections without any cultureand languagehas reduced… coming backtopower. Our election cam- getothersinvolvedand then letthem the state? atheistparty in astate wherepeople newadditions to the alliance. So, who When the Jallikattu protests happened, paign is completely focusedonour CM down... Idon’t know Theywould want arequitereligious. They arereligious comes in and goes everyone asserted candidate,MKStalin. if they(the BJP) can to become apromi- in anon-communal way, but people out is the party lead- thatitisanimportant find anybody on a nent party (in Tamil in Tamil Nadu arereligious... ership’s decision. partofour culture. So, NIRUPAMA SUBRAMANIAN: The CBI ‘ par withhim. Can’t denythat BJP has Nadu), and it cannot Whyshould someone be chargedfor Whyshouldwedefend ‘ nothing has changed has appealed againstthe acquittals in Also, even if he grown in the state... But, be denied that they being an atheist? It’s notacrime. Why HARISH being atheists?... TheDMK whenitcomes to pro- the 2G case.Will it become an issue in (Rajinikanth) had areworking towards should we defend it? Idon’t thinkthereis DAMODARAN: Do tecting our culture the election campaign? comeintopolitics, I not growth that should it. And,Icannotdeny aneedtodefend it. Iamanatheistand I youthink Tamil is not against Hindus... and language...See, We have all been acquitted.Nobody don’t think it would the fact that the BJP am very proud of it.The DMKhas athe- politicshas gone Tamil is notbeing wasconvicted.The judgehas very clearly have made adiffer- worryus... And, despite all has morecadres and ists,but our leader MKS(Stalin)has said beyond the We stand against caste, threatenedtoday. said that thereisnoevidence... Howcan ence in this election. theconfusion, AIADMK leaders nowinthe that 90 per cent people in the party are Dravidian identity? untouchability... We believe Even if the Central they use this againstthe DMK? ‘ state. But Idon’tthink Hindusalso.So, it is notlikethe DMK is Periyar (E V ‘ government and the PVAIDYANATHAN will sort themselves out it has had asignifi- againstHindus.WehaveMuslims,we Ramaswamy) in social justice BJP aretrying to im- NIRUPAMA SUBRAMANIAN: IYER: As somebody cant growth that have Christians, agnosticsand atheists. statue being pose Hindiindiffer- Following Rajinikanth’sdecision to who has been a should worryus. We arenot saying thatweare aHindu vandalisedwould ent ways,Tamil (lan- notenter politics, do youthink the partofTamil Nadu Theyare working to- party or an atheistparty.When Anna (C N have been guage) is in avery spacefor film starsinpolitics has politicsfor manyyears, howdoyou wardsit... And, despiteall the confusion Annadurai) startedthe party he said there unimaginableonce. Do youthink the comfortable space. It’s notbeingthreat- reduced? look at the attemptsatpolarisation in within the AIADMK, eventuallytheywill is one God, thatGod canbeanythingto politicsisnow moreconservative? enedinany way. Thereisnoneedtotalk Iwill notsay that. Who youare,what the statethatyou mentioned? How be able to sortthemselvesout. anybody.Or, youdon’thavetohaveaGod. Periyar’s statuewas vandalisedbe- about preserving thelanguageassuch. If youstand for, and what youare capable doesitimpact the state’s secular Idon’tthinkwehavetodefendourselves cause of the weak,backbone-less govern- thereisathreat to ourcultureand it has to of is what is going to decidewhat yoube- fabric? ARUN JANARDHANAN: The BJP seems forbeing atheists. ment that we have.The policeshould have be protected,it’s notjustpolitical parties... come in politics. Just becausesomebodyis Fortunately, theBJP,atthe most, tries to be working to aplan. Theyare (On being careful) They(the BJP) are takenaction but theyare scared to do so. thepeoplealsoreact... The DMK has to talk apopularstar... If you’retalkingabout to paint theDMK as an anti-Hindu party tryingtobecome the main opposition saying that the CPM and the DMK are But in one way, Ithink,attacking Periyar about governance and development be- somebody likeMGRamachandran, he or somethinglikethat...Theyhaven’t been party in Kerala and Tamil againstthe majority,sowehavetogivean ideologicallyand even vandalising his cause we have had zerogovernanceand wasnot justastar. He came from the able to sayanything againstthe minori- Nadu by 2026.Doyou see that explanation. We have to saythat we are statues... it has brought in moreyouth development in the past10years. Dravidian movement and he worked for ties in Tamil Nadu. And, theyalso under- happening? And, can yousay that the notagainstthe majority. If we will fight who areinterestedinfinding out about the DMK formanyyears. He had abase stand thateventhe Hindus in Tamil Nadu DMK will neverallywith the BJP in forthe Muslims, we willfight forthe Periyar andhis ideology.You cansee on VANDITA MISHRA:You said that and that is what made him what he was. arenot likethat (communal). Ithink,even the future? Hindustoo...The DMK does notwant to social media platforms that nowthereis religiondoesn’tplaythe same role in So, Iwill notsay that no other film star can in Kerala, people will notaccept divisions ... The DMK is one of the mostvocal take away the right to believe from any- astrong presence of people defending the Tamil Nadu as it might in the ever makeitinpolitics... Youcan come on religious lines.Wehaveall livedto- parties againstmanyofthe things that body.But of course, we stand againstthe Dravidian ideology.Theyare notapartof northern states. But apart from from anyfieldbut youwill have to under- gether comfortably... Even caste-wise... the BJP stands for. Idon’t see the possi- caste system, againstuntouchability, the AIADMK or DMK. So, Idon’t think it religious mobilisation, the BJP putsa stand the kind of hardworkthat is Therehavebeen no issues in living with bility of an alliance with the BJP againstanybody who takesawayothers’ has become negotiable. People aredoing lotofenergy intoconstantly needed. This doesn’t happen overnight people from other religions, or atemple because we stand fortwo different rights on thebasis of caste or religion. We it (defendingthe ideology)fromthe com- manufacturing some kind of because youare aface whicheverybody being built... It’s adifferent kind of culture things completely... Ireally believe that believe in social justice. We arenot saying fortsoftheir homes on social mediaand mobilisationamong people on likes or youhavebeenpopular in films. here. People don’t feel threatened. They in Tamil Nadu and Kerala politics, you everybody should become an atheist. We notonthe streets. That is thechange. And, different issues. Howcan regional People mayrecogniseyou morethan any- areverycomfortable. Idon’tthinkpolar- cannotdivide people on religiouslines don’t forceitonanybody.Being an athe- Covid-19also has contributed to it. parties reinvent themselvestoface body else, butyour face doesn’tmean that isation on religious lines would be aprob- very easily. istalso is notwrong in our party. Mostofthe exchangeofideas now this challenge? people will acceptyou as aleader.

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THEINDIANEXPRESS,MONDAY,JANUARY11,2021 @ieExplained #ExpressExplained 10 If thereare questions of current or contemporaryrelevancethat youwould like E EXPLAINED explained, please [email protected]

