India Records Largest Single-Day Spike of 1752 Cases

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NEARBY India must Total lockdown in 5 T.N. India records largest single-day be self-reliant, says Modi cities from tomorrow 72 persons test positive on Friday spike of 1,752 cases; toll hits 723 special correspondent NEW DELHI MHA terms situation in Chennai, Hyderabad, Ahmedabad and Surat ‘serious’ Prime Minister Narendra CM writes to Kejriwal on Modi on Friday said the treatment for T.N. people special correspondent biggest message arising out CHENNAI NEW DELHI of the COVID-19 pandemic Chief Minister Edappadi K. Over nine lakh persons are was that the country Palaniswami wrote to his under active COVID-19 sur- should be self-reliant and Delhi counterpart Arvind Kejriwal on Friday, urging the veillance in India, the Union self-su"cient for the ma- latter to instruct the Health Ministry said on Fri- jority of its needs. This was authorities concerned to day, as the total number of necessary if the nation extend best possible care to cases reached 23,452. The faced such a crisis again, 559 persons from Tamil Nadu death toll stood at 723. he pointed out. who attended the Tablighi The country registered Mr. Modi was addressing Jamaat event and have been another biggest single-day sarpanches from across quarantined/hospitalised in spike with over 1,752 positive the country through video- the national capital. COVID cases since Thursday. conference on Panchayati TAMIL NADU Ī PAGE 2 India currently has 17,915 ac- Raj Day, when he launched DDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDD tive cases, while 4,813 peo- e-GramSwaraj, for moni- More recovered cases ple have recovered, which toring of rural infrastruc- than active ones in T.N. puts the recovery rate at ture works and e-gover- CHENNAI 20.57%, Joint Secretary in nance, and Swamitva For the !rst time, the number the Health Ministry Lav programme, which in- of recovered cases in the Agarwal said. volves mapping rural hous- State nudged ahead of the Separately, the Ministry of ing and land holdings via number of active cases on Home A#airs (MHA), in a technology, including Friday. A total of 114 persons statement, said the situation drones. Special Correspondent restrictions will remain in who had recovered from in emerging and major hot- “The global coronavirus CHENNAI place,” he said. However, COVID-19 were discharged spots, including Ahmeda- pandemic has created an A complete lockdown that some essential services on Friday, taking the tally to bad, Surat, Hyderabad and unprecedented crisis but it would see the closure of would be permitted. 866. The number of active has also given important shops, including grocery Later in the day, District cases stood at 864 in the messages with regard to stores, will be enforced in Collectors of Kancheepu- State. the way we have lived so Chennai, Coimbatore and ram, Chengalpattu and Tiru- TAMIL NADU Ī PAGE 2 DDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDD Chennai, is serious. The to Gujarat, Telangana and cases. The nationwide death the last 14 days,” Mr. Agarwal far. The most important Madurai from 6 a.m. on Sun- vallur announced that the statement added that viola- Tamil Nadu to assess the sit- toll was 781, an increase of 62 said. message from this pan- day to 9 p.m. on Wednes- complete lockdown would Govt. raises ₹6,560 crore tions of lockdown measures uation. fatalities since Thursday. Reiterating that the lock- demic is that we need to be day. This will be more in- be imposed in certain areas through bond sale reported in some parts of the IMCTs are already in The Health Ministry said down had helped India keep self-reliant. This self-re- tense than the current of their respective districts CHENNAI country pose a serious Mumbai and Pune in Maha- there were 15 districts that its COVID-19 numbers low, liance should be at the vil- lockdown to contain the CO- which are adjoining the The Tamil Nadu government health hazard to the public rashtra, Indore in Madhya have not reported any fresh Chairman of the Empowered lage, district, state and na- VID-19 pandemic. Greater Chennai Corpora- has raised ₹6,560 crore through sale of bonds known and may lead to the spread Pradesh, Jaipur in Rajasthan case since the past 28 days. Group-1, V.K. Paul, noted tional level in terms of our Chief Minister Edappadi tion for four days. as State development loans of COVID-19. and Kolkata and Jalpaiguri in These include three new dis- that this “big decision has needs and our ability to sa- K. Palaniswami announced Meanwhile, 72 persons from March 30 till April 21, Speaking at the daily press West Bengal. tricts — Durg and Rajnand- proved to be very timely and tisfy them within our own on Friday that Salem and Ti- tested positive in the State, according to data from brie!ng, Joint Secretary in According to reports from gaon in Chattisgarh and Shiv- bene!cial.” country. We should not ruppur would face a com- taking the total to 1,755. The Reserve Bank of India. the MHA Punya Salila Sri- the State Health Depart- puri in Madhya Pradesh. look to other countries to plete lockdown from Sun- total number of deaths TAMIL NADU Ī PAGE 2 vastva noted that the Centre ments, the total number of “Further, 80 districts from CONTINUED ON Ī PAGE 8 satisfy our needs,” he said. day to Tuesday. “In all areas stood at 22. DDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDD has sent !ve new Inter-Minis- cases in the country stood at 23 States/UTs have not re- MORE REPORTS ON Ī PAGES 2,3,4,5, other than these municipal METROPLUS WEEKEND Ī 4 PAGES terial Central Teams (IMCTs) 24, 485, with 18,257 active ported any new cases since 8, 9, 10 & 11 CONTINUED ON Ī PAGE 8 corporations, the existing CONTINUED ON Ī PAGE 8 Uttar Pradesh to bring back Ranil calls for regional migrant workers in phases cooperation

CM instructs Meera Srinivasan o!cials to prepare COLOMBO The SAARC Secretariat a working plan should play an active role in the region’s response to Special correspOndent COVID-19, along with “so- Lucknow meone in-charge”, accord- Uttar Pradesh will bring ing to Sri Lanka’s former back migrant workers Prime Minister Ranil Wick- stranded in other States and remesinghe. have completed 14 days of “I don’t know if it can be quarantine in a phased man- handled from Kathmandu ner. Chief Minister Yogi Adi- Testing times: A health worker checking the temperature of a alone. If you can, well and tyanath on Friday instructed woman at a food distribution point in Noida on Friday. * PTI good. But you may need o"cials to prepare a work- another city. It can be Ben- ing plan and come up with cials to make preparations Congress leader Priyanka galuru, Colombo, any city,” details, his o"ce said in a for keeping the migrants un- Gandhi Vadra. “I have been he said on Friday. statement after a high-level der 14 days of quarantine in pressing this issue and this is “This is a good time for a meeting. their respective districts and a signi!cant step in that di- regional cooperation pro- “After screening and test- to sanitise and vacate shelter rection. To make this fully gramme. This is a global ing such people, the con- homes well in time. successful, a plan must be pandemic without a global cerned State government Additional Chief Secre- made for the return of other leadership. Maybe the re- should start the process of tary, Home Department, workers. If all of us cooper- gion can’t provide leader- sending them back. After Awanish Awasthi, said the ate with a positive attitude in ship for all. But the !rst vir- they are brought to the Uttar Chief Minister had instruct- national interest, then the tual meeting of SAARC Pradesh borders, the State ed o"cials to send back mi- !ght against coronavirus will leaders was good, looking government will transport grants of other States who get a lot of strength,” she at the background and the them to their districts by had completed 14 days of tweeted in Hindi. problems that are there.” bus,” said the government. quarantine in Uttar Pradesh. Mr. Adityanath asked o"- The move was praised by CONTINUED ON Ī PAGE 8 INTERVIEW ON Ī PAGE 11 COVID-19 rocks Ramanagaram prison District loses green zone tag after 5 from Padarayanapura test positive in jail

Special Correspondent have to be quarantined. All BENGALURU 30 o"cials at the Ramanaga- The Karnataka government ram District Prison will be faced embarrassment as well quarantined based on the as political heat on Friday as advice of the District Health !ve of the 121 persons, who O"cer (DHO), said Director had been shifted to Rama- General of Police, Prisons, nagaram district jail after Karnataka, Alok Mohan. they allegedly indulged in The family members of vanadalism in Padarayanap- the prison sta# told Mr. ura in Bengaluru last week, Kumaraswamy that, “The tested positive for COVID-19. prison o"cials were not gi- While the patients have been ven any protective gear like shifted to a government hos- Virus impact: Inmates being shifted from the Ramanagaram PPE suits. They were only gi- pital, others were shifted to prison on Friday. * SPECIAL ARRANGEMENT ven masks and forced to inte- the Haj Bhavan in ract with the inmates Bengaluru. Bengaluru having tested pos- sembly constituency falls in brought from a COVID-19 hit There was palpable anger itive, Ramanagaram has lost Ramanagaram district, area in Bengaluru.” in Ramanagaram against the out on bene!ts allowed to squarely blamed the State Medical Education Minis- State government for lodging rural industries in green government for the district ter K. Sudhakar, in-charge of those undertrial in the dis- zones of being able to res- losing out its green zone COVID-19 in the State, said trict, which hitherto had ume operations. The relaxa- status. the decision to lodge the ac- earned the distinction of be- tions were announced ear- The episode also meant cused from the a#ected ing a green zone with no lier in the day. that 62 police and prison of- areas in Bengaluru in a green case of COVID-19. Former chief minister H. !cials have been designated zone could have been With the undertrials from D. Kumaraswamy, whose As- as primary contacts and will avoided. CM A CH-CHE YK EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEERecently, Prime Minister of India proposed to set up a SouthEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE Asian Association of Regional Cooperation THE HINDU (SAARC) Emergency Fund ($10 million) and formation of a Rapid Response Team (of doctors, specialists,CHENNAI 2 TAMIL NADU SATURDAY, APRIL 25, 2020 EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEtesting equipment and attendant infrastructure) in order to EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEcombat Covid-19.

Though, this initiative may or may not fully succeed in eradicating the epidemic, in a densely-populated South 72Asia new which has cases very poor in public T.N.; health Chennai awareness andsees infrastructure. surge However,CM urges this may Kejriwal have prompted to take the Sreactivationtate reports two deaths; and 6,426revival samples of testedthe SAARC. on Friday; 10 districts register fresh cases care of 559 event attendees Special Correspondent CHENNAI Palaniswami cites complaints from those housed in Delhi TheProblems total number of faced CO- by SAARC nations vis-a-vis Coronavirus VID-19 cases in Tamil Nadu Special Correspondent increased to 1,755*, with CHENNAI another 72 persons testing Chief Minister Edappadi K. positiveThe on MaldivesFriday. Chennai and Sri Lanka highlighted the massive economic impact ofPalaniswami the dramatic wrote to his decline of tourism that accounted for more than counterpart in Delhi, Arvind 70%is ofa the major fresh cases source re- of revenue and employment. Kejriwal, on Friday, urging ported, taking its total case the latter to instruct the countLand-locked to 452. Afghanistan is struggling to cope with the open border withauthorities virus-infected concerned to ex- Iran and Pakistan’s Two more persons died of tend the best possible care COVID-19decision in the State. to A 70- close the border through which much of the nation’s trade ﬂowsto 559 persons occur. from Tamil year-old woman who tested Nadu who attended the Ta- positiveApart and was from admitted tothis, many SAARC countries share borders with China, the placeblighi Jamaat where event and have the virus originated. the Government Rajaji Hos- been quarantined/hospital- pital,Also, Madurai, the on April population 21, density in Indian subcontinent is very high, so thereised are in the nationalmore capital. chances of rapid died at 1 a.m. on Friday. A 67- Mr. Palaniswami also Government doctors return after checking on a patient at his year-oldtransmission man, a resident of of infection. sought necessary medical residence in T.Nagar on Friday. * B. VELANKANNI RAJ Chennai, was admitted to assistance to those su#ering theIdea Rajiv Gandhiof SAARC Govern- from co-morbid conditions. Sultanpuri and Narela. the District Magistrates con- ment General Hospital on The patients discharged the Directorate of Public vallur, and one each in Kan- nal orders of the Tamil Nadu In his letter, Mr. Palanis- “The individuals have cerned, requesting neces- April 14. He died at 5.45 a.m. include 38 patients from the Health and Preventive Medi- cheepuram, Salem, Tenkasi, Medical Services Corpora- wami listed the details of the been complaining that some sary action, the Chief Minis- on April 22. His samples have Coimbatore ESI Medical Col- cine, 13 persons who have Tiruvannamalai and Virud- tion — 145 lakh triple-layer hospitals and quarantine of them are diabetic and ter said. returnedIn 1980's positive for the CO- idealege Hospital, of 17 SAARCfrom the Go- t estedwas positive initiated in the State byhunagar. General Ziam asks,Ur 37 Rehman lakh N95 masks, 21 ofc entres,Bangladesh, where the 559 indi- whichsu#er from co-morbidities.resulted in the ﬁrst VID-19, according to state- vernment Vellore Medical are primary persons, and the A total of 6,426 samples lakh PPEs and three lakh RT- viduals were quarantined or They are not provided time- Ramadan month msummitents issued by the of Health theCollege seven Hospital leadersand 16 from d epartmentof the has clariregion"ed that winere tested1985. today, takingLater, the P CRAfghanistan kits, an o!cial added. joinedtreated and in said 2007. that the However,ly meals at quarantine in facili- the“I requestnearly you to instruct35 the Department. the Karur Medical College detailed investigation was total number of samples test- The Madras Medical Col- State government had been ties. One Thiru. Muhammed authorities concerned to ex- yearsWith this, the of State its has re- existence,Hospital. SAARCunder has way. Thenot remaining livede dup so far to 72,403. its promiselege and of the Rajivregional Gandhi receivingintegration. a number of grie- Mustafa Hajiyar, who was in tend the best possible care ported a total of 22 deaths Of the 72 new patients, 52, were contacts of COVID-19 Government General Hospi- vances with regard to the quarantine, expired on Wed- for the quarantined/hospi- due to COVID-19. As of date, including 17 women, were in patients. Protective gear tal were part of a multi-cen- conditions of their stay. nesday morning,” Mr. Pala- talised individuals and also there are a total of 864 active Chennai. Six of them were According to o!cials of the tric trial for convalescent niswami pointed out. provide necessary medical casesSouth in Tamil Nadu.Asia is theaged between world’s 10 and 20. least integrated region;Health Department, less than the plasma 5% therapy. of Anthe o!cial tradeGrievances of SAARCreceived countriesWhenever such grievanc- is within.assistance to those su#ering The number of persons An o!cial of the Health State has a present stock of said the institute was select- While 183 persons were un- es were received from qua- from co-morbid conditions,” beingA South discharged fromAsian hos- D epartmentFree Trade said that pa- Zone, which was6 8agreed lakh triple-layer on masks, in 5 2006,ed for the has trial being not con- beendergoing materialised treatment at AIIMS rantined/hospitalised yet. indivi- he said. pitals is on the rise. Friday tients in Chennai included A total of 10 districts have lakh N95 masks and 3.6 lakh ducted by the Indian Council Jhajjar Hospital, RGSS Hospi- duals, the Principal Resident “As the Ramadan month aloneThe saw 11419th persons SAARC walk six front summit, line workers and 22 scheduledreported fresh cases. to Apart be pheldersonal protectivein Islamabad equip- of Medical in Research. November The tal, LNH 2016, Hospital andwas DDU postponedCommissioner in Tamil after Na- is duethe to start, the authori- out of various hospitals contacts of front line work- from Chennai, there were se- ment (PPE). There are a total other centres are AIIMS and Hospital, another 376 indivi- du House, Delhi, has been ties may be asked to provide acrossterrorist the State. This hasattacks ta- ers who in had Uri; already testednoneven haspatients beenin Coimbatore, heldof 1.2since lakh RT-PCR then. testing the Jawaharlal Institute of duals were under quaran- taking up the issue with the food and medicine to them ken the total number of per- positive for COVID-19. four in Madurai, two each in kits. Postgraduate Medical Educa- tine in centres in Badarpur, Health and Family Welfare at appropriate times,” he ad- sonsWhy discharged SAARC to 866. failed?As per a bulletin issued by Ramanathapuram and Tiru- These were from the origi- tion and Research. Dwarka, Bakkarwala West, Department in Delhi or with ded.

HCLMost Tech of the smallerT.N. raises states ₹and6,560 external cr. players believe that the India-Pakistan conﬂictDMK has undermined accuses AIADMK roped in for Recovered patients nudge ahead SAARC. through bond sales of ‘hijacking’ canteens dataThe support reasons for a dysfunctional SAARC: of active cases for the !rst time SpecialBilateral Correspondent issuesAuctions cannot held between be discussed Mar. 30 and Apr.in 21SAARC but since the organisation relies on the principleParty seeks framing of unanimity of fair scheme CHENNAI Number of persons discharged so far stands at 866 Tamilfor Nadu all has major tied up decisions,Sanjay Vijayakumar Pakistan has often vetoed the major initiatives proposed at SAARC.Special Correspondent For example, with HCL Technologies to CHENNAI CHENNAI setSAARC up a state-of-the-art Motor Dis- T Vehiclehe Tamil Nadu Agreement govern- proposed at Kathmandu summit, 2014. The DMK on Friday peti- aster Management - Data ment has raised ₹6,560 tioned Chief Secretary K. AnalyticsFor Center,India, as part ofPakistan’scrore through theuse sale of terror as an instrument of foreign policy has made normalShanmugam business and the Muni- impossible. strengthening its e#orts to bonds, known as State Deve- cipal Administration De- "ghtDispute the COVID-19 betweenlopment Pakistan Loans, between and Afghanistan over the Durand line, is also a reason. partment, accusing the rul- pandemic. March 30 and April 21, ac- ing AIADMK of “hijacking” Also,HCL is also India’s helping im- economiccording to data from positionthe Re- vis-a vis other SAARC countries, creates an impressionAmma of Unavagams India for beingderiv- a big prove and expand the serve Bank of India. ing political mileage out of State’sbrother disaster manage- rather Tthanhe State sold a thestrategic bonds partner. the COVID-19 lockdown. ment helpline (1070) with various tenures, in the The party sought the People queue up at an Amma throughLack technological of Trust up- binackdrop Indo-Pakistan of revenue collec- An eatery relations: in Chennai o!ers After the deadly terror attack on the Indian securityframing of a transparent, forcesCanteen at Uri in Thirumangalam. in gradation, manpower as- tion taking a hit and an in- discounts to front line open and fair scheme of par- * K. PICHUMANI sistance2016, and eIndia#ective re- refusedcrease in expenditure to engage owing workers. with * B. VELANKANNI the RAJ SAARC. ticipation of public and pol- porting mechanisms, to the lockdown. The bonds itical parties interested in canteens in Villivakkam, Ko- accordingSince to a statement.then, thewere SAARC sold through has public becomecause there was aalmost rush from marginal to the regions' collective consciousnessbearing the costand of food other sold lathur, Egmore, Harbour The data analytics auctions conducted by RBI. States to borrow. The total at Amma Unavagams, just as and Thiru-vi-ka nagar. centre,organisations housed in Ezhila- suchT.N. raised as ₹560 the crore Baynoti" ofed amount Bengal of bond Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economicthe AIADMK was Cooperation bearing “On the contrary, when gam building, Chepauk, through sale of bonds with a sales was ₹37,500 crore and the cost of the food sold at our party leader M.K. Stalin and(BIMSTEC) supported by HCL, will cametenure of into7 years and the an in- forefront.accepted amount was Pon Vasanth B.A. (1,755*) have now been dis- a day — the highest number the canteens in some gave a letter through Sekar help capture data trends terest rate of 7.25% on ₹32,600 crore in that auc- CHENNAI charged in Tamil Nadu. Ac- until then. Of the 866 per- localities. Babu on April 14, seeking from across districts, in March 30. The interest rate tion, according to research For the "rst time since the cording to the latest data pu- sons who have recovered, The DMK also urged the permission to bear the cost real time, and display them spiked to 7.75%, when the "rm Motilal Oswal. Howev- number of COVID-19 cases blished by the Union 808 were discharged in the government to open more of food sold in the Kolathur liveShould to inform the India govern- continueState raised ₹2,000 to crore neglecter, the rates SAARC softened as the overbegan BIMSTEC? to rise in Tamil Nadu, Ministry of Health and Fami- last 11 days, with a daily aver- Amma Unavagams across constituency, to the Zonal ment’s future decisions on through bonds with tenure number of bond issuances the number of recovered ly Welfare, among States age of 73. the State. o!cer Zone VI, no reply has the degree of response of 10 years on April 7. A came down to ₹13,100 crore cases in the State nudged with at least 50 cases, only In the petition, R.S. Bha- been given till today,” he needed for each district further ₹2,000 crore was and ₹7,600 crore during the ahead of the number of ac- Kerala and Haryana have re- Stopping growth rathi, DMK organisation se- said. He said the sudden de- andThe the graded two relaxation organisations—SAARCraised through sale of bonds auctions and on April BIMSTEC—focus 13 and tive cases on Friday. onp ortedgeographically more than 50% reco- In aoverlapping pandemic with a low regions.cretary, said that However, the Grea- cision tothis hand over Amma of the current lockdown with a tenure of 9 years and April 21, it added. A total of 114 persons who vered cases. The total num- mortality rate like COVID-19, ter Chennai Corporation Unavagams “by the illegal restrictionsdoes tonot resume make eco- an them interest rate equal of 7.5% on alternatives.Motilal Oswal also said had recovered from CO- ber of cases in these two the number of recovered Commissioner received decisions of municipal auth- nomic activities, it added. April 13. that the Central government VID-19 were discharged on States were, however, less cases must steadily exceed cheques from AIADMK dis- orities to serve AIADMK’s “Our improved disaster The interest rates cooled would have to relax States’ Friday, taking the total num- than a third of the cases in the number of active cases at trict secretaries in north political ends are highly ille- management helpline will o# when the State sold de"cit and borrowing limits ber of discharged patients to Tamil Nadu. Across the some stage, provided the ex- Chennai on the day he ap- gal, arbitrary and a coloura- enableSAARC us to respond is to a ci- purelybonds of ₹regional1,000 crore each organisation,for FY21. Otherwise, States whereas866. Despite 72 BIMSTEC new cases country, onlyis 21%interregional of patients ponential growth and of new connects cas- proved a both circular to South distri- ble exerciseAsia of andpower”. tizens’ queries in a timely on April 21 with tenures of would have to curtail their being reported, the number have been discharged after es is stopped. bute free food, using dona- The DMK’s petition came andASEAN. e#ective manner,” BIMSTEC J. three and fourprovides years respec- sSAARCpending at this countries di!cult of active a casesunique stood at 864 opportunityrecovery so far. to connect(*This is inclusive with of two ASEAN.tions received from on the heels of the munici- Radhakrishnan, principal tively. The interest rate was time, leading to humanitar- in the State. The number of recovered patients who died in other philanthropists. He also said pal authorities’ announce- secretary/commissionerFurther, the of scope5.44% and of 5.76% BIMSTEC for these ian costs. hasThe States been and the underminedAlmost 50% of the total byc asesChina.Thailand began to grow in the States and one patientMyanmar who that are newspaper now reports economicallyment that it would supply revenue administration tranches. RBI would have to manage number of people who test- State since April 14, when 23 tested negative after his claimed that AIADMK dis- free food at all Amma Un- andand State strategically relief commis- On Aprilcloser 7, the interest to China.borrowings Apart more actively fromed positive it, Nepal, for COVID-19 Bhutan,persons were discharged Sri Lanka in death) and Bangladeshtrict secretaries also paid havethe en- aextensivevagams in the city till the sioner, said in a statement. rates for bonds went up be- and carefully, it added. tire cost of food sold at the lockdown is lifted. economic engagement with China and are struggling to work out balancing strategies between India and DonationsChina. to CM’s Industries seek easing The revival of SAARC will alsoTeaching facilitate India’s lockdown neighbourhood violators policy a lessonin meeting the challenge of regional reliefstrategic fund encroachment continue by ChinaTiruppur through police’s awareness its Belt video, and featuring Road skit Initiative. staged by personnel, goes viral of lockdown curbs SpecialThus, Correspondent insofart oas distribute their rice, groceries, regionsR. Akileish of interest overlap, SAARC and BIMSTECthose complement who called her assured eachFirms assureother panel in termsof full compliance of CHENNAI sanitisers to the poor, who Tiruppur her that people would not Karurfunctions Vysya Bank has and do- h avegoals. been the worst. The hit in successIn a novel attempt of BIMSTEC to warn does not render SAARCv enturepointless; out unnecessarily it af- onlyDennis adds S. Jesudasan a new chapterR. Ramamurthy, in presi- nated ₹1 crore to the Tamil the current crisis. violators of the COVID-19 ter watching the video. M. Soundariya Preetha dent of Coimbatore District CHENNAI/COIMBATORE Naduregional Chief Minister’s cooperationPublic It added that in alumni Southlockdown, Asia. the Tiruppur dis- Small Industries Associa- Relief Fund to support the could reach out via mail or trict police have released an Important message Representatives of various tion, said the associations government’s initiatives to its website. awareness video where vio- District Superintendent of industrial sectors urged the have said that industries will prevent the spread of lators are ‘punished’ by mak- Police Disha Mittal said the government-constituted implement the procedures COVID-19. Groceries given away ing them sit inside an ambu- social media team of the dis- expert committee to allow recommended by the go- The demand draft for the The All-India Bank Em- lance with a person trict police conceptualised businesses in rural areas, vernment when the lock- amount was handed over by ployees’ Association (AI- pretending to be a COVID-19 the awareness video. “Peo- besides exports, to resume. down is lifted. “We have as- J. Natarajan, president and BEA) said that its general se- positive patient. ple are still roaming on the During an interaction on sured the government that chief operating o!cer of the cretary, C.H. This entire video/play was roads. We wanted to drive Friday with the 21-member we will do our best to create bank, to M.R. Vijayabhas- Venkatachalam, handed ov- staged by the police with the home the message that [CO- panel, constituted to go into awareness among the kar, Minister for Transport, er groceries and provisions, help of volunteers at Palla- VID-19] is everywhere,” she the lockdown exit strategy, MSMEs on the safety mea- according to a statement. for the next 10 days, to auth- dam on Thursday. The vi- In the video, the youths, locked inside an ambulance, plead said. All the youths, includ- most representatives sought sures," he said. Annamalai University En- orities of the Perambur Rail- deo, which runs for three mi- with the police and two of them escape through a window. ing the ‘patient’, were volun- speci"c relaxations, even as A. Sakthivel, chairman of gineering and Technology way Hospital, following a nutes and 51 seconds, was teers who agreed to be a part they assured compliance the Apparel Export Promo- Alumni Association (AUE- distress call from Railways uploaded on YouTube by the yammal asks them and ush- es the viewers at the end of of this skit, the SP noted. with all precautionary mea- tion Council, said the coun- TAA) said that it is providing o!cials seeking help for 30 social media unit of the dis- ers them into an ambulance the video, noting that the When asked whether the sures, a senior o!cial said. cil sought permission for ex- food packets to daily wage stranded patients and their trict police and garnered na- parked nearby. In the ambu- youths have realised the video inadvertently stigma- “They requested that the go- port units to operate. workers and the under relatives from north India. tionwide attention on va- lance, a person is seen lying danger of COVID-19. “When tises COVID-19 patients, Ms. vernment consider opening According to Raja Shan- privileged. O!ce bearers of the Ta- rious social media platforms down wearing personal pro- you roam outside, you will Mittal clari"ed it was “not industries in rural areas and mugham, president of Ti- The association said it mil Nadu Petroleum Deal- on Friday. tective equipment (PPE), im- not know who has [CO- about the patients” and rath- also industries where the ruppur Exporters' Associa- had been providing 600 ers’ Association (TNPDA), The skit shows "ve youths plying that he is a COVID-19 VID-19],” she warns in the vi- er stresses on the need for workers have been made to tion, the garment industry food packets every day, representing the petroleum riding bikes without masks. patient. Locked inside the deo, requesting people to the public to be careful. stay in hostels,” the o!cial has urged the government since the lockdown was ex- dealers of Indian Oil, Hin- They are caught by the Palla- ambulance, the youths plead stay home and wear masks “When you wake up to the said. to lift the lockdown. "The in- tended, and its members dustan Petroleum and Bha- dam police during a vehicle with the police to release while going outside. reality, it should not be too The expert committee is dustry is crippled with the had been distributing the rat Petroleum in Tamil Na- check. “Do you know what them, and two of them es- “I have been receiving late. That is the point which expected to submit its se- developments of last quar- packets in Adyar and St. du, contributed ₹1 crore to will happen if you do not cape through the open win- phone calls since morning,” we were trying to drive cond set of suggestions to ter and cannot a#ord to Thomas Mount areas. the PM Cares fund, accord- wear a mask?” Palladam In- dow of the vehicle. Ms. Palaniammal told The home through this video,” Chief Minister Edappadi K. miss forthcoming opportun- AUETAA is also planning ing to a statement. spector (in-charge) G. Palani- Ms. Palaniammal address- Hindu on Friday, adding that Ms. Mittal said. Palaniswami next week. ities,” he said.

