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DA ILY FROM: AHMEDABAD , CHAND IGARH , DELH I , JA IPUR , KOLKATA , LUCKNOW, MUMBAI , NAGPUR , PUNE , VADODARA

TUESDAY, JANUARY 4, 2022, NEW DELHI, LATE CITY, 18 PAGES `6.00 (`8 BIHAR & RAIPUR, `12 SRINAGAR) WWW.INDIANEXPRESS.COMJOURNALISM OF COURAGE

SINCE 1932

KRISHNKAUSHIKNEWDELHI, JANUARY3

CONTINUINGTOrampupinfra-structure on its side of the areanear the Line of Actual Control(LAC)ineasternLadakh,Chinaisbuilding a new bridge onPangongTsowhichwillprovidean additional axis to deploytroops fasterbetweenthenorthandsouthbanksof thelake,andcloser to theLAC.Sourcessaidthebridgeisbe-

ing constructedmore than 20kmeastof Finger8on the lake’snorthbank—IndiasaysFinger8denotes theLAC.Thebridgesiteis just east of Khurnak Fort

wherethePLAhasfrontierbases.There isa frontierdefencecom-panyatKhurnakFort, andawa-ter squadron further east atBanmozhang.Ever since the start of the

military standoff in easternLadakhinMay2020—ithasstillnot been resolved — India andChina have not onlyworked toimproveexisting infrastructure,but have also built several newroads, bridges, landing stripsalong theentire frontier.Pangong Tso, an endorheic

lake, is 135 km long, andmorethan two-thirds of it is underChinese control. Khurnak Fort,close towhereChina is building

CONTINUEDONPAGE9

BUSINESS AS USUAL

BYUNNY

SUKRITABARUAH&JIGNASASINHANEWDELHI, JANUARY3

FROMJOURNALISTStoapilot toaCongress leader to themotherofamissingJNUstudent—theseareamongthe100-plusMuslimwomenwho have found theirnames on a website that usedtheir photos without consent,alongsidedegradingtextmeantto imply they were being auc-tioned.Thiscomesbarelysixmonths

after another suchwebsitewascreated, also using GitHub, aprovider of Internet hosting for

softwaredevelopment.Noarresthasbeenmadesofarinthatcaseby police in Delhi, Noida orGurgaon.Someofthetargetedwomen

expressed frustrationwith notenoughbeingdonethelasttime,allowingtheculpritstocontinueoperatingwith impunity.A journalist, on the basis of

whose complaint an FIR hasbeen registered byDelhi Police,said: “Itwas January1. I openedamessage onWhatsApp fromone of my friends and clicked‘download’onanimagethathadbeensent,assumingthatitwasa‘Happy New Year’ message.Instead,Isawascreenshotofmy

photowiththetextthatIamthe‘Bulli Bai of the Day’. I jumpedout of bed in shock. It was notsurprisingbecausethisisnotthefirst time it has happened. Butwe have all been through so

much in the last year, we arebarely recovering from thetraumaof thesecondwave. I re-allywantedtobegintheyearonahopefulnoteanditwasshock-ing to think that someonewas

sittingonthelastdayof theyearanddoing this todegradeus.”Shesaidshecouldnotignore

it and felt compelled to take ac-tion, especially because this is arepeat offence: “Themostwor-rying thing is that there weremultiple FIRs filed the last time,it was spoken about inParliament, thewomen’s com-mission took cognizance of it,but there was no constructiveconclusion.”Themotherof a JNUstudent

who has beenmissing for overfive years received calls, tellingherthatshetoowaslistedonthewebsite.Shesaidsheis ignoringit. “Itmakesnodifferencetome.