EXPLAINED AGRICULTURE Gas pipeline from Kochi to Mangaluru: hurdles Farm protests, big picture crossed, and why it matters The protestbythousands of farmers at Delhi’sborders have brought to focus arangeofissues in agriculture THETWOBRANCHES in India.One of thecountry’s leading policy experts provides aprimer on some important questions. MANGALORE BENGALURU forces? TerminalpointofMainLine EXPERT Farmerscannotbeleftentirely to themercy (phaseII):542.45km of market forces.Farmers growingnon-MSP EXPLAINS crops,especiallyfruitsandvegetables,have ex- periencedhugevolatility in prices over the KARNATAKA KANNUR Siraj years. The price deficiency paymentscheme did notsucceed in MP.So, direct income sup- Hussain portistheonlyway to shieldthemfromsuffer- AREEKODE inghugelosses. Apredictable trade policycan PIPELINEROUTE: From The Indian Express panel MainLine(phaseII) also help in attracting privateinvestmentin ofspecialists, exclusive insight the agriculturechain whichcan actasashield Malappuram TheBengalururouteisnearing againstvolatility. Option contractsthrough completion.Itbranchesoffat FPOscanalsobringstability,butmostfarmers GAIL’sKochi- KoottanadinPalakkad,andenters angalurunaturalgas arenot educated enough to deal with future pipeline(444km) Koottanad TamilNadu,goingtoCoimbatore THE FARMERS’ agitationonDelhi’sborderis markets,sotheyneedsupportand guidance wasopenedbyPM beforereachingBengaluru. now45daysold,andthegovernmentappears from the government. lastweek to have made up itsmind that it will neither KERALA TAMIL NADU put on holdnor repeal the three laws hurried Can procurement be abolished? What will KOCHI passedbyParliament in September 2020. happen to PDS then? Government ministers have been explaining The procurement system in India serves the beneficial provisions of thelaws, andso- Tractor rallyagainstfarmlawsonDelhi’s outskirts. AbhinavSaha twopurposes —purchases on MSPsupports Delays since 2007 cial media is full of stories about howfarmers farmers, and subsidised distribution of pro- SHAJUPHILIP in Punjab have been “exploiting” the system cured grains underPDS supportsIndia’s eco- THIRUVANANTHAPURAM,JAN10 In 2009, the then CPM-ledgovern- of procurementofcropsatminimumsupport Arewheat and rice the onlycrops for areable to getonlyasmallamount of these nomicallyvulnerable. As per recent National ment headedbyVSAchuthanandan price (MSP). While Punjaband Haryana have whichfarmers receive MSP? subsidies. FamilyHealthSurvey(NFHS)dataonmalnour- ON TUESDAY,Prime MinisterNarendra gave single-windowclearance to the becomethefocusof thefarmers’agitation,the WhilethegovernmentdeclaresMSPfor23 Anumber of subsidies meant foragricul- ishment in India, malnutrition indicatorsfor Modi dedicated to the nation the project, whichshouldhavebeencom- currentscenarioinagricultureisnot veryhope- crops, onlywheat and paddy (rice) arepro- turealsoflowtobusinesses,e.g.,grantgivento women and children have worsenedoverthe Kochi-Mangalurunatural gaspipeline pleted in 2013.However,protests took ful in otherstatestoo. Some importantissues curedinlarge quantities as theyare required food processing unitsand cold chain projects. years.Withthisinfocus,thePDSsystemislikely of the GailAuthority of India Limited place as local people wantedthealign- arediscussedbelow. to meet therequirementof PDS,whichisabout to stay inthecomingyears.Butthegovernment (GAIL). The keyinfrastructureproject ment along asea routerather than 65 milliontonnes. Then whyisitsaid that Indian farmer are will do well to preparea10-year roadmap of has come about afterovercoming through inhabited areas; theyfelt the What is the current situation of land in nettaxed? PDSto 2030sothatonlytherequiredquantities protests in Kerala, misconceptions pipelinewas atickinggas bomb. agriculture? Is it onlythe farmers of Punjab and AspertheICRIER-OECDreport,despitethe of wheat and rice areprocured. about safety, and along delay. AftertheCongress-ledgovernment Areaunderagriculture hasbeenshrinking Haryana who benefit from procurement? plethoraofschemes run to supportand sub- headedbyOommenChandycameto —itreducedfrom159.5 millionhectares (mn In2019-20,Punjabprocured92.3%of itsrice sidiseIndianfarmers,becauseofregressive poli- Is there agenuine fear of higher consumer The terminal, since 2013 powerin2011, the CPM, then in oppo- ha) in 2010-11to157 mn ha in 2015-16—but production. Haryana procured 89.2%, while cies on the marketing side (both domestic and prices due to changes in the Essential The pipeline willdeliverliquefied sition,chose to stand with the protest- the number of operationalholdings has been Telangana procured 102% of itsproduction. In internationaltrade policies) and the deficit of Commodities Actand the entryoflarge natural gas(LNG) sourced from ater- ers.Whenevenlocalleadersof therul- rising(increasedfrom138.3 milliontoabout thecaseofwheat, Punjabprocured 72%ofits basic infrastructurefor storage, transportation corporates in the food businessthrough e- minalinKochi built by PetronetLNG in ingUDF joinedthe agitation, the 146million).Thisreflectsinthefallingaverage production this year,while Haryana and MP etc.,Indianfarmerssufferednetlossesandthus commerce and modern retail? 2013 at acostofRs4,500.However, for government suspendedthe survey. landholdings’sizeof farmers,whichhascome procured62% and 66%respectively. emergedtobenettaxeddespitereceivingsub- Incaseof high-valueagriculturalcommodi- want of pipeline connectivity,itcould GAIL toosuspended all contracts. The down from 1.2hatoabout 1.08 ha. sidies. Between 2014 and ties in whichIndia is in deficit or has onlymar- notbeutiliseduntilnow. Theterminal’s governmentevenpulledupthenChief Intheabsenceof anestimateofthenum- Which other crops are 2016,Indianfarmerswere ginal surpluses (likepulses), thereisagenuine objectiveistosupply naturalgasfordo- SecretaryJijiThomson forhaving said beroffarmers in thecountry, the number of protected by the on averagenet taxedto fear of stocking by corporates, especially those mestic and industrial useinKeralaand the pipelinewould be laidatany cost landholdings is takenasits proxy. This means government through THEEXPERT the tune of 6%. whichare in modern retail and e-commerce. SouthIndia.ItisSouthIndia’sfirstLNG- and the protestors would be arrested. thatIndiahasabout146million—orabout14.6 various measures? Thegovernmentmustmakeitcompulsorythat receiving,regasificationandre-loading During the UDF regime, only48kmof crore—farmers. About 86%ofthem have an Since2015-16, thegov- SIRAJ HUSSAIN, IAS (retd), What is the levelof theykeeptheir stockinWarehousing terminal withacapacity of five million the444-km pipeline could be laid. averagelandholding size less than 2hectares; ernmenthas been procur- has dealt with issues agricultural subsidies DevelopmentandRegulatoryAuthority-regis- metric tonnes per annum. The pipeline wasplanned at an es- theyare referred to as India’ssmalland mar- ing larger quantities of related to Indian in other countries? teredwarehousesonly, so that theprivate timatedcostofRs2,915 crorein2009. ginal farmers (SMF). The SMFs operateon pulses through National agriculturefor mostofhis As per the same stocks areknown to the government. Phases and sections Dueto thedelays,itscostwentuptoRs about 47.35% of the total agri-area. Morethan Agricultural Cooperative career.Hewas Secretary, ICRIER-OECDreport, Theproject,conceivedin2007, en- 5,750 crore. half of India’sfarmersresideinthefive statesof MarketingFederation of MinistryofFood while Indian farmers What role should stategovernmentsplay visages pipelines from Kochito UP,Bihar,Maharashtra, MP,and Karnataka. India (NAFED) and Small Processing,and Secretary, were nettaxed (i.e., re- in getting farmers fair prices? Mangaluru and to Bengaluru. In the Expedited by Vijayan Farmers’ Agri-business MinistryofAgriculture, ceivednegative support), If India has to move away from procure- firstphase, a44-km line waslaid in While in opposition, the CPM had Is fragmentation of land aproblem? Consortium (SFAC)for and Chairman and farmersinthe firstworld ment-basedsupport, at present restricted to Kochi, linking the terminal with local stood with the agitators. But, afteras- Smallerlandholdingsproduce smaller maintaining abufferstock Managing Director of FCI. countries of Norway, certain cropsonly, amoreattractive income industrial users, including Bharat suming office in 2016,Chief Minister pocketsofproduce, aggregation of whichbe- of 2million tonnes. Cotton Since retiring from the Switzerland,Japan,Korea, supportschemehasto beconceived.However, Petroleum Corporation Limited.To PinarayiVijayan placed the GAIL comesessentialfor even atrolley-load to be is procuredbyCotton IAS, he has been aVisiting United States, and it has to be coupledwith muchhigher invest- take natural gastodomestic con- pipeline in his 100-days projects. As carriedtoanagriculturalproducemarket com- Corporation of India, while Senior Fellowatthe Australia received the ment,bothpublicandprivate,inagri-infrastruc- sumers, Indian OilCorporation (IOC) Vijayanhad the party under his firm mittee(APMC)mandioranearby market.Due groundnutisprocured in Indian Council for highestpositivesupport. ture. The RashtriyaKrishi Vikas Yojana (RKVY) enteredintoapact with Adani Gas Ltd. control, no one in the CPM or Left to smallholdings causedbyfragmentation, some states likeGujarat. Research on International EvenfarmersinIndonesia incentivisedthe states, whichincreasedtheir The second phase of the pipeline DemocraticFront questionedhis deci- small and marginal farmers areforcedtosell Some horticultural Economic Relations. receivedmuchhigher expenditureonagriculture.TheCentre’sassis- passesthrough sevendistrictsofKerala sion, and local leaders steppedback their produceatfarm gate itself.This is espe- products arealso procured positive support.Ukraine tance forsuchstatesshouldbehigher. to carry naturalgas from Kochito from their protest.The Centretoo ciallysoinstatesthat have aweak networkof in asporadic manner,e.g., wasanother country like SeveralDecentralised Procurement(DCP) Bengaluru via Palakkad, with another wantedKeralato give toppriorityto the APMC mandis. apples in J&K in 2019-20 India that emergedtobe states likeOdisha and Chhattisgarhclaim that leg taking it to Mangaluru. The Kochi- project as theLNG terminal in Kochi and onioninMaharashtra almost everyyear. taxing itsfarmers. theyincur losses in procurement operations Mangaluru line (444 km) has been wasincurring hugelosses. What% of thecountry’s workforceis Sugarcane is notprocured by the govern- and these arenot fullyreimbursedbythe openedwhile the Bengaluru leg is To winoverlandowners,Vijayanin- engaged in agriculture?Dothe workers ment but itsfarmers areassuredofFair and What arethe subsidies enjoyedbythe Centre. However, precise dataonlossesin- nearing completion, officials said. creasedthe compensation amount for needtobeweanedout? How? Remunerative Price (FRP) paidbysugar mills. middle classes and the rich? Areother curredbythem is notinthe publicdomain. Already 2,750 domestic gascon- theacquiredland, and reducedthe As per recent estimates from the Labour In some states,the governmentdeclares State sectors of the economyalso subsidised? nections have been giveninKochi and widthof thelandto beacquiredwasre- Bureau, 45%ofIndia’s workforceisemployed Advised Pricewhichishigher thanthe FRP. The EconomicSurvey of 2014-15devoted What should the government do over the work forsupplyofnatural gasinother duced. Afterlaying the pipeline,farm- in agriculture.According to Census 2011,55% Juteisanother crop protected by the gov- asectiontosubsidies enjoyedbythe middle next five years to makeIndian agriculture towns is going on. The pipeline sup- ers were allowedtocultivate,except of theagri-workforce comprises agri-labour- ernmenteventhough it is notdirectlypro- classes. These includehigher interestrates on morecompetitive? plies 3.8 million cubic metres of gasa deep-rootedcrops.Althoughrightwing ers,i.e.,thosewhodonotownlandandworkfor cured.UnderJutePackagingMaterial(JPM)Act, savings,incometaxexemptions,railways,elec- SeveralstatesofIndiahavealready daytoindustrial and residential cus- MuslimoutfitsSocialDemocraticParty wagesonthe land of others; less than 45% are 1987,the Government has decidedthat100% tricity,LPG, gold, and aviation turbine fuel achievedproductivitylevelsseenindeveloped tomers in Kochiand is settocross 4 of India (SDPI) and WelfareParty of “farmers” who ownand cultivate land. Indian of foodgrainsand20%of sugarshallbemanda- (ATF).Higher education in government insti- countries. But thereare also states that have million cubic metres in the city itself. India (ofJamaat-e-Islami) ledprotests agriculturecannotsupport suchalarge popu- torilypackedindiversified jutebags. tutions is highlysubsidised. Thegovernment lowproductivity.Focusedresearch on crops Menagaluru has apotential of 2.5 mil- inmanyplaces,andtheproteststurned lation through growth in agriculturealone. also provides protection to industrybyway of growninlow-productivitystatescan deliver lion cubic metres per day, The capac- violentinKozhikodedistrictin2017,the If horticultureand dairyare more productivity-linked incentive schemes, high better seeds, whichcan withstand the chal- ityutilisation of the LNGterminal will government ensured that work pro- Is rice the onlywater-guzzlingcrop? profitable, whyare farmers notgiving up importtariffs,and regulatorytweaks. lengeofhigher temperaturedue to climate go up to 25-30%. ceededunder policeprotection. It is said that 1kgofsugar requires about MSP cropsand switching to these? change.Drought-tolerantvarietiesof seedsare 1,500-2,000 litres while 1kgofrice requires Milkproducersandfarmersgrowingfruits Whyare farmers agitating when the also neededfor crops growninrain-fed areas. 5,000litres.Thereare variationsacross states. andvegetablesareequallyproneto fluctuation governmentsaysthe newlawswillhelp Good qualityseeds can enhance productivity Akgofsugar producedfromcane cultivated in market prices.Exceptfor dairycooperatives them? And whyare Punjabfarmers at the by 15-20%.Recentsuccessesinhigherproduc- in UP consumes 1,044litres of water, while in in Gujarat, the milk federations arefundedby forefront of the agitation? tivity vegetables and maize provethis. Maharashtraittakesdoublethat—2,086litres. state governmentsthrough various means. The farmersofPunjab, Haryana and other In 2018,aworking groupofNitiAayog, In Maharashtra, sugarcaneiscultivated on 4% states that have robustAPMC mandis and an chaired by Dr Parmod Kumar,publisheda of thecultivablelandbutconsumesmorethan What arethe subsidies givento efficientsystemof procurementaremorefear- study,‘Demand supplyprojections towards 70%ofirrigationwater. Duetothehighreturns agriculture in India? ful of the three laws.Theyfear that theselaws 2033’, whichpointed out that India on sugarcane compared to other crop combi- Farmers in India areprovidedsupporton signalthebeginningof theendof open-ended will still have surplus in wheat and rice. In nations and assured marketing, the area un- both the input and output side. On the input procurement of wheat and paddy.Theyfear coarse grains the domestic requirement will der sugarcane has been going up even in wa- side,anaverage Indianfarmerreceivessubsi- thatthe successofthese states in creating the be largely met, but therewill be adeficit of 5- ter-stressedregions. dies on fertilisers, seeds, farm machineryand infrastructurefor procurement maynow be- 7million tonnes in pulses. Amassivedeficit of ThethreeActspassedbyParliamentdonot equipment, electricity, logistics,etc.Onthe comethe reason forwithdrawal of supportof morethan 50 milliontonnes is projected for touchthesugarsector.InPunjab,sugarisgrown output side, the MSP regime offers supportin the Centre. oilseeds.To meet thisgapinoilseeds,Indiawill onlyon1.2% of gross croppedarea. So theydo states havingrobustprocurement infrastruc- need thebestagricultural practices of Punjab notbenefit from policies favouring sugarcane. ture. However, small and marginal farmers Can farming be leftentirelytomarket and Haryana. NationwidepoweroutageinPakistan:cause&effect,previoushistory