THE HINDU CHENNAI SATURDAY, APRIL 25, 2020 CHENNAI 3 EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE

Timings CHENNAI Incineration of waste from houses For second day running, SATURDAY, APR. 25 RISE 05:51 SET 18:23 RISE 07:22 SET 20:19 SUNDAY, APR. 26 of infected persons gets under way Anna Salai closed for tra!c RISE 05:51 SET 18:23 RISE 08:06 SET 21:11 Diversions on other arterial roads likely, say police MONDAY, APR. 27 As many as 5,768 residences in the city are part of the exercise RISE 05:50 SET 18:23 special correspondent RISE 08:53 SET 22:05 Aloysius Xavier Lopez transfer station,” said an o!- CHENNAI CHENNAI cial. The city tra!c police conti- The Chennai Corporation nue to block vehicles on An- has started incineration of Hand-wash facilities na Salai and e"ected diver- waste collected from resi- On Friday, the Corporation sions at important junctions dences of persons infected began setting up hand-wash- to prevent motorists from with COVID-19. Waste from ing facilities in all neighbor- making unnecessary trips houses where residents are hoods for conservancy work- during the lockdown. quarantined is also being in- ers. “The workers will use Many motorists were cinerated. Earlier, the waste disinfectant to wash hands caught unawares and found The barricaded entry to Wallajah Road from Anna Salai on from ‘infected’ homes was after completion of work. themselves stranded at im- Friday. * K.V. SRINIVASAN disposed of using the tech- Over 19,000 workers are car- portant junctions such as nique of ‘deep burial’, at de- A resident of Mogappair West trying to slip though the rying out garbage clearance Kotturpuram, Turnbulls U-turn at Little Mount Junc- rayana Road, Boag Road to signated locations in various barricade on Maduravoyal Bypass Service Road. * M. VEDHAN along 33,000 streets. More Road, General Patters Road, tion and proceed on Taluk G.N. Chetty Road. Police neighborhoods. than 90% workers are re- Wallajah Road and Little Road, Sardar Patel Road, said as many used Anna Sa- “Chennai Corporation has As many as 5,768 houses ers in preventing the spread porting for duty. We have Mount. Gandhi Mandapam Road lai, they had now diverted started incineration of the in the city have started send- of COVID-19 in the city. “The provided masks and gloves M.N. Mayilvahanan, De- and T.T.K. Road. them onto T.T.K. Road or waste from homes of the ing waste to the incinerator conservancy workers will for the workers. All workers puty Commissioner, Tra!c Beach Road. Further diver- quarantined in areas such as in Manali. Some of these give the residents a yellow are taken home by special (South), said: “As many mo- Restricted usage sions on other arterial roads Tiruvottiyur, Manali, Mad- homes have residents who bag and chemicals for disin- transport vehicles,” said an torists are not aware of this “Local residents who live ad- are likely after assessing the IN BRIEF havaram, Tondiarpet and are on quarantine following fection. The residents will o!cial. measure, we are guiding jacent to Anna Salai from Lit- situation, o!cials said. Royapuram. Many zones infection of family members. seal the bag with adequate Royapuram is the zone them to take diversions at tle Mount to Anna Flyover They added that only am- such as Sholinganallur and Some of the residents in quantities of disinfectants sending the largest quantity each junction. We will expe- use the arterial road and we bulances and essential ser- Ten !ned for playing Perungudi have done deep these homes have also been and hand it over to Corpora- of waste for incineration. As riment with this on other are restricting people who vice vehicles were being al- cards in Puliyanthope burial of the waste. Incinera- quarantined based on infor- tion workers. many as 2,310 families under roads also. No one has been come from other areas,” said lowed. The road was open in CHENNAI tion is safe. So we will incin- mation received by contact The workers will take the quarantine in the zone have stranded here. We are only the Deputy Commissioner. the vicinity of hospitals. Police rounded up 10 persons erate all the waste. At least tracing of COVID-19 cases. waste directly in battery-op- handed over waste to Corpo- diverting vehicular move- Motorists coming from Another senior police of- for playing a game of cards in Puliyanthope. A team, led by two tonnes of waste have erated vehicles to the incin- ration workers for incinera- ment to other roads to re- Gandhi Mandapam Road #cer said, “Many don’t real- Inspector Krishnamurthy, been incinerated on Friday Direct route erator. The waste will not go tion. On Friday, 2.25 tonnes duce the tra!c on Anna would be allowed to proceed ise the seriousness of the patrolling Nehru Nagar at the incineration plant in O!cials said the residents of to any transfer station, to re- of waste were incinerated Salai.” on Turnbulls Point and can pandemic. We have seized caught them sitting in the Manali,” said a Corporation all 5,768 houses are cooper- duce the risk of infection in and 2.29 tonnes buried at People travelling from reach Nandanam signal and more than 1,300 vehicles on middle of a narrow street. o!cial. ating with Corporation work- the neighborhood of the designated locations. Guindy to Central can take a proceed through Venkatana- Wednesday.” They were booked under Sections 188 (Disobedience to order duly promulgated by public servant) and 269 18% of residents housebound in Sewage discharge into lakes dips, thanks to lockdown (Negligent act likely to spread infection of disease K. Lakshmi with sewage. Even during both lakes. For instance, vists and residents noted dangerous to life). After CHENNAI summer, both lakes continue samples have been taken that domestic sewage conti- being fined, they were let off 157 containment zones of city Sewage discharge into two holding water and have 70% from near the weir of Ambat- nued to %ow into Korattur with a warning. major waterbodies in the of their storage capacity. tur surplus course that tran- lake. western suburbs of the city O!cials of the WRD said sports water to Korattur Members of the Korattur Youth held for sharing Curbs to be eased 28 days after last positive case is reported has reduced in the past the sewage discharge into lake,” an o!cial said. Results Aeri Pathukappu Makkal obscene pictures month. Samples have been the two lakes had reduced were awaited and would Iyakkam (KAPMI), who have CHENNAI Special Correspondent According to data in the containment zones lifted from the Korattur and by one-#fth over the past help ascertain the water #led a case with the National Suji alias Kasi, 26, was CHENNAI <> arrested in Kanniyakumari compiled by the are permitted to come out of Ambattur lakes to ascertain month. The decrease in in- quality and pollution level. Green Tribunal (NGT), district following a complaint At least 18% of city residents Corporation, over the homes only for essential the current pollution level, dustrial e$uents could The department would be southern zone, to protect from a Chennai-based woman have been con#ned to their 3.6 lakh families all services. according to the Water Re- probably be due to closure of able to take measures based the lake, said sewage %owed doctor alleging he circulated homes owing to the emer- over the city are sources Department. industrial units around the on the results, the o!cial ad- through the surplus course. altered photographs and gence of COVID-19 cases in con!ned to their Essential services The lakes, which were lake owing to the lockdown. ded. After the NGT directive, various localities. All the residents will get es- once primary freshwater Domestic sewage from sur- The department was exe- the committee formed with videos of her on social media. homes without The suspect met her on social And as many as 157 loca- sential services with the as- sources and part of a chain rounding localities has also cuting projects to turn lakes the Tamil Nadu Pollution permission to media. He then invited her tions have been cordoned sistance of Chennai Corpo- of waterbodies in the west- reduced. in Ambattur, Korattur and Control Board as nodal agen- and caught her on camera o" by barricades to prevent venture outside ration o!cials. Residents in ern suburbs, had shrunk in “We have lifted samples at Retteri into eco-tourism cy drafted an action plan to while she was dressing in a the spread of the disease. containment zones are re- size and were contaminated two or three points from spots. Environmental acti- restore the lake. lodge. When she refused his The city reported more than piled by the Chennai Corpo- quested to call Corporation demands, he circulated the 400 cases on Thursday and ration, over 3.6 lakh families helpline 1913 for assistance pictures and videos. more than 50 new cases in the city are con#ned to in getting essential services. have been reported on Fri- their homes without any Chennai Corporation o!- Aavin to ensure milk supply 0 day. permission to venture out cials said the restrictions on DISCLAIMER: Readers are requested to on the streets because of re- movement of the families during complete lockdown verify and make appropriate enquiries to satisfy themselves about the veracity of Taking the initiative ports of positive cases in will be lifted only 28 days af- an advertisement before responding to Special Correspondent any published in this newspaper. THG Chennai Corporation o!- their area. ter the last positive case in K. Palaniswami from Sun- PUBLISHING PVT LTD., the Publisher & CHENNAI Owner of this newspaper, does not vouch cials said they were taking The city has an estimated the location is reported. day. “We will ensure addi- for the authenticity of any advertisement BUYING SELLING or advertiser or for any of the advertiser’s initiatives to prevent the number of 20 lakh house- The civic o!cials will test Aavin will ensure availabili- tional milk availability at our products and/or services. In no event can the Owner, Publisher, Printer, Editor, Dir- spread of COVID-19 in loca- holds, all of which have been all samples of persons with ty of milk in and around own outlets and milk retail- RESIDENTIAL HOUSE ector/s, Employees of this newspaper/ COMMERCIAL BUILDING company be held responsible/liable in tions where positive cases monitored on a daily basis symptoms in containment Chennai during the com- er points so there is no need any manner whatsoever for any claims POONAMALLE QUEENSLAND New Indepen- and/or damages for advertisements in have been reported. by 15,000 workers. zones to o"er medical assis- plete lockdown announced for panic buying,” an o!cial REQ COM Land 1To3.5Gr Comm Build this newspaper. dent Villa Rs.19.50 L Ct: 78100 According to data com- But the 3.6 lakh families tance. by Chief Minister Edappadi said. with Income Budget 5To50Cr 25909 9941055888 RESIDENTIAL LAND RESIDENTIAL 12,000SQFT TIRUVANNAMALAI Munici- No-touch WANTED FLAT/HOUSE/BUNGALOWLAND in& pal Limit Thandrampet Main Road around PrimeSouth Chennai. Rs.3500 Per Sqft Contact: handwash 9884988604 9443222458 RESIDENTIAL FLAT stations in Avadi REQD 2/3BHK Flats up to 15yrs Lift CCP Mylapore Mandaveli R.A.Puram COMMERCIAL special correspondent Ct:Jayashankara Properties 9094560044 OMR, KARAPAKKAM, (next to Arvind CHENNAI Theatre) fully furnished office SELLING space, 30 seat + 2 MD cabins, 90K The Avadi Municipal Cor- rent, 1 car park, ample bike park- poration installed no-touch RESIDENTIAL FLAT - ing, call owner at 7395979430 handwash stations at va- NEW rious public places across ADYAR VENKATARATINAM Nagar behind the locality as a precau- Coffee Day 3−BHK First Floor Con- tionary measure against struction ongoing. Ct: 98410 42906 COVID-19. RESIDENTIAL FLAT - The stainless steel RESALE equipment, operated with a foot tap, has been in- CEEBROS SHOLINGANALLUR Nr TCS 3BHK Premium Apt. Seaview Semi Furnd stalled in #ve places, in- 8th Flr Lift CP Good Rental income cluding Amma canteens Brokers excuse 95 Lakhs 9677070119 and Corporation O!ces. The equipment, which have liquid soap dispen- sers, cost ₹46,000 each. O!cials of the Avadi Cor- poration said about 400- 500 people are expected to use the facility daily. There are plans to install more depending on the need.

Published by N. Ravi at Kasturi Buildings, 859 & 860, Anna Salai, Chennai-600002 on behalf of THG PUBLISHING PVT LTD., and Printed by D. Rajkumar at Plot B-6 & B-7, CMDA Industrial Complex, Maraimalai Nagar, Chengleput Taluk, Kancheepuram Dist., Pin: 603209. Editor: Suresh Nambath (Responsible for selection of news under the PRB Act). Regd. TN/ARD/17/2012-2014 G RNI No. 1001/1957 G ISSN 0971 - 751X G Vol. 143 G No. 99

CHENNAI THE HINDU 4 TAMIL NADU SATURDAY, APRIL 25, 2020 EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE IN BRIEF HC allows DME to release merit Cancer care: a war on two fronts Journalist assaulted in Ulundurpet OVID-19 is more severe of palliation or temporary KALLAKURICHI in the elderly popula- tumour control C G A journalist working with a list for PG medical admission tion and people with L6: Non-curative treat- private Tamil television underlying medical condi- ment with an intermediate channel was assaulted by tions, including cancer (pre- (15% - 50%) chance of pallia- unidentified persons at The court had, on Wednesday, stopped publication of the names sent or past history). A num- tion or temporary tumour Ulundurpet near here on ber of studies from China control (*L-Level) Thursday. Adhi Suresh, 43, Legal Correspondent tation was rejected. Subse- and Europe have shown that reporter of Velicham TV, was CHENNAI quently, on Friday, Special the prevalence of cancer in Risk of progression intercepted by a gang and The Madras High Court on Plea to cancel Class X exams Government Pleader E. Ma- patients with COVID-19 is GBalancing risk from treat- attacked. Mr. Suresh Friday recalled its own order noharan, Medical Council of 2%. ment delay vs. harm from sustained cut injuries on his passed on Wednesday res- A public interest contending that the India standing counsel V.P. The data from the tertiary exposure to COVID forehead. training the Directorate of litigation petition has government’s plan to Raman and the standing cancer institution of Wuhan GBased on low risk of pro- Medical Education (DME) been !led in the Madras conduct the exams after counsel for the selection University showed a two- gression – safe to delay for Puducherry CM tests negative for COVID-19 from publishing the merit High Court with a plea to the lifting of the committee in DME wrote a fold increased risk of CO- more than three months. G PUDUCHERRY list for postgraduate (PG) cancel the public lockdown next month joint letter to the High Court VID-19 in comparison to the Based on intermediate risk Chief Minister V.. medical admissions in the examinations for Class X may not be a right Registry seeking an urgent general population. Cancer of progression – delay of Narayanasamy, his Cabinet State till June 8. Justice M. students this year since decision since it would rehearing of the case. In patients are more suscepti- three months may be colleagues and legislators Sundar took the decision af- considerable number of delay the announcement their letter, the advocates ble to the infection. There is acceptable. have all tested negative for ter the counsel for the res- days have gone by under of results. He claimed pointed out that all-India on- signi!cantly higher inci- GFor patients with high risk COVID-19 on Friday. pondents represented that lockdown to !ght delay in conducting line counselling had been dence of death or ICU ad- of progression – there Health Secretary Prasanth certain facts were not placed COVID-19. exams would lead to completed and the State-le- missions. proached whether they have should be no delay in treat- Kumar Panda told reporters before the court on Wednes- Advocate S. Mahaveer consequent delay in vel counselling must be com- A report from Italy states a COVID-19 situation or not. ment for cancer patients un- at the Assembly that all the day and that any delay in pu- Shivaji has !led the case declaring the results. pleted before May 4 as per that 20% of deaths due to Cancer patients with new der the age of 70 leaders have tested negative. blication of merit list would the Centre’s directive. COVID-19 were in active can- respiratory symptoms or cause hardship to scores of Counsel said any delay in cer patients. Statistics sug- with known COVID-19 expo- Chemotherapy guidance 17 persons discharged meritorious candidates. served as medical o#cer in er the petitioner’s represen- the State-level counselling gest that mostly men with sure are highest priority for GPatients in deep remission from hospital The order was passed on a the cadaver maintenance tation for grant of weightage would force meritorious can- lung cancer are a"ected. COVID-19 testing. who are receiving mainte- RANIPET writ petition !led by Dr. G.P. unit in the Government Stan- marks and directed that the didates to join PG courses in For those cancer patients nance therapy, stopping A total of 17 COVID-19 Arulraj who claimed that in- ley Medical College Hospital. merit list should not be pu- other States and then end up Patient management who test positive, anti-can- chemo can be an option patients were discharged centive marks for PG admis- Hence, the judge had grant- blished till June 8 since the paying penalty of ₹15 lakh to The initial steps of outpa- cer therapies are withheld GIn patients where adjuvant from the Government Vellore sion had not been granted to ed time till May 18 for the petitioner might have to !le ₹20 lakh to get relieved from tient management are to mi- for the duration of the ill- chemo bene!t may be mini- Medical College and Hospital him despite him having State government to consid- another case if his represen- those medical colleges. nimise face-to-face contact ness. mal, hormonal therapies at Adukkamparai on Friday. using tele consultations and The patient must be ret- can be considered Among the patients, nine medicine delivery at home. ested after symptom resolu- GOral chemo and home in- belonged to Ambur, one was Most cancer centres have es- tion twice and cancer treat- fusions can be an option to from Vaniyambadi and seven Release news portal founder: Stalin CM misrepresenting tablished symptom screen- ment can go on after getting consider were from Ranipet district. ing for all stakeholders. If two consecutive negative re- GHeavily infected patient: Special Edappadi K. Palaniswa- suspicious symptoms arise sults within a 48 hours. Consider altering chemo Correspondent facts, says Kiran Bedi mi to take necessary ac- they are referred to the schedule so lesser visits to Police secure 86 entry CHENNAI points along T.N. border tion to release him im- SPECIAL CORRESPONDENT triage and later to treating Prioritising Anti-cancer hospitals PUDUCHERRY G PUDUCHERRY DMK president M.K. mediately and facilities. treatment: Immuno therapy: At this G The administration has Stalin on Friday con- withdraw all the Second, it is important to L1: Curative treatment with time no data available on the secured 86 entry points along demned the arrest of charges. Lieutenant Governor Kiran Bedi on Friday educate the patient and fa- a high (> 50%) chance of kind of impact of immunoth- the porous border with Tamil the founder of a portal, Terming his arrest as accused Chief Minister V. Narayanasamy mily for prevention. The success erapy on COVID-19 infected Nadu. Balaji Srivastava, DGP, SimpliCity, in Coimba- an unequivocal attack of “misrepresenting facts and making new mantras are to ensure GL2: Curative treatment patients. However, concern said in a review meeting tore on Thursday night, on press freedom, the false allegations” against her and the Un- the continuum of care, get with an intermediate (20% - is on immue-related pneu- convened by Lt. Governor and said the AIADMK journalists also re- ion government. prepared for a new routine, 50%) chance of success monitis – which could in- Kiran Bedi that police teams government was misus- M.K. Stalin quested the Chief Mi- The Union Territory of Puducherry had protect healthcare workers GL3: Curative treatment crease the complications had been deployed at these ing its powers during a nister to immediately bene!ted from various Central govern- to protect patients and rein- with a low (10% - 20%) due to COVID-19 points to prevent people pandemic and called AIADMK Ministers put an end to muzzling ment schemes such as Pradhan Mantri force support chance of success GAllogenic Hematopoietic entering Puducherry without for his immediate have been continuing, of the press and en- Jhan Dhan Yojana(PMJDY), Kisan Samman Several patients need im- GL4: Curative treatment Cell Transplantation: Pru- a valid reason. release. he said accusing Minis- courage reporting of Nidhi, Garib Kalyan Ann Yojana and Ujj- minent cancer care and it with a very low (0% - 10%) dent to test potential do- In a statement, Mr. ter Rajenthra Bhalaji of facts. wala Yojana after the lockdown was an- becomes imperative to tack- chance of success nors, though there is ab- ‘Kodanad estate case Stalin said the portal attacking the media The petition said the nounced, the Lt Governor said in a le treatment decisions. GL5: Non-curative treatment sence of evidence of blood trial in advanced stage’ had published a news earlier. “Now, Minister stories published on release. These patients can be ap- with a high (> 50%) chance transmission CHENNAI item based on DMK S.P. Velumani, who acts the portal, based on The Shollurmattam police in MLA Karthik’s state- as the shadow of the which Mr. Sam was ar- the Nilgiris district has ments against Local Chief Minister, has rested, were well docu- informed the Madras High Administration Minis- used the police and mented and aimed at Court that trial in the 2017 ter S.P. Velumani and misused powers to ar- enhancing public wel- Kodanad estate heist and for pointing out alleged rest journalists. The fare. The petition murder case is in an advanced shortcomings faced by DMK condemns this,” pointed out that the stage and 30 witnesses have been examined in the case. government healthcare he charged and sought portal was not the only professionals and al- the immediate release news organisation to leged corruption by of Mr. Pandian. have reported the news 17 leaders arrested some employees of a and it was covered by for bid to protest public distribution sys- Journalists’ plea all Tamil and English PUDUCHERRY tem (PDS) outlet. Journalists in Tamil Na- dailies. Seventeen leaders belonging Mr. Stalin said the ar- du and other States “Andrew Sam, the to different parties were rest of Andrew Sam Ra- have condemned the founder of SimpliCity, arrested on Friday while trying to stage a protest ja Pandian was illegal arrest of Mr. Sam, in has been punished for against the Centre for not and reeked of arro- Coimbatore. doing his duty and providing financial aid to the gance of power. The at- They have peti- maintaining his ethics,” U.T. to deal with pandemic. tacks on the media by tioned Chief Minister the petition said.

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THE HINDU CHENNAI SATURDAY, APRIL 25, 2020 SOUTH 5 EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE Four-month-old dies in Kerala, 2 deaths in A.P. Anonymise data Karnataka’ s new cases come from Ramanagaram jail and Bengaluru labour colony; 13 more test positive in Telangana before handover,

Special Correspondent All new cases were from na and Chittoor districts, the Thiruvananthapuram/ Kasaragod and they con- majority from old clusters, Vijayawada/Bengaluru/ HC tells Kerala govt. Hyderabad tracted the disease through said Special Chief Secretary, The third COVID-19-related imported cases. Kerala had Health K.S. Jawahar Reddy. Sprinklr warned about con!dentiality death in Kerala, of a four- so far reported 450 positive Bengaluru police person- month-old female baby, cases. While 116 were in nel involved in quarantine K.C. Gopakumar from Manjeri in Malappuram treatment, 331 recovered. and surveillance work would KOCHI district, was reported on Fri- Kannur district has the undergo testing for CO- A Division Bench of the Ker- day morning. The infant, maximum number of CO- VID-19, Primary and Secon- ala High Court on Friday di- with congenital heart dis- VID-19 patients, with 56 per- dary Education Minister S. rected the State government ease, and under treatment sons in hospitals. Mr. Vijayan Suresh Kumar said. to anonymise the data of for pneumonia and respira- said as a stark warning that The latest cases included COVID-19 patients and those “nothing is over yet” on CO- "ve from Ramanagaram dis- under home quarantine, VID-19. “We are looking at trict jail and 11 from the la- and to allow Sprinklr, the disease transmission projec- bour colony at Hongasandra U.S.-based analytics "rm tions which say we will have ward, in Bengaluru. with which the government tory problems, passed away to arrange treatment facili- has entered into a contract, at the Institute of Maternal ties for several lakhs,” he GHMC area in focus to access the data only after The HC asked the State to and Child Health (IMCH), at said, at the media brie"ng. In Telangana 13 more per- the process is completed. get consent of the citizens the Government Medical sons tested positive on Fri- The Bench, comprising before collecting data. College Hospital in Kozhi- A.P. tests more day, and the total was 983. In Justice Devan Ramachan- kode. In Andhra Pradesh, 6,306 all, 29 were discharged, a ca- dran and Justice T.R. Ravi, dence. The agreement pre- Two deaths were reported samples tested in a day tegory now totalling 291 peo- also restrained Sprinklr vented Sprinklr from using in Andhra Pradesh, from was followed when interring Condoling the death, do testing on a large scale. turned up 62 fresh cases, tak- ple. The State had 667 active from committing any act the data for other purposes. Anantapur and Kurnool dis- the baby in Kerala. Samples Chief Minister Pinarayi Vi- On Friday, three persons ing the tally to 955. So far, 145 cases under treatment. that will breach the con"- It was stored in an encrypt- tricts, taking the toll to 29. from the child’s parents were jayan said it was a matter of tested positive in the State patients had recovered and Health Minister Eatala Ra- dentiality of the data en- ed form in Amazon Cloud In Karnataka, a total of 29 sent for tests. Doctors who concern that the source of while 15 were declared dis- been discharged, while 29 jender said the Hyderabad trusted with it. The court di- and hence its con"dentiality new COVID-19 cases were re- cared for her in Malappuram the infant’s infection re- ease-free, including a 62- succumbed to the virus and Municipal (GHMC) area, Vik- rected the State government was guaranteed. Besides, ported on Friday raising the were asked to be in quaran- mained unknown. Massive year-old at Pathanamthitta 781 were under treatment. arabad, Suryapet and Jogu- to obtain the consent of the the period of the agreement total to 474. tine, and work was on to e!orts were on to trace the who spent 47 days in hospital Nearly 67% of cases were lamba Gadwal districts were citizens before collecting da- was for six months, beyond The COVID-19 protocol trace the source of infection. epidemiological links and to after testing positive. from Kurnool, Guntur, Krish- reporting cases. ta. The company was asked which the company could not to hand over the data to not retain the data. She ar- a third party and to return gued that as the data was in CCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCC the same after the contrac- India, criminal prosecution PM’s help sought to bring tual obligations are over. could be initiated under the Mosaic of life The court passed the di- provisions of Information rectives while admitting a Technology Act 2000 for bodies from GCC nations batch of public interest liti- breach of con"dentiality. gations "led by Balu Gopa- ‘Embassies seeking NOC from MHA’ lakrishnan of Thiruvanan- On NIC services thapuram, Leader of the Additional Advocate Gener- Special Correspondent (MHA) as a precondition for Opposition Ramesh Chen- al K.K. Raveendranath sub- Thiruvananthapuram issuing the certi"cate. The nithala, and BJP State presi- mitted that none of the go- Kerala Chief Minister Pina- position taken by the em- dent K. Surendran among vernment institutions in the rayi Vijayan has sought the bassies contradicted the others, challenging the State were presently capa- intervention of Prime Minis- stance of the Central go- agreement. ble of big data analysis in a ter Narendra Modi for the vernment, which had de- The court directed short time, which was the return of the remains of Ker- clared that a NOC from the Sprinklr to immediately need of the hour. He submit- alites who died in the Gulf MHA was not mandatory. transfer the residual or se- ted that the State govern- Cooperation Council (GCC) Mr. Vijayan said the cof- condary data back to the ment would take a call on countries due to reasons "ns could be transported as State government. Sprinkler utilising the services of the other than COVID-19. cargo on freight airliners. was also restrained from ad- National Informatics Centre In a letter to the Prime He sought a direction from vertising the project of the (NIC) for data analysis. Minister on Friday, Mr. Vi- the Centre instructing the State government and using Assistant Solicitor Gener- jayan said the GCC countries embassies to issue the ne- Kerala’s name and emblem. al of India P. Vijayakumar required the Indian embas- cessary clearances without submitted that sensitive per- sies there to give a “clea- approvals from the MHA. Govt. argument sonal data, such as those rance certi"cate” to local Congress leader M.M. When the petition came up pertaining to health, should authorities as a precursor to Hassan is scheduled to prot- for hearing, N.S. Nappinai, a not be shared with a third allowing the return of the est in front of the Raj Bha- Mumbai-based cyber lawyer party service provider. The mortal remains. The embas- van seeking special #ights to appearing for the the State State should have anony- sies, in turn, were insisting ferry Keralites back home. government, submitted that mised the data before shar- that the relatives of the de- The party blamed the the privacy policy of the ing it. In fact, the NIC could ceased procure a no-objec- Centre and the State for do- company and international have processed the data if tion certi"cate (NOC) from ing little to help those con- Hunger pangs: Children rushing to collect free food from a distribution centre in Visakhapatnam on Friday. * K.R.DEEPAK data protection norms en- the State had made the de- the Minister of Home A!airs "ned to labour camps. CCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCC sured a high level of con"- mand.

