RAM MANDIR COVID-19 WARRIOR THE WEEK VIP AYODHYA IS READY DUSTBIN BOY BECOMES A SAVIOUR ADAR POONAWALLA: NEED TWO YEARS TO ADMINISTER VACCINE ACROSS INDIA VIDYA BALAN PLAYING MATHS GENIUS AUGUST 9, 2020 SHAKUNTALA DEVI KASHMIR: A YEAR AFTER 370 FROZEN DREAMS The Centre’s tight grip amid the lockdown has not stifled Kashmir’s yearning for respect PLUS MINISTER IN PMO, JITENDRA SINGH Militancy in its final phase XV CORPS COMMANDER LT GEN B.S. RAJU Pockets of turbulence FAROOQ ABDULLAH Time for street protest over LADAKH Very happy, but some worries AUGUST 9, 2020 • THE WEEK 1 VOL. 38 NO. 32 THE WEEK AUGUST 9 2020 FOR THE WEEK AUGUST 3 - AUGUST 9 40 58 65 PAWAN KUMAR PAWAN CURRENT EVENTS BUSINESS @LEISURE: How Ayodhya is gearing up for the The barriers are up, but uprooting Playing Shakuntala Devi was about bhoomi pujan of the Ram temple, an Chinese interests in India would be a understanding the nuances of her event it has waited for for decades long process multifaceted personality 46 LIFE COVER STORY How a Kerala boy, in COLUMNS 22 death, gave new life to seven others 11 POWER POINT Sachidananda Murthy 48 COVID-19 WARRIOR 14 FORTHWRITE As a child, Ajoy Mistry Meenakshi Lekhi was thrashed and humiliated by his 63 SOUND BITE villagers. Today, he is Anita Pratap their saviour 64 DETOUR 51 DEAR DOCTOR Shobhaa De Cardiologist Upendra 71 SCHIZO-NATION SILENT STREETS Kaul on the need to Anuja Chauhan Srinagar under Covid-19 differentiate between lockdown on July 23 symptoms of Covid-19 74 LAST WORD AFP and heart disease Navtej Sarna LOCKED-DOWN LIVES 52 COVID-19 Serum Institute of India Last August, Jammu and Kashmir lost its special status and Overworked and CEO Adar Poonawalla statehood. Months later, the pandemic struck, battering an fearing infection, a growing number 56 BUSINESS already bruised economy. A year after the abrogation of articles of doctors are not We are on the frontline 370 and 35A, THE WEEK looks at how the people of the new reporting for duty of the pandemic Union territory are getting by war, says Rajesh Subramaniam, PLUS 54 THE WEEK VIP Need two years to president and CEO, ◆ Cannot expect justice from Centre, says former Jammu and vaccinate India, says FedEx Corporation Kashmir chief minister Farooq Abdullah COVER PHOTO FUKEZ84/SHUTTERSTOCK ◆ Interviews: Jitendra Singh, MoS, prime minister’s office; COVER DESIGN BINESH SREEDHARAN Lieutenant General B.S. Raju, commander, XV Corps Printed at Malayala Manorama Press, Kottayam, Print House India Pvt ◆ Delhi’s challenge is phased withdrawal of troops from and Ltd, Mumbai, M P Printers, Noida, and Rajhans Enterprises, Bengaluru, and published from Manorama Buildings, Panampilly Nagar, Kochi-682 smooth conduct of elections in Jammu and Kashmir 036, by Jacob Mathew, on behalf of the Malayala Manorama Co.Ltd., ◆ Ladakhis are largely happy, but also worried about losing jobs Kottayam-686 001. Editor Philip Mathew to outsiders • Focus/Infocus features are paid marketing/PR initiatives 2 THE WEEK • AUGUST 9, 2020 AUGUST 9, 2020 • THE WEEK 3 LETTERS In the last five to interest to me. There RAJASTHAN AMITABH BACHCHAN DESERT STORM HITS CONGRESS THE LEGEND’S TOUGHEST BATTLE NEW! $ THE WEEK VIP six years, so many were only a few stories (VERY INFORMED PERSON) DR KRISHNA ELLA: MY VACCINE MISSION students have gone that I liked in the issue. DEAR DOCTOR AMBRISH MITHAL: abroad for higher You should be catering JULY 26, 2020 JULY WHAT DIABETICS MUST DO studies. In my own to the interests of all family, most children your readers. have made up their Rajendra Bhatia, mind to study abroad. On email. This, despite the havoc caused by the Need a fair pandemic. enquiry What’s changing in how they are shaping young Indians A recent study This is not the first PLUS has revealed that time that we have UGC CHAIRMAN D.P. SINGH: THE NEW LEARNING only a handful of come across custodial Indian colleges and deaths, but the universities conform gruesome death of the to international father-son duo at the Address issues standards. And that, in hands of the police in THE WEEK-Hansa Research Survey 2020 of the recent past, around Sathankulam in Tamil India’s best universities was comprehensive 17 million students Nadu has shaken the and informative. Universities, across have left the country conscience of the the country, are awaiting government for greener pastures. people of the country directions on opening. So, this is the best It is time the (‘Capital punishment’, time for students to be mentally prepared government came July 26). for the courses that they have opted for. up with many more While everyone was They can even enrol for short online opportunities and expecting a proper courses, which will benefit them a lot high-class universities enquiry into the (‘Degrees of change’, July 26). for students across alleged dastardly act, AD It is good to know that many Indian different fields. Or else, it was depressing to universities, during the lockdown, have