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OBC BILL COMING UP, CONG SAYS WON’T OPPOSE WORLD LastweekofHousesession,nosignof thaw,OppwantstobeheardonPegasus TALIBAN SEIZE KUNDUZ, AKEY AFGHANCITY Tharoor says time forno-trustmotion; 72 seconds out of 45 min: TV PAGE 10 TMC putsout video of Opp in House coverage of Opp in House last sitting Shashi Tharoor said the BUSINESSASUSUAL MANOJCG Opposition should nowmove a farm laws that triggered the NEWDELHI,AUGUST8 no-confidence motion against LIZMATHEW& farmer agitation, says itsprotests BY UNNY the Government. “Rather than HARIKISHANSHARMA areonlyshown on screens inside AS THIS Monsoon sessionof justcontinuing disruptions, we NEWDELHI,AUGUST8 the House, and notbeamed Parliament enters itsfinal week, should probablyseriouslycon- across the country. there is little possibilityofboth siderother parliamentary ma- SCHEDULED TO end August13, On Friday, when Lok Sabha the Houses functioning smoothly noeuvres…including avoteof Parliament’s monsoonsession lastmet,LSTVshowed as Opposition parties Sunday no-confidence, because Ithink hasbeen disruptedbythe row Opposition protestsfor all of 72 made it clear they willcontinue thereisgenuinelynoconfidence over allegedsurveillancethrough seconds –House proceedings to insistonadiscussion on the among the bulk of the the use of the Pegasus spyware. lastedatotal of 45 minutes over Pegasus spywareissue—ade- Opposition parties in this Accusing Lok Sabha TV of twosittings that day. Despite red flags, Rly mand that the Government is Government,” Tharoor told The shutting it out, the Opposition, Friday, 11.07am. Oppn MPs OppositionMPs, however, unlikelytoaccede to. Indian Express. whichhas been seeking adiscus- in thewell of the House were notintheir seats, except universitygave contract Senior Congress leader CONTINUEDONPAGE2 sion on the Pegasus issue and CONTINUEDONPAGE2 to firm of Board member All contracts areasper due process, Tokyo brings curtain down on Games After CJI rebuke, CBI says NTRIActing Vice-Chancellor says 5held for comments held in the time of Covid: ‘We did it’ AVISHEKGDASTIDAR Conflict of NEWDELHI,AUGUST8 interest againstAndhra judges cloud over DESPITE RED flags raisedbyof- Pramath Raj ficialsofpotential conflict of in- Sinha EXPRESSNEWSSERVICE ED SChad terest and propriety, contracts EXPRESSAT NEWDELHI,AUGUST8 said:Not worth Rs 6crore were givento OLYMPICS PLAIN E firms promotedbyeducationist 2021, according to records re- ● helping TWODAYSafter the Supreme EX Pramath RajSinha by the viewedbyThe IndianExpress. Courtcriticisedthe CBI and IB for “Railway University”evenas This happeneddespite MIHIRVASAVDA “nothelping the judiciaryatall” THE CBI statement Sinhaisamember of theBoard Railways officials flagging the TOKYO,AUGUST8 in matters relating to security of comes days afterthe SC of Managementofthe same uni- potential conflict of interestin judges, the CBI said on Sunday criticiseditfor “doing versity run by Indian Railways. written deliberations and point- THE OLYMPICS bubble didn’t that it had arrested five persons nothing” and “nothelp- Sinha’s company, 9dot9, of ing towardspossible circumven- burst. And the Games did happen. forallegedly postingderogatory ing the judiciary” in mat- whichheisfounderand manag- tion of provisions of the General The strangestOlympic remarks againstthe judiciaryin ters related to security of ing director,has been awardeda Financial Rules (GFR)ofthe gov- Games endedthe same waythey AndhraPradesh. judges. The SC had also consultancy contract forthe ernmentwhich, specifically, deal began: in front of emptystands, The agency said twopersons flagged the “newtrend” National Rail and Transportation with conflict of interestincon- in astate of emergency,and with were arrested on Saturday, while to “malign” the judiciary Institute(NRTI), adeemeduni- sultancy contracts. hundredsfilling the streets, three were held lastmonth. when adverse orders are versityof thegovernment,worth Sinha, the founding Dean of imagining what it mustfeellike Sources said YSRCongress MP passed. Rs 65 lakhper month plusGST for Indian School of Business, is to be inside the giant cauldron CONTINUEDONPAGE2 nine months ending December CONTINUEDONPAGE2 thatTokyo’sNational Stadium is. Therewas one slight differ- ence, though. Compared to the sombre, downcast opening,the closing Asupportstaff of thewomen’s hockeyteam (taking selfie) withathletesduring the closing ceremonywas peppier,with alot ceremonyatthe Olympic Stadium in TokyoonSunday. From left, wrestlers Deepak Punia, morerazzmatazz, reaching a Ravi Dahiyaand Bajrang Punia, andhockeyplayerLalremsiami (middle). AP REPORTSP11,12 crescendo thatisusuallyassoci- ated with Olympics ceremonies. But then, the organisers had startofJuly, with the positivity Committee (IOC) president ever,did call it the “mostchal- reasonstofeel good. The Covid rate within the bio-bubble where Thomas Bach, when he said: lenging”. Games, afterall,didn’tturnout 624,000 screening testswere “Wedid it”. It wasn’t justthe pandemic. to beasuperspreader event –not conducted,at0.02 percent. Thereweren’tany grand re- The athleteshad to deal with the yet. Therewereonly430 cases re- The relief waspalpable in the marks of these being the “most brutal summer heat,sidestep the lated to the Olympics since the voice of International Olympic successful” Games.Bach, how- CONTINUEDONPAGE2 Better immune response from mixing Covaxin, Covishield: ICMR

whichisyet to be peer reviewed. KAUNAINSHERIFFM INSIDE “Immunogenicity profile &ANURADHA againstAlpha, Beta and Delta MASCARENHAS ADHIRASKSCENTRE variantsinthe heterologous NEWDELHI,PUNE,AUGUST8 TORAISEBENGAL’S group wassuperior;IgG anti- VACCINEQUOTA body and neutralising antibody AGROUP of 18 people, whohad PAGE 3 response of the participantswas “inadvertentlyreceived Covi- also significantlyhigher com- shield as the firstjab and Covaxin pared to that in the homologous MIRABAI CHANU, as the second”, showedbetter their reaction to 40 recipientsof groups,” it said. OLYMPICS SILVER MEDALLIST; immunogenicity—the ability to twodoses of Covishield and 40 re- “Overall, this study demon- COACH VIJAY SHARMA generateanimmune response — cipientsoftwo doses of Covaxin. stratesthat immunisation with PAGE 8 than those who receivedtwo “Wecompared the safety aheterologous combination of dosesofthe samevaccine, ac- and immunogenicity profile of an adenovirus vector platform- cording to anew study by the them (the group of 18)against basedvaccine followedbyanin- THE EDITORIAL PAGE Indian Council of Medical that of individuals receiving ei- activatedwhole virus vaccine is Research (ICMR). ther Covishield or Covaxin. safeand elicitsbetterimmuno- In May, 18 villagers in Lowerand similar adverse genicity than twodoses of ho- MENDINGFENCES Siddarthnagar,Uttar Pradesh, had eventsfollowing immunisation mologousvaccination, using the BY SANJOY HAZARIKA receivedCovaxin as thesecond in all three groups underlined same vaccines,” it said. PAGE 6 dose, six weeksafter theygot the safetyofthe combination While Covishield is built on a Covishield. The study compared vaccine-regime,” said the study CONTINUEDONPAGE2 Houseboatstohotels, Kerala tourism feels the pinch aftermonths of curbs PAGE 1 costs. ANCHOR Down south near the coast, Devassia Varghese, who wasa driveronahouseboat till last year,isnow desperately looking SHAJUPHILIP forworkasafarm hand. The 56- THIRUVANANTHAPURAM, year-old with afamilyoffivein AUGUST8 Chambakkulam villageof Kuttanad has been withoutajob LAST YEAR, the Covid slump “for the last14months”. pushedTVinod out of his job as “Manyofmycolleagues in Operations Manager at aresort An employee of ahotel, nowshut, at Kovalam beach. thehouseboat sector arenow in Munnar,the popular hill sta- going forinland fishing or other tion in Kerala. The 38-year-old, DIPINTOURISTS dailywagework,’’ says Varghese. hailingfromthe upper reaches “Lastweek,Isignedupfor work of Idukki, triedhis hand at sev- YEAR FOREIGNTOURISTS DOMESTIC TOURISTS under the rural jobs scheme eral small jobs to feed his family 2019 11.88lakh 1.83 crore (MNREGS),” says Vinod. of three -- from working in the From the hill stations of 2020 3.40 lakh 49.88 lakh construction sector to selling Munnar and Wayanad to the cloth masks--and shiftedhis 2021* 14,489 2.2 lakh backwaters of Alappuzha, the sonfromaprivate school to a *January-March pandemic has shattered Kerala’s government institution to cut CONTINUEDONPAGE2 Kolkata WWW.INDIANEXPRESS.COM 2 THE SECOND PAGE THEINDIANEXPRESS,MONDAY,AUGUST9,2021

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WEB historic Olympic gold Indian Express EXCLUSIVE ofCSAMonline,especiallyviaAppleplatform. ★★★★★■4.6 NEWEPISODEEVERYDAY TECH HOLLYWOODREWIND In today’s episode of the ‘3 Things’ podcast, REVIEW: ASUS ‘GIRL WITH APEARL we discuss javelin throwerNeeraj Chopra’s CHROMEBOOK C223 EARRING’ career trajectory, his winning throw,and what the gold medal means forthe future An excellent budget Scarlett Johansson of athletics in SCANTHISQRCODETO notebook,with long stuns in this coming-of- DOWNLOADTHEAPP batterylife ageperiod piece FROMPAGEONE

Kerala tourism protestingduringtheproceedings isteredoncomplaintsfiledbythe thousands of athleteswho were whichlastedfrom11amto11.21 Registrar General of the Andhra notallowedtostepoutside the tourism industry, whichem- am. Pradesh HC. OlympicVillageandtheirvenues. ploys about 15 lakh people and When the House metagain at No sign of thaw, Opp wants to be heard on Pegasus "It wasalleged that the ac- In the closing ceremony, the or- contributes 11.5 per cent of the noon,thegovernmentpassedtwo cused, by intentionallytargeting ganiserstriedtogivethecompeti- state’s GDP. keyBills –The Taxation Laws In 2010,the Winter session issue and the farmer's protests among others Pegasusissue.“TheGovernment the judiciary, made derogatory tors ataste of the city that they According to stateTourism (Amendment) Bill, 2021todo waswashedoutoverprotestsby on the floor of the House during “Wehad demandeddiscus- does notwant the words postsonsocial media platform nevergot to experience. They officials, the total earnings from away withthepolicyof retrospec- the BJP,then in the Opposition, passageofthe Bills. Sources said sionsonthree important issues ‘Pegasus’, ‘national security’, ‘re- againsthon’blejudgesandjudici- recreatedthefamousYoyogiPark the sector in 2019 wasRs45,010 tive taxation and The Central demanding aJPC probeintothe theideabehindthevideoputout -- Covid management, farmer’s peal farm laws’and ‘price rise’ to ary, following some courtver- -- amassive green space in the crore. In 2020, it wasonly Universities (Amendment) Bill, 2G spectrum license allocation. by TMC RajyaSabha leader issues and price rise,” Congress bementionedonthefloorof the dicts,"theCBIsaid."Afterregistra- city’scentre--complete withfake around Rs 11,000crore--mainly 2021toprovide forthe establish- The party had stalledfunction- Derek O’Brien is to showhow leaderinLokSabhaAdhirRanjan House. Theyare running scared. tionof thecase,CBItraced13ofthe grassandeverydayscenes:dance during the months of Januaryto ment of auniversity in the Union ing of both the Houses afterthe Opposition leaders usedthe Chowdhurytold The Indian TheOppositionisunitedinhold- 16 accusednamedinFIRs in the troupes, joggers, freestyle foot- March,beforethe pandemic TerritoryofLadakh –amidstslo- CAGreporton2Gallocation be- words"farmers", "Pegasus" and Express.“The Government tried ing them accountable,” O’Brien case on various digital platforms. ballers, yogis and picnickers. struck, and mid-November on- ganshouting by Opposition MPs. came public. This time, the dif- “spyware”duringdiscussionson their best to scuttle anydiscus- told The Indian Express. Three of them were found to be And forthe firsttime, aconfi- ward,when the firstwaveeased The live telecastofthe pro- ference is that the BJP various Bills in an attempt to sion on price rise. Then the issue “Theyhavebulldozed25bills abroad. CBI examined11of13ac- dentTokyowaspreparedto show (see box). ceedingsdidnotreallyrevealwhat Governmenthasmanagedto in- voicetheseissues.“Whentheof- of Pegasus came, it wasakey is- at an averageoften minutes per cused, and arrested five of them. what it reallywas. Theyshow- Officials said domestic ar- exactlyhappenedinside Lok troduce12 newBills,eightinLok ficial channels arebeing denied, sue of national security.We Bill. It’s adisgrace that justone Evidenceagainstremainingsixac- casedtheAinuculture,andsetthe rivals fell by 72.86 per cent in Sabha.SourcesinLSTVsaidtheTV SabhaandfourinRajyaSabha.All this is anew waytoreachthe wanted adiscussion but the out of tenBills passedare being cusedpersons is being evaluated feet tapping with adose of 2020 from 2019,and interna- screensintheHousearepartofthe these bills have been passedin masses," said O'Brien. Government has so farnot scrutinised. Theyare making forfurthernecessarylegalaction,” Japanese song and dance before tional by 71.36 per cent. CCTVsystem, while the camera theHouseinwhichtheywerein- "PM @narendramodi seems agreeddespiteour repeated popcorn, notlegislating. PM it said. handing over the stagetoParis, In the firstthree months of feedusedbythe channel is differ- troduced. to have losthisnerves.Whyishe pleas. Theyare moreinterested (Narendra) Modi has notan- "It wasalso found that one ac- whichwillhostthenextOlympics, this year,beforethe thirdwave ent. “LSTVisresponsible foronly Overall, tenbills -- including notkeenonansweringquestions in trying to divide the swered asingle question on the cusedwas allegedly using apass- for10minutes. surged, the statelogged adecline whatistelecast.CCTVsoritscam- The Insolvency and Bankruptcy in Parliament? The opposition Opposition,”hesaid.Referringto floorof Parliamentinthelastfive portwith aname different from But it wasagain areminder of of 40.53 per cent in domestic eras arenot under our control,” Code (Amendment) Bill, 2021 parties areready fordiscussions the OBC Bill, Chowdhurysaid: years. We want to say, ‘Come lis- his real identity.Toinvestigate thesestrangetimesthatjustasthe and 95.65 per cent in interna- sources said. and The Essential Defence in Parliament, but @BJP4India “Even now, the Government is tentous, Mr Modi’. Also impor- largerconspiracy,CBI has also ex- organisersspokeaboutthe“hope” tional arrivals from the same pe- ManojKArora,Editor-in-Chief Services Bill, 2021--havebeen govt is stalling the proceedings trying to do that.” tantly, another session of aminedcertainpersonsincluding these Games brought, the trailer riod lastyear. cum Chief Executive of LSTV,said passedbyboththe Houses. sothatthetruthdoesn'tgettothe TheCongress,however, does Parliament will conclude with- anMP,ex-MLAandcontinuedin- forthe Paris Olympics wasre- Kochi-basedtourism con- the channel follows rules laid Sevenbills have been passedby people," Leader of Opposition in notplan to oppose the Bill and out aDeputy Speaker being ap- vestigation intothe role of other motely donedueto thepandemic. sultant SanjeevKumar Nair says down forit. “The LSTV transmis- one of the twoHouses, and will RajyaSabha Mallikarjun Kharge mayevenpause the protests to pointed,” he said. personswhowere notmentioned So remote that theywent as faras alarge number of properties are sion is as perthe ruleswhich say come up fordiscussion this said in atweet to postthe video, allowadiscussionto preventthe “Weexpect the House to re- in the FIR," it said. outer space, from whereFrench up forsale. “Mostofthe proper- it should be atrue reflection of week.The keyamong them are whichisacompilationof mainly Government from projecting it sumeitsbusinessatleastfromto- TheCBIsaidithadtakenaction astronautThomasPesquethelped ties have loan liability.Even what's happening inside the The Taxation Laws clips from RSTV."Youare notal- as aparty that is opposing akey morrowonwards. We areinsist- to getthe objectionable posts re- perform the national anthem on though theyare notoperational, House,” Aroratold The Indian (Amendment)Bill,2021andThe lowing the discussion we have legislation related to OBCs. ingonadiscussiononPegasus… movedfromsocial media plat- his saxophone from the askeletalstaff has to be main- Express. General Insurance Business been asking forinthe past14 “Wehavenoopposition to We cannotbeaparty to justpar- forms and other public domains. International Space Station. tainedfor regular upkeep,’’ says The channel, sources said, is (Nationalisation) Amendment days…You arepassing that Bill theBill.Itisourissue,becausewe ticipatinginlegislativebusiness,” "Investigation is continuing, in- It wasall very unusual, but Nair. expected to provide an overall Bill, 2021, whichwerepassedby now. If youhavecourage, begin had warnedthe Government in DMK’s Tiruchi Siva said. cluding through the channels of thenwhatisn’t about these According to All Kerala view, butwhentheSpeakerorthe Lok Sabha lastweek.These bills thediscussionsonPegasusnow," 2018 that youare committing a SumminguptheOpposition MLAT,Interpolto collectevidence Games? Houseboat Owners Association ChairspeaksorthePrimeMinister will nowcome fordiscussion Kharge is heardsaying on the mistake…takingaway powersof mood, Tharoor said: “The from abroad," it said. Paris triedtocharm with a representative,TomyPulickattil, speaks,ithasto focusonthem.The and passageinRajya Sabha -- as floor of the House in the video. the states. Nowtheyare being Government’s refusal to be an- –WITHENSINPUTS, videoof thecity’sromanticsights, therewas “a shortperiod of re- rules also saythe focus should be also the important OBC Bill, The compilation includes forced to bring the Bill… but the swerable in anyway,shape or HYDERABAD packedrooftops, jets painting the lief” in December-Januaryafter on the member who is speaking, whichistheConstitutional127th Opposition speakers suchas Government is trying to be too form on an issue of national and skies around EiffelTowerinthe the firstwavewaned. beitforquestion-answer,matters Amendment Bill to restore Vandana Chavan(NCP), Manoj cleverbyhalf...wewill point it international importance has Tokyo downs country’scoloursandalittlebitof “Manyofusspent Rs 5lakh of publicimportanceorparticipa- powertothe states to identify Jha (RJD), Deepinder Hooda out.We willnotstandintheway made amockery of democracy break dancing, whichwill make to Rs 8lakh to re-launchsince tion in adebate. backwardclasses. (Congress), Sukhendu Shekar of passageofthe Bill,” and ordinaryIndians whichthe curtains itsdebut as an Olympics sportin the houseboatsneededrepairs On Friday, The Indian Express On Sunday, the Trinamool Roy(TMC), Priyanka Chaturvedi Chowdhurysaid. Governmentclaimsto represent. thunderstorm warnings and, 2024.Thescenefinallycutbackto afterlying idle. Then came the trackedproceedings, minuteby Congressputoutathree-minute (ShivSena), Elamaram Kareem TheOppositionpartiesmade Avoiding discussion and ac- amidstallthis,focusonwhatthey Tokyo,wheretheflamewasextin- second wave, and with the third minute, from the press galleryin- video clip on what Opposition (CPM) -- and Lok Sabha MP itclearthattheywillcontinueto countability is areal insult to were herefor:bethe best at what guished, and the athletessaun- nowlooming large, we arewary sideLokSabhaandthetelecaston leadershave saidonthePegasus (Congress) demand adiscussion on the Parliament.” theydo. teredoffthefieldto feel-goodmu- of making anyfresh investment. LSTV.This is what reallyhap- But the TokyoOlympics went sic. The high fuel prices have also pened: muchbeyondmerelygoingfaster, Then, the volunteers, the real made resumption of operations ■11 am:SpeakerOmBirlaen- standing around the desk of re- ■ 12.12: Mahua Moitraleads tion of officials. So far, around Rs judiciary,"the agency said in a higher and stronger.Theyserved heroes of these Games, took cen- unviable. We cannotincrease ters the House. He recalls the de- porters in well. slogans againstthe government. 40lakhhasbeenreleased,sources statement. another reminder that even dur- trestage.Theyposedforselfies,ran the boat rent, either,atthis struction when Hiroshima and ■ 11.15: As ■ 12.13: Chair calls Finance said. In the case of 9dot9, the The accused, identifiedas ingtense,highlycompetitive mo- mockraces on the trackand shed stage,’’ says Pulickattil. Nagasaki were bombed 76 years replies, Prathapan and Kalanidhi MinisterNirmala Sitharaman to Railway Boardapprovedthe con- Pattaru Aadarsh and Lavanuru ments,thereisspaceforspiritand atear when the word 'Arigato' The backwaters in ago. He calls forapledgetolivein trytoblockhimwithplacards.The move the Taxation Amendment tract on April 8after officials put SambaSiva Reddy,wereproduced solidarity. (Thank you) appeared on the big Alappuzha alone has about peace and harmony. minister’sfaceisnotvisibleonthe Bill.ShemovestheBill,andmakes downinwritingthatitmustcom- before acourtinGuntur on TaiTzu Ying wasreducedto screen. The Games that few 1,000houseboats, eachemploy- ■ 11.02:Speakercongratulates screens inside. an opening remark. plywith the “conflict of interest” Sunday. TheCBIsaidDhamiReddy tearswhenPVSindhu,inatouch- thought could take place, and the ing three-fivepersons. “Now,the wrestler Ravi Kumar Dahiyafor ■ 11.17: Hibi Eden takesthe ■ 12.14: Mahua Moitraand provisions laid down in the GFR. Konda Reddy and Pamula ing gesture, consoledthe player build-up forwhichwent on for- employees as well as investors winning asilvermedal in the lead in slogan shouting, says the Aparupa Poddar startbooing. Significantly, in June, too, this was Sudheerwere arrestedonJuly28, who beat her in the semifinal but ever,werefinallyclosed. have turnedtootheravenues, TokyoOlympics. MPs join him by government is scared. Other Opposition MPs join them. flagged again when the engage- while Lingareddy Rajasekhar went on to lose the gold medal Arigato Tokyo. Bonjour Paris. suchasdoor delivery of fish and thumping the desk. ■ 11.18:MinisterJitender Some trytoblockSitharaman’s ment of 9dot9 wastobeformal- Reddy,who wasresiding in match--afeelingtheIndianshut- vegetables,” says Pulickattil. ■ 11.03: Speaker starts Singh replies to aquestion on ex- face from being visible on the izedthrough paperwork involv- Kuwait, wasarrestedonJuly9 tler can very well relateto. ICMR study In Wayanad, resortoperator QuestionHour.Startswithaques- ploration of ocean resources. screen. Posters arevisible on ing RITES —the Railway PSU when he landedinIndia. The storyofGianmarco viral vector vaccine platform and PTJamshith says alarge num- tionrelatingto institutionaldeliv- ■11.19:Speakercallsforthree screens inside the House. engaged by Railway Boardtoex- On Friday, the Supreme Court Tamberiof ItalyandQatar’sMutaz usesaweakenedversionof aden- berofproperties areincrisis eries by states duringthe pan- questions. ■12.17: TheChairputstheBill ecute the matter. had said police and CBI don't re- Barshim, who chose to sharethe ovirus, acommon cold virus that “without apaisa to resume busi- demic. Union Ministers ■ 11.20: to voicevote.BJPMPssayaye.The TheGFRprovisionscitedby of- spondto complaintsfromjudges. high jumpgold instead of forcing causes infection in chimpanzees, ness”. Bhupender Yadav, Pralhad Joshi, on his feet with aplacardinsup- Chair putsthe Bill to vote,clause ficials specificallymandatethat Heading atwo-judgebench aplayoff,issuretogodownasone Covaxin is built on an inactivated “Severalresorts and homes- arepresent. portoffarmers.SmritiIranireplies by clause, and it is passed. the consultant hired should whichtook up the suo motu case of The Olympics stories. whole virus vaccine platform. tays have been closed. Manyare Opposition MPs leave their seats. to BJD’sSarmisthaSethi’squeryon ■ 12.19: The Chair calls strictlyavoid conflictswith other registeredbythe Supreme Court These Games will also be re- The study is the firstscientific up forsale at half the rate of pre- CongressMPManickamTagore is the national nutrition mission. Education MinisterDharmendra assignmentsorhis/itsowncorpo- in connection with the death of memberedforthewomentaking evidence emerging from India on Covid days.Those who have thefirsttowalktowardsthetreas- Opposition intensifies slogan Pradhan to move the Central rate interests and acting without Dhanbad Additional Sessions centrestage. superior immunogenicity profile takenproperties on lease have urybenches,shoutingslogans,fol- shouting. Universities (Amendment) Bill anyconsiderationforfuturework. JudgeUttam Anand, Chief Justice Dutchrunner Sifan Hassan demonstrated in mixed-vaccine abandonedthem. The onlyrelief lowedbyTMC’s Aparupa Poddar, ■ 11.21: Speaker asksMPs to 2021. The provisions saythat it is a of India NVRamana said “there completed her journeyfroma doses. However, the researchers is that bikers arenow checking AbuTaher Khan and Mahua returnto theirseatsandholdadis- ■ 12.20: Pradhan movesthe conflict of interestifthe bidding areseveral cases in the country refugeeto oneof thegreatestath- have underlinedthat to conclu- in at off-road resorts,’’ says Moitra,Congress'sJasbirSinghGill, cussion.Adjournsproceedingstill Billforconsiderationandpassage. firm or anyofits affiliates areei- whichinvolve gangsters and letesofalltime,becomingthefirst sively provethese preliminary Jamshith. BennyBehanan, Hibi Eden, TN noon. He makes opening remarks. ther involvedinthe consultancy wherehigh profile people areac- to win medals in 1500m, 5000m findings, “multi-centre” ran- The sector has to “immedi- Prathapan and Dean Kuriakose. ■ Noon: BJP’s Rajendra Opposition intensifies slogan contractto whichprocurementis cused” and that judges aresome- and 10,000m. domisedcontrol trials needtobe atelygointosurvivalmode”, ■11.04:MahuaMoitraraisesa Agrawaltakes the Chair.Mahua shouting. linked.Records showthat RITES times “threatenedmentallyalso The USA’s Allyson Felix lived carriedout.Theyhavealsoflagged says Jose Dominic, CEO of CGH placardandthesloganof “Pegasus MoitraleadsTMCMPsto thewell ■ 12.24: Pradhan takeshis informedthe Railway Boardthat by sending messages on up to the lofty expectations, be- the study's limitations: the sam- Earth Group of Hotels. pe jaanchkaro (investigate of the House. Congress leader seat. the decision to engage9dot9 was WhatsApp, SMS” or harassed coming the mostsuccessful plesizeof 18 participantsissmall; “Loan schemes of the gov- Pegasus)”. Adhir Ranjan Chowdhuryrises to says:“We have raisedagenuine arrivedatafter competitive bid- through social media posts. sprinter at the ageof35. follow-up period is only60-70 ernment will notworkasthat ■ 11.05: DMK’s TRBaalu, NC say: “It has been three weeks… demand to roll backthe farmers’ ding and due diligence. Though CBI probes were ordered And, gymnastSimone Biles days afterfirstdose;baselinesero- will onlyincrease liability.The MP rise from the House has notbeen running Bills.” Meghwal says:“Youare re- Askedforhiscommentonthe in some instances, he said the and tennis star Naomi Osaka did- logicalandimmunologicaldataof onlysolution is opening up the their seats. Congress MPs Gaurav properly.Noworkisdone.”At this, sponsiblefornot havingadebate.” contracts, Sinha referred The agency had “done nothing”. n’t even have to be on the field of participantsisnot available. sector.Domestic tourism has to Gogoi and RavneetSingh Bittu MinistersPralhadJoshiandArjun The Bill is put to vote and passed. IndianExpressto AlkaAroraMisra, The CJI also flagged what he playtoleave amark,tellingtherest According to the study,the take place. But the negative pub- shoutslogansagainstthegovern- RamMeghwal protest. OppositionMPsshout:“Jawabdo, interim Vice Chancellor of NRTI, calleda“newtrend in this coun- of thesportingworldthatitisokay findings have an “important im- licity emerging from the high ment. ■12.01pm:Chowdhurysays: jawabdo(give us areply)”. House and said she is “the best and most try” to malign the judiciarywhen to say‘no’ if youaren’t up forthe plication” forthe Covid-19vacci- number of Covid cases is amat- ■ 11.06: Health Minister “I want to give awarning to the adjournsforthedaytomeetagain appropriateperson to speak” on adverse orders arepassed. “It is a challengepsychologically. nationprogrammewherein“het- terofconcern,’’ says Dominic. MansukhMandaviyasays hisjun- government.. Mann ki Baat… on Monday. this.Whencontacted,Misra,who newtrendinthiscountry. If anad- Women'spowerwasreflected erologousimmunisationwillpave On Saturday, Kerala recorded iorministerDrBharatiPawarisgo- What youare doing is notright. is also Railway BoardAdditional verse order is passed, then the ju- in India’s best-evermedals tally, thewayforinductionof improved 20,367new cases, taking the to- ingto answeraquestion.Urgesthe Youcannotbeintoxicated with Rly university Member (Human Resources), diciaryismaligned. If judges file a too. WeightlifterMirabai Chanu, and better protection againstthe talcaseload to 3,533,918.The Opposition to listento“atribal” power.” among the founders and trustees conveyedthroughaRailway min- complaintto policeorCBI,theydo Sindhu and boxerLovlina variant strains of SARS-CoV-2”. statealso reported139 Covid- womanminister. Oppositioncon- ■ 12.02:Meghwal:“It’swrong. of AshokaUniversity.Hehasbeen istryspokesmanthatallcontracts notrespond. Intelligence Bureau Borgohainsetthestageforagrand "This is the firstreportofhet- linked deaths, with the total toll tinues to protest. We areready fordiscussion. We closelyinvolvedinsetting up the were awardedasper rules and andCBIarenot helpingthejudici- finish, before Neeraj Choprabe- erologous immunisation with an reaching 17,733. ■11.07: Pawarstartsherreply. have listedCovidmanagementto NRTI, adeemedtobeuniversity due process. aryatall,” he said. came the country’s firstathletics adenovirus vector basedand an On Sunday,Tourism Minister Opposition MPs trytoblockher. discuss.” and looselytermedthe “Railway The “Railway University” was ThecaseinAndhraPradeshre- goldmedalist.India’stallyofseven inactivatedwhole virion vaccine PAMohammedRiyas an- Prathapan holds aplacard, seek- ■ 12.03: The Chair calls for University” in Vadodara. Sinha’s aproject envisaged in the first lates to alleged derogatorycom- medals,whichplacedthem48th, in humans demonstrating safety nouncedthat his department ing aSC-monitored probeinto tabling the papers as listedinthe 9dot9 consultancy is also the term of the NarendraModi gov- mentsagainstthejudiciary, accus- is still glaringly lowwhen one and significantlyimprovedim- will celebrateOnam this month- Pegasus, before her.DMK’s agenda. Meghwal tables the pa- strategic partner of US lobbyfirm ernment.Railways carvedoutthe ing the judges of bias and looksatthe113medals,including munogenicity... Immunogenicity end virtually, showcasing the VeeraswamyKalanidhi holds an- pers. Ministers table action taken Albright StonebridgeGroup, NRTIfromtheexistinginfrastruc- incompetence, whichbegan 39gold,wonbytable-toppersUSA profilestudiedagainstthevariants state’s arts,culture, cuisine and other placard. reports and other statements. chaired by Madeleine Albright, tureinthe sprawling campus of when the High Courtset aside a andsecond-placedChina’stallyof of concerns,Alpha,BetaandDelta destinations on adigital plat- ■ 11.12: Speaker takesupan- ■ 12.04: Gogoi leads the slo- former US SecretaryofState. National AcademyofIndian governmentordermakingEnglish 88 (38 gold). variants, demonstrates signifi- form. other question. MoreOpposition ganeering. Opposition MPs sur- Incidentally, this is the second Railways in Vadodara. the medium of instruction at all But it wasJapan’s march that cantlyhigher titers in the heterol- MPs join the protestinthe well. round the SecretaryGeneral’s contract giventoSinha’s firms by government schools. Moresuch reallychanged the mood around ogous group,” it said. Lok Sabha TV SADMPHarsimrat Kaur carries a table and raise slogans. The Chair theinstitute whereheispartofthe Days after CJI postsfollowedwhenthecourtset these Olympics. As the hostna- Theresearchershave saidsuch duringthefirstfew minuteswhen placard, seeking justice forfarm- asksthem to return to their seats. topmanagement team. aside an order removing State tion’sathletesrakedinthemedals mixedregimenswillhelpto "over- Speaker Om Birla paid tributeto ers, and awheat flowerbunch. ■12.07: OppositionMPsraise Lastyear,Harappa Education, rebuke ElectionCommissionerNRamesh --27 goldto finishthird--thepub- comethechallengesof shortfallof the victims of the 1945 BJP’s Jamyang Tsering Namgyal slogans in Bangla: “Khela hobe, of whichSinhaisalsotheFounder Nandigam Suresh and former Kumar.Some of the posts also re- lic begantolap up the event. particular vaccines" and “remove Hiroshima-Nagasaki bombings has aquestion on environmental khelahobe.”CongressMPVishnu andManagingDirector,got anas- MLAAmanchi Krishna Mohan ferred to the castesofjudges. Barredfromentering the venues, hesitancyaroundvaccinesinpeo- andcongratulatedIndia’swrestler issues in the Himalayanregion. Pramod leads them. signment to imparttraining to were also questionedinthe case. On November 11 lastyear,the Tokyoitesstartedliningupoutside ple’s mind that could have gene- Ravi Kumar Dahiyafor winning a Bhupender Yadavreplies. ■ 12.09: Opposition chants Railway officialsonmanagement "The CBI has arrested twomore CBI registeredacase against16 thestadiumsto supporttheirath- sis in programmatic ‘errors’ espe- silvermedal at the Tokyo ■ 11.13: Congress MP Gurjeet slogansinTamil,seekingadebate. practicesandArtificialIntelligence. accusedon07.08.2021inanongo- people and took over the investi- letes.Insidetheemptyarenas,the ciallyinsettings wheremultiple Olympics. Members of the Singh Aujla leads sloganeering ■12.11:Meghwalpresentsthe Sources said that engagement is inginvestigationof acaserelating gationof 12 FIRsfromtheCID,fol- politevolunteers doubledupas Covid-19vaccinesarebeingused”. Congress, DMK, Leftparties and againstthe government. BusinessAdvisoryCommitteere- foraround twoyears and pay- to makingderogatorypostsonso- lowing the AndhraPradesh HC's cheerleaders. Theywerethe only FULLREPORTSON TMCwere inthewellof theHouse, ■ 11:14: Opposition MPs are portfor next week. ment is on the basis of participa- cial media againstjudges and the orders.TheoriginalFIRswere reg- linkto thelocalpopulationforthe www.indianexpress.com