IN BRIEF Weather Watch Karnataka govt. under !re for Capital shift: HC directs Rainfall, temperature & air quality in select metros yesterday moving riot accused to jail A.P. govt. to !le a"davit PIL alleges it was a unilateral decision No rationale in decision, says former CM Kumaraswamy Staff Reporter pertaining to the shifting of ‘Arrangements in place VIJAYAWADA the capital — A.P. Decentral- for T.N. cancer patients’ Special Correspondent posed the decision, blaming The High Court on Friday di- isation and Inclusive Deve- THIRUVANANTHAPURAM Bengaluru DGP (Prisons) Alok Mohan rected the Andhra Pradesh lopment of All Regions and Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Soon after "ve Padarayanap- for it. government to "le an a$da- the A.P. Capital Region De- Vijayan said here on Friday ura riot accused housed in However, by Thursday vit in 10 days stating its posi- velopment Authority Repeal that Kerala, with the the Ramanagaram district evening, when it became tion on the proposed shift- Bills — were passed by the assistance of the Tamil Nadu jail reported COVID-19 posi- clear that two of the inmates ing of the Executive Capital Assembly in January, but re- government and the Regional tive, the Karnataka govern- had contracted the virus, to Visakhapatnam. ferred to a select committee Cancer Centre (RCC) here, ment on Friday came under Mr. Kumaraswamy threa- The directive came in res- by the Legislative Council. has made arrangements to attack from the Opposition tened to launch an agitation ponse to a PIL "led by Ama- Appearing on behalf of give follow-up care to even as senior Ministers to get the inmates from Ra- ravati Parirakshana Samiti the petitioner, advocate U. patients from Kanyakumari and other border districts. were left to defend the go- managaram jail vacated. secretary G. Tirupati Rao. Muralidhar Rao cited the A total of 560 persons from vernment’s decision. H.D. Kumaraswamy In Bengaluru, Congress A full Bench, comprising minutes of an internal meet- Kanyakumari and Former Chief Minister MP D.K. Suresh said the go- Chief Justice J.K. Maheswari ing of an executive commit- neighbouring districts in H.D. Kumaraswamy said it In a statement, Mr. Kuma- vernment would be held res- and Justices A.V. Sesha Sai tee of the A.P. Secretariat Temperature Data: IMD, Pollution Data: CPCB, Map: INSAT/IMD (Taken at 18.00 Hrs) Tamil Nadu are regular was not appropriate to polit- raswamy’s wife and Rama- ponsible if the virus spreads and M. Satyanarayana Mur- Employees’ Association, MP Forecast for Saturday: Thunderstorm accompanied with light- patients at the RCC. It had icise the matter, and urged nagaram legislator Anitha in Ramanagaram district. He thy, ordered that Advocate V. Vijaya Sai Reddy’s state- ning likely at isolated places over Jharkhand, West Bengal, made arrangements for the the government to set right Kumaraswamy also asked how these people General S. Sriram respond ments and media reports to Odhisha, Telangana, Sikkim, Assam, Uttar Pradesh, Andhra Pra- patients to get continued the mistake. “The govern- slammed the government. were brought in without to the petitioner’s argument buttress his argument that desh, Rajasthan, Karnataka and Kerala. follow-up care. ment is playing around. It While government sourc- tests. that the government unilat- the government was bent on city rain max min city rain max min Agartala...... 7.8....30.5....21.0 Kozhikode...... 0.2....36.4....27.8 has committed a mistake,” es indicated that the initial Sources in the govern- erally decided to shift the shifting the capital. Ahmedabad...... -....40.3....27.3 Kurnool ...... -....41.3....30.4 Domestic violence: help he said, and added that the decision to move the ac- ment, however, defended capital from Amaravati to Mr. Tirupati Rao ap- Aizawl...... 16.0....23.7....15.2 Lucknow...... -....36.1....23.5 decision had no rationale. “I cused to Ramanagaram jail the decision to shift the ac- three locations under the pealed to the HC to declare Allahabad...... 1.0....37.2....22.6 Madurai...... -....39.2....27.5 is now just a call away Bengaluru ...... 23.2....36.0....20.5 Mangaluru ...... -....36.9....27.2 VIJAYAWADA had warned the government was an administrative one, cused to Ramanagaram jail garb of “decentralisation of the shifting of the Executive Bhopal ...... -....40.4....23.6 Mumbai ...... -....34.9....26.2 The Andhra Pradesh Women’s earlier,” he told reporters the issue assumed political as “administrative” and not administration/gover- Capital as arbitrary and vio- Bhubaneswar...... 0.4....36.9....26.2 Mysuru ...... 12.5...... -....23.3 Commission has launched Chandigarh ...... -....34.7....20.3 New Delhi ...... -....38.4....20.2 outside the Ramanagaram colour when Mr. Kumaras- political, and in the larger nance,” by "ling the a$davit lative of the legally enforcea- Chennai ...... -....35.0....28.5 Patna ...... -....31.4....22.2 WhatsApp and helpdesk jail on Bengaluru–Mysuru wamy, expressing fears of good of prison inmates in in the stipulated time. ble promises made by the Coimbatore ...... -....36.9....26.0 Port Blair...... -....32.9....26.5 numbers to protect women highway. contamination, had op- the State. Mr. Sriram said the Bills previous government. Dehradun...... -....32.8....16.6 Puducherry ...... -....35.2....27.6 from domestic violence Gangtok...... 3.1....18.6....14.5 Pune...... -....38.6....21.3 during the lockdown. Victims Goa...... -....34.4....27.0 Raipur ...... -....39.5....25.6 Guwahati ...... 42.4....26.5....18.2 Ranchi...... 9.2....33.4....19.6 can contact WhatsApp no. CCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCC CCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCC Hubballi...... -....37.0....23.0 Shillong...... 12.4....18.3...... - 6301411137 for assistance. Hyderabad ...... -....40.7....26.8 Shimla...... -....21.6....11.1 They can also use Helpdesk Imphal ...... -....20.1....13.7 Srinagar...... -....26.5...... 8.2 Jaipur ...... -...... -....21.7 Thiruvananthapuram...... 5.6....34.8....26.4 nos. 9701056808 (director R. This schoolteacher has bowled the internet over Kochi ...... 3.4....35.5....23.3 Tiruchi...... -....40.2....28.0 Suez) or 9603914511 Kohima ...... -....24.2...... - Vijayawada ...... -....39.2....27.1 (secretary M.J. Nirmala), Kolkata ...... 4.6....32.9....23.1 Visakhapatnam ...... -....34.7....29.0 according to Mahila Video of family Ms. Ozhukil walked in to roll from our friends and (Rainfall data in mm; temperature in Celsius) her arm over, sending down relatives since then and it is Commission Chairperson playing cricket Pollutants in the air you are breathing Yesterday Vasireddy Padma. a few decent deliveries at now heard that it has been CITIES SO2 NO2 CO PM2.5 PM10 CODE Ahmedabad...... - .21 .13 ....46 ...85 ....* goes viral her husband. taken note of by some In observation made at Kerala govt. issues orders Her husband and sons cricket o$cials,” said Mr. Bengaluru ...... 10 .18 .49 ...... - .120 ....* 6.00 p.m., Panipat, Chennai ...... 03 .32 .42 ....19 ...32 ....* Haryana, recorded an on salary deduction M.P. Praveen were mighty impressed by Namboodiri. Delhi ...... 18 ...- 112 ..292 .148 ....* overall air quality index THIRUVANANTHAPURAM * (AQI) score of 204 KOCHI her hitherto unknown skill In their 27 years of Hyderabad ...... 12 .50 .22 ....60 ...72 .... indicating an unhealthy The Kerala government has A routine game of backyard and her younger son, marriage, he had not known Kolkata...... 09 .12 .28 ....20 ...33 ....* level of pollution. In issued orders for deferring Lucknow...... 06 .21 .55 ..155 ...... - ....* contrast, Aizawl, Mizoram, cricket from Mezhathur, Navaneeth Krishnan, shot a of his wife’s cricketing skills Mumbai ...... 45 ...- .58 ...... - ...60 ....* recorded a healthy AQI the disbursal of a component near Pattambi in Palakkad video of his mother’s though she used to watch Pune...... 24 .09 .53 ....30 ...29 ....* score of 13. of the salary of employees district, has gone viral on bowling. the game. Though Mr. Visakhapatnam ...- ...- ....- ...... - ...... - ...... from April to August. The social media, propelling Overwhelmed by a wave Namboodiri and his sons Air Quality Code: * Poor * Moderate * Good (Readings indicate average AQI) order issued by the Finance Bindu Ozhukil, a 50- of childhood memories have been playing cricket to SO2: Sulphur Dioxide. Short-term exposure can harm the respiratory system, Department on Friday said making breathing difficult. It can affect visibility by reacting with other air the payment of six days’ something high school when she used to play the overcome the lockdown particles to form haze and stain culturally important objects such as statues Sanskrit teacher, into an game with her cousins at blues, Ms. Ozhukil never and monuments. salary for employees and NO2: Nitrogen Dioxide. Aggravates respiratory illness, causes haze to form by teachers, including those in internet star. her ancestral home at School teacher Bindu Ozhukil bowling to her husband Raman joined them till that session reacting with other air particles, causes acid rain, pollutes coastal waters. government-aided Her husband, Raman Nelluvai, near Namboodiri in Mezhathur, Palakkad. * SPECIAL ARRANGEMENT which has gone viral. Now CO: Carbon monoxide. High concentration in air reduces oxygen supply to Namboodiri, a 58-year-old Wadakkanchery in Thrissur, that her cricketing skills critical organs like the heart and brain. At very high levels, it can cause institutions, would be dizziness, confusion, unconsciousness and even death. deferred. Those with a ex-serviceman, was enjoying Ms. Ozhukil posted the be in store. As our sons keep on saying, have been revealed, she has PM2.5 & PM10: Particulate matter pollution can cause irritation of the eyes, monthly gross salary below a game of cricket with their video on Facebook the next “We still don’t know how it seems to have completely been invited to be more nose and throat, coughing, chest tightness and shortness of breath, reduced ₹20,000 have been two college-going sons on day without having the the video, which was shot gone out of our hands. We active in the family’s daily lung function, irregular heartbeat, asthma attacks, heart attacks and premature death in people with heart or lung disease exempted. Wednesday evening, when faintest idea of what was to just for fun, has gone viral. have been #ooded with calls cricket session.

CHENNAI THE HINDU 6 EDITORIAL SATURDAY, APRIL 25, 2020 EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE Troughs and crests in the pandemic response The nationalistic turn in global politics has a!ected vital institutions and partnerships at a time they are needed most health facilities are not over- and legitimate leadership are vital it was exposed over the past six whelmed; and, for using this time, to convene and maintain. weeks should be a cautionary tale paid for by collective sacri!ce, to for all countries that thought turn- No 100% quota secure the personal protective Textbook examples ing health care over to private ac- SC ruling stresses that overzealous reservation equipment (PPE) and medical sup- Germany and Kerala provide two tors was responsible governance. plies necessary to save lives. powerful though di"erent exam- It is not. Again, consider Kerala, tends to a!ect rights of other communities Irfan Nooruddin The second phase of the pan- ples of this in action. In Germany, which has consistently ranked at he Supreme Court is right in considering cent per demic response is slowly to ease in spite of a high level of federal- the top of State rankings for health rig the burden on the economy by ism that gives its States (Länder) a expenditures, and which has, as a cent reservation as anathema to the constitution- al scheme of equality even if it is for the laudable he novel coronavirus, SARS- permitting a measured return of lot of power, Chancellor Angela result, a well-functioning local pu- T CoV-2, that causes the dis- business activity so that liveli- Merkel’s ability to mobilise the en- blic health system capable of im- objective of providing representation to historically de- Tease COVID-19, has proven hoods and supply chains can be tire system has allowed Germany plementing the test-isolate-trace prived sections. The verdict quashing the reservation of the ultimate stress test for gover- restored. This stage can only be to emerge as a success story in Eu- protocols critical for !ghting 100% of all teaching posts in ‘Scheduled Areas’ of And- nance systems globally. And go- safely executed if accompanied by rope. In Kerala, as Patrick Heller COVID-19. hra Pradesh for local Scheduled Tribes is not against af- vernments worldwide are failing, a war-footing expansion of testing described in this daily last week !rmative programmes as such, but a caution against im- showing up for all to see how poor- capacity so that new infections IMAGES/ISTOCKPHOTO GETTY (The Hindu, Editorial page, April A State in contrast plementing them in a manner detrimental to the rest of ly prepared they were for this ex- can be identi!ed and isolated at we are watching in real time the 18, 2020), State Chief Minister Pin- For a sharp and worrying contrast society. A !ve-judge Constitution Bench found that ear- amination. Even those govern- once, allowing contact tracing to bene!ts of intellectual collabora- arayi Vijayan convened a State res- to Kerala’s success, consider Mad- ments that are likely to be rated be implemented by masses tion that does not stop at national ponse team at the earliest possible hya Pradesh. While State Chief Mi- marking teacher posts in areas noti!ed under the Fifth relatively highly by scholars of pu- trained to do this crucial and pain- borders. But the nationalistic turn moment and has provided the full nister Shivraj Singh Chouhan ear- Schedule of the Constitution adversely a"ected the in- blic policy studying this moment staking work in communities in global politics over the past two weight of his o$ce in support of a lier earned plaudits for his terests of other candidates not only from Scheduled later will not pass the examination across the country. The !nal stage, decades has reduced investment coordinated public health strategy investments in infrastructure, Castes and other backward communities but also other unscathed. Such is the virality and which for COVID-19 seems a life- in and undermined the legitimacy that has been accepted by the health expenditures are low, with ST communities not native to those areas. Of course, lethality of this pathogen that suc- time away, is a mass vaccination of the very institutions that facili- State’s citizens who have learned the State ranking dead last in this what the State government did, in its original orders of cess will be measured in hundreds programme and then the full re- tate international partnership at to trust the government in such sit- category as in NITI Aayog’s data. 1986, and thereafter, in a subsequent order in 2000, of lives lost, compared to the tens building of economic and social the very time they are needed uations. Yet these two examples This will undermine the State’s of thousands of fatalities expe- life. None of this is easy, but, like most. stand out in part for how rare they ability to !ght the virus, which gi- was not without its own rationale. It found that there rienced elsewhere. Yet, the com- an examination in a dreaded sub- Prime Minister Narendra Modi are. Consider again the cautionary ven the rapid growth of cases and was chronic absenteeism among teachers who did not mon challenges faced by all go- ject, one’s only hope is early and did well to convene the leaders of tale of the U.S. where some State a relatively high case fatality ratio, belong to those remote areas where the schools were vernments to !ght COVID-19 must persistent preparation and, at the South Asian Association for Governors have yet to issue stay- looks increasingly vulnerable to a located. However, its solution of drafting only members not mask the considerable varia- crunch time, remembering the Regional Cooperation (SAARC) na- at-home orders, and others are debilitating outbreak. But even of the local tribes was not a viable solution. As the tion in their performance which lessons learned. tions in mid-March to discuss the rushing to open the economy more worrisome is the abdication Bench noted, it could have come up with other incen- holds lessons from which we must possibility of a regional response, against the express advice of pu- of good sense by the political class tives to ensure the attendance of teachers. Another as- learn. What drags systems down but that video-conference call also blic health experts, all while the in the State. Even as the threat of So, why have governments failed highlighted that there have been U.S. President urges citizens in COVID-19 was apparent, and as pect that the court took into account was that Andhra Stages in the response to do better? And what separates no summit-level meetings of States governed by his political op- Kerala had put its State response Pradesh has a local area system of recruitment to public Disease outbreaks, even global successful responses from failed SAARC since 2014, in no small part ponents to seek “liberation”. into action, a soap opera in Mad- services. The President, under Article 371D, has issued pandemics, are scarcely new. The ones? Answers lie in three main due to India-Pakistan jingoism that Third, we are seeing !rst hand hya Pradesh was in full swing, with orders that a resident of a district/zone cannot apply to playbook for dealing with them limitations of contemporary go- has victimised the regional organi- the consequences of starving pu- defections and the collapse of the another district/zone for appointment. Thus, the 100% therefore is well understood and vernance systems. First, for all the sation. Similarly, last week’s out- blic health systems of necessary Congress State government. Then, quota deprived residents of the Scheduled Areas of any has been honed by practices and defensive !nger pointing, oppor- burst by United States President funds and resources. The compa- while the rest of the country was opportunity to apply for teaching posts. lessons gleaned from hard-fought tunistic politicking and xenophob- Donald Trump that resulted in his rative advantage of the private sec- practising social distancing, Mr. battles. A !rst stage is early clear- ic posturing — exempli!ed best by demanding that the U.S. end its tor is e$ciency; the need of the Chouhan was at the centre of in- A$rmative action loses its meaning if it does not eyed recognition of the incoming the peevish current occupant of funding of the World Health Or- hour in pandemic response is re- congruous images of large-scale leave the door slightly ajar for open competition. Dr. threat, and, in the case of CO- the White House but hardly un- ganization (WHO) not only endan- dundancy, or, more precisely, ex- packed celebrations. Now, !nally, B.R. Ambedkar observed during the debate in the Con- VID-19 at least, requires the unpa- ique to him — this is not a crisis gers American lives by cutting o" cess capacity. Most hospitals do a full month after its new-old Chief stituent Assembly on the equality clause, that any reser- latable decision to lock down so- that can be tackled without robust his own administration’s access to not need invasive ventilators nor- Minister was inaugurated on vation normally ought to be for a “minority of seats”. ciety. and multidimensional internation- vital international data, but also mally, just as they do not need vast March 23, Madhya Pradesh !nally This is one of the points often urged in favour of the Ideally this is done with full con- al cooperation between nations. directly a"ects India which re- stocks of PPE and extra intensive has a Health Minister. Wish him 50% cap imposed by the Court on total reservation, al- sideration of how to support the From the epidemiologists whose ceives signi!cant funding and ex- care units beds, but these are es- luck; he is going to need it. beit with some allowance for relaxation in special cir- most vulnerable members of so- data-driven models inform policy pertise from WHO (with ~10% of its sential goods right now as we ciety, especially in a country such debates about how and when to overall WHO !nancing in 2019 brace ourselves for a #ood of sick Irfan Nooruddin (@irfannooruddin) is the cumstances. It is still a matter of debate whether the as India, where so many survive lift quarantines, to the medical coming directly from the U.S.). patients into hospitals. Watching Director of the South Asia Center at the ceiling has innate sanctity, but it is clear that wherever hand-to-mouth. This is a phase community identifying more ef- Second, pandemic response re- the advanced health-care system Atlantic Council and professor in the it is imperative that the cap be breached, a special case aimed at buying time, of #attening fective treatments, to the research quires a whole-of-government of northern Italy buckle under the School of Foreign Service at Georgetown must be made for it. Such a debate should not divert at- the epidemic curve, so that public scientists racing to !nd a vaccine, strategy, for which political will unimaginable pressures to which University in Washington DC tention from the fact that there is a continuing need for a signi!cant quota for STs, especially those living in areas under the Fifth Schedule special dispensation. In this backdrop, it is somewhat disappointing that courts Bihar’s dystopian moments and a looming crisis tend to record obiter dicta advocating a revision of the With the global and national order in reset mode, it is no longer an option for the State to ignore its chronic issues list of SCs and STs. While the power to amend the lists noti!ed by the President is not in dispute, it is some- quently, the exodus of labour has Opening of new hospitals includ- charge of Food and Public Distri- what uncharitable to say that the advanced and “af- become a new normal since the ing an All India Institute of Medical bution at the Centre must think of #uent” sections within SCs and STs are cornering all be- 1990s. Despite the fact that con- Sciences and few others were universalising the Public Distribu- struction of new roads and over- hardly bene!cial for the poor liv- tion System. As a leader from Bi- ne!ts and do not permit any trickle-down. Indian bridges made through central as- ing in rural areas since they do not har, he should think of the mi- society is still some distance from reaching that point. sistance in Mr. Kumar’s !rst term have the means to avail them. Un- grants from Bihar and elsewhere Yashwant Sinha & along with the contractual recruit- like the highly publicised claims of in the country, and ensure basic Atul K. Thakur ments (especially in schools) could Mr. Kumar, health-care facilities at supplies to them even without ra- Joining of giants draw a few migrants back to the district and block levels are in tion cards. Mr. Kumar should ena- The coming together of Facebook and Jio is State, the situation on the migra- pathetic shape. ble timely policy advocacy for this. hould the government of Bi- tion front remained grim. Mr. Ku- As per National Health Pro!le Also, he should not be wary in exciting, but there is a risk of a monopoly har get the bene!t of doubt or mar has been in power for 15 2019 of Central Bureau of Health seeking the views of the Opposi- acebook’s decision to invest ₹43,574 crore for a Sshould it, along with its polit- years, yet the fate of these workers IMAGES/ISTOCKPHOTO GETTY Intelligence (CBHI), there are tion’s views in terms of crisis man- 9.9% stake in Reliance Industries Ltd.’s Jio Plat- ical partner, the Central govern- has not improved. They continue ment. For example, while an MLA 7,13,986 total government hospital agement and a plan to rebuild. forms marks a rare coming together of two giants ment, not be held solely responsi- to be vulnerable and compelled to from the ruling party was issued a beds available in India. More pre- As the global and national order F ble for its poor performance work without any legal protection. special pass to travel to Kota in Ra- cisely, this amounts to 0.55 beds is in a phase of reset, it is no longer who have a reputation for market domination. The fo- today? The Centre’s much-touted jasthan to bring his child back per 1,000 population. Many States an option for Bihar to ignore cus of their combined might is the India retail sector, a spirit of ‘cooperative federalism’ The forgotten people from there, countless others were even lie below the national !gure, chronic issues such as industrial di$cult terrain as large parts of it are still unorganised. has been nothing more than a hol- With the global pandemic and na- left to face socio-economic hard- Bihar is one of them, experiencing backwardness, unemployment But then for the same reason, it holds potential for huge low promise. There is a glaring gap tional lockdown causing unprece- ship and apathy an acute shortage of government and outbound migration. For Mr. disruption. In recent years, the retail space has been an between stark ground realities and dented loss to lives and liveli- Within the State, pauperisation hospital beds with just 0.11 beds Kumar, who was once known as ongoing battle!eld for behemoths such as Amazon and propaganda. India’s federal sys- hoods, Bihar’s vulnerabilities have is in full swing and the hunger is available per 1,000 population. ‘Sushasan Babu’, the time has Walmart, themselves globally dominant players. The tem is badly challenged today with come full circle. The State govern- just killing; Biharis with no sup- This is something alarming in a come to follow Raj Dharma. What partisan Governors, misplaced ment has failed to ensure proper port of remittances are on the State that was once known for its is expected from him is to be duti- other interested parties in this are payment services policies and languishing !nancial equipment and health-care facili- fringes in their own homeland. In socialistic leanings. The odd ful, not the balancing plays of companies such as the Softbank- and Alibaba-backed assistance. Bihar is no exception. ties to the people. It has also dealt Gaya and other parts of Bihar, chil- match-making of allies in the rul- caste arithmetic and crossing the Paytm, and Google, which runs Google Pay. But the States, including Bihar, have with migrants with disdain. A large dren were seen eating roasted ing government is not creating fence merely for political survival. combination of Facebook and Reliance will be di$cult been in the throes of !nancial number of Bihari migrants in Del- frogs. What could be more pitiful room for the resolve to help The state of a"airs in Bihar is wor- to beat — they seem to have both the marketplace and stress from before; the novel coro- hi, Mumbai and other parts of the than this in a country that will people. risome; accordingly, policies and the payment solution sides covered. For Facebook’s navirus outbreak and the national country were left stranded when have food grains of over 100 mil- Irrespective of the fact that Bi- plans have to be prioritised. Polit- WhatsApp messaging service, India is the biggest mar- lockdown have further weakened the lockdown took e"ect. Some of lion tonnes in warehouses by the har has now a new grammar of ics in the State should not defeat their !scal position. In fact, Bihar them tried their best to stay whe- end of April, and as according to politics, the State government has the aspirations of millions of Biha- ket with over 400 million users. It currently awaits regis still waiting for the elusive ‘spe- rever they were, but !nally gave the Food Corporation of India failed to give due weightage to the ris who have already su"ered too ulatory approval for its payment solutions. Jio is now In- cial status’ that Prime Minister Na- up as they had no money or food (FCI), where the annual produce is health sector. Even when Mr. Ku- much. dia’s No. 1 telecom brand by user base, less than four rendra Modi had promised during to survive. expected to be record 292 million mar may no longer be charmed For sure, the land of Bihar years after it launched its service. And then, JioMart is a elections and again soon after Nit- The heart-rending visuals of the tonnes in year 2019-20? Reported- with socialism, how can he over- should never be known as the recently-launched commerce marketplace, which ish Kumar formed the government poor and helpless migrants des- ly, India has enough in macro pro- look the unimaginable hardship of ‘imaginary homeland’ for its peo- seeks to connect local retailers with consumers. And with the Bharatiya Janata Party perately walking from Delhi/Na- jection. Reportedly, India has too the poor, the unemployed and the ple who are now home-bound as this is why, “the largest investment for a minority stake (BJP). Sadly, it has proved to be tional Capital Region back to Bihar little with lack of insight in disaster marginalised? He must bargain for the cities which they contributed another ‘jumla’. re#ect the hollowness of the management in a trying time such more from the Centre, because his to build have failed them. by a technology company anywhere in the world” (as a Bihar has had a long history of State’s approach to tackling a dis- as this. alliance with the BJP has not bene- Reliance Industries press release put it to describe the su"ering because of a persisting astrous disease and the conse- !ted Bihar. The people of Bihar are Yashwant Sinha is India’s former Minister Facebook move) has been notably accompanied by an feudal political culture that ne- quent lockdown. Also, some re- Floundering health care still waiting for the ful!lment of of Finance (1998-2002) and Minister of agreement to “further accelerate” business on the Jio- glected e"orts to create industrial cent developments show that the In Bihar, public health was the the promises made by Mr. Modi External A!airs (2002-2004). Atul K. Mart platform using WhatsApp. capabilities and employment op- government adopted a selective next thing after education that be- and Mr. Kumar. Thakur is a Delhi-based policy In short, it is a win-win deal for both players. While portunities in the State. Conse- approach in disaster manage- came corrupted and collapsed. Ram Vilas Paswan, who holds professional and columnist its social media services and messaging services have been extremely popular in India, Facebook has howev- LETTERS TO THE EDITOR Letters emailed to [email protected] must carry the full postal address and the full name or the name with initials. er struggled to get past regulatory concerns in India over some of its ambitious projects such as its free limited To read more letters The options years and we are still paradise of the rich is made relief component that doctors have untold stories online, scan the QR code Internet o"ering Free Basics and digital currency Libra. It is dismaying that in a accepting of their excuses out of the hell of the poor.” ensures survival of both of quarantine”, April 24). While it stays blocked in mainland China, Facebook country of huge economic for not spending enough on Karumanchi Manohar, !rms and workers who have Frontline health sta" need to on migrant labourers, daily- now gets to participate in a stronger way in one of the capabilities, where a major health and other basic Ongole, Andhra Pradesh been rendered idle. And two, be treated in a digni!ed way wage earners, self-employed world’s fastest growing markets for e-commerce. Re- share of GDP is borne out of amenities. Take for instance a stimulus component that in view of their sel#ess persons and the micro, small liance can rely on the popular messaging service to ac- the toil of the labour class, the expenditure on health I For India, further aims to repair and restart service to society. Such and medium enterprises celerate the building of its marketplace. It has also re- they have, for many years, care, which is well short of stretching the lockdown production lines during the incidents might cause people sector. There is a great deal been marginalised when it the prescribed percentage poses huge economic exit phase of the lockdown.” to stay away from getting of doubt whether in a post- ceived handy money to reduce its debt. The deal, came to the fruits of their for the overall well-being of challenges. Unlike ‘a For India, with a large screened. lockdown scenario the lot of coming as it does at a time when the world is !ghting labour. It is unfortunate the nation. Let us also not formulaic slump, where informal sector and a weak Deepika Jain, the vast majority of the the coronavirus pandemic, is a thumbs up to India’s po- that they have been denied forget the underspending in policies can be tailored to social safety net, the !rst New Delhi population would improve. tential. It is noteworthy that this is the largest foreign di- their rightful entitlements education and living !nance and raise demand’, challenge is going to be Much would depend on rect investment in the technology sector in India. But as far as health, education conditions. How long will the challenge now is to ‘keep tougher than the second one. Flattening the curve whether India will be in a will the deal that brings together the world’s largest so- and living conditions are we be under this political productive capacity intact R. Sivakumar, There is substance in the position to continue focusing cial media company and the group that is a leader in concerned (OpEd page, lockdown at the cost of our even as many !rms and Chennai government’s claim that the on steps such as social ‘Parley’ – “How will India basic rights is for us to workers remain idle’. As extended national lockdown distancing. As WHO has everything from oil to data lead to more consolidation emerge out of the decide. The pandemic Nobel prize-winning Quarantine facilities has ensured that the growth predicted that the pandemic and fewer players, as it happened in the telecom sec- lockdown?”, April 24). It response is also the right economist Paul Krugman has It is disheartening to know of cases has remained linear is not going away in a hurry, tor? It is a big question mark, and the deal should not be may not be an exaggeration time to question the argued, “The economic that doctors and medical (Page 1, April 24). But on the the Centre and States will passed without closely scrutinising this. For, the future to say that we have been political class about the response to the crisis will sta" in Rae Bareli had to face other side there can be no have to be on their toes. of India’s Internet economy is at stake. taken for a ride by the priorities. Let us not forget have to include two parts — dismal living conditions denying that the lockdown C.V. Aravind, political class for over 70 that Victor Hugo said: “The one, an immediate disaster (Page 1, “In Rae Bareli, has in#icted untold misery Bengaluru