powerdistribution system hasnot kept pace “Ithadwhatwe calla‘cascadingeffect’and ators in theirhomes, CNN reported. paybillsorto stoptheftandwastage,thehigh did managetobring in some reform includ- RAHELPHILIPOSE with powergeneration or demand. Outages shut down the powersystem, choking about Internetconnectivity in the countrycol- priceofoilallcontributedto thegovernment's ing augmenting powergeneration capacity, NEWDELHI,JANUARY10 occur frequently, and have even triggered 10,320megawattsof electricity,”heexplained. lapsed.Connectivitywasat“62percentof or- inabilitytopay thesubsidyto privateandpub- but the distribution system hasnot been im- massive public protests in citiessuchas Urging people to remainpatient, he later dinarylevels”,accordingtoNetblocks,anNGO lic powergenerating companies, whichin provedforuptakeofadditionalpower. Hence, CITIES AND towns across Pakistan, including Lahoreand Karachi. tweetedthat he waspersonallyoverseeing whichmonitorsinternetoutages.Meanwhile, turn meant these companies could notpay the demand-supply gapremains, leading to Islamabad, were plungedintodarkness for restoration efforts. “Our teams arestillwork- #Loadsheddingand #PakistanBlackOut oil and gassuppliers to keep up generation, frequent tripping, and as it happenedyester- severalhours on Saturday nightfollowing a What happenedonSaturdaynight? inginthe Guddu area to investigatethe rea- quicklystartedto trendonTwitter,withthou- leading to “intersectional debts” and disrup- day, a“cascading” failureupthe chain. massivenationwideelectricityoutage.Power Shortlybeforemidnight, massive power sonsthatcausedthefault,buttheheavyfogis sandssharingimagesof theircitiesandlocal- tions,according to a2015United States While outagesare frequent, especiallyin supplywas restored by Sundaymorning in outageswere simultaneouslyreportedby res- making their job difficult,” the ministersaid. ities shroudedinnear-complete darkness. InstituteofPeace report(Rashid Aziz and thesummer,nationwidefailuresarerare.The themaincities,andaninvestigationlaunched idents of allmajorurbancentresinthecoun- Some social media usersevenwondered MunawarBaseer Ahmed). The paper esti- lastonewasin2018,whenpowersupplywas to determine thecause of the outage. try, including Lahore, Islamabad, Karachi, What wasthe impact? whether the outagewas aprelude to amili- mated that the energycrisis wasshaving off partiallydisruptedforoverninehours.Before “The system is stablenow and electricity Rawalpindi and Multan, as well as several In themidst of the ongoing coronavirus tary takeoverorwar. about 2% from the GDPannually. that,in2015, around 80% of the countrywas supplyhasbeenrestoredinmajorcitiesof the smaller towns and cities. pandemic, manyfeared that the blackout Between 2008 and2015, therewas talk leftwithout electricity afteranalleged mili- country,”Pakistan’s Energy MinisterOmar Addressing an early morningpress con- would cause major disruptions at hospitals. Howcommonare powercutsin on and offabouthow India could export tantattackonasupplyline.Anoutagesimilar Ayub told reporters on Sunday, warning that ference in Islamabad, Energy MinisterAyub However, since mosthospitals rely on back- Pakistan? powertoPakistan, but that remainedtalk as to the one on Saturdaytook place in 2013. it could take hours forelectricity to return said powersupply snappedat11:41pmdue up generators, therewerenoimmediatere- Pakistanbegan to experience frequent bilateral tensions took centrestage. Beforethat,in2006,aneight-hournationwide everywhere. to a“technicalfault"attheGuddupowerplant ports of anysuchadversities. powercutsin2009, when the Pakistan The energy crisis became ahugeelection blackout triggered rumours that then The nationwide blackout wasthe worst inSindhprovince.Theblackoutwastriggered In Karachi, peopleclaimedtohaveseen People'sPartywasinpower. Thepoliticalde- issue in 2013,and one of NawazSharif'smain President Pervez Musharrafhad been un- thecountryhasexperiencedinrecentmem- by asuddendropinthe frequency of the long queuesatgas stations in the cityaspeo- termination to keep powertariffs belowthe campaign promiseswas to rectify the situa- seated in acoup at atime he wasawayona ory, but it is by no means the first. Pakistan’s powertransmission system. plequeueduptobuy petrol to powergener- costofsupply, inabilitytoget consumersto tion.Inhisabruptlyshortenedtenure asPM,he 18-daytourabroad.

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THEINDIANEXPRESS,MONDAY,JANUARY11,2021 11 THE WORLD

TOPOFTHE STORMING OF THE CAPITOL: CALLS FOR ACCOUNTABILITY INTENSIFY Pompeo liftscurbs WORLD DemsseekanswersfromJusticeDept on US-Taiwanties IDREESALI& DAVIDBRUNNSTROM onTrumproleamidimpeachmentthreat WASHINGTON,JANUARY10 SECRETARYOFState Mike Pompeo on Saturdaysaid he was TopGOP Senator says Trumpcommitted impeachableoffences;Pence to attend Biden inauguration lifting restrictions on contacts Christine Aschbacher between US officials and their Taiwanese counterparts,amove THENEWYORKTIMES likelytoanger China and in- US SecretaryofState AUSTRIA JANUARY10 crease tensions between Beijing MikePompeo Ministerquits and Washington in the waning DEMOCRATSHAVEasked lead- days of President Donald ED overallegations ers of the US Justice Department Trump’s presidency. formoreinformationabout China claimsdemocraticand Lockingina

ofplagiarism PLAIN what the department is doing to separatelyruledTaiwanasits E ●toughstance AUSTRIA’S LABOUR investigateand prosecutethe at- Trumphas been blamed for ownterritory. EX MinisterChristine tack on the Capitol,includingthe inciting the mob that While the US, likemostcoun- Aschbacherhasresignedaf- role that President Donald stormed the Capitol tries, has no officialrelations THE REVERSALofthis long- terallegations that shepla- Trumpplayedinthe attack. with Taiwan, the Trumpadmin- standing policy justdays be- giarisedsomeof heruniver- Five people diedinthe riot, istration has ramped up backing fore theinauguration of a sity work,but deniedany including apolice officer,and offences”.Toomey alsobecame forthe island country,with arms newadministration in the US wrongdoing and said she dozens have been arrested. the second Republican senator sales and laws to help Taiwan is suretoanger the Chinese wasstepping down to pro- “Wewritetorequestanim- to call forTrumptoresign, deal with pressurefromChina. government, and is seenby tect her family. Aschbacher, mediateand urgent briefing on telling hostChuckToddon In astatement,Pompeosaid analysts as an effort to lockin amember of the conserva- the steps the Federal Bureau of NBC’s“Meetthe Press”: “I think that forseveral decadesthe State Trump’s tough stance on tive AustrianPeople’sParty, Investigation is taking to inves- the best wayfor our country, Departmenthadcreatedcomplex China. It willbepolitically allegedly copiedatleastone tigateand pursue forprosecu- Chuck, is forthe President to re- internal restrictionsoninterac- tricky forBidentoundothis fifthofher doctoral disser- tion the instigation, planning, sign and go away as soon as tionswithTaiwanesecounterparts largely symbolic deepening of tationfromothersources,as and execution of the deadlyter- possible.” Lastweek, Senator CLASHES IN SANDIEGO: San Diego police clashwith protesters on Saturday. Supporters of by American diplomats, service ties with Taiwan, making it all wellaspartsof herdiploma roristattackonthe United States Lisa Murkowski, aRepublican US President Donald Trumpclashedwith counter-protesters in San Diego, California, on members and other officials. the moredifficult forthe new thesis,saidacademicStefan Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, by from Alaska, had also calledon Saturday, prompting police to declare thegathering an unlawful assemblybecause of actsof “The United States govern- governmenttoattempt to im- Weberwho specialises in President Donald Trump, his the President to resign. violence. Officers were hitwith rocks, bottlesand eggs,police said, and thecrowd directed menttooktheseactionsunilater- proveUS-China relations. plagiarism.Aschbachersaid supporters, and outside groups,” Lawmakersplan to formally pepperspray at them. AP ally, in an attempttoappease the she had written her disser- Democratic leaders said in alet- introduce the proposal to im- Communistregime in Beijing,” tationandthesis“to thebest teronThursdaytoChristopher peachonMonday in the House. Pompeo said in astatement. comedthe move.“Decadesof of her knowledge andbe- Wray,director of the FBI. Democratic RepJames “TodayIam announcing that discrimination, removed. A lief”.Shesaid“thehostility... AJustice Department Clyburnsaid the voteonthe im- Rioters seen in viral posts arrested Iamlifting all of these self-im- hugeday in our bilateral rela- andthe insultsare unfortu- spokesman said Saturdaythat peachment couldhappen as posedrestrictions,” he added. tionship.Iwill cherish everyop- natelybeingunloadednot the department has receiveda soon as Tuesday.But, he said the Man held forthreatening Nancy Pelosi Amazon&Apple An official with Biden’s tran- portunity,” Hsiao Bi-khim, onlyonme, but also on my separaterequestfromCongress Democratic leadershipacknowl- sition said that once Biden was Taiwan’s de factoambassador in children, and with unbear- forinformation related to the riot edgedthat atrial in the Senateis tured prominently on social me- also cut off Parler in office he would continue to Washington, tweeted. able force”. REUTERS and is working to fulfill it. unlikelytobecompleted before RICHMCKAY dia wearing horns, afur pelt, face support “a peaceful resolution of OnSunday, state-runmediain Trump’s role in the carnage TrumpleavesofficeonJan 20. JANUARY10 paint and brandishing aspear PARLER, Asocial networkthat cross-strait issues consistent China sharplycriticisedPompeo, underpins the articles of im- Clyburnsuggestedthat Speaker adornedwiththe US flag, turned pitches itself as a“free speech” al- withthe wishesand best inter- accusing himof“seeking to mali- peachment that House Nancy Pelosi wasconsidering FEDERALAGENTSarrestedtwo himself in to police. ternative to Twitter andFacebook ests of thepeople of Taiwan”. ciouslyinflict along-lasting scar” AFGHANISTAN Democratshavedrawn up,ac- impeaching nowbut notsending moreCapitol Hill rioters whose Agents also arrested Adam and has hostedmillionsof Taiwan’s government wel- on bilateral ties. REUTERS Roadsidebomb cusingthe President of inciting the article to the Senatefor trial images had gone viral, of one car- ChristianJohnson,whosephoto as President Donald Trump’s sup- an insurrection. forweeks. rying offthe House Speaker’s hesmiledandwavedwhilecarry- porters,wastakenoffApple’sApp kills3inKabul The Democrats’ bid to quickly Meanwhile, US Vice lectern and another who wore ing offHouseSpeaker Nancy Storehours afterGoogle made a US,Canada, Australia, AROADSIDE bomb ex- impeachTrumphas gainedsup- President MikePence will attend horns and afur pelt. Pelosi’s lectern also went viral. similar move.Later,Amazon told plodedinAfghanistan’s port, and atop Republican said Biden’sinaugurationonJan 20, Dozens of people have been Another man, Cleveland Parler it would bootthe company capital Sunday, killingat the President’s role in thedeadly an aide said on Saturday, asplit chargedfollowing the storming Meredith,wasdetainedinconnec- from itsweb-hosting service on Britain condemn Hong leastthree people in ave- riotwas worthy of rebuke. with Trump’sdecision nottogo. of the Capitol on Wednesday, tion with making threatstoPelosi Sunday. Theactionswere partofa hicle.Itwasthelatestattack Republican Senator Pat Pence had alwaysbeen likelier to with the FBI askingthe publicto afteranFBI agent read aJan 7text widercrackdownby tech compa- to take placeasgovern- Toomey, of Pennsylvania,said attend the inauguration than help identifyparticipants. messages in whichMeredith niesonTrumpand some of his Kong arrests of activists ment negotiators in Qatar Saturday he believedTrump Trump, whowas an almost cer- Jacob AnthonyChansley, also talked about “putting abulletin mostextreme supporters after resume peace talkswith had committed “impeachable tain to skip the ceremony. known as JakeAngeli, who fea- hernogginonLiveTV”.REUTERS Wednesday’s riot. NYT the Taliban. Tariq Arian, REUTERS Hong Kong police had spokesmanfortheinterior MELBOURNE,JANUARY10 arrested morethan 50 minister, saidaspokesman Gunman kills 3, injures4 democracy activists forthe ministry’s public FOREIGN MINISTERS from the protectionforces—asecu- United States, Canada, Britain following dawn raids rity force—was one of the in Chicago shooting spree and Australia condemned last on Wednesday three killedinthe attack. week’s arrest of over 50 democ- One other person was Theshooter, 32-year-oldJason racy activists in Hong Kong in a woundedhesaid. No one ASSOCIATEDPRESS Nightengale,then“justrandomly” joint statement on Sunday, call- and Chinese central authorities immediatelyclaimedre- CHICAGO,JANUARY10 walked intoanapartment build- ingonChina to respect the free- to respect the legallyguaranteed sponsibility.The Islamic ing ablockaway, whereheshota dom of the people on the island. rightsand freedoms of the peo- Stategrouphasclaimedre- AMAN killedthree people and 46-year-old security guardand a Hong Kong police made the ple of Hong Kong without fear of sponsibilityformultipleat- woundedfourothersinaseriesof 77-year-old woman,Brown said. arrestsonWednesdayindawn arrest and detention.” tacksinthecapitalinrecent shootingsoverroughlyfourhours The guarddiedand the older raids, the biggestcrackdown Hong Kong’s mostpromi- months. AP that startedonChicago’s South woman washospitalisedincriti- since China imposedasecurity nent pro-democracy advocates Sideand ended with his death in cal condition, the Chicago Tribune lawin2020, whichopponents were arrested as authorities said BRITAIN ashootout with police. reported. Nightengale then went sayisaimedatquashing dissent lastyear’s unofficial voteto Investigators aretrying to de- to aconveniencestore and fired in theformer British colony. choose opposition candidates in Harry,Meghan termine amotivefor the attacks, shots,killing a20-year-old man “It is clear that the National city electionswas partofaplan whichbegan Saturdayafternoon and wounding an 81-year-old Security Lawisbeing used to to “overthrow”the government. toquitsocial with the killing of a30-year-old woman.Heshotandinjureda15- eliminatedissent and opposing On Thursday, US Secretaryof media:report Vehicles’headlightsare the onlylightsseen on aroad in Rawalpindi on Sunday. AP university student who wasshot year-oldgirlafterleavingthestore. political views,” the foreign min- StateMikePompeosaid in the head while sitting in his car, Hethendrove16kmandshot isters said in the joint statement Washington maysanction those PRINCEHARRYand wife Chicago police Superintendent andinjured another woman in a issuedbyAustralia’s Foreign involved in the arrestsand will MeghanMarkle,theDuke David Brownsaid. He didn’tre- restaurant.Soonafterthat,hewas MinisterMarise Payne. send theUSambassador to the and Duchess of Sussex, Massive poweroutage leaves lease anyofthe victims’ names. killedinashootout with police. “Wecallonthe Hong Kong United Nations to visit Taiwan. have reportedly decided to quit social media as theyfocus on their roles in large parts of Pakistan in the dark the US away from front- Indonesialocates blackboxes of crashed jet line British royalty. later Sunday thatpowerhadbeen to arestoration of powerinthe According to The Sunday ZARARKHAN restored to muchofthe country. rest of thecountryinphases. boxeshad been identified. Times,the couple who had ISLAMABAD,JANUARY10 The blackout wasinitiallyre- Ayubsaidinanews conference FRANSISKANANGOY& “Hopefully, we canretrieve announcedtheir decision portedonsocial media by resi- Sundaythat the Guddu power BERNADETTECHRISTINA them soon,” said militarychief to step backfromofficial AMAJOR technical fault in dentsofmajor urban centres, in- plantinsouthern Sindh province JAKARTA,JANUARY10 Rescuersfinddebris Hadi Tjahjanto, without giving royalduties to relocate Pakistan’s powergeneration and cluding Karachi, Lahore, developedafault at 11.41pmthat of theSriwijaya Air an estimated timeframe. with their one-year-old distributionsystemcausedamas- Islamabadand Multan. The min- triggered theshutdown of other INDONESIAN AUTHORITIES on passenger jetinthe Therewerenoclues yetasto son Archie lastyear will no sive poweroutagethat plunged isterandhisspokesmanthentook powerplantsinseconds. Sundaylocated the blackboxes Java Sea Sunday. AP what causedthe crash, the first longer use platforms such thenationintodarknessovernight, to Twitter to updatethe country. Later,aspokesmanfor the of the Sriwijaya Air jetthat major aircrash in Indonesia since as Twitter andFacebook. the energy ministersaid. Ayub urgedpeople to be pa- MinistryofEnergy,said the crashedintothe sea soon after 189passengers and crew were The duo arereportedlyre- Hours afterthe lateSaturday tient. He said the cause of the Tarbela and Warsak plants, both taking offfromthe capital passengers and crew was minutes aftertake-off. killedin2018when aLionAir jecting social media as outage, Energy Minister Omar poweroutagewas being investi- in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Jakarta,ashuman bodyparts headedonadomestic flight to IndonesiaNational Transport Boeing 737Max in 2018 also partoftheir new“progres- Ayub said on Twitter that power gatedand work wasbeing done province, had come backonline and pieces of the plane were Pontianak in West Kalimantan SafetyCommittee (KNKT) chief plungedintothe Java Sea soon af- sive role” in America. PTI wasbeing restored in phases, to fire up Pakistan’s main Tarbela and powerwas being restored to retrieved. on Saturdaybeforeitdisap- Soerjanto Tjahjono saidthe loca- tertake-offfromSoekarno-Hatta starting with Islamabad. He said powerstation, whichwould lead the transmission system. AP The Boeing 737-500with 62 peared from radar screens four tionsofFlight SJ 182’s twoblack International Airport. REUTERS

