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NEXT ROUND TOMORROW, GOVT EXPLORES WAY OUT FarmerunionsbegintalkswithCentre;say ` 85 per kilo notopanel,agreetorevertwithobjections ` 114 per kilo ` 139 per kilo We proposeda Haryanaally JJP suggests: ` 62 per Dozen panel, but unions Why not addaline on MSP said talk to all, Chautala said. says Agriculture SUKHBIRSIWACH Dushyant's younger brother CHANDIGARH,DECEMBER1 and JJP leader Digvijaysaid the MinisterTomar JJPwoulddecideits "futurestrat- WITH MOSTofthe 10 JJP MLAs egy"depending on talksbe- coming out in supportofthe tween farmers and the Centre. HARIKISHANSHARMA protesting farmers, theBJP ally The farmers aredemanding &LIZMATHEW in Haryana Tuesdaybackedtheir that either the MSP guarantee NEWDELHI,DECEMBER1 Farmer leaders withCabinetministers at Vigyan Bhawanin demand forassured MSP for be weaved intothe current Delhi Tuesday. Tashi Tobgyal crops. JJP chief AjaySingh farm laws or aseparatelaw be MOVINGTOresolve the standoff Chautala, the father of Haryana introducedtoensurethe same. with farmers protesting at the Deputy Chief MinisterDushyant On Tuesday, severalJJP MLAs, On adversereaction gatesofDelhi againstnewly en- Rabi sowing over, farmers Chautala, said the Centreshould some of whom have acted farm laws,the Centre consider inclusion of MSPs in the been backing the farmers' ob- openedtalksTuesdaywith farm laws."What is the problem jectionstothe new claimfrom Chennai, farmer representativeswho, have timeontheir side in writing one line?" Ajay CONTINUEDONPAGE2 while notwarming up to itssug- gestion of forming acommittee ment,onthe other hand, has Centre says no need to look into their demands, HARISHDAMODARAN ruledout anyrollback, or even BUSINESSASUSUAL agreedtocontinuethe dialogue. NEWDELHI,DECEMBER1 putting on hold the implemen- Trudeau backs protest; Following the meeting that tation of the newlaws. Forit, BY UNNY to stop vaccine trial lasted three-and-halfhours in MOSTNEGOTIATIONS startfrom theseActs, whichrelate to dis- ‘ill-informed’, says India Vigyan BhavaninNew Delhi, maximalistpositions. It mantling the monop- Union AgricultureMinister isn’t anydifferent in the olyofAPMC Ethics committee, regulatorinplace NarendraSingh Tomar,who led current standoff between ED (Agricultural Produce SHUBHAJITROY the talkswith the farmers, told the Centreand farmer MarketCommittee) NEWDELHI,DECEMBER1 to probeany adverse event, says govt reporters: “The meeting was unions over the three mandis in sale and

EXPLAIN E● good, and we have decidedto agricultural reform legis- purchase of crops, en- AS CANADIAN Prime Minister ‘Situation is hold the next round of talkson lations. abling contract farm- Justin Trudeaucame out in sup- concerning’ KAUNAINSHERIFFM December 3. We wanted asmall The farmer body representa- ing and doing away withstock- portofthe protesting farmers, NEWDELHI,DECEMBER1 group to be constituted,but the tives, mostlyfromPunjab and holding restrictions in foodstuffs, India respondedsharplyon farmer leaders wanted the talks Haryana, aredemanding acom- represent astatement of itscom- Tuesdayagainst“ill-informed from India aboutthe protestby UNDERLININGTHATseveral to be held with everyone. We do pleterepeal of the “kala kanoon mitment to economic reforms. comments” on the “internal af- farmers. The situation is con- checks areinplacetotrack ad- nothaveaproblem with it.” (blacklaws)”.Ifthatisn't enough, On Monday, the Prime fairs of ademocratic country”. cerning. We areall very worried verse reactions reportedinclin- Tomar,Railway Minister theyalso want the minimum Minister, at apublic rallyin SpeakingtoCanadian-Sikh about familyand friends. We ical trials forthe Covidvaccine Piyush Goyaland Ministerof supportprice (MSP) forcrops to Varanasi,denouncedthe oppo- community leadersatanonline knowthat’s arealityfor many of candidatebeing developedby State(Commerce and Industry) be made an entitlement, with nentsofthe newlawsfor spread- event on the occasion of you. Letmeremind you, Canada Serum Institute of India(SII), the At SerumInstitute of India SPORTSPERSONSTO SomPrakash spoketorepresen- the full forceoflaw rather than a ing “misinformation” and “fear” Gurpurab, Trudeausaid: “I will always be theretodefend CentreTuesday saidits initial as- on Monday. Reuters RETURN AWARDS IN tativesof35farmer unions who merepolicy announcement. among farmers. would be remiss if Ididn’t start the rightsofpeaceful protesters. sessment “did notnecessitate PROTEST PAGE 11 CONTINUEDONPAGE2 The NarendraModi govern- CONTINUEDONPAGE2 by recognising the news coming CONTINUEDONPAGE2 stoppage” afteraChennai-based trial participant sought compen- ICMR and SII arethe Indian sation of Rs 5crore from the partners of the vaccine being de- Punecompanyfor suffering a velopedbyOxfordUniversity THE CITY “severe adverse reaction”. and AstraZeneca. On Sunday, SII DDC Phase 2: South In name of conversion, UP ‘love In itsfirstpublic remarksover had said the trial participant’s al- the notice, the government also legation was“malicious”,his said that it has no role to play in medicalconditionwas not Kashmir pulls down jihad’ law targets inter-faith unions suchclaims filedanywherein linked to the vaccine trial, and the country. “ICMR has no role in that it would seek damages of Rs Shifts burden of proof, keeps ‘allurement’ wide open endorsing or notendorsingale- 100crore. Valley turnout to 33% galclaim filedanywhere in the “What is important to re- The Uttar Pradesh Prohibition purpose of unlawful conversion” country,”Union Health Secretary member is that adverse events percentageinPulwama APURVAVISHWANATH of UnlawfulConversionof or “vice-versa” willbe“deemed Rajesh Bhushan said. do occur withdrugs, vaccines,or BASHAARAT was8.67per cent, the BENGALURU,DECEMBER1 ReligionOrdinance, 2020,prom- null and void” by afamilycourt 7-KM CHASELEADS ICMR chief Dr Balram anyother health intervention. It MASOOD,NAVEED lowest,justlikein ulgatedlastweek,in the name of unlessaprior sanction to convert POLICE TO 190-KG Bhargava said the initial assess- CONTINUEDONPAGE2 IQBAL, Phase I. SHIFTINGthe burden of proof of seeking to endconversion and marryisreceived from the SANDALWOOD ment conducted by the regula- ARUNSHARMA Compared withthe alawful religious conversion through unlawful means, specif- districtmagistrate. STASH, POSSIBLE toronthe basis of documents NOT SPOKEN OF ZAINAGEER 41 percent turnout in from the converted to his/her icallyprohibitsany conversion “Thereisnolegal basisfor SMUGGLINGRACKET sent to it by independent moni- (SOPORE),JOURIAN, the Valleyinthe first partner;defining “allurement” formarriage, even if it is with the prohibiting conversions, even toring bodies “did notnecessi- VACCINATING ENTIRE DECISION PAGE 6 DECEMBER1 2020 phase, the Election in sweeping terms; disregarding consent of the individual except solely formarriage,” said Jayna tate stoppageofthesetrials”. COUNTRY: GOVT P12 J&K Commission said onlya agency of the person converting; when prior sanctionisobtained Kothari, senior advocateand co- AFTER AN encouraging DISTRICT, thirdoftotal voters cast different jail terms depending on from the state. founderofCentrefor Lawand firstphase of the LOCAL POLLS their votesinthe sec- gender;legitimising the intru- Section 3ofthe Ordinance, Policy Research,aBengaluru- DistrictDevelopment ond phase. In Jammu, sion of the stateand thirdparties being seenasatemplatebymany basedlegal advocacygroup. “By Naval version of BrahMos tested from Council (DDC) polls, the the turnoutwas significantly in the choice of who an individ- BJP-ruledstates, prohibitsany involvingthe state, the police Kashmir Division sawadip in higher at 65.54per cent, placing ual wishestomarry –the new unlawful conversion and conver- and the familyofthe individuals voter turnoutintwo districtsin the overall poll percentageofthe Uttar Pradesh “love jihad law” sion generallyfor marriage. Its seeking to marry,the lawat- destroyer warship in BayofBengal south —Anantnag and Shopian Union territoryat48.62 percent. raises severalquestions of Section 6specifies that “anymar- tempts to onlystopall inter-faith —inthe second phase. Polling CONTINUEDONPAGE2 Constitutional propriety. riagethat takesplace forthe sole CONTINUEDONPAGE2 EXPRESSNEWSSERVICE PUNE, DECEMBER 1 MAHARASHTRA: GRADUATES’ &TEACHERS’ CONSTITUENCY POLLS Public office hastoface criticism, THE NAVALversion of the BrahMos missile wassuccess- Despite pandemic, Pune dist fullytest-firedonTuesday allow youth to express: Bombay HC morning from the Indian sees higher voter turnout Navy’s Rajput-class destroyer Holey(38), aNaviMumbai resi- ing to public mischief)and 153A INS Ranvijay, hitting adecom- voting percentagesaw aconsid- EXPRESSNEWSSERVICE dent who wasbooked by the (promotingenmity between dif- missionedtargetshipinthe EXPRESSNEWSSERVICE erable jumpcompared to the MUMBAI,DECEMBER1 MumbaiandPalgharpoliceforal- ferent groups) of the Indian Penal BayofBengal,aspartofaseries PUNE,DECEMBER1 percentagerecordedduringthe legedly makingoffensive remarks Code and provisions of the IT Act. of testsofthe supersonic cruise lastelection six years ago, said STATINGTHATa“publicofficeina on social media againstChief On October30, thecourthad missile. ‘The missile performedhighlycomplexmanoeuvres and hit VOTINGFOR the graduates' and election officials. democracy” has to face criticism, MinisterUddhavThackeray and directed Holeytoappear before On November 24,the Indian bull’s eyeofthe target’. PTI teachers' constituency seats By the end of polling at 5pm the BombayHigh Courton his son AadityaThackeray in July thepoliceandcooperatewiththe Armyhad successfully went offsmoothlyinthe five dis- in Pune district, 44.87per cent Tuesdaysaid“ultimately, thepeo- this year. investigation.“Thejobof policeof- launchedBrahMosfromCar trictsofPune Division on registeredvoters in graduates' plehave to findabalancebetween Holeysought interim protec- ficers is difficult during these Nicobar Islands in a'top-attack' Indian Navy tweetedfrom ''The missile performedhighly Tuesday. Theelection –the first constituency and 58.43 per cent therightsoftheentiresocietyand tion from arrest andquashing of times.Sometimestheyhavemore configuration, hitting atarget itsofficial handle on Tuesday, complexmanoeuvres and hit in the statesince the Covid-19 in teachers' constituencyhad individual rights”. The court also all FIRs and chargeslevelled than 12-hour shifts.Then they in BayBengal. The launchwas "Indian Navy hones itscombat bull’s eyeofthe target." pandemic hit the country–will casttheir votes. Thevoting per- observedthat “if we do notallow againsther.The Mumbai and have to dobandobast formorchas firstinaseries of launches of readiness.Brahmos AShM (Anti INS Ranvijay is aRajput-class decide the fate of twoseatsinthe centages in Pune district, during the younger generation to ex- PalgharpolicehadfiledthreeFIRs and processions. the various versions of the mis- ShipMissile) launchedbyINS destroyer warship of the Indian Legislative Council, one each the lastelection held six years press, howwill theyknowthat againstHoley, afterseveral per- CONTINUEDONPAGE2 sile over the following days in a Ranvijay strikes the target ship Navy.This class of Russian-ori- from the graduates' and teach- ago, were only21.93 per cent in what theyare expressing is right sons, including Yuva Senamem- displayofIndia's tactical cruise at maxrangewith pinpoint ac- gin destroyer warship is built to ers' constituencies. Pune graduates'constituency or wrong”. berRohan Chavan, filedpolice missile triad. The November 24 curacy in BayofBengal."The launch missiles foroperations Despitethe restrictions in and 50.31per cent in the teach- The division benchofJustices complaints againsther. A-G CONSENT TO test wasfollowedbytwo tests MinistryofDefence said in an againstvarious surface,air and place, and health concerns due ers' constituency,said officials. SSShinde and MSKarnik was She wasbooked under CONTEMPT AGAINST the next day-one by the Army official statement that the test underwater targets. to the ongoing pandemic, the CONTINUEDONPAGE11 hearing aplea filedbySunaina Sections505(statementsconduc- COMIC ARTIST PAGE 12 and another by IAF. wasconducted at 9amand that CONTINUEDONPAGE2 Aheadofpolls, apromise: Vote forGoa ForwardParty, getcompulsorysiestahour PAGE 1 but Sardesai, whoseparty has lunchshouldbefollowedby when it comes to contentiousso- ask forsuchafastlife, whydowe their counterparts from Gujarat ANCHOR beenaggressive aboutitspushfor siesta,beforereturning to work cial and environment issues that need suchtrains? All this is basi- and Rajasthan remain open ‘Goan identity’,later told The around 4pm. affect us. Look at the statetoday. callytoturn Goa intoacorridor. throughthe day.” IndianExpressthathewasserious Whilemanyassociatethe af- Youdonot have to overload a Thisdoesn’tsuitourwayofliving,” However, Sardesai, who was about the needtopreserve ternoon nap with laziness, smallplacewithtoomuchofhuge he adds. intheNDA governmentforaslong SMITANAIR “sussegad”—that typicallyGoan Sardesai wouldn’t hear of it. infrastructure. Iamnot against Political commentator as lateManohar Parrikar wasCM PANAJI,DECEMBER1 characteristicthatliessomewhere “Instead of beingpart of the rat connectivity.But whatisrail con- Cleofat Coutinho Almeida says andwhohasstruckstridentposi- betweenbeinglaidbackandindo- race, Goans liketotakeiteasy, nectivity and who aretrains for?” this is probablythe firsttime tions in the pastagainst“out- IN GOA, wherecampaigning for lent. whichshouldnotbemistakenfor Goatodayisseeingwork onat sussegad has come up on apo- siders” in the state, says,“Look at the2022pollsissettokickoff next “Sussegad is derivedfromthe laziness. Even though we are leastthree big-ticket infrastruc- litical platform, and says ourmarkets. Theyare slowlybe- year,thefirstelectionpromisehas Portuguese word sossegado, sussegad,westill meetour dead- tureprojects--electricity,railway Sardesai’s promise can’t be taken ingtakenoverbyMarwaritraders been made: “imposition of com- whichmeans arelaxed, carefree, lines. It is the cultureofGoa. and road-widening -- withdead- seriouslyintoday’s age. who liketoworkevenon pulsory siesta hour”. chilled-out attitude that’s associ- Everyoneneedsto learnfromthis lines setfor 2022. “Myfather,Irecall,wouldtake Sundays.Theykeep shopsopen Speaking at apress meet, Goa ated with Goa. The word sosseg and respect this,” he adds. “Ifaguyiscomingbytrain to hissiesta veryseriouslyandsodid 24/7,whichmay makeatourist Illustration: Suvajit Dey ForwardParty leader and former means peace. And mind you, an He says the needtopreserve Goa and the train suddenlyslows theoldergeneration.Buttheseare happy, but frankly, no oneis BJP allyVijai Sardesai said that if afternoon nap is an integral part makes youmorealert,”hesays. sideredwithoutgraceandlacking sussegadistiedtothefightagainst down at the Ghats, what the big different times, and Ipersonally happy.” madechief minister,hewoulden- of sussegad.Itisclinicallyproven The siesta hour is sacrosanct inconcern.Mostshopspulldown bigger changes sweeping across deal?Letitslowdown,no.Youare feel we should all work now. You Meanwhile, Sardesaiisn’tlos- sureacompulsorysiesta hour thatashortnap or siesta boosts formostGoans —any attempt at shutters and professional ap- the state. coming to Goa, afterall. If forthe seethedifferenceinhowGoanes- ing anysleep: he takesacompul- anytime between2and 4pm. your memory,improvesjob per- anyofkind of engagement be- pointmentsdon’t getdone, with “Sussegaddoesn’t mean we sakeofspeed, youbring down tablishmentsremain shut be- sorysiesta for at least30minutes It wasanoff-the-cuffremark, formance, lifts your mood and tweentheafternoonhoursiscon- the general consensusbeingthat areunresponsive ornotpro-active homes in Cansaulim, then why tween1.30 and4.30 pm while everyday.

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Digging heels in CanadianDefenceMinisterHarjit In October,Sihag had refused cannotcurtail the fundamental Singh Sajjan tweeted. to acceptthe post of Haryana right to speech. Fromabargainingstandpoint, WhileIndiaandCanadahave a Housing BoardChairman on the Centre, farmer unions agree to continue talks “True, but we also have to en- the farmers areprobablybetter strongbilateralrelationship,ithas issueof thenewfarmlaws,saying, surethatthefundamentalrightof placedatthe moment. In Punjab witnessedups and downs over “Till the laws areamendedand have been camping forthe last 10 people with whom discus- three laws,the proposedelec- sidermakingitbinding in law, one person does notcause harm andHaryana,notonlyhasharvest- the lastfew years as the Canadian thereisguarantee forMSP on six days at Delhi’s borders. sionscouldbeheld.Butthiswas tricity Bill and the ordinance on notthroughanamendmentbut to anotherperson,”thebenchsaid. ing of kharif paddy been com- leadership has triedtowoo the crops,Ibelieve Ishouldnotaccept Later,Tomaralsomet west- notacceptable to the represen- pollution...whytheyare wrong... via an executive orderwhile When Chandrachud showed pleted, even sowing of wheat for Sikhdiaspora. anyofficeofprofitinthe govern- ernUPfarmerleaders,including tatives. give us arejoinder. Theyasked framingrulesfor the laws. the courtavideoclip of Holey, the newrabi seasonisvirtually Some OppositionMPs in the ment.Iamthesonof afarmerfirst BKU leader Rakesh Tikait,at “During the interaction, it us to submit it tomorrow, and “Itshould notbeanissueas whichshe had postedonTwitter, over.Mostfarmershave alsodone British parliament also tweeted and an MLAlater." Krishi Bhavan. Thesefarmer has been suggestedbythe we willmeetagainthedayafter. both the government and the the courtasked thegovernment their firstround of urea applica- their supportfor the farmers. “I The party's Narwana MLA, leaders were notpresent at the Governmenttothe representa- We said there’s no need fora party arecommitted to MSP,” a lawyer:“Willyouactagainstevery tion and irrigation. stand with farmersofthe Punjab RamNiwas Surjakhera, and Vigyan Bhawanmeeting. tivesofFarmers Union to iden- committee,” he said. BJP leader said. “Anyway,talks person who says something on It meanstheyhavetimeto andotherpartsof India,including Tohana MLADevender Singh “Tikait from the BKU called tify thespecific issues relatedto “They said it is possible to meansgive-and-takefromboth Twitter and howmanyactions sparefor agitation. Punjab and ourfamilyand friends," Babli alsosupported the farmers. me. Theyalso work forfarm- Farm Reform Acts andshare find asolutionthe dayafter to- sides. We aresurethe farmers will youtake?” Haryana farmers generallyplant TanmanjeetSingh Dhesi, Labour “Theyare fighting forthe right ers…Theycame hereand dis- with theGovernment on morrow, or elsewewill have to arealso awareofthat,” the Additional public prosecutor J their wheat before mid- MP from Slough and shadowRail cause.Thereisfullparticipationof cussedissuesregardingtheActs 02.12.2020 forconsideration. sit again. We saidweare ready leadersaid. PYagnik said the police were try- November.This leewayinwheat Minister, tweeted. Haryana farmers in the agitation. and other needs of the agricul- These issues will be discussed fordiscussions.EvenParliament Sources said both the gov- ingtoinvestigatetheintentionbe- maynot beavailableforsugarcane John McDonnel, another Evenfrommy constituency,farm- turesector.Weasked them to during the fourth round of runs fortwo months... agricul- ernment andthe rulingBJP are hindtheposts.Whenthecourtin- growersinwesternUttarPradesh. LabourMP,wrote:"Thissortofop- ers aregoing to join the agitation. give us their issues in writing. meeting to be heldon tureisthebackboneof thecoun- keen to find asolution, but are dicatedthatprimafacie,itwasnot This "free time” is something pressive behaviouragainstpeace- Theyare facing problems in We will also consider these," 03.12.2020,” the Ministrysaid – try...we cansitanddiscuss…but in no mood to withdraw the inclinedtoagreewithhim,hesub- that the government maynot ful protesters... tarnishes the rep- Narwana mandi. Paymentshave Tomar said. tworounds of talkswereheld the agitation willcontinue... in farm laws. mitted that theaccusedmustnot have fully anticipated. The timing utation of India”. PreetKaurGill, a notbeenmadefortheirpaddydue Following the meeting at before the farmers from Punjab fact,itwillbestrengthened…till The government's stand on be letoff completely,and there of the capital siegeand ability to Labour MP from Birmingham to thedelayinlifting of the pro- Vigyan Bhavan, farmer leaders and Haryana showeduponthe our demands aremet,” he said. the laws,whichitsays benefit had to be some restraint on stay putfor at leastthe next few Edgbaston, tweeted: "Shocking duce," Surjakherasaid. expressed the hope that their borders of Delhi, and the talks Jamhoori Kisan Sabhagen- farmers, wasmade clearby Holey’s part. weekscouldwellwork to thepro- scenes from Delhi." Babli said: “Thefarmers are demands would be considered Tuesdaywas thethirdround. eralsecretary(Punjab)Kulwant Prime MinisterNarendra Modi Thebenchthennoted:“Apub- testers’ advantage. In Australia, RobMitchell, fighting fortheir rights.The and the issues resolvedsoon. “It wasassuredthat the Singh Sandhu said, “First, they in his Mann Ki Baat addresslast lic office in ademocracy has to Incidentally, government Labour MP from McEwen in Constitution has giventhem the The MinistryofAgriculture,ina Government of India is always wanted to talk onlytofarmer Sunday. hear criticism... Ultimately, the agencies have procured arecord Victoria, spokeinthe country’s rightto struggleinapeacefulman- statement,said, “Various issues committed to protect the inter- unions of Punjab but we told Reassuringfarmers on the peoplehavetofind abalance be- 202.77lakh tonnes (lt) of paddy Parliamentinsupportof thefarm- ner.Beingthe son of afarmer, Ire- related to Farm Reform Acts estoffarmersand is always them that thisisanall-India benefitsofthe farm laws,the tweentherightsoftheentiresoci- from Punjab this time, as against ers."Iurge theIndiangovernment questModiji and Khattarji to ful- were discussedatlength and openfordiscussionsforfarmers’ protestand farmer representa- PrimeMinister said that with etyand individual rights.We, the 162.33ltin2019-20. The govern- to showrestraint," he said. fill their demands,whichevercan talkswereheld in acordial at- welfare,” the statementsaid. tivesfromacross the country thelatestreformsintheagricul- judgeshavebeen asked notto ment mayhaveundertakenthis In the US, lawyer and bemet,by comingforwardwitha mosphere.” Emergingfromthemeeting, willparticipateinthetalks.They turesector,farmers have got watchTV, Twitter,and we do not unprecedentedpurchasefromthe Republican Partyfunctionary large heart."Whileadmittingthat “During the deliberations, BharatiyaKisan Union (Punjab) proposed formationofacom- newopportunities.OnMonday, knowanything. We come to the state--the MSP value worksout HarmeetKDhillon tweeted: “As the issuewas "moreprominent" the Union Agricultureand general secretaryJagmohan mittee,we didnotagree.We will at aprogramme in Varanasi, he courtswithafreshmind.Wehave to Rs 38,283 crore--todispel ap- the Punjab-borndescendant of in Punjab, he said, "Some farmers Farmers WelfareMinister pro- Singhsaid,“Themeetingwasal- continue our protest.” said the government had no in- adoptedademocratic structure... prehension about the newlaws farmers, my heartbreakstosee from Haryana have also partici- posedtoconstituteanexpert right… We told them thereare Major Singh Punnawal, tentiontodeceive farmers and However, theyoungergeneration undermining the existing open- Punjabi farmers assaulted... Hear pated,wherever the government committee to put forththe is- manyprovisions in these new Punjab generalsecretaryofthe the laws provide them newop- will find something to writeon ended procurement andAPMC them,meetwiththem,&compro- could notsucceedinconvincing sues of farmerssoastoresolve Billswhichare againstfarmers... All India KisanSabha,said, tionsand legal protection. (socialmedia). If we do notallow mandi system. mise, PM Modi.” themorthefarmerscouldnot un- them with mutual consent but theyproposedthatacommittee “Governmentaskedusto create BJP leaders have been at- theyoungergenerationto express, The worst-case scenario for The Sikh diasporaiswidely derstand the laws." the representative of the be setup... theattitude of gov- asmall committee, withrepre- tacking the Opposition parties howwill theyknowthat what the Centrewould be if the farm- present in Canada, UK and GuhlaMLAIshwarSinghsaid, Farmers Union suggestedthat ernmentsalways is to setup sentativesofthegovernmentas for“misleading” farmersonthe theyare expressing is right or ers forceittoconcede to their Australia,andsomehave deepin- “Thereshould have been aware- all the representativeswill at- committees and commissions, well. We said creatingacom- newlaws. Butthe BJP does not wrong?” maximalistdemands.Thatwould fluenceinthe political system. ness before introducingthe laws. tend further roundofdiscus- and the deliberations areun- mittee meansputting the issue wanttheissueto lingerbecause Thecourtwillcontinueto hear includenot just revoking or put- This situation would nothave sions withthe Government to ending... we outrightlyrejected into cold storage. Thediscus- itcoulddentitsimageasaparty the plea on December 3. tingonholditsfarmlaws,butalso JJP watching emergedthen. Asolution will resolve thematter amicably,” the proposal.” sions will happen with every- that protectsthe interests of making MSPalegalright.Inother farmlaws fromthestart,cameout come out of adialogue." the Ministrysaid. “Then they(government) one, andwewillall come, but farmers,amongwhomitenjoys words, farfrommoving forward, in their support. While of the remaining JJP It is learnt thatthe ministers said give us your objections in onlyafew of us willspeak.” considerablesupport.Theparty BrahMos this would amount to areversal Regrettingthat"annadata"are MLAs, Naina(legislatorfrom conveyed to union representa- writing. We said we have al- WiththeMinimumSupport also does notwant the protests The earliestofthe navalver- beyondeventhepre-reformsitu- sittingontheroads,AjayChautala Badhra) is AjayChautala’s wife, tivesthatitwould bedifficult to readygiven adetailedmemo- Price(MSP)beingthemaincon- to spread to other states. sions of BrahMos wasfirstfired ation. said,"Thereare statementsbythe RamKaran Kala (Shahabad) had hold talkswith 35 people, so randum. But theysaid give us cern of the farmers, the govern- WITHMANOJCGAND from this class of ships. While MSP is declaredfor 23 (Union)Agriculture Ministerand joinedafarmer protestin theyshouldprovidenamesof 5- yourspecificobjectionsto these ment, sources said, could con- KRISHNKAUSHIK InSeptemberandOctober,too, crops, thereare limitstoits en- the Prime Ministerhimself that KurukshetraonSeptember 20. the Army, Navy and IAF versions forcementwhetherthroughgov- we willcontinue MSPs. Then it DigvijayChautala said he re- of BrahMos were tested.On ernment procurement or forcing should be added(in thedocu- spectsthe sentimentsofthe correlation between the adverse fied,then criminal action under strictions to be allowedtomarry. along the LoC in the Battal area, September 30, BrahMos surface- others,suchasprivate traders, ment). What is the problem in IndependentMLAwhowithdrew eventandthevaccination.Onlyaf- Section11oftheordinancecanbe “In the Special Marriage Act, pub- while aPakistani drone had to-surfacesupersonicLand-Attack processors,organisedretailersand writing one line?... We want aso- supportto thegovernment.“Itisa terthe regulator examines all of initiated againstpersonswho licdocumentationofdetailsof the droppedweapons including two CruiseMissile(LACM)featuringan exporters, to pay. lution as early as possible.” good thing that Sangwan has these reports... it givesago-ahead “caused” the conversion. This in- prospective bride andgroom and AK47rifles, apistoland ammuni- indigenous boosterand airframe With10 MLAsinthe90-mem- stood by thefarmers,” he said. forthe trials,”hesaid. cludes thosewho committed the itsdisplay duringthenoticeperiod tion in Akhnoor sub-division’s section along with manyother Trudeau berAssembly,the JJP -- Jannayak Asked aboutBJP leaders’ charge “In the present case, Serum offence, omitted to act and pre- is itself currentlyunderchallenge SohalKhud area. ‘Made in India’ sub-systems was We believe in the process of dia- JanataParty -- is ajunior alliance thatthefarmeragitationwas"pol- Institute’s vaccine trial’s clubbed vent the offence and those who before theSupremeCourtasitis Showkat Ali, 34,aBakerwal flight tested from Integrated Test logue.We’vereachedoutthrough partner in the ManoharLal itics of the Opposition", Digvijay phase2/3andphase3permission aid,abet, counsel or procurepeo- detrimental to thesafetyofthe who along with his familyand Range. multiple means to the Indian au- Khattar-ledgovernment.An said,“Theheadof theBJPhashim- has been givenbasedonexami- ple forthe offence. couple. This lawtakes it one step herdmoved to highland pastures On October 17,the navalver- thoritiesto highlightourconcerns. Independentlegislator, Sombir self saidthatthisisnotpoliticalbut nation of these documents... The However, Section12 of thelaw further and requires the policeto inPoonchduringsummerandre- sion of BrahMos wassuccessfully Thisisamomentforallof usto pull Sangwan, on Tuesdaywithdrew an agitationoffarmers.” Amit adverseeventbeingreferredto in places the burden of proving that be satisfied of their intentions,” turnedtoDhokKhalsa in winter, test firedfromIndian Navy’s in- together.”Healsotweetedavideo support to thestate government. Shah recentlysaid thathenever case of thevaccine developedby an individual lawfullyconverted Obulesh said. said he wasvoting fordevelop- digenously-builtstealthdestroyer of the interaction. WhileDushyantisyettocom- calleditapoliticalprotest. Oxford-Serum happenedin on people who “caused” or “facil- The offence under the ordi- ment on the ground.“Whether INSChennai,hittingatargetinthe The Ministry of External mentontheongoingfarmeragita- October.All these five processes, itated”the conversionand noton nanceisnon-bailableandcogniz- Article370 is thereornot makes ArabianSea.OnOctober30,itwas Affairs'official spokesperson tion, DigvijaysaidTuesdaythat Vaccine trial pleasedon’t assume, have not the individual. This means that able whichmeans that an arrest no difference to us. The adminis- firedfromaSukhoijetthattookoff Anurag Srivastava,without nam- the JJP waskeeping aclose watch istheroleof theregulator,aftercol- been compliedwith,” Bhushan even if awoman,who has con- canbemadewithoutawarrant.A tration remainedthe same and from afighter aircraftbase in ing Trudeau, said: “Wehaveseen ontheoutcomeof themeetingbe- lating all data, to ascertain or re- said. verted,saysthat she had con- minimum punishment of one barredourentryintoforestenclo- Punjabandthemissilehitatarget some ill-informedcommentsby tweenfarmers and the govern- futewhether thereisacausal link Asked if thegovernmenten- sentedtothe conversion, this will yearwhichcanbeextendedupto sures wherewehad been taking in the BayofBengal. Canadianleadersrelatingto farm- ment. The JJP's other minister, to the event and the intervention. dorses the move by SII to claim Rs notbesufficient. The individual’s five yearsisprescribedandrepeat ourherdsince generations,’’ he Acombinationof thenamesof ers in India. Suchcommentsare Anoop Dhanak,MinisterofState, So that causal link,whether it has 100crore in damages, the Health partnerwillhave to provethereal offences can carry double the said. Brahmaputraand Moskva rivers, unwarranted,especiallywhen Labour&Employment,said:“MSP to beascertainedorrefuted,hasto Secretarysaid:“Innormalcircum- intention of the conversion. maximum sentence. Men are In Dangerpora, also in BrahMos missiles aredesigned, pertainingtotheinternalaffairsof of crops should be given, whichis be done by the DCGI (Drugs stances, vaccine development The lawalso allows parents, awardedahigherpunishment if Baramulla’s Zaingeer con- developedand producedby ademocratic country.” being giventofarmers." ControllerGeneralofIndia)...Thisis usually takes8-10years.Butgiven siblings, or anyother person re- convictedof causingconversionof stituency,therewas asteady BrahMosAerospace, ajoint ven- WhileTrudeauisthefirsthead The party's Barwala MLA,Jogi done purelyonascientific basis thesizeandtheimpactof thepan- latedto theindividualconverted- awoman, minororapersonbe- trickle of voters. During the last turecompany setupbythe of acountrytospeak out on the RamSihag, who has been at the and the assessment is done with demic, we aretrying to crash that -byblood or marriage--toques- longing to Scheduled Caste or threeAssemblystints,thelegisla- Defence Research and protests,heisnot the onlyforeign forefront in supporting the farm- objectively basedcriteria,” timelineinto16-18 tion the conversion. Tribe,theminimumsentenceisof torrepresenting the Soporecon- Development Organisation politicianto doso.Atleastadozen ers, said it waswrong to saythat Bhargava said. months...whenyouhave thiscon- “Rightto convertto anotherre- twoyearswhichcanextendupto stituency wasfromDangerpora (DRDO)and Mashinostroyeniaof members of parliament from the onlythose from Punjab were The Health Secretarysaid the text, thereisapotentiality that ligion is afundamental right. This 10 years. and villagers in neighbouring Russia. The firsttestlaunchofthe UK, Australia, Canada and a protesting. “Haryana farmers are firstofseveral measures put in commercialinterestwoulddictate lawstrikes at the heart of it,” said Shiva villagecomplainedtheMLA initialversionBrahMostookplace Republican Partyfunctionary as active... If the agitation contin- placeformonitoringthetrialisthe certainstrategicactionsonpartof Ashwini Obulesh, women and DDC polls didn’tpaymuchattentionto their in 2001.Various typesofthe fromtheUShave alsovoicedtheir ues,the participation of Haryana “prior informedconsent form” commercialentities. child rightsadvocateand co- Over1.35 votersinKashmirdi- area. BrahMos missile, including those supportfor the farmers. farmersislikelytobegreaterthan listing possible adverse events. Governmentsofthe dayhave founder of Dhwani Legal Trust, a vision and 2.41lakh voters in Bravingchill,votersturnedout whichcanbefiredfromland,war- “The reports of peacefulpro- of Punjabfarmers,”Sihagsaid,un- “Second, these vaccine trials are nothing to do with it.” non-profit society. Jammudivisioncasttheirballotto inlarge numbersatthepollingsta- ships,submarinesandSukhoi-30 testers being brutalizedinIndia derliningthatfarmers"hadnotal- multi-centric and multi-site;the The lawdoes notapplytoin- select representativesfor 25 and tionsinthetwinconstituenciesof fighterjets,havealreadybeende- aretroubling... Healthydemocra- lowedpoliticisation"ofthe agita- subjectsare giventhevaccineun- ‘Love jihad’ law ter-faith marriages underthe 18 constituencies, respectively,in BandiporeinNorth Kashmir, velopedand successfullytested cies allowpeacefulprotest,” tion. der medical care, theyare moni- marriages.” Special Marriage Act, whereboth thesecondphaseof theDDCpolls. recordinga69.66percentturnout. since then. tored. Everysitehas an institu- Apartfromthepersonseeking individuals can retain their reli- DooruvillageofZaingeercon- In contrast, mostvoters in The versions of theBrahMos tional ethics committee, whichis to convert,eventheindividualpre- gious identities but applies solely stituency in Baramulla district— South Kashmir's Pulwama, that arepresentlybeing tested independent of the sponsors and siding over the conversion is re- to inter-faith marriages whereei- the native place of Hurriyat Anantnagand Shopian stayed have an extended rangeof400 WRITEBACK government. Wheneverthereis quired to makeanapplicationto therthehusbandorthewifeseeks Chairman Syed Ali Shah Geelani away.These three districtsregis- km,ascomparedto itsinitialrange an adverse event, the ethics com- the district magistrate. The mag- to convertto adifferentreligionto —markedadeparturefromthe teredalow turnout:8.67percent, of 290 km with moreversions of RESPONDINGTOareportinTheIndian Express titled“EC ready to mittee givesits findings...to the istrate, through thepolice, will marry under personal laws. pastbypolling11votes. “Weal- 16.09 per cent and 17.28 per cent, higherrangescurrentlyunderde- allowpostalballots forNRIs,Govtcan bypassParliament (Dec 1)”, regulatorwithin30days,”hesaid. thenlookintothe“realintention”, The Special MarriageAct, ways boycottedpollshere,butthis respectively. velopment. aspokesperson forthe Election CommissionofIndia sent arejoin- Bhushan said the DataSafety “purpose” and “cause of the pro- whichalso requires aone-month timewe have comeoutto votebe- StateElection Commissioner TheIndianNavybeganinduct- der Tuesday: and Monitoring Board(DSMB), posedreligious conversion.” noticetothestatestatingintention causewehavetokeep the BJP KKSharma said that within ing BrahMos on itsfrontline war- “Itiscompletely incorrect to aver that EC has in their communi- “that is independent of the gov- The UP lawhas asweeping to marry is deemed problematic away fromKashmir,”said37-year Kashmir,Bandiporareported the ships from 2005 and has the ca- cation to Secretary, MinistryofLaw and Justice, Govt. of India either ernment and the vaccine manu- definition of what it calls “allure- to coupleswho seek to marry oldvillagerFirdousAhmad.“Ihave highestvoting percentage, and pability to hit sea-basedtargets triedtoinsinuate and/or suggestthat Govt. can bypass Parliament. facturer” and consists of domain ment” -- one of the unlawful as- againstwishes of the familyor voted forthe (People's) Alliance Pulwamathe lowest.InJammu, beyond itsradar horizon. The The supremacy of Parliament in legislative mattersistoo well-known knowledge experts,“alsomoni- pectsofconversion. From the communityatlarge.During the candidate. Iknow, they have al- Poonchreported the highestvot- navalversion has been successful to all the stakeholders. The same can be challenged only in acourtof tors the clinical trial on aday-to- promiseof“anygift”, “gratifica- notice period, the magistratein- ways ditchedusinthepastbutthis ing averageof75.07 percent and testedtimeandagaininsea-to-sea law, because the entireedifice of our parliamentarysystemisbased daybasis”. “Theycan also recom- tion” to “betterlifestyle” and “di- vitesobjectionstothe proposed time it is choosing between the the rural areas of the Jammu dis- and sea-to-land modes. The on the system of checks and balances. The... communication of EC mendif theydecideto temporarily vinedispleasureorotherwise”,the marriage, whichcould be chal- greaterevilandthelesserevil,”he trict recordednearly 70 per cent BrahMos from ship can be onlysent apreliminarynote on thepossible additional options to halt the trial or conduct an inves- termencapsulatesany benefitex- lenging to couples. said.NeartheLineof Controlinvil- voter turnout. launchedasasingle unit or in a expeditethe process, of following ElectronicallyTransmitted Postal tigation,” he said. pected from conversion. Conversionand marriage lages in Akhnoor and Khour sub- salvo up to eightinnumbers sep- Ballots (ETPBS) form of voting forIndians living overseas,whichhas “Four... the rules state that While“anygift”couldinclude throughreligiouslaws isoneof the divisionsinJammu district, peo- Bombay HC arated by 2.5 second intervals. been pending formorethan adecade.” whenever thereisanadverse evennon-materialgiftslikeareli- legalroutesinter-faithcouplesof- ple linedupatpolling stations Withall theseodds, the Mumbai These salvoscan hit and destroy a The IndianExpress replies: The report, whichaccuratelysum- event, aForm-5 has to be filled by gioustext, the promise of abetter tentaketoavoid this one-month undeterred by Pakistani mortar Police is considered as oneofthe groupoffrigates havingmodern marisesthe EC’s communicationtothe LawMinistry, explained that the Chief Investigator and the re- lifestyle arefutureeventswhich noticeto thestate,evenatthe risk shelling and small arms fire. best in the worldafter Scotland missiledefencesystems.BrahMos to extend the facility of postalballotstooverseas voters, the govern- portissubmittedto theregulator,” mayormay nothappenbutcould of losing theirrightsunder per- Pollingcontinuedbeyondtheoffi- Yard,” JusticeShinde had said. asa‘primestrikeweapon’forships ment only needs to amend the Conduct of Election Rules 1961,and hesaid.Theethicscommitteeand still be usedtodeclareaconver- sonal law, likeinheritance. The cial 2pmclosing. OnTuesday, advocateAbhinav significantlyincreases their capa- “doesn’trequire Parliament’s nod.”The headline wasmeant to theDSMBalsoexaminethereport sion unlawful. newlaw,however,barssuchmar- On Fridaylast, twosoldiers Chandrachud, who represented bilityof engagingnavalsurfacetar- conveythat. to find out “if thereisone-to-one If the magistrateisnot satis- riages and introduces morere- were killedinPakistani firing Holey, submitted that the state gets at long ranges.