THE HINDU CHENNAI SATURDAY, APRIL 25, 2020 GROUND ZERO 7 EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE Power play during a pandemic While the Congress government was !ghting to retain its hold and the BJP was trying to wrest power, several medical professionals, police o"cials and others contracted COVID-19 in Madhya Pradesh. Sidharth Yadav reports on a State which did not appoint a Cabinet for nearly a month even as a pandemic raged on

n Madhya Pradesh, March 20 will be <> Along with Shivraj Chouhan, remembered for two things. It was they (Tulsiram Silawat and the day when Kamal Nath bowed out I Narottam Mishra) did not as Chief Minister, bringing to a close a month-long power tussle in the State. It develop the health was also the day when four people test- infrastructure in the State, for ed positive for the novel coronavirus in which they owe an explanation Jabalpur. now. Around noon, a political spectacle, Rasheed Kidwai long coming, played out at Nath’s resi- Visiting Fellow Observer Research Foundation dence in Bhopal, atop the Shyamala hills, overlooking the Upper Lake. to the intervention by the Madhya Pra- Among the hundreds of journalists who desh High Court, all patients of the had assembled there for a press meeting BMHRC will be screened for COVID-19 was a 62-year-old man, unknowingly now. carrying the virus. On the dais, in the open-air hall, stood a sullen set of Minis- Outbreak in Indore ters. The government had been rocked The largest and most populous city of by desertions from within the ranks. At Madhya Pradesh, Indore, had a close the centre, a chair and table were set, shave with the virus in January. Two In- from where Nath would later announce dian students had returned from Chi- his resignation. na’s Wuhan, jostling with the pandemic “Please come forward, and closer,” then, but tested negative. Three months Narendra Saluja, media coordinator for later today, a terrifying spectacle is play- the Chief Minister, gestured to journal- ing out. Numbers have surged to four di- ists. Chairs were pulled with a screech, gits, deaths are piling, yet authorities and arms and knees rubbed against are clueless about the outbreak’s each other as journalists, perspiring in source. the heat, huddled together to catch By April 12, deaths in Indore had shot sight of the Congressmen on the dais. to 32. Salil Sakalle, Professor, Commun- “I had no idea I was carrying it,” the ity Medicine Department at the Mahat- journalist, who remained asymptomatic ma Gandhi Memorial Medical College through the 10 days of his treatment, (MGMMC), believes this could be ex- said after his recovery. His daughter, 26, plained by the fact that 55.3% of the 47 a postgraduate student in London, test- dead by April 17 having had illnesses ed positive on March 22, days after her such as diabetes, hypertension, morbid return. Hers was the !rst case in Bho- obesity and chronic renal failure. These pal. illnesses, combined with the virus to Despite being faced with an unprece- cause their deaths quickly. In addition, dented health crisis from March, by he said, 74% of the dead were above 50, when cautious States had already closed with most reporting late to hospital. down public places, prohibited gather- “They already su#ered from respiratory ings, and ramped up health infrastruc- “Shivraj Singh Chouhan waving at BJP supporters at the party o!ce in Bhopal on March 20, after Congressman Kamal Nath resigned as the Chief Minister around noon that distress by the time they !rst contacted ture and marshalled doctors, Madhya day.” (Below): Congresswoman-turned-BJP leader Imarti Devi, who was the Minister for Women and Child Development in the Kamal Nath government, being greeted by the health system. And some carried a Pradesh was embroiled in political BJP workers upon her arrival in Bhopal from New Delhi on March 21. * A.M.FARUQUI higher viral load,” he said. In fact, near- wrangling. The virus was knocking fu- ly 30% of the deceased su#ered from riously at its gates. By April 12, SARS- such acute distress, they didn’t survive CoV-2 had gripped Indore, where 10% of tending to her house, went viral on so- tact at the workplace or casually,” said <> Cases are surging rapidly and to see their COVID-19 test results. the infected had died, the worst case fa- cial media. Moreover, she was publicly Rahul Rajak, a researcher who is map- no one seems in control. The Ujjain also sends its patients to In- tality rate for any Indian city. Worse, it accused of not self-isolating, despite her ping the outbreak in Bhopal. appointment of a Health dore for treatment. As many as 10.7% of had penetrated the State health unit. By son’s return from the U.S. The Madhya Cases from the two departments con- Minister, at last, is a good step. its patients have died of the illness until April 24, as many as 110 health o"cials Pradesh Human Rights Commission verge mainly in TT Nagar, where a pol- Journalist who tested positive for the virus April 24. So, health experts are wonder- and their family members were infected stepped in, seeking a response from the ice housing society and a battalion are ing whether the strain is of a more viru- in Bhopal. As for the police in Bhopal, 41 government over o"cials sidestepping located, and several doctors reside. lent type. “Most mortalities in the State personnel and their family members treatment protocol. In the end, she re- Health workers from di#erent areas in- pal, where 23 members are infected, or have occurred in this area, and we are have contracted the illness so far. lented and moved to a private hospital fected at least three policemen residing in Indore. trying to !nd out the cause,” said Jyoti The signs of an impending crisis were along with other infected o"cials. Not a there while they were on duty. But in Bindal, the college’s Dean. Indore has clear. On March 2, when the Centre is- dedicated ‘COVID-19’ facility until then, one case, a doctor and a policeman, From one tragedy to another recorded 55 of the 92 deaths in the sued its !fth travel advisory, the Con- <> The State could have been the hospital was immediately designat- both residing in TT Nagar, had mutual In an eerily familiar pattern now, eight State, and neighbouring districts Ujjain, gress was busy rescuing its MLAs report- saved. Around the time we ed as one. contact. of the nine who succumbed to the ill- Khargone and Dewas with it make up edly being held hostage by the planned to procure additional Meanwhile, other infected health These policemen unwittingly carried ness in Bhopal were survivors of the gas 85% of all the deaths. The college will Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) at a Mane- medical equipment, the Health workers showed reluctance to be treat- the virus to their workplace, to the Aish- tragedy in 1984, which compromised send samples to the National Institute of sar hotel. On March 10, abandoning the Minister ran away. He had sold ed at the AIIMS, Bhopal, with many al- bagh and Jahangirabad police stations. their immunity severely. Two of them Virology for automated gene sequenc- State’s preparation for the pandemic, leging inadequate facilities. Another Batons, wireless sets, arms and log- died on a hospital bed. After developing ing virus culture, to ascertain the himself to the BJP. Health Minister Tulsiram Silawat was private facility was already treating books changed hands with co-workers symptoms, the rest carried the virus un- strain’s nature. Jitu Patwari cooped up at a Bengaluru resort with 21 State Congress working president their co-workers, and they were eager at the end of shifts. It was common for aware, hopping from hospital to hospi- As recent cases were mostly primary rebel Congress MLAs, who quit later. to shift there. “Well, they were infected cops to squeeze into a patrol vehicle or a tal, scrambling to negotiate the para- contacts of the infected, already in qua- Until that day, 63 COVID-19 cases had describing him as a “one-man army”. It together and wanted to recover from it riot-control bus, awaiting orders. Infect- lysed healthcare system and a crippled rantine, it was helping to stop the been reported nationwide. By March 16, was only on April 21 that !ve Ministers together,” said Faiz Ahmed Kidwai, ed o"cials unintentionally brought the referral system. Some landed outside spread to newer areas, said Akash Tri- the virus had infected 126 people and were appointed. Two of the Ministers, Health Commissioner. virus upon family members — wives and shut hospitals, others were denied ad- pathi, Indore Commissioner. killed two. It had entered 13 States, in- including Silawat, have held the health Within the disease incubation pe- mothers are infected mostly — in 19 dif- mission by hospitals fearing infection. The outbreak in Indore, which de- cluding neighbouring Maharashtra and portfolio in the past. “Along with Chou- riod, an unusual bustle had taken over ferent areas across the city. Stepping Pushed to the brink, the patients could tected its !rst case on March 22, had oc- Rajasthan. That was when a vexed BJP, han, they did not develop the health in- the Directorate March-end. Files out for casual meetings or buying groc- manage to reach a COVID-19 hospital curred in densely populated adjoining sni"ng power, chided the Speaker’s de- frastructure in the State, for which they changed numerous hands, back-to-back eries, they in turn became potential car- only too late. clusters, with no single source. In most cision to adjourn the Vidhan Sabha ses- owe an explanation now,” said Rasheed meetings were held, and o"cials riers. To break this chain, the entire city In one case, a man, gasping for cases, the spread in newer areas had sion, in view of the pandemic’s threat, Kidwai, Visiting Fellow, Observer Re- moiled in the emergency mode against police, 2,100 personnel, have checked breath, was taken to a government-run separate carriers. By April 14, cases had as a ploy to buy time. search Foundation. In addition, the set- the pandemic. The National Health Mis- into hotels. hospital, where no one provided him grown by almost four times in 10 days to ting up of a COVID-19 task force, headed sion sta# also moved to the building to Decoding the purpose of a meeting is with oxygen support. Worried seeing 427. As of April 24, the number had A single-man Cabinet by State BJP president V.D. Sharma, has give a leg-up to mitigation e#orts, but important, said Rajak. “It reveals a pa- his condition worsen, the sons lifted soared to 1,029, making up around 66% Madhya Pradesh reacted late to the pan- drawn $ak for having on its ranks only only to cram the space further. tient’s physical proximity and the level him out of an ambulance, but he died of the State’s tally. demic owing to Shivraj Singh Chouhan’s politicians and their lackeys. “Compare Making matters worse, the commun- of interaction with primary contacts, on the way inside within seconds. Faced with spiralling cases and zeal for power, claimed Jitu Patwari, Maharashtra’s team, comprising health ity medicine department of the govern- crucial for infection.” Swift action is the Another was denied ambulance service deaths, 12 doctors and seven nurses get- State Congress working president. “Oth- experts, with ours, composed of only ment-run Gandhi Medical College, key to trump the virus, so once the in- and admission by two private hospitals. ting infected until April 22 and health erwise, the State could have been saved. political lackeys,” said Kidwai. which guides the State government in fection is con!rmed, patients get a call The virus attacked six of them so vi- workers being roughed up and chased Around the time we planned to procure tackling the outbreak, went into qua- from a centre asking for who they met, ciously, and swiftly, that they could not away on two occasions while conduct- additional medical equipment, the An unlikely hotspot rantine on April 10, after a junior resi- and how. even wait for their test results to come ing a survey, Indore authorities have Health Minister ran away. He had sold On April 3, at 11 p.m., the Bhopal district dent in the department tested positive. More than half the infected in Jahan- in. Illnesses such as asthma, tuberculo- started regulating the information $ow. himself to the BJP,” he said. administration released a list of new pa- The team included a member of the CO- girabad, another hotspot with 55 cases, sis or cancer, caused by the methyl iso- First, the MGMMC was divested of its On March 4, Nath held the !rst secre- tients after deleting one name from it. VID-19 technical advisory panel to the are primary contacts such as family cyanate leak from a pesticide plant in daily task of releasing a three-page com- tary-level meeting on the illness. The The virus had penetrated the Health De- government. As of April 24, six sta#ers members. Bhopal stared at the grim 1984, hastened the process. From 1998 prehensive media bulletin. By contrast, next day, a helpline was set up. Next, partment, the institutional bulwark of the AIIMS, including doctors, had prospect of the densely populated area to 2016, 50.4% of the survivors su#ered district authorities have been issuing a the IIFA awards ceremony, Nath’s long- supposedly meant to guard the State been infected too. becoming like Indore’s congested hot- from cardiovascular problems, 59.6% single-page bulletin. Second, an Addi- cherished dream, was cancelled. On against its advance. Two days later, it The Principal Secretary, the Ayush- spots. The Bhopal administration from pulmonary problems and 15.6% tional Director in the State Public Rela- March 7, schools and colleges were or- was declared that an IAS o"cer, tasked man Bharat Yojana MD, and an Addi- swung into action and took 1,000 sam- from diabetes, according to the Bhopal tions Department, Mangla Prasad Mis- dered shut. Patwari alleged that the BJP with procuring drugs and equipment tional Director are the primary nodes of ples for testing, to pre-empt an out- Memorial Hospital and Research Centre hra, has been deputed by the State “punctured a moving vehicle”. for the State, and also the Ayushman the spread within the department. The break. (BMHRC). government to “resolve the crisis within The day after Chouhan took oath as Bharat Yojana MD, had tested positive. Deputy Secretary of the Medical Educa- There is no single source for the in- Five of the deaths occurred when the Indore’s electronic media, especially the Chief Minister on March 23, Prime No one knows where he got the illness. tion Department and an O"cer on Spe- fection in Bhopal. Several isolated cases ICMR-run BMHRC, the only super spe- pertaining to o"cial !gures,” as he put Minister Narendra Modi imposed a na- Today, the o"ce of the Directorate of cial Duty with the Integrated Disease have sprung up in 23 hotspots, having at ciality facility for the survivors, re- it. tionwide curfew. Nath alleged Parlia- Health Services has turned into Bho- Surveillance Programme, both IAS o"c- least three cases each. All patients have mained out of bounds for them for 23 On April 18, the State bulletin inex- ment was made to function just to o#er pal’s biggest, and most unlikely, hot- ers, have been infected too. been categorised along four verticals — days. On March 23, tens of admitted pa- plicably removed 17 cases in six districts a chance to the Speaker to run the Mad- spot. the police, the health department, Ta- tients were arbitrarily discharged as the over the previous day, to bring down hya Pradesh Assembly too. “This was so Cases within the department, to its COVID-19 a!ects cops too blighi Jamaat members, and others. facility was converted into a COVID-19 the tally. On April 16, the government that my government could be toppled,” embarrassment, have refused to ebb. The day the Health Department regis- Contrary to Chouhan’s claim, experts facility. Three died later of non-CO- claimed to have tested 3,896 samples, a he alleged. The virus is taking down at least two of- tered its !rst case, the police found four are yet to come across a strong link of VID-19 diseases. The government, fac- dubious 41% jump from the previous The turmoil not just delayed the !cials every day. Directors heading dif- of its personnel infected too. “O"cials the Jamaat members who have tested ing $ak, has restored the facility to treat day. This further dented the credibility State’s reaction, but the Centre’s too, ferent verticals, doctors, peons, perso- from the two departments were in con- positive and other cases, either in Bho- only the survivors. of o"cial !gures, as the spike was in- said Sachin Jain, of the Right to Food nal assistants, clerks and drivers have all Not all who died were publicly de- congruous with individual testing data campaign. “The lockdown was imposed have been infected. The six-$oor o"ce clared the gas tragedy’s survivors by the from centres and much higher than test- 10 days late. Airports could not have complex, Satpura Bhawan, was evacuat- Bhopal district authorities. Rachna ing patterns nationwide. shut operations as MLAs had to be $own ed, sealed for 15 days, and sanitised re- Dhingra, of the Bhopal Group for Infor- In Bhopal, another journalist who to di#erent cities citing horse-trading,” peatedly. O"cials self-quarantined, as mation and Action, said the ICMR-run took part in Mr. Nath’s meeting tested he said. operations were moved online. National Institute for Research in Envi- positive later. “Cases are surging rapidly The day after taking charge, Chouhan The case of the Principal Secretary, ronmental Health, Bhopal, tasked with and no one seems in control. The ap- looked away from the uptick in the CO- Public Health and Family Welfare, who intervening for the survivors’ health, pointment of a Health Minister, at last, VID-19 cases to seven, instead prefer- tested positive the next day is the most had not made any e#ort so far to identi- is a good step,” said the !rst journalist ring to reverse decisions taken by the peculiar. For at least three days, the de- fy, screen or test the gas tragedy survi- who tested positive for the virus. outgoing regime !rst. He ordered the partment’s senior-most bureaucrat re- vors who also had chronic illnesses. On April 22, Narottam Mishra was ap- closure of the case of an economic of- fused to be admitted to a hospital. “The institute should be pulled up for pointed to helm the Health Depart- fence against Jyotiraditya Scindia, who Meanwhile, the residential enclave for dereliction of duty for the deaths,” she ment, rudderless for 40 days. But the had crossed over to the BJP, cancelled bureaucrats and Ministers in Bhopal, said. political drama, and backroom ma- appointments made to various commis- Char Imli, was cordoned o#. She conti- Referring to instances of patients be- noeuvering, is far from over. Though sions, and shunted out the Rajgarh Col- nued releasing media bulletins every ing denied treatment in non-COVID-19 the virus is here to stay and gnaws at a lector. evening, and Chouhan hailed her resi- hospitals, Prabhakar Tiwari, Bhopal crumbling health system, 24 seats in the For nearly a month, Chouhan ran a lience. Chief Medical and Health O"cer, said, State Assembly will be up for grabs single-man Cabinet. An opinion piece Pressure mounted on her after a pho- “No hospital can deny admission to pa- within !ve months. “No matter how im- published by the public relations de- tograph of four health workers, dressed tients. Screening has been authorised at portant an event, human life must come partment even dubbed his role heroic, in personal protective equipment and the six State-run hospitals too.” Thanks !rst,” said the journalist.