Yeh log ghatiya aur neech harkatkarkepopularbannachahtehai. Iam just a mother trying to getjustice formychild.Peoplewhorespect theirmotherscanneverdosucha thing,” shesaid.Womenwhohadbeenlisted

in the earlier case and had ap-proached the police have alsofound themselves listed in the

CONTINUEDONPAGE9

PAGE1ANCHOR

AUSTRALIA TOPUSHONWITHREOPENINGYEMENREBELSSEIZEUAESHIP; HACKERSHIT ISRAELI PAPERPAGE16

INSIDE

IN DELHI, 20,998TEENSGETVACCINEON FIRSTDAYOMICRON ‘COMMONVIRAL FEVER’, COVIDNEAREND: YOGIPAGES4,6

MP,Gujarat top list;UttarPradesh,WestBengal,Bihar,Maharashtra,TamilNadurecord justover1 lakheach

KAUNAINSHERIFFMNEWDELHI, JANUARY3

OVER 41 lakh children receivedthe first dose of Covid-19 vac-cinesonMonday,thefirstdayofthevaccinationdriveforthoseintheagegroupof15-18years,ac-cording toprovisionaldata.While 41,27,468 doses of

Covaxin were administered tothe15-18yearsagegroup,theto-tal vaccination figure touched146.71crore,accordingtoprovi-sional data. With 33,750 newcases being reported in the last

24hours,theactivecaseloadhastouched1,45,582;thedailypos-itivity rate is3.84percent.“Todaywehavetakenanim-

portantstepforwardinprotect-ing our youth against Covid-19.Congratstoallmyyoungfriendsbetween theagegroupof 15-18whogotvaccinated.Congrats totheir parents as well. I wouldurgemoreyoungsterstogetvac-cinated in the coming days,"PrimeMinister NarendraModitweeted.According to official data,

Madhya Pradesh and Gujarattopped the list of vaccinations

(15-18yearsgroup)onMonday.Madhya Pradesh reported7,71,615 doses and Gujarat5,55,312 doses. Three states re-ported over 3 lakh doses in thisage group: Andhra Pradesh(4,87,269),Karnataka(4,14,723),andRajasthan (3,57,018).However, five big states ad-

ministeredjustover1lakhdosesin this agegroup:Uttar Pradesh(1,66,996); Maharashtra(1,81,561); West Bengal(1,03,564);Bihar(1,70,603);andTamilNadu(1,87,710).Fiveotherstates administered just over

CONTINUEDONPAGE2

Manufacturers questionICMR’s 5-day window tolicense its Omicron kitJAYMAZOOMDAARNEWDELHI, JANUARY3

ANUMBERof domestic InVitroDiagnostic (IVD) test kitmanu-facturers have questioned theshort 5-day deadline set by theIndian Council of MedicalResearch (ICMR) for submittinganExpressionof Interest(EoI)tocommercialiseadiagnostickit itdeveloped for the detection oftheOmicronvariantof thecoro-navirus.Their contention: Since the

anticipated Omicron surgewilltrigger an unprecedented butrelativelyshort-liveddemandfortargeted testkits, anyheadstartover those whomissed the 5-daywindowwillhugelybenefita fewwhodidnot.

OnDecember17,theICMRin-vitedtheEoIbyDecember22for“transferoftechnologyfordevel-opment and commercialisationof SARS-CoV-2 Omicron(B.1.1.529)RealtimeRT-PCRassaythrough a novel diagnostic kit”developedat the ICMR-RegionalMedicalResearchCentre(RMRC),Dibrugarh.On December 24, the

Association of Indian MedicalDevice Industry (AiMeD), in aletter to Balram Bhargava,Secretary,DepartmentofHealthResearch (DHR), and DirectorGeneral, ICMR,soughtextensionof“thelastdateormakeitdead-linefree…sothatthemaximumnumber of manufacturers cantake benefit of this to fight thethirdwave”of Covid-19.

CONTINUEDONPAGE2

MANISHSAHULUCKNOW,JANUARY3

THE UTTAR Pradesh Police onMonday filed a chargesheetagainst UnionMinister of StateAjayMishra’ssonAshishMishraand13others,underchargesin-cludingmurder and attempt tomurder, in theLakhimpurKheriincident that left four farmersanda journalistdead.This is the first chargesheet

in the October 3 case. Mishra'scar was allegedly part of theconvoyofvehicles thatranovera farmers’ march against thefarm laws. The chargesheet re-portedlycitesquotesof eyewit-

nesses sayingAshishwaspres-ent at the spot.Of the 14 chargesheeted by

the police SIT, 13, includingAshish,are in jail. Theonenot injail is Virendra Kumar Shukla,