Kolkata WWW.INDIANEXPRESS.COM

THEINDIANEXPRESS,MONDAY,AUGUST9,2021 3 WEST BENGAL

Raise Bengal’s vaccine quota: Kolkatawakesupto Adhir to Modi EXPRESSNEWSSERVICE floodedstreets,more KOLKATA,AUGUST8

LEADER OF the Congress in the Lok Sabha Adhir Ranjan ChowdhuryonSundaywrotea rainexpectedinnorth letter to PrimeMinisterNarendra Modi, seeking his intervention in increasing the quotaofCovid-19 leastfourpeople diedand five cent, while theminimum wasat vaccines forWestBengal. EXPRESSNEWSSERVICE others were injured afterbeing 74 percent. In his letter,the senior KOLKATA,AUGUST8 struckbylightning in twosepa- Severalsouth Bengal dis- Congress leader warnedof afresh rate incidentsinPurba tricts, includingKolkata, have explosionof cases in West Bengal WHILETHERE is apossibility of Medinipur and Purba been experiencing scattered and consideringits dense population. the stateexperiencing more Bardhaman. The districtadmin- intermittent spells of showers “In the wake of imminent rainfall in the next 24 hours, the istrationsannouncedacompen- over the lastfew days. danger of Covid thirdwaveinthe weather in south Bengal is likely sation of Rs 2lakh eachtothe Predictinganincrease in the country, Iwish to flag your atten- to improvefromMonday. next of kin of the victims. quantum of rainfall across north tion to thesadstateofvaccination According to the Metoffice, The RegionalMeteorological Bengal districts from Monday, drive in West Bengal. The state the depression over the Bayof Department in Aliporesaid light the AliporeMet office said heavy has apopulationof morethanten Bengal has shifted to Bangladesh to moderaterainfall maycon- showers areexpected in crores. Iamgiven to understand as aresultofwhichthe quantum tinue in 15 south Bengal districts, Darjeeling, Kalimpong, thatupto2nd August,2021, ap- of rainfall in south Bengal, in- includingKolkata, over the next Alipurduar and CoochBehar dis- proximately3,00,65,845 persons cluding Kolkata, is likelytode- fewdays. tricts. have been vaccinated.Seventy crease. Apartfromthe statecapital, Metofficials said the cyclonic per cent of the population is still However, the forecastfor the rainfall, though notinthe same circulation will shiftnorth, re- awaiting protection from the upper reaches of the stateisn’t intensity,islikelytocontinuein ducing the amount of rainfall in virus. Giventhe dense population REMEMBERING GURUDEV so rosy in the coming days,with the two24Parganas, East south Bengal.However, due to of the state, thereisalurkingdan- the weather office holding out Midnapore, Howrah,Hooghly, the seasonal axis, there maybe gerofaCovid explosion in the Women offerfloral tributeatastatueofRabindranath Tagore on his deathanniversaryinKolkataonSunday. PTI the possibility of very heavy Purulia, Jhargram, Paschim sporadic thunderstorms. state,” wroteChowdhury. rainfall across the districtsof Medinipur, Bankura, Purba and According to the weatherde- The Congress leader re- north Bengal from Monday. Paschim Bardhaman, Birbhum, partment, thunderstorms are questedthe PM to “do the need- Meanwhile, residentswoke Murshidabadand Nadia. In the forming locally from steamy ful to increase the quotaofCovid up to overcast skies on Sunday north, Alipurduar district and a winds and thereisapossibility vaccines” forthe state. 2Bangladeshiwomen detained near border morning.Several districts,in- couple of places in CoochBehar of light to moderaterainfall ac- Meanwhile, the stateon cluding Kolkata, receivedheavy district will receive heavy rain- companiedbythunderstorms in Saturdaysaw aspikeinCovid- said an official. but she managedtoescape. She gettingthem work in India,they showers resulting in large-scale fall accompaniedbythunder- the next 24 hours in south 19 infectionsand fatalities, with EXPRESSNEWSSERVICE One of the women said she metthe other womanin Kolkata’s arepushedintothe quagmireof waterlogging in the low-lying ar- storms, the Metdepartment Bengal districts. “The amount of 749new cases and 15 deaths. KOLKATA,AUGUST8 befriendedaman namedAbir Sealdah area. She toowas going prostitution. Once theyenter this eas. said. The minimum temperature rain has decreasedinKolkataas North24-Parganas district online, and came to India over a backwith the help of the un- swamp, theyfind it difficult to Major areas of south Bengal on Sundaywas recordedat26.6 compared to the lastfew days. toppedthe caseload on THE BORDER SecurityForce(BSF) year agoathis behest. She alleged known Indian tout who wasas- comeout as they find that allthe continuedtobeinundated on degreesCelsius,while the max- Thunderstormsand light rainfall Saturday,with 97 newinfec- on Sundaysaid it detainedtwo that Abir took her to Delhiand sisting the other woman, and had ways areclosed. To putatight Saturday, with the situationgrim imum wasaround32degrees areexpected in the city and its tions, while Nadiarecorded Bangladeshi women near the held her captive in ahouse. He al- Rs 1,000to the broker. rein on suchcriminals,the BSF in severalpockets. Celsius. The maximum relative suburbs in the next 24 hours,” a mostdeaths at five. Jeetpur border outpostinthe legedly forced her into prostitu- The women were handed has deployed AntiHuman According to local reports,at humidity in the air was94per- Metofficial said. North24-Parganas trailed early hours of Saturdaywhile tion. She managed to flee, and over to the police in Bagdah in Trafficking Unitsthat arework- Nadiaonthe deathcount, at theyweretrying to illegallycross wasonher waybackto North24Parganas. “The Border ing dayand nighttosavethe fu- three, followedbytwo in over to the neighbouringcountry. Bangladesh with thehelp of an Security Forceistaking strict tureofinnocent girls,” said 99 Hooghlyand one eachin Troopsofthe paramilitary unknown Indian tout who al- steps to prevent the heinous Battalion’sCommanding Officer Need to stop Trinamool from Jalpaiguri, Purba Medinipur force’s 99 Battalion detained the legedly paid Rs1,000 to abroker. crime likehuman trafficking on Ravi Kant. and Howrah. The number of twowomen —one of them is 22 The other woman held by the the Indo-Bangladesh border. This incidentcame afew active cases declinedby57to years old and the other is 20 years BSF claimedshe came to India 20 Consequently, some people and days after21minorgirls were spreading violence: Ghosh 10,585. As manyas2,71,896 old —basedoninformation from days agowith the help of a brokers arebeing caught. During rescuedfromared lightareain people were administeredvac- itsintelligence branch. “They Bangladeshi friend namedHriday interrogation,ithas come to the Kulti in Paschim Bardhaman cine shots on Sunday,taking came to India at thebehestof whotookher to Delhi againsther fore thatpoor and innocentgirls district.The girlshad allegedly the overall number to over their friends, but the friends tried wish. She claimedthatthe man arebeing lured intothe love trap been trafficked from outside the EXPRESSNEWSSERVICE 12TMCACTIVISTS 2,18,39,280. to push them into prostitution,” struck adealwithabrokerfor her, and taken under the pretext of state. KOLKATA,AUGUST8 HELDFOR‘FLOUTING ADAY aftertwo TMC youth lead- COVIDPROTOCOL’ ers were injured in an attackin Tripura’s Dhalai district, West Agartala: At least12leaders Case against Assam Khattar meets Dahiya kin, promises Bengal BJP presidentDilipGhosh and workers of theTMC, in- on Sundaysaid the stateruling cluding thoseinjured in an school, end to water issues in village party neededtobestoppedfrom StateBJP president allegedattackbyBJP work- portal for ‘fake news’ spreadingits “culture of violence” Dilip Ghosh ers on the previous day, in the northeastern state. The were arrested in Tripura's EXPRESSNEWSSERVICE TMC has blamedthe BJP forthe Khowaidistrict on Sunday on boxerhoardings CHANDIGARH,AUGUST8 attack—acharge deniedbythe said Ghosh. for"violating COVID norms", saffron party. Meanwhile, Ghosh accuseda police said. TMC national HARYANA CHIEF Minister Speakingto reporters at West local ward coordinator in general secretaryAbhishek TORAAGARWALA ManoharLal Khattar Sundaymet Midnapore, Ghosh said the TMC Kharagpur in West Midnapore Banerjee, who is West GUWAHATI,AUGUST8 thefamily of Olympic silver had no moral right to talk about district of notaddressing the wa- Bengal Chief Minister medallistRaviDahiyainthe violence. terlogging issue afterheavy rain MamataBanerjee's nephew POLICE HAVE registeredacase wrestler’s home village of Nahri. "That's what happens when in some pocketsofthe town. The and the de factonumber 2in againstaGuwahati-basednews The family and residentsmade a youindulgeinrevengepolitics. I reaction came afteragroup of the party,reachedAgartala portalafter the Directorateof number of requests —fixing a feel that people will notgiveany people in Kharagpur complained and leftfor Khowai to meet Information and Public Relations drainageproblem, setting up a importance to the TMC in to him. thearrestedparty workers, (DIPR), Assam alleged that the school, and ensuring clean drink- Tripura. Theyhavenobase, and “Whyshould Ibeforcedto who willbeproducedbe- websiteaired “fakenews”—re- ing water—whichthe CM said the government thereisnot hear your complaint? If the local fore acourtamid tight secu- lated to hoardings that featured would be resolvedonpriority. bothered by them. The TMC ward coordinator hasn't done his rity arrangements. Police Olympian boxerLovlina “The chief minister, while killedour workers in Bengalin job then youshould demonstrate said that the 12 TMC mem- Borgohain —to“malign the the congratulatingthe parents of the the name of ‘Khela Hobe’. If they before his residence. Don't hesi- bers were arrested for vio- imageofthe Ministerof wrestler,also resolvedseveral is- want to spread their culture of tate to carry muckand silt to his lating COVID restrictions by Information and Public Relations, sues of the area on the CM Khattar with wrestler Ravi Dahiya’s father Rakesh violence elsewherethen Ithink house. Butyou mustdoitfirstand travelling afterthe imposi- Pijush Hazarika and the depart- spot…RaviDahiya’s father the TMC needs to be stopped. It then inform me. Iwill also join tion of night curfew at 7pm. ment in public eye”. Rakesh, uncleMukesh Dahiya, is important to stop those who you," said the BJP MP from PTI In acomplaint to Dispur Police One of the hoardingson members of the gram panchayat officers concernedtoresolve drinking waterofthe area as indulge in politics of violence," Midnapore. StationinGuwahati onFriday, the boxerLovlinaBorgohain and former sarpanchofNahri them on priority basis. Among well,” the spokesperson said. director of DIPR requestedthat that had been putupin villagewerepresent alongwith the key issues wasthe problem Home MinisterAnil Vij, “appropriatelegal action against Guwahati. CM Himanta other representatives. The family of waterdrainage in the area. The meanwhile, went to Olympic the webportal” be takenunder BiswaSarma has expressed of the wrestler and villagerep- chief ministerspoketothe gold medallistNeerajChopra's lawfor “dissemination of com- his disapproval over it. resentativesinvited the chief deputy commissioner,Sonipat, home in Panipat to congratulate pletely falseandfabricatedinfor- minister to visitNahri, which and asked him to resolve the hisparents. mation designedtomalign the waspromptlyacceptedby matter immediately. Therepre- Afterhonouring them with a images of innocent persons”. photo and instead usingSarma’s. him…,” aspokesperson said. sentativesurged the CM to open turban and ashawl,Vij bowed The policeregisteredacase Another setofhoardings con- The villagerepresentatives aModelSanskriti School in the down andtouchedtheir feet. under Sections 294A/500/505 (2) gratulating Borgohain featured presented ademand letter to demand letter,whichwas ac- He said if Chopra wantstoset of the IPC and Section 45A of the Assam SportsMinisterBimal Khattar,listing grievances. “The ceptedbyhim on the spot. up an academytotrain young- IT ActonFriday. “The complaint Bora’s picture. chief ministerimmediatelytook Besidesthis, the CM asked offi- sters, the government would came to us on August6.Weregis- Sarma himself tweetedon up the grievances and asked the cers to resolve the issue of clean consider it. teredthe case and nowweare in- Thursdayabout the Bordoloi vestigating it,” said an officer in hoarding, saying he did noten- Dispur Police Station. dorseit.“Idonotendorsethiskind GOKHALEINSTITUTE OF The now-deletednews clip, of branding at all. Instruction has POLITICS AND ECONOMICS postedonthe Facebook pageof beenissuednot to use my picture (Deemed University) Assamese news website The fromnowonwardswithoutprior Pune 411 004 CrossCurrent Fridayafternoon,re- approvalof my office,”hetweeted. ADVERTISEMENT portedlyquestionedthe use of On Friday, The CrossCurrent Chief MinisterHimantaBiswa shared afour-minuteclipin Applications are invited from eligible candidates Sarma’s photosonmultiple Assamesetitled‘WasPijush forappointment as Office Superintendent hoardings put up in Guwahati in Hazarikaadmonishedfortryingto (OPEN-1) &LibraryAssistant (OPEN-1) under therun-uptothe Olymics –one flatterHimantaBiswaSarma?’ Population Research Centre (PRC) at the congratulatingBorgohainand the Whilethevideoisnotavailable Institute.For further details visit www.gipe.ac.in. other commemorating the death online now, Gautam Gogoi,the The last date of application is 24/08/2021 anniversaryofAssam’s firstchief website’snews editor,saidtheclip ministerGopinath Bordoloi. asked who wasbehindthese Registrar The hoardings had large im- hoardings. “Usuallythe DIPR ages of Sarma. In the Borgohain makessuchhoardings.Sowe just Government of West Bengal hoarding,theboxer’sphotograph raisedquestionsasking if theyin- Officeofthe DistrictMagistrate,Purba Bardhaman(MA&ME Section) wasnot featuredatall; it had two stalledit,andif theyhadnot,who Memo no.412/MAMEDate06/08/21 accompanying lines that said approved it? We also askedif EMPLOYMENT NOTICE “Congratulationsandbest wishes PijushHazarika’sneedtoimpress Applicationare hereby invitedfor thefollowingpostfrom interested to Lovlina Borgohain forqualify- HimantaBiswaSarmahad back- eligibleretiredGovernment Employeenot belowthe rank of UDC up to ing forTokyoOlympic 2020” and fired... since thelatter saidhedid the ageof62ason23/08/2021. Application along with relevant documents should be submittedby23/08/2021tothe drop boxin “You arethe pride of Assam”. In notapproveofthe hoarding.” MA&MESection,Purba Bardhaman. theBordoloihoarding,theformer Hazarika told The Indian Sl Name of No of Qualification chief minister’sfacewasrelegated Express that he wasnot “person- No the Post Post to theperiphery, withSarma’soc- allyinvolved” in the case against 1UDC-cum- 1The retiredemployee should have cupying mostofthe space. the website. “The complaint has accountant worked in similarcapacity or above& Neither carriedthe name of the beenfiledbytheDIPRandIamnot drawnlastpay underPB3(7100– departmentwhichsanctioned it. involvedinit.They[thenews por- 37600) (old)&newasper ROPA 2019 Borgohain’s hoarding kicked tal] hadaired anews clip regard- (27000 –69800)pay matrix up astorm on social media, with ingtwohoardings–however, nei- Applicationform is available on districtwebsite: www.bardhaman.nic.in manyuserscriticisingthe gov- therInortheDIPRhadanythingto Sd/- DistrictOfficer,MinorityAffairs, PurbaBardhaman ernment fornot featuring her do with the hoardings,” he said.