CHENNAI THE HINDU 8 NEWS SATURDAY, APRIL 25, 2020 EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE

FROM PAGE ONE BJP pushed No plan to ease !scal de!cit targets M.P. into crisis, India records largest States should trigger their own escape clauses, says Chairman of 15th Finance Commission N.K. Singh says CPI(M)

single-day spike Special Correspondent clauses, he said. He also cau- be revised downwards con- Special Correspondent NEW DELHI tioned that the States need to siderably, though Dr. Singh New Delhi Dr. Paul added that India has played an important Despite the strain on govern- weigh the cost of borrowing declined to quantify the With a spike in positive cas- with its surveillance system role in helping us contain ment !nances due to the CO- from the market, and wheth- drop until fourth quarter es in Madhya Pradesh, CPI ensured that the govern- the spread of the infection,” VID-19 pandemic, there is no er there would be appetite macroeconomic data be- (M) general secretary Sita- ment’s e"ort to control the Mr. Singh said. credible proposal to amend for their bonds. comes available. Noting that ram Yechury said the BJP disease became a Jan Ando- “Union Health Minister the legislation meant to con- According to an o#cial the lockdown’s impact on should be held accounta- lan. Harsh Vardhan on Friday in- trol the !scal de!cit, Chair- statement, Economic Advi- public !nances will be signif- ble for pushing the State in- Sujit Kumar Singh, direc- teracted with all the State man of the 15th Finance sory Council members felt icant, with a large shortfall in to a health crisis. tor, National Centre for Dis- Health Minister and Health Commission N.K. Singh said. voked the Fiscal Responsibil- their own 3% !scal de!cit that options need to be con- tax and other revenues, the “Responsibility for these ease Control (NCDC) giving Secretaries through a video Speaking to presspersons ity and Budget Management targets be relaxed to 4% or sidered for !nancing the ad- Council recommended a shocking numbers in the his presentation on how sur- conference to review the after a two-day meeting of Act’s escape clause to relax even 5%, to give them elbow ditional de!cit. It is impor- nuanced !scal response, entire Madhya Pradesh veillance is being used to preparedness and actions the Commission’s Economic the !scal de!cit target for room in dealing with the im- tant to ensure that the State with a focus not just on the falls solely on the BJP gather epidemiological in- taken for management of Advisory Council, Mr. Singh 2020-21 by 0.5% percentage pact of the lockdown. governments get access to size but the design of any sti- whose top leadership was telligence and take required COVID-19. He urged the said the government was points to 3.5% of the GDP. If adequate funds to undertake mulus package. singularly focused on top- measures accordingly to States to focus on surveil- currently looking to see how the government wishes to in- Need for new law their !ght against the pan- A support mechanism for pling an Opposition go- contain the COVID situation lance, house-to-house active to ameliorate economic crease spending further in Dr. Singh said that change demic, they said, adding that cash-starved small enterpris- vernment, instead of being said that currently in India case !nding, early identi!- hardship while staying with- light of the current crisis, as would not be possible with- di"erent States may come es needs to be a top priority, concerned about the grave actively monitoring cation of cases and proper in the broad framework of many economists have re- out fresh legislation being out of the pandemic’s impact along with partial loan gua- health crisis in the State,” 9,45,000 people. clinical management to en- the existing law. commended, it may need to enacted by the States. A in di"erent stages. rantees and other measures he tweeted, adding that “Surveillance network sure that the patients get While presenting the Un- amend the Act. more expeditious method Council members all felt to protect non-banking !- their lust for power had je- has been set up at district le- timely treatment and mor- ion Budget in February, the The State governments would be for the States to that earlier projections of nancial companies, the opardised States’ e"orts to vel as well, so that house- tality is reduced,” Mr. Agar- Finance Minister had in- have been demanding that !rst trigger their own escape real GDP growth will need to Council said. contain COVID-19. hold survey, quarantine and wal said. isolation are done as part of Union Health Ministry cluster containment plan. It has on Friday also written to is because of the combined States/UTs to ensure that all Unions hit out at govt. e"orts that the early infec- the facilities under National ‘DA, DR cut inhuman, insensitive’ tion rates were reduced,” he TB Elimination Programme said. (NTEP) remain fully func- for freezing DA and DR “During the initial period tional in public interest and Govt. constantly hitting at the income of its employees and middle class: Congress of lockdown, doubling time ensure that the diagnosis AIBEA says the decision is arbitrary of cases decreased since pe- and treatment of TB pa- Special Correspondent ful expenditure, the govern- vernments, as also the priv- ople infected already were tients goes without any in- New Delhi ment has been constantly ate sector, not to cut wages Special Correspondent vernmental activities and being detected; later it im- terruption notwithstanding The Congress on Friday ac- hitting at the income of its and salaries. On the other NEW DELHI services meant to combat proved as lockdown put a the COVID-19 pandemic cused the Central govern- employees and the middle side, you yourself are cutting Unions on Friday termed ar- the spread of the pandemic brake on the spread of the situation. ment of “hurting” its em- class people,” he said. the DA and DR worth bitrary the Centre’s decision COVID-19...,” it said. infection. Our seven day The Ministry has added ployees and pensioners by ₹38,000 crore of 113 lakh to freeze the dearness allo- The CITU said the govern- doubling time increased that even if the TB patient is freezing their Dearness Allo- ‘At what cost?’ Central employees and pen- wance (DA) of its employees ment did not consult unions from 4.2 in April 6 has gone unable to approach the wance (DA) and Dearness Mr. Surjewala said that the sioners. Is it not an indicator and dearness relief (DR) of and federations of its em- up to 8.6 days on April 20. health facility, arrange- Relief (DR) instead of cutting decision to cut the DA allo- of the entire private sector of pensioners and demanded ployees before taking the We had started our surveil- ments should be made by down on “wasteful expendi- wance until June 2021 would the country to follow suit its roll-back. decision. lance mechanism even be- the facility to deliver drugs ture” during the COVID-19 give the government only and cut wages and allowanc- In a statement, the The All India Bank Em- fore the !rst COVID-19 case at the doorstep of the pa- pandemic. ₹38,000 crore at the cost of es of their employees? Is it Centre of Indian Trade Un- ployees Association (AIBEA) was reported in India. This tient wherever possible. Former party chief Rahul Rahul Gandhi its employees, including not an indication to the State ions (CITU) denounced the said the decision was “high- Gandhi took to Twitter to armed forces personnel and governments?” Mr. Surjewa- decision announced on ly arbitrary and unfair”. term the government move sion to cut the DA of its pensioners. la said. Thursday. “The very basis of pay- “insensitive and inhuman”. employees, pensioners and “Prime Minister Narendra In the past one month, the “No doubt, the country ment of DA and DR is to India must be self-reliant, In a tweet in Hindi, he said jawans, who are serving the Modi ji has deducted ₹11,000 government had slashed the has been passing through a compensate the employees that instead of suspending public by !ghting the CO- crore of the 15 lakh serving interest rates of small sav- !nancial crisis, but why and the pensioners for the the bullet train project and VID-19 pandemic. armed forces personnel and ings instruments, savings should workers and em- increase in the cost of liv- says Prime Minister Modi the Central Vista beauti!ca- At an online press confe- nearly 26 lakh military pen- bank accounts and !xed de- ployees be made the sacri!- ing... After the cost of living tion project, costing lakhs of rence, Congress chief spo- sioners. What is their fault,” posits of public sector banks, cial item for the same. Quite has gone up, it is unfair to The Swamitva programme, Since there was no real crores [of rupees], the go- kesperson Randeep Surje- he asked. hurting the common people a number of employees are deny the compensation to he said, would help rural In- cure for COVID-19 , the sim- vernment had taken an in- wala echoed his leader. “Modiji, on the one side who depend on the incomes deployed and consequently the employees,” it said in a dia leverage property for in- ple mantra of do gaj doori sensitive and inhuman deci- “Instead of curbing its waste- you are telling the State go- from their savings, he said. are involved in various go- statement. stitutional credit and other (two yards of separation) bene!ts. needed to be propagated, The Prime Minister laud- he added. ed panchayats and villages Mr. Modi’s statement on Arnab granted 3-week across India for implement- self-reliance comes at a time Reshu"e likely in key departments ing lockdown rules and so- when new foreign direct in- cial distancing norms. It vestment (FDI) rules raise protection from police showed how “rural India barriers for investments by More than seven Secretaries are scheduled to superannuate this month has channelled our tradi- certain countries and the tional values to combat the new Active Pharmaceutical SC allows case to be shifted to Mumbai Mahesh Langa cy is in the Ministry of HRD AHMEDABAD pandemic in a way that as- Ingredient policy for wrest- Legal Correspondent as Secretary, School Educa- tounds those with fancy de- ing back India’s lost domi- NEW DELHI wami, represented by se- The Union government is ex- tion and Literacy. Currently, grees from abroad.” nance in the sector. nior advocate Mukul Rohat- pected to appoint secretar- the post is being held by The Supreme Court on Fri- gi, justi!ed the “extremely ies in key departments and Higher Education Secretary day granted television an- urgent circumstances” as e"ect a reshu%e in the Cen- Amit Khare. chor Arnab Goswami three several FIRs were registered tral administration as more As per the buzz, Anita Total lockdown in weeks’ protection from any against him by Congress than seven secretaries are Karwal, Chairperson of “coercive action” against party members in States scheduled to superannuate CBSE, is most likely to be him by the police in a hate ruled by the party or their this month. new Secretary, School Edu- 5 Tamil Nadu cities incitement case. political allies. Mr. Rohatgi Among those schedule to cation and Literacy. She was A Bench led by Justice argued that the FIRs were retire include Health Secre- Health Secretary Preeti Sudan, left, and Economic A!airs also recently empanelled to A senior o#cial told The experts opined that the D.Y. Chandrachud said Mr. !led by Congress members tary Preeti Sudan and Eco- Secretary Atanu Chakraborty are also scheduled to retire. hold the post of Secretary in Hindu: “The data from the spread of COVID-19 could be Goswami can use the time in retaliation to his TV nomic A"airs Secretary Ata- the Central government. She health bulletin for the past brought under control only to apply for anticipatory shows on Republic TV on nu Chakraborty, both in key is also scheduled for retire- Sharma, a long-time trusted is a 1988-batch Gujarat- three days showed there if the lockdown was further bail. It also allowed the case April 16 and R. Bharat on positions in the midst of CO- ment. aide of Prime Minister Na- cadre o#cer. were more cases in urban intensi!ed in urban areas. registered in Nagpur to be April 21. VID-19 pandemic that has Sanjeevanee Kutty, Secre- rendra Modi, may be made Recently, the Department centres, especially Chennai. “The movement of the shifted to Mumbai, where Senior advocate Kapil Si- massively hit the economy. tary, Ex-Servicemen Welfare, Secretary since he has re- of Personnel and training It was felt more people were public would be restricted investigation would conti- bal, for the Maharashtra go- It remains to be seen is also set to retire from the cently been empanelled to (DoPT) empanelled 28 se- out on the streets for va- in other areas of the Corpo- nue. vernment, countered that whether the PMO grants ex- service. hold the post of Secretary in nior IAS o#cers belonging to rious reasons. Unless there rations completely. Severe The Bench stayed further comments igniting commu- tension to both o#cials con- According to government the Central government. Mr. the 1987 and 1988 batches to is a strict enforcement of action would also be initiat- action on other FIRs regis- nal violence cannot be pro- sidering the pandemic. sources, reshu%e in the ad- Sharma is a 1988-batch Guja- hold the post of Secretary or restrictions, the lockdown ed against those who violate tered against him in States tected as free speech. He “There is some possibility of ministration with key ap- rat-cadre IAS o#cer. equivalent. will not yield fruitful the lockdown conditions, like Chhattisgarh, Rajas- said nothing prevented Con- extension to see continuity pointments is likely over the Another senior IAS o#cer The Centre picks up the results.” besides the seizure of vehi- than, Punjab, Telangana gress members from !ling in both crucial posts,” a se- weekend. in the PMO, Tarun Bajaj, a o#cials from the State cadre “Though the spread of cles,” the order stated. and Jammu and Kashmir. complaints. Congress leader nior o#cial told The Hindu. 1988-batch Haryana-cadre or those serving in the Cen- the novel coronavirus has “Wholesale vegetable Mr. Goswami had moved Rahul Gandhi is appearing Other secretaries sche- Key PMO post o#cer, has been empanelled tral government on deputa- come under control in rural markets such as the one in the Supreme Court late on in defamation cases !led by duled for superannuation in- There are also several impor- along with Mr. Sharma. tion after the empanelment. areas, there are chances of Koyambedu would function Thursday night. It had with- BJP members in several clude Shipping Secretary tant vacancies in the admi- Whether he will be conti- Accordingly, several o#- more spread in the urban after complying with appro- in the next couple of hours States. Gopal Krishna, Women and nistration. The most impor- nued in the PMO or moved cials who were recently em- pockets, especially in the priate rules. Likewise, the listed the the plea for quash- FIRs could be !led Child Development Secre- tant vacancy is that of a out as a full-&edged Secre- panelled will likely be made areas where people gather sale of vegetables and fruits ing the FIRs before Justice against anyone. The police tary Rabindra Panwar and Secretary in the PMO. tary in the administration re- full-&edged Secretary in the in large numbers. Hence, would be allowed only on Chandrachud’s Bench. should be given a free hand Petroleum Secretary M.M. Insiders said Additional mains to be seen. various departments in the there is an increase in the mobile carts. There is no In the hearing, Mr. Gos- to investigate. Kutty. The Secretary, MSME Secretary in the PMO, A.K. Another important vacan- government set-up. number of COVID-19 cases permission for other shops in such Corporations as to operate during these Chennai, Coimbatore and days,” Mr. Palaniswami said. Madurai,” said a govern- He said the stringent res- ‘Resume child, Kidnapped policeman ment order issued later in trictions would be imposed Chidambaram asks govt. to the day. in containment zones and maternal care At a discussion on Friday, disinfectants would be rescued, 2 militants killed medical and public health sprayed daily. in Rajasthan’ facilitate travel of migrants Brief encounter in Anantnag district Special Correspondent JAIPUR ‘Desire to go home cannot be suppressed due to lockdown’ special correspondent The policeman was kid- U.P. to bring back migrant Health activists in Rajas- Srinagar napped when he was head- than on Friday called for Special Correspondent ty’s highest decision-making Two militants, who kid- ing home in Kulgam on Fri- the resumption of immuni- New Delhi body — urged the govern- napped a policeman, were day. It was second such workers in phases sation services for children Former Finance Minister P. ment to arrange for the re- killed in a shootout in south attempt in the past two days and antenatal care for Chidambaram on Friday turn of the migrant workers Kashmir on Friday, accord- in Kulgam. Earlier, militants After the U.P. government kalandar area tested posi- pregnant women, which asked the government to fa- to their hometowns. ing to the police. abducted a policeman on recently sent 300 buses to tive at a private lab. had come to a standstill cilitate the travel of migrant “The CWC draws the at- “A police party neutral- Thursday evening but the bring back its students District Magistrate Anuj last month following the workers to their hometowns tention of the Central Go- ised two militants and res- police managed to rescue stranded in Kota, Rajasthan, Jha said the sta" and doc- enforcement of lockdown. under strict conditions of vernment to the necessity of cued a [kidnapped] consta- him. On Sunday, one police- Opposition leaders, includ- tors of the hospital where The Jan Swasthya Abhi- health and safety. In a series framing a policy under ble. However, one man was killed in his house ing Samajwadi Party chief she was being treated — she yan, which acts as the State of tweets, he cautioned the which migrant workers who policeman was injured,” In- in Anantnag. Akhilesh Yadav, had visited it !rst on April 19 be- chapter of the People’s government that the desire P. Chidambaram wish to return to their home spector General of Police, The police on Friday said stressed that something si- fore getting tested on April Health Movement, said the of the people to be among states/villages (1) may be al- Kashmir, Vijay Kumar, said they allowed three families milar should be done for la- 22 — along with her relatives suspension of these servic- their own could not be ‘sup- their families, and to be lowed to travel under strict in a statement in a What- which identi!ed slain mili- bourers and workers stuck were put under quarantine. es would lead to an abnor- pressed for long in the name among their own language- conditions of health safety, sApp group. tants killed in an encounter in other States. “The corona positive lady is mal rise in maternal and of a lockdown’. speaking people is an over- (2) be provided with adeq- Police sources said the on Wednesday to partici- More than 8,000 stu- having no symptoms of the child health-related mor- “The overwhelming powering desire that cannot uate money and food in the militants were travelling in a pate in their burial in Sona- dents were brought back to disease, she has no pro- bidities and mortalities. mood and desire among mi- be suppressed for too long in interim; (3) be allowed to re- car along with the abducted marg two days ago. “Three the State, as per govern- blems at the moment,” Mr. Though the State had grant persons (and their fa- the name of a lockdown,” turn to work post the lock- policeman when they were out of the four slain mili- ment estimates. Jha said. The village she was claimed that the services milies) is that, after May 3, the former Union Minister down (4) compensation for stopped near a checkpoint tants were identi!ed by Ayodhya became the 57th from had been sealed as per were being provided at they should be allowed to go said. the families of those migrant by the Army and the police their families. These fami- district in the State to record protocol and medical sta" health facilities, very few back to their home states/vil- In a resolution on Thurs- workers who have lost their at Kharpora, Arwani in Bij- lies participated in the bu- a positive case; a 25-year-old were going door to door for people had availed them lages. The desire to go back day, the Congress Working lives in this period of crisis,” behera in Anantnag district, rial in the presence of a ma- pregnant woman of Poora- contact tracing, he said. during March and April. to their home states, to join Committee (CWC) — the par- the resoution said. leading to a shootout. gistrate,” Mr. Kumar said. CM A CH-CHE YK EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE

THE HINDU CHENNAI SATURDAY, APRIL 25, 2020 COVID-19 9 EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE In Kolkata, IMCT raises queries on tests Audit panel con!rmed 18 Central team also seeks clari!cation on the committee of doctors approving COVID-19 deaths deaths, says West Bengal Shiv Sahay Singh Kolkata Govt. releases !gures after Central team asks for details The Inter Ministerial Central Team (IMCT), which is in Special correspondent Kolkata, on Friday raised se- Kolkata rious questions on the treat- Hours after the Inter-Minis- ment of COVID-19 patients in terial Central Team (IMCT) West Bengal, particularly at asked for details of the pro- M.R. Bangur Hospital that cedure followed by the com- serves as the primary refer- mittee of doctors from West ral hospital. Bengal to audit COVID-19 The IMCT has sought clar- deaths and sought an inte- i!cations on three major raction with it, the West Ben- points — the facilities at the gal government released the hospital, the presentation number of COVID-19 deaths made by the Health Depart- the audit committee has ment to it and the committee looked into so far. On guard: A policeman securing the entrance of a "sh market of doctors approving the The audit committee in Kolkata on Friday. * RAJEEV BHATT deaths of COVID-19 patients. looked into 57 deaths and A letter by the IMCT to has so far con!rmed 18 of a former director of govern- had nothing to hide. Chief Secretary Rajiva Sinha them died of COVID -19, ment health services and a “Nobody has come here said there were a large num- State’s Chief Secretary Rajiva member of the audit com- as inspectors or auditors. It ber of patients in the isola- Sinha said on Friday. All the mittee. is also not that we are pass- tion wards of the CNCI (Chit- 57 had tested positive for CO- When it was pointed out ing or failing some exam. taranjan National Cancer VID-19. “This Committee ex- by journalist that this infor- The only exam we have to

Institute) and M.R. Bangur Daily round: Health workers visiting a locality during their door-to-door surveillance in Kolkata on Friday. * PTI amined all the relevant doc- mation had come after the pass is what people think... Hospital who were awaiting uments sent by the hospitals IMCT wrote to the West Ben- whether we have been able COVID-19 test results for !ve chaotic. There was no social gur hospital even though it The IMCT, while pointing believes that it is at the be- concerned and have found gal government, Mr. Sinha to provide them services,” days or longer. distancing in the waiting caters to 354 serious CO- out that the State govern- ginning of the test compared 18 deaths due to COVID-19 said what mattered was the the Chief Secretary said. The letter by IMCT leader area,” it stated VID-19 patients. When ment had said testing had in- to other States, the IMCT infections,” a letter released information the State shared Meanwhile, 51 new cases Apurva Chandra said they The communication also asked, the IMCT was increased from 400 to 900 a may be provided with any ef- by the West Bengal govern- and nothing else. Respond- were reported in the State in had spoken to four patients raised questions on reports formed that in case a patient day, sought to know how ma- forts made by the State to in- ment said. “The remaining ing to questions on the IMCT the past 24 hours, taking the at M.R. Bangur Hospital in social media that bodies requires ventilator support ny of these were repeat tests crease its testing capacity 39 deaths were due to severe letters addressed to him dur- number of active cases to awaiting test results since were lying on beds at M.R. and it is not available, the pa- and how many !rst-time pa- further in future considering co-morbid conditions which ing the day, Mr. Sinha said 385. The new cases were re- April 16, two since April 17 Bangur Hospital awaiting tient is transferred to other tients. “From the presenta- the large population of the were the immediate cause of the committee had come to ported from seven districts and three from April 18. “The death certi!cate. facility. Records in this re- tion, it appears that the State State to say 2500/5000 day death, and COVID-19 was in- cooperate with State. “We in south Bengal, but half of patient admission system at “There are only 12 ventila- gards may be made availa- is reaching its peak capacity over what period of time,” cidental !nding,” said the are like an open book,” he them (51%) were from Kolka- the hospital appears to be tor beds available in the Ban- ble,” the letter said. for testing. Since the State the letter said. letter signed by B.R. Satpati, said. The State government ta alone. IN BRIEF M.P. runs out of RNA extraction kits

Health Minister Narottam Mishra pleads with Harsh Vardhan for supplies

Staff reporter used for 12 samples in an Bhopal hour, whereas the automat- Madhya Pradesh is fast run- ed ones can be used for 24. 11 new cases take Punjab tally to 298 ning out of automated RNA The vendors were mostly CHANDIGARH extraction kits and staring at in Germany or the United Punjab on Friday reported 11 a Statewide shortage in two States, both badly a#ected fresh COVID-19 cases, taking to three days time in the by the pandemic, Mr. Dhana- the State’s tally to 298, wake of glitches in the sup- raju explained. “Companies according to an official ply chain. The kits, having are not supplying. Moreover, statement. The Health twice as much output than there is demand for kits all Department said that on April manual ones, are used in the over the world. For the bead- 24, six new patients were No distancing: A market in Ahmedabad ahead of the start of the Ramzan fast on Friday. * REUTERS process to test a sample for based kits being manufac- reported from Patiala, two COVID-19. tured domestically, procure- from Mansa and one each The laboratory in the ment of raw material is hit as from Jalandhar, Ludhiana and State’s hardest hit city, In- many components are im- Amritsar districts. Punjab has 191 cases, 15 deaths in Gujarat dore, which accounts for Making a plea: A policeman pleading with commuters in ported,” he said. The State so far seen 17 deaths. 66% of the tally, will run out Bhopal to stay home on Friday. * PTI had placed an order for 1.16 2 held for assaulting Of these cases, 169 are from Ahmedabad alone of the automated column- lakh RNA isolation kits, of doctors in Berhampur based RNA (ribonucleic acid) the State Health Depart- relief to us,” Mr. Mishra ad- which it had received just special correspondent BERHAMPUR due to the novel coronavi- occurred in the city, which is extraction kits today. Whe- ment. ded. 23,000 kits so far. AHMEDABAD Two youths who allegedly rus. There are only seven re- the largest cluster with 1,821 reas in Bhopal, the AIIMS “We have a problem on The manual extraction assaulted and abused doctors There was a sharp increase coveries on Friday, taking cases and 83 deaths. and the Gandhi Medical Col- Enough machines the supply side,” said S. kits were more or less availa- at the MKCG Medical College in COVID-19 infections in the total number of reco- Meanwhile, only 1,438 lege’s laboratories will run “We have enough machines. Dhanaraju, o"cer on special ble, said Ruby Khan, the o"- and Hospital in Odisha’s Gujarat, which added 191 vered patients to 265. As on samples were tested from out of stock in another day. In fact, we can even get more duty with the Madhya Pra- cial managing laboratories Berhampur have been new cases and 15 deaths on Friday, 2,393 are undergoing April 23 5 p.m. to April 24 5 Kits at the Bhopal Memorial of them. But we have no test- desh Public Health Services for COVID-19 in the State. arrested on Thursday. The Friday, taking the total to treatment at various hospi- p.m. as per the data released Hospital and Research ing kits,” Health Minister Na- Corporation Limited. “As a “We initially had 5,000- two were irked when the 2,815 cases and 127 deaths so tals, while 29 are on ventila- by the State health Centre will last for two days, rottam Mishra told Union Mi- result, the testing output is 10,000 automated isolation doctors objected to their far. tor support. department. as will those with the Jabal- nister for Health and Family a#ected. Unsteady supply is kits. We have run out of entry into the campus After neighbouring Maha- Out of the 191 cases re- According to o"cials, the pur laboratory. Welfare Harsh Vardhan dur- expected to continue till the stock now,” said Ms. Khan, without wearing masks on rashtra, Gujarat is the se- corded on Friday, 169 are State has a capacity to test The other six laboratories ing a videoconference. “If end of this month,” he ad- who is a deputy director in Wednesday. The arrested cond largest State with num- from Ahmedabad alone, around 3,000 samples per across the State have low you could send them as early ded. The manual bead-based the State’s Directorate of were identified as M. Siba ber of cases and casualties while 14 out of 15 deaths also day. testing rates, according to as possible, it will be a great RNA isolation kits can be Health Services. Patra and Nayan Swain from the Ankuli area of the city. Boxer Dingko Singh to go Plea to isolate to Delhi for treatment Maharashtra records 394 cases, 18 deaths Can’t bring students from IMPHAL Boxer and Arjuna awardee high-risk gas Ngangom Dingko Singh of The number of cases goes up to 6,817; the death toll mounts to 301 Kota: Bihar govt. tells HC Manipur was allowed to go to leak survivors Delhi in an air ambulance for Special correspondent ‘We can’t violate lockdown norms’ cancer treatment after he PUNE Dharavi reports Staff reporter tested negative twice for the Maharashtra reported 394 six fresh cases Bhopal special correspondent get them back as soon as novel coronavirus. Chief new COVID-19 cases on Fri- As eight of the nine per- Patna possible. Minister N. Biren Singh gave day as the State’s tally Staff Reporter sons to die of COVID-19 in At a time when more than The students are stuck in him monetary assistance on mounted to 6,817 cases, Mumbai Bhopal were survivors of 12,000 students from Bihar, di#erent hostels and paying Friday and wished him a while 18 new deaths took the Dharavi reported six new the gas tragedy, rights stranded in Rajasthan’s Ko- guest accommodations in speedy recovery. Congress toll to 301. cases on Friday, taking the groups on Friday demand- ta, and their parents have Kota where they had gone to MLA R.K. Imo has given According to health o"- total to 220. This is the ed that high-risk survivors been repeatedly appealing attend engineering and the boxer ₹50,000. cials, 11 of these deaths were lowest single-day rise after having underlying chronic to the State government to medical entrance coaching 5 returning migrants test from Mumbai, !ve were April 15. It also reported its illnesses be immediately ensure their early evacua- institutes. positive in Odisha from Pune and two from Ma- 14th death, a 60-year-old identi!ed, isolated and gi- tion, the government in a Earlier, the Uttar Pradesh BHUBANESHWAR legaon in Nashik. man from Gopinath Colony. ven medical attention to reply to the Patna High government had sent as ma- Five men, who recently Mumbai’s death toll now The BMC is undertaking help keep the disease at Court on Thursday said ny as 300 buses to Kota to returned to Odisha’s Bhadrak stands at 178, while that of Empty spaces: The Jama Masjid near the Bandra station rigorous fever screening. bay. while it was “sensitive to the bring back the State’s district from neighbouring Pune district has risen to 67, remained closed on Friday. * ARUNANGSU ROY CHOWDHURY DDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDD Six of the !rst seven who plight of stranded students, stranded students. On West Bengal, were found with 63 reported from Pune died had been undergoing but bringing them back Thursday, 38 students from positive for COVID-19, taking city alone. “67% of the soared to 4,447, with 242 of take its total to 70. Along new cases, taking the city’s treatment for chronic ill- would amount to violation Dadra and Nagar Haveli and the State’s total to 94 on deaths reported had high- the 394 new cases reported with the rural areas, Pune tally to 116, with 11 deaths. nesses such as cancer, of lockdown guidelines”. six from Diu had left by Friday. Contact tracing and risk co-morbidities such as from the city. The news was district’s cumulative tally has Areas in the Mumbai Me- chronic obstructive pul- On Thursday, a group of three buses, while 18 buses follow up action was initiated diabetes, hypertension, better for Pune city, which risen to 961. tropolitan Region (excluding monary disease and hyper- students from Bihar ob- from Assam and 31 buses by the State government’s asthma and heart disease,” reported only 38 fresh cases, Hearteningly, the number the city) reported a jump in tension. The methyl iso- served a silent protest in Ko- with students from Haryana Health & Family Welfare State Surveillance O"cer as against 100 on Thursday. of those discharged saw a new cases, with seven re- cyanate leak from Union ta while sending out an SOS were reported to be ready to Department in the villages Pradeep Awate said. The city’s tally reached 848. rise, as 117 persons were dis- ported from Kalyan-Dombiv- Carbide pesticide plant to the Bihar government to leave Kota on Friday. from where the new cases While the surge was con- However, Pimpri-Chinch- charged on Friday. The num- li to take its tally to 131. Seven here in 1984 caused the ill- were reported during the day. siderably lower than the wad, which had hitherto ber of persons recovered more cases were recorded in nesses and the coronavirus ‘Police officers should staggering 700-plus case on kept the contagion in check, stands at 957. Thane district whose total infection hastened their be given risk allowance’ Thursday, Mumbai’s tally reported 13 new cases to Malegaon reported seven stands at 255. death. NEW DELHI Identi!cation of the A retired police officer on high-risk survivors could Friday moved the Supreme be done by the six State- Court for a direction to the Shopian records 38 fresh cases in four days run gas relief hospitals and government to make the ICMR-run Bhopal Me- provisions for the payment of morial Hospital and Re- ‘risk and hardship’ allowance, 27 new cases reported across Kashmir; 9 more test positive in Bandipora search Centre and the Na- incentives in the form of tional Institute for bonus and additional salary to special correspondent o"cial said, !ve were detect- samples were taken in the the hotspot Bandipora, tak- Research in Environmental the police officers serving on Srinagar ed in Shopian, which report- area till date,” Deputy Com- ing the total number in the Health, said Rachna Dhin- the front-lines of the gra of the Bhopal Group for COVID-19 lockdown. South Kashmir’s Shopian, ed 33 cases in the past three missioner, Shopian, Choud- district to 108, thne highest Bhanupratap Bharge, which saw 38 cases of the no- days, mostly in Hirpora. Sho- hary Mohammad Yasin, told in the Union Territory. Information and Action. represented by advocate Amit vel coronavirus in four days, pian has around 60 cases reporters. He urged people “Out of 454 positive cases, The rights groups, in a Pai, contended that police has emerged as another hot- and over 44 are in the small to remain indoors. “The dis- 9 have recovered and !ve letter to Union Minister for officers above the age of 48, spot in Jammu and Kashmir, far-o# pocket of Hirpora trict administration is keep- have died,” an o"cial said. Health Harsh Vardhan, with medical conditions such even as 27 more positive cas- village. ing a close vigil on the situa- At least 65,722 travellers have demanded that the as diabetes making them es were reported across the “A team of doctors is al- tion,” he said. and persons in contact with survivors be quarantined vulnerable to infection should Valley on Friday. ready in the village and is Meanwhile, nine more pe- suspected cases have been at their homes or centres not be deployed for duty. Of the 27 fresh cases, an testing people. Around 400 ople have tested positive in put under surveillance. after identi!cation.