Pune Pune WWW.INDIANEXPRESS.COM 4 MAHARASHTRA THEINDIANEXPRESS,WEDNESDAY,DECEMBER2,2020 Cyclone Burevi to hit near Kanyakumari on December 4: IMD officials Department (IMD) said on Indian Ocean region —compris- of Trincomalee in Sri Lanka, and will move westwardsand cross EXPRESSNEWSSERVICE Tuesdayevening. This is the sec- ing the BayofBengal and 800kmeast-southeastof Kanyakumari and Pamban on PUNE,DECEMBER1 ond cyclone to forminthe south- Arabian Sea. On November 23, Kanyakumari in Tamil Nadu. the morning of December 4,” west region of BayofBengal Cyclone Gati formedinthe It will intensify within the IMD officials said. CYCLONIC STORM Burevihas within aweek. Arabian Sea and hit the Somalia next 12 hours, crossing near Ared alertfor extremely formedinthe BayofBengal, Bureviisalso the thirdcy- coast. Soon after, the severe Trincomalee during the evening heavy rain has been issued the India Meteorological clone to form in the North Cyclone Nivarformedinthe Bay or night of Wednesday.”The forKanyakumari, Tirunelveli, of Bengal and hit Karaikanal in storm, whichwill retain itsin- ThoothukudiandTenkasiinTamil PuducherryonNovember 25. tensity and maintain awind Nadu,andThiruvananthapuram, The Metdepartment’s spe- speedof75to85km/hr,gusting Kollam, Pathanamthittaand Regd Office: PSEB Head Office,The Mall, Patiala -147001 cial bulletin said, “The cyclone is to 95 km/hr, tillDecember 4, will Alappuzha districts of Kerala for CIN: U40109PB2010SGC033813,Website: www.pspcl.in located 400kmeast-southeast then emerge near the Gulf of Wednesday andThursday. Heavy Mannar on Bureviisthe secondcyclone to form in the southwestregion of rain will continueoverextreme E-Tender EnquiryNo. 297/P-1/EMP-W-11759 Dt. 23.11.20 Tender ID: 2020 POWER 56594 1 Thursday BayofBengalinaweek. southern districtsofbothstates Scope of Work: To engage Transporter fordeliveryofLDO to morning. “It till December 4, officials said. GGSSTP.Ropar EMD: @2% of tender value. Date &time upto whichtender shall be received 01.01.2021 upto OFFICE OF THE MEDICAL SUPERINTENDENT, 11.00 A.M. SMS HOSPITAL, JAIPUR Date &time of opening of tender 08.01.2021 upto 11:30 A.M. Tender specification can onlybedownloaded from PSPCL (Swai Ram Singh Road Tonk Road, Jaipur,Rajasthan 302004) website &https://eproc.punjab.gov.in &nohardcopyofthe same No.F-10()/Contract/smsh/2020/10681 Dated:- 24.11.2020 NOTICE INVITING BID will be issued by this office. (NIB No. 10681 dated 24.11.20) NOTE: 1. In case anydifficulty regarding uploading of the tender the prospec- Bids for the Supply of Shirting Polly Cloth 90 C.M. (in different Colour) &Cashment tivebidders are requested to get clarification from this office and or Cloth 90 C.M. (Cotton in difierent Colour) etc. Twoyears rate contract are invited from interested bidders up to 17.12.2020 on 04 PM. Other particular of bid may be e-procurement System Government of Punjab.Contact No.+91- visitedonthe procurementportal (http://sppp.rajasthan.gov.in or (172)- 2970284/63. lt is also requested to get their digital signature http://eproc.rajasthan.gov.in.) for the state. well in time so as to submit tenders through e-tendering only. UBN No. MCJ2021GLRC00138 2. It is informed that In case tender process is not completed due to Sd/- anyreason, no corrigendum will be published in newspapers. DIPR/C/9313/2020 PMedical Superintendent Details regarding corrigendum maybeseen on website. eproc.punjab.gov.in Sd/- RTP-52/2020 SE/Head Quarters, 111231/Pb GGSSTP,Roopnagar. SALUTE THE SOLDIER

MARTYRS OF CISF ON 02ND DECEMBER

INSP./EXE P. SI/EXE JAI SI/EXE PUNAM HC/GD A. K. M. REDDY BHAGWAN KUMAR RAJAK BHEP BHEP BHEP BHEP DOYANG DOYANG DOYANG DOYANG 02-12-1995 02-12-1995 02-12-1995 02-12-1995

CT/GD CT/GD CT/GD B. K. CT/GD OM HARPAL RAGHVENDRA MADAPPA PRAKASH SINGH BHEP BHEP BHEP SJVNL JHAKRI DOYANG DOYANG DOYANG 02-12-2009f 02-12-1995 02-12-1995 02-12-1995 CISF proudlyremembersthe supreme sacrifice of these brave-hearts.On this day,they laid down their lives at the altar of duty while fighting with the militants. Their courage and CT/GD R. NAIK P. bravery would remain an abid- SINGH SUDARSHANAN ing source of inspiration for the BHEP BHEP force. The force willremain DOYANG DOYANG eternally indebted to them for 02-12-1995 02-12-1995 their noblest deeds.

Greetwel, 1250 DeccanGymkhana, F. C. Road, Pune-4. Ph.no. 25531409, 66014132. DEHU ROAD - Mundakal Enterprises, Mr. Roji Samuel Raju, 6Unique Housing Society,Near Telephone Exchange BUSINESS Pimpri-Chinchwad I, No. 4550964M, Rank Ex- I LakshmipriyaAcharya, Dehu Road, Pune-1. Broilers Traders’ SEP,Name Kamble have appliedfor M. 9422519264. POULTRY KerbaGanpati, declare Association “Rate On passport. Name on my FC ROAD - 02.12.2020 ForLiveBig that name &DOB of my old passport is Sheetal Agro Traders Dhandhania Birds Rs.113/- Live wife has been changed Lakshmipriya Today’sEx-Shop Agencies, delivery for livesmall Small Birds Rs.122/-Al- from Vanita to Vanita Thyagarajan. Iwantmy Mr. Ravi Dhandhania, birds sizebetween1.3to Taqdeer Broiler(Siraj KerbaKamble &her name on the new 1.5 rate at PuneRs.126/- Shaikh)9822931357, correct DOB is passport as per my 1st Floor,Srinath per Kg.7776024132, 9767869302 06/02/1964 &Not Aadharcard6716 9048 Plaza, Dnyaneshwar 7588532184 0090273225-1 05/03/1964 as per 9828 Lakshmipriya PadukaChowk, F. C. 0090274713-1 affidavit No. 3497/2020 Rajagopalan Acharya. Road, 0090278573-1 0090278570-1 Pune-5. Ph.no. Simra Trading rates for CHANGE OF NAME 25521699/ 25537933. 100 eggs.Sellingprice I, I, Shampa, spouse of JC- My old name was Aher Suman Nandev, Konark Media Rs.485/-Contact Spouse of Dattatraya 352226GYSub Prashant ArchanaVitthalrao 9922117736. Solution Pvt Ltd., DhondibaBelkar Kumar Karmakar R/O PandavChanged to 0090273863-1 Flat No.6, FirstFloor, Resident of At- TRG BN-II, Dighi Camp, New name Shilpa Vencobb today’s ex- Pemdara, post- Ane, Pune have changedmy Jeevan Deshpande as Prabha Tara Appt., shop delivery rate at Taluka- Junnar, Pune- name from Shampato per aadhar cardno Behind Hotel Pune Rs.85/- per kg. 412410. Have Changed Shampa Karmakar vide 417951641546. Vaishali, F.C. Road, Contact (9522) my Name from Aher affidavit no. 400/2020 0090278576-1 Shivajinagar, dated 27 Nov2020 GanrajBooks, Above Impex Advertising, 22872417, Pune (9520) SumanNandev to Old name Helen Pune-4. Ph. 0090278568-1 DTDC Courier, 2nd floor, Mr. Ashfaque A. Shaikh, 24269414. Suman Dattatraya Bhamrah changed to No.32606012, Telefax: 0090272255-1 Pune-2. Ph. No. C-25, MIDC Comml. Belkar VideAffidavit No. I, VASANT SHIVAJI new name Helen Peter 2553 7013, Mobile: 9028967505, 8793647505, Building No.1, Nr I.B.M.R. Archana Poultry farm. 3125/2020. Dated SURYAWANSHI,NO. Gill by Adhaar 9823142410. (020) 24492149. College, hinchwad, Availablewholesalelive 12/11/2020 at Pune. 2781584M NK(TS) 437262481964. BIBVEWADI - Pune-411019. Ph. no. Meera Publicity, broilers 1.3-1.5kg; 2kg& 0090278539-1 RESIDENT OF AT- 0090278571-1 Ad Services, 27470282/ 9822792583. 1st floor, 10, Oswal above.Eggs at NAGAON POST- AmolNalawade, Mayureshwar I, Abdul Khadar Jilani, My old name Gautam Park, attractiverates. Shop NIMANI,TAL-TASGAON Sr. No.659/28, Rajiv Enterprise, Armyno. JC309676H, HemantMainker Opp. RachanaLodge, delivery available. DIST -SANGLI HAVE Gandhi Nagar, Upper Latish Balkawade, Rank Sub Maj, Presently changed to new name behind Safari Hotel, 9767101013/ CHANGED MY SON LastBus Stop, residing at 27th ward Chaphekar Chowk, nr S.T.Stand, 9552525315/9552525316 as Gautam Hemant Ponnur Mandalam, NAME FROM SHRIKANT Bibvewadi, Pune-17. Chinchwadgaon,Pune. 0090272941-1 Mainkar vide Affidavit Shivajinagar, Ponnur town, Ponnur TO SURYAWANSHI Mobile 9420729914, Ph.no. 9422082164. no. 3952dated 9021851460 Pune-05.Ph. A Pune Broiler Traders Police Station, Guntur SHRIKANT VASANT VIDE Raka Advertising, 01/12/2020 Akash Advtg, 9421017457. Association Rate on District, AP –522124, AFFIDAVIT NO.-2564 Mrs. Vimal Bafna, Raka 0090278576-3 C. S. Sawar, 645/1, Shop FATIMANAGAR - 02.12.2020 ForLivebig herebydeclarethat in DATED -20/11/2020 Chambers, Bombay- No.4, Rasakar Campus, Arora Enterprises, birds Rs.115/-Livesmall my service recordmy TASGAON. 0050172431-1 Pune Road, Chinchwad Bibawewadi Main Road, Station, Pune-19.Ph. no. Rajesh Arora, Office Birds Rs.124/- Contact:- daughter’s name My minor child’s old SITUATION VACANT Bibawewadi, Pune-37. 27475055/ 27472250. No. 63, Building I, 8695842684 wronglymentioned as name AnushkaPiyush Required Actress Girls For Tel: 9922221261. CAMP - 0090271130-19 Hazeemunnisa but Gujarathi changed to Phase-III, Leading Role&Second Ganesh Advertising, Ad India, correct name is new name as Anushka Parmarnagar, Renuka Broiler Traders Leading RoleHight5’4 Mr. VijayDeshmukh, OfficeNo. 102, 1st Floor, Azeemunnnisa Shaik Wanowrie, Pune wholesale live birds 2.0 PiyushGujrathi Vide Above Contact: 3/12/20 S.no. 672/2a /2b, Ganesh Sterling Centre, Opp. vide affidavit no. 2337/ 411013. kg &qty above 200 kg Adhaar CardNo. 9251 Time: 11 TO 3Add- Complex,Shop No.3, Hotel AuroraTowers, 2020. 0090278568-2 Tel/fax: 020-26860834. Rate.90/- cash & 6820 3775. 0090278576-2 Nighojkar Hall,151 Bibvewadi, Pune-37. M.G. Road, Pune-1. Ph. carry.Contact- GURUWAR PETH I have changedmyname My old Name Naraypeth, Nr Bhide Ph.no. 24219660, No. 26131993, 26135659, 8010872474 T.V.S. Enterprises, from Shaikh Afzaal Irishikumar Bridge,Pune 8208369627 9822841930. Mo: 9422083670. 0090277456-1 Ahmed to new name Balanandan Shooting Start From BAJIRAO ROAD - Hindustan Advertising 460, Guruwar Peth, Madina PoultryTraders, Shaikh Afzaal adhaar no Vasunthathi changed 14/12/2020. 0090278540-1 Sri Ganesh Advertising, Agency, Sant Ganganath Pune.Paper rate on :- 741712527287 . to new name as R. Nirmala, R. Ravi, Mr. Hiroo Surtani, 7, Maharaj Road, Kachi 'Remedy', 1929, Bajirao GitanjaliKunj, 02.12.2020 for LiveBig 0090278547-1 Irishikumar ''IMPORTANT'' Lane, Pune-411042. Road, Opp. Telephone BirdsRs. 112/- Kg .Shop Balanandan Panicker Opp. Nehru Memorial My maiden name Ms Bhavan, Pune-30. Ph. No. Ph. 020- 24456297, DeliveryContact Vide Adhaar Card No Whilst care is taken prior to Hall, Ambedkar Road, LaxmiYashwant 25232762, 9922220985. Mob. 8975110325, 9763333335 8060 1057 7566Dated acceptance of advertising Pune-1. Ph. No. 26138113, Shirodkar has been BANDGARDEN RD - 9421815428. 0090273396-1 01/12/2020 copy,itisnot possibletoverify 26133510, Fax: 26131487. changed to Mrs Apex Advtg, Meenat Advertising, GHORPADI - NECC suggestedfarm- 0090278576-4 its contents.The Indian Madhavi Nitin Prabhu Mapadan Firlosh,Office Mukund Saigaonkar, Kanya International, gateprice for 100eggs aftermarriage. My old Name Sobhia Express (P) Limited cannot be Aundh,Pune-7. Tel: No 26-6-7-8, AshokaMall, 827/7, Dastur Meher A-18 Suchandra on 02.12.2020 in Pune Aadhaar no. Irishikumar held responsible for such ADVERTISEMENT 25886118, 9960111123. Opp. Sun &Sand Hotel, Road, Camp, Pune-1. Corner, B.T. Kawade without tray is Rs.487/- 820349772835 Balanandanchanged contents, nor for any loss or Shraddha Ads, BandgardenRd, Pune. Tel. 26130542. (Four Hundred and 0090278548-1 to new name as Sobhia damage incurred as aresult of DEPOTS Mrs.Ujwala Kotbagi, 'A' Ph. No. 8975758860. DAPODI- Road, Ghorpadi, Pune Eighty Seven Rupees IrishikumarPanicker transactions with companies, wing, Vastu-sunder, BHAWANI PETH - Vantage Advertising & 411001. Only) Phone:NECC I Samkawmo spouse of Vide Adhaar Card No. associations or individuals AUNDH- Near Kumar Classic, Globe Enterprises, Mktg., Ph. 9422086762, 24270724, 26336377, Pandurang Narayan 4906 4787 3792Dated Suyog Enterprises, Pune-7. Tel. 9371055799. Tanveer Rehman Shaikh, A-17, 'C'Building, 9921177816 Dealer: 24332689, Jaware resident of advertising in its newspapers 01/12/2020 C/oSandeep Book Stall, San Ads, 718, Bhawani Peth, 3rdFloor,Kate GULTEKDI - 24455130, 24265787. Tingrenagar plotno-35 or Publications. We therefore Swajas Complex, 0090278576-5 Anurag, Plot No. 10, near Poona CollegeRoad, Residency, Xebec 0090272256-1 sr.no-35 Pune411032 recommend that readers Parihar Chowk, Kobe Silzler Cave, Pune-1. Near Dapodi Railway Communications Pvt changed my name from My old name Chhaya make necessary inquiries Aundhgaon, Pune-7. Aundh-411007. Tel: Pune Broilers Traders’ M. 9890073883. Station, Dapodi, Ltd., Samkawmo to Sanjivani Tatyaram Phadatare before sending any monies or Mob. 9422011181. 25881302/3/4. BHOSARI - Association Rate On Pune-411 012. Ph.no. SantoshHeights, 02.12.2020For Live Big Pandurang Jaware vide changed to Rani entering into any agreements Chordia APPA BALWANT CHOWK - Samvad Ads., 27143243/ 9822847256/ J. N. Marg, Gultekadi, Birds Rs.112/- Live affidavit Dattajirao Pawar as per with advertisers or otherwise Communications, M/s V. V. Medhi, Near Gawli uilding, 9822132500. Tandoori Birds Rs.121/- 2978/2020dated my addhar card. No. acting on an advertisement in Arshad Ajit Chordia. Varun Medhi, 153, Pune Nashik Highway, DECCAN - S. No. 20. Pune-411037. 17/18, Aundh Gaon, opp. Tel: 26446856, Momin Poultry(Asif 27/11/2020 beforepune 938354859178. any manner whatsoever. BudhwarPeth, Near Bhosari, Pune 411039. Prajakta Advertising, Momin) 26336349. 0090278572-1 0090278551-1 lane of Cosmos Bank, Jogeshwari Temple, Opp. CHINCHWAD - Mr. Sudhanva Jadhav, 9766509029.

Pune WWW.INDIANEXPRESS.COM THEINDIANEXPRESS,WEDNESDAY,DECEMBER2,2020 EXPRESS NETWORK 5

SURVEY OF OVER 8,900 RESPONDENTS DespiteaffordableCovidvaccinelikelyby Feb2021,59%saytheywon’trushtotakeit

healthcarechannel”. “Datashouldlookatthe dura- safetydata. Recent sero-surveys unanswered questions aredo ANURADHA Butasmanyas59per cent of tion of the viral shedding and the in Pune and Mumbai have the antibodies lastand forhow MASCARENHAS respondentssaid that theywon’t amount of virus in nasopharyn- shown that high exposureand long? Also, do positive antibod- PUNE,DECEMBER1 rush to take the Covid-19vaccine geal swabs or nasal swabs over high seroantibody prevalence ies translateintoprotection... for even if it is available in the near time .Questions likewill it work mayhaveled to some sortofim- all this, we needlong-term data,” WHILE CHANCES of an affordable future, said Taparia. “The percep- on younger people, on thosewho munity in some pockets. “The said Dr Joshi. Covid-19vaccine being available tion of amajority of citizens be- areimmunocompromised, and by Februarynextyear mayseem ing sceptical on taking Covid-19 howlong the protection lasts, high,59per centof over 8,900re- vaccine hasn’t changed muchas need to be answered,” said Dr spondentstoasurvey question compared to the result of the Salunkhe. saidtheywon’t rushto take it, ac- survey conducted in mid- “Tocarry out this entirepro- cording to thesurvey findings re- October by LocalCircles. At that gramme is very challenging,. leasedonTuesday. time, 61 per cent of 8,312 voters The healthsystemisinadequate The online survey wascon- had said theyare sceptical about and while we areaddressing ducted betweenNovember 23 the Covid-19vaccine andwon't firefightingissueswhiledealing and30byLocalCircles, asocial rushtotakeitin2021evenifitis with the pandemic, we needto media platform that has been available,” said Taparia. develop long-term capacity in gathering citizens’ inputsonvar- “Wewill sharethe findings of thepublichealthsector,”he said. ious issues pertaining to the this reportwith relevant govern- Dr Shashank Joshi, dean of Covid-19pandemic. ment stakeholders so the public the Indian CollegeofPhysicians, The onlinesurvey received concerns and feedbackfinds said therewas need forbetter IN PROTEST morethan25,000 responses place in the strategy and imple- from across 262 districts of mentationofCovid-19vaccine Members of the Swabhimani Shetkari Paksha protestagainst the newly-amendedFarm Bills India, of which69per cent re- roll-out,” said Taparia. outside theCollector’s Office in Pune on Tuesday. Ashish Kale spondentsweremen and31per cent were women. The survey ‘Needfor peer review responses were also compared by scientists, experts’ to responsestoasimilar survey conducted in October. Apeer review by scientists Actor Urmila Matondkar formally The firstquestion in the sur- and experts is amustbeforewe vey was,“TheCovid-19 vaccineis categoricallyaccept anyclaim likelytobeavailable from from anymanufacturer about joins Shiv Sena, says impressed February2021via private and vaccine efficacy results, said Dr governmentchannels. If that hap- Subhash Salunkhe, technical ad- pens, what willbeyour approach visor on Covid-19tothe with Uddhav’s work as CM towardstaking this vaccine?”. Maharashtragovernment. “The Sachin Taparia, founder of acceptance of the vaccine by pandemic, heavy rain and cy- mentrecommendedher name LocalCircles, said the platform doctors and healthcareworkers EXPRESSNEWSSERVICE clone, and the MVAgovernment forone of the 12 Governor-nom- receivedresponses from 8,936 also needs to beevidence-based MUMBAI,DECEMBER1 has performedverywell in this inatedseatsinthestatelegislative people, of which8per cent said and information needs to be oneyear.AsaCM,he handledthe council from the Sena quota. “I am ahealth or frontline providedtothis keyhigh-risk NEARLYAmonth afterthe Maha situations very well and inter- Matondkar,who joinedthe Sena worker and will getitonpriority group... thereare alarge number Vikas Aghadi governmentpro- acted withthe people likean at the Thackeray residence in through the government”, 13 per of issues that remain unan- posedher name forone of the 12 elder familymember whenever Matoshree, said she would work cent said, “I will getitassoon as swered,” said Dr Salunkhe. He Governor-nominatedseatsinthe required.Iamveryimpressedby as ashivsainik. it becomes available via any alsosaidthe hypebeingcreated, statelegislative council, actor UddhavThackeray's work,” she Talking about her name be- healthcarechannel”, and 11 per thatthe pandemic will be over Urmila Matondkar formally said while addressing the media. ing recommendedfor MLCby cent said “I will getitassoonasit once thevaccine is available, is joinedthe ShivSena on Tuesday The actor further said she theSena,she said, “Uddhav ji becomes available viaaprivate notbasedonfacts. in presence of Chief Minister did notsee anypossibility of told me that my nameisbeing UddhavThackeray. Bollywood moving to Uttar recommendedtofurther in- Matondkar,49, who con- Pradesh. “Bollywood industry crease social and cultural stan- Shirdi SaiSanstha Trust denies tested the2019Lok Sabhaelec- and Mumbai have ablood rela- dards of thelegislative council. tions from the Mumbai North tion. Idonot see anypossibility Iamveryfortunate forit.” imposing dress code for devotees constituency on aCongress of Mumbai and Bollywood get- The actor further said the ticket, quit the party citing “petty ting separated,” said Matondkar Congress had alsoofferedher the Pune: The Shirdi ShriSaibaba temple for darshan.“Taking note politics” lastSeptember. in response to aquestion on MLCseat, butshe respectfully re- Sanstha TrustonTuesdaydenied of the complaints, we have re- Matondkar recentlytook on fel- Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister fusedfor some other reasons. speculation about aban on devo- questeddevotees to enter the lowactor Kangana Ranaut, who Yogi Adityanath’s meeting with Clarifyingherstandonjoining tees who enter the temple prem- temple premises wearing tradi- equated Mumbai to “Pakistan film personalities. apolitical party with aHindutva ises wearing shorts or mini skirts. tional and culturalIndian outfits. OccupiedKashmir” and targeted Responding to questions ideology,Matondkar said, “Wehavenot imposedany This is just arequest...weare not the chief minister. on actor Kangana Ranaut, “Secularismdoesnot meanto hate ban...We arenot enforcing any enforcinganydresscode,”hesaid. Matondkar, afterjoiningthe Matondkar said she has been theotherreligionorto opposeand dress code in the temple prem- Bagatesaid everyday,7,000 party,said she wasimpressedby given“unnecessaryimportance” hateour ownreligion.IamHindu ises,”saidKanhuraj Bagate,CEOof devotees arrive forSai darshan Thackeray’s work afterthe MVA and thereisnoneedtospeak by janma (birth) and karma theShirdiSaiSanstha.Bagatesaid from across the country. “Before government completedayear in about it now. (work). Religion is notsomething someactivists hadcomplainedto theCovid-19pandemic, the fig- office. “Maharashtra facedvari- Almostamonth ago, the to showoffbutto keepintheheart theSansthaaboutthe“objection- urewas around 15,000 devo- ous challenges likethe Covid-19 UddhavThackeray-ledgovern- and is amatteroffaith.” ableoutfit”of devoteesvisitingthe tees,” he said. ENS

POSTLOCKDOWN Demandfor co-working spaces in Pune seesgradual rise

other companyinthe co-work- tions againstthe virus,the foot- notmuchindemand due to vir- tion eases. “The demandisslow RUCHIKAGOSWAMY ing space,” said Manoj Bora, co- fall at The DaftarinBaner has tual mediums. Moreover, it has yetinflated,asthe co-working PUNE,DECEMBER1 owner at Cowork Studio. “As for droppedto50per cent,said been observed that apartfrom model hasnot onlyadjusted start-ups, 40 per cent of our Sunanda Verma, founder.She individual players likefree- well giventhe pandemic, but THE DEMAND forco-working members have shutdowndue said that while inquiriesfrom lancers and remote workers, also suitscompaniesfinan- spaces in Pune has seen aslow to the financial hit, or theyhave companies ensuremoreseats, employees of medium-scale cially. Enterprise organisations rise in the lastcouple of months, converted to aone-man com- demand has been slightly companies were also looking at suchase-commerceand IT postthe Covid-19lockdown, es- pany. Secondly, smallstart-ups higher from individuals. “If out co-working spaces. firms mightadoptthese spaces peciallyasworkfromhome be- with employees from other of 10,the occupancy wasseven “Employees from medium in the future.” comes the norm. While some cities areworkingfromhome, to eight, it has nowdroppedto or large-scale companies are Varun Khanna, community co-working spaces' owners be- whichhelps cut costs whenit three or four.Newer inquiries higher in number,asthe com- manager at Starthub, Koregaon lieve theupsurge will be main- comes to getting aspace.” arecoming in, wherein people panycan coverthe expendi- Park,and Shankar Salunke, tainedwith inquiries from He added that while occu- visit the place to ensuresafety ture,” said AdityaKulkarni, owner of Divine Coworking in smaller companies, start-ups pancyinCowork’s five branches precautions arebeingtaken. ownerofThe Hub in Kothrud. Baner,said the requirement and freelancers trickling in, oth- in the city wasaround 95 to 100 Start-ups have shiftedtoeither “Inquiries arehigher in the area. among patrons has ledtomore ers said the constant scareofthe per cent before Covid, it hasre- work from home or looking But as abusiness, we hopeto instances of price negotiations. virus is still keeping people away ducedto30to40per cent now. intoco-workingspaces, as sev- break even and keep ourselves “In the lastone and ahalf from sharing spaces, resulting in “Weget around 30 percent calls eral of them losttheir previous above the redline, as we cannot months, we sawmorepeople lowoccupancy. forinquiries, out of whichonly ones duetofinancialtroubles,” reallysay if the situation will be wanting to work in co-working “Peopleare onlycoming in some work out. We arehopeful shesaid. better by next July…” spaces. The catchis, however, when it becomes absolutely the situation will getbetterby While co-working spaces Meanwhile,Rakesh Mangde, that thereismorenegotiation necessary forthem, like when March,with news around the with physical distancing and research analystatBootstart when it comes to the packages, their internet stops working. But vaccine and international mar- private cubicles and cabins are Cowork,said co-working spaces as the pandemic has been very mosttimes, theyavoid being in ketbeginning,” he said. among topchoices, conference will moderatelygain momen- hardonevery industry,” aspace with someone from an- Even considering all precau- hallsand meeting rooms are tum even afterthe Covid situa- Salunkesaid.