Kolkata WWW.INDIANEXPRESS.COM 4 EXPRESS NETWORK THEINDIANEXPRESS,MONDAY,AUGUST9,2021 Hopeful of IT panel Threattohumanrightsis PM to chair UNSC takingupPegasus debate on maritime issue, says Tharoor highestinpolicestations:CJI security, cooperation chairman, BJP's Anurag Thakur. MANOJCG “The Pegasus issuetherefore sensitisation of police officers. Askingnot to letthe pastde- EXPRESSNEWSSERVICE NEWDELHI,AUGUST8 clearly falls under the purviewof EXPRESSNEWSSERVICE He said the concept of free le- termine the future, he said that NEWDELHI,AUGUST8 the IT committee and within NEWDELHI,AUGUST8 galaid to theneedy has itsroots project “Access to Justice” is an ALTHOUGH THE Parliamentary thesesubjects on itsagenda.So, it in the freedom movement. unending missionfor thecoun- PRIME MINISTER Narendra Standing Committeeonis only expectedthat membersof POINTINGOUT that custodial “Those days,the legalluminar- trysothatitcan dream of afu- Modi will chair ahigh-levelopen Information Technologycould the IT committee will ask ques- tortureand other police atroci- iesrenderedpro-bono services turebased on legalmobility,afu- debateonthe topic “Enhancing nottakeupadiscussion on the tions about it when these topics ties areproblemsthatstill pre- to freedom fighters, who were turewhereequality is areality. Maritime Security —ACase for Pegasus snooping issue at itslast arise. It is no secret that the com- vail in society, Chief Justice of targeted by the colonial rulers. “If, as an institution, the judici- International Cooperation” on meeting afterBJP members on mittee’s meeting on itsestab- India NVRamana Sundaysaid This spirit of service found reflec- arywants to garner the faith of Mondayvia video conferencing. the panelblockedproceedings lishedagenda wasdisruptedby the “threat to human rights and tion in the Constitution, with the citizens, we have to make The MinistryofExternal PM NarendraModi of the meeting citing lackofquo- BJPmemberswho did notwant bodilyintegrity arethe highest CJI NCRamana those very same legal luminar- everyone feel assured that we Affairs on Sundaysaid the meet- rum, panel chairman Shashi Pegasus to bediscussed,” he said. in police stations”. ies serving as members of the existfor them. Forthe longest ing is expected to be attendedby Tharoor on Sundaysaid he was Arguing that accountability to He flagged the issues of hu- Constituent Assembly.” time, the vulnerable population severalheads of stateand gov- holistic manner in the United hopeful that the committee will Parliamentisacornerstone of man rightsand dignity,saying early hourswill later determine Stressing the needto work on has livedoutside the system of ernments of United Nations Nations SecurityCouncil. Acom- take up theissue going forward. India’s democracy,Tharoor said these are“sacrosanct”. the ability of the accusedtode- access to justicefor all, irrespec- justice,” the CJI said. Security Council (UNSC) mem- prehensiveapproach to mar- The lastmeeting on July28 “butitisincreasingly beingtossed “The threat to human rights fend himself. Going by therecent tive of their socio-economicsta- Pointing out that “prevailing berstates, along with high-level itime security should protect alsosaw,what Tharoorcalls, “last aside in the current regime’s and bodilyintegrityare the high- reports even theprivileged are tus, CJI Ramana said this is imper- obstacles likelengthy,painstak- briefers from the UN system and and supportlegitimatemaritime minuterefusal” by representa- headlong rush to autocracy”. estinpolice stations. Custodial notspared third-degreetreat- ative to ensure that we remaina ing and expensive formal justice key regional organisations. activities, while countering tra- tivesofthree ministries to attend “Despitethis disappointing tortureand other police atroci- ment,” he said. society governedbyrule of law. processes add to thewoes of re- “Modi would be thefirst ditional and non-traditional it. Tharoor has since then writ- approachIamhopeful thatwe ties areproblems thatstill pre- “Tokeep police excesses in “If we want to remain asoci- alising the goals of Access to Indian Prime Ministertopreside threatsinthe maritime domain,” tentoLok Sabha SpeakerOm will be able to take up the ques- vail in our society.Inspiteofcon- check, dissemination of infor- etygovernedbythe rule of law, it Justice”, CJI Ramanasaid: “As an over aUNSecurity Council Open it said. Birla, asking him to take “serious tion going forward. And Iwould stitutional declarations and mation about the constitutional is imperative forustobridgethe institution, the toughestchal- Debate,” the MEA said in astate- In 2015,Modi hadputforward cognizance” of the matter and saythatthoughwewill take it up guarantees, the lack of effective right to legal aid and availability gapofaccessibility to justice be- lengebeforeusistobreak these ment. the vision of SAGAR—an calledthe conduct of the officials to the extent that the committee legal representation at the police of free legal aid services is nec- tweenthe highly privilegedand barriers first.” The open debatewillfocus acronym for“Security and “unprecedented”, “breachof is able to act, Ihaveproposed stations is ahugedetriment to essary. The installation of display the mostvulnerable. Forall times Making it clear that accessing on ways to effectively counter Growth forall in the Region” — parliamentaryprivilege” and from the startthat what we re- arrested/detainedpersons,” the boards and outdoor hoardings in to come, we mustremember justice in India is notmerelyan maritime crime and insecurity, whichfocuses on cooperative “contempt of the House”. allyneedisaSupreme Court CJI said, addressing an event or- everypolice station/prisonisa that, the realities of socio-eco- aspirational goal, he said, “We and strengthen coordination in measures forsustainable use of Talking to The Indian Express, monitoredinquiry headedbya ganisedbyNationalLegal step in this direction,” CJI nomic diversity whichprevail in needtoworkhand in hand with the maritime domain. Russian the oceans, and providesaframe- Tharoor said the IT committee serving judgeorarecently re- Services Authority (NALSA). Ramana said, as he calledupon our nation, cannoteverbearea- various wings of the government President Vladimir Putin is ex- work forasafe,secure,andstable had been conductingdiscus- tired judge to conduct afair,im- “The decisions takeninthese NALSAtocarry out nationwide sonfor denial of rights,” he said. to makeitapractical reality.” pected to attend the session, maritime domain in theregion. sions on citizens’ dataprivacy partial and thorough investiga- sources said. This initiative wasfurther and security forthe pasttwo tion of the Pegasus issue,” The UN Security Council has elaborated in 2019 at the East years. He said cyber security top- Tharoor said. BKU to hold discussedand passedresolu- Asia Summitthrough the Indo- ics had also featured in its FULLREPORTON Akhilesh bonds with Mahan tions on different aspectsofmar- Pacific Oceans' Initiative (IPOI), agenda under the previous www.indianexpress.com mega ‘Tiranga itime security and maritime withafocus on sevenpillars of crime, the MEA said.However, maritime security,including Yatras’ in Dal, woos non-Yadav OBCs this will be the firsttime that Maritime Ecology;Maritime maritime security will be dis- Resources; Capacity Building Bengaluru crackdown: Haryana on cussedinaholistic mannerasan and Resource Sharing; Disaster exclusive agenda item in such a Risk Reduction and August 15 ASADREHMAN highlevel open debate. Management;Science, Spikeindrugsseized, LUCKNOW,AUGUST8 “Given that no countryalone Technology and Academic can address the diverse aspects Cooperation; and Trade cases booked, arrests EXPRESSNEWSSERVICE AS PART of hisstrategy to bring of maritime security,itisimpor- Connectivity and Maritime CHANDIGARH, AUGUST 8 together smaller parties, espe- tant to consider this subject in a Transport, the MEA said. ciallynon-YadavOBCs, ahead of JOHNSONTA The statehas registered THE BHARTIYAKisan Union the Uttar Pradesh Assembly BENGALURU,AUGUST7 (BKU), ledbyGurnam Singh elections next year,Samajwadi anearly 10-fold rise in Chaduni,has announcedthatit Party(SP) president Akhilesh BJP has becomestrong, THE DEATH of a27-year-old drug cases, from 285 in will holdmega‘TirangaYatras’ YadavonSundayaddressed Congolese national in the cus- 2018 to 2,766 in 2020. across Haryana on August15. party workers of Mahan Dal, an workers told to hit back tody of the Bengaluru police af- The BJP’stwo-week long OBC-basedparty headedby terbeing arrested foralleged The year 2021has ‘TirangaYatras’, aimedatcreat- KeshavDev Maurya,inLucknow. trafficking of party drugs comes already seen 2,550 ingapassion forpatriotism Presiding the Mahan Dal if touched, take two for amidstacrackdown on drug cases being registered among youths, will conclude on meeting as itschief guest, the SP traffickers in the city over the August14. chief lashedout at the BJP,accus- lasttwo years -- resulting in a Chaduni on Sundaycon- ing it of wedging adivide in the one: Karnataka minister nearly 10-fold rise in registered and allegedlyamajor drug sup- firmedthatthe ‘TirangaYatras’ backwardclass community by drug cases, from 285 in 2018 to plier. will be carriedout by farmers pitting Yadavs against the rest of Akhilesh said if Mahan Dal and SP workers work together in 2,766 in 2020. 2021has already Officers saypolice call on tractors and motorcycles on the OBCs. the election, the alliance could win 400seatsinUP. Express EXPRESSNEWSSERVICE seen 2,550cases being regis- records and WhatsApp data the occasion of Independence “The BJP says Yadavs aretak- BENGALURU,AUGUST8 tered. have helpedpolice zeroinon Day. TheBKU has already ing all the resources.Sometimes The wide netcastbypolice usersand suppliers. “The net- startedpreparations to hold the theysay that we have snatched Once again reiteratingthe de- Express,Mahan Dal chief Keshav IN Aprovocativestatement,sen- authorities has seen the busting work operates on mobile phones yatras in villagesofHaryana. away what wasyours.This nar- mand foracaste-basedcensus, DevMauryasaidhis party’s only ior BJP leader and aministerin of celebritydrug networks serv- and messaging services,” said a Meetings arebeing held in vil- rative becomes morevisible Yadavaccusedboththe BJP and aim is to remove the BJP from the Karnataka government, KS icedbyforeign suppliers,who source. lages to mobilisemorefarmers when elections approach... The the Congress of refusing to do so. power. “Theyhavenot helped Eshwarappa, said on Sunday that arebelievedtobring in drugs via Policeclaimtohavezeroedin forthe yatras to energise the on- BJP is justdoing politics. Youand “First theCongressrefusedtodoa anycommunity in the state. All if a“BJP worker is touched”, the various means, suchasparcels on Congolese national Joel going agitation againstthe Iare Backwards. We followthe castecensus,thentheBJP. TheBJP communities aresuffering –the “instructionistohit backwith to postoffices, purchases on the Shindani Malualias Jon, 27,who Centre’s three contentious farm footsteps of Dr Bhimrao will neverdoacaste-basedcen- Backwards, the Dalits, and the the same stick” and to “take KSEshwarappa darknet,and from citieslike diedinpolicecustody on August laws. Ambedkar... Samajwadi Partyisa sus because theyknowwho are Muslims,” he said. away two, if even one is taken”. Delhi and Mumbai. 2, through an informant.His cus- Farmers have been opposing party of the backwards and de- demographicallymore.Iassureall Asked if they have reacheda Speaking at ameeting of The number of foreignersar- todial death, resulting in events of BJP-JJP leaders forthe mands the rights forall itspeo- our peoplethatwhen we will seat-sharing arrangementwith party workers in his con- Eshwarappa said. rested on drug trafficking protests,was notthe firstsuch past eight monthsaspartof ple,” Akhilesh Yadavsaid, adding form the government, we will do the SP,Mauryasaid, “Yes, we stituency of Shimoga, Reacting to his remarks, chargeshas also seen acorre- incident. In May2021, aNigerian their agitation. However, this that if Mahan Dal and SP work- acaste census,” he said. have.But it is tooearly to disclose Eshwarappa, stateminister for Congress and SDPI leaders have sponding jump—from82in national, PeterOfor, had been wasfirstinstancewhenthe ag- ers would work togetherinthe The Mahan Dal enjoys sup- it... “Our slogan is MahanDal ne rural development and pan- calledfor hisresignation.State 2018-19to184 in 2020-21. In the founddead near alakeafter he itators decidedagainstoppos- election, the alliance could win portfromBackwardcommuni- thahna hain,Samajwadi Party chayat raj, saidthe BJP has “be- Congress working president sevenmonths of the current wasreportedlypickedupbypo- ingBJP’s TirangaYatra. The 400seatsinUP. ties likeMauryas, Khushwahas, sarkar banana hain (Mahan Dal come very strong” and itswork- Saleem Ahmedsaid Chief year,100-odd foreigners have liceondrug traffickingcharges. farmerleaders had calledita The UP Assemblyhas 403 Sakhyasand Sainis. has decidedtomakeSamajwadi ers arenow capable of giving MinisterBasavarajBommai been arrested.The quantity of In 2017,another Nigerian, Ifeanyi “traptodefamefarmers if they seats. Speaking to The Indian Partygovernment).” backinequal measurewhen should sackEshwarappa MDMA seized in thecity hasin- Madu, had diedreportedly when would have opposedthe ya- provokedorattackedbyrivals. immediately. creasedfrom876 gramsin2018- he fell offascooterwhile being tras”. On itspart, the BJP leaders “Inneighboring Kerala, if any “Eshwarappa is notworthyof 19 to 2.571 kg in 2020 and 7.777 pursuedbythe narcotics wing of had insistedthat theyhad un- SBSP’s Rajbhar activistwenttoopenaunit of the being an MLA, letalone aminis- kg in 2021,police datashow. the Bengaluru Crime Branch. dertaken sucheventsearlier BJP ally Apna Dal calls RSS, they would be murdered for ter, on account of his provocative Lauding thepolice efforts, "Thereare rivalgangs among too. rules out alliance speaking about . We statements. The Speaker must formerchief minister BS foreign drug suppliers. Many Now, the BKU has decided for caste-based census did nothavethe strength to expel him from the Legislature, Yediyurappa had said lastyear, times seizures occur due to tip- to undertake ‘TirangaYatras’ with BJP, sends strikeback. Today, lakhs of peo- the Chief Ministermustdrop “This is the firsttime in the offs providedtopolice on account to emphasizethatfarmers are Ashish Pateltold PTI. ple arewith the BJP,and when him from the Cabinet,and the countrythat strong actionisbe- of the rivalries,'' an officer said. the real patriots.“Our sons se- PRESSTRUSTOFINDIA He said the population of SCs signals to SP thereisarally forHindutva, lakhs Governorshould intervene and ing takenagainstdrug usage." Asenior officer admitted curethe borders and even got NEWDELHI,AUGUST8 and STshavebeen calculated in gather,'' he said. ensure peace and stability in the Sources involvedwith the op- that police have been known to martyrdom forthe honour of all censusespost-Independence Lucknow: Suheldev Bharatiya “In the past, theywould mur- state,'' said aspokesperson of the erations saypolice have man- use high-handedmeasures, par- thetricolour,” said Azad AHEAD OF Uttar Pradesh but notofOBCs. SamajParty (SBSP) president der our activists.Those days,our Social Democractic Partyof aged to tapintothe drug supply ticularly againstAfricannation- Palwa, Assemblyelections next year,BJP “As aresult, thereisno Om Prakash Rajbhar on Sunday elders in the Sangh would say India, Afsar Kodipet. and consumer network—a als, manyofwhom arefound to Jind BKU president, claiming allyApna Dal (S) on Sundayde- proper estimateofthe OBC pop- ruledout an alliance withthe BJP stay calm at all costs.Wehad to Eshwarappa, aveteran BJP tightly bound unit,with suppli- be overstaying afterexpiry of that therehas been an over- manded aseparateUnion min- ulation. Therefore, Irequestthe fornextyear’s Uttar Pradesh be calm, irrespective of the situ- leader who helpedbuild the ers sellingonlytoknown pur- their visas. In fact, filing of cases whelming response from the istryfor thewelfareofOBCs and government that thenextcen- Assemblyelections, saying his ation and howmuchwewereat- party in Karnataka along with chasers —“through systematic ends up allowing them to re- farmers and farm labourersfor acaste-basedcensus across the sus should be caste-basedtoas- “doorsare open to all partiesex- tacked.Wedid nothavethe former CM BSYediyurappa, is arrests”. The leads from adrug main in the countryafter release the proposedTirangaYatra of countrytoascertain the exact certain the exactpopulation of cept the BJP”. strength,''hesaid. known to frequentlymake haul in November 2018,of1.5 kg on bail, on account of pending August15. population of the community. eachsegment, especiallythe Praising the AkhileshYadav- “Today, the BJP has grownthe provocativestatementsoncom- of heroin and 1,930 Ecstasy trials. In 2019,the Karnataka “In Jinddistrict, we have Apna Dal (S) is the second ally OBCs. This would ensurethat the ledSP, hesaidpeoplefeel“onlySP worldover, and if aBJP worker is munal lines. tablets worthanestimatedRs 1.5 HighCourt had ordered that ille- formed threeteamsoffarmers of the BJPafter JD (U) to have shareofaparticular caste seg- can challengeBJP” and claimed touchedanywhereinany corner, Afew days ago, he said the crore, forexample, ledpolice last galforeignersawaitingtrial in and majdoor leaders to make raisedthe demandfor acaste- ment is basedontheir popula- that the BJP would notwin even the instruction is to hit backwith BJP would have a“nationalist year to twoactresses and other the statebelodged in detention peopleaware aboutour events. basedcensus. tion,” said Ashish Patel, husband one seat in eastern UP if the SP the same stick. In the past, the leader'' as the CM the next knownnames, as well as Loom centres and notbereleasedaf- We have already covered150 “Caste-basedcensus is the of Union ministerAnupriya joinedhandswiththecoalitionof decisionwas to stay calm at all time it comes to powersince Pepper,aSenegalese national terbail. out of 306villages of Jind dis- needofthe hour to ascertain the Patel. smallpartiesthattheSBSPisapart costs.Now,the decision is to take compromises had to be made trict. In Jind district, we willhold exact populationofeachseg- He said the party also de- of. “Mymaingoalisto remove the away two, if even one is taken. this time to accommodate TirangraYatrasatfiveplaces,” ment, especiallythe OBC," work- mands aseparate ministryfor BJP from powerand have agov- We have become very strong. manynewcomersinthe addedPalwa. ing president of Apna Dal (S) welfareofOBCs. ernment ledbyus,” he said. ENS Nobody will come to trouble us,'' party. In MP booklet of offensive words: postman, anyay,sasur

Releasedbythe Madhya MLAs areexpectedtoavoid are Sabha. He also said atwo-day IRAMSIDDIQUE PradeshAssemblyonSunday—a the colourful ‘budget mein khoda training programme wasbeing BHOPAL,AUGUST8 daybeforeits Monsoon Session pahad, nikla chuhiya’(muchado plannedwhichwould groom begins —itismeant to helpMLAs about nothing) ,‘bhainskeaage MLAs on howtoconductthem- LAWMAKERSINSIDEtheMadhya exercise restraint in speechdur- been bajana’(casting pearls before selvesinthe House. Pradesh Assemblywould do well ing heated arguments. swine), ‘Aapkobhagwanki kasam “Leaders likeKamal Nath and to tread carefullywhile mention- According to SpeakerGirish hai’(swearing on God), ‘Lageraho ShivrajSinghChouhanhave been ing the word ‘postman’. Or anyay Gautam, the wordsbythem- munnabhai’, and ‘ghadiyali aansu membersofmultiple Lok Sabhas (injustice).Or,forthatmatter,ven- selvesdonot seemunparliamen- mat bahaiye’(crocodile tears). and Vidhan Sabhas.Theyunder- tilator,habitual,bechara(poorper- tary —but the contextmakes Gautam told The Indian stand the functioning owing to son), halla (noise), bhedbhav (dis- them so. The booklet, complied Express:“Thereare twobooklets, theirexperience.ButnotallMLAs crimination), yaar (friend), and by Assemblyofficials, beginsby one of them handedtothe MLAs, aresowell-versed,thereare many bandhuwamazdoor (bonded flagging the word sasur (father- that have detailsof the contextin first-timers,” said Gautam. labourer). in-law) that wasexpunged on whichthesewordsweresaidthat Chief MinisterShivraj Singh These wordsare among the September 23, 1954.Itmoves on ledtothem being expunged.Itis Chouhan, who waspresent dur- hundredsofwords and phrases to tanasha (dictator) that wasre- up to us to maintain the sanctity ingthe launch, welcomedthe ini- expunged from theMadhya movedonMarch 31,1967; galat of the institution.” tiative.Hepointedout thatonce a PradeshHouse between1954 (wrong) that wasexpunged on The Speaker said this wasa group of students who hadcome and 2020 —and they have now July4,1980;and dikkat(difficulty) small step to ensurepublic repre- to observethe workingofVidhan found their wayintoanofficial that wasremoved on February sentativesdon’t use suchwords Sabha had described it as a“fish advisorybookletfor MLAs. 26,2021. Amongthephrases that and phrases inside the Vidhan market”.

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CORONAVIRUS DASHBOARD EXPLAINED THE PANDEMIC

TOTAL VACCINATED IN INDIA (at least one dose) Vaccination: the road ahead 39,43,78,151 ■ Firstdose ■ Seconddose Worldwide, thereisagap betweenvaccinesupplyand demand, and disparities between developed and 80,00,000 43,36,591 developing countries.Where willnew vaccinescome from,and whatchallengesmusttheymeet? 35,95,468

40,00,000 47%emerging from alarge pivotal trial of the 14,64,292 mRNAvaccine from CureVac, Germany, has EXPERT seriouslydampenedhopes of itsrole in vac- 17,32,029 cination programmes in the European Union 0 EXPLAINS and elsewhere. The disappointing resultsun- LAST 10 DAYS (daily) derscorethe risksand challenges fornew July29Aug 7 Virander SChauhan vaccines, whichwill have to demonstrateef- ficacy againstviral variantsnow prevalent From TheIndian Express panel all over the world. TOTAL DOSES COVISHIELD COVAXIN ofspecialists, exclusive insight Yet, newvaccines arebeing introducedat 87.7% 12.2% regular intervals. China has approvedsix vac- 50,68,10,492 cines and vaccinated astaggering 20 million SARS-CoV-2 continues to play havocindif- peopleper dayfor more than aweek in mid- (SputnikV’s5,70,957doses ferent parts of the worldwith severalofits June this year.RecentlyChina has startedvac- morevirulent forms, particularly the Delta cination of all minorsusing itsown vaccines. notrepresentedinpie) variant,now driving newwaves of infections. Therehavebeen concerns aboutthe efficacy Vaccines developed against the virusare of thesevaccines in some Asian countries,in- DOSES ON AUG 07 58,00,883 the mosteffectivescientific intervention to cluding Indonesiaand Thailand. control the pandemic. Developedatan Queuefor vaccination in Jaipurlastweek.India has administeredover50crore AUG 06: 56,82,014 (1ST DOSE:44,10,510; 2ND:12,71,504) amazing pace, as manyas19vaccineshave doses, and hopes to procure135 crorevaccinesbyDecember. Rohit Jain Paras India, now&later already been approved forimmunisation in With 500million (50 crore) vaccines al- some partofthe worldorthe other. ready administeredsofar,Indiaset itsown INDIA ACTIVE CASES 4,06,822 developing countries suchasCuba, Iran, Ethicallytoo,phase III trials with placebo recordofvaccinating nearly 9million peo- Glaring disparities Turkey andKazakhstan. In addition, more control groups maynot be justifiable any ple in aday on 21 June 2021. India’svaccina- Thesevaccines arethe result of intense than 30 vaccines areinlarge efficacy trials more, giventhat efficacious vaccines areal- tion programme so farhas been mainly 5,00,000 scientific collaborations among scientists in with afew already waiting foremergency use ready in use. drivenbyCovishield of AstraZeneca/Serum academia and industry, and early hugefund- approval. Morethan 90 vaccine candidates InstituteofIndia and Covaxin of Bharat ing from manygovernments. Unfortunately, have enteredphaseI/II trials. Thereforemore Hopes &challenges Biotech accounting forover87% and12% of 4,05,155 4,06,822 the initial collaborative effortsdid nottrans- than120 vaccines, including manyinthe de- The next generation of Covid vaccines allvaccinations respectively.Sputnik Vfrom 2,50,000 late intoequitable access, and the trajectory veloping world, areunder development. could address the issues of stability at higher Russia, whichwas approved in April 2021, is of access has largely replicated theclassical Giventhe fact that so faronlyfivevaccines temperatures foreasy transportation and yettomakeany sizeable contributiontothe paradigmofdevelopedand the underdevel- have been abandonedfollowing clinical tri- storage, areal concerninpoor countries. vaccination programme. opedparts of the world. Glaring disparities als, manyofthese vaccine candidates are Large-scale immunisation through the According to revisedestimates, the vac- 0 and differences in vaccine types, their avail- destinedtoreachthe regulatory stages in var- injection routehas always been complexand cine programme in India hopes to procure LAST 10 DAYS ability and distribution have emergedinvac- ious countries. Although currentlythereisa at leastpartlycontributestovaccine hesi- 135crore vaccines by December 2021. The July29Aug 7 cination programmes across the globe. hugeshortage in supply, thespace forintro- tancy.Toavoid theneedle and delivervac- overall averagesupply of all vaccineshas Note:The August7figures in thesegraphs arebased on thegovernment updates on August8 The initiative COVAX, ledbythe World ducing newvaccinescan- cines through nasal or hoveredaround 4million per dayfor the last Health Organization (WHO), has struggled notbeunlimited,and oral routes will also be an twomonths. Clearly,the supplywill needto to procureand distributevaccines to low- onlythe best maybeable attractive target.Several be more than twice the present rate. INDIA TOTAL CASES 3,19,34,455 andmiddle-income countries. to compete with the ex- THEEXPERT non-injectable Covid vac- It is hopedthat both Covishield and Source: Ministry of Health &Family Welfare,updated at 11 pm on August 8 Whilethe western andresource-rich isting ones. VIRANDER SCHAUHAN cines areunder develop- Covaxin production will be scaledup, with countries have mostlyreliedonthe novel Also, manufacturers of is aformer chairman of ment,including in India. Covaxin to be producedatmultiple locations. platforms of mRNAbasedvaccinesfrom currentlyin-use vaccines UGC and aformer Perhapsthe mostex- Likewise, Sputnik Vsupplythrough imports, Pfizer and Moderna, and viral vector vaccines have announcedmajor director of the citing development in the or through itsproduction in India, is expected Device that detects SARS-CoV-2 of AstraZeneca and Johnson &Johnson, the increases in production at International Centrefor newvaccine arena is the to fill the gap. low- and middle-income countries find multiple locations. Forex- GeneticEngineering and recent phase III trial re- Manufacturing and approvals of protein- themselvesrelying mostlyonvaccinesde- ample,Pfizerhas recently Biotechnology.Heisbest sults of the protein-based basedvaccinesof NovavaxandBiologicalEwill in saliva sample in one hour velopedinChina and Russia. announcedproductionof knownfor hisefforts vaccine of Novavax, becrucialto thesupplychaininIndia.Novavax As of now, around 4.1billion shots of var- itsvaccine in South Africa, towardsdeveloping a whichhas shown an effi- hasdemonstratedsafetyandhighefficacyof its ENGINEERS AT MIT and Harvard Then, viral RNAisextracted and con- ious vaccines have been rolledout world- specifically foruse in vaccine formalaria. cacy of 91.4%. vaccine and mayseek approval forits use in University have designedasmalltable- centrated by passing the saliva wide, with China (1.61billion), India (455 African countries. The Importantly, these trials India before it is approved elsewhere. topdevicethat can detect SARS-CoV-2 through amembrane. million) and USA(344million) accounting mostcost-effective vac- were conducted at atime The DNAbasedvaccine developedby from asaliva sample in about an hour. This RNAsample is then exposedto formorethan half of these. Manydeveloped cine of AstraZeneca, whichisapproved in when severalvirus variantshad already Zydus Cadila, whichrequiresthree shots for In anew study in Science Advances,they freeze-driedCRISPR/Cas components. countries have vaccinatedmorethan half morethan ahundredcountries, is already be- emerged. However, theUSregulatorisyet to full vaccination, is also expected to be rolled showeditisasaccurateasPCR tests, Thereaction amplifiesthe RNAsample their populations. On the other hand, re- ingmanufactured in manycountries. approveits emergency use. out in the coming months. Biological Ewas MIT said in apress statement. It said the andthen detectsthe target RNAse- source-compromisedcountries have barely Therewill be additional challenges forthe Another protein-basedvaccine being de- also slated to manufacturethe single-shot device can also be used to detect quence, if present. startedtheir vaccinationprogrammes. newvaccines. The current first-generation velopedbyBiologicalEinIndia, in collabo- vaccine of Johnson &Johnson, which, how- specific viral mutations The researchers de- The gapbetween supplyand demandof vaccines were tested againstthe original ration with Baylor CollegeofMedicine, US, ever,isyet to be approved foruse in India. linked to some of the signedthe device, which vaccines needs to be filledquickly. Clearly, strain of the virus, but phase III trials of the has shown excellent safetyand efficacy re- If all falls intoplace, India should be able variantsnow circulating. theycall minimallyin- we needmorevaccines, but where will they newvaccines will have to deal withmulti- sultsinhuman trials conductedsofar.Such to produce morethan 1-2 billion doses of The newdiagnostic, strumented SHERLOCK come from? ple, highlyinfectious variants. protein-basedvaccineswillundoubtedly be Covid vaccines by 2022. Indiaiswellknown whichrelies on CRISPR (miSHERLOCK), so that it Further,organising large phaseIII trials in major game-changers since theyare notonly forits ability to produce high quality vaccines technology,can be as- can have up to four mod- Vaccines in development itselfwill become morecomplex, particu- safe, time tested,and highlyefficacious, but at affordable costand it shouldhope to oc- sembledfor about $15, ulesthat eachlookfor a Among the 19 vaccines approved foruse, larly in locationswherealarge proportion of also easy to produce,stable at higher tem- cupyits rightful positionofthe largest pro- but those costs could PAPER different target RNAse- alarge number have been developedand ap- adult populations arevaccinatedand/or in- peratures, and generallyverycost-effective. ducer of vaccines, especiallyfor developing comedownsignificantly quence. The original proved in China, and morerecently afew in fection rateshavesignificantlydeclined. But the lower-than-expected efficacy of countries. if the deviceswerepro- CLIP moduledetectsany strain ducedatlarge scale,the of SARS-CoV-2. Other researchers say. It is NEWRESEARCH modules arespecific to basedonSHERLOCK, a mutations including When asilver disappoints but abronze thrills CRISPR-basedtool. B.1.1.7, P.1, and B.1.351. First, apre-processing step dis- The Deltavariant wasnot yetwide- ables enzymes calledsalivary nucle- spread when the researchers per- ‘counterfactual thinking’ —tothink of alter- graphic). In asecond part, the participantsre- ases, whichdestroy nucleicacids such formedthisstudy,but they sayitshould ATIKHRASHID MEANHAPPINESSRATINGS native circumstances to real-life events. viewedtelevision interviews of 22 silverand as RNA.Once the sample goes intothe be straightforward to design anew PUNE,AUGUST8 Bronzemedallists score better than the sil- bronze medallists andratetheir expressed device, the nucleases areinactivated module to detect that variant. vermedallists who had outperformedthem. feelings on a10-point scale. ■Silver ■ Bronze by heat and twochemical reagents. Source: MIT INAN interviewalmost70years afterhewon a “Wewereinterestedinwhether the ef- “Tothe silvermedallist, the mostvivid silvermedalattheStockholmOlympicsof 1912, 7.1 5.7 fectsofdifferent counterfactual comparisons counterfactual thoughtsare oftenfocused Americanrunner Abel Kiviat described the 4.8 4.3 aresufficientlystrongtocause peoplewho on nearly winning the gold,” the researchers 1,500m race as a“nightmare”. “That race was areobjectively worse offtosometimes feel explained.“…For the bronzemedallist, in the biggestdisappointment of my life. Inever Immediate Atthemedalstand better than those in asuperior state,” Medvec contrast,the mostcompelling counterfac- sawJackson,” said Kiviat, who diedin1991. He and his colleagueswroteinthe paper. tual alternative is oftencoming in fourth wasreferring to Britain’s Arnold Jackson, who In a1995 study,bronze winners The researchers collated videofootage place and being in the showers instead of on had defeated him by just0.1 seconds. faredbetterthan silverwinners from the 1992 Olympics and edited themin themedal stand.” In the 2020 Olympicsjustended, Indian on ahappiness scale. Medevecetal three mastertapes, showing the medallists’ wrestlerRaviKumarDahiyavoicedsimilardis- reaction immediatelyafter theresults, while Similar findings appointment afterwinningsilverinthe 57 kg receiving the medals, and during interviews Three other researchers, whorepeated freestylecategory. ”I hadcome here with only and Social Psychology,psychologists Victoria theygaveabout their performance. the experiment in the 2016 Olympics, recon- one target,agold medal.This (silvermedal) is Medvec,Thomas Gilovichand Scott FMadey In one partofthe study,university stu- firmedthat counterfactual thoughtswere okay, but it’s notgold,” he told reporters. examinedwhy silvermedallists maybefeel- dentsunaware of the resultswereasked to higher among silvermedallists than bronze ingthe waytheydo. Theyconcludedthat sil- rate,ona10-point “agony to ecstasy” scale, winners.Theyfound, however, that the dif- Their emotions, on scale vermedallists fare poorly on ahappiness scale the immediatereactions of 41 athletes, and ferences in the expressedemotions were In a1995 paper in The Journal of Personality because of the human tendency to indulgein their reactions on the medal stand (see trivial or negligible. HowApplewillscanforchildexploitationimagesonitsdevices