FOR YEARS,SHE WORKED ANONYMOUSLY WITHIN THE AGENCY TO HELP SCIENTISTS INTENSIFY STUDIES OF ACHANGING PLANET Inside the CIA, scientist Linda Zall became aspy for planet Earth

is allowedtotalk about —and ad- Theaccumulatedriches included were fast becoming hotspots of then aDemocratic senator from Zallthen focused on how WILLIAMJBROAD mirersarepraisingherhighlyclas- up to sixdecades of primedataon global warming and melting ice. Tennessee and nowaleading cli- Earth’s changing environment JANUARY10 sifiedstruggle to putthe nation’s planetary shifts in snowfall and “It gave us the firstreal meas- mateactivist,wrotealetterasking would mostlikelypromptsecu- spysatellites ontoaradical new blizzards, sea ice and glaciers. urementsoftheicebudget—how the agency to examine whether rityissuesandcrises.Inlate2009, LINDAZALL playedastarringrole job: environmental sleuthing. “Noneof thiswouldhave hap- muchlossyou have from season the nation’s spyfleetmight ad- theCIAsetupaCenteronClimate in US science that ledtodecades “It wasfun,” she said of her CIA penedwithout her,” said Jeffrey K to season,” said DJames Baker, dress environmental riddles. The Change and National Security.Its of majoradvances. But she never career.“It wasreallyalot of fun.” Harris,whoworkedwithZallasdi- whodirectedtheNationalOceanic agencyputZallontothequestion. mission wastohelp US policy- described her breakthroughson Zall’s programme,established rector of the National and Atmospheric Administration Quickly, shesawhow thenation’s makersbetterunderstandtheim- television, or had bookswritten in 1992, wasakind of wayback ReconnaissanceOffice,whichruns from 1993 to 2001 and served on archiveofsurveillance observa- pact of floods, risingsea levels, abouther,orreceivedhighscien- machine that looked to as long the nation’s fleetoforbital spies. Zall’s CIA advisory panel. tions could alsoserve to population shifts,state instabili- tific honours. One database of sci- agoas1960. In so doing, it pro- The top-secret images that In normal science, wherecol- strengthenassessmentsofEarth’s ties and heightenedcompetition entific publications lists hercon- videdanew baseline forassess- Zall succeededinrepurposing Linda Zall at her home in Clermont,Florida. NYT laborators sharecredit,Zall might changing environment. fornatural resources. Newsre- tributions as consisting of just ing the pace and scope of plane- forenvironmental inquiries have beenlistedonpapersasaco- By October 1992, the CIA was portsannouncingtheprogramme three papers,withaconspicuous tary change. Ultimately,itled to came from satellites thatwere author or even alead author.But so confident in theability of spy again made no mention of Zall. gaprunning from 1980 to 2020. hundredsofpapers,studiesand some of Washington’s crown cence plate. lites orbit on north-southpaths notinatwilight zone wheresci- satellites to solve environmental She retired from the CIA in The reasonisthat Zall’s reports —some classifiedtop se- jewels. The spysatellites would An accident of fate letthe fleet that pass close to thepoles. encewaspartopen,partsecret.For mysteries that it establisheda 2013.Medeawasneverthesame. decadesof serviceto sciencewere cret,some public, some by the zeroinonsuchtargets as deadly assess atop environmentalcon- Spies had little use forsweep- decades, hers wasahidden hand. large task force. Zall wasput in The agency shut it down in 2015, doneinthe secretivewarrens of National AcademyofSciences, weapons and render images that cern—theextentto whichvastex- ing Arctic and Antarctic images. Zall’s environmentalism for charge andrecruiteditsmembers, and the Trumpadministration the CIA.Now,at70, she’stelling the premier scientific advisory in some cases were said to be panses of Arctic and Antarctic ice But theydazzledenvironmental- the CIA beganin1990when for- mainly Earth scientists. She made sure therewas norevivalof herstory —atleastthe parts she group to the federalgovernment. good enough to showacar’s li- were retreating. Manyspy satel- ists because the Earth’s poles mer US Vice PresidentAlGore, named her group Medea. the programme. NYT

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THEINDIANEXPRESS,MONDAY,JANUARY11,2021 MarketWatch FPISINVEST `5,156 CR IN EQUITIES NewDelhi: Foreign portfolio investors(FPIs)havepumped Rs 5,156 crore into Indian capital markets in the first six trading 12 ECONOMY sessions this year amid expectations of strong third-quarter earnings andareformist budget. PTI

INSURANCE WATCH PASSENGER VEHICLE SALES SLIDEOVER LAST FIVE YEARS ED CHARGESHEET ON `7,000-CRORE FRAUD PAPERLESS POLICIES Automakersseekreliefonnew ‘Kapoor directed ‘Challenges exist, Yes Bank not to but e-insurance fuelefficiency,emissionnorms recover loans from