CONTINUEDONPAGE2

EXPRESSNEWSSERVICETHIRUVANANTHAPURAM,JANUARY3

VICE-PRESIDENTVenkaiahNaiduonMondayspokeoutagainsthatespeech, saying itgoesagainst thecountry’s culture, Constitutionandethos,andthat“everypersonhas the right to practise andpreachhisorherfaith”.Addressinganeventmarking

the 150th death anniversary ofSaintKuriakoseEliasChavara inKottayam, Kerala, the Vice-Presidentsaid,“Hatespeechandwritings are against (the coun-try’s)culture,heritage, traditionand Constitutional rights andethos.Everypersonhastherighttopractiseandpreachhisorherfaithinthecountry.Practiseyourreligion but don’t abuse and in-dulge in hate speech andwrit-ings,’’ he said, expressing his“disapproval of attempts toridicule other religions and cre-atedissensions insociety”.Saying Saint Chavara, the

19th century Catholic priest,philosopherandsocialreformer,“has taughtusthatpeacefulhu-

manrelationshipsaresacredandmore important than anythingelse”, Naidu said, “Today, weneedaChavaraineverycommu-nity — a towering individualwithavisiontouniteallsectionsofsocietysociallyandculturally,and take thecountry forward.”Observing that there is adire

need to inculcate the spirit ofservice froman early age, Naidusuggested that once the pan-demic is over, both governmentand private schoolsmustmakecommunityserviceofatleast2-3weekscompulsoryforstudents.He said the philosophy of

sharingandcaring is at the coreCONTINUEDONPAGE2

Children’s vaccination begins:41 lakh get first shot on Day 1

Schoolgirls lineupfor thevaccineoutsidetheSarvajanikVidyalay inTelavvillage,ontheoutskirtsofAhmedabad,Gujarat,onMonday.NirmalHarindran EXPLAINED:VACCINESHELFLIFE,PAGE13 Naidu inKottayamonMonday. Twitter/@VPSecretariat

AshishMishrawaschargedalongwith13others. File

Lakhimpur Kheri deaths:Chargesheet in, MoS’sson faces murder charge

Engg student detainedfor ‘sharing’ app contentJAYPRAKASHSNAIDU&SAGARRAJPUTMUMBAI, JANUARY3

A21-YEAR-OLDengineeringstu-dent from Bengaluru has beendetained by theMumbai PoliceCrimeBranch'scyberpolicesta-tion personnel for allegedly us-ing his Twitter handle to “sharederogatory content” from theappwhichhosteddoctoredpho-tographs and objectionable

comments targeting Muslimwomen.Sourcessaidthestudentwas

detained from Bengaluru, andbrought toMumbai. He is likelytobearrested.“The21-year-old is a second

year civil engineering student.He used his Twitter handle toshare derogatory content fromtheapp.Wehavedetainedhim,”saidasenior IPSofficer.Theoffi-cer said the studentwas traced

CONTINUEDONPAGE9

33,750NEWCASES,POSITIVITY3.84% Hate speech goesagainst our ethos,Constitutionalrights: Venkaiah

PRANAVMUKUL&AANCHALMAGAZINENEWDELHI, JANUARY3

A FIVE-FOLD increase in Covid-19dailycountoverthelastsevendays to 33,750 onMonday, andfresh restrictions onmovementof peoplebystates, suggest thattheservicessectorwillbeunderpressure and likely flatten if thecase count continues to rise inthecomingweeks.But thismaybeshort-lived.AccordingtoGoogleMobility

Index,visitstoretailoutletssuchasrestaurants,shoppingcentres,cinemahalls,etconNovember3—adaybeforeDiwali—were13per cent higher comparedwitha pre-Covid baseline: the high-

est inall of 2021. Since then, themetric has dropped and stayedclose to ‘0’ for the most of

December. With new clamp-downs, a slide below zero islikely.Similarly, visits to groceries

and pharmacies,whichwere attheir lowest of -40 per cent inMay 2021 during the secondwaveofCovid-19,recoveredandstayed since June. This metricalsopeakedonNovember3—77per cent higher than the pre-Covid baseline— and has sincestagnated between 33 per centand55percent.Withmanycon-tact intensive services —fromrestaurants and hotels tomallsand cinema halls – being ad-versely affected due to restric-tions, a dip is expected in thecomingdays.The baseline is calculated as

CONTINUEDONPAGE2

THERESTRICTIONSoneconomicactivitieshaveonlybegun.Aprolongedperiodof sluggishserv-ices sector could lead toatrickle-downeffectonemploymentandwages.Thismaypotentially im-pact theconsumptionlevelsof goodsandaffectthebroadereconomy.