tographyapplications via iOS and iPadOS to secret sharing technology ensures that these tent. If enabledfromthe backend, the child under pressure to crackdownonthe use of saying these features will notmean any- NANDAGOPALRAJAN matchknown CSAM images stored on vouchers cannotbeinterpretedby Apple un- could also be told that their parentshave theirplatforms forexploitation of children. thing different forregular users. “If you’re NEWDELHI,AUGUST8 iCloudPhoto.The technology willmatchim- less the iCloud Photosaccount crosses a been alertedabout the message they have Manyreportshaveoverthe years under- storing acollection of CSAM material,yes, ages on auser’s iCloud with these known threshold of known CSAM content. This viewed. The same will applyifthe child de- lined howenough wasnot being done to this is bad foryou,” he told the publication. APPLE HAS announcedthat softwareup- images, provided by childsafetyorganisa- threshold, the blog claimed, has been putin cides to send asensitive message. Apple said stop technology from making CSAM con- dates later this year will bring newfeatures tions. And this is done without actuallysee- placeto“provide an extremelyhigh levelof Messages will use“on-device machine tent available morewidely. Do otherbig tech companies have that will “help protect children from pred- ingthe image, andonlybylooking forwhat accuracy and ensures less thanaone in one learning to analyseimageattachmentsand However, Apple’sannouncementhas similartechnologies? ators who use communication tools to re- is likeafingerprint match. If there are trillion chanceper year of incorrectly flag- determine if aphoto is sexuallyexplicit” and been metwithcriticism, withmanyunder- Yes. Microsoft, Google and Facebook cruit and exploit them, and limit the spread matches crossing athreshold, Apple will “re- ging agiven account”.Soasingleimageis that Apple will notget access to the mes- lining howthis is exactlythe kind of surveil- have been alerting lawenforcement agen- of Child Sexual AbuseMaterial (CSAM)”. port these instances to the National Center unlikelytotriggeranalert. sages. The featurewill come as an update lance technology manygovernments cies about CSAM images. Apple has been Expected to go live in the US initially, the forMissing and ExploitedChildren But if thethreshold is exceeded, Apple on accountsset up as familiesiniCloud for would want to have and love to misuse. laggingbehindbecause anysuchtechnol- features includeuse of newtechnology to (NCMEC)”. can interpret the contentsofthe safety latestoperating system versions. Also, cryptographyexperts like ogy would have gone againstits much- limit the spread of CSAM online, especially Apple clarifiedthat itstechnology keeps vouchers and manuallyrevieweachreport Also, with the update, when auser tries MatthewGreen of Johns Hopkins touted commitmenttouser privacy.Asare- via the Apple platform.Therewill be on-de- user privacy in mind, and hence the data- foramatch, disable the user’s account, and to look up potentialCSAMtopics,Siri and University have expressedfears that the sult, in 2020, when Facebook reported20.3 viceprotection forchildren from sending or base is transformedinto“an unreadable set send areporttoNCMEC.Apple said users Search willexplainwhy thiscould be harm- system could be usedtoframe innocent million CSAM violations to theNCMEC, receivingsensitive content,withmechanisms of hashes that is securelystoredonusers’ will be able to appealiftheythink theyhave ful and problematic. Users will also getguid- people by sending them images intended Apple could report only265 cases, TheNew to alertparentsifthe user is belowage 13. devices”. The technology will determine a been wrongly flagged. ance on howtofile areportonchild ex- to triggerthe matches forCSAM. York Times reported. Applewill alsointervenewhenSiriorSearch matchwithout revealing the result. ploitation if theyask forit. “Researchers have been able to do this It is onlynow that it has been able to find is used to look up CSAM-related topics. At this point, the device creates a“cryp- Howdothe other features work? pretty easily,”hetold NPR, adding thatitis the technology sweetspottodothis with- tographicsafetyvoucher” withthe match Apple’s newcommunication safetyfor WhyisApple doingthis, andwhat are possible to fool suchalgorithms. out impacting regular users, or at least What is the tech Appleisusing? result and additional encrypteddata, and Messages will blur asensitive imageand theconcerns being raised? But TheNew York Times quoted Apple’s spookingthem.However, as theinitial back- In ablog post, Apple said it will use cryp- savesittoiClouds with the image. Threshold warn achild aboutthe natureofthe con- Big tech companies have foryearsbeen chief privyofficer Erik Neuenschwander as lash has shown, it is still atightrope walk.

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THEINDIANEXPRESS,MONDAY,AUGUST9,2021 WORDLY WISE Themost important thing in the Olympic Games is not winningbut taking part. 6 THE EDITORIAL PAGE — PierredeCoubertin Mending fences

§ FOUNDED BY § RAMNATH GOENKA Goodwill amongstAssam, Mizoram, allNortheast BECAUSE THE TRUTH INVOLVES US ALL states,holds keytoAct East Policy

THE RISING FLAME SanjoyHazarika

Tokyo2021busts many myths about Indian sports,pointsto THE INITIAL STEPS have been takenincalm- has been the welcomewithdrawal of the itations and risks. Sustainablepeace contin- the country’s emergence as asporting nation ing the roiling waters on the Assam- Assam government’s travel advisorywhich ues to be elusive althoughflawedinsurgen- Mizoram border confrontation. First, the FIRs asked people nottotraveltoMizoram and cies have failedand fallen. Thereare new UGUST7,2021, Tokyowould be as muchofawatershedmoment forIndian and cases whichwerefiledagainsteach urgedpeople from the stateworking or stay- challenges suchasborder divides and sharp- Olympics sports loreasJune 25, 1983,Lord’s wasfor cricket. In itsmagnitude other’s leaders —involving both Assam Chief ing thereto“exercise utmostcaution”. ening sectarian tensions. Economic growth is andpotential influence, Neeraj Chopra’s Olympic gold-medal-winning feat has MinisterHimantaBiswaSarma and K Thereisathirdelement that has become visible as arecontinuingconcerns. Lakhs of A onlyone parallel in the country’s sporting heritage, the WorldCup victory38 Vanlalvena,Mizo NationalFront (MNF)MP aseemingly endemic partofpolitical con- young people from the region, despite dis- years ago, amoment that changed India’s sporting sensibilities. In asimilar way, Chopra’s —havebeen withdrawn. Cases againstoffi- frontation between states.These arethe crimination and pressures, have movedand cials from both states have been dropped. blockades that have closedroads and high- made their livesinother parts of the country, accomplishment could alter perceptions of howIndians perceive athletes. This is amyth- While theseshould nothavebeen initiatedin ways in Assam leading to Mizoram —and in engaging with the idea of India, before,dur- busting goldmedal,atestimony thatIndian,or evenAsian,athletescannotonlymatch their the firstplace, stepping backinthis manner the pastfew days to Tripura. This has hap- ing and afterthe waves of the pandemic. European adversaries but also beat them, providedtheyget access to world-class facilities, is agoodway to reduce the political and penedrepeatedly in confrontations between That is whycommunities at the border, top-draw coaching and unfetteredsupportofthe sporting fraternity.The unscientific as- emotive temperatures, whichweresoaring different states in the region suchas stakeholders suchasbusinessleaders and sumption about Indians having inferior athletic DNA, somethingthatunderminestheir on both sides. Nagaland and Manipur and lastyear be- transporters as well as civil society needto medal-winning chances on the global stage, washurledout the windowand it landed87.58 Asharp warofwords and aggressive so- tween Assam and Mizoram. be involved in conversations and dialogue cial media posts on either side did nothelp. These crackling tensions go farbeyond forsustainable settlements. Political leaders metres far. Chopra’s gold would notonlydrawaclear route-map to globalsuccess but also Indeed, an outsider maybeexcused,ifafter interstate borderdisputesand have regional, must setthe pace and provide the platform. banish the inferiority complexthat Indian athletescarry to eliteevents. Athletics nowhas listening to,watching or reading the passion- national and international repercussions. For However, since both sides use different yard- the momentum to jumpinthe sand pit of global competition and wrestle with the best. ate, angryand even, in some cases, inflam- one, theyhaveadverse economic impacts sticksof history andgeographytonegotiate, Though India improvedtheLondon count by justone medal, the significance of that one matoryremarksbyeither side, forbeing per- whichare felt mostsharplyatthe local level, it is difficult to visualiseasituation whereei- medal cannotbeoverstatedenough. Each of the medals they wonwas astatement of plexedbythese declarations —werethey, leading to arise in prices andshortageof ther side will emerge as aclearwinner.There India’s incremental rise as asporting nation. It is foolhardy to expect Indiatomatchthe s/he maywell have wondered,bycitizens of commodities. This is atime when Covid-19 will have to be give and take,count netgains neighbouring states or opposing nations. cases continue to rise in all the states of the againstlosses. That is thepracticalside which US or China overnight, but the trajectoryofthe graph is constantlymoving upwards. That Some have addedfuel to thefirebycasting region, including Mizoram and Assam, and politicians arebestequippedtodeliver. those medals came in various streams is afurther reason foroptimism. In badminton and aspersions on the citizenryoftheir brethren Communities at the border, essential supplies cannotbeblockedbypub- Herein lies the importance of the conceptof wrestling, it’s time India is consideredamong the powerhouses; in weightlifting, thereis on the disputed border or referringinappro- stakeholderssuchas lic agitations. aDevelopment Corridor on theborderthat agenerational talent in Mirabai Chanu; in boxing, thereisfinallysomeonetolook beyond priatelytoapartoftheir ownstate.These The economic falloutsofsuchactions are would have to be agreedtobybothsidesand MaryKom.The revivalofmen’s hockeywould nothavebeen better timed, theoften-ig- need be seen in the background of the exten- businessleadersand felt down the entiresupplychain, from pro- guaranteedbythe Centre. This could build noredwomen’s hockeytoo blazedinpromise.Shooting wasanaberration—expect many sive suffering facedbythe region as aresult transportersaswell as civil ducer to transporterand receiving cus- on the natural advantages of the bordering of thosewho left in tears to bounce back stronger and hungrier.Overall,the TokyoGames of misunderstandingand ill will. societyneed to be involved tomers/markets.National highways arethe states —vegetable, meatand fruit process- Second, the Assam chiefminister’s deci- direct responsibilityofthe Centreand it must ing, handicrafts anddesigner handlooms to could leave along-lasting influence on Indian sports. in conversations and sion to send twoministerial emissariesfrom ensurethat these economic veins remain name justfive—and createjobs, livelihoods The Olympics itself would be remembered as ametaphor of hope in the Covid-al- Assam to Aizawl is agoodgesturetoopen di- dialogue forsustainable clear forpassenger and freight traffic. andbetterincomes forpeople on the border teredworld.Therewerefears that the event would emerge as asuper-spreader of the alogue and appears to have paid offinitially. settlements. Political leaders In addition, images, especiallyofviolence andbeyond,buildinganequitable supply virus, it would see astoppageand the competition wouldn’t be top-notch. It has answered Both states have agreedtothe deployment must set the pace and and confrontation, go “viral” without delay. chain. negatively to eachofthose doubts. With no runaway leader on the medals tally—just of neutral Central forces at the disputed provide the platform. Theymovefrommobile to mobile, over so- Afundamental pointneeds to be under- one gold separated the US and China —this wasthe mostcloselyfought Gamesinrecent stretches of the interstate border.AtulBora, cial platforms, one group to the other,leap- scored:The visionary ActEastPolicy and its one of the ministers sent to Aizawl is from However,since both sides ing across boundaries of stateand nation. predecessor Look EastPolicy rest on the pil- times. Tokyoshowedthat withcoaches seamlesslycrossingborders and sporting the Asom Gana Parishad (AGP) in the BJP-led use different yardsticks of Among those who look at them arepoten- larsofpeace and trust, notjustbetterroads knowhowspreading, the Olympic worldwas flattening.Top German coachessitting in coalition, andalsoparty president. The signif- historyand geographyto tial investors and policymakers, notjustin andphysicalinfrastructure. Theydependon Chopra’s corner as he lefthis Dresden-born arch-rival, Johannes Vetter,far behind wasa icance of an AGPleader in the peace mission Delhibut otherstate and national capitals. good relationships betweenneighbours frame that best capturedthe levelling of the playing field. should notbeunderestimated.The AGPled negotiate,itisdifficult to The adverse impactsofthese can be consid- whichenable economic cooperation, trans- aregional coalition in the 1980s and1990s visualise asituation where erable. portand trade notjustcultural and socialcol- in the Northeastthat emergedasananti- either side will emerge as a Fordecades, we must remember,the laboration. Congress front. The MNF had been partof clear winner.There will have publicimageofthe Northeastwas shaped STANDING WITH KABUL this process and has had good relationswith by conflict and confrontation, bandhs and vi- The writer is director,Centrefor the AGPfromthat time. to be give and take,count net olence. It had been shedding that image NorthEastStudies and Policy Research, Part of theconfidence-building measures gains against losses. slowlyand steadily, facing manyhurdles, ag- Jamia Millia Islamia UNSC meetexposes duplicity of Taliban and Pakistan, who talk peace and pursue waratthe same time

SPECIALMEETINGofthe United Nations Security CouncilonAfghanistan convenedunder India’s presidency lastFriday, did notproduce anew inter- Anational consensus on arresting the tragedytriggered by Taliban’smilitary ENDING POLICE BRUTA LITY offensive withthe fullsupportofthe Pakistanarmy. On Afghanistan, thereis no unanimity among thefivepermanent members, whichiscritical forany consequen- tial decisions by the worldbody.AnambitiousChina seeking to extend itsregional foot- Prompt action againsterrant personnel is amusttostopcustodial torture print, and an opportunistic Russia that tags behind Beijing seem to support Pakistan’s game plan to reinstall the Taliban in Kabul.Given itsspecial ties to the Pakistanarmy, London tends to be wobblyonthe Taliban. The US, whichspent muchblood and treasureinre- MPNathanael building Afghanistanafter ousting the Taliban from powerin2001, has cededmuchground by deciding to withdrawall itstroopsinAfghanistanbythe end of this month.InEurope THE DEATH OF afruit stall owner,47-year- National ForensicSciencesUniversity in deaths were registeredbetween April2019 (represented by France whichhas apermanent seat in the UNSC) toothereisadecline in old AMurugesan, allegedly as aresult of a Ahmedabad on July12, said that the police in and March 2020,ofwhich1,584deaths were political support foracontinued Western military intervention in Afghanistan. brutal thrashing by aspecial sub-inspector of our countryare accusedofeither “NoAction” in judicial custody while the rest (113)were Althoughthe UNSC discussion maynot have movedthepolitical needleon Afghanistan, Tamil Nadu police in Vazhapadi in Salem dis- or “Extreme Action”. He has hit the nail right in police custody.Uttar Pradesh toppedthe trict on June 22, has revivedmemories of on the head.Victims of crime shudder at the listwith 400custodial deaths followedby it has laid barethe depth of the crisis thereand the duplicityofthe Talibanand Pakistanthat Bennix and his father Jayarajwho diedincus- thought of having to visit apolice station. Madhya Pradesh(143). This meant that talk peace and pursue waratthe same time. Addressing the UNSC, the head of the United tody lastyear in June in Thoothukudi. While Moresoifone happens to be from amargin- about five custodialdeathstook place every Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan, Deborah Lyons, pointedto the “dangerousturn- twoother policemen stood watching the gory alisedsection of society. dayinour country. But on August3,Minister ing point,” in the nation. “Ahead lies”, she added, “either agenuine peace negotiation or a scene, Murugesan’s friends pleadedfor him to According to the National Crime Records of Statefor HomeAffairs Nityanand Rai tragicallyintertwinedset of crises: An increasingly brutal conflict combinedwith an acute be spared but to no avail. Bureau(NCRB) data, 100cases of custodial stated in the Lok Sabha that 348custodial humanitarian situation and multiplying human rightsabuses.” That the Taliban could not An armyman Resham Singh wasbrutally deaths were reportedin2017, 42 of which deaths and 1,189cases of torturebypolice tortured while his motherand twosisters in were in police custody.Thirty-three police- were reportedacrossthe country in the last have mounted themassive militaryoperations on itsown wasthe burden of the presenta- Pilibhit, UP,werehumiliatedon May3,draw- men were arrested while 27 were charge- threeyears. tion by theAfghan envoy to the United Nations, Ghulam MIsaczai. He told the Council that ing the Allahabad High Court’s ire. Twosub- sheeted. Forty-eight police personnel were While severalpolicemen do getconvicted, morethan 10,000 foreign fighters areinthe country, including from anumber of UN des- inspectors and six constables were booked, charge-sheetedand three convicted in cases thereare good reasonstobelieve thatmany ignatedterror organisations,participatingin the Taliban’smilitaryoffensive. He alsopointed and the station house officer sent to lines. of human rightsviolation. Overall, 2,005 go scotfree—by manipulating records, in- to long-standingTalibansanctuariesin Pakistanand Rawalpindi’smassive logisticalsupport Singh’s medical reportconfirmedinjuries due cases were registeredagainstpolice person- timidating complainantsorpolitical patron- forthe Taliban’s current militaryoffensiveinAfghanistan. to brutal torture. nel, 1,000 of whom were charge-sheeted. age. It’s up to senior officers to ensurethat On May21, an 18-year-oldvegetable ven- With 456 cases, Maharashtratoppedthe list, prompt actions areinitiated against police- Although the worldwas optimistic about the peace talksinDoha ending the pro- dor Faisal Hussain wasallegedlybeaten to It’suptosenior officersto while Gujarat and Rajasthan followedwith menwho resorttobrutaltorture.When longed conflict in Afghanistan, the Taliban and Pakistanhavemerelyusedthem to delay deathinBangarmaupolice stationinUP’s ensure that prompt actions 191and 169cases, respectively;128 person- erring personnel arepromptlypunished, the negotiations on devising anew political order in Afghanistanwhile stepping up their vi- Unnao district forviolationofCovid-19direc- are initiated against nel were convicted. messagegoes out loudand cleartoother olent campaign to overthrowthe legitimategovernment in Kabul. India mustcontinue tives. Though the marketinthe town was According to the NCRB’s 2019 figures,85 rogue policemen that the lawwill catch up to stand with the people of Afghanistan, whose dreams forapeaceful futureare beingshat- open, Hussainwas beaten up and takentoa policemen who resort to cases of custodial deaths were reportedin the with them. In the caseofcustodial deaths, tered. Delhi mustcontinue to mobiliseinternational opinion in all global forums as well police station from wherehewas shiftedto brutal torture. When erring year withTamil Nadu registering the highest thoseguilty should be triedfor murder. as work with itsclose partners to mount pressureonPakistanand the Taliban to stop ahospital. He wasdeclared dead on arrival. personnel are promptly number of casesfollowedbyGujarat,Punjab Police personnel who remain spectators The post-mortemreport attributedhis death and Rajasthan and Odisha.Nopoliceman was when people in custody arebeing tortured fighting and starttalking peace with Kabul. punished,the message goes to head injuries. Twopolice constables and a convicted,though 14 personnelofGujarat arealso complicitinthe crime. Subdivisional home guardhavebeen chargedwithmurder. out loud and clear to other were arrested,and charge-sheeted. Forsix police officers and superintendentsofpolice Custodial deaths in police stations, even rogue policemen that the law custodial deaths in Rajasthan, three magiste- should be held accountable forthe impro- in jails,seem to becommonplace these days. will catchupwith them. In rial inquiries and twojudicial inquiries were priety committed by those undertheir su- Freeze Frame EPUnny Union Home MinisterAmit Shah, while initiated against erring policemen. pervision. speaking at the inauguration of the Centreof the case of custodial deaths, In awritten replyinthe Lok Sabha, the Excellence forResearch andAnalysis of those guiltyshould be tried former MinisterofState forHome Affairs G Thewriter is aretired Inspector General of Narcotics and Psychotropic Substances of the formurder. Kishan Reddy statedthat 1,697custodial Police, CRPF

AUGUST 9, 1981, FORTY YEARS AGO

C ABINET RESHUFFLE Mrs Gandhi is said to be lookingfor talent DACOITS STRIKE IN UP PRIME MINISTER INDIRA Gandhi carried outside the parliamentaryparty but the NINE POLICE PERSONNEL andthreevil- out aminor reshuffle of her cabineton search is yettobear fruit. lagers losttheir livesinanencounter with August8.Narayan Dutt Tiwari has been dacoitsinUttar Pradesh’s Etah district. The shifted from thePlanning Ministry to the AMUEXPULSIONS dacoits, who arereportedtohavenum- Industries Ministries. SBChavanhas been beredapproximately45, were from the movedfromthe Education Ministryto THE VICE-CHANCELLOR OF the Aligarh gangs of Chabiram Yadav, Poti Yadavand planning. The MinisterofState forIndustry, Muslim University,Uttar Pradesh, Saiyid Anar Singh Yadav. Charanjit Chanana,who hasbeen looking Hamid, has rusticated Irfanullah Khan, afterthe industryeversince IndiraGandhi president of the dissolvedunion of the uni- LOANS WRITTEN OFF returnedtopower will continue in his po- versity and convenerofthe Students sition with Tiwari heading the ministry. Action Committee foraperiod of five THE UNION GOVERNMENT has takenade- Tiwari will continue to hold the temporary years. Fifteen other students were also rus- cision nottorecoverabout Rs 1,412crore charge of thelabour portfolio. The PM is yet ticated foraperiod ranging from twoto giventostatesasassistance between to announcethe nameofthe neweduca- five years forwhat theuniversity called, 1977-78 and 1978-79 forcoping with tion minister. She has asked Shiela Kaul, “actsofindiscipline”. Nine student lead- natural calamities. It has proposedtotreat ministerofstate foreducation and culture, erswereexpelledlastmonth foraperiod this amount as an additional assistance for to take temporarycharge of the ministry. of one to three years. these years.