said Srivastava,pointing that ad- accounts seeing SANDEEPSINGH herence to newnorms lifts the Cox and Kings’ NEWDELHI,JANUARY10 Pandemicdisruption: costofacquisition. Seekingmoretime WhileIndiahasahugepoten- found that “the bonding andin- 100% growth’ EVEN AS pent-up demand lifted tialforgrowthof PVsales,experts KHUSHBOONARAYAN terdependence”between Kerkar passengervehicle(PV)salesinthe pointtoaslowdown in the pace MUMBAI,JANUARY10 and Khandelwal was“eyecatch- thirdquarterafter it got derailed fortransition of growth of first-time buyers.“If ingandinseparableinallrespect”. GEORGEMATHEW ‘MOSTPOLICIES inthefirstandsecondquartersfol- thepaceof first-timebuyerspicks THE ENFORCEMENT Directorate “InitiallyPeter Kerkar,Anil MUMBAI,JANUARY10 VIAeIAINFUTURE’ lowing the pandemic and lock- SHIFTINGTOCAFE-2and BS-VI stageIIwouldnot onlybe- up, it will lead to higher replace- (ED)hasallegedthatRanaKapoor, Khandelwal andNareshJainand down announcement in March, comemoredifficult forthe auto industryamid thepan- mentdemandandadditionalpur- formerchairmanandco-founder otherassociates were working in THEINSURANCEsectoriswit- theautoindustrycontinuesto lan- demic-leddisruption but also raise costofacquisition.Inthe chase,” said an industryinsider. of YesBankLtd, instructed bank tandem and usedtodivert the nessinga100percentgrowth ■Madhusudhan ML, guish on the growth front. current sales scenario, industryinsiders sayafurther rise in As of now, while first-time officials to notrecoverloans of moneyfromthe companyfor year-on-yearinnewelectronic MD &CEO of NDML, Terming the recent growth in PV acquisition costs forconsumers couldadd to the concerns. buyersaccount foralmost50per Rs3,642crorefromCox andKings their personal use. Around 2018, insurance accounts(eIA), or said in the future, salesasafalseeuphoria,theindus- centof totalsales,24 percentisre- Ltd, even though the defaulting the group startedfacing financial dematting of insurancepoli- mostpolicies would tryhasnowrequestedthegovern- placement demand and the re- travel firm had raised Rs 4,387 difficultiesandinvestigatingagen- cies in the paperless format. be issuedonlyvia an mentto defertheimplementation maining26percentisdemandfor crorefromselling itsUKfirm ciesandregulatorybodiesstarted The number of people open- e-insurance account of fuel efficiencynorms and sec- numbers,industryinsiders say sumer,ittakes up the acquisition additional car purchase. HolidayBreak Education, in interveninginthematteroffinan- ing newstockbroking ac- ■ An e-insurance ond stageofemission norms to thatPVsaleshave suffereddespite costsignificantly. Besides,hightax “Weare stillintheinitialphase January2019, according to the cial irregularities.Once theinves- countsand buying insurance account, or eIA,isthe April2024,inabidto keepthecost adecent GDP growth rate. ratesandrisingservicetaxandin- of economic developmentand statementsgiven by twosenior tigating agencies startedinvesti- policiesonline has soared portfolio of insurance of acquisition stable. “The primaryreason forthat surancecosthasalsotakentheac- thereishugepotentialforgrowth YesBankofficials to theagency. gation,theystartedblamingeach eventhoughmostofficeswere policies of a Industrydatashows that has been the sharp riseincostof quisition costhigher forcus- but we needtoconvert potential These statements areapartof other to save themselves...,” said non-operational due to the policyholder held in while the compoundedannual acquisitionof carsinIndia.Almost tomers,” said Srivastava. intoreality and the costofacqui- theprosecutioncomplaint(charg- the ED complaint. lockdown in the wake of an electronic form growth rate (CAGR) of PV sales 50 per cent of the car buyers in Assalessuffer, theindustryhas sitionhasto betakencareof,”said esheet)filedbyEDintheRs7,000- The ED has arrested Kerkar, Covid-19pandemic. with an insurance stood at 12.9 per centfor the five- Indiaare first-time buyersand nowmadearepresentationto the Srivastava.Hefurther said that crorebankfraudpertainingto the Khandelwal and the company’s “Iforeseeinthenearfuture repository yearperiodbetweenMarch2005 since price elasticity forcar pur- governmenttodefer the imple- companies aredoing their bit to nowbankruptCox andKings.The internal auditor Naresh Jain in wheremostofthe policies andMarch 2010,itfellsharplytoa chase is highinIndia, it is amajor mentation of CorporateAverage reduce the acquisition costbyin- EDhasallegedthatCoxandKings connectionwiththemoneylaun- wouldbeissuedonly through CAGR of 1.3per cent forthe five- factor forslowdown in growth,” Fuel efficiency(CAFE-2) regula- creasing localisation and becom- sold HolidayBreak Education for dering case. It has also been ar- an e-insurance account and thepolicyisnotissued’kindof year period between FY15 and saidShashankSrivastava,ED,sales tions and BS-VI stageIInorms to ingmoreefficientandproductive, £460million afterdefaulting on restedKapoorforallegedly taking we areworking with afew of uncertaintyinmindsof custo- FY20.BetweenFY10andFY15,the and marketing,MSIL. April2024. As of now, the CAFE-2 however, “anotherfactorthatwill loan repaymentstoYes Bank and kickbacksinlieuof grantingloans the largerinsurance compa- mers. While suchchallenges sales rose by 5.9 percent. If rising costofraw materials normsthataimto make carsmore leadtocostreductioniseconom- “siphoned” the saleproceeds. to severalcompanies that have nies in this direction,”said exist,we seetremendoussco- In fact, the CAGR forPVsales is afactor, insiders saythat high fuel efficient areset to come into iesofscale and that will come in Coxand KingsowesRs5,500 nowdefaulted on repayments. MadhusudhanML,MD&CEO, pefortheconceptandaresee- between 2000 and 2010 stood at taxrates and shiftfromBS-IVto effect in 2022 and BS-VI stageII once we see volume growth.” croretobanksand financial insti- Kapoor,whoisinjudicialcustody, NSDL Database Management ing over 100per cent growth 10.3 per cent and that between BS-VIinaquicktimehasliftedthe norms areset to come intoforce Manyinthe industry feel that tutionsanditisoneof thetopbor- has denied these allegations. Ltd(NDML),apartofNational year-on-yearintheadoption,” 2010 and 2020 has been 3.6 per acquisition cost. “In European beginningApril2023. besideslower costofacquisition, rowers of YesBank.The listed The ED probealso found that Securities DepositoryLtd the NSDL chiefsaid. cent. So, clearly the growth rate markets,thetransitionfromEuro “Becauseof pandemicleddis- alargerbaseof carbuyerswillde- travelfirmwassentto bankruptcy between 2004 and 2019,Kerkar (NSDL),thenation’slargest se- He added that Irdai has has sloweddownoverthe last 4toEuro6took 9years, but in ruption, we have requestedthe penduponsustainedhighgrowth court in October 2019,after it de- allegedly diverted Rs 426crore curities depository. mandatedtheissuance of on- decadeand moresooverthe last Indiathe shifthappenedinjusta governmenttodefer the imple- of the economyasthatwill bring faulted on payments. and Rs 71 crorefromCox and The capital market popu- line policies through IR and five years. Though carsalesare period of three years and since all mentation of both Cafe-2 norms in morepeople intothe job cycle TheEDcomplaintagainstCox Kings to itsgroup companies larisedthe dematerialisation currentlyallpoliciessoldthro- closelyrelatedtoGDP growth the costispassed on to thecon- and BS-VI stageII, to April 2024,” who will generatedemand. andKingsanditsarrestedpromo- V-HotelLtd and Tulip Star Hotel of stocks in the twodecades ughinsurancecompanies’on- terAjayAjitPeter Kerkar has alle- Ltd, respectively. andimmenselybenefittedthe lineportalsareissueddigitally gedthatthe topthree customers Asperthechargesheet,Kerkar entireecosystem including throughIRs.“Insurancecomp- of CoxandKings—AKTravel,Hol- has allegedly transferredatleast users to seamlesslytransact. anieshave understoodtheim- AMID COVID idayBreakTravelandWorldwide $15.34millionoutof thesalepro- “Similarly,the Irdai has taken portance and convenience of Travels —operated from theresi- ceedsof HolidayBreakEducation the initiativetowards the cre- eIA and have adoptedvarious 25-30:Numberofpeoplewho Practices that need to be denceof oneof thedirectorsof Liz to KuberInvestment Mauritius ation of an e-insurance ac- strategiestodrive adoption. ‘Cities hit worst, but keyto migratetothecitiesfromrural adopted to realise potential TradersandAgentsPvtLtd,acom- PvtLtd, aMauritius-basedfirm countwithanidea to help Thisproactive non-regulatory areaseveryminute of cities: pany ownedbyKerkar. controlledbyhim. According to users easilyaccess and man- initiative fromafew of thepro- The agency has alleged that the agency,Khandelwal and Jain post-pandemic growth’ Using data to help manage agetheirmultiplepolicies,”he gressive insurancecompanies 25million:Numberof ■ Kerkar,alongwiththefirm’schief have directlysiphonedRs275 cities and direct emergency told The Indian Express. hasyieldedimmediategainin Cities have borne thebrunt of thevirus outbreak,but will be households,i.e.35%ofallurban financialofficer AnilKhandelwal, crorefromCox and Kings to com- operations eIAistheportfolioof insur- terms of operationalefficien- keytopost-pandemic growth as they account fornearly 70% households,whichcannot indulged in circular trading by paniescontrolledbythem. Empowered and capable ancepoliciesof apolicyholder ciesandreductioninprintand of theGDP,astudy by WEF withIDFC Institutesaid affordhousingatmarketprices ■ “purchasingairticketsfromother In April 2019, The Indian heldinanelectronicformwith dispatchcost.” governance group companies of Coxand Express, in aseries of stories, re- an insurance repository(IR). Hsaid all physical policies Doubleblowforvulnerable ■ Investment in transport and Kings andsellingittoanother portedthataforensicauditfound This will help an eIA holder canbeconvertedto electronic populations:Vulnerable infrastructure to fuel group companyEzeegoOne Coxand Kings did related party keep trackofinsurance poli- formatandapolicyholdercan populations,including productive urban economies TravelsandToursLtd,to inflatethe transactions worthRs21,000 cies (lifeaswell as non-life) addtheirexistingpoliciesheld low-incomemigrantworkers, ■ Rethink of outdated booksofaccounts”.“Thepurchase croreoverfouryears(2015-2019) acrossmultipleinsurersinone in physical form to an eIA.