CHENNAI THE HINDU 10The ClatestOVID-19 announcement on PMGKY was made on 26th March, 2020 SATURDAY, APRIL 25, 2020 EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEas an initiative towards the loss caused by the outbreak. TheEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE 21 days lock down is expected to cost the Indian Economy a cost of around 9 Assam teacher Chineselakh crores. !rms stand by test kits Foodgrain stock will last till questioned TSomehey say productsof the approvedlatest announcements by ICMR, NIV Pune and mademeet ISO by norms the Finance Minister,in poem row next March, says FCI chief special correspondent of use of rapid test kits for SPECIAL CORRESPONDENT GUWAHATI NEWNirmala DELHI Sitharaman are mentioned below:two days, largely due to com- Calling it excess stock will be an exaggeration, he says Leading Chinese makers of plaints of variation in the Two Muslim organisations rapid testing kits for CO- tests. have #led complaints T. RAMAKRISHNAN stocked from July for almost VID-19 have expressed shock The controversy is, ho- against a college teacher in CHENNAI a year to meet the year-long andTo surprise provide at the reports ofan insurance cover of Rs 50 lakhswever, unlikelyper health to dent the workerAssam’s Darrang district The stock of foodgrains demand by the Targeted Pu- malfunctioning of the devic- medical supplies from Chi- for allegedly promoting available with the Food Cor- blic Distribution System esaffected they had supplied by to In- COVID-19. na. Ministry of External Af- “enmity between di"erent poration of India is “comfor- (TPDS) till the arrival of the dia, saying the products have fairs spokesperson Anurag religious groups” through table” to manage the situa- next crop. Similarly, we will beenTo approved provide by the Indian free resources of 5 kg wheat orS rivastavarice and said India 1 waskg ofher preferredinterpretation of a 1941 tion till March next year, but have to wait at least for six Council of Medical Research likely to get more medical poem by Assamese writer it would be an exaggeration months to start receiving the (ICMR)pulses and the Nationalfor 80In- crore poor people for the nextgoods three from China. months Sunderyed Abdul Malik. the to hold that the stock is “far in!ow of Kharif rice. Given stitute of Virology. The clari- Failing the test: The ICMR had halted surveillance testing for “In the past two weeks, Moi Asomiya (I am an in excess” of the bu"er stock our country’s pattern, we #cationPM came Garib as more Chi-Kalyantwo days over Ann complaints Yojana. of faulty kits. * M. MOORTHY around two dozen !ights de- Assamese) narrates how requirement, which should have to procure wheat in nese supplies seemed set to parted for India from #ve ci- the Mughals had come to include additional alloca- about three months for the arrive20 incrore India during Women the through Jan National Dhan Institute of accountInc, the other Chineseholders sup- ties will in China be carrying provided nearly conquer Rs Assam 500 but stayed tion, according to D.V. Pra- D.V. Prasad entire year and rice over six rest of the month. Virology [NIV], Pune,” said a plier that also supplied a 400 tonnes of medical sup- back and made Assamese sad, Chairman and Manag- to eight months. So, one per“Wondfo month received import forstatement next from three Wondfo, one months.bulk of the kits.To They know said p lies,more including about RT-PCR test thetheir PM mother Jan- tongue. Rupa ing Director of the FCI. year in the light of the CO- should not take a look only licence from India for Wond- of the major global suppliers the products met the kits, Rapid Antibody Tests, Rani Bhuyan, the teacher, Responding to the de- VID-19). In essence, the bu"- at the overall #gure, without foDhan SARS-CoV-2 AntibodyYojana, Test oreferf rapid testing to kits the required linkedISO-9001 standards. article. PPE kits, thermometers etc. posted on social media that mand being made by food er norms now need to take taking into account the addi- [Lateral Flow Method] on to deal with the COVID-19 vi- The statements from the Around 20 more !ights are it glori#ed Mughals. “She security activists that the into account the additional tional allocations due to CO- MTherearch 20, 2020. will And thebe ranal infection. increase in CMNREGAhinese medical device wageexpected to toRs bring 202 supplies perw dayas summoned to by the pol- Central government, with allocation too,” he pointed VID-19,” Mr. Prasad said. product was validated and A similar statement was is- companies came a day after from China in the coming ice and interrogated,” Dar- “enormous excess stock”, out. approvedbenefit by the13.62 ICMR croresued by Livzon families. Diagnostics the ICMR advised stoppage days,” said Mr. Srivastava. rang SP Amrit Bhuyan said. release more foodgrains to As on date, the total stock Good response States free of cost or at a no- is 564 lakh tonnes, of which Asked about the status of the The Central Government has given orders to State Governments to minal price over and above rice accounts for 284 lakh scheme of providing food- the existing allocations, Mr. tonnes and wheat, 280 lakh grains to those not covered use the Building and Construction Workers Welfare Fund to provide Prasad told The Hindu on tonnes. In the remaining pe- under the NFSA (such as Serum Institute eyes COVID-19 vaccine by Oct. Thursday that the bu"er riod of April, May and June, non-priority household relief to Construction Workers. stock norms were #xed it is expected that there will cards), Mr. Prasad said the based on the requirement of be an out!ow of 200 lakh response had been “good.” Pune-based company has partnered with Oxford University in the battle against novel coronavirus wheat or rice at 5 kg a per- tonnes for the regular NFSA So, far, 27,000 tonnes of rice son for 80 crore bene#ciar- scheme, 5 kg free for each and 18,000 tonnes of wheat Staff Correspondent vaccine takes a long time,” many years but with the reg- would be partnering with ies of the National Food Se- NFSA bene#ciaries given un- had been lifted by the States. Pune SII CEO Adar Poonawalla ulatory approvals in India ICMR for the clinical trials curity Act (NFSA), which der PMGKAY and the new Maharashtra had received The city-based Serum Insti- told CNBC-TV18. that have been very carefully and that he was in touch was in line with the require- schemes introduced for 16,326 tonnes of wheat (at a tute of India has said that it Observing that there were changed for this product de- with the Department of ments of the law. non-NFSA cardholders and rate of ₹ 21 per kg) and 14,915 expects the vaccine for CO- a lot of people who thought velopment, we are very Biotechnology. NGOs. tonnes of rice (at ₹ 22 per VID-19 developed by the Un- that they would have a vac- pleased to announce that we Talking about the decision Additional allocation As per the norms #xed in kg). iversity of Oxford in the mar- cine in a few months, Mr. will be able to do it by the and the risks involved, Mr. “The norms have been de- 2015, the bu"er stock, as ket by October or November Poonawalla said there was, end of this year,” Mr. Poona- Poonawalla said: “We are not termined, considering nor- maintained on April 1, was ‘It’s Centre’s call’ provided the safety and e%- however, a strong caveat. walla said. a listed company and we are mal situations and they es- around 210 lakh tonnes, a #- Among the southern States cacy of the product is esta- SII is currently looking at not accountable for our ac- sentially provide for any gure which would change on which had taken only rice, blished during trials. Trial process Adar Poonawalla 4-5 million doses monthly tions to investors in terms of production shortfalls. Ho- the #rst day of July, October Kerala had obtained 1,967 The institute has part- “If the vaccine works in the and would start manufactur- pure pro#ts and returns. So, wever, a pandemic, as we and January. tonnes of rice and Karnataka nered with the Oxford vac- U.K. trial and we do another Further, he said the insti- ing early to save time in the I was able to make this deci- are witnessing today, is a dif- 9,609 tonnes. cine project as one of the se- trial in India, which we are tute would be using one of hope that the trial would be sion and take this risk on at ferent situation and it may Kharif procurement To a question whether ven global institutions that hoping to start shortly, in sa- the existing facilities for ma- t successful. the cost of our other vac- demand a revision of the ex- “As the Kharif procurement rice would be given for these will manufacture the fety and e%cacy, only then nufacturing the COVID-19 “So, we hope to build up cines that we are putting isting norms in view of the season for rice is approach- cardholders free of cost, as vaccine. will it be available by Octob- vaccine, “However, it will 20-40 million doses by Sep- aside temporarily so that we additional allocation of food- ing an end and wheat pro- demanded by Tamil Nadu “In around two weeks, we er or November and that is take over two years to set up tember-October in the hope can build up the scale here.” grains at 5 kg a person, as be- curement has just started, Chief Minister Edappadi K. can produce #ve million dos- only if we start producing at new manufacturing facility that if the trial works, then Mr. Poonawalla said that ing done under the Pradhan the stock position at our wa- Palaniswami, the o%cial res- es a month and scale that up our personal cost in risk by for COVID-19 vaccine,” he we will have this product,” the manufacturing plant in Mantri Garib Kalyan Ann Yo- rehouses will naturally be ponded that “it is a policy to 10 million after six months the end of this month,” he added. he said. Pune would have an invest- jana (PMGKAY) for three high on July 1. Wheat being decision [to be taken by the while typically producing a said. “Typically vaccines take Mr. Poonawalla said SII ment of ₹500-600 crore. months (April to June this once a year crop, it has to be Union government]”. DecisionBenefits ofon PM Puri Garib Rath Kalyan Package Rajnath asks No Army deployment in neighbourhood forces to avoid YatraTo reduce only afterthe loss May caused 3 by the outbreak of Covid-19 in India, the Finance Minister launched the PM Garib Govt. clari!es after Afghanistan, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka deny asking India for military assistance funds wastage NKalyano outdoor ritualsPackage till curbs on are March lifted 26th 2020 for the BPL families. Suhasini Haidar Earlier, Bangladesh’s Fo- naval ships are kept ready for Special Correspondent Dinakar Peri Staff Reporter sure that rituals are not reign Minister A.K. Abdul assistance to neighbouring NEW DELHI NEW DELHI BHUBANESWAR disturbed. It is up to the go- Momen on Wednesday told countries. Five medical Defence Minister Rajnath TheSome managing committeeof the of benefitsvernments to decide provided wheth- Clarifying by thatthe the PM govern- Garib Kalyan Package are as follows:the New Age Bangladesh teams are also on standby for Singh on Friday asked the the Shree Jagannath Tem- er the Rath Yatra can be ment has no immediate newspaper in Dhaka that deployment in the Maldives, armed forces to spend #- ple, Puri, will decide on held in the absence of devo- plans to deploy the Army in medical teams from abroad Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Ne- nancial resources by avoid- holding the Rath Yatra after tees,” Dibyasingha Deba, Sri Lanka, Afghanistan and were not required. “We do pal, Bhutan and Afghanis- ing wastage in view of the MayAn 3, keeping Insurance in mind the P uri’sCover titular king of and Rs.chair- 50Bangladesh Lakh to help tackle not need such assistance; tan.” economic burden imposed revised guidelines for res- man of the managing com- the novel coronavirus pan- rather we are sending teams by COVID-19, the Defence trictionsUnder to be issued this by the PMmittee, Garib said on Friday. Kalyandemic, Scheme, sources in the Minis-any health worker in governmentto hospitals di"erent countries,” and Mr. ‘Preparatory healthcare move’ centresMinistry who said in a Union and Odisha Mr. Deba said the manag- tries of External A"airs and Momen said, referring to In a subsequent update on statement. governments.are treating theing committee Covid-19 decided not patientsDefence (MoD) would said on Fri- be provided with an insuranceB angladesh’scover supplies of Rs. to the 50April lakh 15, Army if sources met de- withIn asome videoconference The Rath Yatra, which is to hold any outdoor ritual day that the rapid response Maldives, Bhutan, Kuwait tailed India’s assistance to with the three chiefs, Mr. witnessedaccident. by over one Thesemil- till May health 3, and the decision workersmedical include teams of the force SafaiOn a mission: karamcharis,Medical personnel carrying ward-boys, essential equipment anurses,nd China. ASHA “workers,Friendly Foreign paramedics, Coun- Singh said he expected the lion devotees in nine days would be applicable to all Ja- would be deployed only “if leaving for Kuwait earlier in April. * PTI/ @IAF_MCC In Sri Lanka, too, Defence tries” like Kuwait, where In- forces to ensure their oper- everytechnicians, year, is scheduled for doctorsgannath temples and across the specialists.requested”. All government health centres, wellnessSecretary Maj. centres Gen. Kamal anddian expatriate hospitals workers are ofational Centres preparedness. June 24. globe. “We have responded son Anurag Srivastava said, any plans to bring in the In- Gunaratne (Retd) ruled out the biggest block of coronavi- “Stressing the requirement asThe committeewell as met States on The managingwould committee be coveredpromptly to requests under for de- thisreferring scheme. to reports on prep- Approximatelydian military for assistance. 22the needlakh for Indian health military workersrus-positive patients. would beof jointness of the armed Friday, two days before the members will meet Puri ployment of rapid response arations for military-medical On Friday, Afghanistan’s assistance. “Our military has Defence Ministry sources forces, the Defence Minis- auspiciousprovided Akshaya Tritiya insuranceSankaracharya cover Nischala- to tfighteams (RRTs) this comprising pandemic.deployment as “mislead- National Security Council already shown their exper- had repeated that their ter asked the Commanders (April 26) when the con- nanda Saraswati to discuss doctors, nurses and para- ing”. “We have kept teams spokesman Javid Faisal was tise and professionalism in teams were on “standby to in Chief to identify and struction of chariots begins. how to perform rituals be- medics to deal with CO- on standby, if required by quoted by Saudi Arabia handling the emergency sit- be deployed in Sri Lanka, prioritise tasks that could “The Central and State cause of the restrictions. VID-19, for example, to the them,” Defence Ministry based Arab News as saying uation created under coro- Bangladesh, Bhutan and Af- be accomplished quickly governmentsFree Pulses are the apex forSources the in next the State 3 go- monthsMaldives and under Kuwait. These PMsources Garib said. Ministry Kalyan o%- that Ann “there hasYojana never been navirus threat,” he told re- ghanistan,” which had and assist in revival of the authorities to take decisions vernment said Chief Minis- RRTs are ready for deploy- cials declined to comment. such a request from Kabul, porters on Wednesday. prompted the reports. economy after the lock- inThe respect ofGovernment public health. ter Naveen of Patnaik India on Fri- declaredment to other friendly to provide coun- The government’sfree resources clari#- nor has thereof been5 kg such wheat a The confusion or rice appears and to D1iplomatic kg of and preferred defence down is pulses lifted,” the Minis- We have to follow their in- day held a phone discussion tries at short notice if re- cation comes after senior of- suggestion from Delhi. These have arisen over a press note sources clari#ed that this try stated. The conference structions.for 80 We have crore request- poorwith Prime people Minister Naren- for qtheuested next by them,” three External #monthscials in Sri Lanka, under Afghanis- athere false PMreports, Garibeven false issuedKalyan by the Defence Ann Minis- Yojana.was only a preparatory Each mea- onew ofas attended them by the Chief edwould the governments be toprovided en- dra Modi on thedouble Rath Yatra. ofA "theirairs Ministry current spokesper- tentitlementan and Bangladesh denied overperceptions”. the next threetry on Aprilmonths 3 that said, “Sixto ensuresure. adequateof the Defence Sta".

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SCAN TO PLAY SUDOKU FAITH Benefit to farmers Feeling down in lockdown? + 12919 Get across to our Crossword site. @ https://crossword.thehindu.com The Government(set by Gridman) to front-load Rs. 2,000 paid to farmers in the first week of April underDoing existing Ihsaan PM in Kisan Ramazan Yojana which will benefit 8.713 Individualcrore without farmers. a shade of superiority yet a dictator (5) Ramazan is the most revered month of Islamic calendar. 14 One coming in again on medical department’s complaint (9) Authentic hadiths reveal that the Prophet devoted himself 16 Email circulated about Europe’s every other crab disease (9) more in worship in Ramazan than he did during other 19 Keen about radical leader’s foreword (5) times. For centuries Muslims have been utilising Ramazan to emulate the Prophet and dedicate themselves to the Free LPG cylinders to the BPL21 One familiesmaking an arrest is a small-time policeman with no chief cause of Islam through prayers and philanthropic acts. present (7) The Finance Minister of India, Nirmala Sitharaman made an announcement on 26th March,This time, however, 2020 they to are boundprovide to feel fettered by 23 I am covering wise men’s movement in poetry (7) prophylactic restraints on their right to pray in mosques, free cylinders to the BPL (Below24 Soothing onePoverty ill-met unfortunately Line) (9) families for the next three months underthanks the to the Ujjwala con!agratory spread scheme of COVID-19. Neverthe- 25 Stop at giving directions to professor (3,2) less, these temporary restrictions should not be seen as an 26 Great to move around youth and dance wildly (6) impediment to the practice of Islam, but an absolute neces- 27 Small, extremely handy cape, in reserve (7) sity to stem the community transmission of the coronavirus. To help the low wage earners in organised sectors As an ethical system, Islam plays a key role in shaping hu- I DOWN man character. The Quran gives a code of behaviour, hudal The PM Garib Kalyan Package1 Bilingual will editor put also a gloss (6-8) help the Wage-earners who are earning belowl inRs. naas (guidance15,000 to humanity), per monthwhich not just indi"eren- 2 One gathers force less bulky (7) tiates between good and bad, but helps humans identify businesses that are having less3 Skilled thanworker escapes 100 from a strainworkers. (7) The wage workers who are at risk oftheir losing rights and responsibilities their in a society. One such socie- 4 Writer to identify Hindu god with star shape (9) tal obligation in the Quran (4:36) is the concept of ihsaan (disinterested kindness) which lists neighbours who are re- employment will be provided5 Duke with holds title 24to hills (5)percent of their monthly wages into their PF accounts for next three Solution to puzzle 12918 Solution to yesterday’s Sudoku lated (jaari zil qurba), neighbours who are strangers (jaaril months which would prevent6 Vehicle disruption to follow another vehicle in on time their (7) employment. junubi), friends, orphans and the needy among the bene#ci- 7 Next Nordic lad stripped introductions (7) aries of a person’s benevolence. This is the good character 8 Divisions force revamping of a prominent post (14) (husnal akhlaaq) which an authentic hadith in Muwatta as- I ACROSS 15 Wastes time — a case is handled inappropriately (9) serts the Prophet was sent to perfect. 1 Play golf with a retired prime minister — it’s illuminating (7) 17 You are to get old record on unknown medical study (7) As is obvious, Quranic huda (guidance) puts a great deal 5 Sidestepped car at end of road (6) 18 In the morning draw a sacred vessel (7) of emphasis on humanitarianism, making Islam more of an 9 Expel second? Not right! (5) anthropocentric deen (system of life) than an obsessively 19 Altering any line without reason (7) 10 Grown-ups upset about eastern Internet forum (9) theocentric religion; which is why there cannot be a greater 11 Actors adopt a name for a game (7) 20 Time for wee twist (7) act of philanthropy today for the Muslims than the ihsaan of 12 Stitch repeatedly as announced by what’s-his-name (2-3-2) 22 One of Chaucer’s pilgrims heartily agreed with woman (5) ful#lling their Ramzan obligations from home. A. Faizur Rahman

THE HINDU CHENNAI SATURDAY, APRIL 25, 2020 WORLD 11 EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE

INTERVIEW | RANIL WICKREMESINGHE ‘South Asia needs a humanitarian response to the COVID-19 pandemic’ The former Sri Lankan Prime Minister says India has to play a leading role in formulating a SAARC-led regional response to the crisis