DAY 6: BHIMARMY CHIEF ADDRESSES PROTESTERS IN GHAZIPUR Crowd swells at borderwith UP, farmers tryingtoreach protestdetainedinHaryana

dressedfarmers and asked them Western UP on Tuesday, said, “I ers but also one forfarm labour- Whilepeopleparticipatingin ASHNABUTANI to keep up the fight until their have leftthe field and come here; ers... Everyone is in this together.” the protestclaimedaround 50 &SAKSHIDAYAL demands aremet. even though this means that we “IfthePrimeMinisterissaying peoplewere detained,policesaid NEWDELHI,DECEMBER1 Speakingto TheIndianExpress, willallfacelosseseventually...This that MSP will continue to exist, the figure was“around two he said, “Wehavenot cometo isthetimewhenwe cutsugarcane whydid theynot makeitapartof dozen”. “Theyare likelytobere- EVEN AS the numbers continued standinfrontof thefarmers,rather and start growing wheat in its these three Acts?” she said. leasedtonight,” said Subhash to swell at Singhu and Tikri on stand behind them in solidarity... place.Bothmy sonsarejoiningthe MeanwhileinHaryana,mem- Boken,PRO of Gurgaon Police. the Delhi-Haryana border,farm The same farmers who arere- protestsoon.”NavdeepSingh(28) bers of the MewatVikasSabha, Swaraj India national president protestsintensifiedatGhazipuron sponsible forputting food on our said families across Western UP one of the groups participating in YogendraYadav,detainedon the national capital’sborderwith platesaresittingonstreetsandeat- aretakingturnsto jointheprotest. the protestfromNuh, said it was November 26, condemnedthe UttarPradesh.Duringtheday, trac- ingalone.Theyare beingmetwith Some said the women in their onSaturdaythatfarmersfromthe Gurgaon Police action. tors inchedclosertothe barri- watercanons and lathis... Icannot familieswouldjoinsoonsincethe districthaddecidedtomakeasec- Referring to astatement caded areas at Ghazipur even as see this kind of injustice. Icome GhaziabadNagarNigamhassetup ond attempt to reachthe capital. madeby ChiefMinisterManohar DelhiPoliceand Rapid Action from afamilyoffarmers and Iam portablewashroomsonbothsides “Wewerefirststoppedon Lal Khattar on Saturday, he said, Forces kept aclose eyeontheir familiar with their troubles.” of the protestsite. November26.Today, we intended “On the onehand, the Chief movements. Meanwhile, around “The movement is being mis- Later in the day, protesters to reachSinghu border via the Ministersays farmersof Haryana 30 farmers from Haryana’s Nuh represented —some arealleging from the All India Kisan Kundli-Manesar-Palwal arenot involvedinthe farmers’ who were tryingtomaketheir theprotestispro-Khalistan,others Sangharsh Coordination Expressway,travelling in cars and movement, and on the other, waytoDelhito joinintheprotests aresayingfarmersarebeingpaid,” Committee reachedthe border. tractors,” said Salamuddin Meo, farmersare beingtakenintocus- were detainedbyGurgaon Police he said. Even afterAzad left, the Medha Patkar,who is partofthe president of the group. tody.When, due to thepressure on Tuesdayafternoon. area continuedtobustle with ac- committee, told The Indian “WeleftNuh around noon, of the farmers’ movement, the Around 2pmatGhazipur, tivity.Thesituationnearthebarri- Express,“This is notacentralised but were stopped by police per- central governmentisforcedto BharatiyaKisan Union’s green cadesbecame tense as time movement but anationwide one sonnel near Sohna and pre- talkwiththefarmers,theKhattar flags mergedwith the Bhim passed, with morefarmers pour- and thereare alliance move- vented from travelling further. governmentisshowing itsanti- Army’s blue as the latter’s chief ing in. Dheeraj Rathi (55), who mentsacrossthe country.Itisnot Whycan’t we joinour friendsat farmerintentionsandpoliciesby Chandrashekhar Azad ad- landedatthe border todayfrom onlyamovementof landedfarm- the border,” he said. taking farmersintocustody.”

Pune WWW.INDIANEXPRESS.COM

THEINDIANEXPRESS,WEDNESDAY,DECEMBER2,2020 6 THE CITY

Pune Metro site in-charge booked for worker’s death Pune: Asitein-charge with the Pune MetroRail project has been booked on chargesofcausing death by negligence in connec- tion with the death of a23-year- old labourer.The worker, Abhinandankumar Ramani, who hailedfromBihar, had died afterfalling down from a10me- tre-high pillar at Bundgarden MetrostationonSeptember 28. According to police,hehad been fittingnutsand boltsona frame when he losthis balance. He sustainedgrievous injuries and succumbed four days later. According to police, the site in-charge had neither provided anysafetygearnor installedany safetynet.Sub inspector (Clockwise from left) Voting BhagwatShendge of Koregaon forGraduates’ and Teachers’ Park police station said, "Prima ConstituencyElections at facie it seems that therewas neg- Ahilya Devi High School and ligence on partofthe siteengi- SP College on Tuesday; Pune neer...Wehaveidentifiedthe MP Girish Bapat votesat said in-charge and further probe Ahilya Devi High School. is on." ENS Ashish Kale

ON PUNE-AHMEDNAGAR ROAD No new rules or relaxations, Pune to see same lockdown 7-kmchaseleadspolicetohidden190-kg norms till December end

AJAYJADHAV INNUMBERS sandalwoodstash,possiblesmugglingracket PUNE,DECEMBER1 THE PUNE Municipal 18 Acting on a kg of good-quality sandalwood, operandi of howsandalwood is Corporation (PMC)Tuesdayex- worthRs20lakh. Policesubse- smuggled, particularly in west- tendedthe lockdown in the city Covid-19deaths reportedin tip-off,Pune Rural quentlyplacedthe driverofthe ernMaharashtra, Rohan Bhate, a due to theCovid-19situation till Pune on Tuesday. tempo, who wastransporting member of the WildlifeCrime December end,but without any Police team seizes the blocks,under arrest and ControlBoard, said, "Sandalwood newrestrictions or relaxations. launchedaprobe intothe case. treesgrowinganywhere— While therehas been a 8,418 sandalwood Good-quality sandalwood is whether private land,govern- steady increase in the number of Death toll so farinthe worthRs10,000 to 15,000 per ment land or forest land--come active Covid-19cases in Pune af- district. worthRs20lakh kg,depending on the grade. under aset of legislationwhen it terDiwali, the civic administra- Speaking to The Indian comes to cuttingand transport- tion has decidedagainstintro- Express,Inspector Ghanwatsaid, ing.Weneedtounderstand, only ducing anynew lockdown rules 926 SUSHANTKULKARNI "Basedonthis seizure,wehave the inner coreofthe trunk,acou- tillthe end of December. Covid-19cases reportedin PUNE,DECEMBER1 reasons to believe thereisanor- ple of feet above andbelowthe In an order issuedTuesday, the district on Tuesday. ganisedsandalwood smuggling ground, arethe valuablepartsof Municipal Commissioner FOLLOWINGAtip-offabout san- ring behind it. Mostofthe time, the tree. Forcutting and trans- Vikram Kumar said, “The state dalwood smuggling, ateam suchsandalwood is stolen, ille- porting asandalwood tree,aper- government rules on lockdown 3,43,827 from Pune RuralPolice chaseda gallyfelledand then sold to fac- mission from theForest in containment zones will con- Totalcases reportedinthe tempofor over 7kmonthe tories extracting oils forvarious Department andtransit permit tinue to checkthe spread of the district so far. Pune-Ahmednagar Road on purposes, including formaking is required.Thereare gangsac- viral infection.” As part of its'un- Mondaymidnight,onlytofind cosmeticsorincensesticks etc. tive across the state, whichchop lock' mission, the PMC has been the vehicle's carrier area empty. We arenow working on various offand steal the valuable parts of graduallyrelaxing lockdown with 50 per cent sittingcapacity, The cops were,however, in fora leadsthat have cometothe fore... trees that theyfind in farms, bun- norms and issuing standardop- the PMChas setupsquads to surprise find: ahiddencompart- ‘Mostofthe time,suchsandalwood is stolen, illegallyfelled and then sold to factories we aresureofmaking further galows,house premises or vari- eratingprocedure fororganisa- take action againstthose estab- ment in the tempo, in which extracting oils forvarious purposes, including formakingcosmeticsorincense sticks,’ said a headway soon and zeroing in on ous types of forest areas.These tionsacrossall sectors. lishmentsthat were notfollow- nearly 190-kg smuggledsandal- police officer. Express the main operators." choppedparts arethen smug- In November,PMC had an- ing distancing norms, afterre- wood wasbeing transported. The seizure wasdone under gled andsold to oil extraction nouncedthat schools will be al- ceiving severalsuchcomplaints. The Local Crime Branch(LCB) the supervisionofPune Rural unitsorotherfactories. These lowedtohold classes forstu- From apeak of 17,781new of Pune RuralPolice, which tempoheading towards suspected vehicle had already had justamattress in it. But af- Superintendent of Police gangs, manytimes,havecrimi- dentsofClass IX to XII, but after Covid-19cases on September 20, found the stash on the interven- Ahmednagar,inwhichsandal- passed. The team immediately tersustained questioning, the AbhinavDeshmukh, and by a nal elementsassociated with poor responsefromparentsand the PMC has seen the number ing night of Mondayand wood blocks were being illegally gave chase. driver, Suraj Ubale (24),spilled team ledbyInspector Ghanwat, them. Coordinated effortsfrom increasing number of Covid-19 drop to 4,176onNovember 17. Tuesday, has nowlauncheda transported. As the driverofthe tempo the beans and showedthe police whichcomprisedAssistant police, forest department and cases, the reopening waspost- However, thenumber of active probeintoapossiblesandal- Apoliceteam from the LCB truckrealisedthat police were ahidden compartmentunder Inspector Pruthviraj Tate,Sub- awareness among people is ponedtill December 13. cases has been increasing after wood smuggling racket operat- laid atraponPune-Ahmednagar tailing him, he triedtogivethem the carrier area. The compart- Inspector Amol Gore, Assistant neededto put acheckonthese il- The PMC has also allowed Diwali, and had reached5,541 on ing in Pune and adjoiningdis- Road from Mondaynight. After the slip.But afterahot pursuitof ment wasconstructed by mak- Sub-Inspector Dattatray legal activities.Illegal cutting, swimming pools to open, thou- November 29, an increase of tricts. awhile, the police team realised around 7km, police finally inter- ingapartofthe carrier floor re- Giramkar and constables transportand unauthorisedsale gh onlyfor sportspersons, as well over 1,300in14days.The PMC The tip off-was receivedfrom that the licence number of the ceptedthe vehicle. movable and installing atin box Mangesh Thigale, AkshayNavale of sandalwood is punishable un- as parks,with certain restrictions has also repeatedly warnedofa informantsofLCB Inspector vehicle, as shared by the inform- To theLCB team's initial dis- beneath. and PrasannajeetGhadage. der the Indian Forest Actand in place. Whilemallswerealso second waveofCovid infections Padmakar Ghanwat, about a ant, wasslightlywrong andthe appointment, the carrier area The compartmenthad 190 Explaining the modus MaharashtraForestRules." allowedtoopen, and restaurants during winter. 33 films to be featured in Pune start-up to ensure safe disposal of 4,800 sanitary pads every month eco-fest from December 5 startup has developedasmoke- Labs has demonstrated itspad Once installedatwashrooms, ANJALIMARAR less and odourless sanitary collection and processing units the wastecollector ‘Sanibin’ can tion and shorts,and will covera PUNE,DECEMBER1 wastemanagement system. in the city,whichare readying for storeupto30pads foramonth EXPRESSNEWSSERVICE variety of topics –ranging from From wastecollection at the installation. without emitting anyfoul odour PUNE,DECEMBER1 climatechange,biodiversity, PADCARE LABS, aPune-based source to an environment- "Initially, 40 collection units or creating anybacterial reac- habitats,urban lifeand food sys- startup,has setamonthlytarget friendlydisposal,the company will be installedatITI, Aundh. tions. This bin mayalso be emp- THE FIRSTedition of the All tems to energy,sustainability, to prevent 4,800sanitarypads has setupachainofprocesses The collection will be monitored tiedperiodically. The collected Living Things Environmental wildlife, conservation, social jus- from reachinglandfills and be- wherein harmful wastecan be digitally. During the pastone wasteissent forprocessing to Film Festival wasannounced re- tice, protection and restoration ing disposedofinother unscien- disposedofinthe mosteffective year,wehavedemonstratedthe ‘Saneco’, aprocessor with capac- centlywith aline-up of 33 films, of wildlifeplaces. tific methods. The companyre- manner. working of these unitsatthe ity to churn 1,500pads and pro- selected from over 100films Kunal Khanna, who founded centlysignedanMoU withthe Duetogrowing awareness Indian InstituteofScience, duce recyclable-qualitymaterial. submitted from 14 countries. the festival with Neha Shreshta, StateInnovation Council to work about menstrual hygiene and Once installedinwashrooms, the‘Sanibin’ can storeupto Education and Research,the Meanwhile,the companyis Duetothe coronavirus pan- Marie Schegaand Rudransh on improving sanitarywaste easy availability of sanitarynap- 30 pads foramonth. National Chemical Laboratory also in talkswith corporations of demic,the festival will be organ- Mathur,said, “In the coming across government-run Indust- kins at affordable rates, an esti- and Cummins CollegeinPune," metrocities suchasChennai, isedonline between December years, the festival will include rial Training Institutes (ITIs), of- mated 8,000usedsanitarypads said AjinkyaDhariya, founder along with residential societies 5and 13.The films to be show- virtual reality,aswell as youth fices and institutions in the state. aregenerated everymonth per ated per month in India, making ed in an unscientific manner. and CEO of PadCareLabs, adding and the twocorporations in casedduring the festival include and local engagementspro- Incubated at theVenture 1,000 women and one million their disposal achallenge. This Although it is yettobe that the MoU will be in place for Pune, to encouragethe safedis- features, documentaries, anima- gramme.” CentreinPune,the two-year-old usedsanitarynapkins aregener- wasteissent to landfills or burn- launchedcommercially, PadCare ayear. posal method. ‘75 per cent of companies will get back to pre-Covid levels by June 2021’

Since theCovid-19pandemic, the other economiesglobally,aswe If listedcompanies are MSMEs,bothformal and in- acontraction nevertheless and Indeed, the employment lev- shape will it take? MahrattaChambers of Commerce, have observedcontractionfortwo showingsignificant formalones,togetheremploythe Jan-Marquarterwilldeliveranex- els arenot yetatpre-Covid levels, ...Tosupport5,00,000informal IndustriesandAgriculture(MCCIA) subsequentquarters.Whilethisis profitabilityjumps and the largest numberof people.Thathas pansion,againinlowersingledig- oursurvey of 150-200companies workersacrossMaharashtra with has been tracking thestate of econ- still acontraction, it is asignifi- broader economy is still not an impact on aggregatedemand its. Thiswillreduce the impact of showsittobeatleast 82 per cent training and skilling with an ex- omyinPune.Afterthelatestsurveys cantlypositivejumpfromthatin entirelyout of the woods, andso,thefullrecoverywillawait 15.7 per cent contraction so farin andat89per cent forlarge com- penditureofRs10,000perworker, showedencouraging figures, Q1 (23.9 per cent contraction). what’s missing? recovery in this segment. H1of thisfinancialyear.Still,itwill panies.Till it reaches 100per cent we arelookingatabudget of Rs PRASHANTGIRBANE,director The pleasantlysurprisingele- Q2 2020 recordedthe highest be acontraction and onethatis and, better still, improvesfrom 500crore.Thisfundcouldbeused generalofMCCIA,speaks to ment in the numbers is the man- quarterly profitsmade by listed What arethe expectations expectedto betheworstcontrac- thoselevels,therewillbeaheight- by thestate government (with PARTHASARATHIBISWAS about ufacturingsectorgrowthyear-on- companies. Alook at the wage forthe next quarter, i.e. Jan- tion in therecordedhistory of in- enedlevel of unemployment or some supportfromCentre) to is- theway forward: year,albeit onlyat0.6 per cent. bills in the quartershows no sig- Mar 2021and the overall dependent India. reducedlevel of labourparticipa- sue ‘Aadhar’ linked digital skill MCCIA’s monthlysurveyson nificant drop, it instead shows a financialyear? MCCIAMonthlySurvey of tion,but the extent of this is de- voucher of Rs 10,000 eachfor The Indian government ‘EconomicRecovery’ofPune re- slightsingle-digitincrease,which When we talk about the next EconomicRecoveryindicatesthat cliningmonth-on-monthsofar. everywilling informalworker. recentlypublishedQ2GDP gionarebroadlyintunewiththis. indicatesthatthehigherjumpsin fewmonths, thereare acouple of at least25-30per cent of compa- To supporttheinformalwork- Larger employers who seek numbers...is Pune in tune Of course,thenumbersaren’tthe profitability arenot at the costof Prashant Girbane assumptionstomakehere:oneis niesare already at pre-Covid lev- ers, government at both Centre skilled,trainedworkersshouldbe with these numbers? While same as the methodologies used wage billsbutoperationalefficien- thatwewould take allprecautions els, 20-25 per centwill getthere and state-levelneeds to incen- encouraged to recommend alist the manufacturing sector by each aredifferent. cies. Of course, these profitability to avoid the second wave, likein in three months and another 25 tivise companiestoorganise a of traininginstitutionsrecognised across the countryshows 0.6 MCCIAmonthlysurvey hasin- levels arenot sustainable and are segmentsof‘services’ sector like some western countries and sec- percentinthreeto sixmonthsin- mechanisminwhichthereare in- by them so thatthe value of certi- percent growth, your surveys dicated month-on-month im- bound to decline but hopefully hospitality andtourismthat have ond is that we would avoid lock- dicating that at least75per cent dustry-ledtraining and skill de- fication issuedbythese institu- forPune suggestlower provementsinbothproduction notbelowlonger-term mean. yettogain pace of recovery. downs,thekindwe sawinthefirst of companieswillgettopre-Covid velopmentprogrammesthrough tionsmatchestheexpectationsof recovery than that. levels and ‘employees deployed’ What’s missing is the per- Even as MCCIAMonthly fewweeksand months, muchof levels by June 2021. entrepreneurial skill develop- the employers themselves... Lastweek,the government levelleading up to almost 80-82 formance of MSMEs and the in- SurveysonEconomic Recovery whichwerenecessitated by the ment ventures that supportthe It will be awin forall those in- announcedits Q2(July-Sept)GDP per cent recovery to pre-pan- formal sector.Theycontribute30 show, therecovery in microand onslaught of this pandemic and Labour unions have talked training of informal workers. volved,includingthegovernment, to be 7.5per cent lowerthan the demic levels in our latestsurvey per cent of GDP,45per cent of ex- informalfirmsisfarmoremodest farhigher order of uncertainties aboutless work and lots of if this scheme is kept market- same period the previous year. concludedlastweek. The num- portsand90percentof jobs.Most than in large companies. The jobs then. With these assumptions, unemploymentinthe Pune Howcan government driven. Technically,this putsthe Indian bersatabout90percentareeven of them do notbenefit from for- lostinthese sectorshavenot yet Oct-Dec quarterisexpected to region. What is your view incentivisethe private FULLINTERVIEWON economyinarecession likemost moreencouragingforlarge firms. mal credit. Also, thereare certain fullyrecovered. recordfarshortercontractionbut aboutthis? sector to do that? What www.indianexpress.com

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THEINDIANEXPRESS,WEDNESDAY,DECEMBER2,2020 7 MAHARASHTRA

Govt sets up four-member YOGI ADITYANATH IN MUMBAI Nobodycan body to probe ‘irregularities’ Uddhavsaysnoindustry shift Bollywood outside in Jalyukt ShivarAbhiyan Mumbai: BJP vestigation. The detailedreport storagecreated wasnot suffi- willgooutofMaharashtra EXPRESSNEWSSERVICE afterthe investigation will have cient to meetrequirementsas EXPRESSNEWSSERVICE MUMBAI,DECEMBER1 to be submitted to the govern- wasexpected. MUMBAI,DECEMBER1 ment within six months. The The BJP termedthe decision THE STATEgovernment on open inquirywill look intoall as- by theMVA as a “malicious” EXPRESSNEWSSERVICE STATEBJP president Chandrakant Tuesdayconstituted afour- pectsofviolations, including fi- move.Chiefspokespersonofthe MUMBAI,DECEMBER1 PatilonTuesdaysaid therewas member committee to investi- nancial bungling, substandard BJP KeshavUpadhye said, “The noquestion of shifting Bollywood gate into alleged irregularities in work and costescalations in the probeisaninsult to public ADAY aheadofUttar Pradesh outside Mumbai. Bollywood has theJalyukt Shivar Abhiyan (JSA). waterconservation projects. movement on waterconserva- Chief MinisterYogi aspecial attractionand appeal, The scheme wasthe flagship In October,the cabinettook a tion. The JSAwas amovement Adityanath's visit to Mumbai whichisnot possible outside project of former chief minister formal decisiontoprobe theJSA. undertaken through hugepub- with aplan to wooBollywood Mumbai, he added. DevendraFadnavis in order to In September,aCAG reportex- lic participationtoend drought and other industries to setup Patil's remarkscame ahead of makeMaharashtra drought- posedshortcomings in the JSA. in Maharashtra." base in his state, Chief Minister Uttar Pradesh Chief MinisterYogi free. The reportsaid, “Despitespend- He also said it wasevident UddhavThackeray on Tuesday Adityanath's visit to Mumbai. On The Maha Vikas Aghadi gov- ing Rs 9633.75 croreinJSA,it that the government wanted to declared that no industrycould Wednesday, the UP CM has con- ernment ledbyChief Minister hadlittle impact in achieving undermine the good work done be takenout of Maharashtra, venedameeting withBollywood Uddhav Thackeraydecided to waterneutrality and increasing under the Fadnavis government. and the "different culture" here actors, producers and directors. order an open inquiryintothe ground waterlevel." Another Moreshocking is the decision to wasadraw forindustries from He has also convenedameeting project following aCAG report, objection raisedbyCAG was probethe good work,whichwas other states. with business leaders to explore whichpointed to irregularities “lackoftransparency” in carry- ownedand shouldered by vil- "Some people arecoming investment in the Hindi heart- and lackoftransparency in the ing out theproject. It raised lagers to tackle watercrisis, he todayand will meet youurging land. "I believe Bollywood in projectcarried outbetween questions on itsexecution and added. youtocome(forinvestment) to Mumbai plays asignificantrolein 2014 and 2019. monitoring. The Congress,however, has their state. But theyare not generatingemployment. The sec- The stategovernment reso- The JSAwas an ambitious welcomedthe investigation. awareofour magnetic power. torcannotberelocated outside lution (GR) issued on Tuesday project, whichwas imple- Congress spokesperson Sachin It is so powerful that no indus- Uttar Pradesh Chief MinisterYogi Adityanath with actorAkshayKumarinMumbai on Mumbai," he said. stated,"Afourmember com- mented across drought-hit vil- Sawant said, “In the past, we had tries from Maharashtrawill go Tuesday. Express "As farasthe UP CM's visit is mittee ledbyretired deputy lages in Maharashtra. It was oftenraisedscam in the JSA.But to their state.Instead, the in- concerned, it mustbetohold de- chief secretaryVijay Kumar has launchedinDecember 2014.Till it wasoverlooked.Our stand dustries from other states may liberations withfilm industry been appointedtoinvestigate 2019,under JSA, 22,586 villages wasvindicated when CAGre- come to Maharashtra," said During his visit to Mumbai, setting up of afilm city in Noida. happen,"headded. leaderstostudy and seek their the JSA. Other members in the were covered. Totalexpenditure portestablishedwrongdoings. Thackeray at an event of the Uttar Pradesh CM is scheduled Thackeray said Maharashtra Thackeray further said dur- help forsetting up an alternative committee include aserving ad- incurredon6.41lakh workswas The government has done right IMC Chamber of Commerce to meetindustrialists,person- wasmaking progress as it had ing lockdown, the government film cityinUP. Thereisnothing ditional police commissioner, Rs 9633.75 crore. These arethe to expose the scam." and Industry.Heurged the IMC alities from the film industry adifferent culture. "Weare not signedapact worthRs60,000 wrong if anystate wantstoset Anti-CorruptionBureau, chief factsthat theCAG also acknowl- However, BJP leaders argued to be the brand ambassador of and launchthe listing of jealous if other states progress croreand effortsontopavethe up anew film industry. Thereis executive engineer,water re- edgedinits report. it wasunfair to dismiss the en- Maharashtraasthat will en- LucknowMunicipal further.Let them progress by waytoimplement these proj- nothing wrong to study existing sources department, and direc- The CAGfindings were based tire project. Outof6.41lakh courageinvestment in the Corporation's first-everbond on competing with others.But if ects. "Weaim to bring one lakh film unit models including tor, statewater commission." on asample study.Itrandomly works, CAGreportshortlisted state, notjustfromthe other Bombay StockExchangeon someoneattemptstoforcibly croreinvestment in Maharashtra Bollywood to understand how The committee will identify selected 120villages. In 80 vil- only120 samples. Of these, in 83 parts of thecountry but abroad December 2. Earlier,the UP gov- take away businesses to their in the coming year," the chief the sector worksorwhat areits villagestofacilitatethorough in- lages, the study showedwater works, objections were raised. as well. ernment had announcedthe states, then Iwill notallowitto ministeradded. logistics," Patil added. SHEETAL AMTE-KARAJGI’S DEATH On run for two Police, civic officials refuseto years, man held for rape divulge postmortem findings of mentally the second consecutive dayto found. It has alsoemergedthat VIVEKDESHPANDE speak about the findings of the Sheetalhadapparentlyappliedfor challenged NAGPUR,DECEMBER1 post-mortemconducted at afirearmlicence sometime back Chandrapur District Hospital on but her application wasrejected. woman THE POLICEand civic officials re- Monday. Collector VijayGulhane "TheBhamragadpolice in fusedtodivulgeany details of the said, "Theywill divulgethe find- Gadchiroli rejected the applica- postmortemreport of Sheetal ingsafter forensic expertsgive tion,"Pandesaid,refusingtospec- SAGARRAJPUT Amte-Karajgi, granddaughter of their opinion." ify the period when the applica- MUMBAI,DECEMBER1 latesocialactivistBabaAmte,who The room of her residence at tion wasmade and rejected. diedatAnandwan, the worldfa- AnandwaninwhichSheetal was Gadchiroli District Law IN OCTOBER 2018,an18-year-old mous leprosy asylum setupby found dead waslockedfromthe Officer Harish Bambole,how- mentallychallenged teenager AmteatWarorainChandrapur inside. Herhusband wasawayin ever,said, "As farasIknowthere wasrapedinadarkdesertedlane district, on Monday. office. The door had to be broken wasnoapplication by hername in Tardeo, 70 km from her home. Sheetal(39) wasinconflict open. She wasdeclareddead af- with us forfirearm." Forthe lasttwo years, adedicated with her brother Kaustubh (43) terbeing rushedtothe district Gadchiroli Collector Dipak policeteamfromTardeo hasbeen overcontrolof Amtefamily'sproj- hospital.Deputy Superintendent Singlasaid, "The application trying to nab the accused, who in ectsatWaroraand Somnath in of Police Nilesh Pande said, "The comes to the Collector first. The abid to avoid arrest,had crossed Chandrapur district. Sheetalhad doorhadto bebrokensinceitwas Collector seekspolice opinion. If overtoNepal.Finally, aphone call opposedhis inclusion in the boltedfrominside.We have found the policereject thepleaafter as- lastmonth helpedtrace the 38- MaharogiSeva Samiti(MSS)trust some syringesand alot of medi- sessingthethreatperception,then year-old culprit to Patna. that runs the project. Kaustubh cines and we needtoestablish theCollectorofficedoesn'tprocess The man,Manoj Saha, wasar- hadresignedfromthetrustabout whetherthosesyringeswere used it further." rested lastweekand a five years agofollowing accusa- by her.That will take some time." GadchiroliSuperintendent of chargesheetwill soon be filedin tions of irregularities by Sheetal. Police have seizedsome elec- Police AnkitGoyal said, "I am not the case, police said. An officer ’TIS THE SEASON Seniorsinthefamily, includingfa- tronic gadgetsfromher room. awareofany suchapplication." said the charge of gangrape made ther Vikas and uncle Prakash Responding to unconfirmedre- Pande,however,maintained againstthe accusedwill be Orangetrees in Nagpur areinfull bloom and thefruitisbeing harvestedinmanyplaceslikeAmravati district. Agood crop Amte,aswellasothertrusteeshad ports thatitwasacaseof deathby "wehavedocumentsthat show dropped, as the survivor, now20 has arrivedinalarge quantity at the APMCmarket in Mumbai. NarendraVaskar beeninsistingontakinghimback. suicide,thepoliceonMondayhad she had appliedfor firearm but years old, had told police in 2018 No officialwasforthcomingon said no "suicidenote"has been herpleawas rejected". that she wasrapedbythree men. "She is still traumatised. Wheneverthereisamention of anysexualassault around her,my Step up investmentonongoing infra Owner of Thane’s iconic daughter starts shouting.The in- cident has leftadeep scar," said the woman's father.Police said on projects, govt tells departments Mamledar Misal chain dies October 10,2018, the woman had fought with her sisters and left the house. She took atrain to up demand and revive the econ- these. The government has also foreconomic revivalhas recom- Mumbai Central and sleptona SANDEEPASHAR omywhilecurbingthinspreading permitted100percentutilisation mendedfundingof ruralroadand EXPRESSNEWSSERVICE road at Tardeo, whereSaha forced MUMBAI,DECEMBER1 of funds,"asenior officialsaid. of fundssanctionedunder the lo- irrigationworksthroughborrow- MUMBAI,DECEMBER1 himself on her in the weehours. Afterimposingafreeze on cal area development funds allo- ings at 3.5 per cent interestunder "She returnedhome after24 THE STATEgovernment on newcapital worksfor the first catedtolegislators and also the the RIDF.After presenting aRs LAXMAN MURDESHWAR, hours (October 11)and we no- Tuesday directed state-runde- sevenmonths of the lockdown, fundssanctionedaspertheworks 4.34lakh crorebudget for2020- owner of Thane's iconic ticedachangeinher behaviour. partmentstostepupinvestment Maharashtrahad partiallyeased approved underthe district plan. 21 andanincreasedallocation of Mamledar Misal, passedaway When Itook her intoconfidence, in ongoing infrastructure andde- the curbs fordepartmentsin- InMarch,FinanceMinisterAjit 4.1per cent over the revisedesti- on Tuesday. He was85. she told me of her ordeal," said velopment works. volvedinjobandassetcreationon Pawarhad increasedthe annual mateof2019-20 in March,rev- The business that Laxman's the father.The woman had then The directives come at atime the backofanimprovement in allocation of this discretionary enuelossesdueto thecoronavirus father Narsingh Murdeshwar saidshe wasrapedbythree men. when private sector capital ex- cashflows andincomeinOctober. fund from Rs 2crore to Rs 3crore lockdown hadforcedthe stateto startedbydishing out the spicy Accordingly,acaseofgangrape penditureinthe statehas con- As per orders issuedon perlegislator.Thefinancedepart- imposea67per cent cut in devel- street staple in the canteen of wasregistered.Eventually, police tracted and cut in revenues has November,all such departments menthasalsoalreadyliftedspend opment (scheme) spend in May. then Mamledar (case holder) managed to identify the accused alsoimpactedthestate'sabilityto were permitted to utilise 75 per curbs on developmentworks This is the deepestevercut in ex- officer in 1952, grew intoa as Saha, who did odd jobs in invest in development works. centoftheirsanctioned develop- fundedunder the Rural pendituresinceMaharashtra's chain of 20 outlets in Mumbai Mumbai. Aftercommitting the In anotification issued by the ment funds for2020-21. Fearing InfrastructureDevelopmentFund formation. In hisbudget speech and Thane. crime, he escapedtohis native state's finance department on thattherewill bearush to under- (RIDF) scheme of the National for2020-21inMarch,Pawar had What drew customers to place at Sitamarhi district in Bihar. Tuesday, the government has take newdevelopmentworksre- Bank forAgricultureand Rural estimated atotal capital outlay the restaurant wasthe unre- "Soon afterthe FIR wasregis- asked departmentstomakesure sultinginthinspreading,thegov- Development (NABARD). (spending whichleads to asset lentinglyspicy Misal, always tered, we were informedthat the that67percentof thereleasedde- ernment has nowissued With the government forced creation) of Rs 45,124crore,but servedwithmultiple glasses of culprit had escapedtoBihar and velopmentfunds areutilisedfor guidelinesclearly directingthede- to borrowtomeetits monthly the prolonged lockdownand water. ateam wassent to his native completion and paymentsofon- partmentstoprioritise ongoing wage bill, an expert committee spendcurbs have meant thatthe The fieryred Misal, sprin- place,"saidanofficer.However, going works. "The idea is to spur worksand paymentsrelatedto formedby CMUddhavThackeray target is unlikelytobemet. kledwith finelychoppedonion Saha managed to cross over the and served with twopavs, is the border and flee to Nepal. signaturedish that has main- Police said Saha stayed at his tainedits tasteoverthe sister's place in Nepalfor afew New policy targets 16,400 MW of green power decades. The generous sprin- Laxman Murdeshwar cametoThanefromMurdeshwar in months. "He stoppedusing his kling of spices in the Misal is Karnataka aged four.Heiscredited with standardising cellphone but stayed in touch clearances forpushing renew- around 10 percent at present - come out withatransitionpol- graded as very spicy, medium operationsofMamledar Misal andformalising recipes of the with afriend in Mumbai. Saha SANDEEPASHAR able energy powerprojects. is targettedtogoupto25per icy forongoing projectsap- and less spicy.Eating up the dishes servedafter he took over the business following his would call him from atelephone MUMBAI,DECEMBER1 But with the Covid-19pan- cent by 2025. proved under the previous five- "veryspicy"dish became asort father’s death. Express booth and ask forupdates on the demic worsening Maharashtra's Sticking to theMERC's RPO, year policy sanctionedin2015. of sportamong Misal lovers investigation," the officer said. MAHARASHTRA IS settofinalise financial condition, sources said the stategovernmentistargeting The previous government had over the years. "Recently, he called his friend anew compositepolicy on re- thestate is unlikelytoannounce to go up to 16 per cent by 2022 it- announcedfiscal incentives, in- FondlycalledLaxman Laxman's son Damodar. the canteen in the Mamledar to take an updateonthe investi- newable energy,asper whichit fresh fiscal incentivestopush so- self. The policy aims at achieving cluding electricity duty conces- Mama Murdeshwar, he came to Anand Ralegankar,acon- office in Thane and it gradually gation and gave away his loca- has setatargetofachieving lar and wind energy projectslike an installedcapacity of 12,000 sions, fora10-year period for Thane from Murdeshwar in sultant with the Misal chain, gainedpopularity and became tion...," said Assistant Inspector 16,400MWofinstalledcapacity it had in the past. MW solar energy alone. The cur- green powerplants. Fora Karnataka at the ageoffour.He said that therewereexpansion ahousehold name." Sachin Mane. The woman iden- within five years and attract an The Maharashtra Electricity rent installed capacity of renew- smooth transition to the new is credited withstandardising plans on the cards. "It was Laxman wasingood health tified himatthe police station. investment of Rs 75,000 crore. RegulatoryCommission (MERC) able energy is 9,000 MW. policy,the government plansto the operations of the place and startedbyLaxman Mama until recently, Ralegankar "She told her father then that According to sources, the had earlier issued apolicy an- To achievethe settarget, the allowongoing projectstocon- formalisingthe recipes of the Murdeshwar's parents. His added. He, however, fell ill last therewas onlyone culprit... As newpolicy,whichmay soon be nouncing itsrenewable pur- newpolicy drafthas setfixed an- tinue availing the benefitsif dishes served afterhetook over mother firstprepared Misal Mondayand wasadmitted to a onlyone person has committed tabledbeforethe stateCabinet, chase obligation (RPO) from nual targetsfor each categoryof theycompletedtheirprojects the businessfollowing hisfa- with theidea of providing a hospital. The nature of hisill- theoffence,achargesheet willbe will be focussedoneasing busi- 2020 to 2025. According to it, the renewable powers. in atime-bound manner, ther's death. The mantle has wholesome meal to people at ness is yettobeknown, said filedundersectionsof rape,"said nessprocesses and number of shareofrenewable energy - The government will also sources said. nowbeen passedonto an affordable price. Theyran Ralegankar. the officer.