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THEINDIANEXPRESS,MONDAY,AUGUST9,2021 WHATTHE OTHERSSAY “There have been times when it seemed Olympic sport would go theway of other sports, and be more about cynicism than grace,contracts thancourage. Even in the absence of crowds, however,there have been plentyofmoments in 7 THE IDEAS PAGE theseGames that have shown the originalflame still flickers.” —OBSERVER Engineering acrisis The job gap Declineinunemployment rate is basedona Constant tamperingofcurricula without giving studentsknowledge of the basics,adeficit statistical approachthatmasksthe deterioration in industry-instruction link continue to be the baneofcountry’s technicaleducation in quality of employment on the ground

in household enterprises rises, eachworker simplyworks forless time than before and alarge sectionofthe workforceisunderem- ployed. The shareofthe other twocate- gories of self-employedworkers, that is, ownaccount workers and employers has SS Mantha and declined. The share of regular salariedwork- Radhicka Kapoor ers, whichhad been steadilyrisinginIndia Ashok Thakur until the PLFS 2018-19and is considered as amorestable and secureform of employ- AQUICKLOOK at the recentlyreleased ment,isnow showingadecline. ENGINEERINGISANappliedscience and PeriodicLabour ForceSurvey (PLFS) reveals Significantly, even amongstregular salaried thereforeits pursuit preconditions asound adeclineinthe unemployment rate from workers, those who arenot eligible forany knowledge of itscivil, mechanical and elec- 5.8 percent in 2018-19to4.8 percent in social security benefitshas increasedfrom trical branches, these being itsbuilding 2019-20. This fall in the unemployment rate 51.9 per cent to 54.2per cent suggesting that blocks.Offshoots like metallurgy and chem- from the 45 year high of 6.1per cent as re- formalisation would have been adversely ical engineering have sprung up from me- portedinthe firstPLFS (2017-18) is indeed impacted. chanicalengineering and ahostofother arespite. However, these statisticsneedto Interestinglyasectoralbreakdownofthe branches likeelectronics, communications, beinterpretedwith caution. Theyare based workforceshows that the shareofthework- computer science and IT grew from theelec- on the “usual status” approachwherein the forceengagedin agriculturehas risento 45.6 trical branchofengineering. Acommon activity statusofaperson is captured fora per cent (2019-20)from42.5 percent (2018- thread that boundthesespecialisations was reference period of 365 days preceding the 19). This increaseis significant as it isthe first asound engineering base rooted in materi- dateofsurvey.Those who arereported as time thatthe shareofagricultureintotal em- als, appliedphysics and thermodynamics. unemployedbythis approachare those ployment (in percentageterms) has in- Private entrepreneurs took the lead to who arechronically unemployed. In devel- creasedsince theNSS surveys started.Thisis meetthe growing demand of the country in oping countries, wherecasual and intermit- indicativeofastalledstructuraltransforma- technical education in the mid-Eighties, but tent work and part-time and temporary tion process, one whichhad pickeduppace with little idea of the subject. As aresult, the jobs arewidespread, employment esti- after2004-05 with both the shareand ab- faculty of these institutions drovethe agenda mates basedonthis approachtendtoin- solutenumbers of workers engagedin agri- of their management —and sometimes their clude the under-employedworkforce. culture decliningwithaconcomitant rise in own. When the management’s agenda en- Consequently, unemployment ratesderived thenon-agriculturalsector. However, as teredacademic bodies of various universi- from the usual status approachgiveamis- non-agricultural sectors have failedtocre- ties, the firstcasualty wasthe curriculum. leading picture of theextent of labourun- atejobsat arapidpacein recent times,many Important courses suchasthosementioned derutilisation andthe employment chal- jobseekers have been pushedbackintothe above were the firsttobejettisonedsince lenge facedbythe economy. In PLFS agricultural sectorresultingin itsemergence theywerebothtough to teachfor theteach- (2019-20), we observethat the unemploy- as an “employeroflastresort”. ers and tough to pass forthe students. ment rate basedonthe weeklystatus Twotrends that point to adeterioration Subjects like materials, appliedphysics and CRSasikumar (whichcorresponds to the activity statusof in quality of employmentmerit attention thermodynamics became dispensable. inform the education planners on the growth Reducing total creditshas notonlyreduced aperson forareference week) is notonly vis-à-visthe sectoralcomposition. First, in Severaluniversities merrilyrevisedtheircur- in different employment sectors. Norhas the the rigour of engineering education, but also higher than the usual status measure, but thenon-agriculturesector,theshareofthose riculum at the expense of these courses. government takenany tangible steps to set meant loss in jobs forseveral faculty streams. has also remainedunchangedat 8.8 per cent engaged in informal enterprises increased This softening of subjectscoupledwith up an independent body to advise AICTE on National pride maybenon-negotiable, but compared to 2018-19. The divergencein from 68.4 per cent in 2018-19to69.5 per unfetteredexpansion in the early andmid- this vital aspect. In the absence of anycred- then will teaching in Marathi or Tamil in- these statistics onlyreinforces the needfor cent in 2019-20. Second, withinthe agricul- 2000s, though it ensured that everyone who ible information on demand side numbers, crease employment opportunities besides anchoring the policy discourse in India on tural sector,muchofthe increase is coming aspired to technical education could find a investmentsmade by institutions will only causing severalpedagogy and copyright-re- weeklystatus measures and notthe usual through the categoryofunpaid family seat commensuratewith his/her abilities, be basedonperception. Yesterday, it wasIT latedissues? Is thereanational reportavail- status measures. helpers. Their shareinagricultural employ- resulted in real dilution of the overall stan- and itsapplications that propelledagrowth able on this? Over aperiodoftime, suchex- Significantly, even beyond the issue of ment has increased (from25.7 per cent to dardsinthe country. At itspeak in 2014-15, in IT and Computer Science courses. Today, it perimentstend to reduce interestlevels in using the weeklystatus measures, the lower 29.7 per cent), while that of ownaccount AICTE-approved institutes had almost35 is automation.BeitRPA,AI, ML, blockchain, technicaleducation itself. unemployment rate (basedon usual status workers and employers has declined(48.4 lakh seats, mainlydue to theincreasedem- hardroboticsorIOT,the thrust is on com- The ultimatemeasureofperformance is approach) appears to be aconsequence of per cent to 44.5 per cent) between the two ploymentopportunities in the country. plete automation. What happens when embeddedinquality assurance. Variousrat- economicdistress and lackofgainful em- rounds. Significantly, theshareofrural However, aseriesofreportsbythis paper in theseareas getsaturated?Several jobs have ing and ranking agencies insist thatpro- ployment opportunities whichhavepushed womenengagedin agriculturehas increased December 2017 revealednotakers forat already disappeared withthe base of the gramme and course outcomes arepara- jobseekers intolow productivity and low substantiallyfrom71.1per cent(2018-19) to least51per cent of the 15.5 lakh seatsin pyramid having shrunk considerably. mount forquality.The largerquestion, paying work,therebyintensifying the chal- 75.7 per cent (2019-20)and these women 3,291undergraduateengineering colleges Lack of adequatenumber of teachers, however, is if these can be measured in the lengeofunder-employment. areincreasingly being employedinthe cat- in 2016-17. Thesereports laidbarethe reg- lackofquality in those available, inability of Notasingle industrybody, spirit in whichtheyare written and if the To begin with, an examination of the egoryofunpaid familyworkers. ulatorygaps, poor infrastructure, lackof themanagement to make adequateinvest- be it CII, FICCI or gapinperformance can be usedtoimprove composition of the workforcebyemploy- It is worthnoting that India has been qualifiedfaculty and the non-existent in- mentsinadynamicenvironment, lackof ASSOCHAM has managed the system akin to aclosedloop control sys- ment type shows that the shareofself-em- witnessing arapid decline in female Labour dustrylinkagethatcontributedtothe employment opportunities, shelf lifeofskills to effectively inform the tem? What if the guaranteedoutcomes are ployment in totalemploymenthas in- ForceParticipation Rate (LFPR) since 2004- abysmal employability of graduates from coming down with everytechnology-re- notrealised? Can the stakeholderssue the creasedto53.5 percent,upfrom52.1per 05. This trend has been partlyattributedto mostofthese institutes. lated intervention and aconstant experi- education plannersonthe administrators on reneging on promises? cent as reportedinthe previous twoPLFS the withdrawal of women from the work- Some consolidation is bound to happen mentationwith curriculum have all been growth in different The needofthe hour is to createatrulyau- rounds (2017-18and 2018-19). Self-em- forceasaconsequence of an “income effect” in everyexpanding system, but that also calls the bane of quality in technical education. employment sectors. Norhas tonomous qualityassurance body at an ployedworkers comprise three broad cate- —anincrease in their family’s income. The forintelligent interventions to connect with Rather than being reactive,institutions must arms-lengthfromthe government, manned gories —own-account workers (those who PLFS 2019-20, however, shows asharp in- the available employment opportunities if proactively define the practicing elements the government takenany by eminent persons both from industry as run theirenterprise without hiring any crease in the female LFPR by 5.5percentage the fruitsofexpansionare to be enjoyed. of education. The correctivemeasures for tangible steps to set up an well as academia. labour); employers (thosewho run theiren- points. Muchofthis is drivenbythe in- Since 2015-16, at least50colleges have these shortfalls aretechnology intensive,are independent body to advise The education paradigm is staring at a terprise by hiring labour) and unpaid fam- creasedLFPR of rural women. This rise cou- closedeachyear and this year,AICTE ap- experiential, and needinvestmentsinteach- AICTE on this vital aspect. large shift, duetothe pressures of alarge ilyworkers/helpersinhouseholdenter- pledwiththeir increasing engagement as provedthe closure of 63 institutes. However, ing. Colleges areunwilling or notinaposi- growing and young population, the expo- prises. The thirdgroup comprises those unpaidfamily workers (and notbetter 54 newcolleges were approved forthe aca- tion to makethose investmentsresulting in In the absence of anycredible nentiallyincreasing costofeducation and who areengaged in their household enter- forms of employment such as regular demic year,2021-22 in backwarddistricts. seriousdecline in quality. information on demand side the needtoreachthe unreachedwith qual- prises, working full or parttime, but do not salariedwork) appearstomarkareversal Similarstatisticsrule everyyear.Did anyone Not all experimentsare worthdoing numbers, investments made ity,whichisbeing fast forwardedbyCovid- receive anyregular salaryorwages in return of the trend of reduction in distress partic- also study the available employment oppor- though. Aconstant fiddling with the curricu- by institutions will only be 19.That being said, SteveJobs’ wordsof2005 forthe work performed. It is this latter cat- ipation of women in the workforce. tunities in those districtsbeforeapproving lum, reducing total credits, giving multiple ring true —“Youcan’tconnect the dots look- egory, considered as poor quality employ- These metricssuggestthat thedecline them? When political and economic reasons choicesinthe name of flexibility,dispensing based on perception. ing forward; youcan onlyconnect them ment, that has witnessedanincreaseinits in unemployment rate basedonthe usual override the establishment of newentities, with mathematics and physics at the quali- Ye sterday, it wasITand its looking backwards. So, youhavetotrustthat shareintotal employment from 13.3 per status approach masksadeterioration in whydiscuss declining standards? Several fication level, teaching in local languages may applications that propelled a the dots willsomehow connect in your fu- cent (2018-19) to 15.9 per cent (2019-20) the quality of employment and rising un- suchdecisions onlycontributed to the cu- all be good arguments, but onemustassess growth in IT and Computer ture.” Will we be able to connect ours? and contributedtothe falling unemploy- deremployment, challenges whichare only mulative deterioration of standardsoverall. their utility and their effect on technicaled- ment rate.The increase in this categoryof likelytohaveintensifiedpostCovid. Notasingle industrybody,beitCII, FICCI ucation in thelongrun.AnIT-heavy curricu- Science courses. Today, it is Mantha is Former ChairmanAICTE and workers is reflective of rising underemploy- or ASSOCHAM has managed to effectively lum in everyspecialisation is notcalled for. automation. Thakur Former Secretary GoI ,MHRD ment. As the number of members working Thewriterisasenior visiting fellowatICRIER

Securing the Indian Ocean LETTERSTOTHE EDITOR IMAGEDENTED THIS REFERS TO theeditorial, ‘Better IDEAS UNSC debateseekstoaddress maritime security peacefully, holistically late’, (IE, August7). There’s asaying that it is only thebad laws thatreceiveunan- ONLINE imous support. This is true forthe retro- Asoke Mukerji spective taxlaw.Inits near-decade of ONLYINTHE EXPRESS existence, the lawdidn’t justattract a INDIA’SDECISION TO convene an open de- objective in the Indian Ocean. The discussion can become the catalyst the SLOC connecting the Indian and Pacific bad repfor doing businessinIndia but ● BLUEPRINTFORANEW bateofthe UN Security Council (UNSC) on The five pillarsofSAGAR are: One, India’s forreviewing the operational effectiveness Oceansthrough the StraitsofMalacca (inte- also forthe hypocrisy of thepolitical NORTHEAST:SUBHRANGSHU enhancing maritime security,tobechaired role as anet security provider in the Indian of theUNCLOS, especiallyregarding the en- gral to the smooth flowoftrade withASEAN, structurewhich, despitecriticising the PRATIMSARMAH by Prime Minister NarendraModi on August Oceanregion (IOR).Two,active engagement forcement of itsprovisions on freedom of EastAsia, Russia’s FarEastand the US). lawbackin2014, made no effortstorec- 9, reflectsIndia’s international evolution as a with friendlycountriesinthe IOR. India navigation, the sustainable exploitation of Sharing dataonthreatstocommercial tify it. As per the ministry statement, ● REVIVING RUSSIA’S ROLE maritime nation. The objective of the debate would continue to enhance the maritime se- maritime resources, and the peaceful reso- shipping is an important component of en- the deal wasnot in consultation with IN THE INDO-PACIFIC: is to highlighteffective international mar- curity capacities and economic resilience of lution of disputes. India’s credentials in pre- hancing maritime security.India’s initiative Cairn, whichleavesitasawildcard. RAJ KUMAR SHARMA itime cooperationtorespond holisticallyto these countries. Three, developing anetwork sidingoverthis discussion areenhancedby to establish an International Fusion Centre Udit Sarkar, Kolkata natural and manmade threatstomaritime to take effective collectiveaction foradvanc- the fact that in July2014, it accepted an UN- (IFC) forthe Indian Ocean region in www.indianexpress.com security. ing peaceand security in the region. Four,a CLOS tribunal awardonthe maritime bound- Gurugram in 2018,jointlyadministeredby THIS REFERS TO theeditorial, ‘Better The fallout of the 2004 tsunami, which moreintegrated and cooperative focus on aryarbitration between India and the Indian Navy and Indian CoastGuard, late’ (IE, August7)The government’s took aheavy toll on human and natural re- the futureofthe IOR, whichwould enhance Bangladesh, contributing anew impulse to servesthe objective of generatingMaritime move to refund duestoCairnisacor- sources, ledtothe creationofanIndian theprospectsfor the sustainabledevelop- effective international economic coopera- Domain Awareness on safetyand securityis- rect one, even though it waited foran cannotcome to termsfollowing the Ocean Tsunami Warning and Mitigation ment of all countries in the region. Five,the tion among the littoral states of the Bayof sues. It is projected that 40 internationalliai- arbitration push to do so. Junkinganun- drubbing of our team. Ourwomen’s System by the UN in 2005. Early warnings primaryresponsibility forpeace,stability and Bengal (BIMSTEC). son officers from partner countries will even- fair amendment of 2012 afternearly a hockey team has accomplished aex- through an international networkseek to prosperity in the IOR would be on those Securing the sea lanes of communication tuallybelocated at the IFC. decadeexposesCentre’s indecisive- ceptional feat and it is our moral duty prevent arecurrence of suchdevastation. “who live in this region”. India would con- (SLOCs) that traverse the oceans is of central The debatewould illustratethe increas- ness.This episode should be acasein to embolden and motivate them. Facedwiththe increasedthreat from piracy tinue itsengagement with other nations hav- importance to enhancing maritimesecurity. ing role of the private sector in the maritime point on howtoavoid being caught AanyaSinghal, Noida originating offthe coastofSomalia since ing strong interests and stakes in this region The debatemustfocusonensuring equal and domain,whether it is in shipping, sustain- nappingbybeing proactive in resolving 2007 to shipping in the western Indian through dialogue, visits, exercises,capacity unrestricted access to SLOCs by states while able development through the Blue all pending,contentiousmatters. Else, GREAT GAMES Ocean, the Indian Navy participated robustly building and economic partnership. resolving differencesthrough peaceful Economy, or using the maritime domain to investor friendly-promises shall remain as partofaUNSC mandated 60-country Sustaining international cooperation to means. In the Indian Ocean,three major provide the critical submarine fibre-optic ca- as dubious as the sudden rise in our THIS REFERS TO thereport, ‘87.58m, a Contact Group on Piracy offthe coastof enhance maritimesecurity requires twosup- SLOCS that playacrucialrole in the energy bles supporting the Digital Economy. The rankings in the ease of doing business. billion hearts,firstathletics medal: Somalia. portive frameworksinthe policy and opera- security and economic prosperity of states ability of the UNSC to respond to the debate Raja Bandopadhaya, Vadodara Neeraj Chopra makes history’ (IE, With acoastlineofover7,500km, India tional areas. An effectivelegal policy frame- include the SLOC connecting the RedSea to by endorsingamultiple stakeholder ap- August8). India’s campaign at the Tokyo has anatural interestinenhancing maritime work must underpin arule-of-lawbased the Indian Ocean through the Bab al-Mandab proachtoenhancingmaritime security SHAMEFUL ATTACK Olympics endedonahighonSaturday security.The Indian Oceanregiontransports approachtosecuring the maritime domain. (that transportsthe bulk of Asia’sinterna- would be asignificant outcome, setting a with Neeraj Chopra winning India’s 75 per cent of the world’s maritime trade and The open debate will focus on the application tional trade with itsmajor trading partners in paradigm forupholding “multi-dimen- THIS REFERS TO the report, ‘Casteist first-everGoldmedal in Athletics. The 50 per cent of dailyglobal oil consumption. of the 1982 UN Convention on theLaw of the Europe and America),the SLOC connecting sional”security in the 21st century. abuse shameful, says women hockey previous best medal haul came at the India’s Security and Growth forAll (SAGAR) Sea (UNCLOS), bringing to theforenew chal- the Persian Gulf to the Indian Ocean through team skipper’ (IE, August7). It is dis- 2012 London Olympics. policy, unveiled by PM Modiduring avisit to lenges to peaceand security includingfrom the Strait of Hormuz (transporting the bulk The writer is aformer ambassador and heartening thatinour country, people SSPaul, Nadia Mauritius in March 2015,proposes an inte- non-stateactors such as terrorists,pirates and of energy exports to major importdestina- Permanent RepresentativeofIndia to the grated regionalframework to meetsuchan criminal gangsengaged in drug trafficking. tions likeIndia, ASEAN, and EastAsia),and United Nations in NewYork

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8 THEINDIANEXPRESS,MONDAY,AUGUST9,2021 IDEA EXCHANGE Newsmakersinthe Newsroom MIRABAI CHANU, OLYMPICS SILVER MEDALLIST; COACH VIJAY SHARMA ‘ Khushi ke maareneend nahin aati.Wewaited so many ‘ years for this... Ifeelone dayI’llalso havearecordlift Chanutalksabout putting the heartbreak of Riobehind, missing hermother,and retaining composureinthe face of pressure;coachVijay Kumar explainsthe

determinationand discipline whichlie at the heartofhis 26-year-old ward’s success. Thesession wasmoderatedbySenior Assistant EditorShivani Naik

SHIVANI NAIK: Whichwas more (Even todayshe comes fortraining on a Mirabai: Iusedtothink about home stressful —the snatchof87kgorthe cycle from the hostel). In the lastfiveyears, everyday.There wasnot aday when I clean&jerkof115 kg? she hasn’t been home foreven10days, didn’tmiss my mother and my family.I Mirabai: The lastsnatchwas themost she has missedher have notbeen home tense because technique-wise, Ifell alit- ownsister’s wedding forthe pastfew tle short. Igavemybestand tried, but I and she has done years now. At the fell abit short. nothing but eat, sleep We didn’t go home during ‘ same time Iwould and train. These the lockdown... In rooms, tell myselfthat Iwas SHIVANI NAIK: CoachSharma, what things areverytough in the US so that I wasgoing through your mind at the forother talented corridors, anyopportunity, could winamedal time? WHY weightlifters. we trained... In 5years, Mira formycountry.Ihad VijaySharma: Definitelyduringeach MIRABAI CHANU, to keep my emo- lift, the blood pressureshoots up,but af- NIHAL KOSHIE: home fornot even 10 days, tions asideand focus terthe firstliftyou can relax alittle. This VIJAYSHARMA Mirahas had many ‘ on my training. time, Iwas feeling alot morepressure issues in the past. missed her sister’s wedding thinking about Rio. Even though we had ever before Tokyo Therewas the SHIVANI NAIK: some great performances afterthat, psy- mysterybackissue Howdoesacoach chologically, there is always the feeling has India enjoyed and problems with balance between that this is the Olympics, hope nothing N her shoulder.Inapowersportlike training and injury management in suchaconfident goes wrong. That wasthe idea behindthe weightlifting, howchallenging is it to weightlifting? 84,87kgstarts, to take it safeand secure start to the Olympics, with makeacomebackafter injury? VijaySharma: When youare regularly amedal.When the snatchfinished, we MirabaiChanu winning silver watchingastudent, even asmall differ- relaxed alittle thinking, ‘Yes, we areinthe ence during their lifts should tell youthat competition now. Karlenge (We’ll do it)’. in 49-kgweightlifting,with a thereisfatigue, the body isn’tworking properly today. Then, depending on the NIHAL KOSHIE:Mira, afterthe Rio total lift of 202kg, on Day1. communicationwiththe athlete, youwill Olympics, did youdiscuss your future Thus, helped by hercoach of immediatelyknowifthereisaproblem with your mother? Howbig an and youhavetochange the training. influence is she? seven years, VijaySharma,the Mirabai: She has been my pillar.She Manipuri superstar erased SRIRAM VEERA: The stereotype is that likes sports,and the familyhas dreamt of weightlifting is an aggressive sport me becoming asportswoman one day. In the memories of Rio, andlifters work themselvesinto earlier days,therewereproblems with where she had almost afrenzy before lifts.Mirais getting agood diet. My mother tried, she calm, composed... went all out.She told me, ‘Don’t look back, struggled to make VijaySharma: It’s up to the DNAof whatever comes, we aretheretosupport everywrestler.You can be quietand calm you’. She once said Ican’t feed youprop- asingle lift and performreally well.Some needtoget erly but Iwill trymybesttotakeyou to reallyhyper,theyshout loudly, to per- the top. If Ihad abad day, or didn’t have a form. It differs from person to person. It good day, she would come to knowfrom depends on your natureand we tailor the my voice. She knows whenI’m sad or not training according to it. feelingwell.Iwould lie manytimes but she would come to know.She usedto SHIVANI NAIK: Mira, howdoyou motivate me regularly,that ‘If todayis typically react when youhear,say, your bad day, keep working hard, tomor- thatChinese lifterZhizhi Hou (the rowwill be your good day’. eventual champion), has lifteda record96kg? Does it addtothe NIHAL KOSHIE:How crucial washer pressure? supportafter Rio? Mirabai: Therewas no pressure. She Mirabai: Justafter my competition had agoodsnatchand Iwill justtry to got over in Rio, Icalledmymother and matchitsomeday. Ifeel one dayIwill also couldn’t control my weeping. Itoldher I lift96kgsoIneedtocontinue my hard could notwin amedal despitetraining so work and keep training. much. Iknewsomewhereshe wasalso disheartened. She told me, ‘When you SRIRAM VEERA: CoachSharma, in come back,wewill talk about it’. Iasked thesetense and emotional times of her what moreIneededtodo. Ieven preparation, have therebeen any thought maybeIshould give up lighter incidentsthatstickinthe weightlifting, Later,Iasked herifIshould mind? do so. She said winning and losing are VijaySharma: Our federation’s sec- partofsports,that whatever happened retary general SahadevYadav ji,who was has happened,it’spastnow,that Ishould in dailytouchwith us and took careofall trytoplanmyfuture, think of howmuch the details, had metasports psychologist morehardworkIcan do. Later,Irealised who said, ‘Keep Miralaughing,don’t al- that Ican do alot,Ican plan something. lowher to getstressed, just light-hearted ‘Whatever happenedhas happened’... it stuffdaily’. Twice daily, for5-10minutes, wasgreat motivation from my mother. we would keep her laughing. Justtonot lether gettoo serious. SHIVANI NAIK: What did your coach tell youpostRio? SHIVANI NAIK: Mira, howgood was Mirabai: AfterRio, Iwas clueless. Ihad returning home afterlong? done all the hardworkbut failed. Ididn’t Mirabai: I’m very happy, the wayI knowwhat to change. Iusedtoask him Illustration: Suvajit Dey waswelcomed. Everyone hereishappy, what more Ineededtodo. Wherewas I be it my family, my friends.Igot plenty of going wrong? Coachmade me under- gifts.Iamjusthappy. stand, he changed my styleoftraining,he needtoknowwhat’s happening in her worked hard, and todayshe can lift119 Mirabai: Iwas notthinking about a VijaySharma: In these eight years changed my technique. AfterIchanged body and we can speak about these kg in the same category. It has been along medal,every playerhas adifferent way with Mira, theremusthavebeen at least NIHAL KOSHIE: Mira, afterwinning at my technique, my coachsaid, Ican go things onlywhenthe relationshipiscom- and tough journey but Mirabai has put in of thinking. We have six lifts,firstthree three momentswherewewondered, Tokyo, whom did youcall first? ahead in my game and in the next pletely open andwetrusteachother. honestworkand discipline, the result of and later three. My firstgoal wastoclear ‘Will we be able to do it or not?’. It hap- Mirabai: Idid speak to my mother, Olympics Iwill surelywin amedal. He With Mira, let’s put it this way: if not whichisher being here, at this position. the firstthree lifts.IfIthink about the penedinRio, though it wasn’t an injury she told me therewerecelebrations back motivatedmealot. AtoZ,IknowAtoWat leastofher! We medal afterone lift,thingswillbeover but atechnical issue. The backproblem home. Lotofwell-wishers had come by.

sharealot.This time in the US, we meta DEVENDRA PANDEY:CoachSharma, forme. Iwas thinking about giving my afterthe 2018 Commonwealth Games We couldn’t speak much, but Isaw it on DEVENDRA PANDEY:CoachSharma, gynaecologistaswehavehad problems it’s all about the medal now, but how best performance. wasmuchmoredifficult. Even Icouldn’t TVlater.Iwanted to talk moretoher,but one year afterthe Rio Games,Mirabai with this in the past. We asked thatgy- tough were the lastfew years with figureout the reason. And therewasn’ta couldn’t. became the worldchampion. What naecologistwhat to do if it cropsup. We this single-mindedpursuit? SANDEEPDWIVEDI: Do youeverget physical therapistordoctor in India that changed in that oneyear? also did Zoom chat withadoctor Mira VijaySharma: The bondbetween a angryinreallife, because thereis we didn’t go to.That wasanother phase SHIVANI NAIK: Howdid youcelebrate