Meera Srinivasan dled from Kathmandu alone. region. Do you agree? the Maldives, Sri Lanka, I You have to. You have to I Well, the free markets have If you can, well and good. parts of India, Nepal. How do move away from some of to #ow. But some of the As the world combats the deadly coronavirus pandemic, Sri But you may need another ci- I Well, there’s one more. you manage that? I would those [past policies]. If you countries that are doing well Lanka’s former Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe un- ty. It can be Bengaluru, Co- Keeping enterprises going look at some of the climate look at the IMF reports, they [in their COVID-19 response] derscores in an interview the need for a collective response in lombo, any city. big or small — if they col- change issues, and also mo- say it is bad this year, it might have a more social market South Asia, focussing on both, health and economic revival. lapse, the whole formal sec- dernising agriculture. We pick up next year. I don’t economy. Edited excerpts: But you see a greater role for tor goes. It’s the total eco- have got to create jobs. You know, if we don’t !nd a re- the Secretariat too? nomic activity that is at have to have helicopter mo- medy quickly, next year is al- How do you think COVID-19 Well before the COVID-19 Kerala. We can work togeth- stake, other than production ney. The thing is the problem so going to be bad. We will impact the global order? crisis hit us, you have been er on that. I Yes, the Secretariat works of safety [PPE] suits, gloves we have with our debts and should plan for two years. China and the U.S., two an advocate of greater with the one in-charge. One <> This is a global and medicines. I think the amount we owe to the in- powerful countries, have regional cooperation. How Countries in the region have person overall, who has eve- pandemic without a SAARC can also develop a ternational sovereign bonds. When you say move away been hit so badly. can it help at such a time? each pledged money ryone’s con!dence, should global leadership standby industrial base on So, it is more a question of from some established towards the recently set-up deal with it. In regard to the this. dealing with the London policies, what do you mean? I Europe is going to get the I You see, this is a good time SAARC COVID-19 Emergency Secretariat, the advantage is posal and give it to the Secre- Club than the Paris Club, but worst of it. And what will the for a regional cooperation Fund. But each country is that the ambassadors accre- tary General who will talk How so? I think a common approach I You have to look at some U.K. do? They’ve lost a mar- programme. This is a global administering its funds dited to SAARC are there. with the others, and then we would help us. sectors that you are going to ket, and in this situation, you pandemic without a global based on requests made That is the plus point of !nalise it. I We could start companies pump in money into. We can’t gain a market in a hur- leadership. Maybe the region bilaterally, rather than Kathmandu. It is not India-led, the ef- to start manufacturing. Of For Sri Lanka, while the have focused on in#ation, ry. What President Trump is can’t provide leadership for through a common pool... fort is SAARC-led, but let In- course, when they start their bilateral debts are perhaps but in#ation is really down. trying to do is to keep the all. But the !rst virtual meet- We are seeing some tensions dia give the input. Similarly, prices may not be that com- negotiable, the terms of the Then, the question of raising economy going so he won’t ing of SAARC leaders was I There has to be a common in the SAARC COVID-19 let Pakistan, Bangladesh give petitive, but we decide on it sovereign bonds are money — commercially and be second-guessed by China. good, looking at the back- centre. The SAARC Secreta- response, with Pakistan theirs. Let the Secretariat put and everyone buys from one ruthless, aren’t they? otherwise, how much can But China actually had a lock- ground and the problems riat and someone who is in- saying the SAARC it together. We have to look at or two companies ear- the London Club give us? down and they are now re- that are there. We must treat charge. The Secretariat itself Secretariat should handle issues pertaining not only to marked for it. I That’s a big one, yes. That That is really the big issue for starting. The problem for this as a humanitarian issue has limited sta", so you must the funds. health, but also to our econo- is why you can’t do anything all of us. And the fact that for China, like all of us in di"e- and come up with a regional have someone in-charge of it. mies. Job creation will also be a on the rupee debt. We’ll have India and Pakistan, it is a big rent ways, is that the markets response. Maybe one or two I think it may be better if they I You need someone in- major challenge, isn’t it? in#ation. That is one thing amount, maybe a few billion are in the western world. Un- countries, for instance, India are placed somewhere more charge there. I’m not saying The World Bank’s Chief Especially since migrant we can work on as a unit. dollars. So it is better to go as til the western world picks and one other, could put up centrally, working with rele- it is not the Secretariat. But Economist for South Asia workers from the region, a team and take it on. up, we have to move towards a proposal, which then can vant medical authorities. India has a leading role. Pa- recently told The Hindu that who were working in West More broadly, do you also other markets also. I think In- be looked at by others, and kistan can’t match India’s managing migrant returns, Asia, are returning and may see a potential shift in the Speaking of the pressures of dia should reconsider com- possibly amended. Let us all What do you mean by funding. Let Pakistan make a service sector revenue not go back. region towards the international money ing into the RCEP [The Re- work together. We [Sri Lan- centrally located? proposal and one another losses and ensuring food expansionary !scal policy, a market, do you think it’s gional Comprehensive ka], for instance have a good country should get together. security for the poorest will I We have to work this out. basic income? We see that time to rethink the Economic Partnership], public health system. So has I don’t know if it can be han- Someone should make a pro- emerge key priorities for the Remember tourism is big in talk picking up globally. prevailing economic model? even at a later stage. ‘China may have known of virus in Nov.’ Uproar after Trump suggests Pompeo reiterates United States’ demand for sample of the SARS-CoV-2 detected in Wuhan ‘injecting disinfectant’ as cure Agence France-Presse Washington U.S. death toll Makers of Dettol, Lysol warn the products are not for treatment U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo charged on Thurs- crosses 50,000 Associated Press warmer temperatures and day that China may have WASHINGTON higher humidity of spring Agence France-Presse known of the novel coronavi- Washington The makers of Lysol and Det- and summer will help check rus (SARS-CoV-2) as early as tol warned on Friday that the spread of the virus. November, renewing accusa- The novel coronavirus has their products should not be But William Bryan of the tions that Beijing has not killed more than 50,000 used as an internal treat- Department of Homeland been transparent and again people in the U.S., after ment for the COVID-19 after Security said at a White drawing ire from China. one of the deadliest days President Donald Trump House brie!ng on Thursday “You’ll recall that the !rst of the pandemic which wondered about the pros- that there are “emerging re- cases of this were known by saw 3,176 deaths, pect during a White House sults” from new research the Chinese government according to a tally on brie!ng. that suggest solar light has a maybe as early as November, Thursday from Johns Mr. Trump noted on Donald Trump powerful e"ect in killing the but certainly by mid-Decem- Hopkins University. It now Thursday that researchers virus on surfaces and in the ber,” Mr. Pompeo said. has 870,468 con!rmed were looking at the e"ects of jection, ingestion or any oth- air. He said scientists have “They were slow to identi- cases. disinfectants on the virus er route),” said the state- seen a similar e"ect from fy this for anyone in the CCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCC and wondered aloud if they ment from Reckitt higher temperatures and hu- world, including the World could be injected into peo- Benckiser. midity. A biocontainment Health Organization,” he ple, saying the virus “does a Mr. Trump has often lab in Maryland has been told conservative radio host ‘Johnson is tremendous number on the talked up prospects for new conducting testing on the vi- Larry O’Connor. Rising anger: Demonstrators taking part in a motorcade in Washington as part of a protest lungs, so it would be inter- therapies and o"ered rosy ti- rus since February, Bryan against the Trump administration's response to the COVID-19 pandemic. * AFP recovering’ esting to check that.” melines for the development said. That prompted a strong of a vaccine as he encourag- “The virus is dying at a Reuters in November and December ran “counter to the general nowledgment of what be- warning from the maker of es states to move to reopen much more rapid pace just London and January, but it’s impor- consensus of the global com- came a global pandemic disinfectants Lysol and Det- their economies. from exposure to higher Mr. Pompeo said the U.S. tant even today,” he said. munity”, Foreign Ministry came on December 31 . British Prime Minister tol, which said it was issuing temperatures and just from still wanted more informa- “This is still impacting lots of spokesman Geng Shuang Critics say that Mr. Trump Boris Johnson continues a statement to combat “re- Sunlight, humidity exposure to humidity,” Mr. tion from China, including lives here in the U.S. and, said at a daily press brie!ng, is seeking to de#ect from his his recovery from cent speculation.” On Thursday, the White Bryan said. the original sample of the frankly, around the world.” adding that China had “pro- own handling of the crisis, COVID-19 at his country “As a global leader in House also pitched “emerg- “I hope people enjoy the SARS-CoV-2 virus detected in China hit back on Friday, vided timely information to which he claimed to have residence and any health and hygiene pro- ing” research on the bene!ts sun. And if it has an impact, the metropolis of Wuhan. saying Mr. Pompeo’s re- the world”. “totally under control” in Ja- decision to return to work ducts, we must be clear that of sunlight and humidity in that’s great,” Mr. Trump “This issue of transparen- marks were “totally ground- China initially closely nuary but has since killed in London will be taken on under no circumstance diminishing the threat of the said, adding, “It’s just a sug- cy is important not only as a less and entirely for the pur- guarded information of the more than 50,000 people in the advice of his doctors, should our disinfectant pro- coronavirus. gestion from a brilliant lab historical matter to under- pose of blaming others”. virus and silenced whistle- the U.S. — more than any oth- his spokesman said on ducts be administered into Past studies have not by a very, very smart, per- stand what happened back Mr. Pompeo’s comments blowers. The !rst o$cial ack- er country. Friday. the human body (through in- found good evidence that haps brilliant man.” Iran’s missile launch is of Trump will try to postpone U.S. poll: Biden ELSEWHERE signi!cant concern: U.K. Former V-P says it is the only way the veto emergency funding for !cially determine who will the U.S. Post O$ce, claimed be the presidential nominee. Reuters said in a statement. President ‘thinks he can possibly win’ it was an example of the Pre- The 73-year-old Mr. LONDON “The UN has called upon sident’s intention to “do all Trump has been criticised The U.K. said on Friday that Iran not to undertake any Agence France-Presse during an online fundraiser he can to make it very hard for turning his daily White an Iranian satellite launch activity related to ballistic Washington Thursday. for people to vote.” House coronavirus brie!ngs earlier this week was of sig- missiles designed to be cap- Presumptive Democratic The 77-year-old former While mail-in voting and into campaign events — rally- Hungary, China sign deal for rail project ni!cant concern and incon- able of delivering nuclear presidential nominee Joe Bi- Vice-President said it is “the absentee ballots remain ing his base and taking BUDAPEST sistent with a United Nations weapons. Iran must abide den has predicted that U.S. only way he thinks he can methods many say could swipes at his detractors such Hungary signed on Friday a Security Council (UNSC) by this,” the spokesman President Donald Trump will possibly win.” help limit voters spreading as Mr. Biden, who is shelter- China-financed loan resolution. said. try to postpone the country’s Six months before U.S. vo- coronavirus, Mr. Trump ing at home. agreement for a high-speed “Reports that Iran has “We have signi!cant and November election in an at- ters head to the polls, maintains they create the po- “We have a sleepy guy in a railway linking Budapest and carried out a satellite launch longstanding concerns... ov- tempt to win. Trump’s mind is already in Joe Biden tential for fraud. basement of a house that the Belgrade, billed as Hungary's using ballistic missile tech- er Irans ballistic missile pro- “Mark my words, I think election mode. press is giving a free pass to, biggest ever infrastructure nology are of signi!cant gramme, which is destabilis- he is gonna try to kick back But with a pandemic rag- may be harder than he Media brie!ngs? who doesn’t want to do de- investment and one whose concern and inconsistent ing for the region and poses the election somehow, come ing and job losses climbing to anticipated. Meanwhile, dozens of U.S. bates because of COVID,” contract details could be kept with UNSC resolution 2231,” a threat to regional securi- up with some rationale why 26.4 million on Thursday, Mr. Biden, highlighting States have postponed their Trump said during the secret for a decade. The a Foreign O$ce spokesman ty,” the spokesman added. it can’t be held,” Biden said Mr. Trump’s path to victory Mr. Trump’s recent threat to primary races, which will of- Thursday brie!ng. 350-km-long high-speed rail line would form part of a planned railway connection linking central Europe with German court the Chinese-run Piraeus port We will build ties in the neighbourhood: Taliban in Greece. The project is part tries IS jihadist of China's ambitious “Belt ‘We don’t want any foreign out!t using lasting peace in Afghanistan, safe havens, and until it es- be invited to the next region- and Road” initiative. AFP over genocide and discussed “the need for chews violence. al conference, given its “con- Afghan soil to target another country’ both the Afghan government India has thus far not re- tribution to Afghanistan’s re- 12 rangers killed in Agence France-Presse and the Taliban to accelerate cognised the Taliban, which construction.” attack in DR Congo Frankfurt Suhasini Haidar tual interests,” said Mr. Sha- prisoner releases, support a has had links with terror During the 45-minute inte- GOMA NEW DELHI An Iraqi man, who is be- heen when asked about ties prompt reduction in vio- groups like the Lashkar-e- raction with analysts, Mr. At least 12 rangers were killed lieved to have belonged to The Taliban would like to with India. “We will never lence, and start intra-Afghan Toiba and Jaish-e-Moham- Shaheen said a future Tali- on Friday in an attack in the Islamic State, accused build ties with all neighbour- want any foreign organisa- negotiations,” which are cur- mad, who have targeted In- ban dispensation in Afghan- Virunga National Park, a of genocide and murdering ing countries, including In- tion using Afghan soil to tar- rently at an impasse. dians in Afghanistan. India istan would be radically dif- UNESCO World Heritage site a child belonging to the Ya- dia, said its spokesperson get another country. We will was also not invited to a UN- ferent from the “Islamic in the restive east of the zidi minority who he held Mohammad Suhail Shaheen, bring a law to stop any such Dependent on Pakistan led regional conference on Emirate of Afghanistan” that Democratic Republic of as a slave, went on trial in and claimed that the group activity,” he added, speaking Mohammad Suhail Shaheen Speaking at the GCTC “web the peace process last week. the Taliban ran from 1996- Congo, a park spokesman Germany on Friday. would even enact a law to analysts during an inter- seminar”, Amar Sinha, mem- However, speaking at 2001. Mr. Shaheen said the said. It was one of the Taha al-Jumailly, 27, also against foreign terror groups net-based seminar organised peo “exchanged views on the ber of the National Security another online interaction Taliban will be “committed deadliest attacks in the park, stands accused of crimes conducting operations by Delhi-based think-tank, Afghanistan situation.” Their Advisory Board and former organised by the Washing- to education and working Africa's oldest and most biologically diverse protected against humanity, war against any other country, if “Global Counter-Terrorism conversation followed anoth- Ambassador to Kabul, said ton-based United States Insti- rights for women”, which area. Another six people were crimes and human tra$ck- it comes to power. Council” (GCTC). er call over the weekend there was little point in parti- tute of Peace (USIP), Ma- would be in sharp contrast to wounded, the spokesman ing in the case in Frank- “We would like good rela- On Thursday, External Af- with Mr. Zalmay Khalilzad cipating in a dialogue pro- soom Stanekzai, the head of the past, and even present of told AFP, adding that four furt. His wife, a German tions with all countries in the fairs Minister S. Jaishankar who had welcomed “Indian cess involving the Taliban, the 21-member peace delega- some of the districts that the other civilians passing woman, has been under neighbourhood on the basis tweeted that he and U.S. Se- engagement in regional and while it remains dependent tion appointed by Mr. Ghani, Taliban controls in Southern through the area were also trial at a Munich court. of mutual respect and mu- cretary of State Mike Pom- international e"orts for a on Pakistan for support and said he hopes that India will Afghanistan. targeted. AFP CM A CH-CHE YK EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE

CHENNAI THE HINDU 12 BUSINESS SATURDAY, APRIL 25, 2020 EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE market watch Tata, Jindal among players 24-04-2020 % CHANGE Sensex dddddddddddddddddddddd 31,327 ddddddddddddd-1.68 Debt funds pose no systemic risk: AMFI US Dollardddddddddddddddddddd 76.46 ddddddddddddd-0.53 Brent oil ddddddddddddddddddddd 21.55 ddddddddddddd-4.94 seeking loan moratorium Brokers want SEBI, FinMin to intervene following Franklin Templeton winding up six schemes ICRA list names 328 such entities NIFTY 50 SPECIAL CORRESPONDENT A majority of our ing to the media during the PRICE CHANGE MUMBAI <> funds should not AMFI conference call. SPECIAL CORRESPONDENT ceive an approval for the Adani Ports...... 270.65...... -6.95 A day after Franklin Temple- The Association of Nation- Mumbai moratorium from their Asian Paints...... 1827.55...... 5.90 have any impact Axis Bank ...... 403.95...... -26.10 ton Mutual Fund decided to al Exchanges Members of In- Several large industrial lending institutions, if the due to an isolated Bajaj Auto ...... 2445.35...... 14.70 wind up six debt funds due dia (ANMI), the umbrella bo- houses, including groups same is not received in due Bajaj Finserv...... 4389.80. .. -339.80 instance at one MF to illiquid, low-rated securi- dy of stock brokers, believes like Tata and Jindal, have course, ICRA would review Bajaj Finance ...... 1976.25. .. -196.20 Nilesh Shah Bharti Airtel ...... 494.25...... -1.75 ties, the mutual fund indus- that the abrupt closure of six sought moratorium on loan its stance on default recog- chairman AMFI BPCL...... 350.45...... -4.70 try clari!ed that the issue is schemes has created a panic repayment from their nition,” ICRA said. Britannia Ind ...... 3062.15. .... 114.75 limited to just one fund in the markets. banks. Following the nationwide Cipla ...... 599.30...... 12.60 Coal India ...... 137.00...... -3.90 house and there is no market ton Mutual Fund. The It has requested the Minis- Rating agency ICRA has economic lockdown, the Re- Dr Reddys Lab ...... 4002.80...... -24.30 or systemic risk posed by schemes that have been shut try of Finance and the Secur- compiled a list of 328 enti- serve Bank of India has al- Eicher Motors...... 13589.20. .. -479.15 debt funds. are Franklin India Low Dura- ities and Exchange Board of ties that have sought to def- lowed banks to extend the GAIL (India)...... 81.50...... -1.75 Grasim Ind ...... 499.05...... -1.40 The Association of Mutual tion Fund, Franklin India Dy- India (SEBI) to intervene and er loan repayment for three repayment moratorium for HCL Tech...... 468.10...... -9.60 Funds in India (AMFI) high- namic Accrual Fund, Fran- take swift action to protect months. three months on term loans. HDFC ...... 1580.30...... -83.15

HDFC Bank...... 938.05...... -16.90 lighted the fact that while klin India Credit Risk Fund, investor money. The list includes Tata Banks are not allowed to Hero MotoCorp ...... 1894.80...... 29.80 credit risk funds account for Franklin India Short Term “ANMI humbly requests Power, Jindal Power, Jindal change the asset classi!ca- Hindalco ...... 103.65...... -7.60 a very small portion of the Income Plan, Franklin India the Ministry of Finance Steel and Power, JSW Steel, tion status of the loan even if Hind Unilever ...... 2283.10...... -34.40

ICICI Bank ...... 334.85...... -18.10 overall debt assets, more Ultra Short Bond Fund and (MoF) and SEBI to take swift Tata Power Renewable a customer had applied for IndusInd Bank ...... 382.90...... -27.05 than half of the assets in debt Franklin India Income Op- action for protecting the Energy, Piramal Enterprise, loan moratorium. However, Bharti Infratel ...... 152.00...... -14.10 schemes have a rating of AA portunities Fund. hard-earned savings of lakhs Mangalore Re!nery and Pe- it is the discretion of banks Infosys ...... 658.00...... -21.30

Indian OilCorp...... 81.50...... -1.60 or above. Retail investors should not panic. Money in credit risk funds is of investors who have invest- trochemicals, Kalyan Jewell- whether to allow the mora- ITC ...... 180.05...... -0.50 “While around 20% to not at any signi!cant risk, says HDFC’s Barve * PAUL NORONHA 5% of overall debt AUM ed in FTMF (Franklin Tem- ers, TV Sundaram Iyengar torium to their customers. JSW Steel...... 153.25...... -6.70 30% of the total debt AUM Nilesh Shah of Kotak Mutual pleton MF). and Sons, Rashtriya Ispat Ni- Among non-banking !- Kotak Bank ...... 1239.55...... -10.10

L&T...... 851.20...... 10.60 (assets under management) the same category. Retail in- worth ₹25,856 crore as on Fund, who is also the chair- “An expert committee of gam Ltd., Jay Shree Tea, nance companies, Piramal M&M ...... 334.30...... -13.20 are AAA rated or in cash, vestors should not panic. April 22. man of AMFI, highlighted mutual fund professionals Bharat Aluminium and In- Capital & Housing Finance Maruti Suzuki ...... 5045.65. .. -110.70 another 30% to 50% would This is a one-o" instance and “This action is limited to the fact that credit risk funds should be formed by them to dian Terrain Fashions, Limited, has applied for mo- Nestle India Ltd...... 17406.05...... -30.00

NTPC ...... 93.40...... -1.80 be in AA+ or AA rating,” said money in credit risk funds is the funds which have mate- account for mere 5% of the determine the precise pro- among others. ratorium. A few micro- !- ONGC ...... 67.60...... 0.25 Milind Barve, managing di- not at any signi!cant risk,” rial direct exposure to the overall debt AUM. blem in FTMF schemes,” it ICRA said the list was not nance institutions have also PowerGrid Corp ...... 159.15...... 1.15 rector, HDFC Asset Manage- he added. higher yielding, lower rated “A majority of our funds said in a letter written on Fri- a comprehensive one, as in- applied for the moratorium. Reliance Ind ...... 1417.00...... 46.10

State Bank ...... 179.75...... -6.95 ment Company, during a me- On Thursday, Franklin credit securities in India that should not have any impact day. ANMI believes that it is formation about some rated Most banks have so far Shree Cement ...... 18587.45. .. -120.30 dia conference call arranged Templeton Mutual Fund an- have been the most impact- on operations due to an iso- of paramount importance as entities was not readily denied any loan moratori- Sun Pharma ...... 485.55...... 8.10 by AMFI. nounced that it has decided ed by the ongoing liquidity lated instance of winding the con!dence of investors available as of now. um to non-banking !nance Tata Motors ...... 74.20...... -1.45

Tata Steel ...... 267.55...... -2.75 “It is not appropriate to to wind up six debt funds crisis in the market,” stated a down at one mutual fund,” in debt mutual funds is at “It may be noted that for companies, including hous- TCS ...... 1818.55...... -59.70 put all credit risk funds in that have combined assets release by Franklin Temple- said Mr. Shah, while speak- risk, it added. the entities that are yet to re- ing !nance companies. Tech Mahindra ...... 503.45...... -20.25

Titan ...... 906.05...... -6.55

UltraTech Cement...... 3307.95. .. -134.25

UPL...... 335.85...... -13.05 VedantaWhat...... are77.95...... 0.35debts and equities? Wipro ...... 177.75...... -3.15 ₹1 lakh cr. fund to repay Mindtree says no virus impact Sensex falls 535 points Zee Entertainment ...... 145.15...... -12.40 EXCHANGE RATES MSME dues: Gadkari on weak global cues IndicativeDebt direct rates instrument in rupees a unit helps to raise loans by borrowing.on Q4 metrics, net rises 3.9% except yen at 4 p.m. on April 24 Scheme under works, says Minister CURRENCYIn return,TT BUY TT SELL the holder of debt instruments, are owed the amount of money borrowed alongDebt schemes with the closure interest hits sentiment US Dollar...... 76.25...... 76.57 SPECIAL CORRESPONDENT Euro ...... 82.04...... 82.39 PRESS TRUST OF INDIA IT major sees challenges in current quarter, no clarity ahead and State Bank of India NEW DELHI Mumbai Britishpromised. Pound...... 94.03...... 94.43 e.g Bonds. among the top losers. Japanese Yen (100) . .. . 70.82...... 71.11 The Centre is working on a Special Correspondent Weak global cues pulled Investor sentiment took a ChineseIt Yuaninvolves...... 10.77...... 10.82 lessscheme risk to address than the issue equity investmentsBengaluru and typically offers a correspondingly lowerdown potential the Indian bench- returnhit after Franklin on Templeton Swiss Franc ...... 78.04...... 78.37

Singapore Dollar ...... 53.52...... 53.75 of delayed payments to Mindtree, a part of the L&T mark indices on Friday, with Mutual Fund announced

Canadianinvestment. Dollar...... 54.16...... 54.39 MSMEs wherein a ₹1-lakh- group, on Friday reported a the abrupt closure of six late on Thursday that it had Malaysian Ringitt ...... 17.46...... 17.55 crore dedicated fund will be 3.9% year-on-year (YoY) debt schemes by Franklin decided to wind up six debt AustralianEquities Dollar ...... 48.24...... also48.48 helpcreated toto reimburse raise out- loans, but insteadgrowth of in itsowing standalone netback the money, partnership in theTempleton firm Mutual isFund offered al- schemes based that have com- Source:Indian Bank standing payments owed by pro!t to ₹206.2 crore for the so a"ecting investor senti- bined assets worth nearly on the amountCentral borrowed. and State govern- e.g Shares. fourth quarter-ended March ment. The 30-share Sensex ₹26,000 crore due to illi- ment undertakings as well Nitin Gadkari 31. Revenue for the period lost 535.86 points, or 1.68%, quid low-rated securities. MRFIt is commits riskier butas majorhas industries, the potential Union to bring morerose 11.5% toreturns ₹ 2,050.5 crore. if the firm makes profit. to close at 31,327.22. The “The decision by Fran- Minister Nitin Gadkari said. Central and State govern- During the !nancial year broader Nifty ended the day klin Templeton to voluntari- ₹What25 crore are for debt funds?He said he was drawing ments, and major indus- FY20, Mindtree’s net pro!t at 9,154.40, down 159.50 ly wind up six of their debt up a scheme to set up the tries,” Mr. Gadkari said. fell 16.3% to ₹630.8 crore. points, or 1.71%. funds has shaken up the COVID-19 fund and the proposal will The Minister for MSME For the period, the revenue Over time, the company will rationalise its ‘long tail’ of Elsewhere in Asia, the debt mutual fund industry,” be placed before the Cabi- and Road Transport and had grown 10.6% to ₹7,764.3 clients, says Mr. Chatterjee. * G R N SOMASHEKAR benchmarks of Hong Kong, said Deepak Jasani, Head- SpecialEquity Correspondent funds investnet for approval mostly after the Fi- inHighways shares said the fund of will listedcrore. companies and debt funds invest in instrumentsJapan, South Korea, like Taiwan, governmentResearch, HDFC Securities. Chennai nance Ministry’s nod. impart relief to the sector to Addressing the media af- quarter numbers. The cur- to why the company’s full- Indonesia, China and Singa- “One hopes that this is a Tyrebonds, major MRF commercial Ltd. has “We have decidedpapers to set (CPs),a certain extent. certificateter announcingof deposits the results, (CDs)rent quarter andhas challenges non-convertibleyear pro!t had declined debentures, pore, all ended in the (NCDs). red. one-o" case and we will not committed a sum of ₹25 up a fund of ₹1 lakh crore. Addressing a webinar, Debashis Chatterjee, chief and there is no clarity for the Senthil Kumar, interim CFO, Back in India, the market see more such cases even croreThe to support interest various in- madeWe will insure from this fund withtheseMr. Gadkari instruments also said he had eisxecutive shared o$cer and manag- amongquarters the after that,”investors he ad- Mindtree, after said, “The deducting compa- breadth the was fund-management extremely though the economy is yet itiatives to address the exi- the government paying the mooted a proposal to La- ing director, Mindtree, said, ded. Mr. Chatterjee said, ny’s half-yearly margins weak, as more than 1,600 to come out of this di$cult genciescharges. arising out of the premium. We will come up bour Minister Santosh Gang- “Over a period of time we “Mindtree could establish were low. However, it wit- stocks ended in the red as phase,” Mr. Jasani added. COVID-19 pandemic. with a formula for sharing of war to make use of the will rationalise our ‘long tail business continuity very nessed a quantum jump against less than 750 gain- Meanwhile, institutional TheIn a press gains release, themadethe interest on burden the between investment₹80,000 crore in lying debt with schemesof clients.’ Our top are clients taxable.quickly as it could take from the exit perspective, to- ers. investors were net sellers, company said that it would the paying entity, payment- the ESIC to tide over the im- have grown and we have also clients’ approvals for mov- wards end of the year, mak- In the Sensex pack, !nan- with both foreign and dom- contributeIf the to the securities PM Cares receiving are entity sold and banks withinmediate crisis3 years, faced by the it isadded considered !ve new clients in short-terming work to homes in wherein ad- ing margins the healthy.” gains The arecials lost added the maximum to theestic institutionalincome investors Fund at the Central level, against this fund, for the MSMEs, as pressure for Q4.” vance, thereby minimising company has also approved ground with stocks like Bajaj ending Friday as net sellers andof support the variousinvestor go- payments and duetaxed to MSMEs asA perpril salaries the and wagesapplicable was “There tax was nobracket. impact any impact on productivity. a !nal dividend of ₹10 per Finance, IndusInd Bank, Ax- at ₹207 crore and ₹994 vernment measures in that are stuck with the PSUs, mounting. from COVID-19 on the fourth Responding to a query as share. is Bank, ICICI Bank, HDFC crore, respectively. thoseIf Statesthe where securities MRF’s are held for more than three years before selling, there are long-term capital gains tax. factories are located. The tax rate isRefrain 20% with from indexation dividend and 10%Deposits without growth indexation. robust, ALLWhat buys are the different types of debt funds? 3.36% stake payouts, insurers told credit growth declines inDebt leasing funds arm canReassessment be classified based onon " rms’the results basis ofL oansthe falltenure as economic of the activity bonds limited or instruments in which they invest. Liquid funds -S pecialThey Correspondent invest infrain instruments from dividend pay- thatSPECIAL CORRESPONDENThave a tenurecontrol theof spread less of CO-than 90 days. Special Correspondent HYDERABAD outs from pro!ts pertaining Mumbai VID-19. ChennaiShort-term fundsThe Insurance - They Regulatory investto the !innancial instruments year ending Deposits that registered typically a The 21-dayhave lockdown a tenure was of three to six months. Ashok Leyland Ltd. (ALL) and Development Authority March 31, 2020, till further healthy growth in the !rst later extended till May 3. hasCorporate bought the balance debtof India - They(IRDAI) has couldadvised instructions,” have a a tenure circular fofortnight up of theto currentthree !- Syears.ome economic activities 3.36% stake in its arm Hin- insurers to take a conscious from the regulator on Friday nancial year, while loans de- like harvesting has been al- dujaLong-term Leasing Finance Ltd. fundscall to refrain - They from dividend investsaid. Thisin positionbonds will be thatclined, have in a period a tenurewhich is lowed of in thethree second phaseto five years or even more e.g Government (HLFL) for ₹188 crore. pay-outs for 2019-20, for reassessed by the Authority marked by limited econom- of lockdown. Bank loans bondsOn March 21, (G-Secs).the board now, as part of measures to based on !nancial results of ic activity due to the nation- grew by a whopping ₹2.31 had allowed ALL to buy prudently manage their !- the insurers for the quarter wide lockdown. lakh crore in the fortnight 6.99%What stake fromareEver the!n advantages?nancial resources. ending September 30, 2020, According to latest data ended March 27, 2020, indi- Holdings and Hinduja Member (Finance and In- released by the Reserve cating robust loan demand. Group for a total considera- Conserve capital vestment) Pravin Kutumbe Bank of India (RBI), liabili- Credit growth for the year tion of ₹390.49 crore. The “In view of the emerging said. ties of banks grew by ₹1.47 ended March 27 was 6.1%, acquisitionThey was are proposed generallymarket conditions used and by to banksThe regulator and had corporates also lakh crore for thefor fortnight theirone treasury of the lowest in many operations. to be completed in tranch- conserve capital with the in- wanted insurance compa- ended April 10. During the years, which was 13.3% in esThey before July offer 31, 2020. moresurance return companies inthan the nies bank to critically fixed examine deposits.same period, bank credit the previous year. Deposit With the purchase of 3.36% interests of the policyhol- their capital availability and contracted by ₹31,562 crore. growth for the !nancial year stake,So thethey acquisition are of popularders and of the among economy at highsolvency margin net for worth 2020-21 individualsThe government imposed (HNIs)2019-20 was to 7.9% park as com- their money temporarily before moving to 6.99% stake is now com- large, insurers are urged to as well as rationalise ex- a nationwide lockdown in pared to 10% in the previous pletedother fully, ALL asset said. classes.take a conscious call to re- penses of management. the last week of March to year. This enables the investors to indirectly invest in instruments like government bonds, where direct retail Wineinvestment makers is not seepossible. no reason to cheer for ‘a long time’ STheocial distancing risk is hasalso hit higherconsumption; compared industry at tocomplete the safe standstill FDs that offer assured returns so the number of retail investors in debt funds are still very little. Mini Tejaswi the industry will be mini- lows sale of wines in grocery BengaluruIn the case of bonds, the price could fall duemised to by at various least 20%.” Ab- reasonsstores under essentials, thereby ad- impacting its price and its return. The country’s wine industry hay Kewadkar, MD, Tetrad ded Mr. Kewadkar, an indus- saysThere it has no reason have to cheer been cases where the securitiesGlobal have Beverages, been said thedowngradedtry veteran with over that 30 also led to less returns. this year with the entire ‘eat- lockdown had brought the years of experience. ing-out’Quick segment, Fact across res- wine industry to a complete taurants, hotels and ban- standstill. ”The stakeholders Call-in facility quets, having vanished all of in the industry, including wi- AIWPA had been lobbying a sudden with the COVID-19 nemakers, vineyard owners, with the government for a outbreak.Indexation farmers, support sta", oth- wine call-in facility though The All India Wine Pro- No happy hours: With the entire country in a lockdown mode, ers in the supply chain and phone calls or e-mails. ducers Association (AIWPA) the portents are grim. * RITU_RAJ_KONWAR consumers are a"ected. In “However, the govern- said it was currently unable India, wine is predominantly ment has been rejecting our toIt see refers where the industryto theshut mechanism with the lockdown. Ya- whereining is likely to continue; the forgainsa social are beverage adjusted and its con- requests against repeatedly forthe sev- rate of inflation to derive the net taxable was headed as the whole tin Patil, president, AIWPA how long, no one knows. sumption outside home will eral years,’’ added Mr. Patil. chunkgains of on-premise from market, thetold schemes. The Hindu that, “On- “We hope people who su"er as long as social dis- As per Rajeev Samant, that comprised restaurants, premise, which accounts for used to consume wine in res- tancing norms are conti- CEO, Sula Vineyards, in the !ne-dining, hotels, !ve star over 40% of wine sales, is go- taurants will now start bring- nued,” he said. current scenario, a sales de- banquets, clubs, resorts, ing to take a lot more time to ing them home and there- However, retailing can be cline of 20-25% was expect- bars and lounges, was fully come back as social distanc- fore, the net sales decline of boosted if the government al- ed, compared with last year.