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THEINDIANEXPRESS,WEDNESDAY,DECEMBER2,2020 WORDLY WISE Theimportant thing to knowabout an assassination is not who fired the shot,but 8 THE EDITORIAL PAGE who paid forthe bullet. —ERIC AMBLER Answering farmers’ knock

§ FOUNDED BY § RAMNATH GOENKA Centre mustcarefullyconsider options, do the BECAUSETHE TRUTH INVOLVES US ALL groundwork, close the communication gap

MEND AND REPAIR Ashok Gulati

Centre’s taxcollectionspickeduppace in October.Itshould FARMERS HAVE PROTESTED againstthe re- Another demand is making theMSP Exchanges wherefarmerscan buy “put op- centlyenactedfarm laws by converging on statutoryand legallybinding even on the pri- tions” at MSP before they even sowtheir increase itsspending, impartapositive impulse to economy Delhi’shighways connectedtoneighbour- vate sector,implying that anyone buying be- crops, and if the market prices at the time of ingstates. The agitation is primarilyled by lowMSP could face prison. Letmesay that it harvestturnout to be belowMSP,govern- IRRORINGTHE TREND in the broader economy, the fiscal position of Punjab farmers, although some other is notthe firsttime that suchademand has ment can compensatethem partlyfor lower the central government is beginning to showsigns of improvement. groups have also joined. Ibelieveevery cit- been raised.Itcameupseveral times even market prices. Iconsider it afeasible option, Datareleasedbythe Controller General of Accountsshows that after izen hasthe right to protest peacefully. But during the time of the UPAgovernment in and it can kickinimmediately. contracting in the firsthalf of this financial year,the Centre’s gross tax blocking highways reveals their intention 2004-13, and it wasrejected everytime. I The fourth option is to totallydecen- Mcollections turnedmarkedlypositive in the month of October.The is to createchaosand disruption, which considerthis impractical as thereare 23 com- tralisethe MSP,procurement, stocking, and maygoout of hand. modities forwhichMSPs areannounced, but publicdistribution system (PDS).Since improvementin collectionswasquitebroad-based, drivenbyhigherindirect taxesand per- Here, letmealso saythat Ifeel thereisa in actual practice onlywheat and rice enjoy manystatesand activists aresayingthat sonal income taxes. However, despitethis, the Centre’s gross taxcollections at the end of gross communication failureonthe part of MSPs in anymeaningful manner,and that agriculturalmarketing is astate subjectand, October stood at Rs 8.75 lakh crore, Rs 1.76 lakh crorelower than last year’s collections. thecentralgovernment to explain to farm- tooonlyin6-7 states. Punjab is the biggest through these laws,the Centreistrampling At the aggregatelevel, the Centre’s gross taxcollections grew by ahealthy17per cent in ers what these laws are, and howtheyare in- gainer as its95-98per cent of market arrivals over their jurisdiction, then whyevenhave October.Muchofthis improvement can be traced to higher indirect taxcollections, which tendedtobenefit them. This communication of wheat and paddy areprocured at MSPby acentralMSP? SinceMSP and procurement grew by 23.6 per cent in October,with revenuefromcentral GST, excise and customs all gapwas fullyexploited by some politicalpar- stateagencies on behalf of the Food existbasicallytosupportfarmers forsup- ties and social activists,who themselvesare Corporation of India (FCI). The FCI is over- plying grains to the FCI to feed into the PDS, showing healthygrowth,asconsumption activity pickedup. Over the April-October pe- facing an existentialistthreat and believe that loadedwith grain stocks that aremorethan letthe whole moneyonso-calledfood sub- riod, indirect taxesweredownonly6.5 per cent compared to lastyear.Under direct taxes, the NarendraModigovernmentcan do no 2.5 times the bufferstock norms, indicating sidy be allocatedtostatesonthe basis of revenuefrom personal incometaxes maintainedits upwardtrajectory, growing at a16.6per good forthis country. Amassive misinfor- massive economic inefficiency in the grain their shareinall-Indiapoverty/proportion cent in October,upfrom2.6 per cent lastmonth, while corporatetax collections continue mation campaign waslaunched, saying that management system, costing the tax-payers of vulnerable population, all-India wheat to contract, though the pace of decline has easedconsiderablyinrecent months.The gov- these laws areasell-out to corporatehouses, Since manystates and thousands of crores without serving anypur- and rice production, all-India procurement ernment’s proceeds from disinvestment as well as from non-tax sources continue to re- will abolish the MSP system, dismantle pose, and that, too, at atime when the coun- of wheatand rice, etc. APMC mandis, and even capturefarmers’ activists are saying that trydesperatelyneeds funds to tackle COVID- Awell thought-outformulaisneededto main amajor source of concern. As againstadisinvestment target of Rs 2.1lakh crore, col- lands.Nothing can be further from the truth. agricultural marketing is a 19 at home and China on itsborders. I allocate, say, Rs 1,00,000 croreoffood sub- lections in the firstseven months have been onlyRs6,178 crore, while non-tax revenue Neither do the laws sayanything about state subjectand,through consider this policyoption impractical be- sidy.And then letthe states decidewhat collections have remainedatless than athirdofthe budgeted target,asagainst72per cent it, nor is the MSP/APMC system going to dis- these laws,the Centre is cause if the government cannotcope up with should be the stateMSP and letthem han- lastyear.But, despitethe improvement in itstax receipts,the Centrehas nowcut backtax appear with these laws.Yes, what would cer- excess production of justwheat and ricein dle procurement and stocking costs.The devolution to states to Rs 37,233crore in October,fromRs41,965 croreinSeptember —in- tainlycome underpressure is the highcom- trampling over their anymeaningful way, think of howitwill han- deficit states can invitetenders forsupply- dicative of thesevere adjustment likelytobemade to the budgetedshareofstatesinthe di- mission of arhtias, mandifees and cess that jurisdiction, then why dle 23 commodities under MSP. ing them required quantities or,evenbetter, visibletax pool on accountofloweroverall taxcollections. states collect, whichaccount forasmuchas even have acentral MSP? In caseofexcess production, the private theymay introduce cash transfers in the PDS 8.5 per cent over the MSP in Punjab, amount- sector will notcome forwardtobuy at MSP, system. Iwould go astepfurther and include The GDP datareleasedbythe National Statistical Office revealedthat government Since MSPand procurement ing to roughlyRs4,500to5,000 croreeach and the government will nothavethe another Rs 1,00,000 croreoffertiliser sub- spending actuallydeclinedinthe second quarterofthe current financial year,imparting year.Asubstantial chunk of this is neverau- exist basically to support wherewithal to buy all and stockthem sidy and free up fertiliser prices from any acontractionaryimpulse to theeconomy. Whilethis trend reversedinOctober,with cen- dited by the Comptroller and Auditor General farmersfor supplying grains withoutany viableoutlet. It will massively controls. Still further, even includeanother tral government spending growing by 9.5per cent, total central government spending in (CAG)ofIndia. to the FCI to feed into the distort markets, makeIndianagriculture Rs 1,00,000,say,ofMNREGA.Letthe Finance the firstseven months of the year remainedatalmostthe same levelaslastyear.Thus, de- What arethe policyoptions nowthatthe PDS, let the whole money non-competitive andstocking of these will Commission work out aformula fordistri- spitethe announcementofvariousrelief packages, therehas notbeen anysignificant farmers have dug in their heels?Punjab be financiallyunsustainable. And then,why bution of this Rs 3,00,000 croreamongst farmer leaders, includingtwo majorpolitical on so-called food subsidybe only23commodities, whynot 40? This states basedonsome tangible performance pick-up in public spending. Merelymeeting itsbudgeted expendituretargetwould now parties, demand repeal of these laws.Idon’t allocated to states on the type of statesocialism is asurepathtofi- indicators. And the Centreshouldget offfrom implyanincrease in spendingof33.7 percent over the November to March period, which think that would be in thelargerinterestof basis of their share in nancial disaster. MSP,PDS, fertiliser subsidy,and MNREGA. would impartapositive impulse to theeconomy. thecountry’s peasantry,asrepealingwould The thirdpolicy option is to use thePrice This would be true decentralisation, and mean bringing backcontrols,licence rajand all-India poverty/proportion Stabilisation Scheme to give alifttomarket can be accomplishedprovidedenough the resultant rent-seeking. Remember milk, of vulnerable population, prices by pro-actively buyingapartofthe ground work is done well in advance. But will poultry, fishery, etc. don’tgothrough the all-India wheat and rice surplus whenevermarket prices crash,say this be acceptable to farmer leaders/oppos- mandi system and their growth ratesare 3to production, all-India morethan 20 per cent belowMSP.Itcan be ing states/activists?Onlytime will tell. RIPPLEOFUNCERTAINTY 5times higher than that of wheat andrice. done directlybyNAFED-type agencies that Overall, almost90per cent of the agri-pro- procurement of wheat arealready active in thecase of pulses and Gulati is InfosysChair professor for Assassination of Iranian nuclear scientistthreatens renewalof duce is sold to the private sector. and rice,etc. oilseeds, or use Commodity Derivatives agriculture nuclear deal with US, could escalateconflict in region

NLIKE QASEM SOLEIMANI,the Iranian general in charge of the Quds Forceofthe RevolutionaryGuardkilled by aUSdrone strikeinJanuary, Mohsen Fakhrizadeh wasnot ahousehold name within Iran or well Uknown outside it. But Fakhrizadeh is widelyregardedasakey figure ENGINEER AND BUILDER in Iran’s nuclear weapons programme and his assassination latelast month —for whichnoone has yetclaimedresponsibility —will have serious geopoliti- cal implications in West Asia and beyond. That he wasaccompaniedbyseveral body- Leaders like FCKohli laid thefoundation forIndia’s IT boom guards to thelast, even when he waskilledinanambush attackonarural road outside Tehran, attests to howseriouslyIrantook hissecurity. Fakhrizadeh’s assassination, coming soon afterSoleimani’s killing, has ledtospeculation NDayasindhu about the perpetrators’ motives. Iran has hintedthat Israel and Saudi Arabia arebehind the FCKOHLI, the long-time CEO of Tata ensured that companypersonnel were Burroughs, aleading US computer manufac- attackand has vowedrevenge. At the same time, the government has attemptedtodown- ConsultancyServices (TCS)who passed trainedoncomputers. When Tata Electric turer,for ajoint venturewith Tatastosell and play Fakhrizadeh’s importance, and giventhe natureofthe ambush on Iranian soil, seems away lastweek,playedapivotal role in nur- CompanyinstalledaWestinghousecom- service Burroughscomputers in India. Soon, to want to discouragespeculation that the assassins mayhavehad help from locals on the turing information technology (IT) in India. puter in the late1960s, it wasamong the few TCSbegan writing softwarefor Burroughs — ground.The official response has been two-fold: President Hassan Rouhani appears to be With his Queen’s Universityand in the worldatthe time to use acomputer one of itsfirstoffshore-basedsoftwareserv- counselling patience, arguing for“revenge” at atime and place of Iran’schoosing, while the MassachusettsInstituteofTechnology (MIT) forefficientlycontrollingthe powergrid. ices project. Afew years later,Kohli and other IRGC seems to favour immediateretaliation. What is immediatelyinthe spotlight, though, electrical engineering pedigree, he could In 1968,the executive leaders in Tata Sons, senior Indian technocratsdeclinedaplan to have emigrated to adevelopedcountry. includingJRD Tata,wantedKohlitojointheir mergeTCS with the Tata Burroughs joint is the Iran nuclear deal whichDonald Trumppulledout of and aJoe Biden WhiteHouse However, he chose to join the Tata Electric newdivision, Tata ConsultancyServices (TCS), venture, as theybelievedthat TCS, an all- will likelyconsider rejoining. ForbothIsrael and Saudi Arabia —Iran’s rivalinthe Great Companyinthe early 1950s. whichhad a“large”ITconsulting practice Indian entity, hadtobenurtured independ- Game in West Asia andNorth Africa—sucharapprochementwouldbedetrimental to their Kohli was, firstand foremost, an engineer. consisting of afew professionals. Notsurpris- ently. TCSnow has an annual revenueof interests.Thus far, since the Iran-Iraq war, Tehran has conducted asortofcold war, acting He kept abreastofthe latest in electrical and ingly,one of his firstdecisions at TCSwas to re- about $22 billion and employs over 4,53,000 largely throughproxies suchastheHouthirebelsinYemen, rather than engaging in adirect electronics engineering throughouthis life, Kohli wasahands-on cruit almost the entireclass of IIT-Kanpur’s professionals. and sought out like-mindedengineers to en- MTechelectrical engineeringdepartment, While Kohli believedinkeeping TCSin- conflict. Aretaliation to the Fakhrizadeh assassination could changethe dynamics of this con- engineer and among the flict forthe worse and, in the bargain, scupper anymeaningful renewalofthe nuclear deal. sure that the discipline is puttothe best use with specialisation in computerscience. dependent, he wasalso welcoming of the forthe country. One such electrical engineer earliest to learn the Howhavethe bets Kohli placedinthe best global companies when he believed Thereare many within the US establishment and theDemocratic partywho strongly from Mumbai in the early 1950s wasPK fundamentals of computers 1960s turnedout today? According to that their technology would be useful for support Israel and want Bidentoseek greaterconcessionsfromIranwhile re-negotiating Kelkar, who went on to becomethe firstdi- and Fortran programming. Nasscom, India’s IT and IT-enabledservices India. Achangeinpolicyinthe late1970s the deal. Suchamovecouldpay off, or resultinstrengthening more radical forces within rector of the Indian InstituteofTechnology, sector has annual revenues of about $191 bil- ledtoIBM, the largest US computer com- Iran. On the other hand, Benjamin Netanyahu’s coalition government seems to be on the Kanpur.Kelkar and Kohli playedanimpor- He started the processof lion and employs over four million profes- panythat operated in India through afully vergeofcollapse,and thereare protestors on the streetsofJerusalem demanding his res- tant role in ensuring that IIT-Kanpur obtained computerisation in Tata sionals. One can trace this growth backtoa ownedsubsidiary, to shutshop in India. ignation. BetweenIranand Israel,then, the next fewweeksaugur atime of uncertaintyin an IBM 1620 computer with aid from the USA Electric Company. In 1968, fewhundred professionals in TCSand other Kohli playedarole in IBM re-entering the in 1963 —the machine became thenucleus Indian IT companies in the late1960s. From countryinthe early 1990s as aTatajoint the region. NewDelhi has thus farmanagedto maintain strong ties across the Middle East. he joined Tata Consultancy forIndia’s firstcomputercentreinaneduca- ahandful of studentsgraduatingwith aspe- venture, Tata Information Systems. Today, Thisisatime to wait and watch, while continuing thepolicy of bipartisan friendship. tional institution. As apartofthe IIT-Kanpur’s Services (TCS), whichhad a cialisation in computer science in the late IBMoperates independentlywith alarge interviewboard, Kohli also recruited young ‘large’ IT consulting practice 1960s,India grantscloseto2,00,000 com- presenceinIndia, as do over athousand IT faculty to teachcomputer programming, who consisting of afew puter scienceand related degrees today. The and R&D subsidiaries of multinational cor- went on to becomedoyens of computer sci- professionals. One of his Indian IT and IT-enabledsector has notonly porations. enceeducation in India. earnedvaluable foreign exchangefor the It is thanks to IT leaders likeKohli that INHER NAME Kohli wasahands-on engineer and first decisions at TCS wasto country, but also providedqualityjobs to col- India earnedits place as aglobal IT leader.He among the earliestparticipantstolearn the recruit almost the entire legeeducated youth, including first-gener- will continue to inspiregenerations of pro- Girls in an Uttarakhand district find their names on their fundamentals of computers and Fortranpro- class of IIT-Kanpur’s MTech ationgraduates. fessionals to leverage technology forthe bet- gramming in acomputer training course of- While serving on theglobal boardofthe terment of India and the world. houses. It is aclaim worthnurturing feredbyIIT-Kanpur.Hestarted the process electrical engineering, IEEE(InstituteofElectrical and Electronics of computerisation in Tata Electric Company with specialisation in Engineers) —one of the world’s foremost The writer is co-founder and CEO of itihaasa HAT’SINAname?Patriarchyteaches awoman, early on,toset- with the material management function, and computer science. professional bodies —hezeroedinon Research and Digital. Viewsare personal. tle foraslender grip on the primaryblockofidentity —her name. It changeswith marriage,asseveral women take on theirhus- W band’s familynametomarkthe transition from one social unit to another.Some communities areknown to go further andre- name anew brideentirely. In India, it is tiedwiththe persistent cultural belief, affirmedby DECEMBER 2, 1980, FORTY YEARS AGO rituals, myths, music and cinema, that girls are parayadhan,destinedtobewrenchedaway from their tiesand rightsintheir maternalhome, to cede thespacetheyonceownedinit. BIHAR BLINDINGS Opposition described as abarbaric attack sightofsix can be saved. And so,the pushby the districtadministrationof Uttarakhand’s Pauri Garhwaltoencour- ADISSATISFIEDOPPOSITION in the Rajya by thepolice.The DMK and afew inde- agefamilies to put up nameplates bearing their daughters’ name on their houses is are- Sabha todaystagedawalkout on the issue pendentsdid notjoin the walkout. PROTESTS ON SATI freshing step. In doing so, the government hopes to createawareness about gender rights of blinding undertrialsinBihar despitethe SEVERAL HUNDRED RESIDENTS of the Prime Minister’s assurance expressing her COURT STEPS IN walledcity watchedwith curiosity athree- and women’s right to ownproperty.Indeed, that Indian homes struggle to make space for “verydeep agony” and the HomeMinister’s THE SUPREME COURTtodaydirected two hour confrontation between adozen ar- women’s names is an indication of aharsh economic logic —that marriageisaninstitution statement owning responsibility forwhat of itsofficers to visit theBhagalpur jail in ticulatedemonstrators and areligious pro- meant forthe aggrandisement of male property and familywealth, notwomen’s financial happened. The government’sassurance Bihar and give afirst-hand reportofthe cessioninhonourofSati at the parade health. Progressive changes in lawhavenot been enough to dentthat logic. Even if women that it would order an enquirybyaninde- eyepuncture incidentsalleged by the 15 grounds.The demonstrators representing have the right to claim ashareintheir parents’ property,thereislittle social legitimacy for pendent agency andthe announcement undertrials. Chief Justice YVChandrachud organisations suchasthe StreeSangharsh suchanassertion. But, as studies have shown, the ownership of property makes aspectac- that the Prime Ministerhad decidedtogive and Justice Chinnappa Reddy,who stud- Samiti, Legal Aid Cell forWomen ex-gratia relief of Rs 15,000 to eachofthe iedthe reportofthe doctor who examined (Congress-I), and National Federation of ulardifference to women’s resilience, bringing down levels of domestic violence and poverty. victims did notsatisfy the Opposition, eight of them, said “the incident would Indian Women protestedinfront of the The administration of Pauri Garhwal, also struggling with afalling child sexratio —a whichthought that the gruesome case de- shockthe conscience of humanity.This is shamiana of Rani Sati SarvaSangha.Two warning that female worthhas been found wanting by aruthless social calculus—hopes served amoresubstantive response from aflagrant violation of Articles 19 and 21”. hundred-odd men, women and children to prod families to see their futureingirlchildren. Anameplateonthe door might not thegovernment.The walkout came at the Meanwhile, acommittee of three of the Sangha shouted counter-slogans lead to anewer home within, but it is surelyanaspiration worthseeding forthe future. end of athree-hour debate on what the ophthalmologists has saidthat the eye- and chanted “hymns”toSati.

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THEINDIANEXPRESS,WEDNESDAY,DECEMBER2,2020 WHATTHE OTHERSSAY “The factisthat China-Australia relations remainedwarm in the past. But now, Canberraimplements awolf-style policy toward China and has become the most 9 THE IDEAS PAGE savage accomplice of US suppression of China.” —GLOBALTIMES,CHINA Sow the seeds of trust All the smoke MoreAmericans nowagree, with good scientific Demand forMSP as alegal rightisnot well-advised. But farmers’apprehensions about role of mandis reason, that marijuanashould be legal. India must and terms of procurementundernew laws needtobeaddressed join other countries in decriminalising itsuse

people in the countrywho owneduptous- ing marijuanain2019tothe government of India. Giventhat admitting to such be- haviour in astate-sponsored survey could lead to prison or,morelikely, beingextorted intopaying abribe, even this substantial figuremustbeviewedasaconservativees- timate.While the NCBhas assumed the pa- Sukhpal Singh triotic task of defending India’s moral pu- Vikram Patel rity from harmful foreign influences, it may benefit from ahistory lesson: Marijuana WHATWAS SEEN as alocalisedPunjab-spe- has along and colourful history of usein cificprotest againstthe twonew (farm pro- AMIDST THEDIN of the US elections India, dating backatleasttwo millennia duce trade and commerce and contract whichhas leftapolarisednation even and the laws criminalising itsuse were im- farming) and one amended(essentialcom- moredivided, manyhaveoverlooked the posedbyforeigners. modities)union Acts about agricultural mar- fact that Americans did unitearound one First, it wasthe British who triedtoban kets has become anational event, with new issue —getting stoned. Alongsidethe the substance on severaloccasions, finally farmer groups and national-levelfarmer al- presidential election, the question of giving up when itsown commission de- liances joining the protests on the borders of whether marijuana, whichisavailable in clared that that “themoderateuse of these Delhi.The government claimsthat the farm various forms in India (ganja, charas and drugs is the rule” and that even amongst Acts arefor the benefit of farmers and that bhang),should be legalisedfor recre- the “exceptional” excessive users“the in- farmers have notunderstood the same. The ational or medicinal use waspresented to juryisnot clearly marked”and that “the ef- farmers aredemanding arepeal of the three voters in anumber of states. Even if folks fect on society is rarely appreciable”. These Acts,thoughECA amendment is notanew in NewJerseyand Arizonadisagreedwith astute observations have withstood the test Act, and making MSP alegal rightofthe those in Montana and SouthDakotaasto of time, with hundredsofstudies over the farmer.Thereisnodoubt that thereissome who theypreferred to be the President, pastcenturyconfirming theseconclusions. confusionamong farmersabout some as- theyall agreedthatgetting wasted should India continued to resistforeign pres- pectsofthe newActs. Forexample, the way be legal.Since 2012,when Colorado be- sureafter independence when, in 1961,it production agreementisdefinedhas ledto came the firststate to approve the recre- opposedthe inclusionofmarijuana in the fear among farmersaboutcontract farming ational use of marijuana, two-thirdsof Convention on Narcotic Drugs, citing itsrole being moreabout corporatefarming though Americanstatesnow allowits usefor me- in itssocial and religious customs.The in- the Actclearly says that farmer land can’tbe dicinal purposes,including15justfor fun. ternationalcommunity allowedIndiaare- leased, mortgaged or bought by the contract- And Americans, who were imprisonedfor prieve on twoconditions —that the govern- ingagency.But it is important to examine the CRSasikumar toking, can look forwardtoBiden’s presi- ment would notexport marijuana and that merits and feasibility of thetwo demands of dency,not onlybecause it promises de- it would be ultimatelycriminalisedin25 protesting farmers. sidesthe minimum guaranteedprice, apre- farmers ‘the right to sell at MSP’ maybe criminalisingthe use of marijuana but years. And thus India’sown Narcotic Drugs The FarmerProduce Tradeand mium or bonuswhichwill be linked to APMC brought out.” alsothe rubbingout of past convictions. and Psychotropic Substances Actwas con- Commerce (Promotion and Facilitation)Act, or e-trading price. This goes againstthe very But the demand forMSP as alegal right is Foracountrywhich,onlyafew decades ceivedin1985which, while criminalising popularly known as APMCmandi bypass conceptofcontract farming. Thecontract notwell placed.Ifprivate playersdecidethat ago, had launched itsinfamous “war on marijuana, continuedtopermit the use of Act, creates anew “trade area” outsidethe price shouldbelefttothe contracting par- theywill notbuy at MSP and rather import drugs”, imprisoning millions of young peo- bhang (equivalent to banning cigarettes, but APMC marketyards/sub-yards whereany ties to decide. Further,ifthe understanding is agricultural produce, and FCI decidestonot ple (mostoften, blackmen) forusing drugs, allowing beedis). buyer withaPermanent Account Number that mandisare notdiscoveringprices well, procurefarmproduce forvarious reasons, the remarkablemarch towardslegalising Thereisnodoubt that marijuanause has (PAN) can buy directlyfromfarmersellers then whypeg the contract pricetosuch where will the farmer sell? Punjab’s amend- the mostcommonlyuseddrug of allisre- itsrisks, as do all other substances whichaf- and the stategovernmentcan’t impose any mandi price? The government mustgoback mentstofarm Acts —making MSP manda- flected in thedramaticshiftinpublic atti- fect thebrain. Onehasto beparticularly con- taxesonsuchatransaction. Therefore, it is to the2003ModelAPMCAct,whichalso had tory forwheat and paddy and anypurchase tudes towardsmarijuana with over two- cernedthat, with legalisation in wealthy expected that this would lowerbuying costs model contract agreement with mandatory punishable with imprisonment or fine if thirds of adultsnow supporting its countries,newer hybrid strains of marijuana forbuyers and that would automatically and optionalprovisions in acontract. farmer is forced to sell at belowMSP —are legalisation, up from justabout10per cent whichcontain muchhigher concentrations meanhigher prices forfarmers. But buyers In the 2003 Model APMC Act, the APMC ill-advisedasthis lawwill discourageprivate 50 yearsago.Overthis period, attitudesto- of theactive ingredient (THC)arebeginning buying at lowercostdoes notnecessarily wassupposedtoresolve the disputes. This Thedemand forMSP as a buyers from buying. Further,how can it be wardsmarijuana have also softenedglob- to swamp themarket. Thereisevidencethat meantheywouldpass on the costsaved on wasabettersystembecausethe farmer legal right is not well placed. proved that afarmer has been forced to sell ally, with Canada and Uruguaynow offer- these morepotent forms of the drug are procurement to sellingfarmers.The claim is knewand wasfamiliarwiththe system. If private playersdecide that her produce at belowMSP if afarmer des- ing nationwide marijuana stores, while dangerous foryoungpeople with vulnera- alsomade thatnow farmerswouldhavea Further,when alicence is giventoatrader or peratetosellendsupconsenting to sell at severalothershavedecriminalisedits use. bilities to develop mental health disorders choiceofchannels.This is somewhatmis- commission agent, thereisacounterparty they will not buyatMSP and belowMSP? It is difficult to enforce sucha This transformation is foundedupon a and this is whystrict regulations must be placedasthe majority of the farm produce risk assurance. In major agricultural states, rather import agricultural law. Private agricultural marketscannotbe substantial body of science demonstrating partofany policytolegalisemarijuana.Only acrossIndia (withthe exception of states APMCs aremulti-stakeholder elected bod- produce,and FCI decides to run through suchdiktats. thatthe harms associatedwith marijuana legalisation offers the opportunity forim- likePunjab and Haryana) does notgo ies. OnlyPunjab has nothad an election to not procure farm produce for Currently, selling in the private market use were greatly overestimatedand that, plementing effective harm minimisation through APMCs. Anybody with aPAN card APMCs in the last40years. In thenew trade is the last option forfarmerswhere public likeall substances whichaffect our mental policies forthe vast,criminalisedsystems of allowed to buy agricultural produce could area, thereisnomechanism to provide coun- various reasons, where will procurement does nottakeplace. By creat- health, society should respond to itsuse productionand sale areoutside the scope of mean afree-for-all situation, whichisnot terparty risk. the farmer sell? Punjab’s ing stringent rules (fine or imprisonment), through progressivepublichealth policies anyregulation. desirable. The apprehension aboutMSP andpro- amendments to farm Acts — the government maycreateasituation —inshort, as withalcohol, rather thanban- Reassuringly, the winds of changeare Contract farming, as practised in India curement going away comes from Acts be- making MSPmandatoryfor wherefarmers would notbeable to sell at ning them and criminalising users, to im- blowing as amotleycrew of politicians, across crops and regions formanyyears, has ing linked to some previous policy docu- all. Maharashtraattempted this legalityin plement arange of strategies to control their like-mindedcops, an assortment of sadhus shown that marginal and small farmers are mentslikethe ShantaKumar Committee wheat and paddyand any 2018 in itsAPMCAct but had to reverse it af- use and reduce theharms associated with and civil society groups, suchasthe Great generallyexcluded. The problems theyface reportand the CACP reports suggesting re- purchase punishable with terprotestsbytraders. It is important to re- them. These strategiesinclude healthedu- Legalisation Movement (a fittinglytrippy include highlyone-sided(pro-contracting ducedprocurement and an end to open- imprisonment or fine if alise that MSP is apolitical or administra- cation, agerestrictions, taxation, limiting name!),join achorus to demand legisla- agency) contracts, delayedpayments, undue ended procurement from states likePunjab farmer is forced to sell at tive promiseordecision made by the the dose of the active ingredientsand ac- tive reforms. Andifscience and common rejections and outright cheating besides poor to cut down costsofFCI. It is feared that FCI government to farmers. Whyshouldapri- cess to counselling forthose who wish to sense aren’t sufficient, invoking our ancient enforcement of contract farming regulation itself maystart procuring directlyfromthe belowMSP —are ill-advised vate playerbetiedtoitand be penalised? stop. In doingso, yourootout thecriminal scriptures and rejecting colonial prejudices by the stategovernments. Therefore,arobust newtrade area to cut down buying costs like as this lawwill discourage On the other hand, when the government mafias, emptyjails of young peoplewhose maybeaneffectiveargumentfor our times. contract farming regulation wasneeded. The market fees and arhtiya commission.Itis private buyersfrom buying. is trying to liberalise and open the market onlycrime wastohaveabit of fun, free up It surelycan’t be long before millions Farmers (Empowerment and Protection) moreabout the changes in the “social con- Further,how canitbeproved to encourageprivate buyers, thenitcan’t, at precious police time to go afterthe real around this countrycan lustilysing Dum Agreement on PriceAssurance and Farm tract” between the state’s farmers and the the same time, mandateatwhat pricethey crooksand generateanew source of in- maro dum or theiconiclyrics of Bob Marley, ServicesAct has definedFPOs (farmerpro- Union government that is the root cause of that afarmer has been forced should buy. comefor thestate. the talisman of marijuana aficionados from ducer organisations) as farmers,whichre- this apprehension. to sell her produce at below Forsmall and marginal farmers, APMC These dramatic changes in attitudes KingstontoCandolim, “I feel so high, Ieven strictsthem to the supply side, whenthere The demand forlegal backing to MSP also MSPifafarmer desperate to mandi is the lastresort channelofsale. If stand in starkcontrast to theexuberant ef- touchthe sky,sohereIcome again”. Iknow is hardlyany FPO in farm production, and ig- arises from the fact that the government has APMCs arereducedinimportance,theywill fortsbyIndia’s Narcotics Control Boardto manyofyou willbehumming the rest of nores their role as contract farming agencies. been announcing MSP for23crops, but pro- sell ends up consenting to loserather than gain unless moreofthem investigate, interrogate and arrest people this song. Further,the contract farming Actdoes not curement is limited to afew crops and afew sell at belowMSP? It is areorganisedintoFPOs and become attrac- with small amountsofmarijuana. If they provide forremedies when companies can- states and farmers end up selling at below difficult to enforce sucha tive to private agencies forcontract farming keep this up, theyare going to needawhole The writer is the Pershing SquareProfessor cel contractsorthereisdelayintaking deliv- MSP.Also, CACP in one of itsreports in 2017- law. Private agricultural or direct purchase. lotmoreofficerstochasethe 30 million of Global HealthatHarvardMedical School eryofproduce. 18 (kharif) suggestedthat “toinstil confi- Another problematic aspect of the Actis dence among farmers forprocurement of market cannot be run The writer is aprofessor at IIM that it says thesponsor would also pay, be- their produce, alegislation conferring on through suchdiktats. Ahmedabad.Views arepersonal LETTERSTOTHE EDITOR