VijaySharma: The Rio 2016 setback had been in touchwith from before.So coachand the athleteissignificant. hardlyany tension on your face? wherewethought, ‘Will we be able to do the medal backatthe Athletes wasaverybad time forus. But two we hadour bases coveredasthis canhap- Luckily, my bond with Miragraduallybe- Mirabai: SometimesIdo getangry it again or not?’. People said, ‘That’s it, Village? months later,we pen to awoman any came as strong as afather-daughter’s. (laughs). It happens they’redone’. But we Mirabai: Due to thepandemic, I were back in proper time. That is whywebouncedbackafter every sometimes. neverlosthope. We couldn’t celebrateafter Iwon because ‘ training.Miratook a ‘Whatever happened has We also carried injury,every problem,and gave this re- Acoach must keep tabof ‘ kept tryingand Igot thereweretoo many restrictions. Ididn’t couple of months to happened’... it wasgreat precautionarymed- sult. SANDEEP all... what’s on in her body. in touchwith Dr enjoyitmucheither.IspoketoSir and he mentallyand physi- icines to Tokyo. This wasapursuit of five years. 2019 DWIVEDI: Do you Aaron(Horschig, said it wasadream whicheveryonehad callyregainher form. motivation from my The thing is, you and 2020 were absolutely crucial forus. meditateorreadto We canspeak of things like American physio- seen together forthe lastfiveyears. We Her mother’s role in can’t be sure100% At the Kolkata nationals (in February bringthat therapist) through worked so hardtoget this. Finally, the day that period wasin- mother (after Rio). Later,I with these things. 2020, whereMirabai wongold),weper- calmness? menstrual cramps only due Instagram. After had come. We sat in the evening and re- strumental. Itoo was realised that Ican do alot,I And that’s what formedbrilliantlyand therewas regu- Mirabai: Ihave to trust. If notAtoZ,I talking with him I calledthose pastfiveyears. therefor her at that ‘ happened. We lar improvement. And suddenly, we got been likethis since ‘ learnt that it wasa time. We discussed canplansomething missedthe 117-kg to knowthat the Olympicshad been childhood. The mind knowAtoWof her! biomechanical issue, SRIRAM VEERA: We have read that training —what to lift—she had done postponed. We were distraught.But needs to be relaxed notaninjury. There twoyearsago,when youcouldn’t do, what nottodo, 119kgjustafew again, it’s the resolve.Inour hearts we as arelaxed mind al- wassome weakness sleep well, youusedtoreverse count howtogoabout it, days ago. So if that knewthat we have to do this, it will be ways helps. in muscles. We be- from 100to1.Isthe problemsolved? what all wastheretoachieve.But all of it (menstrual cramps) hadn’t setin, she delayednow,but we will perform. We ganworking on that. That benefited us a Mirabai: It has been solved. Thereis waspossible becauseofhow determined might perhaps have done even better.But didn’t go backhome during the lock- SRIRAMVEERA: What wasgoing lotintraining. Afterthe lockdown, Ire- no issue now. Mirais—if she wantstoachieve some- this is part of thegame,you have to be down. The thought process then was through your mind between lifts? questedTOPS(the government’s Target thing, she will absolutelyachieve it. ready foranything. But yes, it does affect whatever happens, happens forthe best. Mirabai: Youdofeel the pressureas Olympic Podium Scheme) that goingto SRIRAM VEERA: So afterwinning a performance. We didn’t spareany opportunity.In everyone is watching you, thereispres- Aaronwould help us alot.TOPS cleared medal now, do youget good sleep? DEVENDRA PANDEY:What wasthe rooms, corridors, wheneverwegot any suretodowell. Irecall the time Ispent us and Ican’t explain howmuchgoing Mirabai: (Laughs) Khushi ke maare thinking behind the entrylisttotal SHIVANI NAIK: Howmuchwould you opportunity,wetrained. during training, Ikeep calm, Itell myself therehelpedus. Ilearnt alot there. neend nahin aati (Now Ican’t sleep out of weight of 210kg(at the Olympics)? sayMirabai has evolvedsince she that the wayIpull through duringmy Injuries will happen whenyou arelift- sheer happiness).Wewaited so many VijaySharma: Thereare some psy- startedtotrain withyou, and how SANDEEP DWIVEDI: Mira, the training,Iwill do the same here. The situ- ing this much. The responsibility of a years foronlythis day. chological aspectstothe game that a muchofalearning experience has pandemic time musthavebeen a ation then feels normal. coachistotrack the recovery of an ath- coachmustconsider. Mirahad aproblem this been foryou as well? setbackfor youguys. Howmuchdid lete;ifapartofthe body is fatiguedorin- SHIVANI NAIK: Do youmisstraining physicallybeforethe event and the dec- VijaySharma: Mirabai came intothe it impact your training and how SHIVANI NAIK: CoachSharma, howis jured,how to properly rest and recover. now? And what will be the challenges laration of weight wastactical. national campafter shehad wonamedal muchofadifference does no crowds Mirabai different from the other The role of the coachbecomespara- ahead of the Paris Olympics? in the junior championships.Atthat time, make? lifters youhavetrained? mount in phases likethese. Itriedvery Mirabai: Yeah, Imiss it alot.Iwantto SRIRAM VEERA: Miradeveloped Iwas in charge of the men’s team but Mirabai: Everyone likes crowds, they VijaySharma: Talented bachche bahut hardtomakesurethat thereisneither an go backtotraining! menstrual cramps the daybeforethe training usedtohappentogether.She has bring adifferent energy. hain (There aremanytalented children). injurynor adip in performance. God Three years is less time. Ihavetostart event.How did youguyshandle it? been with me since the2014 But the twothings that separateMira helpedus. again. Time is running fast.Therewill be VijaySharma: It’s acoach’s duty to Commonwealth Games. When she won SANDEEP DWIVEDI: What is the from these other weightlifters areher dis- qualification rounds and later the keep tabofeverything, from small to big. asilverthen, she had liftedclean &jerk thinking likeafter eachlift? When cipline and her self-determination. Aajbhi SHIVANI NAIK: Mira, what did youmiss Commonwealth Games and Asian That is whybondingissoimportant. We weight of 98 kg.Slowlyfromthere, we does the thought of amedal kickin? cycle pe training karne aati hai hostelse abouthome when youwereinthe US? Games. Ihaveverylittle time actually.

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THEINDIANEXPRESS,MONDAY,AUGUST9,2021 MarketWatch FPISINVEST `1,210 CR IN AUG SO FAR NewDelhi: Overseas investorswere net buyerstothe tune of Rs 1,210 crore in domesticmarkets in the first five trading sessions of August on the back of domesticfactors. In equities, they invested 9 ECONOMY PTI Rs 975 crore during August 2-6, as per depositories data.

FIRMS LIKELYTOSTRUCTURE ASSETS ACCORDINGLY WHILEDOING DEALS HEREON New chemistry cell battery tech Retrotaxrepeal:Sovereignrighttotax set to diversify, disrupt sectors: intactpost-2012,butmistclearsforcos From electricity storage to EVs multipledaysofextremeweather ANILSASI FRESHIMPETUS orgridoutages.”Thebatterylever- retrospective aspectnow alsopro- will refund it, he added. lawwas wrong. Theyare justsay- NEWDELHI,AUGUST8 agestheconceptof‘reversiblerust- AANCHALMAGAZINE vides clarity fordeals between ED Whywas Thegovernmenthasproposed ingtheretrospectivityinthelaw is ■ Thereisnow afresh ing’ —the batteryuses oxygen NEWDELHI,AUGUST8 companiesofcountries where thistax amendmentstothe Income-tax wrongwhichtheyare takingback. WITH AT leastthree energy stor- impetustoexamine from the airand convertsiron these arenot coveredunder any PLAIN E ActandFinanceAct,2012toeffec- Thereisnot muchfutureplanning age-linked projectsofscalebeing thesenewtechnological metaltorustwhile discharging, ● broughtin breakthroughsfroman THE GOVERNMENT’S recent taxtreatybenefits. EX tively statethat no taxdemand shift whichcan happen, it is only planned in India, newadvanced and while charging, the applica- move to burythe controversial “... Anyindirect transfer of as- shall be raisedfor anyindirect thepastwhichhasbeencorrected. chemistrycell batterytechnolo- improvedviabilityand tion of an electrical current trans- policy of retrospectivetaxation sets where underlying assets are THE GOVERNMENT had, transfer of Indianassets if the Forthefuture,thereisnonew law gies, whichcouldpotentiallyen- end-useperspective formsrustbacktoironandthebat- will provide relief to companies in India, the taxispayable in India in 2012,retrospectively transactionwas undertakenbe- in place…thecompanies don’t ablebatterystorage ecosystemsto whiledraftingnew teryreleases oxygen backintothe thatundertookindirecttransferof and accordinglytheywill arrange amendedthe Income-tax fore May28, 2012. have areasonto continuewiththe diversify away from theestab- projectproposals air.Buttheproblempertainsto the assetsbefore May28,2012,butthe theirassets.Thatistaxplanningas Act. This wasinresponse Section9(1)(i) of the Income- arbitration(forcasesbefore 2012) lishedlithium-ion formula and battery’s size and weight,which countrystillcontinuesto retainits farasthefutureisconcerned.And to aSupreme Courtver- taxAct states that anyincome ac- because theyhavebeen givena scaleuptheviabilitythreshold,of- makes itsapplication impractical sovereign right to taxation under forthe future, the amendment in dict,whichhad held that cruingorarisingoutsideIndiadue winningdeal.Whatevertheywere feranarray of potential options to as an ancillaryfor thegridcon- in EVs. In case of grid storage, Section 9(1)(i) of the Income-tax the lawisnow settled, and you Vodafone cannotbetaxed to abusiness connection in India saying,the government has now policymakers.The suitabilityof trollers,andparttobemadeavail- though,itworks well as it’s about Act.Withtheremovaloftheretro- arrangetheassetsinamannerthat fora2007 transaction that is deemedtoaccrue or arise in agreedtoit. Theystand to gain by some of these frontier battery ableto theprojectdeveloperto be the size of asmall refrigerator. spective feature, however, aclear taxliability is reducedtothe min- involved itspurchase of a India and shall be taxable in case withdrawing the litigation and technologiesarelikelytobeevalu- leveragedonacommercial basis The other reallypromising and predictable taxation lawand imum,” said VLakshmikumaran, 67 percent stakein of allassesseesirrespective of their then therewill be arefund of any ated basedonthe end-useappli- by storingenergy during offpeak technology involvessolid-state intent has been presented to the managing partner,Lakshmi- HutchisonWhampoa. residential status. Companies are taxesthat have been already paid cationofthe batterystorage proj- hours and drawing from it during batteriesthat use alternativesto companies,whichare expectedto kumaran &Sridharan Attorneys. nowexpected to withdraw their or refundedinrespect of anyde- ectsinthe works—electricity peakhours.Megabatterystorages aqueouselectrolytesolutions—an structuretheir assets accordingly The immediate beneficiaries litigation claimsfor dealsprior to mands thathavebeen adjusted,” storagefor the grid or their use in areexpectedto addto thestability innovation that could lowerthe while doing deals hereon. wouldonlybethosewhodidtheir themthegovernmentwillnotcol- 2012,expertssaid. Neha Malhotra, taxpartner, electric vehicles (EVs). of India’s electricity grids. Posoco, risk of fires, sharplyincrease en- Expertssaidthisremovalofthe transactionsbefore 2012 andfrom lect the tax. And if collected,they “Theyare notsaying that the Nangia &Cosaid. WhilepolicymakersintheNITI India’s electricity grid operator, ergy density and potentiallytake Aayogand the PowerMinistry manages the grid through the only10minutes to charge an EV, maintain that the established National Load Despatch Centre cuttingthe recharging time by lithium-ion ecosystem is likelyto and acombination of five RLDCs two-thirds. Despitethe improve- SECTOR WATCH continuetobethemainstayforthe and33 stateloaddespatchcentres. mentsinlithium-ion batteries INSURANCE Powerconsumption up PEAKPOWER projectsthatareonthevergeofbe- The storageisplannedatthe overthelastdecade,longcharging 9.3% in Augustfirst week DEMAND ing rolledout, thereisnow afresh RLDC-leveltomanagegrowing timesandweakenergydensityare met or the highest supply impetus to examine these new shareofrenewablesinthe coun- still barriers. technologicalbreakthroughsfrom try’s electricity generation mix. Someof thealternativesbeing Covid health claims The country’s powerconsumption grew 9.3 per cent in the in aday stood at 188.59GW in the first animprovedviabilityandend-use Thereare also other wings of fostered globallytoachieve more firstweek of August to 28.08 billion units aftereasing of perspective whiledraftingnew the government that areactive in optimal optionsinclude: lockdown curbs ,asper PowerMinistry data week of August, which is of `10,703 cr pending 14 per cent higher than project proposals. this area. The Department of ¾ Toyota’s solid statebattery: 165.42 GW in The newtechnologies include Science andTechnology has The Japanese automaker is at- DuringAugust1-7in2020,the restrictionsforboosting the same period last year anovel rechargeable iron-air bat- launcheda“Materials forEnergy tempting to wrestbackthe lead before insurers despite powerconsumptionwas25.69 economicactivities tery developedbyaUS-based Storage”and“MaterialsforEnergy fromtheChinese,whoarecurrent BU.Itwas25.18BUduring startup forelectricity grid storage Conservation and Storage Li-ionbatterypackleaders.Itplans August1to7in2019 Powerdemandaswellas that promises to deliver powerat Platform” programme, and setup to be the firstcompanytosell an HC, Irdai directive consumptionwouldsee less than atenth of the costof centres on batteriesand superca- EVequippedwithasolid-state bat- Recoveryinpowerdemandand improvementduetohigher lithium-ion batteries, alongside pacitors with Indian Instituteof tery andwill unveil aprototype consumptioninthefirstweekof commercialandindustrial solid-state batteriesthatusealter- Technology Bombay and Indian this year.Nissan, too, is in the fray. GEORGEMATHEW As per insurers, the August2021isconsistentand demandincomingdaysbutthe nativestothe aqueous electrolyte InstituteofScience, respectively, ¾ Apple batterytech: Apple MUMBAI,AUGUST8 sharp rise in Covid wouldfurtherimproveasmany onlyfearisanotherwaveof solutions —aninnovation that fordeveloping energy materials has said it’s moving forwardwith stateshaveeasedlockdown pandemic could lowerthe riskoffires, forefficient electrochemical en- self-driving car technology and WITH INSURANCEclaims go- claims has hit them sharplyincrease energy density ergy storagedevices. This is in ad- will target 2024toproduce apas- ing through the roof amidthe substantially and potentiallytakeonly10min- dition to the MinistryofNew and senger vehicle. Covid pandemic, insurance April2021 sawyear-on-year growth of nearly 38.5 per cent.The second Source: Power utes to charge abattery—that are Renewable Energy supporting a ¾QuantumScape’ssolid-state companies aresitting on al- wave started in the middle of Apriland affected the recovery in commercial Ministry/PTI being explored by mobility. broad-basedResearch and battery: Earlier effortstocreatea mostone-thirdofthe claims forcedsomeinsurancecompa- andindustrial power demand as states started imposing restrictions The governmenthas already Development Programme on en- solid-state separator (electrolyte) submitted by patientssince niesto stopissuinghealthpoli- commenced work on ablueprint ergy storage. capable of working with lithium the pandemic hit the country cies forsome periods. Many foraproject of around 4,000- One of the the newbreak- metalhad to compromise on its in the beginning of 2020-21. companies were even forced megawatt hour of grid-scale bat- throughtechnologiesglobally,an- other aspects likecycle life, oper- Over 3.06lakh Covid to go slowonissuingtermpoli- terystoragesystemattheregional nouncedinJuly, isby UScompany ating temperature, cathode load- claims forRs10,703 croreare cies as death claims also shot Task cut out for DoT to convince loaddispatchcentres(RLDCs)that Form Energy Inc: arechargeable ing,amongothers.QuantumScape pending before insurance up. “I’m sitting on a400 per control the country’s powergrid, iron-airbatterycapableof deliver- seems to have circumvented this, companies as of August6,in- cent loss in Covid claims,” said primarilytobalance the vagaries ing electricity for100 hours at a and itsuse of asolidstate separa- dicating the pressurebeing theregionalmanagerof apub- FinMin on telecom relief package of renewable generation. Apart claimedsystemcostcompetitive tortechnologyeliminatestheside facedbyinsurersdespiteDelhi lic sector insurer. from this,Reliance Industries Ltd withconventional powerplants reaction betweenthe liquid elec- HighCourtandIrdai,directing The General Insurance Following hiscomment,the has recentlyannouncedplans to and at less than 1/10th the costof trolyteand the carbon in conven- insurance firms to complete Council, therepresentative AASHISHARYAN ONTHETABLE majority stakeholder in Vi, setupanEnergy StorageGigafac- lithium-ion. “Weconducted are- tional lithium-ion cells’ anode. thesettlementof Covidclaims body of 34 general insurers in &SUNNYVERMA Vodafone Group’s chief executive tory while state-ownedNTPC Ltd viewofavailabletechnologiesand ¾ Tesla’s newtabless battery: in an hour afterdischarge. the country,has laid down a NEWDELHI,AUGUST8 ■ Among therelief officerNickReadtoohadruledout hasfloatedaglobaltenderforgrid- have reinvented the iron-airbat- Atab is partofthe batterythat Health insurance compa- basic framework for seeking package options area anyfurther equity infusion in the scalebatterystorage project. tery to optimise it formulti-day formsaconnection betweenthe nieshavereceivedatotal of thecooperationfromhospitals THEDEPARTMENTofTelecomm- possibility of extending debt-laden telecom joint venture The Union PowerMinistry’s energy storagefor the electric cell and what it is powering. Tesla 23.06lakh claims worth Rs to implement the directives. It unications (DoT) mayfind it diffi- moratorium on spectrum it runs in India. large grid-scale batterystorage grid,”according to Mateo will produce itsnew batteries in- 29,341 croreasonAugust6, has asked hospitals to submit cult to convince the Finance payment obligationsby Forsome time now, Vi has projectisbeingenvisagedasanin- Jaramillo,Form Energy’s CEO and house,whichCEOElonMuskpre- 2021, accordingto figurescom- allthepatientdischarge docu- Ministrytogivethe go ahead for coupleofyears or been unsuccessfully scouting the tervention mechanismaimedat co-founder. “Withthistech,we are dictswillhelpdramaticallyreduce piled by General Insurance ments in one go without hav- telecomsector-specificrelief asthe allowingtelcos to encash, globe, trying to either raise funds counterbalancing anysharp fluc- tacklingthebiggestbarrierto deep costsandhelpsellEVsforthesame Council. However, insurance ingto beremindedofthemiss- latter has expressedapprehen- forsome years,the bank of upto Rs25,000croreorbringin tuation in grid frequency because decarbonisation: making renew- price as petrol-poweredones. firms have settledonlyRs ing documentslikecashless sionsaboutthebailoutoptionslaid guarantees thefirms have astrategicpartner.InhisJune7let- of renewables,withpartoftheen- able energy available when and Full report on 17,813 croreinvolving 18.99 treatment approval reference, out by the department, sources submittedbefore asking ter, Birlamade amentionofthe visagedcapacitysettobereserved whereit’s needed, even during www.indianexpress.com claims so far. copyofthe case sheet, pre- told The Indian Express. them to re-submit these, company’seffortstoraise the Of the total claims, 13.19 scriptions, diagnostic reports, Among the relief packageop- sources said funds and said that all the non- lakh claims worthRs14,783 bills, discharge summary, tions chosen by the DoTare apos- Chinese investors theyhad talked INTERVIEW WITH FOUNDER AND CEO OF EMCURE PHARMACEUTICALS crorecame between April 1 Covid positive andthe subse- sibility of extending themorato- to so farhad askedtobeassured and August6,2021during quent Covid negative reports. rium on spectrum payment torofVodafone Idea (Vi), wroteto that the Indian government ‘On track to deliver 60 mn doses 2021-22 while 9.86 lakh According to theCouncil, obligations by another couple of theCentralgovernmentinJuneof- wanted to “have athree-player claimsforRs14,560crorewere when the patient’s progress is years or allowing the telcos to en- feringto“handover”his27 percent telecom market”. reported during thefinancial goodanddischarge isplanned cash, forsome years, the bank stakeinthecompanytoany public “Toactively participateinthis year endedMarch 2021. forthe next day, hospitals guarantees the companies have sector,government,ordomesticfi- fundraising, potential foreign in- of our mRNA vaccine by yr-end’ According to insurers, the should inform the insurance submitted before asking them to nancial entity or to anyother firm vestors (mostlynon-Chinese and sharp rise in Covid claims has companyorTPA of theim- re-submit these, the sources said. thatthegovernmentmaythinkfit, we areyet to approachany WHILE INDIA is vaccinating its So we aretakingefforts to planfor hit them substantially. “Yes, pendingdischarge thesoonest “The discussions arestill on. A to keep Vi going. Chinese investors) want to see population with Covishield and manufacturing and securing raw health claims have gone up a andsubmittheavailabledocu- sector-specificrelief willbedifficult The June letter,however,was cleargovernmentintenttohavea Covaxin,thecountry’sfirstmRNA materialsupply. We arerepurpos- lot. While the number of mentsand bills. “Balance doc- because the government has re- notthe firsttime that Birla had three-playertelecommarket(con- vaccine developedbyGennova(a ing some of our owncapacities claims went up, the average umentsand bills pertaining to ceivedrequestsfromothersectors raisedthe requestfor apackage sistent with itspublic stance) subsidiary of EmcurePharma), is within the companyfor fulfilling costofacovid claim is twice thelast24 hourscouldbesub- suchasthefoodandbeverages,ho- from the government. In through positive actions on long- all settobemade available by end the requirementofthe vaccine. the size of non-covid claims. mittedatthedischarge timeso tels industry as well forrelief,” a December2019,hehad,following standing requests suchasclarity of theyear.SATISH MEHTA, Thus,thehithasbeensubstan- thattheinsurancecompanyor seniorgovernmentofficialsaid.The the Supreme Courtjudgment on on AGR(adjustedgross revenue) founder and CEO of By when do youthink you tial,”saidKameshGoyal,chair- TPAcouldalsostartworkingon discussionsforrelief tothetelecom adjustedgross revenue, said that liability,adequatemoratoriumon EmcurePharmaceuticals, told would youbeable to do second man, Digit Insurance. thedischarge simultaneously,” sector have gainedpace after VodafoneIdeawouldhave to “shut spectrumpayments,andmostim- SANDEEP SINGH that while he is andthird phasetrials? The big rise in claims even it had said. Kumar Mangalam Birla, former shop” if therewas no relief forth- portantly, afloor pricingregime satisfiedwith theprimaryout- SatishMehta We don’t have atimeline for non-executivechairmananddirec- coming from the government. above costofservice,”Birla wrote. come on safetyofthe vaccine, he that and it is very difficult forme willsoonsubmitthedatawithCD- to saythatasof now. We canfocus SCOandapplyfornextphasetrials. be surprisesand we don’t know ontheprocessesanddothemdili- BRIEFLY Mehtasaid while he is focussing what the Deltavariant would do. gently, then we have to work Rankings mustbetransparent; digital on meeting government target of closelywithgovernmentagencies. supplying 60 million doses by Gennova has been giventhe Iamveryoptimistic. Thegovern- Sebiprobed year-end, he is also in talkswith target to supplyvaccines by the mentishandholdingandsupport- 94newcases dominance aconcern: CCI Chairman potential partners, both in India year-end. What stageare you ing us quitealot. andabroad,to augmentthecapac- on your mRNAvaccine? NewDelhi: As many as 94 ity substantially. Edited excerpts: The government hasgiven us Howdoyou see your vaccine fresh cases pertaining to whichprevent suchmanufactur- dependentononline platforms. atargetof60milliondoses by the and demand forit? flouting of securities norms KARUNJITSINGH ers from making forked versions “Primafaciewe have alsoseen Thereare concerns of athird end of the year.Weare on track We areverybullish on our were takenupfor investiga- NEWDELHI,AUGUST8 of Android operating system and thatthe ecosystemofexclusive Covid wave. Do youthink we and committed to delivering it. mRNAvaccinebecausewithin45- tion by Sebi in 2020-21, requiretheyinclude the entire agreements, deep discounting, arewell preparedto handle it Right nowweare in Phase 1. We 50days thevaccinecanalsobede- marking afall of 42 per cent ONLINE PLATFORMS mustmake suiteofGoogleapps on their de- and preferredsellers put together and what do youmakeofthe areverysatisfiedwiththeprimary velopedfor the newvariant in- from the preceding financial ranking systems transparent and vicesif theywanttopre-installthe by onlineplatformscommanding pace of vaccination? outcome of safety. As we speak, cludingDeltavariant.Unlikeother year,aspertheregulator’slat- treat all sellers in anon-discrimi- GooglePlayStore ontheirdevices. market powerare also raising Some studiesare projecting secondaryoutcome of efficacy or vaccines(thatwe have),whichhas estannual report. PTI natorymanner, CCI Chairman Gupta alsohighlighted keyis- competition concerns,” he said. dailypeaksofanywherebetween immunogenicityisalsobeing re- Adenovirus or attenuated live Ashok Kumar Gupta told The sues of opaque ranking systems, Guptaaddeddifferentialtreat- 80,000 and1,50,000 in the third viewedandstudiedbydrugsafety virus,thishasadynamicplatform Indian Express in an interview. exclusive selling arrangements ment in terms of commissions wave. If it remains to that levelwe and monitoring board—aninde- whereyou can come outwith a USboard Gupta saidinstances of digital CCI Chairman Ashok Kumar and deep discounting. chargedtosellerswere alsoacause should be able to handle it well. pendent body.Postthat, we will newvaccine. It is important be- diversity players abusing their market Gupta. via @CCI_India Twitter “In search rankings, youhave of concern.The National Also,all across the countrythere submit our datawith the Central cause Ithink this cat-and-mouse powerhad become aconcern for to be transparent and your algo- RestaurantsAssociation of India has been massivelearning after Drugs StandardControl game would go on for2-3 years. NewYork: The US Securities thecompetitionregulator.TheCCI rithmhasto beunbiased.Youcan- has approachedthe CCI, alleging the second wave. Organisationandapplyforphases While mRNAisundoubtedly and ExchangeCommission hasorderedinvestigationsintothe Commission. That is aconcern,” notjustrankbusinesses in your SwiggyandZomatohavemisused Also, with highernumberof 2and 3. That’s when the regula- the best vaccine that we have, approved aproposal from conductofmajoronlineplatforms said Gupta,adding while the ownopaqueways,whichnobody theirmarketpowerbyunilaterally vaccinations now, hospitalisation tory bodies would commentand PfizerandModernaaresupplying Nasdaq that requires its including Flipkart,Amazon and Commission did notthink it was knows,” said Gupta,noting that it raising commissions chargedto andfatalitieswouldbelower.Data guide us in terms of next steps. to the regulated markets.The rest listedcompanies to have di- MakeMyTrip. The CCI is also con- always necessary fortheretobe wasimportant that platforms restaurantsand masking con- coming from US shows that peo- We areontrack but thereare of the world(EMs) would be verse boards or explain why ducting investigations into multiple players in amarket seg- charge commissionsto sellersina sumer datafromrestaurants. plewho have takentwo shots are different types of challenges. First happytotakemRNAand we see theydonot.Theproposalre- Google’s conduct in the smarttv, ment, dominant players should non-discriminatory manner. “Our endeavour is that people gettingDeltavariant,buthospital- and foremostisthat the product themasamarket.WhileModerna quires that companies have mobile operating system and on- notabuse their marketpower. “When people don’t have ef- should be able to shiftlock, stock isations arelow. has to be shown safethrough the andPfizerarerequiredto bekept at twodiversedirectors,includ- line paymentplatform spaces. The Commission is currently fective alternatives, youbecome and barrelfromone platform to Ithink India has done agreat clinical trial process. very lowtemperatures, the vac- ing one who identifies as fe- “Of late, instances of digital investigating allegations against likeanessential facility,you ac- another seamlessly. One hin- jobonvaccinationand,inthehind- Simultaneously, the supplychain cinethatwe have developedissta- male and another as an un- players abusingtheir dominance Google: that the tech giantre- quirethe characteristics of apub- drance in that is the absence of sight,onecanalways saywecould aspectsare dauntingbecausegain- ble between 2and 8degrees, and derrepresented minority or ormarketpowerby adoptinganti- quires original equipment manu- licgood,”hesaid.CCIofficialshave dataportability.Ifyouwantto shift have donebetter.Atthesametime, ing access to someofthe keyraw that makes the job loteasier. LGBTQ+. REUTERS competitive means, have been facturers in the smartphone and previouslysaid alarge number of fromoneplatformto another,you whiletherehasbeenlearningand materials (particularly forthe Full interviewon broughttothe attention of the smartTVspaceto signagreements sellersare becomingincreasingly maylose your data,” Gupta said. we maybeprepared,therecould mRNAvaccines)isabigchallenge. www.indianexpress.com WWW.INDIANEXPRESS.COM