CM A CH-CHE YK EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEAfghanistan has been ravaged by war since 2001 when a US-ledEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE coalition overthrew the Taliban. THE HINDU Since OctoberCHENNAI 2018, Taliban representatives and US officials have been meeting in Doha, Qatar trying to SATURDAY, APRIL 25, 2020 SPORT/LIFE 13 EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEchalk out a peace treaty. EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE The negotiations focus on three elements: WithdrawalSHORT TAKES of foreign forces from Afghanistan. More Indian paddlers To prevent AfghanistanTesting from times being used for by internationalIndian speedsters terrorist groups. Permanent ceasefireKeeping them between !t will be thethe biggest Taliban challenge and for Afghanistan. coach Bharat Arun entering top-100: Dua Many securityS. Dinakaranalysts in Afghanistan and elsewhere had criticised the US-Taliban talks as it had kept Chennai den in his home. Says the world is taking note of growth Then Arun can ask the the AfghanistanThese government are unprecedented out. Many believe that the talks would legitimisebowlers to visualise the bowling Taliban.K. Keerthivasan French Open could be times for Indian cricketers. at di"erent batsmen; this CHENNAI delayed by another week The U.S. PresidentIn particular, Donald the pacemen Trump had said that countries like India, Iran,can enable Russia the bowler and to CTurkeyoaches ought bewould like the have PARIS The organisers of the French who need to be monitored evolve mentally even as he head of the family, and treat Open,to who fight were criticised against for continually. terrorists in Afghanistan at some point of time, implyingstays that battle ready,the in job his againsteach one of their terrorism players as is unilaterally moving the But there is no cricket mind at least. members of the family and tournamentbeing to a Septemberdone onlyhappening, by theno grounds, United no States. as equals, said Manjit Dua, start without consulting other gyms, and even the NCA is Overweight trap the current chief National tennisTrump federations, could also indicatedshut down. that the U.S. forces would not completely withdrawBut then,from this is Afghanistan a period table tennis coach.and America delay the event by another When the Indian team when the cricketers could be Dua, a multiple National week,would a report said have on Friday. “somebodymembers are away from there” the to make sure that the Taliban does not regainin a horizontal control. position at champion and an Interna- The claycourt Grand Slam National side, they are given home, watching endless te- tional medallist, is delighted couldTrump now start on September also saida follow-up that schedule the — it diU.S."- is fighting the terrorists in Afghanistan despitelevision and puttingbeing on a lot 7,000at the growthmiles of table away, tennis 27 instead of September 20, ers from cricketer to cricke- of weight. in India. “It is looking up precededwhile by a week India of andter — Pakistanby the side’s strength are not doing so even after being next door. Then they become out of and is in the stage when the qualification matches, Le and conditioning coach Nick shape, and un#t for battle. world is taking note of its ParisienIndia’snewspaper said.Stand AFP Webb. Fortunately, the present achievements. More and Generally the span of bunch of Indian pacemen more youngsters are enter- FIFA to give members each workout routine is are #tness conscious and, ing the top-100 in world Manjit Dua. $150m relief funds three weeks after which the with the stakes so high, are rankings in di"erent catego- * SPECIAL ARRANGEMENT LAUSANNEIndia’s positionplayer has concerned always has to get been that it does not have any direct conversationunlikely to fall intowith the ‘over- Taliban.ries,” said Dua, during a vi- FIFA will release $150 million back to Webb on the pro- weight’ trap. deo conference with SAI Federation of India sent him to its member football gress made. In fact, there is Not for nothing has Arun coaches, on the ‘impor- for a two-month training associationsHowever, to help handle in 2018, India sent two retired diplomats, at the non-official level to join negotiations with financial troubles caused by constant online interaction stressed depth in pace bow- tance of coach and his/her stint to North Korea in 1973. theTaliban coronavirus. FIFA saidat that Moscow.between Webb and the team Task on hand: Being battle-ready when action resumes will be high on the priority list of ling and a pool of pacemen. advice’ on Friday. “I trained very very hard “all operational funding” for members. bowling coach Arun and his !tness-conscious boys. * FILE PHOTO: K.R. DEEPAK India has quite a few pace- Dua said sparring with in conditions which were -10 2019Some and 2020 wouldexperts be argue that India should have an open contact with Talibanmen as waiting Talibans in the wings of areRanbir part Bhandari, of the #rst to -20 degrees Celsius. I distributed amongst the 211 Spike in injuries challenging to put in mildly. agement and the NCA will be cy of an athlete, a leading In- international cricket but sad- Indian to play in the [Ger- used to practice serving mAfghanistan'sember associations in the Bpoliticalut then, lockdowns process. can Running is crucial and while coordinating closely online. dian trainer said to The ly, with IPL out of the pic- man] Bundesliga league in nearly 5000 times a day. next few days. Each national upend the best of systems. they can use a treadmill, the Metabolic conditioning is Hindu. ture, they too would be the 1950s, helped improve Playing against pen-holders governingAlso, body the will receive TalibanIn fact has when there never was a criticizedGround Reaction India. Forces crucial If for they pacemen cometo main- intoSomeone power, like the Indian theyshort ofwould match practice. like Indiahis game andto hone continue his tech- helped me. I picked up my $500,000, that FIFA says lock-out in the NBA for 161 (GRF) when you run in the tain their #tness and take it bowling coach Bharat Arun For those like Ishant Shar- nique. “He (Ranbir) is still physical #tness there,” he wouldwith normally the be delivered developmentdays in 2011, there part. was a Itopen also spaces are supports absent. to theIndia’s next level. Herestrategic the has a testing partnership job, in keeping ma, with whose ankle Afghanistan. injury active [at 95 years of age] said. “upon fulfilment of specific spike in injuries when the And the GRF is critical to athlete goes through a series his pacemen battle ready. $ared up in New Zealand, and involved in TT, and On his vision for Indian criteria”,India, but will release being those aa thletesgood returned. friend, Many isthe helpingdevelopment of strengththe Afghanof exercises, distate"erent in na-in the rehabilitationthe lockdown process. period will o" -Thiscomes has for the taken Delhi State- awaytable tennis, the 66-year-old funds and any “remaining were simply not match-#t on and conditioning of a ture in quick succession. ‘Shadow bowling’ er quality time to recover ranking tournaments,” he said it’s di!cult to predict entitlementthe large for 2019 and numbertheir return. of youth incricketer. Afghnistan fromThe the metabolic path energy ofH eterrorism. could suggest ‘shadow and rehabilitate. said. anything with the pandem- 2020”. AFP In the case of the Indian Aware of the stumbling pathways are particularly bowling’ — bowling with a Keeping the Indian pace- Dua said he realised the ic, but expressed hope that India has an investmentcricketers, in particular of the overblocks, these3 billion will be times dollarshelpful in assessingin Afghanistan. the shortened run-up if the pa- man match-#t in these times importance of physical #t- “most of our players will India wants anpacemen, Afghan the situation led, is controlled,when the Indian team-man- ownedstrength process and cardio e!cien- in cwhicheman concerned all has stakeholders a gar- is Arun’s biggest challenge. have a nroleess when tothe Table play. Tennis take part in 2021 Olympics.” It stresses on the legitimate democratically elected government in Afghanistan. India is seen asICC a stabilizing explores forcesafe ball-polishingby Afghanistan which canWomen keep a check in Blue’s on Pakistan. England tour postponed

Ex-Red Matteo recovers Use of substance under supervision being considered The team was scheduled to play four ODIs and two T20Is from June 25 from brain tumour Press Trust of India PRESS TRUST OF INDIA LONDONShould India place its boots in Afghanistan?Thursday, its medical com- ly 9. The ECB clari#ed that sport — will be to protect the and the whole women’s se- Former Liverpool player New Delhi mittee, headed by Peter Har- LONDON nine rounds of #xtures vulnerable, key workers and ries against India (Vitality Dominic Matteo has revealed The use of arti#cial sub- court, had issued an update. The Indian women’s team’s would be lost in the County society as a whole. T20Is and Royal London that he has fully recovered stances to polish the cricket tour of England, starting Championship season but “That’s why, simply put, ODIs) both moving from fromIf a brainIndia tumour. The does notball, whichsend e "bootsectively on the ground,Next then step those terroristsJune 25, has been canpostponed affect“blocks its for red-ball national cricket there security will be no cricket through un- their original slots. 45-year-old had undergone means ball tampering, could “Our next step is to create a as the England and Wales and white-ball cricket will be less it’s safe to play. Our “Our plan is to reschedule surgerythe in November.Kashmir Valley.be considered Hence, for legalisa- it makes morer oad-mapsense for that the resump- insteadCricket Board of (ECB)fighting on Fri- h eldthem in a revised in schedule.” their scheduleown will territory, only go ahead i nternationalIndia matches as late “Yesterday I got THE phone tion when the game resumes tion of international cricket day suspended all forms of ECB CEO Tom Harrison if Government guidance as possible in the season to call, the one I’ve been praying after the COVID-19 pandem- which will include criteria professional cricket in the said: “As much as we remain permits.” give the best chance of play. for...should my brain scan isfight clear...” them in Afghanistan. ic that has made bowlers wa- for decision-making and country until at least July 1. hopeful that we can deliver International cricket, fea- The Vitality Blast will also Matteo tweeted on Thursday. ry of applying saliva on the check-list for what needs to The Indian women were some cricket this summer, turing England men’s and now occupy the latest possi- The former Scotland international made 155 red cherry. happen,” Harcourt said. supposed to play four ODIs we are in the midst of a women’s teams, will look to ble season slot to o"er as appearancesHowever, for Liverpool puttingESPNCricinfo bootshas report-on theUnsafe: groundSaliva or sweat is the notFormer sustainable. India pacer Ven- Itand leadstwo T20 Internationals to an everworldwide increasing crisis and our b etroop scheduled fromcommitment. July until much time as possible to most convenient substance between 1993 and 2000. IANS ed that administrators are katesh Prasad supports the during their two-week trip priority — over and above the end of September, with play a County short-form The limitations“open of to the resource option of allow- foroptions cricketers aiming and to shine negativeidea of not using image saliva on projectionthat would have ended that on Ju- tsuchhe playing a of step professional maythe Westcarry Indies Testare series othercompetition,” said Harrison. European athletics ing for the use of an agreed the ball on the !eld. * REUTERS the ball. championshipsissues cancelledin increasingarti#cial substance the to polishmilitary presence in“When Afghanistan. action resumes, Also, similar intervention by the US has not PARIS the ball under the supervi- before cricket resumes. they should use only sweat Thebrought 2020 European athletics the desiredsion of the umpires.” results. Shining the ball is an integral for some time as safety of India seeded !fth in Nations Cup chess championships, set to be held The matter of saliva being part of cricket as it helps the the players is paramount,” in WhatParis this summer, India have canunsafe do? was raised by the bowlers swing the ball. Prasad, who played 33 Tests been cancelled due to the ICC’s medical committee Following the chief execu- and 161 ODIs for India, told FIDE announces Russia’s Vladimir Kramnik as the team’s advisor Coronavirus pandemic, and it would be addressed tives meeting of the ICC on PTI. organisers announced on Special Correspondent (2641), India (2605) and the Jan-Krzysztof Duda and Nana Thursday.If India In a statement, wants the to help Afghans militarily, it can provide themNEW DELHI with weapons and artilleries.“Rest of the World” (2597), Dzagnidze. Captain: Garry organising committee and India’s strongest-possible follow in that order. Kasparov. FrenchIndia Athletics alsoFederation hasManohar an option ofgets supporting two-month a brigade extension worth ofsquad commandos is seeded #fth out of in Afghanistan byFollowing training a double round- AfghanRussia: Ian Nepomniachtchi, said they “wished to adopt a six teams in the inaugural robin league, the top two Vladislav Artemiev, Sergey Kar- responsible position by Press Trust of India decided against seeking an $180,000 Online Nations teams will play the #nal on jakin, Aleksandra Goryachkina; puttingmilitary. human health and the New Delhi extension for a third two- Cup chess tournament to be May 10, in this competition Reserves: Dmitry Andreikin and fight against the spread of International Cricket Coun- year term. played from May 5 to 10. played on rapid time-format. Olga Girya. Captain: Alexander theAfter virus before the any other Wuhan process, the Prime Minister of India and the Chinese President Xi Jinping agreed onMotylev. cil chairman Shashank Ma- “Manohar is going but he Interestingly, the FIDE an- The squads: India: Viswanathan consideration”. AFP nohar, who is expected to will probably stay on for nounced Russia’s Vladimir Anand, Vidit Gujrathi, P. Harik- USA: Fabiano Caruana, Hikaru China-India plus one model in Afghanistan. Both started training the Afghan diplomats. On the sameNakamura, Wesley So, Irina step down in June, may get a another two months as the Kramnik as India’s advisor. rishna, K. Humpy; Reserves: B. Krush; Reserves: Leinier Do- couple of months’ extension annual meeting in June Two days ago, Kramnik had Adhiban, D. Harika. Advisor: lines, both the countries can come together for security cooperation in Afghanistan. Vladimir Kramnik. minguez Perez and Anna Zaton- as the ICC’s Board meeting is looks highly unlikely at the declined the o"er to be the China: Ding Liren, Wang Hao, skih. Captain: John Donaldson. set to be postponed due to moment considering the “captain” of the Indian Vladimir Kramnik. If invited, India should not feel reluctant in participating in the peace discussions. Wei Yi, Hou Yifan; Reserves: Yu Rest of the World: Teimour * FILE PHOTO: M. KARUNAKARAN the COVID-19 pandemic. global situation,” an ICC team. Yangyi and Ju Wenjun. Captain: Radjabov, Alireza Firouzja, Bas- In all likelihood, ECB Board member told PTI. “So China, winner of both Ye Jiangchuan. sem Amin, Mariya Muzychuk; chairman Colin Graves will it might be in August that men and women gold me- the average rating of its Europe: Maxime Vachier-La- Reserves: Jorge Cori and Dinara Other Countries’replace theStand former BCCI pre- ICC will have a new dals in the last Chess Olym- players being 2717. Europe grave, Levon Aronian, Anish Gi- Saduakassova. Captain: Arkady sident, who, it is learnt, has chairman.” Manohar. * FILE PHOTO: PTI piad, heads the seeding with (2687), Russia (2662), USA ri, Anna Muzychuk. Reserves: Dvorkovich. Ding Liren jumps to third NEW DELHI Ding Liren benefited from a stunningUnited blunder from States: There is two-track Presidency within the US. IN BRIEF Maxime Vachier-Lagrave in Gambhir performs last Nagaland eases curbs with a buzz Tom Hanks writes to the decisive fifth game that bullied boy named Corona lasted just 16 moves and rites of domestic help Honeybee farming among the activities that resumed LOS ANGELES postedThe a 3-2 Pentagonwin to occupy (headquarters of the Department of Defense) wants a permanent projection in the region Hollywood veteran Tom Hanks the third spot in the Press Trust of India RAHUL KARMAKAR has penned a heartfelt letter to $250,000for strategicMagnus Carlsen reasons. NEW DELHI GUWAHATI an Australian boy who was Invitational online chess bullied by his peers over his tournament on Thursday. Former India opener Gau- Apiary or honeybee farming On the other hand, Trump and other populists are keen to face the domestic American electorate andname — Corona. The eight- The results:Third round: Ding tam Gambhir performed the and transportation of bee- year-old boy first wrote to Mr. Hanks, enquiring about the actor’s Lirenmaintain (Chn) bt Maxime thatl astthe rites US of his has deceased finally pulled out hofive products all the were among costly a and unwanted wars. Vachier-Lagrave (Fra) 3-2; Ian domestic help after her slew of major economic ac- health after his recent coronavirus attack. He also mentioned the Nepomniachtchi (Rus) bt mortal remains could not be tivities that resumed in the bullying he faced. Mr. Hanks replied, “You know, you are the only Russia: Russia has started talking with the Taliban for its own reasons. person I’ve ever known to have the name Corona — like the ring Anish Giri (Ned) 2.5-1.5. sent to her home in Odisha State from Friday. around the sun, a crown.” PTI Standings (after three due to the national This followed an announ- rounds): 1. Magnus Carlsen lockdown. cement on the relaxation of (Nor, 8), 2. Hikaru Nakamura Gambhir, also a BJP Lok restrictions by Nagaland’s Rolling Stones releases (USA,Moscow 7), 3. Ding Liren (Chn,recognizes the Taliban's territorial gains and prefers the group to ISIS. Sabha MP, posted a tribute Chief Secretary Temjen Toy new track on lockdown 6), 4-6. Maxime Vachier- LONDON Lagrave (Fra), Ian on his Twitter page for his on Thursday evening. In fact, an influential section of Russian policy makers have come to view the Taliban asThe Rolling a useful Stones has partner Nepomniachtchi (Rus), employee Saraswati Patra, Nagaland has not record- Sweet twist: The most valued honey comes from rock bees released a new track Living in Fabiano Caruana (USA) (5 who was working at his resi- Gautam Gambhir. * FILE PHOTO ed any COVID-19 positive and stingless bees. * FILE PHOTO in its fight against the ISIS. a Ghost Town, part-recorded each), 7-8. Anish Giri (Ned) dence for the past six years. cases so far, although a resi- during the coronavirus and Alireza Fiouzja (FIDE) (0 “Taking care of my little Ganga Ram Hospital a few dent tested positive in As- boo, areca nut, cocoa and land produced in 2017-18, up each).Pakistan: Pakistan has remained part of the US direct peace negotiations with Talibanlockdown. insurgents. The song, powered one can never be domestic days ago and was battling sam soon after being re- spices plantation. from 120 metric tonnes by a Keith Richards’ riff and a help. She was family. Per- diabetes and high blood ferred by a private hospital Food processing indus- when the mission was chanted refrain, comes with a Siddle’s Essex forming her last rites was pressure for a long period. in the State’s commercial tries, stone crushers, saw- formed in 2007. Meghan tabloid privacy contract deferred video showing deserted case hearing begins my duty,” he tweeted. She breathed her last while hub Dimapur on April 12. mills and brick kilns have al- According to the NBHM, streets and subway stations in LONDONPakistan realises that once the Taliban enters a power sharing agreement with the Afghan governmentLONDON as “Always believed in digni- undergoing treatment on “Inter and intrastate so been permitted to the annual per capita con- London, Los Angeles, Kyoto Essex County has confirmed The first court hearing in a ty irrespective of caste, April 21. movement of planting mate- operate but in rural areas. sumption of honey in Naga- and other cities. “We’ve thatpart former Australia of thepacer US Peace Process, then it will not be as pliable as it was before. tabloid breach of privacy case creed, religion or social sta- Union Minister of Petro- rials and honeybee colonies, O!cials of the Nagaland land is 100 gm compared to worked on it in isolation,” said Peter Siddle will not join the brought by the Duchess of tus. Only way to create a bet- leum and Steel Dharmendra honey and other beehive Beekeeping and Honey Mis- the national average of 8 gm. Mick Jagger. REUTERS sidePakistan during the 2020 have been providing support to the destabilising elements in Afghanistan, despite the US aidSussex began in London on campaign. Instead, his ter society. Pradhan appreciated Gamb- products have been permit- sion (NBHM), a State govern- Friday, over the publication of contractwithdrawal. has been deferred to “That’s my idea of India! hir’s gesture. ted to resume,” Mr. Toy said. ment undertaking, said the Range of honey a letter she wrote to her 2021 as teams continue to find Om Shanti,” said the 38- “Taking care of Saraswati Other activities allowed relaxation would help the The State produces a range estranged father. Meghan costIn cutting such measures. situations, “It’s a year-old Gambhir. China is tonehroughout country the course of thatinclude can collection, influence harvest- cottage and industry pressurise associated of honey Pakistan with varying co- Markle is suing Associated shame I won’t be returning to Media reports in Odisha her illness, he also ensured ing and processing of minor with apiary get some respite. lours and taste such as Newspapers, which publishes ChelmsfordChina this year has as I was creditorsaid the 49-year-old rights Saras- overher dignity Pakistan in death by per- dueand to non-timber the produceChina-Pakistan by Some 14,000 beekeepers Economicsweet, bitter-sweet Corridor and (CPEC). the Mail on Sunday and Mail really looking forward to the wati hailed from a village in forming her last rites him- a certain category of people, in more than 400 villages ac- sweet-tangy. The most va- Online, for printing parts of seasonMore with the Eagles,”movements he Jajpur district. such as theself ,”Pashtun Pradhan, who also Tahafuz be- and plantation, Movement processing, counted (PTM) for 420 can metric reformlued honey isPakistan from the rock from within. her letter to Thomas Markle said. IANS She was admitted to Sir longs to Odisha, tweeted. sale and marketing of bam- tonnes of honey that Naga- bees and stingless bees. in August 2018. AFP However,CM some experts argue that Pakistan should not be allowed to interfere in matters related to A CH-CHE YK Afghanis or f an CHENNAI THE HINDU 14 SATURDAY, APRIL 25, 2020 EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEtr Peace Deal and the Possible Consequences

It is quite possible that the Peace Deal might take place soon. The reason being that Afghanistan depends on the USA and Europe for the ﬁnances to maintain its troops vis-a- vis Taliban. The USA, thus, would pressurize the country. Taliban has an ultimate goal of imposing Sharia in their respective regions. This is in conﬂict with what the people in Afghan want. Afghanistan has got its own Constitution and people want to be governed as per the Constitution. This will make any peace deal that they would have, unsustainable. Taliban will hardly share power with the Afghan Government. Thus it is quite possible that even after the peace deal, the country will be back to civil war again. Then, the world will face twin challenges in Afghanistan: ISIS and Taliban. ISIS is attacking directly people on secretarial grounds unlike the Taliban which made it sound more like a broader ethnic or a nationalist movement. ISIS is more divisive and hitting soft targets like ordinary civilians much more than Taliban. Also, there is apparently a link between so called Pakistani Taliban on the Pakistani side of the border and the ISIS factions. Afghanistan will become hub of all terrorists activities which is not good for any country. This will also lead to more problems in the Central Asia i.e. possibility of more attacks by Talibans in Central Asian countries such as Uzbekistan, Tajikistan, etc. Way Forward

Talking only with Taliban is a short-sighted policy. Dialogue needs to take place among all the stakeholders in Afghanistan. To resolve conﬂict within Afghanistan, the battleﬁeld needs to be isolated i.e. external support to the terrorist activities needs to be abandoned. Also, the countries need to keep their respective interests aside, to build peace in the region. The US needs to made its policy vis-a-vis Afghanistan clear. India and Central Asian Republics can help in establishing peace in the region. More militancy is witnessed in the region where the state fails to deliver. Thus, administrative reforms within Afghanistan is need of the hour.

CM A CH-CHE YK