WAIT AND SEE THIS REFERS TO the article, ‘A killing & IDEAS Our tribe of love the newMiddle East’ (IE, December 1). The geopolitical rivalrybetween the ONLINE major actors in West Asia has ahistoric genesis but the present stateofpoliti- ONLYINTHE EXPRESS Liberty of inter-faithcouplesmustbecelebrated,not reviled calpolarisationinthe region has been orchestrated by the outgoing adminis- ● TRUTHABOUTJNU: trationofUSPresidentDonald Trump SACHIDANANDSINHA NusratJafri and his close advisor and confidant, Jared Kushner.The transitionteam of ● DEALINGWITHTRUMPISM WHEN MY CHRISTIAN cousin described the selveshalf-Muslimand half-Christian, but in alchemymadeithappen is amystery we are Our son inheritsanevenricher culturethan Joe Biden has already signalledareview AFTERTRUMP: communionbread as sweetand meltingon truth, we were always justabunchofkids, still unravelling;beingrule-breakers proba- me, in so manyways! Andyet Ihope he gets of major US policies overseas, and the SUBRATAMUKHERJEEAND the tongue, my elder sisters and Ibecame de- who had the luxurytosay that theyknewa blyhad alot to do with it.Wedated foreight to be Indian before anything else. Middle Eastissuretofigureinits listof terminedtoget ataste of it during amass we little bit morethan the others about asec- years before we had our three marriagecer- What is it aboutinter-faith relationships priorities. The political eliteinthe South SUSHILARAMASWAMY were attending. Justbeforeour turn, the ond religion. In our liberal home, we even emonies, to make assortedgodshappy, in- thatmakes people sceptical or unsureabout Asian region should desistfromjump- www.indianexpress.com school matron magicallyappeared and gen- had the libertytocriticise both religions. My cluding the ones governing the land. amatch? What is it about another’s culture ingthe gun, inviting foreign conflictsin tlytook us aside —communion bread it father,aphysics lecturer,had alwaysplaced The nikah ceremony sawfull attendance that makes peoplefeel the needtoprotect the region is notgoing to serveanyone’s seems, is notfor the unbaptised. deepemphasis on education firstand then from the in-laws’side. Curiosity foradifferent theirs? In an ideal world, it would be no one’s interest. Growing up in ahousehold with theology,ifany at all. We celebratedEid with cultureand the famous Lucknow cuisine business whomawoman should choose to Sudip Kumar Dey, Kolkata from getting greedy and luredby prom- Christianity and Islam flowing freely, we as muchfervour as Christmas and Easter. I were topreasonsfor the high turnout. Come marry. Women areleading in all fields,surely isesfromthe opposition.Perhaps,that is were exposed to an intermingling of cultures remember singing hymnswith carol singers to thinkofit, we should have walkedtheaisle theyare capable of finding their ownsuit- LOYALTY NEEDED toomuchtoexpect? that can onlymakeone’s childhood richer. on foggy December evenings justasvividly to honour the Christian side too. able boys.Atwhat stagedid the statefeel the Melville XD’Souza, Mumbai Sometimes it ledtofauxpas likethe one at as we would sing Nauhasonsultrysummer Iremember howaguesthad remarked, needtostepin? THISREFERS TO the report,‘Karnataka the church,orthis other time, when my sis- Muharramnightswith our cousins. “howMuslim Ilooked”onthe dayofthe Ifeel uneasy breaking down people into MLC, whodefectedto BJP,can’t bemade A TRESPASS ter, thoroughlyconfusedabout whose side In 2011,myown inter-faith marriage met nikah and howBengali Ilooked on the dayof their religious identityortoevenfurtherdis- minister’ (IE, December 1).AnMLAwho of relativeswas visiting, exclaimed, “Adaab little to no resistance from either of our the Bengali shaadi. To me, however, Ilooked sect them and divide them intocastesand has defected from theearlier govern- THIS REFERSTOthe editorial, ‘Strikeone’ Amma”, to an old conservative Christian rel- Muslim/Hindu families. Questionsabout likeany other bride,neitherMuslim nor classes. Notfittingintoany one boxisthe ment cannotbemade aministerdue to (IE, December1). In 2018,the Supreme ativeofmymother. That innocent confusion food, oddlytoppedthe listofconcernsfrom Bengali. Justahappybride! biggestlegacy of amixed cosmopolitan up- some technicality.Defections from one Courtaffirmedinthe case of Hadiya(for- ledtoimmenseawkwardness but gave the some relatives. While Iamavegetarian Shia My husband and Iare twofiercely bringing. The liberty to choose, to celebrate party to another arenot anew practice. merly Akhila) andShafinJahan that no familyananecdote to laughatforever.And, Muslim (yes we exist), my husbandisa independent individuals, and religion and acceptisundeniable. Why, even the free- The whole system needs arevamp. one had arighttointerfere in the mar- of course, our questfor the sacramental biryani-loving, fish-hating Hindu Bengali hardlyfeatures in ourdailylives.Wehave domtocriticise and question one’s culture Drastic electoral reforms arethe needof riageofconsenting adults. By register- bread is still on. from Delhi.He’s the type who would appre- mutual respect forour communities and is perhapsthe biggestboon of this amalga- thehour.Inorder to safeguardthe inter- ing itsfirstcaseunder thenew anti-con- My parentshad an inter-faith marriage ciateshami kebab,onlyifthe recipedidn’t cultural backgrounds, unless, of course, the mation. In acountrythat seems to be at the ests of all political parties, it would only version law, based on acomplaint from in 1970,whenitwas difficult but notagainst have anychana dal in it. I’m the boring non- conversation is around the best golgappas brink of losing this freedom to proposednew be fair to suggestthat the candidates be the father of ayoung woman, the Uttar anylawsofthe state. Theyfacedtheir share foodie who unabashedlyadmits that bain- in the country. While my vote undeniably laws,myonlyprayer is that the Dylan Jafri requiredto file an affidavit or some kind Pradeshgovernment has trespassedon of opposition from their respective families, gandishes areher favouritefood item — goes to Lucknow, he sticks strong with Roys andthe MeeraPamela Jafris (my of abond that theywould owe allegiance an inalienable right guaranteedbythe but noneenoughtodeter the two, who re- muchtomymother-in-law’s consternation. Bengali Market. mother) of the worldincrease their tribe. The to their party forthe entireterm, if Constitution. mainedhappilymarriedfor 39 years till my My husbandand Imet while doing a We arenow raising our son calledDylan tribethat stems from love and love alone. elected.This would stop our politicians SSPaul, Nadia dad passedawayin2009. Master’s in mass communication in Delhi. Jafri Roy(whose namewill surelykeepall While growingup, we oftencalledour- Love happened,astheysay.Whatspecific thosehemeets over the years fascinated). The writer is acinematographer

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THEINDIANEXPRESS,WEDNESDAY,DECEMBER2,2020 @ieExplained #ExpressExplained 10 If thereare questions of current or contemporaryrelevancethat youwould like E EXPLAINED explained, please [email protected]

SIMPLY PUT QUESTION &ANSWER CORONAVIRUS DASHBOARD

INDIA ACTIVE CASES 435,603 What’s emergency use approval

500,000 Pfizer has appliedfor emergency use authorisation of itsvaccine; Moderna andSerum Institute of Indiatoo 435,603 plan to apply to the respective authorities. What is the process ,and howisitdifferent from full approval? 440,962

450,000 countrieslikethe UK. AMITABHSINHA& In the lasttwo weeks, AstraZeneca and PRABHARAGHAVAN OxfordUniversityhave publishedinterimfind- PUNE,NEWDELHI,DECEMBER1 ingsof theirvaccine’sefficacy,addingitwillbe LAST 10 DAYS put thesetogether forascientific journal and Nov21Nov 30 ON MONDAY,USdrugmaker Moderna said it approachregulatorsaroundtheworldforEUAs 400,000 wasapplyingforemergencyuseauthorisation or permission to conduct additional trials. It is forits Covid-19vaccine. Afew days earlier, possiblethatSIIwillpushforanEUA to market Note: The Nov30figure in this graph is based on thegovernment update on Dec 1 Pfizer appliedfor emergency use authorisa- the vaccine in Indiasooner,onthe basisofthe tion forthe vaccine it has developedincollab- resultsofits small-scale trials in India, as well oration with BioNTech. In India, Serum as the largerdataset from the global trials. INDIA TOTAL CASES WORLDTOTAL CASES Institute of India,whichistrialling aversionof 9,462,809 63,522,286 theAstraZeneca-Oxfordvaccine,hassaiditex- Howoften has EUAbeengranted? pectstoseek emergency use authorisation EUAisarelatively recent phenomenon. Source:MinistryofHealth&Family Source:JohnsHopkinsUniversity, within the next twoweeks. AccordingtoJoshua Sharfstein,vicedeanfor Welfare,updatedat11pmonDec1 updatedat11pmonDec1 Public Health Practice and Community What is emergency use authorisation? EngagementattheJohnsHopkinsBloomberg Vaccinesandmedicines,andevendiagnos- Schoolof PublicHealth,theFDAgranteditsfirst tic testsand medical devices, requirethe ap- EUAfor the civilian population in 2009. In an provalof aregulatoryauthoritybefore theycan interviewpublishedonthe school websitein Mass screening finds be administered. In India, the regulatoryau- October,Sharfsteinsaid the firstEUA allowed thorityisthe Central Drugs StandardControl the useofTamiflu drug forinfantsand young Organisation(CDSCO). VialsofCovishield vaccineinside avisual inspection machine at the Serum children forthe treatment of H1N1 infection. over 300 asymptomatic Forvaccines and medicines, approval is Institute of India, Pune. Reuters Sincethen,EUAshave beengrantedforsev- grantedafteranassessmentof theirsafetyand eral medicines,diagnostics, and equipment effectiveness,basedondatafromtrials.Infact, likeventilators or even PPEs,but neverfor a cases in Wuhan approvalfromtheregulatorisrequiredatevery 50% effective in preventing the disease. This He also observed that some of the drugs vaccine.AnEUA can be granted onlyinade- stageofthesetrials. This is along process, de- dataneededtobegenerated from “well over” that have receivedrestrictedemergency ap- clared public health emergency;previous signedtoensurethatamedicineorvaccineis 3,000 trial participants, “representing ahigh provalsinIndia,likeitolizumab,were notsub- EUAs came during the spread of the Ebola AMASS screening programme of teens aged under 17,and the highest absolutelysafeand effective.The fastestap- proportionof participants”enrolled.Thesepar- sequentlyincluded in the country’s Covid-19 virus, Zika virus and MERS coronavirus. morethan 10 million Wuhan resi- among peopleagedover60. Further provalforany vaccineuntilnow—themumps ticipantsneededtobefollowedupfor anyse- Clinical Management Guidelines. :So, what Remdesivir or faviparir,whichreceived dentsidentified300 asymptomatic swab testing of 1,174close contactsof vaccineinthe1960s—tookaboutfour-and-a- riousadverseeffectsforatleastonemonthaf- wasthebasisforthe‘approval’andwhyisthat EUAfor treatment of Covid-19, including in cases, but none were infectious. The these 300asymptomatic positive half years afteritwas developed. terall dosageshad been given. notgood enoughfor it to be includedinthe India,areexistingdrugsapprovedforotherail- resultsare publishedinthe journal cases were allnegative. In emergency situations,likethe current treatment protocol?” he said. ments. Theycould notbeadministered to NatureCommunications. Whatthe findingsshowed, in ef- one, regulatoryauthoritiesaround the world What is the processofgetting an Covid-19patientswithoutextensive trials,but The mass testing project took fect, wasthatthe infection prevalence have developedmechanisms to grant interim emergencyuse authorisation in India? HowwillaCovid-19vaccine getanEUA in becausetheyshowedpromise in limitedtest- place over twoweeks at the end of wasverylow 5-8 weeksafter the end approvals if thereissufficient evidence to sug- Experts andactivists sayIndia’sdrugregu- India, then? ing, in specifiedconditions, theywerethere- May—after the city’s stringent lock- of lockdown. The researchers said this gestamedicalproductissafeandeffective.Final lationsdonot have provisionsfor an EUA,and Thatremainstobeclearly spelt out. Asen- fore “repurposed”for Covid-19patients down wasliftedinApril. The study confirms that transmission of Covid- approvalisgrantedonlyaftercompletionof the the process forreceiving one is notclearly de- iorgovernmentofficialearlier told The Indian through EUAs. found no ‘viable’ virus in the asympto- 19 can be successfullycontrolledby trialsandanalysisof fulldata;untilthen,emer- finedorconsistent. Despitethis, CDSCOhas Expressthatanycompany seekingto launch a matic cases, and the close contactsof well implemented interventions, in- gencyuseauthorisation(EUA)allows themed- been granting emergency or restricted emer- vaccineapproved elsewherewouldhaveto Is therearisk in using aproduct that has these positive asymptomatic cases did cludingmask wearing,hand hygiene, icine or the vaccine to be usedonthe public. gencyapprovalsto Covid-19 drugsduringthis conductlocaltrialsto proveitissafeandeffec- only been granted an EUA? nottestpositive.The researchers, social distancing, contract tracing, and pandemic —for remdesivir and favipiravir in tive on the Indian population. According to the US FDA, thepublichas to however, cautionedthat their findings lockdown restrictions. When can EUAbegranted? June, and itolizumab in July. Inthecaseof theAstraZeneca-Oxfordcan- be informedthat aproduct has onlybeen do notshowthat the But while the cases In the US, the Food and Drug “We stilldon’tknowthestorybehindthese didate(AZD1222), Serum InstituteofIndia is granted an EUAand notfull approval. In the viruscannotbetransmit- identifiedinWuhan were Administration(FDA)grantsanEUA onlyafter approvals —wehaven’t seen the clinicaltrial conducting trials of itsversion, Covishield, on case of aCovid-19 vaccine, forexample, peo- tedbyasymptomatic car- asymptomatic, thereis it has been determined that the “knownand datapublishedanywhereandwe haven’tseen around 1,600participants in India. Bharat plehavetobeinformedabout the knownand riers. What this means, plenty of evidence else- potentialbenefits outweigh the known and the protocols that were followedfor each Biotech is currentlyconducting phase 3trials potentialbenefitsandrisks,andthe“extentto instead, is thatstrict non- whereshowing that peo- potential risksofthe vaccine” (or medicine). drug,” said Murali Neelakantan, lawyer and of itsvaccine,Covaxin,and has saiditwill not whichsuchbenefits or risks areunknown”, pharmaceutical inter- ple infected withCovid- ThismeansthatanEUA applicationcanbecon- formerglobal generalcounsel forCiplaand beapproachingCDSCOforanEUA. DrReddy’s andthattheyhavearightto refusethevaccine. ventionssuchasmask- 19 maybetemporarily sideredonlyaftersufficientefficacydatafrom GlenmarkPharmaceuticals. Laboratories(DRL)ishopingtostartphase2/3 Therehas been an ongoing debateover wearing, hand washing, PAPER asymptomatic and infec- phase3trialshadbeengenerated.AnEUA can- “TheUSFDAregulationsare clearaboutthe trialsoftheRussianSputnikVvaccine;itisun- whether people have theoption of refusingto social distancing and tious before going on to notbegrantedsolelyonthe basis of datafrom conditions and process forreceiving an EUA. clear whether it plans to seek an EUA. take the vaccine.Incidentally, no countryhas lockdown have helped CLIP develop symptoms. Also, phase 1orphase 2trials, although these too In India, I’vegone through the entirelegisla- SIICEOAdarPoonawallahassaidthecom- made vaccination compulsoryfor itspeople. reduce the virulence of the asymptomatic cases needtoshowthe product is safe. tiontryingtofindanyclausethathasaremote panyplans to applyfor EUAintwo weeks, but Initially,all vaccinesare likelytobedeployed Covid-19. NEWRESEARCH in Wuhan were identified ForCovid-19vaccines, the FDAhas speci- chance of being used foreither emergency or has notspecified the process. He had earlier on emergency use authorisations only. Final The study wasled by afteravery stringent fied that it would consider an application for restricted use and still haven’t found anypro- hintedatSII approachingCDSCO forsuchap- approvalfromrespective authoritiesmay take researchers at the lockdown —bythen, the EUAonlyifphase3datashoweditwasatleast visionthat allows it here,”hesaid. proval onlyafter AZD1222 receivedEUA in severalmonths, or years. Huazhong University of Science and epidemic had been already brought Technology (HUST) in Wuhan, China, under control. in collaboration with researchers at Again, antibody testing showed the NorwichMedical School, that almost two-thirds of the asymp- In tree rings, warning of Brahmaputra floods University of EastAnglia, UK. tomatic cases had previouslyhad Wuhan wasthe mostseriouslyaf- Covid-19. Becausethe risk of people fected city in China. Afterstringent in- being infected wasgreatlyreduced, The rings showedthat the post-1950s pe- rings, the scientists built a696-year chronol- that using the discharge recordwould un- terventions and lockdown measures when people areexposedtoalow EXPRESSNEWSSERVICE riod wasactually one of the driestsince the ogy (1309 to 2004). derestimatefutureflood hazardby24-38%, from January23, the city’s lockdown dose of virus, theymay tend to be NEWDELHI,DECEMBER1 1300s. Therehavebeen muchwetterperi- Theythen compared the rings with his- without factoring in climatewarming— wasliftedonApril 8. The mass screen- asymptomatic as aresult of their own ods in the past. Projectingfromall those pe- toricalrecordsgoing back to the 1780s, it whichwould onlyincrease the frequency of ingwas carriedout betweenMay 14 immunity.Therefore, the researchers EVERYYEAR,the Brahmaputrafloods vast riods, the researchers concludedthat de- turned out that the widestrings linedup futureflooding. andJune 1, to assessthe post-lock- stressed, it would be problematic to areas in India’s Northeast,particularly Assam, structive floods probably will comemore neatlywithknown major floodyears. Thus, Higher temperaturesdrive more evapo- down risk of Covid-19. apply theresultsofthis research to and continues itstrail of destruction in frequentlythan thought. they extrapolated theyearly riverdischarge ration of ocean waters, andinthis region The 300asymptomatic cases were countries whereCovid-19outbreaks Bangladesh, from whereitfinallyflows into If one projectsfrommodern discharge in the centuries precedingmodern records. that waterends up as monsoon rainfall. That found among people aged between have notbeen successfullybrought the BayofBengal. Foryears, scientists have records, the researchers said, one would be is whyscientists believe that warming cli- 10 and 89.The asymptomatic positive under control. been looking with concernatthe river’s po- underestimating the danger by 24%to38%. The findings matewill intensify the monsoon rains in rate wasthe lowest in children and Source: University of EastAnglia tentialfor catastrophic floodinginthe future, “If the instrumentssay we should expect From ariver-flowgauge in northern coming decades, and in turnincrease sea- especiallyasthe climatewarms. It turns out floodingtowardthe end of the centuryto Bangladesh, records showedamedian dis- sonal flooding. thatthis potential has been underestimated come about everyfour-and-a-half years, we charge some 41,000cubic metres per second “High dischargeswill continue to be as- so far—evenwithoutaccounting fora aresaying we should reallyexpect flooding from 1956 to 1986, and43,000cumfrom sociated with an increasedlikelihood of flood warming climate. This is the conclusion of a to come aboutevery three years,” lead au- 1987 to 2004. hazardinthe future,” the study authors newstudy publishedinthe journal Nature thor Mukund Palat Raosaid in astatement The tree rings, in contrast, showedthat wrote. Theysuggestedthat this could be Communications. issuedbyColumbia University,fromwhere 1956-1986was in onlythe 13th percentile counteractedtosomeextent by “potential he recentlyearnedhis PhD. forriver discharge,and 1987-2004 wasinthe changes in policy,land use, or infrastructure What’s different 22nd. The rings did showsome other rela- that mayameliorateflood risk”. Existing projections of the Brahmaputra What tree rings show tively drytimes, in the 1400s, 1600sand As it is, the river, which originates in the floodingare basedonobservations of rain- Tree rings grow wider in years when soil 1800s. But theyalso showverywet periods TibetanHimalayas, already floods areas fall patterns.Discharge records of the river, moistureishigh.Indirectly, widerringsreflect of extreme floodingfor whichthere wasno along itscourse. Whileflooding in Assam is however, datebackonlytothe 1950s in morerainfalland higher riverrunoff. comparable periodduring 1956-2004.The widelyreportedevery year —nopermanent Bangladesh, whichthe newstudy analysed. The study looked at rings of ancient trees worstspell lastedfromabout 1560-1600, solution has been found yet—low-lying ar- The study is basedonanexaminations of sampledat28sites in Tibet, Myanmar,Nepal 1750-1800, and 1830-1860. eas of Bangladesh tooare hit very hard.In tree rings, whichshowedrainfall patterns and Bhutan, at sites close enough to be af- 1998,70% of Bangladesh went underwater, going backseven centuries —long before dis- fected by the same weathersystems as the The takeaways while serious floods also came in 2007 and charge records were compiled. Brahmaputrawatershed. Analysing the The researchers said their findings mean 2010,the researchers noted. J&K’sRoshniAct:whoithelpedownland,andwhyit’sbeenscrapped

What wasthe RoshniAct? much didthe government earn? Whyhas it been controversial? When wasthe Actscrapped? cians, bureaucratsand businessmen were BASHAARATMASOOD Formallythe Jammu and Kashmir State At thetimeitpassed theAct, the govern- In its2014report,the CAGtermedthe In October 2018,then Governor SatyaPal enumerated with parents’ names, residence, SRINAGAR,DECEMBER1 Land(Vestingof Ownershipto theOccupants) ment expected to transfer theownershipof schemeaRs-25,000-crorescam.Itflaggedir- Malik repealedthe Roshni Actprospectively. job profile and affiliation. Forothers, only Act, 2001,itwas passedbythe then National 20.46lakhkanals(1.02lakhhectares)of state regularities and said arbitraryreduction of “AllpendingproceedingsundertheActshall names and parents’ names were specified. THE JAMMU&Kashmir administrationhas Conferencegovernment ledbyFarooq land—16.02lakhkanalsinJammuregionand prices by astandingcommittee wasdoneto stand cancelledimmediately... anyaction recentlyreleasedaseries of lists of alleged Abdullahtogiveownershipto peopleinpos- 4.44lakhkanalsinKashmir.Thegovernment benefit politicians and influential people. takenunder the provisions of the repealed Whydid groups in Jammu campaign beneficiaries of the Roshni Actof2001, now session of stateland,withacut-off of 1990, setaspeculative target of Rs 25,000crore. Shortlyafter thegovernment had ap- Actshall notbeinvalid,” his order read. againstthe Roshni Act? scrapped,whichgaveownershiprightstothe and againstapaymentasdeterminedbythe However, transfer of ownership wasap- proved theAct,the then StateVigilance InSeptember2019,Malikorderedaprobe Someright-wingsgroupsinJammuhave unauthorisedoccupantsofstate landagainst government. Since the aim wastogenerate proved foronly6.04lakh kanals —5.71lakh Organisation filedanFIR againstsome peo- by thestate Anti-Corruption Bureauintoall alleged the Roshni Actwas meanttochange payment of apremium. Political leaders and resourcesforhydroelectricpowerprojects,it kanals in Jammuand 33,392 kanals in ple who didn’t satisfy the criteria but man- dealingsundertheRoshniScheme.Following the demographyofthe Hindu-majority bureaucratshavebeenamongthosenamed. wascalledRoshni (Light) Act. Kashmir.And only 3.48lakh kanals land was aged to vest ownership of land under the this, another petitionwas filedinthe High Jammu district. “The courtobservation has The transfersare being probed by the CBI. In 2005, the PDP-Congress coalition gov- actuallytransferred. The government re- scheme. Aprominentcasecameto beknown Courtseekingtransferof theprobetotheCBI. provedthattherewasademographicchange. Following arecent order by the Jammu ernment ledbyMufti Mohammad Sayeed visedits target to Rs 317.55 crore, and earned as the Gulmargland scam, in whichseveral Thirty thousand casesoflandtransfer were &Kashmir High Court, the administration amended theAct to relaxthe cut-off year onlyRs76.46crore —Rs54.05 crorefrom topbureaucratsare accusedofillegallytrans- What did the courtsay? reportedinthestategovernmentorder,outof has annulledthe Act(it wasearlier repealed from1990to 2004.Inalateramendment,the Kashmir (targetRs123.49crore)and Rs ferringlandofthe GulmargDevelopment In October this year,the High Courtde- whichover25,000 cases were from Jammu prospectively)and decidedtoretrieve land Ghulam Nabi Azadgovernmentset the pre- 22.40 crorefromJammu region (targetRs Authority to private parties. Oneofthe main claredtheRoshniAct “illegal,unconstitutional andonly 4,500fromKashmir,”saidpetitioner transferredunder the Roshni scheme. miumat25% of the market rate and the cut- 194.06crore). accusedinthiscase,IASofficerBaseerAhmad and unsustainable” and held allotmentsun- and lawyer Ankur Sharma,who heads the Right-wing groups in Jammu have de- offdateat2007. The government gave free Ownership of 3lakh kanals (17,500 Khan,was appointed Adviser to theLt derthe Actasvoid ab initio.Itordered aCBI group Ik JuttJammu. scribed thescheme as being aimedat ownershiprightsonagriculturallandto farm- hectares) has been vested in Jammu region Governorof J&KinMarch thisyear.Noaction probeintotransfer of ownership, sought ac- Governmentfigures show that owner- changingthe demographyofJammu re- ers occupyingit, who onlyneededtopay Rs as against33,000 kanals in Kashmir.In wastaken againsttop bureaucratsinsimilar tion againstbureaucratsinvolved, and asked ship rightshavebeentransferred for44,912 gion, while mainstream political parties 100per kanal of land as documentation fee. Kashmir,mostofthis land had been leased cases in Jammuregion. Apetition wasalso the government to make public the names of kanals in Jammudistrict —whichismore have accusedthe government of being se- outto businesshousesandforresidentialpur- filedinthe High Courttocheckviolations of prominentpeopleallottedland.Inlistsof ben- than the landtransferredinthe entire lective againstMuslims. Howmuchwas transferredand how poses, in some cases foralmost100years. the Actbasedonthe 17 FIRs. eficiaries made public sofar,names of politi- KashmirValley.

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THEINDIANEXPRESS,WEDNESDAY,DECEMBER2,2020 11 GOVT &POLITICS ‘New farm laws will be disaster’: Issuessorted DELHI CONFIDENTIAL RLD plans protests acrossUP aftermeeting, HARIKISHANSHARMA MP farmers to NEWDELHI,DECEMBER1 mark Dec 3as claimsTMC; DESCRIBING THEthreenewfarm laws as a“disaster” forfarmers, ‘anti-corporate former Union ministerand na- tional president of RashtriyaLok day’, intensify Suvendusilent Dal (RLD) Ajit Singh on Tuesday said his party will hold protests at agitation districtheadquartersacrossUttar Pradesh on Wednesday. ATRIMITRA “By bringingthe newfarm IRAMSIDDIQUE KOLKATA,DECEMBER1 laws,the governmentwantsto BHOPAL,DECEMBER1 hand over the trade in farm pro- THE TRINAMOOL Congress on INVITED FOR LANGAR duce to bigcapitalists... This will FARMERS ACROSS 52 districtsof Tuesdayevening claimedtohave be adisasterfor thefarmers. Our Madhya Pradeshare all settohit “sorted out” allissues with rebel IN TUESDAY’S meeting with protesting farmers, the ministers partyopposestheselaws.Wewill Protesters at the Delhi-Haryana border on Tuesday. AP theroadsto participateinachakka party leader Suvendu Adhikari were keen to see that some progresswas made in their efforts holdprotestsagainsttheselaws at jaam on December 3toprotest following ameeting between the to end the stalemate.After the discussions,whichwent for district headquarters in UP on againstthe three farm Billsand former ministerand some sen- Suvendu Adhikari, morethanthree hours,Union ministers NarendraSingh Tomar Wednesday,”Singh told The seekassuranceonaMinimum ior party leaders. Prashant Kishor and Piyush Goyalinvited thefarmer leaders to join them for Indian Express over phone. 30 medal-winners SupportPrice (MSP). Sporadic TMC veteranand Lok Sabha acup of tea. However, thefarmer leaders refusedand instead “Theyhavepracticallyended protests held in differentpartsof MP SougataRoy,and party MPs invitedthe ministers to join them at langars organised for MSP in some states. Forinstance, the stateare settointensifywith Sudip Bandopadhyay and his family and other closeassoci- farmers campedonDelhi's borders. The farmers' leaders said (APMC)mandiswere dismantled back farmers, ready meetingscalledatvillagelevelsto Avishek Banerjee, besides politi- ates.Hewillprobablyannounce theministers could be treatedwith jalebis there, and leftthe by theNitishKumarGovernment mobilise farmers aftertalks re- cal strategistPrashant Kishor, his stand afterthat,” this aide venue without having tea. inBiharin 2006.ThereisnoMSP- mainedinconclusive on Tuesday. were present in the meeting with said. basedprocurementinthestate.In to return their awards The protesters willalsomark Adhikari. AfterAdhikari's resignation UPalso,MSP-basedprocurement December 3as“anti-corporate “All issues have been sorted from the Cabinetlastweek,there MOMENTOUS MEETING is nottakingplace properly,” said “I and my three brothers, day” againstthe farm Bills and out. Hopefully, tomorrowhewill wasspeculation that would join Singh, who served as Agriculture NITINSHARMA Balkar Singh Cheema, Kuldeep the 36th anniversaryofthe makeastatement andclarifyhis theBJP.After Tuesday's meeting, DECEMBER 4will be asignificant dayfor Chirag Paswan –it MinisterintheVajpayee-ledNDA CHANDIGARH,DECEMBER1 SinghCheema andGurmeet BhopalGas Tragedy. stand,” Roysaid afterward. Lok Sabha MP andBJP statepres- will be the firsttime he attends an all-party meeting, calledby government between2001and Singh Cheema, have represented Dr Sunilam,atwo-term MLA Adhikari, who resignedasa identDilip Ghosh said, “This is an the Prime Minister, as theleaderofLJP in Lok Sabha. What 2003. FORTHE lasttwo days,former India in basketball and all of us from Multai in Madhya Pradesh stateminister on Friday, however, internal matter of the TMC. Iwill makes it moreinteresting is the speculation on what the dy- He said MSP of paddy in UP is Indian basketball playerand could achieve national and inter- and amember of working com- did notmakeacomment;hedid notsay anything on this. But I namic will be.While manystill insist that theLJP's fight with aroundRs1,900perquintalbutin Arjuna awardwinner,Sajja Singh national glorydue to the efforts mittee of All India Kisan notreplytomessages sent on his have spokenabout the suffocat- the JD(U) during the recent Bihar Assemblyelections wasa theabsence of proper procure- Cheema, has been contacting fel- of our father Surjit Singh, who Sangharsh Coordination phoneeither.Asked forhis reac- ing situation within TMC, so any- BJP ploy, the RajyaSabha seat his father had is settohavea ment, farmers areforcedtosell lowArjunaand Padma award- owned20acres of landinvillage Committee (AIKSCC) under tion, his father,TMC MP Sisir onewho wantstocome withus, BJP nominee. And with no seatsinBihar Assembly, Chirag their crop at around Rs 1,100per winning sportspersons in DabuliannearKapurthala. A which250 farmers organisation Adhikari, said, “If it is true, Iam includingSuvendu Adhikari,will might return to aParliamentwhich treatshim differently. quintal. Punjab to makethemrallyin farmer provides food notonlythe have come together,said, “We happy.” be welcome in our party.” When askedwhy western UP supportofprotesting farmers country, butalso to players and willbeholdingananti-corporate According to veteranleader Adhikari wasseen as distanc- farmersare notprotesting and returntheir awards to the we allare with them in this fight. daytohighlight what happens Roy, themeeting took placein ing himself from the TMC forthe againstthe three farm laws while President. The laws reek of something bad when free hand is giventocor- NorthKolkataand lasted more past severalmonths –hewas or- thoseinPunjab have been Cheema has got thesupport forthe farmers,” said 63-year-old porates likethe Union Carbide than twohours. “Wemet with ganising programmes without Chhattisgarh begins paddy protestingsince thepromulga- of morethan 30 former Olympic Cheema, who spoketoThe Indian whichwent scott free. The pres- Suvendu at around 6pm. It was theparty banner,and an outfit tion of the ordinances in June, and continentalmedal winners, Express from theprivate ward of surewill onlyintensify until our held in averycordial atmos- called‘Dadar Anugami (Brother’s procurement at MSP Singh said, “Punjab has awell-es- including Gurmail Singh and aJalandhar hospital. demands aremet and the three phere. Suvendu has some reser- Followers)’ wasplacedindiffer- tablished networkof(APMC) Surinder Singh Sodhi —mem- “I had sufferedfromCovid- farm laws arerepealed." vation on some issues...but he is entplaces. the state. mandis. Forevery 4-5 villages, bers of 1980 MoscowOlympic 19 lastmonth... Ihavejustcome The protestwill receive sup- very much with us.” Adhikari, who wasMinister EXPRESSNEWSSERVICE The Congress-ledgovern- thereisamandi. However, west- gold medal winning Indian outofICU andIhope that Iwill portfromemployeesof themandi Roysaid, “Therewas aneed in Charge of Transport, Irrigation RAIPUR,DECEMBER1 ment is buying paddy at support ern UP does nothavesuchanet- hockeyteam .The group now recoverintime to join all the board, manyofwhom have not forameeting to sortout all is- and WaterResources, was price forthe thirdtime since work.This is the reason that plans to writetoPresident Ram players in returning the awards... beenpaidtheirdueswithpaucity sues.... Youcannot sayachapter knowntohaveexpressedhis dis- THE CHHATTISGARH govern- coming to power. “In twoyears, farmers arenot so organisedin Nath Kovind on Wednesdayto so far, morethan 30 players have of funds. FULLREPORTON has endedatany point of time in appointment at the party foros- ment on Tuesdaybegan procure- the area under paddy cultivation this part of the country.” seek an appointment. joinedour initiative..” www.indianexpress.com politics, but Iamhopeful that to- tensiblynot givinghim the posi- ment of paddyatthe minimum has increasedfrom19.36 lakh morrowSuvenduwill hold a tion he deserved,unlike other supportprice forregisteredfarm- hectareto22.68lakh hectare press conference and willclarify senior members. Thedifference ers. Around 21.30 lakh farmers and the number of farmers sell- Another hisstand.” became public on November 10, have registeredtosell paddy to ing paddy has increasedfrom Aclose aide said Adhikari re- when TMC held aseparatemeet- the government this year. 12.6 lakh to 18.38 lakh. Lastyear, turnedhome in Kanthi, Purba ing to mark‘Nandigram Day' at On the firstday,the stategov- around 94 percent farmers sold border closed, Medinipur, soonafter the meet- Nandigram, while Adhikari held ernment managed to procure to the government as opposedto ing. “InKanthi, he will talk with arallyatTekhali More. 98.9 metric tonnes of paddy 92.6 per cent in 2018-19,” an of- this time from over30,000farmers, across ficial statement from the state 2,305 procurement centres in government read. withNoida