India will be laden hear the chief minister opened full-fledged online courses. But the with senior citizens. of Tamil Nadu say that fact that only around 12 per cent of Indian S. Shashidhar, both the father and households have uninterrupted electricity On email. son died of illness, and good internet coverage is a cause for which is tantamount concern, and will spoil everything that we I am a 79-year-old to shielding the are planning in such a situation. senior citizen who perpetrators of the The government needs to address this has been reading THE heinous crime. issue, and help in bringing in a bandwidth WEEK from the time I It is thanks to the revolution in the country. was in service. timely intervention Tigin Thomas, To be honest, your of the judges of On email. cover story on best Madras High Court universities was of no that the criminal SUBSCRIPTIONS/CUSTOMER CARE CIRCULATION Hyderabad: BUREAU ADMINISTRATIVE OFFICE EDITORIAL For all subscription related inquiries Bengaluru: 040-23314168/23324692 Bengaluru: Manorama Buildings, P.B. No. 26, Manorama Buildings, please write, email or fax to 080-22247735/22247736 Kolkata: 033- 24198233 080-22867345, 22867050 Kottayam 686001, Kerala, India. P.B. No. 4278, Panampilly Nagar, Kolkata: 033-24556995, Tel: 0481-2563646 Kochi 682036, Kerala, India. Senior Manager, Circulation, Bhopal: 0755-2557937 Kottayam: 0481-2563646 Manorama Buildings, Lucknow: 0522-2341576 24198344, ext.216 0172-2724699 044-66918500 REGIONAL CO-ORDINATING [email protected] PB No. 4278, Panampilly Nagar, Chandigarh: Mumbai: 022-24901331, Chennai: OFFICE Kochi - 682036. Kerala Chennai: 39495969 Delhi: 011-23354920 Tej Building, 1st Floor, Bahadur http://www.theweek.in Hyderabad: Email: [email protected] 044-66918530/31 Patna: 0612-2233809 Shah Zafar Marg, Coimbatore: 040-23314168, 23324692 New Delhi 110 002. +91 484-4447888 Toll free no.: 18001035981 Jaipur: Mumbai: 022-22074604, Cochin: 0484-4447507 0422-2241911/2245470 0141-2368360/4005808 Tel: 011-23354920, 23354921, 22004358 +91 484-2315745 For advertising: +91 98953 95097 Delhi: Thiruvananthapuram: 23359541, 23355801, 23356537 Bhopal: 0755-2431001 Fax: 43541354 Email: [email protected] 011-23739740 0471-2328198 Lucknow: 0522-2701725 TheWeekMag @TheWeekLive TheWeekMag 85 89 99 48 69 4 THE WEEK • AUGUST 99,, 2020 AUGUST 99,, 2020 • THE WEEK 5 LETTERS policemen were arrested. Handling a pandemic of Editor Philip Mathew Subsequently, the case such a nature is difficult, Chief Associate Editor & Director Riyad Mathew was handed over to the and whatever steps the Editor-in-Charge V.S. Jayaschandran Senior News Editor Stanley Thomas CBI. government is taking News Editor Lukose Mathew One expects that a should be deemed right. Deputy News Editors Mathew T. George, Maijo Abraham, Ajish P. Joy proper enquiry would be However, Ray has clearly Resident Editor, Delhi K.S. Sachidananda Murthy carried out by the CBI, pointed out several Chief of Bureau, Delhi R. Prasannan and that justice will be lapses in the policies Chief of Bureau, Mumbai Dnyanesh V. Jathar rendered to the family of pursued so far, and Deputy Chief of Bureau, Delhi Neeru Bhatia Chief Subeditors Susamma Kurian, the deceased. has suggested ways to Navin J. Antony Tharcius S. Fernando, deal with the problems Senior Subeditors Anirudha Karindalam, On email. Anirudh Madhavan more meaningfully. Subeditors Diya Mathew, Karthik Ravindranath, Perhaps, the worst is yet Reuben Joe Joseph, Nirmal Jovial Feature story on to come, and the points SENIOR SPECIAL CORRESPONDENTS PRINCIPAL CORRESPONDENTS women convicts made by Ray should be Delhi: Rekha Dixit, Mandira Nayar, Hyderabad: Rahul Devulapalli Now, Swapna Suresh taken seriously while Namrata Biji Ahuja, Soni Mishra, Kochi: Anjuly Mathai will be remembered considering future K. Sunil Thomas Srinagar: Tariq Ahmad Bhat SENIOR CORRESPONDENTS as a fugitive who was policies. Lucknow: Puja Awasthi Bengaluru: Mini P. Thomas, Kolkata: Rabi Banerjee on the run before she K.K. Cherian, Abhinav Singh Delhi: Sneha Bhura was caught by the NIA On email. SPECIAL CORRESPONDENTS Mumbai: Priyanka Bhadani, Delhi: Pratul Sharma, Namita Kohli, Pooja Biraia Jaiswal (‘Golden opportunity?’, Pradip R. Sagar July 26). I can feel the Ease the load Bengaluru: Prathima Nandakumar Thiruvananthapuram: Cithara Paul CHIEF REPORTER trauma that Swapna’s It was interesting to Mumbai: Nachiket Kelkar UAE: Raju Mathew, Dubai daughter is going note that schools in Chennai Lakshmi Subramanian Bhopal: Sravani Sarkar through. Thailand have introduced Ahmedabad: Nandini Gunavantrai Oza THE WEEK should partitions made from Photo Editor: Sanjoy Ghosh Art Editor: Jayakrishnan M.T. come up with a feature ballot boxes as part Deputy Photo Editors Assistant Art Editor: Binesh Sreedharan story on such women of social distancing Bhanu Prakash Chandra, Salil Bera Senior Infographic convicts in our country. measures (‘The big Chief Photographers Designer: Sreemanikandan S.