EffectoneconomyE●EX

PLAINED

Rising Covid-19 numbers mayblunt sharp uptick in services

Invokes19thcenturyCatholicpriest,sayspractise religionbutdon’tabuse

THEWORLD

East of LAC, Chinabuilds new bridgeon Pangong Tso

■FirstFIRregistered inpreviousGitHubcase:July7,2021■FIRsregistered in:DelhiandNoida■Approximatenumberofwomentargeted:100■Arrestsmade:0

■Firstcomplaint lodgedintherecentcase:January1,2022■FIRsregistered in:Delhi,Mumbai,Karnataka■Approximatenumberofwomentargeted:Over100■Actiontaken:1detained

2 CASES , 6 MONTHS APART

‘Happening all over again... unknown men discussing, auctioning us’

LadakhFinger8

LACPangongTso

KhurnakFort

LINKING THE LAKE BANKS

SITEOFNEWBRIDGE

THEEDITORIAL PAGE

TRACKTHEMDOWNPAGE10

New Delhi

THESECONDPAGE2 WWW.INDIANEXPRESS.COMTHEINDIANEXPRESS,TUESDAY, JANUARY4,2022

FROMPAGEONEDay 1: First shot50,000 doses: Odisha (82,756);Himachal Pradesh (72,808);Assam (77,124); Uttarakhand(72,075); andHaryana (66,217).OnDecember25, less thana

yearafter Indiarolledoutoneoftheworld's largest adult Covid-19 vaccination drives, PrimeMinisterNarendraModihadan-nouncedvaccinationforchildrenin the age group of 15-18 years.The decision came in the back-dropof risingcasesof thehighlytransmissible Omicron variantacross various pockets in thecountry, and schools and col-leges re-opening in a phasedmanner.A day before the rollout,

UnionHealthMinisterMansukhMandaviyaheldameetingwiththe states on Sunday and askedthem to ensure orientation ofvaccination teammembers forthe 15-18 years age group, andidentification of dedicated ses-sionsites.Thestateswereaskedtoplan

fordistributionofCovaxintotheearmarkedsiteswellinadvance,as it is the only vaccine clearedfor this age group. "To avoid themixing-up of vaccines duringadministration, separate CVCs(Covidvaccinationcentres),ses-sionsites,queues(ifatsameses-sionsitewhereadultvaccinationis ongoing) and separate vacci-nation team (if at same sessionsite) are to be strived for,"Mandaviya told thestates.OnMonday, just hours after

somemediareportsallegedthatexpiredvaccineswerebeingad-ministered, the Union HealthMinistry issued a clarificationstating that the reports were"falseandmisleadingandbasedonincompleteinformation."Theministry underlined that theshelf lifeofvaccines"isextendedby the national regulator basedon comprehensive analysis andexamination of stability studydata furnished by the vaccinemanufacturers"."TheCentralDrugs Standard

ControlOrganisation(CDSCO)on25thOctober 2021, in responseto M/s Bharat BiotechInternationalLimited'sletterno:

BBIL/RA/21/567 has approvedthe extension of shelf life ofCovaxin (Whole Virion,InactivatedCoronavirusVaccine)from 9months to 12 months.Similarly, the shelf life ofCovishieldhasbeenextendedbythe National Regulator from 6months to 9 months on 22ndFebruary2021,"theministrysaid.