GOVT SPEAKING IN AMBIVALENT TERMS:NAGA OUTFIT EXPRESSNEWS SERVICE Naga talks: Ravi hits NEWDELHI, DECEMBER 1

WITH VEHICLE movement al- out at NSCN (I-M) over ready blockedatSinghu and Tikri borders, Tuesdayafter- noon also sawhundredsof demand for separate farmers gather at the Chilla border between Delhi and Noida, forcing police to stop ve- flag, constitution hicles from plying theretoo. “Chillaborder that linksDelhi At a‘DuareSarkar’ campinsouthKolkata, Tuesday. Partha Paul to UP through Noida has been ABHISHEKSAHA Security officers patrol during the Hyderabad civic elections on Tuesday. AP closed. Drivers who want to go GUWAHATI,DECEMBER1 to Noida can take U-turn from under Ghazipur-Akshardham ‘Govt at doorsteps’ NAGALANDGOVERNORRNRavi, flyoverand alsothrough Sarai whoisalsotheCentre’sinterlocu- After noisy campaign, GHMC Kale Khan,” the DelhiTraffic torfor theongoing Naga peace Police tweeted. drive launched in talks, has ruledoutthepossibility Asenior police officer said of aseparateflagandconstitution polls record only 35% polling trafficmovementatSinghu and forthe Nagas—amajor bone of Governor RNRavi Tikri borders is completely Bengal, BJP says public contention betweenthe mostin- in 2010 and45.29 per cent at some placesbetween work- stopped, but movement at fluential Naga outfit NSCN(I-M) EXPRESSNEWSSERVICE recordedin2016. ersofTRS and BJP,and those be- Delhi-Gurgaon and Delhi- and the Central government. reportedthattheNSCN(I-M)lead- HYDERABAD,DECEMBER1 Turnout was35.80 per cent longing to the TRS and the Faridabad borders is normal: funds used to campaign In his speechonthe eveofthe ership wascalledtoDelhi to con- until 5pmand the final poll per- Congress, but polling in general “Local police aretalkingwith 58th Statehood DayofNagaland, tinue dialogue with senior AFTER Ahigh-decibel campaign centagewould be releasedafter remainedpeaceful. protesters at Chilla border to Ravisaid,“TheIndianNationalFlag Intelligence Bureauofficialsfol- by theBJP and TRS, the Greater compilation. Repoll wasordered in ward convince them to clearthe EXPRESSNEWSSERVICE Mamata targets and Constitution arethe pride of lowingostensibledeteriorationof HyderabadMunicipalCorporation Fear of the pandemic as well number26owingtoasymbol roads. Farmers coming via KOLKATA,DECEMBER1 the people of India. The relations between Ravi and the (GHMC) elections on Tuesday as ageneral lackofinterest mix-up involving the twoLeft Dadri, Greater Noida and Noida Centre over Government of India is absolutely NSCN(I-M). recordedjustover35per cent seems to have affected voting. At parties —CPI and CPI(M), PTI re- aremostlyfromparts of WITH AN eyeonthe 2021 clearthatthereisandthereshallbe “Nagapolitical issuebelongs polling, leaving all parties jittery. some polling booths, therewas ported, quoting officials. Ballot Western UP.Moreare expected Assemblyelections, the Mamata PM-CARES onlyone National Flag and to the Naga people,” said The polling per cent is signif- notasingle voter until 4pm. papers were usedinall 150 to joinbytomorrow. We have BanerjeegovernmentonTuesday Kolkata: ChiefMinister ConstitutioninIndia.Anyonetalk- Governor Ravi in hisspeech. “No icantlylowerthan 42.20 per cent Some skirmishes were reported wards. asked them to move to anearby launchedits massive‘Duare MamataBanerjee on ing anything contraryispeddling singleentityshouldclaimthesole park.” Sarkar’(governmentatdoorsteps) Tuesdayaccusedthe preposterous lies. Theyare trying franchiseoverit..beingdisrespect- outreachprogramme to ensure Centreofusing central toconfuseandmisleadthepeople.” ful to the primarystakeholders is people receive the benefitsof11 agenciestobulldozeIndia’s Chief Minister Neiphiu Rio, in an insulttothe people of FROMPAGEONE state-runwelfareschemes. The federalstructure,andques- astatement issued on the occa- Nagaland. Anyattempt to intimi- Opposition,however, tore intothe tionedthe BJP-ledgovern- sion,saidaseven-pointresolution date or threaten them will invite stateadministration,withtheBJP mentaboutthePM-CARES wasunanimouslyadoptedtourge the wrath of the people and full accusing theTrinamoolCongress Fund.“Youareraisingques- theNaga politicalgroupsto “hon- might of the laws of the land.” Despite pandemic, Pune sees highervoter turnout (TMC)of startingitselectioncam- tions about the Rs 25,000 our and respect the Covenant of In an editorial in itsmouth- This year,enthusiasm about Atotal of 4.26 lakh voters are Deshmukh said that apart paign withpublic money. relief we have givento Reconciliation”and“maintainthe pieceNagalim Voice released on the Legislative Council election The main electoral fight registeredtovoteinthe gradu- from campaigns by political par- People were seenqueuing up those affected during sanctity of non-violence in letter Tuesdayevening, the NSCN(I-M) wasmuchhigher than usual, ates' constituency and 72,545 ties andcandidates, the Election in at least20,000campsset up in CycloneAmphan,butwhat andspiritforasharedNaga future pointedto the action takenbythe with candidates and political par- in both seatsisbetween voters in teachers'constituency Commission's initiative to make alltheblocks,panchayats andmu- about the lakhs and crores as members of one Naga family” Assam Riflesagainst the outfit at ties using novelmethods to reach candidates of Maha in Pune Division. In both con- the voting process easier also nicipalwards in thestate. of moneydonatedtoPM- afteraconsultative meeting on the “prodding” of the Ministryof out to voters,and senior party Vikas Aghadi and the stituencies, Pune district has the playedaroleinbringingoutmore Thecampaignaimstohighlight CARES Fund? Wherehas October 15 with the representa- Home Affairs and the Centre leaders holding rallies in support highestnumber of registeredvot- voters this year. adozengovernmentprogrammes themoneygone,”Banerjee tivesof“all tribal hohos, civil soci- speaking in “ambivalent” terms. of the candidates. opposition BJP ers, at 1.36 lakh and 32,201voters “Sincethepollingstationsare —KhadyaSathi, Swasthya Sathi, said at apress conference etyorganisations,politicalparties, “It is highly unbecomingfor the The main electoral fightin respectively.Ingraduates' con- relatively faroff,compared to caste certificates, Sikshashree, Jai afterastate Cabinetmeet- ex-parliamentarians and various MHA to compound the problem both seatsisbetween candidates Party(AAP)has nominatedAmol stituency, Solapur district has the those of state or parliamentary Johar,TaposiliBandhu,Kanyashree, ing. ENS public leaders on the Naga politi- creating fiction betweenARand of Maha VikasAghadi(the ruling Pawarinthe graduates' con- lowest numberofregisteredvot- polls, due to smaller numbers of Rupashree,Aikyashree,MGNREGS, calissue”. NSCN while thetalkfor alasting alliance of ShivSena, Congress stituency. ers, at 53,813,and in the teachers' voters, manypeoplefind it diffi- and Krishak Bandhu —and seeks The NSCN(I-M) has held on to Naga solution is going on. The and NCP), and the opposition BJP. Vacancies in these constituen- constituency,Sangli has the low- cult to locatethe votingbooths. to reachout to those who have reachwill be organisedinfour itsdemand of aseparateflag and Government of India still speak- The MVAhas nominatedArun cies were created due to theres- estnumber of registeredvoters at This year,the Election been leftout, according to asenior phases,ending on January 30. constitution, whereas the NNPG ing in ambivalent terms in the Lad forthe graduates' con- ignation of BJP stateunit chief 6,812.“The voting took place Commission had made available official StateBJP president Dilip —anumbrella body of seven matter of ceasefirecoverageis stituencyand Jayant Asgaonkar Chandrakant Patil, who wonthe smoothlyand the credit forthis asearch option on the voters' list Municipal Affairs minister Ghosh said,“Theyare using pub- other insurgent groups of becoming the biggestobstacle in forthe teachers' constituency, Legislative Assemblyelections goes to the polling stationstaff, so that theyknewinadvance FirhadHakimsaid,“Thisisarevo- lic moneyfor their election cam- Nagalandintalkswiththe Centre building trust… the situation againstBJP's Sangram Deshmukh from Pune city's Kothrud lastyear, who reallyworkedhard, and the wheretheyhad to go to casttheir lutionarysteptaken by our gov- paign. After10years, if the state —and civil societygroups have wasaggravated by the AR’s dis- and JitendraPawar,respectively, from the graduates'constituency. health department staff, who en- votes. We had givenaccess to the ernment to ensurenoone is left governmenthasto launchacam- maintainedthat theyare agree- playofdefiance when it asserted forthe twoconstituencies. The tenureofDattatrayaSawant, sured that the SOP to ensuresafe system to candidates and politi- out.All those who areeligible for paign to ensureeverybody gets ableto asolutionwithoutthesep- thattheywill target NSCN camps The MaharashtraNavnirman who wasrepresenting the teach- voting wasstrictlyfollowed,”said calparties so that theycould help theschemeswillget thebenefits.” the benefits, then the TMC lead- arateflag andconstitution. in Manipur and Arunachal Sena (MNS) has nominated ers’ constituency,ended in July Pune District Collector Rajesh voters with this information,” said The camps will function from ers should be ashamedofthem- The Indian Express had earlier Pradesh.” Rupali Patil and theAam Aadmi this year. Deshmukh. Deshmukh. 10 amto 4pmeveryday. Theout- selves.”

Pune WWW.INDIANEXPRESS.COM

THEINDIANEXPRESS,WEDNESDAY,DECEMBER2,2020 12 EXPRESS NETWORK

BRIEFLY CHANDA KOCHHARSACKING TRACKING INDIA’S COVID CURVE Posterscausing Covid SCdeclinestointerfere 274 CASES: ACTIVECASES:4,35,603 patients to be treated DAYSSINCE 94,62,809 DEATHS:1,37,621 PANDEMIC BEGAN TESTS: 14,13,49,298 | RECOVERIES: 88,89,585 like untouchables: SC withBombayHCorder CASES DEATHS RECOVERIES TESTS NOV30 31,118 48241,9859,69,322 Chief Secretaries/Principal EXPRESSNEWSSERVICE Secretaries/ Secretaries (Health) bail wasthat the adjudicating au- NEWDELHI,DECEMBER1 of all States and UTs(Union EXPRESSNEWSSERVICE thority underthe PMLAhad said Territories) pointing it out that Abhay Bharadwaj NEWDELHI,MUMBAI,DEC1 lastmonth that the assets of PUTTINGUPposters or othersig- the MoFHW Guidelines do not Chanda Kochharandhiswife,attachedby nages outsidehomesofCovid- contain anyinstructions or guid- THESUPREMECourtTuesday de- Kochhar theED,didnotqualifyasproceeds positive peoplemay end up ance regarding affixing of GUJARAT clinedtointerferewithaBombay of crime. making the occupantsbeing posters or other signage outside BJPMPAbhay High Courtorder upholding the scrutinyafter The ED had opposedthe bail treated as “untouchables”, the the residences of those found January2019decisionofthe ICICI The Indian Express firstreported application, stating that Kochhar Supreme Courtobserved on Covid positive.” Bharadwajdies Banktoterminatethe services of on March 29, 2018 that Videocon was“misleading” the courtby Tuesdayevenasthe Centresaid The benchasked thepeti- Chanda Kochhar as itsManaging Group promoterVenugopal linkingtwoseparateproceedings. it had notauthorisedany such tioner,Kush Kalra, to respond to ofCovid-19 Director and CEO. Dhootprovidedcroresofrupees Itsaidtheadjudicatingauthority’s practice. the Centre’s affidavit and fixed The benchofJustices Sanjay to afirm he had setupwith her decision, whichitwould chal- STATESWITHRISINGACTIVECASES The remarks camefroma the matter forhearing next on Gandhinagar: BJP MP in KishanKaul,DineshMaheshwari spouse,DeepakKochhar,andtwo lengebeforethe appropriatefo- ACTIVECASES RISEINLASTWEEK benchofJustices Ashok Thursday. RajyaSabha from Gujarat and Hrishikesh Roytold Senior relatives, six monthsafter the rum,wasseparate fromthecrim- Maharashtra90,5578,655 Bhushan, RSubhash Reddy and Kalrahad earlier movedthe AbhayBhardwaj diedata AdvocateMukul Rohatgi,repre- Videocon Group got Rs 3,250 inalchargesthatDeepakKochhar Rajasthan 28,653 4,537 MRShah while hearing aplea Delhi High Court, seeking that hospital in Chennai on sentingKochhar who had come croreasloan from ICICI Bank in wasfacingbeforethePMLAcourt. Madhya Pradesh 14,771 2,435 againstdifferent stategovern- guidelines be framedtodoaway Tuesdaywhileundergo- in appeal, “Weare notinclined to 2012.InDecember 2017,the CBI IntheSupremeCourt,Rohatgi, mentsfor posters being put up with the practice of pasting such ing treatment forCovid- interferewith theHigh Courtor- had registeredapreliminaryen- appearing forChanda Kochhar, STATESWHEREACTIVECASESAREDECLINING outside homes of coronavirus posters. He contendedthat the 19.Hewas 66.Bhardwaj der. This falls within the realm of quiry(PE) intothe sanctioning of said the Bombay High Courtdis- ACTIVECASES DECLINEINLASTWEEK patientsstayinginisolation. identities of Covid-19patients waselected to the Rajya private bank and employee.” the loan. missedherpetitionontheground Andhra 7,8405,554 “Hardreality is different. being made public, and being Sabha in June and with Kochhar had movedthe High In January2019, the CBI of maintainability. Delhi 32,885 4,444 These people aretreated likeun- put up on social media groups, his demise, second Rajya Court,contendingthatthetermi- booked the Kochhars,Dhootand He said the bank had con- Chhattisgarh19,6352,291 touchables,” Justice Shah said etc, is “leading to stigmatisation Sabha seat from Gujarat nation wascommunicated others and said Chanda Kochhar verted her retirement from serv- when Solicitor General Tushar and drawing of unnecessary at- has fell vacant. Last monthsafterICICIBankapproved had “dishonestly” granted loans iceintotermination. He said this STATESREPORTINGMAXIMUMCASES Mehtapointed outthat although tention”. This,inturn, resultsin month, Congress MP her voluntaryresignation in to thetuneofhundreds of crores wasdonewithouttheapprovalof ONNOV30 TOTAL the Centre hadnot prescribed these people“shying away and AhmedPatel had died October 2018.Terminationfrom of rupees to theVideoconGroup the Reserve BankofIndia. Maharashtra3,837 18,23,896 this, some states were following deliberatelychoosing nottotest during Covid-19treat- service,shesaid,wastherefore“il- “incontraventionof rulesandpol- “Thebank recalled my earlier Delhi 3,726 5,70,374 it on their own, perhaps to pre- themselves”, the petitioner ment. Bhardwaj had legal, untenable and unsustain- icy ... by abusing her official posi- resignation and converted it into Kerala 3,382 6,02,983 vent inadvertent contact. stated. tested Covid-19positive ableinlaw”. tion”. In September this year,the termination... This waswrong as Mehtaalso referred to an af- Respondingtothe plea,the on August31. Afterre- In January2019, theboardof EnforcementDirectoratearrested itwasagainstthenorms,”Rohatgi STATESREPORTINGMAXIMUMDEATHS fidavit filedbythe Union Delhi government had told the maining under treatment ICICIBank,afterconsideringanin- Deepak Kochhar in connection saidonbehalf of ChandaKochhar. ONNOV30 TOTAL MinistryofHealth and Family HC that officials have been told at agovernmentCovid-19 vestigation conducted by retired with itsprobe intoanalleged “Whethertheterminationcan Delhi108 9,174 Welfareinthis regard. nottopaste posters outside the hospital for40days,he Supreme Court judge,JusticeBN moneylaundering case. TheED be done without approving the Maharashtra8148,217 The affidavitstates, “the cen- homes of coronavirus patients. wasairliftedtoMGM Srikrishna, sackedKochhar and registeredacase basedonthe resignationisaquestion...Youcan- tral government, through the Hearing the matter on West Bengal 48 8,424 Hospital in Chennai. ENS decidedtoclawbackall bonuses January2019CBI FIR. notconvert resignation intoter- MinistryofHealth and Family November 5, the apexcourthad giventoher since2009when she On Tuesday, aspecial courtin mination. Thereisnoquestion of DataasonNovember30,releasedbyUnionMinistryofHealthandFamilyWelfare,IndianCouncilofMedical Welfare(MoHFW) has already asked theCentrewhy it cannot Researchandstategovernments.Oftenthenumbersreleasedeverydaycontaindatafrompreviousdays took charge of the toppost. Mumbai, rejected thebail appli- termination as therewas no pre- aswell.Assuch,trendsbasedondailynumbersareonlyindicativeandnotdefinitive communicatedtothe Additional come up with guidelinesonthis. The ICICI Bank and Chanda cationofDeepak Kochhar.One of vious approval as per the clause,” UTTARAKHAND Kochhar came underregulatory the grounds he citedfor grant of he said. Low-magnitude BSF sub-inspector earthquake PLAN TO SEND DEFAULTERS FOR COVID SERVICE hitsHaridwar Our position on mask killed in firing across Dehradun:Anearthquake measuring 3.9 on the proposal like that of LoC in Rajouri Richter Scale was recordedinHaridwar dis- trict in Uttarakhand Hamlet, GujarattellsHC EXPRESSNEWSSERVICE Tuesdaymorning. JAMMU,DECEMBER1 Tremors were felt in flouting the rule forwearing Haridwar,Dehradun and EXPRESSNEWSSERVICE masksrequires to be addressed, ABSF sub -inspector waskilled Mussoorie as well. AHMEDABAD,DECEMBER1 the government is unsure of on Tuesdayinunprovokedfiring According to meteorolog- how“post-implementation”of from across theLine of Control ical centre, Dehradun, a THE STATEgovernmentclaimed sucharule would be takencare (LoC) in Rajouri district of lowintensity earthquake thatitfounditself in the position of by the government. He said, Jammu and Kashmir (J&K). wasfelt at 9:41amand of Prince Hamletin“position of the government my Identifying the deceasedof- it’s centrewas in Shakespeare’s playand referred lord,isjustlikethat of the Prince ficer as Sub-Inspector Paotinsat Haridwar.Haridwar dis- to the soliloquy,“To be,ornot to HamletinShakespeare’s play...” Guite, an official BSF trict disastermanage- be...”, sayingitwas notinapo- “Theanxiety is notabout the spokesperson said he was ment officer Meera sition to take adecision or frame implementationbut the post- postedataforward defence lo- BSF Sub-Inspector Paotinsat Kanturasaid thatthere amodality on the proposal to implementation... to be very can- cation in Rajouri sector. Guite wasnodamage to prop- impose community service at did, to shareanexample, sup- The incident came on aday erty or loss of lifedue to Covid carecentres forthose re- pose four people were found when the forceiscelebrating the earthquake. ENS peatedly found notwearing without masks... to give them a it's 56th Raising Day. that the sacrifice of the Border masks. challan and ask them to go for He waskilledduring acon- man will notgoinvain. TELANGANA The stategovernment’s sub- community service and then to spicuous act of braveryinnot SI Guitewill be cremated mission came in relation to asuo see to it that eachofthem went Covid testing at alocality in Thane. DeepakJoshi onlyretaliating to enemyfire, with full statehonours in his TRSMLA motu PIL concerning Covid-19 forthe community service, to but also savedthe livesofmany native village,said aPRO forthe Narasimhaiah issues at the Gujarat High Court keep atrack thereafter... govern- of his colleagues, the BSF. Tuesday. ment is seeing howthis can be spokesperson said. Guiteisthe fourth soldierto diesat64 An advocateappearing as effectively implemented...” Govt hasn’t spoken of vaccinating Inspector General of BSF for be killedinunprovokedcease- party-in-person had earlier pro- Trivedisaid. Jammu frontiers, NSJamwal fire violations over the last Hyderabad:The ruling posedthatapartfrompenalising The courtheld that the “cru- said SI Guitewas a“gallant and week.Those killedinclude TRS MLAinTelangana those found moving without cial time”totakeadecision in entire country: Health Secy sincereborder man”. Subedar SwatantraSingh in Nomula Narasimhaiah masks, theyshould be sent for this regard is “now”. The BSF retaliatedstrongly Poonchand Naik Prem Bahadur died in Hyderabad on community service at Covid cen- Justice Pardiwala addedthat Prioritytovaccinatecritical mass of population, break chain and effectively on Pakistan Khatriand rifleman Sukhbir Tuesdayowing to agere- tres to createaneffectivedeter- if the situation can be controlled Armyposts,the IG said, adding Singh both in Rajouri. lated health issues.He rence. The matter wastaken up at this point, “the statemay find second issue is that our purpose during the conduct of clinical tri- was64. Narasimhaiah, by the division benchofChief good resultswithinthe next two KAUNAINSHERIFFM is to breakthe chain of virus als is to vaccinatewithout ascer- MLAfromNagarjuna Justice Vikram Nath and Justice to three weeks”, and said there NEWDELHI,DECEMBER1 transmission. If we areable to taining if the volunteer has de- Sagar in Nalgondadistrict, JB Pardiwala. has to be “an agency” to ensure vaccinateacritical mass of peo- velopedantibodies against SC questionsGujarat wasnot keepingwell and Advocate General Kamal that adefaulter renders commu- WITH THE countryexpected to ple and break the transmission, the virus. had lung-relatedprob- Trivedi, appearing forthe state nity service at the designated witness itslargest vaccination we might nothavetovaccinate “Thereare twoissues linked lems, familysources said. government, acknowledged spot. “Thewholeidea in mind is drive –against Covid-19—next the entirepopulation.” in this (on vaccinatingthose who over hospital fires He diedaround5.30 AM duringthe hearing thatthough to createdeterrence,” Justice year,the central government on “Also, the role of masksisim- have antibodies). One, if some- on Tuesday, they said. the issue of people repeatedly Pardiwala said. Tuesdaysaid itspriority will be portant and thatwill continue one has antibodies and if you better affidavit is filedinthe apex Narasimhaiah, afour- to firstvaccinateacritical mass even afterthe vaccination be- give the vaccine, can youdevelop EXPRESSNEWSSERVICE court. Mehtatold the benchhe time MLA, waswith the of the population and break the cause we arestarting with a anyvaccine-associated adverse NEWDELHI,DECEMBER1 wouldlookintothereportandtalk CPI (M) before joining the chain of transmission of the small population at atime. reaction; second, if we measure to thestate government on this. TRS in 2014.Expressing AG grants consent for virus,indicating thatthe entire Therefore, mask will continue to the antibodies, can we avoidvac- THE SUPREMECourtonTuesday Thebenchwillhearthematter shockoverthe sudden population maynot be manda- be usedtohelpbreak the chain cine to that person, and there- raisedquestionsoverthe Gujarat again on December 3. demise of Narasimhaiah, contempt proceedings torilyvaccinated. of viral transmission,” Bhargava fore,can we spare our vaccines,” government’s affidavit in amat- Meanwhile, the SG informed TRS president and Chief During the weeklybriefing said. he said. “Regarding the firstone, terrelatedtoincidentsoffireat the benchthat the Union Home MinisterK on the pandemic, Union Health Bhushan said the national ex- thereisenoughdatatoshow Covid-designated hospitals in Ministryhas filedanaffidavit ex- Chandrasekhar Raosaid against comic artist SecretaryRajesh Bhushan reit- pertgroup on vaccine adminis- that adverse reaction doesnot Rajkot andAhmedabad. The plaining the steps takenbythe the departed MLAwould erated that the “government has tration is also discussing whether happen. However, thereisdis- court,whichhad takensuo motu Centreinresponse to thefire be remembered as a his consent forinitiating con- notspoken about vaccinating the population that has already cussion still going internation- cognisance of five deaths in the tragedies. leader who worked for PRESSTRUSTOFINDIA temptofcourt proceedings the entirecountry”. “Important recoveredfromthe infection will ally. TheWHO has clearly stated Rajkot fire on November 27,said The affidavit said that “toen- people throughout his NEWDELHI,DECEMBER1 againstTaneja. “The Attorney to getfactual information on have to bevaccinated.“This is one in all itsSolidarity vaccine trials “everythingisgood” according to surethat adequatesafetymeas- life. PTI General has granted his con- these (on vaccinating the entire of the mandatesthe national ex- thatwedon't needtomeasure the state’s response. uresareputinplaceby therespec- ATTORNEY GENERAL KK sent forinitiating contempt population),” Bhushansaid. pertgroup on vaccine adminis- the antibodies, even find out that “Wehaveseen your counter tive stategovernmentsasper the RAJASTHAN Venugopal has granted con- proceedingsagainst Rachita DG ICMR Dr Balram tration (toexamineifthe people person hadCovid-19, and go affidavit. Your stand is contraryto applicable rules and guidelines, sent forinitiating contempt Taneja,” said the source. Bhargava said the decision will who have developedantibodies ahead and give it (vaccine).That yourownChief ElectricalEngineer, and to ensurethat suchincidents Salmangets proceedingsagainstcomic The consent of either the largely depend on dataonthe ef- againstthe virusshouldbevac- is in the mandateofWHO at the who says thereare issues with donothappenagain”,theCentral exemptionfrom artistRachitaTaneja forher al- AttorneyGeneral or the ficacy of the vaccine candidates. cinated). Other countries arealso moment.” wiring.Accordingto yourcounter, government, through theHome leged objectionable tweets Solicitor General is necessary, “The questionwould depend on examining it. No final decision Meanwhile, Bhushan said everything is good,” Justice MR Secretary, MinistryofHome appearance againstthe Supreme Court. underSection 15 of the theefficacy of thevaccine; there has been taken...” Bhushan said. the Health Ministryhas written Shah,sharingabenchwithJustices Affairs has, in aletterdated SourcessaidVenugopal Contempt of Courts Act, 1971, is arange,itmay be 60 percent Bhargava,however, pointed to all states to setupanexpert Ashok Bhushanand RSubhash November 30, written to allChief Jodhpur: ActorSalman grantedconsent on aletter forinitiating contempt pro- efficacyinsomeone or 70 per outthatcurrently, the World grouptostudy the marketand Reddy,toldthestategovernment’s SecretariesoftheStatesandUnion Khan wasTuesdaygiven from alaw student who sought ceedingsagainst aperson. cent in another,” he said. “The Health Organization’s mandate determinetesting rates. counsel. Territories, raising“serious con- exemptionfromappear- Justice Shah said factscannot cernfornon-adherenceof thefire ancebyaJodhpur court be suppressedand needtocome safetymeasures by the authori- duringthe hearingofan BARBRIBERYSCANDAL out in the correct fashion. ties in the respective States/UTs”. appeal by him againstthe AppearingfortheCentre,Solicitor The affidavit also saidthat on five-year sentence in the Kerala govt gets Speakernod to file Vigilance caseagainstChennithala GeneralTusharMehtapointedout November 28, the Directorate October 1998 blackbuck that acommitteeheadedbyre- General (FireServices,Civil poaching case. Additional actionispoliticallymotivatedand paidthembribetoget barhotelli- proachedSpeaker P tired High CourtjudgeJustice DA Defence&Home Guards), DistrictandSessionsJudge SHAJUPHILIP takenatthe behestofChief cencefeereduced.Healsoalleged Sreeramakrishnan, seeking his Mehtawas enquiring intothe fire MinistryofHomeAffairs,wroteto Brajesh Panwar granted THIRUVANANTHAPURAM,DEC1 Ramesh MinisterPinarayi Vijayan. thatKerala Congress (M) leader sanction to registeracaseagainst in Rajkot. all the Chief Secretariesseeking a the relief afterKhan's Chennithala The government had last Jose KMani,now with the LDF, Chennithala,whowasalegislator “But what about status reportbyDecember 4on counsel cited the ‘rising’ THECPI(M)-LEDLDFgovernment monthdecidedtorevivethe case had offeredRs10crore to with- atthetimeof theallegedincident. Ahmedabad?”askedJusticeShah. the implementation of fire safety number of Covid-19cases inKeralaonTuesdayobtainedthe againstChennithala and two draw the briberycharge against The Vigilance Department has Eight Covid patientsadmitted guidelines. in Mumbai and Jodhpur Speaker’s sanction to registera previous Congress-ledgovern- other Congress leaders —both hislatefather, KMani, who was soughttheGovernor’ssanctionto to the ShreyHospital in States and UTshavealsobeen and said that travelling for Vigilance case againstLeader of ment.The development comes ministers in the previousUDF the then stateFinance minister. registercasesagainstformermin- Ahmedabad were killedwhena asked to send by December 4the thehearing could be risky Opposition in the Assembly, before Kerala goes to thelocal term —after bar baron Biju Following Ramesh’s allega- istersandCongressleadersKBabu blazeengulfeditsICUonAugust6. statusofthe NOCs issuedtohos- forthe actor. PTI Congress’sRamesh Chennithala, body polls next week. Ramesh’s recent claim that the tions,the Vigilanceconducted a and VSSivakumar basedon ThebenchaskedMehtatolook pitals and nursingHomes and in the bar briberycase underthe ChennithalasaidtheSpeaker’s owners’associationhadallegedly quickverification reportand ap- Ramesh’sallegations. intothe reportand ensurethat a their renewals.