“All havesufferedthedualblowsof planning norms and of tickets from Coxand Kings by to siphon offfunds. It also found place. The Insurance Regulat- apolicyholder has to do is lostincomeandweak regulations EzeegowasaroundRs2,000crore that the travel firm had falsified oryandDevelopmentAuthor- openaneIAandsharethepol- social-protectioncoverage and sale to Coxand Kingswas records, bookedsales worth ity of India(Irdai) hasallowed icy details likepolicy number duringthepandemic Source: World Economic Forum/ around Rs 400-500 crore,” said Rs 9,000 croretoover160 cus- four entities to carry out IR andinsurername.Thisiscom- IDFC Institute/PTI the Directorateinits complaint. tomers who arebogus or do not business:NSDLNationalInsu- pletely apaperlessprocessfor The ED said itsprobe has existand inflatedbank balances. rance Repository(NIR), CDSL thecustomeranddoesn’ttake InsuranceRepository, KARVI morethan afew minutes. As Insurance Repositoryand the insurance policy is issued INTERVIEWWITH CFO, TCS CAMS Insurance Repository. in electronic form the hassles FY21: Currency in circulation ‘Apple, Whilethe benefitsofhav- associated with theprocess- ‘Growth momentum inganonlineaccountareobvi- ing of claims forphysical poli- Hyundai ous,somefactorsare affecting cies likeavailability of docu- up 13% in first nine months the adoption of eIA in India. mentstothe nominee, lossin “Awareness about the eIA as a transit,authenticity,mutilated IntheApril-Decemberperiod TheRBIinitsannualreportfor willsustainasdeal set to agree product and itsbenefitstakes document,etc.are elimi- ENSECONOMICBUREAU of FY2020,ithadgrownbynearly 2019-20,releasedinAugust2020, thetopspotasthemajorfactor nated,”Madhusudhanadded. NEWDELHI,JANUARY10 6per cent. hadalsomentionedthatdemand affecting the adoption. Each Currently, 2.9 million cus- AccordingtoCareRatings forcurrencystartedto increasein pipeline is healthy’ EV tie-up’ stakeholderwillhave to take a tomers managetheir insur- THE CURRENCY in Circulation Chief EconomistMadanSabnavis, the wake of heightened uncer- step towardseducating their ance policies with NIR. “The (CiC) grew by around 13 per cent thegrowthincurrencyincircula- tainty causedbythe COVID-19 TATA CONSULTANCYServices respectivecustomers on the eIA helps insurers in saving inthefirstninemonthsof thecur- tion so farinthe current fiscalhas pandemic. (TCS) has reportedastellarset of REUTERS features andbenefitsofeIA,” costs by eliminating the re- rent fiscalaspeople preferred been high as people were accu- The central bank also took a numbersfortheDecember quar- SEOUL,JANUARY10 Madhusudhansaid. quirementof printinganddis- holdingontocashasaprecaution- mulating morecash to meet any series of measures in order to ter, thestrongest growth in last The other challengethat patching thecompletepolicy arymeasureamidtheuncertainty exigency duringthe lockdown. meetthe enhanceddemand. nineyears. VRAMAKRISHNAN, HYUNDAI MOTOR and Apple Inc usuallycomesupisthepercei- kit to the customer through causeddue to the Covid-19pan- “Wheneverthereisacrisis- During the calendar year CFO, TCS, tells SHUBHRA TAN- plan to signapartnershipdeal on vedloss of customer owners- physicalmeans either by post demic. likesituation, thereisatendency 2020,CiCgrew 22.1percent,orRs DONinaninterviewthatthere are autonomouselectriccars by hipby thedistributionecosys- or courier.Acost-benefit CiCgrew by Rs3,23,003crore, forhouseholdsto latchontocash. 5,01,405 crore, to Rs 27,70,315 indicators to suggestthe growth March and startproduction temasissuanceofapolicy analysis conducted by NIR for or 13.2 per cent, to Rs 27,70,315 That is the reason therehas been croreasonJanuary 1, 2021. is sustainable.Edited excerpts: around 2024inthe UnitedStates, digitallyisseenasonelessop- one of the largest insurance croreasonJanuary1,2021from an increase in demand forcash. CiC includes banknotesand VRamakrishnan localnewspaperKoreaITNews re- portunitytointeractwiththe playersshowedareductionof Rs24,47,312 croreasonMarch 31, Whatyouseeisnothingelsebuta coins. At present,RBI issues notes Despitesalaryhikes being portedonSunday. Thereportfol- customer.“Thenistheissueof printanddispatchcostbyover 2020,accordingtorecentdatare- precautionarymotiveover- in denominations of Rs 2, Rs 5, Rs rolledout, margins were lows astatement on Fridayfrom ‘unless Isee aphysical copy, 70,” he said. leasedbythe Reserve Bank of whelming everything,” Sabnavis 10,Rs20, Rs 50, Rs 100, Rs 200, Rs strong... signtheir products, services and Hyundai that it wasinearly talks India (RBI). said. 500and Rs 2,000.WITHPTI Thebiggestfactordrivingmar- supplychain etc. So, it is ongoing withAppleafteranotherlocalme- gins is growth whichwas seen and as important as areasofcost dia outletsaid the companies across verticals. But moreimpor- optimisationanddrivingefficien- aimedtolaunchaself-driving BRIEFLY tantly, theabilityof peopleto work cies.Also,decisionsonbudgetsare electriccarin2027, sendingHyun- Co-operative banks must fearlessly face fromanywherealsoincreasedthe madethroughtheyear.However, dai shares up nearly 20 percent. fungibility. So,if youare drivingef- wherever theyfollow the calen- Hyundai Motordeclined to `6,657-crore ficiencies,theytranslateintogains. daryear as thefinancialyear,itis comment on the reporton inflowingold competition from private ones: Gadkari Also, we continuedtobedisci- onlyinthe next fewmonths that Sunday, andreiterated Friday’s plined in other areas of discre- budgetswill be finalisedand dis- commentsthatithasreceivedre- ETFsin2020 tionaryspending. Currency also cussed,soitisaearly to comment. quests forpotential cooperation wasbenign in the quarter, which fromvariouscompaniesondevel- NewDelhi:Economicdown- EXPRESSNEWSSERVICE is important. The Indian market grew opingautonomousEVs. Apple turndueto coronaviruspan- MUMBAI,JANUARY10 sharply duringthe quarterat had no immediatecomment. demic and weakness in the Will this margin growth about 18 per cent. What were An updatedversionofthe IT US dollar encouraged in- IN ORDER to bolsterthe co-oper- sustain in the coming quarters the levers forthis growth and news reportremoveddetails, in- vestorsto infuseawhopping ative sector,therewillbenoforced as well? is it sustainable? cluding productionlocation and Rs 6,657crore in gold ex- privatisation of co-operative We areseeingthegrowthmo- One has to look at the growth capacityand the timeframe for change-tradedfunds (ETFs) banks, Union Road Transport& mentumandbelieve thiswillsus- number on the backofanear 25 signing the agreement and in2020.Incomparison,anet Highwaysand MSME Minister tain sincethe deal pipeline is per cent decline in Q1 and 5per launchingthe pilot vehicles. inflowofjustRs16crore was Nitin Gadkari said at the Loksatta healthy. The potential is visibleas cent or so in Q2. So, when you The previous version said the seeninthe entire2019. PTI Urban Co-operative Banking multiple industries arefortifying have had suchatrough, the re- companiesplannedtobuild the (UCB) e-conclave,onJanuary7. Union MinisterNitin Gadkari at the LoksattaUrban and reiterating the benefitsof bound is expected to be sharp. cars at Kia Motors’ factoryin Gadkari, who wasthe chief Co-operative Banking e-conclave,Mumbai. Ganesh Shirsekar technologyadoption.Adoptionof Also,businessesinIndiaaremore Georgia, or invest jointlyinanew Niolaunches guestatthe e-conclave,saidthat cloudtoreimagine processes project-drivenand arealways factoryintheUnitedStatesto pro- firstelectric as arepresentative of theCentre withinthecompanyanddrive ef- lumpy.Moreimportantly, some duce 100,000 vehicles around andalsoasarepresentative of the omyofthe countryand the state. to the Banking Regulation Actin TITLE PARTNER ficiencies is alsoonthe rise, so the of the transactional-basedserv- 2024. The full annual capacity of sedanmodel people, he would act as abridge Gadkarifurthersaidthatwhile September2020,bringingco-op- WorldWebSolutions margins should remain resilient. icesliketechnology-basedassess- the proposedplant would be between the co-operative banks privatisation of co-operative erative banks under the supervi- SUPPORTED BY mentsfor multiple competitive 400,000vehicles.KiaMotorsisan Shanghai: Chineseelectric in Maharashtraand the Finance bankshas been discussedsince sion of theRBI. ■ SaraswatCoOpBankLtd. Has the pandemic had an examinations were nothappen- affiliateofHyundai Motor. vehicle(EV)makerNioIncis Ministry, RBI, NABARD and the 1996, neitherthe central govern- Afterthe amendment, in an- ■ UsmanabadJantaSahakariBankLtd. impact on the IT budgetsof inginthe lastfew quarters as ex- The reportalso said Hyundai taking on conventional stategovernment.Headdedthat ment nor the ReserveBank of other circulartoall banks, the ■ AbhyudayaCoOpBankLtd. clients? Arethereany ams were held backdue to the and Apple plannedtorelease a gasoline premium au- co-operative banksmustcompete India (RBI) has ever forcefullyim- bankingregulatorsstatedthatitis ■ TheComo’sCoOpBankLtd. cutbacks? lockdown. That has come back. “betaversion” of theApplecars tomakers from BMW to withprivate banksto make anim- posed it on thebanks. He added imperative thatbankscontinueto ■ ThaneBharatSahakariBankLtd. Technology is in suchaplace Other projectslikeprocessing of next year. Reuters reported last Audi further,launching on pression on lawmakers in Delhi. that co-operative banks must conservecapital to supportthe ■ DombivaliNagriSahakariBankLtd. thatitisnolongerjustanITsolu- passports etc, whichislinked to month that Apple wasmoving Saturdayits firstsedan Theministersaid that co-op- fearlesslyfacetheincreasingcom- economyand absorb losses. tionbutabouthelpingcompanies transactions,theactivityhascome forwardwithautonomous car model as it eyes agreater erative bankshaveenabledthe petitionfromprivate sectorbanks. With the aim of providing a find uses. Firms likeusprovide back.Theopportunitiesare really technologyandaimedtoproduce shareofthe world’s largest commonman to have the finan- In amoveaimedatprotecting platform to discuss theissue, Heads,chairmen,CEO’sof various thosetechnology-ledsolutionsfor good and seeing the uptickinthe apassenger vehicle that could in- carmarket. REUTERS cialbackingto beself-reliant.This, the interest of depositors, the Loksattaorganizedthe‘UrbanCo- UCBs from across Maharashtra business problems,reimagining businessactivity,weare quiteop- clude itsown breakthrough bat- he said, has supported the econ- Parliament passedamendments Operative Banking e-Conclave’. were partofthis e-Conclave. businessmodels,thewaytheyde- timisticongrowth. FE tery technologyasearly as 2024.