5-day window“They (ICMR)mail us (man-

ufacturers) everymonth for ca-pacity updates. So, they shouldhaveinformedusdirectlyorgen-erally publicised the call for EoI.SincetheOmicroncurveislikelytobesharper,therewillbeahugedemand for targeted kits, butonly for a fewweeks until othervariants are wiped out. Thosewhomissed this 5-daywindowwill have no time to catch upwith a fewwho did not,” a RT-PCRkitmanufacturersaid.Pointing out that technolo-

gies developed by ICMR in thepast never had a deadline, theAiMeD,initsletter,stated:“SinceCovid is a global calamity,WHO/CDCalsoopenlyoffer theassaydesigns/sequencesforfastadoptionandwidespreaddevel-opment of RT-PCR tests and itsmanufacturingetctobenefitthesocietyat large.”“A short restricted EoI will

lead to very fewmanufacturerswhocandevelopthekits,insteadof theneedof thehourwhere alarge number ofmanufacturersshouldbeallowedtohaveaccessto such technology so that RT-PCR kits are made available inlarge quantities and reasonableprices,” it said.Responding to queries from

The Indian Express, Bhargava, inan email, said: “The technologyhasnotpassed the external val-idationyet.”Accordingtotheinvitationfor

EoI,thetechnologywillbetrans-ferred on “non-exclusive basis”only after its successful externalvalidationwithmultiplemanu-facturerswhowill pay “royaltynot less than5%”onnetsales.Sources in the Council said

that 9 EoIs were received byDecember 22 and the compe-tent authoritywould take a call

on quite a few EoIs received af-ter thedeadline.“There isnoquestionof ICMR

favouringaparticularsetofman-ufacturers. The technology isun-dergoing validation at NIV(National Institute of Virology),Pune,andthedeadlineforEoImaybeextendeddependingontheout-come,”aseniorICMRscientistsaid.While ICMR approved

Omisure, the RT-PCR kit devel-oped by Tata Medical &Diagnostics,Mumbai, fordetec-tion of the Omicron variant onDecember 30, themultiplex kitmarketed by US-based ThermoFisher is the only one presentlybeing used in India for prelimi-nary confirmation of theOmicronvariantwithitsS-GeneTargetFailure (SGTF) strategy.

Sharp uptickthemedian value of the corre-sponding day of theweek dur-ing the five-week period be-tween January 3, 2020, andFebruary5,2020.Another signal of growth ta-

peringoff comes fromtheCMIE(Centre for Monitoring IndianEconomy) data on unemploy-mentratewhichtouchedafour-month high of 7.9 per cent inDecember 2021; it was 7 percent the previous month. InDecember 2020, it was 9.1 percent.Urbanunemploymentrateroseto9.3percentinDecember2021 from 8.2 per cent in thepreviousmonthwhile the ruralunemploymentrateincreasedto7.3percentfrom6.4percent,thedata showed.Theservicessectorhadbeen

growing at a healthy clip in thesecond half of calendar year2021tillmid-December;thelat-est Goods and Services Tax col-lectionshadjumped13percentyear-on-year in December (forsales in November 2021) to Rs1.29 lakh crore. This increasecameabout despite a reductionin e-way bills generated duringthe sameperiod–an indicationof higher collection from serv-ices than goods, alongsidegreaterenforcementactions.But over the lastweek or so,

almost all big states –Maharashtra,Karnataka,Gujarat,

Delhi, West Bengal, Haryana,amongstothers–haveclampeddownoneconomicactivities,re-ducedworking hours for shops,restaurants, and hotels, and puta cap on number of people inmarriage functions or cinemahalls.Withtheservicessectorac-counting for over 55 per cent ofthe national GDP, economistssaid the restrictions will hurtgrowth,butnotsubstantially.“Therewill be some impact

mainly on contact-intensiveservices. If the restrictions stayforacoupleofweeks,thentheremaynot bemuch impact on re-covery,butif theygetprolongedthennotonlytheservicessectorbut the impactwould be felt onthe goods side also. Prolongedrestrictionsonservicessidewillthen affect the wages and em-ploymentlevels,whichwill leadto curtailment of consumptionof goods too. Localised restric-tions for sectors such as road-ways, rail, etcwill alsoaffectex-penditure of Central and stategovernments as such entitieswouldneedtobesupportedde-spitereducedrunningcapacity,”Devendra Kumar Pant, ChiefEconomist, IndiaRatings said.Nomura India saidwhile re-