THEINDIANEXPRESS,MONDAY,AUGUST9,2021 10 THE WORLD/SPORT

TOPOFTHE WORLD TalibanseizekeyAfghancityofKunduz Sar-e-Pul, another provincial capital, also captured;insurgent group pushes intoTaliqan city Official: Airstrikes CHRISTINAGOLDBAUM, NAJIMRAHIM, in Lashkar Gah SHARIFHASSAN& Ochremarkings painted THOMASGIBBONS-NEFF hit clinic, school on stalagmites. Reuters KABUL,AUGUST8 Kabul: Airstrikesdamaged a PROTESTS AGAINSTFRENCH VACCINE PASS:Ataprotest THE TALIBAN seizedthe city of healthclinic and high school in againstCovid-19vaccine passports,inParis on Saturday. SPAIN Kunduz in northern Afghanistan the capital of southern Thousandsofpeople marched in Paris and other French Cavepaintings on Sunday, officialssaid. It is the Afghanistan’s Helmand province, cities to protestagainstthe special passand what theysee as firstmajor citytobeovertaken aprovincial council member said restrictions of personal freedoms. AP showNeanderthals by theinsurgentssince theybe- Sunday. ADefence Ministry wereartists gantheir sweeping militaryof- statement confirmed that fensive in May, andithappened airstrikes were carriedout in NEANDERTHALSMAY have justweeksbeforeUSforceswere parts of thecityofLashkar Gah. been closer to ourspecies of settocomplete atotal with- It saidforces targetedTaliban po- Britaineases travel prehistoric modern human drawal from Afghanistan. sitions, killing 54 fighters and than previouslybelieved af- It wasalsothe thirdprovin- wounding 23 others. Majid tercavepaintings found in cialcapital to be overtakenby Akhund, deputy chairman of the restrictions for India Spainprovedtheyhad a Taliban in three days,and amajor In KunduzonSundayafter fighting between Taliban and Afghan securityforces. AP Helmand provincial council, said fondnessforcreatingart,one blowtothe Afghan government. airstrikes hit ahealth clinic and a quired to isolateathome or their of the authors of anew sci- Kunduz, the capital of a school in thecity on Saturday. AP ADITIKHANNA designated location mentioned entificreportsaid.Redochre province of the same name, is a ing to security officials. he added. LONDON,AUGUST8 on the compulsorylocator form. pigment found on stalag- significant militaryand political In the twopreceding days, Aftersweeping through the ED Kunduza While the requirement fora mitesintheCavesofArdales, prize. With apopulation of the Talibanhad takentwo other country’s rural areas, the insur- majorwin AirForce pilot killed THE UK on Sundayeasedtravel compulsory10-dayself-isolation near Malagainsouthern 374,000,itisavital commercial provincialcapitals: Sheberghan, gents’ militarycampaign has PLAIN E in Kabulbombing restrictions forIndiabymoving in agovernment-approved facil- Spain, were created by ● forTaliban city near the border with the capital of Jowzjan Province shiftedtobrutalurbancombat EX the countryfromits “red”to ity at an additional costof£1,750 Neanderthals about 65,000 Tajikistan. in the north, and Zaranj,the cap- in recent weeks. Kabul: An AfghanAir Forcepilot “amber” list, whichmeans fully perheadwillnolongerapply, only yearsago,makingthempos- “All security forces fledtothe ital of Nimruz Province on the Taliban fighters pushedinto TALIBAN IN recent days have waskilledbyabomb in Kabul on vaccinated Indian passengers thosevaccinated in theUKorEU siblythefirstartistsonearth, airport, and the situation is crit- Afghanistan-Iran border.As another northern provincial steppeduptheirefforts to Saturday, officialssaid,inanattack will no longer be subjected to a wouldqualifyforanexemptionof according to the study pub- ical,” said SayedJawad Hussaini, Kunduz wascollapsing on capital on Sunday, localand mil- seizeprovincialcapitals,and claimed by the Taliban. The pilot, compulsory10-dayhotelquar- the home quarantine require- lishedinProceedingsofthe the deputy police chief of adis- Sundaymorning, the Taliban itaryofficials said.The fighters on Sunday, they pushed into HamidullahAzimi,diedwhena antine on their arrivalinBritain. ment. “Werecognisethereare a NationalAcademyofSciences trictinKunduz city. also seizedSar-e-Pul,the capital had been containedatthe gates three, includingthe strategi- stickybombattachedtohisvehicle TheDepartmentof Healthand largevariety of Covid-19vaccines journal. REUTERS Clashes between government of another northern province of of Taliqan, the capital of Takhar callyimportant Kunduzcity. detonated,officials said,adding SocialCare(DHSC)hasconfirmed beingadministered worldwide forces and Taliban fighters were the same name,officialssaid. Province, since June. But as the It representsasignificant vic- that five civilianswerewounded that all arrivals from India who and work is ongoingto determine continuing in asmall town south “Talibanare walking in the Kunduz city centrefell,the in- tory forthe groupasitisthe intheexplosion.Azimiwastrained have been vaccinated in India, whichnon-UK vaccines and cer- of the city,wherethe local army streetsofthe city.Local resi- surgentsmovedtowardTaliqan, firstmajor city theyhavecap- to flyUS-made UH60 BlackHawk whichisonthe amber listasat4 tification solutions to recognise,” PAKISTAN headquarters and the airportare dentsare terrified,” said Sayed threatening to topple afifth tured since foreign troops an- helicopters and had served with am local time on Sunday, arere- aDHSC source said. PTI 2copskilledin situated,security officials said. Asadullah Danish, amember of provincialcapital in three days. nouncedtheir departure. The the Afghan Air Forcefor almost Security forces, who had re- the Sar-e-Pul provincial coun- “The situation is chaotic,and city is also important because fouryears,theforce’scommander, blastnearluxury treated to the town earlier in the cil. Provincial officials had the front lines arenot clearnow,” it serves as agateway to the AbdulFatahEshaqzai,toldReuters. hotelinQuetta morning, begananoperation to takenshelter in an armybase said Mohammed Omar,adistrict mineral-richnorthern He had movedtoKabul with his Iran sees highest daily flush Talibanfighters outofthe on the outskirts of thecity, governorinTakharwhoisleading provinces and Central Asia. familyayear agodue to security AT LEAST twopolicemen city on Sunday evening, accord- whereclashes were continuing, militia fightersinTaliqan. NYT threats, Eshaqzai said. REUTERS were killedandeightothers virus case, death counts injured on Sundaywhen a powerfulblasttargetedtheir duringIran’sdeadliestcoronavirus vehicle near aluxury hotel Rocked by sexual assault allegation, Alibaba launches investigation ASSOCIATEDPRESS surge thatgrippedthecountrylast in Quetta, the capitalof TEHRAN,AUGUST8 November,signalling the current Pakistan’s Balochistan The woman’s account, pub- conduct, and ensuring asafe LateonSaturday, afemale According to thewoman, on wavewilllikelyonlygetworse.The province, officials said.“The REUTERS lishedvia an eleven-pagePDF workplace forall ouremployeesis Alibaba staffer’s account of an in- theevening of July27, the client IRAN, GRAPPLINGwith itsmost newall-time highs push Iran’s to- initialprobeshowedthatthe SHANGHAI,AUGUST8 that went on to circulate widely Alibaba’s toppriority,” a cident she said took place while kissed her. Afterconsuming alco- severe surge of thecoronavirusto talnumberofinfections over 4.1 bombwasfittedwithamo- online,promptedasocial media spokesperson said in astatement. on abusiness trip went viral on hol, she woke up in ahotel room date,reported morenew infec- millionanddeathtollover94,000 torbike,” aBalochistangov- CHINESE E-COMMERCE giant storm on China’s Twitter-like “Wehavesuspendedrele- Chinesesocial media. thefollowingdaywithherclothes tionsand deathsacrossthecoun- —the highestinthe MiddleEast. ernmentspokespersonsaid, Alibaba saidonSunday it has microbloggingwebsiteWeibo. vant parties suspected of violat- Thewoman alleged that her removedandnomemoryofwhat tryonSunday than anyother sin- The crush of newcases have adding that the blasttar- suspendedseveral stafffollow- Police in the city of Jinansaid on ing our policies and values, and boss coercedher intogoing on a happenedthe eveningbefore. gledaysincethepandemicbegan. overwhelmedhospitals.The getedthe police mobile van ing an employee’s allegations on Sundaymorning that theywere have establishedaspecialinter- businesstripwithhimto meetone CCTVfootage she obtainedfrom Healthauthoritiesloggedover countryhas neverseen so many at Tanzeem Squarenear the company’s intranetthat she investigating the incident. nal task forcetoinvestigate the of herteam’s clients in the cityof thehotelshowedthatherbossen- 39,600new cases and 542deaths Covidpatientsincriticalcondition, Serena HotelinQuetta. PTI wassexuallyassaulted by her “Alibaba Grouphasazero-tol- issue and supportthe ongoing Jinan,about900kmfromAlibaba’s teredtheroomfourtimesoverthe from the virus. The fatality count with6,462 moreseverecases re- boss and aclient. erance policy againstsexual mis- police investigation.” headquarters in Hangzhou. courseofthe evening, she added. shatters the previous recordset ported Sunday. Messi breaks down, says wasn’t ready to leave

ASSOCIATEDPRESS What Messi’s exit MADRID,AUGUST8

LIONEL MESSI begancrying be- meansfor Barcelona fore heevenstartedspeaking.The “mostdifficult”momentof hisca- Whycan’t Barca afford Messi? reer had arrivedand he wasn’t SHAMIKCHAKRABARTY Barcelona couldn’t have re- ready forit. AUGUST8 signedthe six-time Ballon d’Or It wastime to saygoodbye to winnerevenifhehad playedfor Barcelonaafter morethan two LIONELMESSI brokedownathis free. As Laporta explained, with decades withthe Catalan club. final press conferenceasa Messi on board, the club’s wage- “I don’t knowifI’ll be able to Barcelonaplayer. Sincemakinghis to-turnoverpercentagewas 110 speak,” he said while trying to senior debut at CampNou in percent. And without him, it compose himself during his 2003, Messi has played778 wouldhave been95percent-well farewell news conference at the gamesfor theCatalan club, scor- above theFFPcut-offmark.Asper CampNouStadiumonSunday.“It ing 672goals.Heclaimed he the latestfinancial report, the stillhasn’tsunkinthatI’mleaving wantedto stayattheclubandhad club’s debt exceeded£1billion, The day-five washout at Trent Bridgemeans both India and this club, that my lifewill be evenaccepteda50percentsalary whichincludes moneyowedfor England log four WorldTestChampionship pointseach changing completely.Itwill be a cutto signanew contract.Butasit Philippe Coutinho and Frenkiede from the firstTest. AP difficult changefor me and espe- turnedout, Barcelona couldn’t Jong. The wage billfor their first- cially formyfamily. But we have even afford acut-price Messi. team squad is around £235mil- to accept it and move on.” lion-a-year. Day 5washed out, but Messi struggledtocontrol his WhyisMessi’s Barcelona exit a “Beforeanything,Iwantto ex- emotions and cried profuselyas football tragedy? plain that we have receivedater- he steppeduptothe podium at Messihas spent over two rible inheritance from the previ- Kohli finds ‘template’ the CampNou.“This is very hard decades at Barcelona, and is the ous board,” Laporta said.“There’s formeafter so manyyears, after mostdecoratedplayerintheclub. no room to manoeuvreand the wasimportant. We justdidn't beingheremyentirelife,”hesaid. Even his children are (FFP) rules markthe lim- PRESSTRUSTOFINDIA want to playfor survival. Our in- “I wasn’tprepared.” Argentine-Catalan.There its… we had to acceptan NOTTINGHAM,AUGUST8 tent kept us ahead. It'shardwork Messisaidthat,unlike lastyear were severalbrinkman- ED agreement that mort- of three odd weeksfor our whenheaskedto leave,hehadhis Lionel Messi avoidedspeaking about his future,saying he has offers from severalclubs. Reuters ship attemptswhen gagedtheClub’sTVrights THISTEAMwillbe"ourtemplate" bowlers with the bat." mind setonstayingwith things didn’t go well on PLAIN E forhalf acenturyand FC ● going ahead, Indian captain Virat "Mostlikelythis will be our Barcelonaanddideverythingpos- thepitch,includingacall EX Barcelonaisabove every- Kohli said afterthe rain-marred template in this series, but adapt- sibleto makeithappen,including deal with anyclub,”hesaid. strugglesonthecoronaviruspan- to leave theclubaheadof thing else.” opener againstEngland ended in ability has been our strength.The reducinghissalaryby50%.Hesaid PSG has been in talksoverthe In these last few days I demicandparticularly onthepre- the 2020-21season.He sharedan adrawonSunday,meaning they conditions and the pace on the he wassurprisedtohear he weekend with Messi’s team try- was thinking about what vious administration ledbyJosep acrimonious relationship with Is this the end of Messi at will sticktothe 4-1pace-spin wicket needstobeseen, but this wouldn’tbeable to stay because ing to finalize adeal. Iwould say today, but to Bartomeu. erstwhileclub president Josep Barcelona? combination in the remainderof team will be ourtemplate. of theclub’sdebtandthe Spanish SportsdailyL’Equipereported be honest Icouldn’t Messiaskedto leave attheend Bartomeu.ButwhenJoanLaporta Atearfulgoodbye suggests so. five-Test series.Soitwillbeatoss- England and India have always league’sfinancialfair-playregula- on itswebsite Sundaythat Messi come up with anything. I of the2019-20seasonbuthadhis replacedBartomeu, Messi com- Messi has been theSpanish up between RavindraJadeja and been ablockbuster, andlooking tions. “In theselastfew days Iwas wastofly to Paris later Sunday to was blocked, like Istill requestdeniedbyBartomeu,with mitted his futuretoBarcelona. league’smostlucrative player in Ravichandran Ashwin in the up- forwardtothe next Test." thinking about what Iwouldsay put the finishing touches on the am right now. Iwas whomhehad clashed.“Iwanted By July1hewas afreeagent, termsof commercialdealsandTV coming four matches, with the As partofthe newWorld Test today, but to be honestIcouldn’t dealwithaviewtohavingamed- to leave then,but notnow,” he withanew contract being for- rights,andaccordingto somepun- former preferredfor the firstTest Championship cycle, both India come up with anything. Iwas ical exam on Mondaymorning. convinced that we would said. “I didn’texpect it, so it’s sad malised. “... at the lastminute, it dits, this could well be apressure in whichIndiaweredeprivedof a and England logged home four blocked, likeIstill am right now,” AnemailfromTheAssociated remain with the club, to have to saygoodbye.” couldn’thappen. This year I tacticfromBarcato forceLaLigato victory owingtopersistent rain pointseach. Only250 plusovers Messi said.“Iwas convincedthat Press to PSG seeking to confirm which is our home.” Messispent nearly two wanted to stay andIcouldn’t. Last waterdownits FFP rules. thatwashedout the fifthday. outof amaximum450were pos- we would remain with the club, the reportwas notimmediately decades with Barcelona afterar- yearIdidn’twantto stay,andIsaid Interestingly, Real Madrid alsore- "Wewereexpecting rain on sible due to the weather.India, whichisour home.” answered. LIONEL MESSI riving from Argentina as a13- it,” Messi said. leasedastatement, attacking days threeandfourbutitchoseto chasingatargetof209,were well- Messi’sfamilyandsomeof his Messi saidhehopes to return year-old to play in itsyouth LaLiga, on theheels of Barcelona come on dayfive. It would have placedat52for onein14overs at teammateswere attheCampNou to Barcelonainsomecapacityone He said it will be “strange” to squads. He made his first-team What did Barcelona sayon confirming Messi’sexit. beenenjoyableto playandwatch, the endoffourth day. Though fortheemotionalfarewell.Hewas dayand that he wishedhecould seeBarcelonawithoutMessi,“but debutasa17-year-old, then Messi’s exit? but it's ashame," Kohli said after India hadtheirnose ahead, applaudedseveraltimesbythose have said goodbye to fans in a with time people will getusedto played17seasons with the main On August5,Barcelona con- Is Messi going to PSG? the match. "This is exactlywhat Englishskipper Joe Root said rain in the audience. matchwith acapacity crowd it.” He said the clubstillhas good squad.Hehelpedtheclubwinthe firmed that Messi “willnot con- Messiremainedcoy on his we wanted to do; startstrong. On marred"whatwouldhave beena The 34-year-old Messi chanting his name. He said it was players and can continuetosuc- ChampionsLeaguefourtimes,the tinue” with the club. Aday later, next move.But he has reportedly dayfiveweknewwehad our very interesting final day". avoided speaking specifically sadto leave afternot beingableto ceedwithout him. Spanishleague10 times,theCopa Laporta said:“Leo wanted to stay spoken with PSG coachMauricio chances. We certainlyfelt like we "Great Test matchtoplayin about hisfuture,saying he re- playinfront of fans fornearly a Barcelona announced del Reyseven times and the and the Club wanted himtostay, Pochettinoandtheclubismaking were on topofthe game." and watchaswell.Setsupthe se- ceivedoffersfromseveralclubsaf- year and ahalf. Thursdayitcouldnot keep its Spanish Super Cup eight times. butwiththeLaLigarulesithasnot arrangementsfor an EiffelTower Indianeededtoscore157 runs ries reallywell andhopefullywe terthe announcement that he He said hisbestmoment was greatestplayerbecause it wasn’t Messi leavesasBarcelona’sall- been possible.” The club wanted unveiling of Messi. PSG areone of on the final daybut the rain did cantake itintothenextgames.We would leave theCatalan club. his first-team debut in 2004,be- able to fitanewcontract within time leading scorer with 672 to extend the 34-year-old’s con- the very fewclubs thatcan afford notallowasingleballtobe certainlybelieved we could win. When asked about Paris Saint- cause“that’swhen it allstarted.” theSpanishleague’sfinancialfair- goals. He playedin778 matches tractbytwo years, but LaLiga’s the Argentine. Also,ownedby bowled. We knewwewould have oppor- Germain, considered thefron- Hesaidhehas“noregrets,”butbe- playregulations.Theclub’ssalary withthe club, also arecord.Heis FinancialFairPlay(FFP) rules pre- Qatari investors, Messi’sarrival "Gettingthatleadwascrucial, tunitiesif we tookourcatchesand trunnerto signhim,Messiadmit- lievedhewaspartofageneration caphasbeensignificantlyslashed also the overall topscorer in the vented it.Asper the rules, could unlock hugecommercial butit'sashamewe couldn'tfinish kept our fields. It's ashameit teditwas “a possibility.” that should have wonmore becauseof itshugedebt.President Spanish leaguewith 474goals Barcelona’swage-to-turnoverper- possibilities ahead of the 2022 dayfive.Gettingto fiftyovernight endedthis way,”Rootsaid. “AtthismomentIdon’thave a ChampionsLeague titles. JoanLaportablamedthe club’s from 520 matches. centagehas to be 70 percent. WorldCup in Qatar.

Kolkata WWW.INDIANEXPRESS.COM THEINDIANEXPRESS,MONDAY,AUGUST9,2021 SPORT 11 Menbehind themedals: Seven foreigners, 1Indian

The podium has place for only the athletes who perform in front of the world. But there’s always guiding hands and wise counsel that show the right path to a medal. The seven medals India won at Tokyo too owe a lot to the coaches who worked behind the scenes to ensure their wards succeeded on the biggest stage.

UWE HOHN VIJAY SHARMA KAMAL MALIKOV SHAKO BENTINIDIS RAFFAELE BERGAMASCO PARK TAE-SANG (HEAD COACH) & (CHIEF NATIONAL COACH) COUNTRY: RUSSIA COUNTRY: GEORGIA (HIGH PERFORMANCE DIRECTOR) COUNTRY: SOUTH KOREA DR KLAUS BARTONIETZ COUNTRY: INDIA ATHLETE: RAVI DAHIYA ATHLETE: BAJRANG PUNIA COUNTRY: ITALY ATHLETE: PV SINDHU (BIOMECHANICAL EXPERT) ATHLETE: MIRABAICHANU EVENT: 57KG FREESTYLE WRESTLING EVENT: 65KG FREESTYLE WRESTLING ATHLETE: LOVLINA BORGOHAIN EVENT: WOMEN’S SINGLES BADMINTON COUNTRY: GERMANY DISCIPLINE: WEIGHTLIFTING 49KG MEDAL: SILVER MEDAL: BRONZE EVENT: WOMEN’S WELTERWEIGHT BOXING MEDAL: BRONZE ATHLETE: NEERAJ CHOPRA MEDAL: SILVER MEDAL: BRONZE EVENT: JAVELIN THROW BROUGHT IN to prepare Sushil Kumarfor BAJRANG’S RISE to SINDHU’S GAME was MIRABAI CHANU TokyoOlympics’qualification, Malikov become one of the SON OF an basedon strength MEDAL: GOLD came under the wasmeanttobeafitness trainer,a topwrestlersinthe Olympian, and impressivehand THE JAVELIN guidance of Sharma, sparring partnerand observer forIndia’s 65kgcategory Bergamasco wasa speed,and she often thrower’s body is aformer national two-timemedallist. But once that wasno occurredafter five-timenational overpowers likeabowand the champion, in 2014, longerfeasible,Malikov wasemployed Bentinidis took over champion and took opponents. But she javelin an arrow. the same year he took from April2021underthe Target the reins of the26- part in theBeijing, neededmorevariety This is Dr charge of themen’s Olympic Podium Scheme (TOPS) to help year-old. An London and Rio anddimensions to win consistentlyagainst Bartonietz’s team forthe Commonwealth Games. Dahiya.For the Indian wrestler,Malikov animatedcoach,Bentinidishas facilitated Olympics as acoach. Afterguiding the Italian the best players in the world. EnterKorean philosophyand it Sharma’s owncareer as aweightlifterwas wasable to procureprime sparring sparring partners forBajrang from the women’s team from 2001 to 2007,hetook coach Park,who had chiselledintoshape worked likea curtailedbecause of awristinjury. He has partners in Vladikavkaz (Russia). The 23- UnitedStates andRussia. Thewrestler from over theirsenior andjuniormen’s sides and players likeSungJi-Hyun, whose on-court charm forChopra. Bartonietz has been aconstant during the highs and lows year old’s defeat in the gold medalmatch Haryana, thus,travelledacross the world contributedto sixOlympic medals.Hewas movement hadthe smoothness of aswanin immense knowledge aboutthe facedbyChanu. Aftershe failedtoproduce at thePoland Openwould prompt the looking forwrestlers whocan attackhim letgoafter abarrenrun in Rio, andfound his stillwater.Parknot onlygaveSindhu intricacies of the event and is one legal liftinthe clean and jerkatthe 2016 34-year-old coachand student to work with speed. Thegoal –toimprovehis leg waytoIndia in 2017,orchestratingthe assurance in her stride, but importantly, credited with making Chopra Rio Olympic, it wasSharma, along with her harder at improving reaction times and defence,anaspect that continues to bea country’s best ever medal haul at Youth workedlong qualityhoursonher defence - stronger,yet moreelastic, in his mother,who coaxedherout of thoughts the speedofcounters. Dahiyaisa weakness,and hisreaction times.Whilestill BoxingChampionships (fivegold, two always atargetowingtoher rangy frame.He movements. He waspartofthe core about retirement. Sharma joinedthe product of wrestling coachSatpal Singh notperfect, the influence of Bentinidis has bronze) thatNovember. Amonth later,he would also inject confidencein Sindhu’s team whichdevelopedjavelin- national campin2012after UP,the statehe and the set-up at Delhi’s Chhatrasal ledtoimprovementsinBajrang’s arsenal waspromotedtohigh performance director game at thenet.Whereshe would earlier specific work-out machines German coached, became national champions. Stadium. and an Olympic bronze medal to boot. forsenior women. swat at the shuttle and liftcopiously to move throwers swear by. the battleawayfromthe forecourt, in Tokyo UWE HOHN,the onlyman to throw Sindhu expertly engagedwithAkane the spear over 100metres, coached GRAHAM REID THE STINT with the Indianteam wasa making costlyerrorsatinopportune afterthe 7-1 hammering against Yamaguchi and didn'tshy away from the Choprawhen he wonthe shotatredemption forReid, who wasat moments. Afterthe loss to Belgium in the Australia, Reid ensured theteam didn’t dribbles. The smash-tap forcedopponents COUNTRY: Commonwealth and Asian Games the helm withAustralia when they semifinal, it wasReid’s jobtopickthe panic and fought on levelterms with all to dig deep, andthatmostlyworkedinthe gold medals in 2018.Heroped in AUSTRALIA crashedout of the Rio Olympics in the team up forthe bronze-medal playoff teams. He has toughenedthe team and Indian’s favour.Parkwas alsoanimated- Bartonietz forhis expertise in early TEAM: MEN’S HOCKEY quarterfinals with a4-0 thrashing against againstGermany, andIndia gave one of history will record that he wasincharge something Sindhu drawsgreatenergyfrom. 2019.BothGermans had worked with MEDAL: BRONZE the Netherlands. He has changedthe their mostrousing performancesina when India climbed theOlympic podium the Chinese national team earlier. team’s psyche, making them less prone to long time. Earlier in the tournament, in hockeyafter agap of 41 years. EXPRESSNEWS SERVICE