Kolkata WWW.INDIANEXPRESS.COM THEINDIANEXPRESS,MONDAY,JANUARY11,2021 SPORT 13 Badminton fixing row: Players tanked Fightforspaceattheheart at Hong Kong, Macau and Lucknow ofCummins-Pujaracontest SHIVANI NAIK JANUARY 10

EIGHT INDONESIANS were sanctionedthis By exploring angles around offstump, pacer has testedtheIndian’s technique week formatchfixing andbetting, in what is known in badminton doubles circles as “nyabon”. In apanel Integrity Unit investiga- SRIRAM VEERA Though he has pace, Cummins tion reportbythe Badminton World JANUARY 10 doesn’t blowawaythe batsman. Federationthat concludedafter eventsdat- ingasfar backas2015, thekingpin of this se- THE ENTIREbattle between PatCummins He alters their reality.Ball by ries of fixedmatches wasnamedasHendra and Cheteshwar Pujarahas narroweddown ball. He is notanoverwhelming Tandjaya (HT). to the smallestreal estate of trouble around forcebut acounterintuitive A32-year-old doublesfloater on the the offstump. Unlikemostbatsmen, Pujara lowercircuit, Hendratold investigators has near-total control over hishands. He explorer of angles, abowler who “nyabon” meant “playing amatchtofix a doesn’t chase balls (the shotinthe has made Pujarafeel notfear, particular result.” Melbourne chase wasanaberration), does- ‘Nyabon’ is inspired eitherfromthe n’t stab at them, doesn’t lethis hands wander but doubt. hornedtabbycat of the videogame ahead or away.The bat is tuckedin, held Bloodstained, lurking in wait to settle a softlytospongeout the venominamisbe- grudge, or simplymeans “sink (a game)” in having ball and is also the lastline of defence when he is slightlywider on the crease. He Sundanese languagefromwestern Java. In the interviewsconductedwith kingpinHendraTandjaya by investigators, ‘nyabon’ in case it tiltsintowards theoff stump. The combines it with his release angle. He then But in the interviews conducted with worth95million rupiah were revealedacross 10 fixedmatches. Representational method has been his childhood friend, but sprinklesinsome finger magic. Unlikesome Hendrabythe investigators, “nyabon” worth Cummins is nowforcing it to betray him. bowlers whose fingers slide down the seam 95 millionrupiah (INR4lakh96thousand) Though he has pace, Cummins doesn’t moreoften thannot,Cummins’s fingerprints were revealedacross 10 fixedmatches, and A32-year-old doubles floater on tigation states: “HT namedand discussed7 blowawaythe batsman. He alters their real- lead one to thewondrous worldof 4playerapproaches were turneddown, re- the lowercircuit, Hendratold other players (notthe subject of this hear- ity.Ballbyball. He is notanoverwhelming MohammadAsif. Theycut the ball in. They portedbywhistleblowers.Hendra admitted investigators “nyabon” meant ing) withwhomhehad engagedinactualor forcebut acounterintuitive explorer of an- rip it out.Significantly, theycan rip it out from to making “20 million rupiahinbetting” con- attemptedmatchfixing with him and oth- gles, abowler who has made Pujarafeel not awider angle of release. vincing compatriots to lose. “playing amatchtofix a ers, or that he knewhad betting accounts.” fear,but doubt. Cummins’ is alabour of crick- It’s notanillusion. The ball actuallydoes Four players neverrespondedtosum- particular result.” ‘Nyabon’ is Sometimes afix would fall through -like eting intelligence, amatter of working out come in the air from thatangle. Pujaraplays moning by the investigation panel, includ- with Aditiya Dwiantoro (AD).“HT had prom- barelyvisible flaws in Pujara, causing inter- the line. The past predictsbad news about ing 41-year-old Ivandi Danang(ID), who inspired eitherfromthe horned isedhim money, but therewas notagood nal injuryratherthan merebody blows. thefuture. Buthecan’t abandon his child- Hendracalled“boss” in the interviews after tabbycat of the videogame market,” the reportreads. At other times, los- It’s notaset-up. It isn’t about slippingin hood method, now. So,hepresses forward confessing to be ropedintofixing by him. Bloodstained, lurking in wait to ing needednoeffort. In his doubles matchat asurprise deviator from the norm;it’s not cautiously, peering across ever so carefully. Danang wasactive on thecircuit in 2010, Vietnam, Dwiantorowas told “toplaynor- about slanting afew balls in and then taking He knows theball will tail out but can’tbe went AWOL in 2013,and resurfacedin2016, settle agrudge, or simplymeans mallybecause Hendra knewADwould lose, one away.Pujaraismade of sterner stuffthan absolutelycertain of it. That angle of release at Hong Kong and Indonesia, whereHendra “sink (a game)” in Sundanese and HT had betonhim to lose.” Prior to the that. The king of patience doesn’t getdis- means the ball can justwaftinalong with is supposedtohavepulledoff twoofhis ear- languagefromwestern Java. tournament, Dwiantorodid notknow tracted so easily.That wasthe attempt in the the line and knockthe pad or the offstump liestfixes. Hendra. “AD neededthe moneybecause his lastseries in Australia. Lessons have been if he isn’t alert. Approaches to the whistleblower(WB) father had died.” learnt. PatCummins has dismissedPujara Cummins adds one final layertothis. He at Scottish Open in November 2015,atNZin Mixed doubles player Fadilla Affni’s (FA) Pujara’s method has one ‘flaw’. The need four timesthis series —caught behind keeps it backoflength to tryand upset August2017and US in July2017, were re- line with Mitra.dotand Temanjudi, wherehe grief waspreyed upon. “She washis mixed to hold the batinsidethe line,onthe off- thrice and at gullyonce. AP file Pujara’s balance. Pujarahas ashortforward buffedand reportedtothe authorities. The held accounts. Hendra(HT) himself had doubles partner in the ChineseTaipei Open stumpline. It’s the fulcrum, the soul of his press and justfreezes therewhen the ball investigation said, “They(whistleblower) slowlybeinglured.“At firstIDhad asked HT 2017 who wasinfinancialdifficulty because technique. The bat is on that line; aball out- is shortoflength. It’s notfreezing out of have known HT since2011through junior to fixhis ownmatches, but HT had declined herparents had died. He had manipulated a side it is allowedtofly pastthe edge due to his tilt. He then layers it withcounterintuitive shockbut an attemptatstillness to holdhis badminton. In November 2015,during the because he did notwanttolet down his matchbut had miscalculated thescore.He abnormal control over his hands. Theydon’t deceptions. balance.When the ball straightens or comes early rounds of theScottish Open, theyre- sponsors. ID setupanonline account to had asked her to score17inthe second set, jerk.The deviating ball can’t land akiss. in, he can tapthem away withoutmuch ceivedtextmessages from HT in whichhe transfer moneytoHT. The account allowed but his betwas for18inthe second set, and Pujaradoesn’t leave as manyballs as M Straight line, latecurve fuss.But Cummins’wider angle means the offered3000 (currency unknown) to lose HT to receive cash from an ATM. He also re- he had lostthe bet. As aresult,FAwas only Vijaydid in his pomp. He likes to feel bat on Conventionally, bowlers come close to straightening is actually aleg cutter in many their firstmatch. The WB declinedand asked ceivedcash from ID in person whichwas paid expenses, but wanted moremoney.” ball, preferring to spongeout trouble rather the stumps when theywant to take the ball ways. HT to nevercontact them again.” usedtobet on badminton(and other sports), Agrippina PrimaHarmantoPutera, son than outright rejection. He has built atech- away.It’s notonlyeasier to bend them away The betrayal starts now. The hip can and he usedtobet with ID. HT also received of former Indonesia coachSigit Pamungkas, nique around that basic urge.His game is to from there, but it also makes it curvelate threaten to open up. The hands starttoitch. Invitation to manipulate moneyintohis ownbank account,” the in- receivedasix-year ban and afine of USD playthe line andhis carefully-constructed from astraight line. But Pujara’s method is Pujara presses hard to keep them in line. But At theUSOpeninJuly2017, Hendraoffered vestigation reveals of their conversations on 3000.Agrippinahad betting accountsand technique allows himtodothat. It lets him built to handle this. The bat will be held in the finger-magic from that angle takesthe AUD3000tolose their firstmixed doubles Line app. Hendraadmitted he hadbet ap- had asked Hendra forinformation about tapthem away,and hold his bat in line when line, and the ball can dink away,and lateat ball justabout away forthe fatalcollision match. ThereafterHendrawould inundate proximately20million rupiah (1 lakh INR) bets.Healso claimedtohaverefusedtomess the ball swings or seams away.Itletshim that. No problem. withthe edge.IfCummins had bowled this themwithmessagesrequestingthesamema- in his firstinterview. with amatchresult. push short-of-length balls to gullyorpoint. Cummins usuallycutsthe ball in when from closer to the stumps, the ball would nipulation.“Inparticular,HTinvitedtheWBto Hendra’s biggestsnarewould be the 2017 Agriprinnawas at the Cipayung National It lets him nourish his urge to playthe line, he goes close to thestumps. Mostbowlit comfortablycut away.Ifhedidn’thavethose secure ascore“under 14 14”atareducedoffer Hong Kong SuperSeries, whereheinduced Training Center and had wontwo titles with without danger.Until now. wider from the stumps and as batsmen it’s Asif-fingers, it would have been blunted by of AUD2500.” At the NewZealandOpen, partner Androw Yunantototankhis opener current WorldNo.1Marcus Gideon from Some have magic in their fingers, some easier to play that angle, but whenithap- the bat on the off-stumpline.Pujarawould Hendra“invitedtheWBto manipulateamatch for10million rupiah (around INR 50,000). A 2011-3. Howeverhis career drifted. “Mymis- areintelligent;bowlerswho combine cere- pens from the stumps, the inward move- still have takenhis batawayfromdanger if by winning 21-16, 21-17.” fixatMacauwould fetchYunantoclose to take is notreporting. HowdoIreport? He bral and physical magic arerare. Cummins’ ment starts lateand the angleistoughtoplay. notfor Cummins’pace. Thereisnotimeto During the investigation, Hendrawould INR73,000.The duo would land up at Syed asked for matchfixing,Idon’twant to.Ithink game is built around making the batsmen Pujara’s game canstill handle this, thoughhe getout. Thereisnowheretogo. Pujara’s real fess up that while he setbetswith compa- Modi tournament in Lucknowand makeINR it’s justenoughtoleave it at that, it won’t be think the ball is goingtocomeinwith the will keep short-leg and the leg-side fielders estate of trouble might be reallytinybut nies, he would receive paymentsfrom 36000 eachfor athree-setloss. this big,” Agrippina told Bola Sports,adding line. LikeJasprit Bumrah, to an extent. His an- ever alert. Cummins’ arthas allowedhim to take over Danang or recoverhis outlaybybettingon- In what points to adeeper rot,the inves- he would appeal. gled release point suggests ahintofinward Cummins usuallygets the ball to go away the property. OVER THE HEDGE by Michael Fry&TLewis CROSSWORD 4324 DAYTODAY BYPETERVIDAL

ARIES (Mar 21 -Apr 20) LIBRA (Sept24-Oct 23) MayIadvise youto In your personal life, keep aclose watch you'reonthe scent on your financial of anew romantic dreams? Today's adventure. major planetarypatterns will Unexpected developments at have an amazing rangeof work have notundermined consequences over the coming your confidence or weeks, but the impact on your commitment. Farfromit. If your emotional and material security professional or worldly seems to be greatest.If ambitions have been dented,I competing foraprize, go suspectthat the real cause lies forbroke. elsewhere, perhaps in your own refusal to take thelead. TAURUS (Apr21-May21) Today's planets push SCORPIO(Oct24-Nov 22) youforward with Today's lunar increasing speed. alignmentsare CALVIN &HOBBES by Bill Watterson Your chances for about the most personal success arenow the intriguing they've best foraverylongtime indeed. been foraverylong time. The Press on with establishedplans news will be exciting, even for by allmeans, butavoid those of youwho areenjoying anything that maylead to placid times. It'sall doubly ACROSS DOWN confrontation or smacks significant if youhavebig, 1Had an aversion to death throes 2Surprise shots in amelee of dishonesty. ambitious plans on the go. (5) (8) Youchoose. 8Preserved meat makes sailor 3Sense there’s agreement GEMINI (May22-June 21) grumble (4,4) among rowing men (8) Youmay imagine SAGITTARIUS (Nov 23 -Dec 22) 9Might be cold yetgood 4Hardy,no; evergreen, yes that youknowwhat All the quite tempered (5) (6) is going on, but you extraordinary 10 Distraught wanderer 5Storestohaulonboard areprobably planetary activity approached(4,4) (5) mistaken. Neverhaveyou been nowtaking place 11 It can turn intoquitealark 6Show; notacelebration (5) so likelytopickupthe wrong must be harnessedand usedto (5) 7Blazing with aloud anger end of the stick. Please take channel your noble, virtuous 12 Somereligiousbiblical (5) proper advice in all legal, andselfless instincts. Youhavea character (3) 12 Time to bend an ear (3) foreign and travel matters, and clear choice whether to go all 16 There’s achangeofname here 13 Aclinging female? (3) that does mean double and out forpersonal interestorto (6) 14 What the investment produces even treble checking. realise that material security is, 17 Anumber finish with an is of some concern in the grand scheme of things, MARVIN by Tom Armstrong CANCER (June 22 -July23) alternative seller(6) (8) purelytemporary. Jupiterand Venus 18 Girlmay appearconfused 15 Task fordomestic science areasbenevolent a CAPRICORN (Dec 23 -Jan 20) (3) students(8) pair of planets as you It's aday of 23 Possiblyrenew, makingmore 19 Repair or mend to getupto could wish to have significant planetary modern (5) date(6) watching over you. Generosity configurations, but 24 Confiscates one thousand 20 Very close to being drunk on your part willwin friends whether youare sterling (8) (5) and impress people, protecting directlyinvolvedindramatic 25 Some lifelong criminal (5) 21 Sometime takentoform words youinthe present and gaining events, or merelyapassive 26 They’reworn with one’s arms (5) youfirm and loyalallies forthe observer,isuptoyou.Itakethe inside (8) 22 Very quietperhaps future. In other words, viewthat the latter is more 27 Post the prize money(5) (5) selflessness and self-interest likely. In other words, you'll be arethe same thing. looking, listening and learning. SolutionsCrossword4323:Across:1Lion’sshare,6Rand,10Sadly,11Nefarious, 12Freewill,13Nadir,15Reredos,17Sleeves,19Insists,21Attache,22Incur,24 LEO (July24-Aug 23) AQUARIUS (Jan 21 -Feb 19) Abortive,27Establish,28Three,29Stye,30Shoreleave.Down:1Lass,2Order With so much Theapproaching arms,3Style,4Hankies,5Raffles,7Aloud,8Distressed,9Transept,14Artificers,16 planetaryactivity lunarpatternsare Describe,18Viceversa,20Slavish,21Another,23Cathy,25Total,26Here. taking place today, among the most you'd do very well to striking to hit your take centre stage.Watch out for signfor agood fewmonths. If flying missiles, though, and you'renot knockedslightlyoff duckifanythingcomes in your course there'll be something JUMBLED WORDS DifficultyLevel5s direction.Preparefor ashiftin wrong,for it means that you're Instructions emotional gear and, while notdirectlyintune with your Givenbelowarefourjumbledwords.Solvethejumblestomakeproperwordsandmovethemto TosolveaSudokupuzzle, you'reatit, getintouchwith stars. You'll be backinthe someonewho is waiting to hear saddle by the endofthe week. therespectivesquaresbelow.Selectthelettersintheshadedsquaresandjumblethemtoget everydigitfrom1to9 4348 theanswerforthegivenquip. mustappearineachofthe from you. Whobeginstoomuch____little-GermanProverb(12) PISCES (Feb 20 -Mar 20) nineverticalcolumns,in VIRGO(Aug24-Sept23) Ahelpful eachoftheninehorizontal Iamsurethat you relationship RSAEO CALTIC 4349 rowsandineachofthe have been put out, between the Sun and nineboxes. pushed around and Mercuryisonlyone