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OVER THE HEDGE by Michael Fry &TLewis CROSSWORD4291 DAYTODAY BYPETERVIDAL

ARIES (Mar 21 -Apr 20) LIBRA (Sep 24 -Oct 23) Plenty is still You’regoing to have happeningonthe to take some very domestic front, tough decisions, a although some fewofwhichwill plans mayrun intodelays. concern work,others, personal Look on the bright side, for affairs. Makesureyou arewell you’ll have achance to stand prepared,and that youhaveall still, take stock, and guard the factsatyourfingertips. againstfuturemistakesand Plus, trytotie up all looseends misunderstandings. Besides, while youstill have the chance. thereare afew moredays before youneedtomakeup SCORPIO (Oct 24 -Nov 23) your mind. Youcan begin to look forwardtoa TAURUS (Apr21-May 21) period of relative Wheneverthe pace emotional slowsdown, take the fulfilment. This is notupon you CALVIN &HOBBES by Bill Watterson chance to rethink quiteyet,but youcan startto your plans in the light makeplans, sureinthe of fresh information. If other knowledge that others will peopleshould seem particularly soon be particularly critical or argumentative, susceptible to your charms. It is don’t take offence, but trytosee good to be popular. thecoreoftruth in their ACROSS DOWN everystatement. SAGITTARIUS(Nov24-Dec 22) 1Mean as an infuriated wasp 1Aform of acceptance or Your chartis (6) resignation (2,2,2) GEMINI (May22-June 21) brimming with 4Spicedfood made by Sarah, a 2Accustomone to asequence You’reslowly energy,indicating Frenchfriend (6) over the East(5) building up to a that muchofwhat 9Adrink and abiscuit 3Fresh garb that is leftfor an break withthe past youturn your hand to at (7) archangel(7) that mayhave present is designedtoenhance 10 Turn acorner and limit relapse 5Theyurgethe public to buy the dramatic consequences for your standing in the in part(5) namedproduct (5) your personal life. Youneedto community. Thereare 11 Ancient British tribeornice 6Aperformer in adifficult part free yourself from stale friends who areprepared to newone (5) is tense (7) attitudes, perhapseven help, if onlyyou would ask.If 12 Aunit is ordered to 7Who cometh in playorin dabbling in lifestyle changes. youdon’tsay anything, somewhereinNorth Africa (7) cinema production? Remember,itmay be youwho youcan’t complain if 13 Ahill town whereprogress is (6) needs to adapt, notpartners. you’reignored. limited (5-2,4) 8Order givenbyteachers (11) MARVIN by Tom Armstrong 18 What confuses pictures 14 Remove alltraces CANCER (June 22 -July23) CAPRICORN (Dec 23 -Jan 20) coming across (7) (7) As the day Thereare ways and 20 Permission to setout 15 Booksatrummagesales progresses, the meanstoenhance (5) (7) accent mayshift your general sense 22 Names landmarks or eyesores 16 She turns agatecrasher over to from concern over of self-esteem. Start we hear (5) US intelligence (6) specificdetails to amore by aiming forpromotion at 23 Comment on what yousee? 17 Unusuallyremote space general look at new work,and also take on social (7) traveller (6) possibilities. You’reina responsibilities. If youquestion 24 The shortanswer about 19 Not acrime to be coollycarried planning phase, so think about your current methods of foreign capital(6) out (5) the futureand look closelyat achieving your goals, you’ll 25 He has astable job 21 Time forabad liar to keep all the options that areopen to realise howyou candovery (6) quiet? (5) you. The lastthing youwant to muchbetter. do nowisthrow away all that you’veworkedfor. AQUARIUS (Jan 21-Feb 19) SolutionsCrossword4290:Across:1Western,5Mover,8Consequential,9Spent, The road to interest 10Extreme,11Offday,12Status,15Younger,17Threw,19Shotinthedark,20 LEO (July24-Aug23) and excitement lies Yards,21Desists.Down:1Wicks,2Senseofhumour,3Electra,4Neuter,5Manet,6 You’renow coming farafield. This is Veiledthreats,7Rollers,11Odyssey,13Tethers,14Grated,16Grins,18Wakes. to the end of along thereforean period when money excellent moment to revive wasunder the foreign contactsand microscope. Whether youhave investigateanoverseas takenchances or notisyour journey. If you’repursuing JUMBLEDWORDS DifficultyLevel5s business, butfromnow on ambitions in higher education, Instructions your decisions maybemore or justinvestigating anew Givenbelowarefourjumbledwords.Solvethejumblestomakeproperwordsandmovethemto TosolveaSudokupuzzle, restricted.But, with less interest, press ahead choice, your lifewill become with confidence. therespectivesquaresbelow.Selectthelettersintheshadedsquaresandjumblethemtoget everydigitfrom1to9 4309 theanswerforthegivenquip. simpler and morerelaxed. mustappearineachofthe PISCES (Feb 20 -Mar 20) Inordertolivefreeandhappilyyoumust____boredom.Itisnotalwaysaneasy____.-Richard nineverticalcolumns,in Bach(9,..,9)(samewordtwice) VIRGO (Aug 24 -Sep 23) Youmay be getting eachoftheninehorizontal As Jupiter pulls into all steamedup 4310 OPAER AINOCS rowsandineachofthe anew region of your about the wayother nineboxes. chart, it’s becoming people have treated

SUDOKU increasinglylikely you, or about their failureto that you’ll have to be much fulfil their promises.One ENSII EIKLCF DifficultyLevel moredeterminedinfuture. thing youcannotdoisgoback ION The very worstthing youcan to the past, so concentrate SUDOKU 1s=Veryeasy;2s=Easy; do is to take your advantages on creating the future. You 3s=Medium;4s=Hard; forgranted.Infact, mayalready have agood

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Office of the Executive Engineer, STEM WATER DISTRI. &INFRA CO. PVT.LTD. Chambal Project Division, Kota E-Tender Notice No. 2(1st Extention) for 2020-21 E-mail:- [email protected] Phone No. :- 0141-2327211 E-EOI are invited by STEM Water Dist. &Infra. Co. Pvt. Ltd., Thane. No:- Tender/2020-21 /2393-2410 Date:- 25.11.2020 For the following work : E-Tender No. 14/2020-21 Name of Work :Supplying, Lowering,laying 1850 mm Dia. (OD) pipeline for shifting work and provisionof1850 mm Dia. (OD) Pipe On behalf of Governor of Rajasthan E-NIT no. EE/CP/14 of 2020-21 is invited Duct for future expansion of pipeline due to across the Kalyan Ring from eligible bidder for “Renovation/Modernisation of Hostel No.1, Hostel Road of 45 m. R.O.W. at Adharwadi, Kalyan Estimated Cost Rs. No.2, Smart Class Room, Seminar Hall, Soil Testing Lab, Toilet Blocks, 1,38,55,272/-. The details can be viewed and downloaded online Park Space and Mess etc. at IMTI Kota(Raj.) under National Hydrology directly from STEM's web site https://stem.abcprocure.com. Project”. Interested bidders can participate in tendering under No. Tender Activity Date Time e-procurement procedure. Other details are available on following website 01) http:/water.rajasthan.gov.in 1 Document downloaded start date 03.12.2020 12.00 02) http:/sppp.raj.nic.in 2 Document Downloaded Date 17.12.2020 15.00 03) http://eproc.rajasthan.gov.in 3 Bid Submission end date 17.12.2020 15.00 Sd/- 4 Opening of Envelope No. I 17.12.2020 15.00 NIB Code: WRD2021A0425 (Neeraj Agarwal) 5 Opening of Envelope No. II 21.12.2020 15.00 UBN No. :WRD2021WSOB01696 Executive Engineer Sd/- DIPR/C/9270/2020 Chambal Project Division Kota Managing Director

indianexpress.com FOREST DEVELOPMENT CORPORATION OF MAHARASHTRA GOVERNMENT OF ODISHA (Govt. of Maharashtra Enterprise) CIN :U45200MH1974SGC017206 OFFICE OF THE SUPERINTENDING OFFICE OF THE DIVISIONAL MANAGER, GOREWADA PROJECT,NAGPUR ENGINEER,CENTRAL CIRCLE (R&b) Regd. Office:- Hindustan Lever Godown Square, Fetri, Mahurzari Road, Nagpur-441501 Email- [email protected] Ph.No. 0712-2667477, 2667411, 2667484 NIRMAN SOUDHA, PHASE-II, 2ND FLOOR, GST NO. 27AAACF2982K1ZD B-471 TENDER NOTICE BHUBANESWAR CONSTRUCTION OF CEMENT CONCRETE ROAD Mail i.d. [email protected] Divisional Manager,Gorewada Project, FDCM Ltd., Nagpur invites proposal from firms/companies to participate in the competitive biding process to E-Procurement Tender Call Notice No. 3of2020-21 “Construction of Cement Concrete Road for Pickup and Drop Station and other related works” at Gorewada International Zoo, Nagpur. No. 2777 (Estg.) Bhubaneswar the 26th November,2020 For the detailed E-tender document, interested bidders should visits website: www.mahatenders.gov.in The Superintending Engineer,Central Circle (R&B) Bhubaneswar Tender Submission would be online and the deadline to submit the proposal is 25/12/2020 (upto 03:00 pm). on behalf of the Governor of Odisha invites percentage rate bids Sr.Tender No. Name of Tender Tender Fee EMD for One number of Composite Building work and one number road No. with GST (Rs.) 18% (Rs.) work to be received in online bidding, double cover system for 1FDCM/DM/GP/I.S./ “Construction of Cement 1180/- 1,05,580/- 2020-21/1157, Concrete Road for Pickup construction work as detailed in: https://tendersorissa.gov.in Dt. 28.11.2020 and Drop Station and other The details of bid documentswill be available in the above website related works” at Gorewada Oice of the Executive Engineer,Project Division, International Zoo, Nagpur. from 5.00 PM of 06.12.2020 to 5:00 PM of 20.12.202. The bidders Sd/- R.R. Nagara Zone, BBMP Oice Building, 2nd Floor, (Pramodkumar Panchbhai) must possess compatible Digital Signature Certificate of Class II Divisional Manager Neharu Road, BEML Layout, Bengaluru-560 098 Gorewada Project, Nagpur or III. Bids received online shall be opened at 11:00 AM of No.: BBMP/EE/Proj/RRN/TEN/15/2020-21 Date: 01.12.2020 21.12.2020 in the Office of the Superintending Engineer,Central Shortterm tender notification Circle (R&B) Bhubaneswar. Further details can be seen from the (Two Cover System) (Through GOK e-Procurement Portal only) e-procurement portal www.tendersorissa.gov.in. Tenders on item rate basis are invited by the Executive Addendum/Corrigendum, if required, will be available only in the National Health Mission Engineer (Project Division) on behalf of Commissioner, Website. Odisha State Health & BBMP for the work mentioned below under the Karnataka Sd/- Er.G.C. Sahu E-386 Family Welfare Society Transparency in Public Procurement Rules 2000 in Superintending Engineer Central Circle (R&B) Bhubaneswar Health &FWDepartment, Govt. of Odisha prescribed format from the registered GoodsSupplier OIPR-34005/11/0006/2021 Annex Building of SIH &FW, Nayapalli, Unit-8, of BBMP or equivalentregistration with CPWD /KPWD / Bhubaneswar- 751012 Railways /MES or any State Government Organizations. Advt. No:- 23/20 Date: 01.12.2020 Amount put to Sl. EMD Request for Proposal (RFP) for Operation &Management Name of the Work Tender (Rs. in No. (in Rs.) of Urban Primary Health Center (UPHC) in partnership Lakhs) mode under NHM. Providing Medical Odisha State Health &Family Welfare Society invites application as per Iarriveataconclusion equipments to maternity the prescribed RFP document from credible entities registered under 1 591.00 8,87,000/- Hospital in Yeshwanthapura Society Registration Act/ Indian Trust Act/ Company Act./ Institutions like at Ward No. 37. Medical Colleges/Hospitals run under Govt./ Public Sector/Pvt. Sector not an assumption. for operation &management of one Urban Primary Health Center Calendar of Events: (1) Documents can be downloaded (UPHC) at Burla in Sambalpur district in partnership mode. from e-Procurement website from: 08.12.2020 onwards. Sealed proposals as per the prescribed RFP document are invited from interestedeligible bidders for “Operationand Management of UPHC” at (2) Pre-bid meeting at the Oice of Oice of Chief Engineer, Burla in Sambalpur district. The eligibility criteria and detailed Inform your opinion with RR Nagara Zone, Ideal Homes: 14.12.2020 at 4:00 p.m. requirementsfor “Operation &Management of UPHC” and the formats (3) Last date for submission of Tender document: for submission of proposals are set forth in the RFP document which detailed analysis. 22.12.2020 upto 4:00 p.m. (4) Opening of Technical Bid: can be downloadedfromthe website: www.nhmodisha.gov.in. Interested bidders fulfilling the eligibility criteria may submit their 23.12.2020 at 11:00 a.m. (5) Opening of Financial Bid: proposal with EMD &documentsasset forth in this RFP in asealed Will be Intimated to the Technically Qualiied Contractors. envelope clearly super scribing the name of the UPHC on the envelop In the event of the speciied date of tender opening to the CDM&PHO, Sambalpur on or before the last date for submission being declared aholiday for the employer,the tenders of application mentioned in the RFP. Proposal(s) complete in all respect should reach the District by Speed will be opened at the appointed time and location on Post/Registered Post/Courier only on or before 21/12/2020.The the next working day.Further details may be obtained proposal(s) shall be opened in the concerned district on the date and from the above oice, during oice hours or website time mentioned in the RFP.Incomplete applications/applications https://eproc.karnataka.gov.in received in an open envelop/applications received after the due date/ applications of the blacklisted NGOs and Trustswill be summarily Sd/- Executive Engineer,Project Division, rejected. The authority reserves the right for cancellation of the selection R.R. Nagara Zone, BBMP /modification of the selection guideline without assigning any reason thereof. No personal inquiry shall be entertained. Sd/- The Indian Express. Mission Director,NHM & Member Secretary,OSH&FW Society Forthe Indian Intelligent. OIPR-10084/11/0016/2021

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THEINDIANEXPRESS,WEDNESDAY,DECEMBER2,2020 14 THE WORLD

TOPOFTHE WORLD Iran’sParliament advancesbilltostop nuclearinspections

Ajit Pai ASSOCIATEDPRESS TEHRAN,DECEMBER1 UNITED STATES AjitPaitostep IRAN'S PARLIAMENT on Tuesday advancedabill that would end downasFCC UN inspections of itsnuclear fa- cilities and requirethe govern- chaironJan20 ment to boostits uranium en- richment if European signatories Washington: Ajit Paihas to the 2015 nuclear deal do not announcedhis intent to provide relief from oil and bank- step down as the chair- ing sanctions. man of the Federal The votetodebatethe bill, CommunicationsComm- WORLD’S LONELIEST ELEPHANT FINDS AFRIEND whichwould needtopas ission on January20, the through severalother stages be- dayJoeBidentakesoathas Kaavan, dubbed the “world’s loneliestelephant”, made contact with anotherofhis species forthe firsttimeineightyears fore becoming law, wasashow Protesters burn pictures of US President-elect Joe Biden and the 46th US President. Pai afterlanguishingalone in aPakistanzoo foryears.The Asian elephant hasbeen movedtoasanctuaryinOddar Meanchey, of defiance afterthe killing of a US President Donald Trumpduring ademonstration. Reuters is the highestranking Cambodiathat houses other pachyderms afteraworldwide campaign forhim to be rescued. Four Paws via AP prominentIraniannuclear sci- Indian-American official entistlastmonth. in the Trumpadministra- The official IRNAnews otherparliamentaryvote to pass, Fakhrizadeh's killingonIsrael, tion. “It has been the hon- agency said 251lawmakers in as well as approval by the whichhas long wagedacovert our of alifetime to serveat the 290-seat chamber voted in Guardian Council, aconstitu- waragainstTehran and itsprox- the Federal Communica- UK’s new points-based visasystem opens favor, afterwhich manybegan tional watchdog. ies in the region. Israeli officials tions Commission, includ- chanting “DeathtoAmerica” and The bill wasfirsttabledin have declinedtocomment on ing as Chairman of the FCC earlier,points will be awarded ise in the fields of engineering, and be able to supportthem- “DeathtoIsrael”. parliament in Augustbut gained the killing, and no one has over the pastfour years,” ADITIKHANNA forajob offeratthe appropriate science, tech or culture,”she said. selves(usuallybyhaving at least The bill would give European newmomentum afterthe killing claimedresponsibility. Pai, 47,said in astatement LONDON,DECEMBER1 skill level, knowledge of English People willnormally needto 1,270pounds available). countries three months to ease of Mohsen Fakhrizadeh, who Some Iranian officials have on Monday. He also and being paid aminimum be paid at least25,600pounds The SkilledWorkervisa lasts sanctions on Iran's key oil and headedaprogrammethatIsrael suggestedthat the International thankedPresidentDonald THE UK'S newpost-Brexit salary. per year unless the “going rate” foruptofiveyearsbeforeit gassector, and to restoreits ac- and the West have allegedwas a Atomic Energy Agency,which Trumpfor giving himthe points-basedvisa and immigra- “This government promised forthat job in the wider economy needs to be extended. Alongside cess to the international banking militaryoperation looking at the has been regularly inspecting opportunity to lead the tion system, described by the to end free movement,totake is higher.Applicationsare made the work visa,anumber of other system.The US imposedcrip- feasibility of building anuclear Iran's nuclear facilities in recent agency in 2017,toformer government as “simple, effective backcontrol of our bordersand online, and as partofthis, people routes arealso nowopen forap- pling sanctions on Iran after weapon. years as partofthe 2015 agree- President BarackObama and flexible”,openedfor appli- to introduce anew points-based will needtoprove theiridentity plications,including Global President Donald Trumpunilat- The International Atomic ment, mayhavebeen asource of forappointing him as a cations from Tuesday. immigration system.Today,we and provide their documents. TalentVisa, forpeople who can erallywithdrew from the nu- EnergyAgency says that “struc- intelligence forFakhrizadeh's commissioner in 2012, The UK Home Office said ap- have deliveredonthat promise,” “Once someoneoutside the show theyhaveexceptional tal- clear agreement, triggering ase- tured programme” endedin killers. and to Senate Majority plicantsfor the newSkilled said Home SecretaryPriti Patel. UK has gone through all these ent or exceptional promise in the riesofescalationsbetween the 2003. US intelligence agencies Iran beganpubliclyexceed- Leader McConnellandthe Worker Visa can nowapplyto “This simple, effective and steps, theywill usuallyget ade- fields of science, engineering, twosides. concurredwith that assessment inguranium enrichment levels Senatefor twice confirm- work and live in the UK from flexiblesystemwill ensureem- cision within three weeks,” the humanities, medicine, digital The bill would have authori- in a2007report. setbythe nuclear agreement af- ing him. PTI January1,2021, when the Brexit ployers can recruit the skilled Home Office said. technology or arts and culture. ties resume enriching uranium Israel insists Iran still main- terthe US restored sanctions. It transition period ends to bring workers theyneed, whilst also Applicantswill needtohave The Student Routeand Child to 20%,whichisbelowthe tains the ambition of developing currentlyenriches agrowing ura- European Union(EU) migrants encouraging employers to train enough moneytocover theap- Student Routeunderthe new threshold neededfor nuclear nuclear weapons, pointing to nium stockpile up to 4.5% purity. in line with non-EU countries, and invest in the UK's workforce. plication feewill rangebetween system openedearlier,in weapons but higher than that re- Tehran's ballistic missile pro- That's still farbelow SRI LANKA suchasIndia. We arealsoopening routes for 610poundsto1,408 pounds, October,toeligibleinternational quired forcivilian applications. gram and research intoother weapons-grade levels of 90%, Topcourtjunks Under the newpoints-based thosewho have an exceptional plus ahealthcaresurcharge studentsfor the next academic It would also commission new technologies. Iran long though experts warn Iran now immigrationsystemunveiled talent or showexceptional prom- (usually624 pounds per year) year. PTI centrifuges at nuclear facilities has maintainedthatits nuclear has enough low-enrichedura- Muslimpleas at Natanz and the underground programme is forpeaceful pur- nium to reprocessintofuel forat againstCovid Fordosite. poses. leasttwo atomic bombs if it Two killed, Covid-19 vaccine sprint as The bill would requirean- Iran has blamed chose to pursuethem. cremations several injured Colombo: Sri Lanka's SArabiatoallow Nepal ruling party fails to Supreme Courton as car ploughs Pfizer-BioNTech, Moderna Tuesdaydismissedpeti- commercial tions filedbymembers of into pedestrians settle dispute between the Muslimcommunity seek emergencyEUapproval Israeli planes to againstthe government's in German city regulation that makes cross its airspace, Oli, Prachanda factions cremations mandatory THENEWYORKTIMES forCovid-related deaths. BERLIN,DECEMBER1 REUTERS says US official Some 12 petitioners had FRANKFURT,DECEMBER1 YUBARAJGHIMIRE challenged regulation, AT LEAST twopeople were killed REUTERS KATHMANDU,DECEMBER1 claiming it impinged on and severalothersseriouslyin- MODERNAAND Pfizer- WASHINGTON,DECEMBER1 the fundamental rights of juredin the city of Trier in south- BioNTech areinatightraceto THE NEPAL CommunistParty the nation’s 9per cent westernGermany on Tuesday, launchtheir COVID-19vaccines SAUDIARABIAagreedonMonday (NCP) on Tuesdayfailedtosettle Muslim minority. when an SUVspeddowna in Europe afterbothappliedfor to letIsraeli airliners cross itsair- the disputebetween Prime According to the Johns pedestrian street in thecitycen- emergency EU approval on spaceenroutetothe UAEafter MinisterKPSharmaOliandadis- KPSharma Oliand Pushpa Hopkins University data, ter, the police said. Tuesday, though therewas un- talksbetween Saudi officials and sidentgroupthatwantshimto re- Kamal Dahal'Prachanda' Sri Lanka has reported The police said theyhad ar- certainty over whether arollout WhiteHousesenioradviserJared sign from his post, adding further 23,987 cases and 118 rested the driver, a51-year-old could begin this year. Kushner,asenior Trumpadmin- woesforthebeleagueredregime. deaths. PTI man from the surrounding area, The applications to the istration official said. The dissidents, ledbyNCP co- Oliinsistedthatnousefulpur- and confiscatedhis vehicle.They European Medicines Agency Kushner and Middle Easten- chairman Pushpa Kamal Dahal posewouldbeservedby continu- CHINA urgedpeople to avoidthe area to (EMA) came aday afterModerna voys AviBerkowitz andBrian 'Prachanda', command the sup- ing with the meeting, but was allowrescue workers to attendto sought emergency use forits Acoronaviruspatient in the ICU at Oslo UniversityHospital Hook raisedthe issue shortlyaf- portofatleastfiveout of nine overruledbyamajorityofthecen- Spacecraft the injured. shotinthe United States and Rikshospitalet. NTB via Reuters tertheyarrived in Saudi Arabia members of the central secre- tral secretariat members. successfully “Wehaveatleasttwo dead morethan aweek afterPfizer fortalks. “Wewereable to rec- tariat. The talksare to continue andasmanyas15severelyin- and BioNTechdid the same. oncilethe issue,” the official said. Initially, Oli scored awin over Wednesday, an NCPspokesman landsonmoon jured,and we aretrying to getan US drugmaker Pfizer andits ule maybesubject to changeas The agreement washam- Prachanda's faction, forcing the said. overviewofthe situation,” German developmentpartner COVID-19PRESENT itsevaluation proceeds. mered out hours before Israel’s party to shiftthe secretariat Sources said that if the cen- Beijing:China successfully Wolfram Leibe, themayor of BioNTechsaid their vaccine could The European Commission, firstcommercial flight to the UAE meeting to his residence, citing tral secretariat fails to come to landedaspacecraftonthe Trier, told theregional public be launched in the European INUSINDEC2019, the EU executive body, said it wasplannedTuesday. The Israir athreat to his life. anyconclusion Wednesday, it moon’ssurface on broadcaster, SWR.“Our priority Union as early as this month. SAYSCDCSTUDY would likelygiveits final author- flight wasatriskof beingcanceled However, Prachanda's fac- will be referred to the party's 43- Tuesday in ahistoricmis- rightnow is to save lives.” “Wecan starttodeliver ization foravaccine’s rollout with no overflight agreement. tion refusedtowithdraw areso- member standing committee. siontoretrieve lunar sur- It wasnot immediatelyclear within afew hours (of an ap- Covid-19 hadinfectedpeople days afterarecommendation by The direct flightsare an off- lution submitted twoweeksago, Theysaid that Olifaces two face samples, Chinese howthe driverwas able to enter proval),” said SierkPoetting, intheUSinDecember2019,a the EMA. shootofnormalization deals alleging corruption and an au- difficult choices:toeither go by statemedia reported. the pedestrian zoneinTrier. head of operations and finance fewweeksbeforeitwas offi- Both Moderna and Pfizer- Israel reachedthis year with the thoritarian styleoffunctioning, themajority and quit at leastone China launchedits Suchpedestrian areas are at BioNTech. cially identifiedinChina and BioNTechhavereportedprelim- UAE, Bahrain and Sudan. and refusedtotender an uncon- of the twoposts he holds, or to Chang’e-5probe on found in manyGerman cities, and “Wehavebeen stocking up. about amonthearlier than inaryfindings of morethan 90% “Thisshould resolve anyis- ditional apologyfor the meeting split the NCPbeforethe issue November 24.The un- security at entrances wasin- And everything that is therecan healthauthoritiesfound the effectiveness in trials of their sues that should occur with to proceedfurther. goes to thestanding committee. crewed mission, named creasedafter a24-year-old really be distributed within afew firstUScase, as per aCDC vaccines. Israeli carriers taking people afterthe mythical Chinese Tunisian droveatruckintoa hours.” study publishedMonday. The EMA said on Tuesdayit from Israel to the UAEand back goddess of the moon, Christmas market in Berlin in The EMA cloudedthe time- The findings strengthen had startedarolling review of and to Bahrain,” the official said. aims to collect lunar ma- December 2016,killing12 people. line,however,whenitsaid it the theorythat the virus was Johnson &Johnson’s vaccine Kushner and histeam were Azerbaijan fully reclaims terial to help scientists Pictures from the scene on would complete itsreviewfor spreadingaroundthe world candidateafter preliminaryre- to meetSaudi CrownPrince learn moreabout the Tuesdayshoweddozens of am- thatvaccine by December 29 at well before authorities be- sultsshowedittriggered pro- Mohammedbin Salman later disputedlands around moon’s origins. REUTERS bulances andpolice carsparked the latest, and forModerna’s shot came awareofit. duction of antibodies and im- this week,aswell as the emirof on the streetsofcentral Trier. by January12. It addeditssched- mune cells againstthe virus. Kuwait. Nagorno-Karabakh

Armenia sinceaseparatistwar Nepal’s female soldiers break taboos to tackle Covid crisis ASSOCIATEDPRESS thereendedin1994. That warleft BAKU,DECEMBER1 notonlyNagorno-Karabakh itself being deployed forthe firsttime combat duty,hospitals, ord- Outside the Pashupati cre- but large chunksofsurrounding REUTERS as thenationof30million peo- nance, engineers and disasters mation house, wailing relatives AZERBAIJAN ON Tuesdaycom- landsinArmenian hands. KATHMANDU,DECEMBER1 ple tries to manage the bodies of before.This is the firsttime they threw marigolds and vermillion pletedreclaiming territory In 44 days of heavy fighting COVID-19victims amid the aremanaging the bodies from powder over an iron fence ontoa cededbyArmenia under a thatbegan on September 27,the FOUR WOMEN wearing protec- growing pandemic. hospitals andtransporting them whiteshroud covering the body Russia-brokered peace deal that Azerbaijani militaryrouted tive gear liftthe bodyofacoron- “I feel privileged and happy to thecrematorium,” Poudyal of a58-year-old man. ended six weeksoffierce fight- Armenian forces and wedged avirus victim at the Pashupati forbeing givenachance to do the told Reuters. “You can sayitis Three other bodies, with tags ing over Nagorno-Karabakh. deep intoNagorno-Karabakh, crematorium in Nepal’s capital, work that wasdone onlybythe breaking the borders …break- bearing their names and ages Azerbaijani President Ilham forcing Armenia to accept a Kathmandu,and hand it over to males so far,”said one of the ing the glass ceiling.” pinnedtothe bags, laid on the Aliyev hailedthe restoration of Russia-brokered peace deal that crematoryworkers -ascene women, a25-year-old corporal Nepal’s armyisresponsible ground next to awhitehearse as control over the areas as ahis- took effect November 10. unimaginable in the conserva- namedRachana, who asked to formanaging the bodies of coro- crematoryworkers worked past toric achievement. The Lachin region, whichlies tive countryinrecent years. be identifiedbyjustone name. navirus victims across the na- the midnight. “Weall livedwithone dream between Nagorno-Karabakh and Women touching adead “Society is changing ... Ihavenot tion. “It is my duty to remove the andnowwefulfilledit,”Aliyevsaid Armenia, wasthe last of the three body is still acultural taboo in been to my familysince Istarted The pandemic has killed dead bodies and Iamproud of in an addresstothe nation.“We areas on therim of Nagorno- Nepal. But rightsfor women my newduty,but my friends are 1,508 peopleinthe country and what Iamdoing,” said Krishna wonavictory on the battlefield Karabakh to be surrenderedby have improved sincethe major- happy. Theythank me and say, Female soldiers wearing PPE lift astretcher with the body of infected 233,452 sincethe virus Kumari, another soldier in the andonthepoliticalarena,andthat Armenian forces Tuesday. ity-Hindu countryemerged ‘You have performedadifficult acoronavirusvictim at acrematorium in Kathmandu. Reuters wasfirstdetected in January, ac- group. victoryopens anew erafor our The peace agreement was from adecade-long conflict in task carefullyand maintained cording to official data. The 37-year-old sergeant country. It willbeanera of devel- celebrated as avictoryin 2006 and abolishedits cen- your personal safety. Thank you’. Health workers saythe pan- added: “The work is physically opment, security and progress.” Azerbaijan, but sparkedmass turies-old feudal monarchytwo Ifeel happy.” matorium. women soldiers in newroles, demic will onlyworsen as win- demanding ... and we have Nagorno-Karabakh lies protests in Armenia, with thou- years later. On their firstday on the job Nepal Armyspokesman partofaprogramme to em- tersetsinand limitedhealthin- proved that women arecapable within Azerbaijan but has been sands taking to the streetstode- The women carrying corpses last month, thefour movedsix Shantosh B. Poudyal said the powerthem. frastructure, including critical of doing difficult tasksduringthe under the control of ethnic mandthe ousterofthe country's in Kathmandu, all soldiers, are bodies from ahospital to acre- 95,000-strong forcewas putting “Women were deployedin carebeds, is stretched. pandemic.” Armenian forces backed by prime minister.

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THEINDIANEXPRESS,WEDNESDAY,DECEMBER2,2020 15 ECONOMY GOLD RUPEE OIL SILVER `48,273 `73.68 $47.44 `59,380