TOKYO MD Sporting world flattens GOVERNORINTHERANKS THERE'SAGOVERNOR inthemixfor Reading the medaltally: Tightestrace ever betweenTop 2, recordgold-winning nations, morecountriesonpodium theAmericanwomen'svolleyballteam. Notyour typical politician though, this onewasn'telectedbyatraditionalvote. theywon –27gold, 14 silverand 17 bronze – Apopularity voteinstead gave Jordan TUSHARBHADURI,SHAHIDJUDGE& MEDALTALLY in 2021makethis their mostsuccessful edi- Larsonthemoniker'TheGovernor.'And GAURAVBHATT tion. Astellar performance in judo helped youcan understand why. Thesix-foot- AUGUST8 COUNTRY GSBTOTAL the hosts in the overall ranking. In London, twoAmericanteamcaptaincomesfrom 1. USA394133112 Japan wonone gold medal in the sportand the small town of Hooper in Nebraska, IN Afinal dayswoop at Tokyo2020, the 2. China 38 32 18 88 three in Rio. Over the 15 eventsinJudo this with apopulation no morethan 900. United States earnedthe bragging rightsof 3. Japan27141758 past fortnight, they wonnine gold,two sil- Naturally, everybodyknowseverybody. Tokyo2020 by moving ahead of China on the 4. GreatBritain 22 21 22 65 verand abronze. Andeverybody theremakes alot of medal table. The three golds that they 5. ROC20282371 The Japanesealso dominated the new noise throughout the stateabout who clinchedonSundayjustput their noses in 6. Australia 17 07 22 46 skateboarding event, winningthree of the Larsonisto thepointthatshe'snowbe- front at the finish line, 39-38. The one in 7. Netherlands 10 12 14 36 four gold medals on offer. They also max- comeaveryrecognisablefigureallover women’s basketballmay have been on ex- 8. France 10 12 11 33 imisedthe return of baseball and softball to the state, and the mostpopular player pected lines, but the women’s volleyball 9. Germany10111637 the Games' line-up, taking both gold medals. in the country. team winning their firstevergolddrew them 10.Italy 10 10 20 40 That'swhatledthebrotherofateam- level, and Jennifer Valente’s cycling gold 48.India 01 02 04 07 Different name, similar haul matetogiveherthenickname.Andthere proved to be theclincher.The one-medal gap *G- Gold, S- Silver,B-Bronze Since theend of the Cold War, this was wasnoway one passing through the between thetop twoisthe closestever. the sixth Olympic Games where‘Russia’ town could go without knowing the BeforeTokyo, it wasatAthens2004that the competedasacountry. But they could not name.InherfirstOlympicappearanceat USAwith 36 gold and China with32gold swimming to three, but couldn’t defend their use their name, flag or anthem basedon London2012,everystoreinthetownhad were involved in atightrace. women’s volleyball title. International Olympic Committee (IOC) postersupof her,andalargebannerwas The other interesting aspect of the tally sanctions duetothe country’s infamous dop- put up at the entrance of the town read- wasthe emergence of first-timemedal win- Newhorizons ing scandal in 2014.Instead the contingent ing "Home of Olympian Jordan Larson ners. In what is the largest listofmedal-win- The Americans wongold in Tokyoinsev- went by the name Russian Olympic USAVolleyballwomen'snationalteam." ning countries at anyGames, 93 different na- eral eventsnot alwaysconsidered their Committee (ROC). This wasalso the second Thatsignwasremovedayearlaterwhen tions earnedapodium finish. The number of strengths. Lee Keifer wonanin- smallestcontingent from the authorities realiseditwas put-up with- gold-winning nations at an edition —63— dividual foil gold in fencing, country, 333 comparedtothe out permission. Larson wasinthe team also brokethe recordof59set at Rio 2016. Nevin Harrisonwon in canoe- 282 thattravelledtoRio. that wonsilverinLondon and bronze at JustlikeinRio, whereJordan, Kosovo and ingwhileAnastasija Zolotic tri- In terms of total number of 2016.Tokyo,she said, will be herlast Fiji medalledfor thefirsttime, the Tokyo umphedintaekwondo’s feath- medals woninTokyo, the 71 (20 Olympic Games. And she’s leaving it by Games endedwith three newcountries join- erweight class. gold, 28 silverand 23 bronze) conquering the higheststage. ing the medal table -San Marino, ForChina, gymnastics was put ROCthirdonthe leader- Turkmenistanand Burkina Faso. The newest abig success with four gold board. But theywerefifth based on the list of gold-winning nations areQatar, medals (including trampoline), on gold medals –the official DEBUTAT40 Bermuda and the Philippines. while in Rio theyfailedtowin a standard –behind the USA, THE LOWEST point of her sporting The final tallyseemedunlikelywith just single gold medal. Theyalso secured top China, Japan and Great Britain. career,CarolineGattaz says,iswhen afew days leftwhen China had asignificant spots on the podiuminsports likecanoeing, This wasabetter performance from the she didn’t makethe Braziliannational lead in the gold medal count. Over the last fencing,rowing, sailing and cycling. ROCcompared to the 19 golds eachin volleyball team forthe 2008 severaleditions,the topposition on the gold London and Rio. The gold medal in the Olympics. She watchedthe event medal table hasbeen the preserve of the USA India’s newhigh women’s team gymnastics event –their first from close quarters,working as a or China. In fact, the lastGameswhereathird With their best-evertally(one gold, two ever as Russia –made the difference. sports commentatorfor the Games nation toppedthe standings wasBarcelona silver, four bronze), India finished 48th on that sawBrazil win it’s firstwomen’s 1992, with the ‘UnifiedTeam’ of the erstwhile the table —their highestposition since the The Olympic ‘Ashes’ volleyball gold medal. Four years later, SovietUnion states securing the mostgold The one gold medal gapbetween the toptwo countries is the closestever. Before 1980 MoscowOlympics whichwas boy- Arivalry thattranscends sports, Great when theBrazilians defendedtheir ti- medals. TokyoOlympics, it wasatAthens 2004 that the USAwith 36 gold andChina with cotted by 66 countries because of the Britain again pippedthe Australians in the tle in London 2012,she again didn’t 32 gold were involved in suchatight and frenetic race. AP Soviet–Afghan War. India finished23rdin gold medal tally, 22 to 17 to finishfourth makethe cutand by 2013 stopped Fluctuating fortunes Russia, having wonjustthe men’s hockey and sixth respectively in the overall tally, playing forthe national team. In The US’s gold medal countof39this time gold. In fact, the 48th position in Tokyois though the latter had amuchbettershow- Tokyo, the Brazilians areupagainst is down from the 46 golds theywon at Rio their traditional strongholds likeswimming China meanwhile improved theiralready India's best finish at anyOlympics where ing this time –theywon justeight golds in the Americanteam in the final, just as 2016 andLondon 2012 each. China, which (16inRio, 11 in Tokyo), athletics (13in2016 impressiveperformance in weightlifting theywon morethan twomedals (theywere Rio. The Australians, courtesy Ariarne it wasinBeijing and London. Forthe dominated on home turf in Beijing 2008 and sevennow)and gymnastics (four and (sevengold medals this time compared to ranked 26th with agoldand bronze at Titmus’ double gold over USA’s Katie firsttime in eight years, Gattaz has with 48 gold, won26goldinRio 2016,just two). The retirement of Michael Phelps and five in Rio) while matchingthe seventhey Helsinki 1952). Ledecky,won nine golds in swimming com- been calledintoplayfor thenational one behind Great Britain who finishedsec- the withdrawal of Simone Biles affected the wonindivingfromfiveyears ago. Shooting pared to the three from Rio. Meanwhile the team. At 40, she's making her Olympic ond. In Tokyothough, the Chinese have tally. But the Americans still managed to gain wasasuccessful event, as theyclinched four Golden sunrise in Japan Britscontinueddominating the cycling debut and she's justamatchaway equalledthe gold medal haul theyachieved newstrides in other events-wrestling, gold, comparedtothe solitarygold Zhang Japan finishedthird –their best –inthe eventlikeonlythe Britscan,winning six from winning gold. ENS in London 2012. shooting, golf, fencing, and the new3x3 bas- Mengxue woninthe 10mair pistolevent in overall medal table forthe thirdtime (after gold, four silverand twobronze medals just The American haul this term droppedin ketball and surfing events. Rio. Theyalso tripledtheir gold medal in Rome 1960 and Tokyo1964). The 58 medals as theydid five years ago.

IRISH HERO Cleaner at pyschiatric hospital, LGBTQ idol and now boxing champion

(that turnedmylifearound).Ijustneeded say, ‘I’m so sorry yougot demoted’. “I’m on ing her daughter to the famous boutsof tempovan. Dublin Live covereditlive, SRIRAMVEERA something and boxingwas cheap,cheerful the decklaughing, I’m like, ‘Don’t worry Mohammad Ali and Jo Frazier.“Iwas confi- breathlesslyfor over an hour.Buntings flut- AUGUST 8 andthere’s aboxing club on everysecond about it, someone has to do it,it’satough dentwatchingher.You know by Kelliewhen teredabove theirheads, drinksintheir corner in the inner city,”she said in 2019.“I jobbut someone has to do it’,” she told re- she is getting intothe ring when she is fo- hands, and Irish cheers and screams of AHORSE carriagefromaneighbour,the could neverhavegone to sailing or GAAor porters in ’18. “It’s arewardingjob forme. cused, focused. youjustknowshe is going ‘C’mon Kellie!’ rung the air.Asthe seconds bunting from arecent funeralofalovedfig- horse riding. One, my familywouldn’thave The job itself is notsogreat but it’s the inter- to give everything. It waslikewhen we were tickedtowards the end,everyone startedto ureisall over her street,helium balloons had the money andtwo,they’renot in the action. They’revulnerable people and Ijust kids, yougot up to watchMuhammad Ali scream hername.And aslight hushfell as from aresident,gifts from thelocal ‘lolly- area. “It’s nearly likeatradition in the inner likebeing able to go in and put asmile on and Joe Frazier,exceptthat wasour Kellie." they waited forthe verdict. Raucous cheers pop lady’, asongrecorded by neighbour – city. Everyone hasafamilymember who’s theirface basically.” ThereisafamousDublin landmarknear go up as the announcer’s voice went.. ‘in the the neighbourhood in Dublin’s north inner- boxed. Forme, that wasmyoption.Growing The Irish Times has this lovely snippet home with an Indianconnection. red..’ and an impromptudancestarts. Tears. cityiswaitingproudly forthe return of the up, youwould always see people walking from ameeting with the parentsYvonne, The Five Lamps, at the intersection of Laughter.And all starttorun along the rain- gold-winning Irish boxerKellie Harrington. around with their (kit)bags or out jogging. the mother,and ChristyHarrington, the fa- five streetsthat includesHarrington’s soaked street to Harrington’s home. The When she wonthe semi-final boutof Ever since then Ihaven’t lookedback.” ther.Hereisthe mother aboutthe strange PortlandRow is in honour of ageneral who familyemergesdazed, euphoric, emotional women’s boxing lightweight event to enter Boxinggaveher gold and alsoapartner. eventsafter her daughter’s win. “Two lads served in India. It’s claimedthat the lamps —and more screams and tears flow. the final, sheplunged forthe mostphilo- Shemet Mandy Loughlin,who doesn’t box arrivedfromanewspaper and theywanted symbolise five battlesfought by the British Kellie’s mother, cladinat-shirt withher sophicalline of our timesfromLionKing: anymore but is acoach. “She’snot compet- to photograph us sprinkling around holy in India in the 19th century. The website daughter’s face plastered, is joyouslytear- "LikeIsaid, Hakuna Matata, it means no itive anymore. Butthat’s howweended up waterfromLourdes, ”laughedChristy.” DublinLivealso positsthat it represents ful and is hoistedupon the shoulders. On a worries." Arolemodel forthe inner-city meeting. It’sasmall world.” Theysaid no. “Then he wanted Christyto the “fivelamps lit forluckduringthe t-shirtofher grandma, the text runs, kids, Harrington is openlylesbian, apart- Putting smiles on peoplegives her the waterthe plantswith it,” said the mother Hindu festival”. Whatever be itsorigins, “Hakuna Matata!” and she toofinds herself time cleanerinapsychiatric hospital and greatestjoy.Likeher cleaning job at the hos- Yvonne. “I think it’s because Isay Igoout it’s about to turn golden in the night to cel- on shoulders. Music blares from aspeaker someone who lovesher job and thejabs. pital, whichshe has held for10years. She Ireland's Kellie Anne Harrington after into thegarden andpray whenKellieison ebratethe best boxeroftheir neighbour- and dance breaksout in the street.The It’salongcry from her teens when she used to be in thecatering department be- her bout withBrazil's Beatriz Ferreira –asany mother would. But I’m nothugely hood and the world. mother then waves ahomemade banner, feared she mightend up in prison.“That’s fore shiftedtocleaning. Some patientssaw in the lightweight 60-kg boxing gold religious: if youdoagood turn forsome- On the fight day, the neighbourhood “Kelli, Our Golden Girl…The Olympic (prison) wasagreat possibility.Thankfully it as ademotion. “Ah Jesus, Kellie’ and I’ll medal matchinTokyo. AP one, that’s my belief.” congregated in masksinacommon area Champion”. And someone screams, “oh Ididn’t. There’s no doubtitwas theboxing say, ‘What’s wrong withyou?“And she’ll The father compared the thrill of watch- withabig screen hoisted on apolefroma what aday!”

Kolkata WWW.INDIANEXPRESS.COM 12 THESPINDIANEXPRESS,ORMONDAY,AUGUST9,T2021

TOKYO MD CLOSINGCEREMONY

Athletesfromthe United States walk intothe Olympic Stadiumfor the closing ceremony. Japan’s flag bearer, one

to watch out CURTAIN FALLS: The word Arigato, thank youinJapanese, appears on agiantscreen duringthe closing ceremony of the TokyoOlympics on Sunday. for in Paris Kipchoge is THEY ACED the debuting sports in Tokyo, and Japan have seeminglythrowndownfor Gold forsound artists Paris 2024 as well. One marathon of the flag bearers for the hosts at theclosing king again ceremonywas Ramu Thousandsofhigh-techmicrophonescapturedevery thud, swish, grunt andrelayedittomillions 'Ram' Kawai, the 2018 youth Olympics break- to them but close enough to captureall the ing champion. As per drama. The toughest, perhaps, is rowing ASSOCIATEDPRESS thequalification wheremostofthe action takesplace in the SAPPORO,AUGUST8 process, the Kanagawa- EXPRESSAT bay, and it’s notalways possible to getthe born B-girl firstfloored the judges with a mic close to the rowers to capture the sound ELIUD KIPCHOGE justdecideditwas time to one-minute, unedited videoofher perform- OLYMPICS of the paddle hitting the water. sprint away.Simple as that. He neverreally ance, then wonthe continental qualifier in “Here, if the mics fail, then we use artifi- even looked back. Taipei City before wind millingand head cialsounds. But that’s justabackupoption Exceptnear the finish, spinning her waytogold In Buenos Aires. MIHIRVASAVDA in case something goes wrong,” Duarte says. simplytosee if anyone LastDecember,breaking —the compet- TOKYO,AUGUST8 “You needtosee asport like music.All sports wasthere. Of course, no itive form of breakdancing —was confirmed have asound, and we have to captureit. The one wasevenclose. as partofthe final line-up forthe Paris VIKTORIA LISTUNOVA walksuptothe un- best waytocaptureismics. The international Kipchoge pulled Games. And Kawai, amember of one of the even bars. Pauses. Mutters some words. federations understood the importanceof away lateand pretty mostfamous breakingcrews in the world Takesadeep breath. the sound of the sport. So, theyalso allowthis muchwent forastroll in 'Floorrioz', is earmarkedtobecome the first Latches ontothe bar and twirls on it. to getnear to the athletes, to gettheir sound. the park—Odori Park — female Olympic breaking champion. Completesher routine, bows and walksback If youhavethe sound, youunderstand the as the 36-year-old Kenyan defendedhis In Tokyo, Japan won12medals across the in an empty, silentarena. Watching it from sportbetter.” Olympic marathon title Sunday. four debuting sports (skateboarding, surf- the stands, it felt alittle hollow. He givesthe exampleofskiing, where Immediately afterhis finish,heheld up ing, climbing and karate); twomoreifyou But then, youwatchitonthe TV,and the some formerplayers told him theywereable twofingers to acknowledge his back-to-back countthe returning baseball and softball. experience transforms: when the Russian to gauge if the snowwas hardorsoftjustby marathon titles. Vignettes of Tokyofor those gymnastwalks ontothe platform, youcan listening to thesound of the pole swooshing Clearly,though, he’s No.1.“King,” oneof hear her soft, small steps. When she pauses Nuno Duarte,senior manager(audio) of theOlympic Broadcasting Services, at the through it. “That way, they knowifthe ath- his fellowracerssaid as he walked by. who missedout at the edge,you can hear the wordsshe mut- International Broadcasting CentreinTokyo. lete will be faster or slowerthan the previ- Kipchogefinished in 2hours, 8minutes, Just afterastunning light show, aSunday ters and feel the tension when she deeplyin- ous one.” 38 seconds on abreezy and humid dayalong afternoon parkinTokyowas recreated to the hales; and when her hands slap the wood The mics aremostessential in capturing the streetsofSapporo. It was80seconds accompaniment of orchestral music. Justto while she performs, youcan hear everythud who do notunderstand it throughthe sound whichshapedlikeaspike-protein, hung on the sound on sight. From there, it travels to aheadofrunner-up Abdi Nageeyeofthe give arepresentation of what Japanese peo- and the flexing of the bar. of it. “It’s the perception of emotions,” Duarte the roof of the venues and is so small that, an OB vanthat’s at the venue. There, the en- Netherlands. Bashir Abdi of Belgium earned ple areuptoinaparkonSunday.Anideager- The surreal TokyoOlympicstook place in tells The Indian Express. from adistance, it can be hardtospotitata gineers makethe mix, whichisthen sent to bronze to closeout the trackand field por- minated to give the athletes unable to getout these twoparallel worlds: one, inside the sta- “For example, the famous movie of venue. That mic, aprototype that is being the International Broadcasting Centre(IBC). tion of the TokyoGames. of the villagedue to covidrestrictions. If they diums, whereitwas mostlydeathlysilence, (Steven) Spielberg, Shark… if yousee that usedfor thefirsttime at the Olympics, cap- The IBC is whereall the action is in terms This wasarunning clinic put on by and the fans (notallowedthis Olympics) had and the other on the television, wherethe movie without sound, youdon’thaveemo- tures the ambient sounds at almostall ven- of the broadcastofthe Games. It’s located in- Kipchoge, who even fist-bumpedafellow steppedout to thestreets,this is what they sights and soundsfelt moreintimate than tion or suspense. (But) Once youput the ues, whichhelps in creating the ‘immersive side afunnel-shapedbuilding by the Tokyo racer.Kipchoge becomes the thirdathlete to would have witnessed. ever before;whereitalmostdidn’tmatter sound, all emotions change. It’s the same in sound’ experience that Duarte is excited bayand in atinycorner office, asupervisor, win multiple gold medals in the men’s Sombretopeppy: Contrasting that theathletes were performinginfront of sport.” about forthese Games. with control to audio from all venues, com- marathon, joining AbebeBikila (1960, 1964) emptystands. When it wasannouncedthat To generatethe same emotions without pletesthe final checks. and Waldemar Cierpinski (1976, 1980). ceremonies the Games would be held without specta- the fans in thestadiums, who areanintegral Discreetplacements The sound is then syncedwith the video About hisreaction before makinghis In contrasttothe sombre, almostbrood- tors, owing to thepandemic, the grand fest part of it,was achallenge. In Tokyo, theor- The other mics areplaceddiscreetly, so and then,itistransportedthrough the fibre move:“That smile is the happiness,” ing, ruminative theme is the openingcere- that the Olympics is wasinstantlyreduced ganisers triedtorecreateasemblance of that theydon’t getinanathlete’s face but still cap- cables under the sea to all TV stations that Kipchogesaid. “Theysay to enjoythis world mony, the end wasimmenselypeppy. to amade-for-TVevent. atmospherebyplaying fake crowdnoises at tureall thesounds.Theyare hung on the nets, have the rightstobroadcastthe Olympics be- is to be happy.”About that latesurge:“I Orchestral bands and DJ Matsunaga, awin- ForNuno Duarte and his team, this meant some of the venues. submergedinsands and underwater, on the fore it is finallyrelayedtomillions of homes. wanted to test my fitness. Iwanted to test ner of worksDJchampionship, strutted his the challengetomakesurethe emotions of ForDuarte,apurist, this wasn’t an option cars andunderneath the carpets. “That’s asimple wayofputting it,” Duarte howI’m feeling. Iwas feeling right.” stuffonthe turntable. Beforethe Greece flag the venueand the feelingsofthe athletes forthe Games’ broadcasteventhough it In archery, forinstance, mics areplaced says.“All this happens in milliseconds to get Abouthis legacy:“Iwant to be the inspi- went up in honor of whereitall began. reachedevery living room across the world practicallybecame anorm forall matches notjustnear the shooting line,but theyare it on air.” ration forthe next generation.” EiffelTowermisses out got even morethrilling. that were held without fans. also hidden underthe carpetleading up to Sometimes, the broadcasters add fake The temperaturewas around 77 degrees Duarte,the senior manager,audio, of the The OBS, instead, decided to transmit the target to capturethe ‘whoosh’ of the ar- crowdnoise to their production. Likeithas Fahrenheit (25 degrees Celsius)atthe start because of bad weather Olympic Broadcasting Services, putsthe whatactuallywas happeninginthe stadium. rowwhen it pierces through the air.Inthe happened in Tokyo, in some cases. Duarte,a andclimbing to 84 degrees (29 degrees). The The plan wastouse Eiffel towerinParis as channels of information intotwo brackets: “If we do synthetic or fake crowd, we arenot pool, when the swimmers touchthe wall, a purist, scoffs at themerethought of it. For men’s race stayed at the same time afterthe the largest flag poleinthe closing ceremony moving images that we see, and the sound showing what’s going on in the heartofthe production official leans over and dips acam- him, an ideal sound of sportisbasic. “The one women’s race wasmoved up an hour the day shots but due to badweather theyhad to we hear.The latter,manythink justhappens. athletesand competition,” he says. erathat has amic attachedtoitsoastoget whereIclose my eyes, Ican feel emotions of before to avoid the heat. It washumid, drop the plan. Theydid asuccessful rehearsal But Duarte,who has wonEmmys forthe It is here, his secret ‘weapons’madeadif- the sound of what goes on underwater. the venue and feel of the athletes.” though, at around 81%asthe runners wound of it in June. sound design of the London and Rio ference: 3,600 microphones of 32 different On the golf course, another production Manywatching the TokyoOlympics from their waythrough Sapporo, about 500miles Olympics, explains his biggestchallenge: models. “It’s important to use correct micro- assistant walksthe entirecourse withthe home might have had the best seat in the north of Tokyo. The race wasmoved to es- SRIRAMVEERA,GAURAVBHATT making the sportaccessible to even those phones,” he says,holding up his latesttoy, golfers with aboom mic, notgetting tooclose house. cape the extreme heat. BY INVITATION ‘He may be an Olympicchampion butIstill dread sharingaroom with Neeraj’

he wasfine. looked up to. and he justsaid howIknewfor surethat my TEJASWINSHANKAR He is very different from us. Imagine he He’s one of those persons who But Ithink he owesmesomething.After brotherwould win the gold. Afterthe fourth has wonIndia’s first-everathletics medal but his Worldjunior medal, his Instagram got round,Iwasonmyfeetshivering in nervous THIS MORNINGwhen Iwas asleep, Igot a he’s telling me that he’s feeling bad for can neversay no to youifyou’re floodedwith messages, especiallyfrom excitement. Ihavenot seenPTUsha ma’am video call from Wayne Lombard, adear (Johannes) Vetter.He’s one of thosepersons hisfriend. Iremember him women. Although he wasn’t interestedin or (GS) Randhawa sir butIhave seen Neeraj friend and scientific advisor of the Indian who can neversay no to youifyou’rehis telling me once that alot of anyofthem, forcourtesy’s sake, he asked me and Iamblessedtobeborn in this generation. women’shockey team. IpickedupWayne friend. Iremember him telling me once that to replytothem. He told me whathewanted Imet Neeraj forthe firsttime in adope- Bhai’s call andsaw asmiling Neeraj with a alot of people had borrowedmoneyfrom people hadborrowedmoney me to writeinHindiand Iwould do the rest. testing room in Hyderabad backin2015and medal around his neck. him and that he’snot even cared to makea from him and that he’s noteven We even shared aroomfor 15 days in hadno ideawho he was. Iwas like,who is this Iwas still half-asleep and foramoment note or alist. Ihonestlyfeel he’s toonice for cared to makeanoteoralist. Bangalore. Honestly, he maybeanOlympic guy with hair.Wespoke and later exchanged thought it wasadream. Iquicklywent to the his owngood. champion nowbut Istilldread sharing a numbers.Our real bondinghappenedduring bathroom and washedmyfaceand applied room with him. He’s abit disorganised. If you the2016SouthAsian Games. We both were some talcum powder.“Bhai tu soh raha tha Inspirational ment job. He didn’t seem interestedinthe enter his room, you’ll find his clothes drying among the youngestathletesand Iwas feeling na?” (You were sleeping?),Neeraj askedme. The moment Neeraj sealedthe gold, Ihad conversation at all and wasextending his on the bed or his socks in themiddleofthe abit out of place as Ididn’t have anyfriends. I “Of course, you’ll find mostpeople asleep at arushofadrenaline and, believe it or not, I arm and doing this weirdthrow action. I room. Ididn’t sayanything to him because spoketoNeerajand he told me that Ibelong six in the morning,” Ireplied. went down on the floorand did 20 push-ups. askedhim,“What areyou doing? Whyaren’t sharing aroomwith Neeraj wasahugething hereand likeotherathletes, Itoo have metthe ButIwas touched. Iamnot an emotional Iwas so pumpedupthatParis 2024 wasal- youresponding?” He replied, “You know, I forme. We bondedoverfriedrice andmatka qualification standardtobethere. That’s person but had tears in my eyes whichItried ready running in my mind. can easilyadd another twometresifIgetmy kulfifor thenextfortnight. The onlyboys’talk whereour friendship beganand it didn’t take best to hide with alittle help of the powder. In 2016 afterhis Junior World TokyoOlympics gold medallistNeeraj block(the extension of his leftleg at the point we had wasabout video games. He wascrazy long forittoblossom intobrotherhood. Neeraj took me through his throws. Iwas Championship gold medal, Iwas taking a Chopraand high jumperTejaswin of release) right. Irealised that daythat about Mini Militia then and nowhe’s into only concernedifhewas okaybecause after walk with Neeraj at the JSWfacilitiesin Shankar duringthe Commonwealth moneyand recognition don’t matter to him. PubG.I’ll ask him if hasagirlfriend when I (TEJASWINSHANKARISTHENATIONAL the fourth throw,heseemedtobeinsome Bellary. Iasked him what he’s done with all Games in Gold Coast. He hadhis eyes setonjustimproving him- meethim next time. RECORDHOLDERINMEN’SHIGHJUMP. discomfort. Iwas relievedwhen he told me the prize moneyorifhe’s secured agovern- self. From that day, he became aperson I We spokebeforethe qualification round HESPOKETOANDREWAMSAN)

R.N.I. No.WBENG/2005/20789 VOL. XVII No.118 Printed by V.Srinivasan and Published by V.Srinivasan on behalf of The Indian Express (P) Ltd and Printed at Saraswati Print FactoryPvt.Ltd, 789, Chowbhaga(West), Kolkata-700105and PublishedatThe Indian Express (P) Ltd JL No.29 &30, N.H.-6, Mouza-Prasastha &Ankurhati, P.O. -Salap, P.S.-Domjur,Howrah-711 409. Ph: (033)66043800Fax: (033) 66043825 &66043847.Chairman of theBoard:ViveckGoenka, Chief Editor :Raj Kamal Jha, Editor :Unni Rajen Shanker,Editor (Kolkata):Rakesh Sinha* (*Responsible forselection of news under the PRB Act)Copyright :The Indian Express (P) Limited.All rightsreserved.Reproduction in anymanner,electronic or otherwise,in whole or in part,without prior written permission is prohibited.The Indian Express®

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