SUDOKU generallyhad of aseries of benevolent your interests ignored,but then planetary alignments which is HUISS EGLHMP DifficultyLevel that's all partoflife's rich causing youtothink tapestry. This is no time to again. There'll probablybea

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Kolkata WWW.INDIANEXPRESS.COM THEINDIANEXPRESS,MONDAY,JANUARY11,2021 SPORT 14 BCA to write BRIEFLY to BCCI Adrenalinerushendsminiclassic Serena,Osakatojoin about Hooda’s topmeninAdelaide Rohit looked in totalcontrol in second innings, before amoment of indiscretion brought about his downfall Sydney:Serena Williams and Naomi Osaka will join Rafa Nadal and Novak ‘misconduct’ Djokovic in playing apre-Australian SANDIPG SCORECARD Open warm-up exhibition in Adelaide JANUARY10 afterserving their quarantine in the AUSTRALIA VS INDIA DEVENDRAPANDEY South Australian city,Tennis Australia MUMBAI,JANUARY10 LESS THAN 15 minutes and three overs be- SYDNEY CRICKET GROUND (TA) said on Saturday. The “A Dayat fore stumps, Rohit Sharma lethis instinct Toss: Australia, chose to bat the Drive”event will take place at the BARODA ALL-ROUNDER Deepak Hooda has conquer his reasoning. He wheeledawaya AUS1ST INNINGS 338 city’s Memorial Drive Tennis Centre been pulledupfor 'misconduct' and 'walking pull shotintothe deep shadows on his leg- IND 1STINNINGS 244 on Jan. 29, aweek before the delayed away from responsibility' by the CEO of the side, wherepouncedMitchell Starc, seem- AUS2ND INNS 312/6d (o/n 103/2) Grand Slam gets underwayat statecricket association on Sunday. Aday ear- ingly out of nowhere, to complete acatch, MLabuschagnecsub(Saha)bSaini 73 Melbourne Park. lier,Hooda had written to the Baroda Cricket sliding on his knees, to end the Indian (118b,9x4) Association (BCA) to inform them about his opener’s mostfluent outing outside Asia till SSmithlbwbAshwin 81(167b,8x4,1x6) unavailability because captain Krunal Pandya date. The latewicket pushedIndia to 98/2 at MWadecsub(Saha)bSaini 4(11b,1x4) 80%wantOlympics had repeatedly abusedhim in front of other stumps, afterAustralia had setthem adaunt- CGreencsub(Saha)bBumrah 84 cancelledordelayed: playersandstoppedhimfromtraining.Hooda ing 407for avictory. (132b,8x4,4x6) has steppedout of the bio-bubble since. Itwasacruelendto aknockthatpromised TPainenotout 39(52b,6x4) Japanesesurvey In an email to Hooda, BCAchief executive so muchmore. Sharma wasinutter control ■ Extras (b1,lb4,nb3) 8 officer (CEO) Shishir Hattangadi said the issue fromthemomenthestrodeout.Hisdiscretion ■ FoW:1-16(Pucovski,5.5ov),2-35(Warner, Tokyo:About80%of peopleinJapansay of Hooda walking out of the team, though he and judgement stood out;therewereno 9.2ov),3-138(Labuschagne,46.1ov),4-148 this year’s TokyoOlympics should be wasvice-captain,andgoingto themediawould fringesof extravaganceorindulgence,nothing (Wade,48.6ov),5-208(Smith,67.4ov),6-312 cancelledordelayedasworriesmount betakenupwiththeBoardofControlforCricket outrageous or out of the world, nothing that (Green,86.6ov) about arecordsurge in coronavirus in India and the IPL governing council. troubledhim even fleetingly.But in the mid- ■Bowling:JBumrah21-4-68-1;MohdSiraj25- casesacrossthecountry, aKyodoNews "Thereisnoteam that doesn't have differ- dle of this dreamyknock, kickedinmomen- 5-90-1,NSaini16-2-54-2,RAshwin25-1-95-2 poll showedonSunday. The survey ences but to walk away and talk to the media tarymisjudgement,orasplit-secondstreakof found35.3%wanttheGamesto becan- giving onlyyour side of the storyisacase of carelessness. When instinct overpoweredac- INDIA 2ND INNS 98/2 (Target407) celledand 44.8% favoured another de- seekingunwarrantedpublicityandputtingself quired wisdom without anyapparent tussle. RSharmacStarcbCummins 52 lay. The world’s biggestmulti-sports before the game," Hattangadi wroteinthe The pull is to Rohit Sharma what afore- (98b,5x4,1x6) event,postponedlastyear,isscheduled email to Hooda. The CEO also mentionedthat hand chip is to RogerFederer.Hecould play SGillcPainebHazlewood 31(64b,4x4) to be held from July23-Aug. 8inthe he had had awordwith the IPL team Hooda the stroke with his eyes blindfoldedorlegs CPujaranotout 9(29b,1x4) Japanese capital. Prime Minister plays for(Kings XI Punjab). bound in chains. PatCummins’ shortball ARahanenotout 4(14b) Yoshihide Sugadeclared astate of "Ihave hadachatwithyourfranchiseeand pausedinthe air afterlanding on middle and ■ Extras (lb1,nb1) 2 emergencyforthegreaterTokyoregion Ihaveenough reason to decipher that we will leg as if imploring Sharma to pull it intothe ■FoW:1-71(ShubmanGill,22.1ov),2-92(Rohit on Thursdayand could extend the makesurewewritetothe BCCI of your mis- shadows in the fine-leg region. Sharma Sharma,30.2ov) measuretootherareas as Japan strug- conduct... Afterthe feedbackfromthe team swayed his body atrifle, got under the ball ■Bowling:MStarc6-0-27-0,JHazlewood8-3- gles to contain asurge in infections. management(andothers)Ihavereasonto be- and swivelled. Everything about the stroke 11-1,PCummins9-1-25-1,NLyon9-3-22-0,C Suga’s supportratehas tumbledsince lieve we will take up this matter as seriously wasprecise, exceptfor the placement. Green2-0-12-0 he took office in September. REUTERS withintheassociationaswe willwiththeBCCI Sharmagave adisbelievingstare.Whenhe Beforegetting out for52, Rohit Sharma wasuntroubledinhis 98-ball sojourn. AP Day5: LiveonSonySportsNetwork,5am and the IPL Governing Council." walkedbacktothepavilion,hewouldhave re- Hooda'scommitmentto theteamwasalso playedthat shotseveral times in his head and Messi,Griezmann questionedinthe email. cursedand cussedhimself. At the untimeli- abit and de Villiers took asliding catch, run- Those were momentswhen Sharma balls in the corridor.The bounce wasvari- netfourforBarca "By walking away from aresponsibility of ness of the stroke,atthe imprecision of the ningnearly 20yards.Butherehehadonlyhim- could have stampedhis undisputed quality able, so he ditchedhis staple on-the-rise vice-captaincyandleavingtheteambecauseof shot, at the sheer consequence of the stroke, self to blame. Forthe Cummins’ delivery had on matches, stabilisedhis role in the side, and drives, and instead leant intofuller deliveries. Barcelona:Lionel Messi and Antoine adifference youhavesent out amessagethat or at the inconsequence of that delivery.He little zip or zing, and Starchad to makeonlya silencedthe critics. Yet, those knocks ended Starcwas treated to abrace of gorgeous cover Griezmann eachscored twice as youholdyourself above theteamandthatem- had time to duck, space to leave,orhecould couple of steps. It wasneither aloose ball, nor up as case studies of self-inflicted doom. drivesinanover. The firstwas ahalf-volley Barcelona thrashedGranada 4-0 away bodiesyourattitudeandcommitmentto your have glideditfiner,asheoften does, he could aloose shot. It wasjustthe wrong shotatthe Thereissomething inherentlytragic about a outside off-stump, whichhejustcoaxed on Saturdaytowin athirdconsecutive team," the email stated. have rolledhis wrists over it and kept it along wrongtime.Inthatsense,Sharma’sdeparture batsman consistentlydefeating himself, through the covers. Forthe next, his front- La Ligagame forthe firsttime this sea- "As an association and being custodians of the ground. He could have done anything but seemedpredestined. when his owninstinctsconspirehis down- foot glidedout, before his hands justbrush- son. Griezmann openedthe scoring in thisgame,wewillfollowazero-tolerancepol- flayitstraight intothe hands of the fielder.An fall. Thereisnoalluretofailure. strokeditthrough extracover.Inthe next the 12th minutewhile Messi struck icy on issues," Hattangadi, aformer Mumbai opportunity to ascertain his overseas creden- Instances of indiscretion Yet, Sundayatthe SydneyCricket Ground over,Sharma emphaticallypulledCameron twice before the break to makeitfour batsman further,wrote. tials slippedthrough his hands. Suchfleeting momentsofindiscretion wasanother moment when it seemedthat Green forasix. The brutal and the graceful, in goalsinhislasttwo matchesandgo top OnSaturday, inanemailsentto BCA,Hooda It wasnot the firsttime though that his define his overseas career.Hecould rattle out no one else but Sharma could defeat Sharma. the space of sevenballs. of the league's scoringcharts with 11 made aseries of allegations againstPandya. favouritestrokehas forsaken him in acrucial quiteafew suchinstances. The return catch Forhewas utterly untroubledinhis 98-ball Gill’s departuresaw Sharma embrace a goals. Frenchforward Griezmann "Atthis moment, Iamdemoralised, de- hour of his career or amatch. Memoryrolls to Nathan Lyon in Adelaide 2014.The at- sojourn. He, or his opening partner Shubman moredefensive approach. Apartfromthe scoredasecondgoalafterhalftime.The pressedandunderpressure...atleastfromlast backtothemorningof theCenturionTest three temptedslash offShane Watson in Brisbane, Gill, wasundaunted by the monstrous score flickedfour offLyonthat ushered in his half- win put Barcelona four pointsbehind couple of days,myteam captain Mr Kurnal years ago, when he wasbatting fluidlyon47, the under-edged sweep in Sydney, or the Australia had setthem to chase, striking a century, he kept risksaloof. He seemedin- leadersAtleticoMadrid.Second-placed Pandiyahas been abusing languagetomein chasing 287, and attempted to hook Kagiso mosthideous of all, the heave offLyon, in- fine balance between attackand defence. clinedtobat out the dayand had he man- Real Madrid were one point behind front of my teammates and also other states' RabadaandendeduplobbingacatchtoABde tendedtoplungeintothe Torrens riverout- Sharma had lotoftime to hang backatthe aged it, India would have sparkedfaint hopes Atletico afterbeing held at Osasuna to teams who have come forparticipation at Villiers at fine-leg. At least, he could console side the Adelaide Oval but nestledinthe crease and defend. His footwork wasprecise, of afourth-innings heist. But that wasnot to 0-0. AFP Reliance stadium Vadodara," Hooda wrote. himself thinkingthatRabadahadhurriedhim hands of mid-wicket,in2018. hands soft, and he did notreachout forthe be,ashis instinct conquered his reasoning.

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