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Internationalmarket data till 1900IST POLICY WATCH COLLECTIONRISES1.4%TO`1,04,963CR,BUTGROWTHSLOWS Covid effect: Ed-tech NATURAL GAS PIPELINE TARIFFS GSTmop-upabove`1lakhcr firms corner $1.95 bn Existingpacts under funds so far this year for2ndstraightmonthinNov non-profitactivity...itisonlywhen stress, industry PRANAVMUKUL thedigitaleconomypickedup,the NEWDELHI,DECEMBER1 digitalsolutions--whichcouldgo centhigher that the revenues were filedfor themonth of directlytotheparents--happened says will mount ENSECONOMICBUREAU ED from these sources during the November up to 30th November ACCELERATEDADOPTIONof tech- to break the myth that education NEWDELHI,DECEMBER1 Growth same month lastyear,” the fi- 2020. nology productsinthe education cannotscaleup. The revenue op- PLAIN E uneven nance ministrysaid in astate- The government settledRs sector and arobustdemand sce- portunitiesforeachofthesestart- ● legal challenge CONTINUINGTOpostayear-on- EX ment Tuesday. 22,293 croretoCGSTand Rs nariodueto thepandemichasled ups is significant,” SunilKGoyal, year increase forthe thirdmonth “The trendofimprovedcol- 16,286 croretoSGSTfromIGST to the “ed-tech” segment in India managingdirectorandfundman- Tariffriselikelyfor most; couldtrigger in arow since the slumpincol- GROWTH IN taxcollec- lections three months in arow as regular settlement. Afterthis, – mainly controlledbystartups ager of YourNestVentureCapital, lection in April, the Goods and tions is unevenamong pointstostability returning in the total revenueearnedby likeByju’s, Unacademy, Vedantu, told The Indian Express. upwardrevision in govt’s urea spend Services Tax(GST) mop-uprose states as manystateshave economic activities across the CentreisRs41,482crore as CGST Toppr etc – raising arecord $1.95 Accordingto arecentreportby 1.4per cent to Rs 1,04,963 crore recordedadecline in col- countryand it is expected that and by states is Rs 41,826 croreas billion from private equity and Inc42Plus,India’sed-tech market in November (for salesin lections. The growth rate thistrend is sustainable in the SGST, theMinistrysaid. GSTrev- venturecapitalist(PE/VC) funds size is estimated to grow nearly KARUNJITSINGH The newnormshave October). The collectionswere forGST mop-up slowed coming months. However, there enues have been higher than Rs 1 thisyear.Theamount,raisedsince four-fold over the next five years, NEWDELHI,DECEMBER1 facedcriticism from higherthan Rs 1,03,491 crore down to 1.4per cent year- is adecline in collectionsinkey lakhcrore in 8out of the 12 the beginning of the year till date, from the current $2.8 billion to recordedinNovember 2019,but on-year in November, statessuchasMaharashtra, UP, months of 2019-20 fiscal, but col- is31 percenthigherthanthecom- $10.4 billion in 2025. THE NEW unifiednatural gas stakeholders that it belowRs1,05,155crore in compared to 10 per cent Delhi,Karnataka, Telengana lections this have been severely binedfunding of $1.48billion col- Lastweek,Mumbai-basedaf- pipeline tariffregulations no- would lead to October 2020. and 4per cent expansion whichcouldindicatethat the re- impacted due to the Covid-19 lected in thepreceding five years. ter-school online learningplat- tifiedbythe Petroleum and consumerscloserto GSTcollections,whichhad in October and vivalineconomic activities has pandemic and the economic Those tracking the sectorsaid form Toppr reporteddoubling of Natural Gas RegulatoryBoard slumpedtoarecordlow of September,respectively. notbeen uniform across the contraction thereafter. Forsix investor interestined-techcom- itsrevenuesinthelast12months, (PNGRB) maylead to arisein sources of gasending Rs 32,172crore in April, afterthe countryasGujarat, AP,Tamil months,GST mop up wasmuch panies has been mainlydue to along with a125 percent growth tarifffor amajority of users up subsidisingthose governmentimposedanation- Nadu, West Bengal, Odisha have belowRs1lakhcrore mark. Covid-19,whichforcedschools in subscribers forliveclasses each suchassteel and fertiliser wide lockdown to curbthe recordedincrease in collections “As expected,GST collection and colleges to shut down and monthand100percentgrowthin plants,whichcouldresultinan locatedfurther away spread of the coronavirus, has per centexpansion in October during the same period,” said MS forNovember has also crossedRs promptedpeopleto upgradetheir thefreeuserengagementmonth- upwardrevisioninthegovern- been picking up thereafterand and September,respectively. “In Mani, senior director,Deloitte 1lakh croremark,though thein- skills forashrinking job market. on-month.Thecompanyisfunded ment’ssubsidyspendonurea. ingLNGterminalsonthewest has remainedabove Rs 1lakh line with therecent trend of re- India crease of 1.4per cent over According to datasourced by SAIF Partners, HelionVenture The tariffregime notified coastofIndia.Fertiliserproduc- croremarkfor twoconsecutive covery in the GSTrevenues, the Of Rs 1,04,963 crorein November 2019 is muchlower fromVentureIntelligence,eightof Partnersand Fidelity Growth by the current two-member ers and powerplantsare months now. Analysts, however, revenuesfor themonthof November,Rs19,189crore is than comparative numbers for the top10deals, of over $100mil- Partners, among others. PNGRBwilllikelyfacelegal amongkeyusersof naturalgas notedthatgrowth in taxcollec- November 2020 are1.4 per cent Central GST; Rs 25,540crore State the lastmonth. The trend con- lion,inthe segment happenedin Goyalpointed out that cur- challengesdueto theimpactof locatedclosetoinjectionpoints tion is unevenamong states as higher than the GSTrevenuesin GST; Rs 51,992 croreIntegrated tinues to reinforce the belief that 2020.Theseincludetwo roundsof rentlythe moneybeing invested the newnorms on existing of naturalgas.The Fertilizer manystateshaverecorded ade- the same month lastyear. During GST(including Rs 22,078 crore economyisrecovering fast.Now funding of $300millioneachinto in ed-techstartups is going into agreementsbetween suppli- Ministryhasalsoincomments cline in collections. the month, revenues from im- collected on import of goods), that the festival season is over, Byju’s—firstinJanuaryledby Tiger brand building and reaching out ers and consumersofnatural on the draftregulations noted Growth in GSTcollections, port of goods was4.9 per cent and, Rs 8,242 croreCess, includ- one would have to see if Decem- Global and the second in June by to “decisionmakersinthefamily”. gas, including commercial that an increase in the landed however, sloweddownto1.4 per higher and the revenues from ing Rs 809 croreonimport of bercollection is also buoyant,” SilverLake,DSTGlobalandothers. “The content development and agreementsinked by pipeline costofnaturalgaswouldlikely cent year-on-year in November domestic transaction (including goods, the statement said. Ato- said Pratik Jain, partner &leader, US-basedTigerGlobalalsobet contentcollationislikeashortpe- developersafterbaggingproj- lead to an increase in the sub- as comparedto 10 percent and 4 importofservices) are0.5 per talof82lakh GSTR-3B returns Indirect Tax, PwC India. on Unacademylastweek,invest- riodoftwo,two-and-a-half years. ectsthroughacompetitive bid- sidyburden of the govern- ing an undisclosed amount in the Once that is done, it is all about dingprocess,accordingto mul- ment. “... anyupwardrevision startup along with investment reachafterthat.Itisalsoaboutget- tiple industry players who in pipeline tariffwillleadto an firmDragoneerInvestmentGroup, tingthebestcustomerservicepeo- spoketoThe IndianExpress. increaseinthe deliveredcost PANDEMIC IMPACT taking the online learning plat- ple,bestteachers,gettingmultiple The regulations marka of gastotheureamanufactur- form’s valuation up to $2 billion. front-end sales people,” he said. shiftfromthe existing system ingunitsresultinginincreased TigerGlobal fundedVedantu, an- Notably, manyofthe larger whichchargesconsumers subsidyburdenonthegovern- ‘States’ debt likelytosoar36% Shareofaggregate Keyreasonsforshrinking other ed-techcompanyinIndia. fundraises by ed-techfirmshave basedonthedistancefromthe ment,”saidtheUnionFertilizer 90%grossstatedomestic economicoutput: “The opportunity to improve followedextravagant marketing source of gasand the number Ministryinits commentson this year,reach decadal high’ productaccountedforbythe ■ Fallinggoodsandservicestax livesthrough online education is campaigns. Forexample,Byju’s of pipelinesusedtoaproposal the regulations. top18states,includingGoaand (GST)collections enormousbecauseof itssheerac- raised$150million in July2019, involving aunifiedgas tariff TheFertiliserAssociationof Pandemic-hit states could see arecord36% jumpin excludingDelhi,onwhose ■Stickyrevenueexpenditureof cessibility.The Unacademyteam andduringthesamemonth,itwas system, with one tarifffor gas India notedinits comments indebtedness to `68 lakh crorethis fiscal, adecadal high, financesthereportisbased thestatessincelateMarch has innovated rapidlytobuild a selected as the sponsor forthe transportedwithin 300km that the newsystemwould leadingplatformthatistakinged- Indian cricket team’s jersey. andanothertariffforgastrans- likelyraise thecostofplants as their revenue is seen plunging 15%, aCrisil report said 6%:Expectedrevenuedeficit Whyisitimportant:Allthe ucation to thefarthestcorners of Similarly,while Unacademywas portedbeyond 300kmfrom producing15 milliontonnesof thatstatesmayface,upfrom revenuesourcesofstateswill India. We areveryexcited to part- oneofthe official partners of the the source of the natural gas. ureaperannumby overRs400 1.5%inFY20 takeahit,withalmost65%of nerwithUnacademyandlookfor- IndianPremierLeague,Byju’swas The move has facedcriticism crore. National Fertilizers Ltd thedeclineattributabletoafall ward to seeing it scalefurther,” said to be in the race forthe title from asectionofstakeholders notedthat under the new 2.7%:Possiblecapitaloutlay instateGSTcollections,and Scott Shleifer,partner at Tiger sponsorship. Even as firms in the as one whichwould leadto regime existing customers in thisfiscal,fallingfrom3.8% GSTcompensation Global, had said in astatement. ed-techsegment have reeledin consumerscloserto sourcesof the second zone would also paymentsandtaxdevolutions TigerGlobal is notthe only recordinvestments, PE/VCfunds gasending up subsidising cross-subsidisecostumersutil- 8.7%:Likelygrossfiscaldeficit, tothestatesfromtheCentre’s marquee investor in India’s ed- have turned away from non ed- thoselocated furtheraway. ising higher tariffpipelines. risingfrom5.3%in2019-20 owntaxpool.Theytogether tech segment, whichhas seen big tech firms in the education sector. The move,whichPNGRB Sincethenewnormsaresetto formnearly50%ofstates’ namessuchasFacebook,Softbank, Afterraising $115 million in said is aimedatreducing the be revenue-neutral for 2-4%:Contractionineconomic revenuereceipts Naspers, General Atlantic and 2018 and$522 million in 2019, cost of gastransportationfor pipelines, anyrise in volumes outputofstatesinFY21 Surge(Sequoia Capital’s early- non ed-techcompanies raised consumersfurtheraway from on higher tariffpipelines Source: Crisil/PTI stagestartupinvestmentvehicle). only$41 millionfromseven deals sourcesof gas,effectively seeks wouldhave to beborne by the “InIndia,educationhasbeena this year so far. to levyaweightedaveragetar- entiresystem, expertsnoted. iffof14pipelines—clubbedas Agovernment official said the national gasgrid —toits the Petroleum Ministrywas ‘Toyota Bidadi users,evenif theyuseonly one currentlystudyingthe regula- PV sales growthsustains on ‘Paceofmanufacturing of these pipelines. Another tionsandhadnotreceivedany unit strike may complication stems from the representationsby industryre- fact that four of these 14 garding thenew regulations. pent-updemand, festive high activity slows in Nov, spread to other pipelines have been handed The officialdid note that there outafteratariff-basedcompet- were significant legal issues industries’ itive bidding process, withthe thatcouldarisedueto thenew sevenmonths.Eversince the an- PMI hits 3-monthlow’ result thatforcedchangesto regulations including the is- ENSECONOMICBUREAU However, almostall nouncement of lockdown in NEWDELHI,DECEMBER1 EXPRESSNEWSSERVICE the tariffstructurenow effec- suesofthe sanctityofexisting manufacturers March,allmanufacturershave re- tively raises question marks contractsand the bidding ported agrowth in m-o-m sales ENSECONOMICBUREAU IMPROVEMENTIN BENGALURU,DECEMBER1 overthesanctityof thebidding process forbid out pipelines. BARRINGINDUSTRYleader witnessedadecline in forthe lastsix months. MUMBAI,DECEMBER1 BIZCONDITIONS process,multiplestakeholders Industrysourcesnotedthat MarutiSuzukiIndiaLtd(MSIL),all month-on-month sales While MSIL announceda17 ALABOUR union strikeand lock indicated.Thereisalso the is- it waslikelythat the newreg- othermajorautomobilemanufac- per cent fall in salesoverOctober THE NATION’Smanufacturing outattheToyotaKirloskarMotors sueofthe lackofclarity of set- ulations would be challenged turersgainedfromthefestiveand forthe firsttime in 2020, Hyundai and Honda sawa sector lost momentum in ■ Posting 56.3 in (TKM) at Bidadi near Bengaluru, tlementmattersowingto “the by industryplayers negatively pent-updemandandannounced sevenmonths dip in m-o-m sales by 13.8 per November with the latest November,the whichhas nowgone on for23 complexrevenue settlement” affected by the newtariff growthindomesticpassengerve- centand7.8percent,respectively. PurchasingManagers’Index(PMI) seasonallyadjusted days,has the potential to spread to the pipeline operators, regime. Experts also said that hicle sales in November. M&MandTKMtoosaw theirsales declining from the Octoberlevel, IHS Markit India to other industries in the region if whichthe regulator has leftto industryplayers seeking legal WhileMSILannouncedsaleof in November.While Tata Motors fallby 2.2percentand31 percent, IHSMarkit survey said. Manufacturing notresolved, the Karnataka be thrashedout by the service remedies againstthe newtar- 1,35,775 unitsofpassenger vehi- witnesseda108percentriseinPV respectively,overthatinOctober. Whileposting56.3inNovem- Purchasing Managers’ EmployersAssociationhassaidin providers themselves. iffsystemmay raise the issue cles (PVs) in November,witness- sales at 21,641 units, M&M sawa ThedeclineinNovembersales ber, theseasonallyadjusted IHS Indexhighlighted a alettertothestatechief secretary. Moststakeholders —asis thatthepostofmember(legal) ing a2.4 per cent dip in salesover 24 percentgrowthinsales(18,212 over that in October,despite Markit India Manufacturing strong improvement The twocar manufacturing indicative from amajority of on theboardhas been vacant that in the corresponding period units) over the year-agoperiod. Diwali falling in November,has PurchasingManagers’Index(PMI) in business conditions plantsatthe TKM’S Bidadi unit the100-oddstakeholderswho since March 30. The Supreme lastyear,HyundaiMotorIndiaLtd Honda and TKM announced raisedquestionsoverthesustain- highlighted astrong improve- hadgone intoaninitiallockdown sent in their commentstothe Court recentlysuspendedthe —thesecondlargest carmanufac- growthinsalesby 54percentand ability of demand revival. ment in business conditions, the on November 10 afterthe union PNGRBonthedraftregulation functioning of the Central turer —announceda9.4 per cent 2.4 per cent, respectively. “Givenstrong rural growth headlinenumberwasdownfrom of increase,” it said. calledastrikeoversuspension of —haveexpressedthe view ElectricityRegulatoryCommi- rise in sales in last month. Whilethe broader industry andsignsofimprovementineco- 58.9 in October to athree-month Pollyanna De Lima, econom- anemployeedueto “breachofdis- thatthenewtariffswouldlead ssion until it appointsamem- Other major players likeTata continues to witness growth in nomicactivities,we arehopefulto low. “All three broadareas of the icsassociatedirectoratIHSMarkit, ciplineand unacceptablebehav- to higher costs of gastrans- ber(legal).Anemailedrequest Motors, Mahindra&Mahindra sales on year-on-year basis, al- seethispositive momentumcon- manufacturingindustryrecorded said: “The Indian manufacturing iourwithinthefactorypremises”. portationforindustrieslocated forcommentstoPNGRB on (M&M), Toyota KirloskarMotors mostallmanufacturerswitnessed tinuepostthefestiveseason,”said expansion, with growth ledby sectorremainedontherightpath Following intervention of the nearthesourcesof gas,includ- theseissueswasunanswered. (TKM), and Honda Cars tooan- adeclineinmonth-on-month(m- VeejayRam Nakra, CEO, automo- consumer goodswhichwas the to recovery,withstronggrowthof LabourDepartmentof theKarna- nouncedgrowthindomesticsales o-m) sales forthe firsttime in tive division, M&M. only sectortosee astrongerrate neworders.” taka government, whichprohib- itedthestrikeandthelockout,the factoryattemptedtoreturn to BRIEFLY Q2 GDPdata, normalcyfromNovember 20but Eye on high retail Nasdaq proposes board another lockout wasdeclared on November 23 over failureofem- FlipkartFY20 vaccine hopes ployees to obey factoryrules. lossnarrows inflation, RBI may The unaffiliated Toyota propel Sensex diversity rule for listedcos Kirloskar Motors Employees NewDelhi:FlipkartIndiahas Unionhas said that the workers narrowedits FY20 losses to maintain status quo closer to 45K BoardDiversity andconsulting went on strikeoveran“unscein- Rs 3,150.6 crore, as against MICHELLECHAPMAN NEEDFORATLEAST2 firmDeloitte,womenheldjust22 tificincrease in workload” im- the previous financialyear. inOctoberandthepersistinghigh NEWYORK,DECEMBER1 DIVERSEDIRECTORS of Fortune 500seatsin2018as posedatthe factoryfrom ENSECONOMICBUREAU number of Covidcases. ENSECONOMICBUREAU against20ayearearlierand16 per November 9, withthe aim of in- MUMBAI,DECEMBER1 Shanti Ekambaram, group MUMBAI,DECEMBER1 THE NASDAQ stockexchangeis ■ The rule would require cent in 2010.Whitemen held 66 creasing the production speedof BHELindustrial president–consumer banking, seeking US authoritytorequire mostNasdaq-listed of Fortune 500boardseatsin cars at the twoplants, whichem- systemshead WITHRETAILinflationremaining KotakMahindraBank,said,“With THE SENSEX on Tuesdaysurged morediversity in boardrooms of companies to have or 2018.Blacksheldnearly 9ofseats ploy6,500workers. persistentlyabove itscomfort inflation continuingtotrend well further andinchedclosertothe Nasdaq-listedcompanies or for explain whytheydon’t in2018 asagainstnearly 8in2010. InalettertotheChief Secretary NewDelhi: Bharat Heavy level, the ReserveBank of India is above RBI’s medium-termtarget 45,000-level, aided by encourag- thosecompanies to explainwhy have at leasttwo “We’retaking the leadership of Karnataka, the president of the Electricals Ltd (BHEL) has likelytokeepthe benchmarkin- of 4percent,thereislimitedroom ing second quarterGDP data and theycan not. It is the firstmajor diverse directors herebecausetherehasbeensolit- KarnatakaEmployersAssociation appointedRenuka Geraas terest ratesunchanged when the foraratecutintheupcomingpol- positive globalcues drivenbythe bourse to pursue sucharequire- tle actiononthis front and we do BCPrabhakarcalledformeasures itsDirector (Industrial Monetary Policy Committee icy.All in all, expect the MPC to prospectforavaccine-driveneco- ment. Theproposalfiledwiththe thinkitsanimportantthingforus to end the strikeand lockout at Systems &Products). PTI (MPC) unveils itsnextmonetary maintain astatus quoonrates nomic recovery.The Sensexral- US Securities and Exchange cludeshavingoneboardmember to do to createamoreinclusive Toyota,including arrestsofunion policy reviewonDecember 4. withanaccommodative bias.” lied506 points to 44,655.44and Commission on Tuesday, if ap- who self-identifies as female and capitalist societyandwe thinkthis leadersand imposition of curfew Bankers and rating agencies “We expect the RBI to retain the NSE Nifty indexgained140 proved would requireall compa- one who self-identifies as either isastepforward,”saidCEOAdena in the Bidadi region, to allowthe ITmigrationat said the MPC is expectedtofactor the policy rate at 4per cent and pointsat13,109.05 as the rallyfu- nieslistedontheexchangetopub- anunderrepresentedminorityor FriedmanonCNBC.Friedman,the return of workers to the factory. UnionBank initsdecision-makingthenascent continue with the accommoda- elledbyforeignportfolioinvestors liclydisclose consistent LGBTQ. Foreign companies and firstwoman to lead amajor US The Toyota Bidadi factory, signsofimprovement in thedo- tive policy stance despitethe gathered momentum. transparent diversity statistics smaller reporting companies bourse, wasnamedCEO in 2016. spread over 432 acre, employs Mumbai:UnionBankof Ind- mesticeconomywhilealsorecog- buildupininflationarypressures,” Meanwhile, the rupee surged about their boardofdirectors . would have additionalflexibility. Companies that do notmeet around6,500peopleandcanpro- ia has achievedITintegra- nisingthefragilenatureofthisre- CareRatings said. Retail inflation 37 paisetosettleat73.68against ItwouldrequiremostNasdaq- Corporateboards areover- thediversityrequirementwillnot duce up to 3.10 lakhvehicles. The tionof allbranchesof erstw- covery and the underlying has been inchingupwards in rec- the US dollar on Tuesday, buoyed listedcompaniestohaveorex- whelminglywhiteand male. bedelistedfromNasdaq,shesaid, twoplants at Bidadi produce the hile Corporation Bank. ENS downsiderisks,includingretailin- entmonthsandroseto a9-month by foreign fund inflows intodo- plain whytheydon’t have at least As per the 2018 BoardDivers- but will have to outline theob- Innova,the Fortuner,the Toyata flation whichwas at 7.6per cent highof7.6 per cent in October. mestic equities. ENSWITHPTI twodiverse directors. This in- ity Census from the Alliance for structions to doingso. AP Yaris and the CamryHybrid.

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THEINDIANEXPRESS,WEDNESDAY,DECEMBER2,2020 “It’s very simple. Maxwell hit acouple of (switch-hit) shots and Warner did (Sunday) night. All you've got to say is that if the batsman changes the order of his hands or his feet (as the 16 bowler runs in), then it's an illegal shot.” SPORT IAN CHAPPELL ON THE SWTICH-HIT BRIEFLY Searching for the magic spell

If Jasprit Bumrah and MohammedShami rebound in the deadrubber,itwill help in thebigger battles ahead

features arguablytwo of the finestseamers SANDIPG ever,Bumrahand Shami.Saini,too, is touted DECEMBER1 as the futureofIndia’s fast bowling.Itwould be acrying shame if theyleave this tour with- ASTRANGEcaginess seemstohaveclutched out match-influencing performances. Jasprit Bumrah and MohammedShami in Winning the thirdODI would be the step- this series.Shami’s reputation of erraticism, ping stone. The ODI series might be unsal- Lewis Hamilton had mild glorious one dayand sloppythe next, is the vageable, but thereare still the T20s and Test symptoms on Monday and was definingthread of his career.But Bumrah has matches to be conquered. informedthat a‘contact’ prior to shown astaggering ability to blendintothe So dead rubber though the thirdODI is, his arrivalinBahrain had also conditions and formats. With the ease of thereisalot riding forIndia. A) Avoid aclean tested positive. File flicking aswitch, he changes his avatars, tools, sweep, B) Enable the primarybowlerstore- thought patterns, and even instincts. gain the elusiverhythm, C) Showresilience Thisyear,though, has been an aberration, and doggedness. Of the three concerns, the Hamiltontests as it’s withmostthings. In New Zealand early second assumes the foremostpriority. in 2020 and Australia now, Bumrah has Precisely, because the nucleus would remain positiveforCovid-19 struggledwith his lengths. muchthe same through the series. In his alacrity to fixthe malaise, he has Sakhir: The Mercedes-AMG Petronas messeduphis lines.Tonailboth, he has lim- High-scoring venue F1 Team says seven-time world ited his variations, using those as an obliga- But Manuka Oval, withits historicallyflat champion Lewis Hamilton hastested tion than as genuine weapons. So the off-cut- surfaces and high scores, doesn’t seem to be positive forCOVID-19 and will miss ters, slowerdeliveries and such-like the mostideal venue fororchestrating aturn- the Sakhir Grand Prix this weekend. variations have been usedsparinglyasifhe’s around. The totals in the lastfour ODIs here Theteam issuedastatement saying bereft of self-belief. Bumrah betraysthe im- read 378, 262,348,323, 411, 210, 372, 289. Hamilton wastestedthree times last pression that he is bowling within himself Some of the Indians players would remem- week and returnedanegative result and notquite enjoying the whole process. He berthe lasttime theywerehere. The pursuit eachtime, the lastonSundayafter- smiles less often, his eyes don’tglowas of 348looked imminent before theylostnine noon at the Bahrain International sparklingly as theyusedto, andthe spunk wickets for46runs, eventuallyfalling short Circuit wherehewon theGrand Prix. seems to have desertedhim atouch. Jasprit Bumrah has takenjustthree wicketsineight ODIs this year,eachscalpcosting him146 runs and 152balls.File by 23 runs. Arepeat could be disastrous this "But he up woke Mondaymorning Something seems to shackle him, which’s time around. with mild symptoms and wasin- strangegiven thathehad asplendid IPL. Unless theyarrestthe losing streak,the formedatthe same time that acon- Bumrah has grabbed only three wickets the wickets aresogoodtobat on.You will see ever Australia choose to pair him with — Thakur and TNatarajan lurking. But having adverse momentum will be toohot to han- tact prior to arrivalinBahrain had in eight ODIs this year,eachscalp costing him topbowlers notgettingwickets(once in a MatthewWade, Marcus Labuschagne or invested in him,there’s no harm in persisting dle or reverse, and Australia areruthless in subsequentlytestedpositive," the 146runs and 152balls. while). So that is acceptable.” AlexCarey —theywould consume time to with him in adead rubber. floggingadead horse. It’s oftenthe plightof team said. "Lewis, therefore, took a His economy rate is still alaudable 5.76 Maybe, it’sjustamatter of asingle spell. bed intotheir newrole. It presentsBumrah Likeithappenedwith Kuldeep Yadav, visitorsDownUnder. further test andreturnedapositive but above his career rate of 4.66.Eveninthe Likebatsmen frequentlyvouchfor the one and Shami the ideal opportunity to attack who offers the team management an alter- Theyrarelyrecoverfromearly knockouts. result. Thishas since been confirmed twoTests in New Zealand, he wasnot any- stroke that suddenlybrings theirtouchback, full-throttle and settle intoarhythm. native to replace an underwhelming So by the time the Test serieswinksin, which by aretest." Hamilton is in isolation wherenear his usual standards. It could just theyneedthat one searing spell to revive YuzvendraChahal. But Yadaviswoefully is alittle morethan afortnight away,their in accordance with the health proto- be aleanpatch everyathlete endures,only their self-belief. Or maybeabrilliant deliv- Backing Saini shortofgame time —hewas lastspotted morale will be in pureshambles. In anut- cols in Bahrain. REUTERS that Bumrah’s so central to India’s aspirations erycould do the trick. Equallyimportant is howNavdeep Saini bowling on October 18,inanIPL game shell, though the thirdODI is adead rubber, in this tour that theycan’t afford him to have Alengthyspellupfront could catalysethe is dealt with.Still cutting his teethatthis againstSunrisers Hyderabad. It wasone of thereismuchatstake forthe Indian team. As apoorseries, or even an averageone.Bumrah turnaround. Nowthat DavidWarner,the level, he should notbeallowedtobrood over his better performancesthis year,his three muchasit’s about restoring pride or saving Morecasesdetected at his absolutepeak is what India wantson tempo-setter,isruledout due to injury, the twin failures in Sydney, where he was overs conceding 18 runs.Hecould fare no face, it is about arresting alosing streak that atNewcastle this tour,especiallyastheywould be without Shami and Bumrah could breathe more concertedlytargetedbythe Australian bats- worse than conceding 160in19overs as can soon overwhelmthem. skipper ViratKohli forthree of the four Tests. freely. Separating the super-prolific Warner- men. Benching him could further demoralise Chahal has in this series. If he dusts up some It’s like the continent itself,itgrows on London:Newcastle United players KL Rahul offeredwords of comfortafter AaronFinchpair,whichaveragesashade un- him. Having identified him as apotential old magic, he could push his case forTest youthe moredays youspend there. And in have been told to stay away from the the second ODI: “It is about time achampion der 100againstIndia, has been as tough as pace spearhead in the future, he should not matches too. Bumrah’s hands arethe keys to spareTeam training ground afteranoutbreakof player likethatwillcomebackand deliver denying SteveSmithback-to-back hundreds. be lettodrift, his confidence should notbe Some of India’spreviousbowling attacks India this fate. COVID-19atthe club, Sky Sports re- and getwickets forus. Youalso have to un- It’s almosthalf the job done. ForFinchisnot lefttowane. Thetemptation to replace him have looked ineptthe moment their names portedonTuesday. Five individuals derstand that in NewZealand and Australia, exactlythe most fluent of starters. And who- is understandable, with options likeShardul were listedinthe squad. But the present crew 3rdODI: Live on Sonynetwork,9.10am at the club have tested positive for COVID-19sofar,three prior to Newcastle's 2-0 win over Crystal Palace lastweek and twomoreover Why is football considering concussion subs the weekend.Sky Sports said Newcastle's training ground was closedonMondayand is settobe “clear or suspected central nervous system their presentation. The challengefor physios guards but theyare yettobemade manda- closedonTuesdayaswell as they as- SHASHANKNAIR (brain) impairment, apotentialcervical spine andteamdoctorsisexacerbatedbythelackof tory.Inother sports likerugby, the‘If in doubt, sess thesituation. REUTERS NEWDELHI,DECEMBER1 injuryorskull fracture”. timecurrentlyaffordedtotheminfootball,and take them out’ philosophyisadhered to.The In 2018,Fifacame up with three concus- thefactthatassessmentsare conductedonthe NFLintroducedaconcussion protocol in 2009 ASICKENINGclash of heads betweenArsenal sion-relatedrules. Thefirststatedthat play pitch undertheglareofplayers,coaches,man- that theycontinue to tweakasand whennew TennisplayerPerez defender David Luiz and Wolverhampton could be stoppedfor up to three minutes to agersand,innormalcircumstances,thousands studies emerge.Underthe Maddenrule, if, af- bannedforfixing Wanderers forwardRaulJimenez –with the assess if aplayerwas concussed. The second of fans,” Griggs told The Indian Express. teranexamination on the sidelines, the player latter needing surgeryafterafracturedskull- rule aimedtogiveteam physicians powerover is suspectedto beconcussed,heis to betaken Madrid: Spanish tennis playerEnrique has promptedcalls forarethink on howfoot- the playerorteam management in deciding What is the newrulebeing considered? to thelockerroom forfurther inspection. If Lopez Perezhas been bannedfrom ball deals with suchincidents. whetheraplayercould continue on the pitch. The newconcussionrules currentlybeing physios detect concussion, players aren’t al- the sport foreight years forhis in- And the thirdallowedasecond mulledwouldallow ateam to lowedtoplay. volvement in match-fixing activities What happened? team physician to have video ac- makeapermanent substitution in three separateinstances in 2017,the In the fifthminuteofthe Premier League cess to the injurysoastomakean in caseofaconcussion as diag- Areother forms of brain-relatedissuesas- TennisIntegrityUnit (TIU) said. The game on Sunday, thetwo players jumpedin off-the-pitchdecision. nosedbythe team physio, ac- sociated with football? 29-year-old Perez, who reachedaca- the air as Gunners winger Willian delivereda cording to areportinThe Studies have correlated concussions with reer-high singles ranking of 154in corner,resulting in aclash of heads. While Whydon’t existing guidelines Guardian. But this comes with a dementia with aUniversity of California San 2018 wasalso fined$25,000."The dis- Jimenez wasstretchered off, Luiz continued work? risksince the prospect of aper- Francisco (UCSF) study showing that concus- ciplinarycase washeardbyanti-cor- to play. It wasthis decision by Arsenal that in- Headway is an organisation manent substitution maymake sion almostdoubles the chances of dementia ruption hearing officer Richard citedoutburstoverfootball’s concussion rules. that helpspeoplerebuildtheir playersand team management in senior citizens. England andManchester McLaren on 5November 2020," the Luizendedupwithsevenstitchesto the head livesafter abrain injuryand has reluctant to be completely hon- Unitedlegend BobbyCharlton has been diag- TIU said in astatement."He found that and waseventuallysubstituted at half time beenvocalinitscampaignaboutfootball’scon- estabout their symptoms. nosedwith dementia and heading in football Enrique Lopez Perezbreachedthe aftercontinuing to bleed under his bandage. cussionprotocols.Headway’sdeputychief ex- has come under the scanner because of recent rules of the Tennis Anti-corruption ecutiveLukeGriggs said that one of the rea- Isfootballbehind initsconcussion-related events. Astudy conducted by Universityof WolverhamptonWanderers forward Programmethree times at tourna- What is the current concussion rule? sonsthecurrentprotocolsaren’teffective isthe rules? Glasgow showedthatformer professional Raul Jimenez (L) and Arsenal defender mentsin2017, with twofurther The current Fifa protocols statethat med- pressurephysios areput under. “Concussion Yes. Cricket has introduced‘like-for-like’ footballers had an approximatelythree-and- David Luiz clashduring the game on chargesunproven. REUTERS ical professionals on the field mustlook out isnotoriouslydifficultto diagnosedueto itsof- substitutes, with the discretion of the match a-half times higher rate of death due to neu- Sunday. Jimenez fractured his skull. formandatoryconcussion symptoms like ten-hidden symptoms thatcan be delayed in referee. Batsmen aresupposedtowearneck rodegenerative diseases. Likeinother corners of the world, Indiatoo had its‘Maradona’

at the naivete of some of their older colleagues. found it difficult against double-covering – SHAMIKCHAKRABARTY Deywas the‘prince charming’ of the someone closing them down, while the KOLKATA,DECEMBER1 Calcuttamaidan in the 1980s. He arguably other defender/midfielder waiting forthe had the best-everleftfootinIndian football, second ball. Onlythe original Maradona ADiego in everynation AWICKEDleftfoot,closecontrolanddribbling, whichbrought in the ‘Indian Maradona’ could turn the firstmarker, skip past the sec- an intuitive positional sense, that grandabil- moniker.Ashis contemporaries would at- ond, nutmeg the thirdonaregular basis.” Argentina understandably has had many‘newMaradonas’. But themoniker ity to zip forthadefence splittingpass while test,Dey’s football thrivedonaestheticism. In the early ‘90s,DutchgiantsPSV transcended geographic boundaries and playing levels. causingpulse-racingexcitementinthestands. Eindhoven, managed by BobbyRobson and KrishanuDeyhaditall.Andwithadiminutive Fantastic control boasting of some worldstars, came to GHEORGHE HAGI SAEED AL-OWAIRAN frame and sudden acceleration, India quickly “Krishanu had fantastic close control. Calcuttafor the Tata Super Soccer series. (ROMANIA) (SAUDI ARABIA) foundforhimfootball'smoststratosphericad- Dribbling wasthe very essence of hisgame Therewas amoment in the firsthalf during The ‘Maradona of the He wascalledthe ‘Maradona jective -Indian Maradona. and he could do it both ways,inside and out- their game at Salt LakeStadium – Deytook a Carpathians’. Made 124 of the Arabs’for hisfamous As tributes pouredin forthe Argentine leg- side. He also had averygood peripheral vi- ball facing his owngoaland on the turn, went international appearances. goal againstBelgium at the end, the NewYork Times drew up alistlast sion, whichhelpedhim supplyexcellent past four opposition players who looked per- 1994 WorldCup. week of players from farflung football out- through balls and quality final passes,” plexed. Afterthat, the Eindhovenplayers ANDREAS HERZOG posts,who remindedspectators of the riffing Mohun Bagan legend SubrataBhattacharya, startedtomarkthe ‘IndianMaradona’ closely (AUSTRIA) ALI KARIMI magicofDiego Maradona. India had fallen an Arjunaawardee, told The Indian Express. and stubbed him with their physicality.Did The ‘Maradona of the Alps’ played103 (IRAN) header-and-heels forits own‘Maradona’ in Bhattacharya mother-henned Dey, when physicality makeDey uncomfortable? timesfor Austria, including twoWorld His dribbling had earnedhim the ‘Asian the 1980s and early ‘90s. TheKolkatan with a the latter joinedBagan in 1982. He later “That would be an oversimplification,” Cups, wonthe UefaCup with Bayern Maradona’ moniker. sumptuous leftfootwas nominatedbyNYT as playedagainsthim severaltimes afterDey Bhattacharya observed. Munichand wasafree-kickspecialist. India's claimant to the exalted comparison. movedtoEastBengalin1985. Among allthe “To startwith,you don’texpect an Indian ALEX LOPEZ Lookingfor Diego's successors has been a defenders, Bhattacharya wasthe mostsuc- footballer to match thephysicality of the HIDETOSHI NAKATA (HONDURAS) favouritepastime forpunditsand fans alike cessful in neutralising the otherwise unstop- European players and shine. Geneticallythey (JAPAN) He became the ‘Honduran Maradona’ since Maradona's march to the the summit of Krishanu Deyhad alethal leftfoottoo. pable Dey. arestrongerthanthe mostfromour partof The ‘Maradona of the Orient’, Nakatawon afterthe 2012 Olympics. worldfootball in the 1986 WorldCup at He passedawayat41. East Bengal Club “Iknewhis game inside out, which the world. Also, we neverhad their groom- the Serie Atitle forRoma in 2001.Played Mexico. From Romania’s Gheorghe Hagi to helpedme. The trickwas to closehim down ing.Backthen, we didn’tevenhavethe con- in three WorldCups. GEORGI KINKLADZE Japan’s Hidetoshi Nakata, the world with aplayerwho would go with power, ceptofstrengthand conditioning coach. We (GEORGIA) drummedupanticipatory excitement over Maradona ‘Argentina'ar Krishanu’ (the whileyou waited forthe second ball. See, we had very littleideaabout sportsscience and RYAN BELAL The Maradona of the Caucasus, his many‘newMaradonas’ across the globeand KrishanuofArgentina). aretalkingabout Indian footballhereand the injurymanagement. India football wasstill (SAUDI ARABIA) dribbling madehim acult heroat across generations. At least untilthe early ‘90s,fanaticismwas contextisimportant. Krishanu’s styleand amateur – players had to getajob apartfrom The ‘Maradona of the Desert’ earnedthe ManchesterCity. Deydiedyoung, in 2003 at 41 years of akey component of Calcuttafootball. That was rhythm, in Calcuttaclub footballand Indian playing football. Manydefendersherere- sobriquetafter he scoredwithahandball age. His top-flight career in Calcuttaclub areason whymidfielder Goutam Sarkar be- football, had been similar to Maradona and sortedtorough football to stop Krishanu.But in the Saudi league. ROBERTO MERINO football and the national team spanned12- came ‘chhoto Beckenbauer’ (little hence he wascalledthe ‘Indian Maradona’, it wasn’t that he got intimidated.Hecould (PERU) odd years. His rise in Indian football coin- Beckenbauer) and Maradona, ‘Argentina'ar Bhattacharya said. take akick,”headded. HAYDEN TINTO Showedearly promise and wasdubbed cidedinfact with Maradona’s magic in Krishanu’. Modern-dayfans, grownuponan He put thingsinperspective: “Even in As Bhattacharya recalled, in hispomp, (TRINIDAD AND TOBAGO) the ‘Maradona of the Andes’. Didn’t quite Mexico. Overzealous EastBengal fans put overdose of international and European club Europe and/or Latin America, at the highest Dey’s dribbling wasindeedsome heady edge Aclassicalviolinist, he wascalledthe live up to his promise. him on ahigher pedestalthen, calling football, would of course have ahearty laugh level, the majority of the ‘newMaradonas’ of the seat stuff. ‘Caribbean Maradona’ forhis skill. ENS

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