strictions by states could derailtherecoveryincontact-intensiveservices in the first quarter of2022, global experience sug-gestedasmallerimpactthanpre-viouswaves and a swift growthrebound once cases peak.Soumya Kanti Ghosh, GroupChief Economic Adviser, StateBankofIndia,toosaidrestrictionswould affect the services sector.“Demand for the services sector-- unlike for goods -- cannot bejustpent-updemand.Earlier,wewere projecting a GDP growthrate of 9.3-9.6 per cent, nowwesee it towards the lower end oftherange,closerto9.3percent,"Soumya Kanti Ghosh, GroupChief Economic Adviser, StateBankof Indiasaid.InDecember2021,Delhian-

nounced a 50 per cent cap onrestaurant capacity consideringthe spread of theOmicron vari-antandallowedthemtoremainopen only from 8 am to 10 pm.Last week, the state ordered

shuttingdownofcinemahalls—which are typically consideredthe top crowd-pullers tomalls,indirectlycontributingtofootfallat other establishments such asrestaurants, shops, etc.The West Bengal govern-

ment too ordered restaurantsandbarstooperateat50percentcapacity and only up to 10 pm,untilJanuary15.Ithasalsointro-ducedsevere travel restrictions.It has banned all flights fromDelhi and Mumbai except onMondaysandFridays.TheMaharashtragovernment

prohibitednightmovement andimposed restrictions on gather-ings. In marriages, where themovementofpeopleisstaggered,thetotalattendeesatanymomentshall not exceed100 in enclosedspacesand250inopen-to-skyar-easor25percentoftotalcapacityof the hall, whichever is less. Incaseofsocial,political,orreligiousfunctions and gatherings, it hascappedattendeesat100inclosedspacesand250inopen-to-skyar-eas or 25 per cent of the space,whichever is less. It also orderedrestaurants, gyms, spas, cinemahallsandtheatrestocontinueop-eratingat50percentcapacity.

Venkaiah Naiduof India’s age-old culture andmustbewidelypropagated.“Forus, thewholeworld is one fam-

ily as encapsulated in our time-less ideal, ‘VasudhaivaKutumbakam’. It is with thisspirit thatwe shouldmove for-ward together”,hesaid.Paying tributes to Saint

Chavara,theVice-Presidentsaid,“This iconic spiritual and socialleader of Kerala, whompeopleconsideredasaintduringhislife-time, was a true visionary ineverysenseof the term.”HerecalledthatSaintChavara’s

social and educational serviceswerenotrestrictedtohiscommu-nity alone. In 1846, the Catholicpriest,displayingan"open-mind-ednessofvision",startedaSanskritschoolatMannanaminKottayam,Naidusaid.Naidu urged other states to

takeacuefromKeralainthefieldsof education, social justice andwomen’s empowerment as out-linedinthepioneeringinitiativesof Saint Chavara and social re-former Narayana Guru. "Theirpath-breakingworkproves thatevery state can be transformedinto an engine of growth andprogress and that this can beachieved through the social andeducational empowerment ofwomenandyouth belonging topoorersectionsofsociety,”hesaid.

Lakhimpur casewho is named for alleged de-struction of evidence. Sources

said Shukla is Mishra’s distantrelativeandblockpramukh,andtheSIThassenthimanotice.SeniorprosecutingofficerSP

Yadav said the SIT had filed a5,000-pagechargesheet.Hesaidstatements of 208 peoplewererecorded. “In the statement ofseveralwitnessesithascomeoutthat AshishMishrawas presentat the spot. The SIT has submit-ted andmentioned those state-mentsinitscasediarysubmittedalongwiththechargesheet.”Yadav also said that the in-

vestigatingofficerhadappliedincourt that somedocumentsnotbedisclosed inpublic interest.Ashishhasbeenchargedun-

der IPC Sections 302 (murder),307(attempttomurder),147(ri-oting), 148 (rioting, armedwithdeadly weapon), 149 (everymember of unlawful assemblyguilty of offence committed inprosecutionofcommonobject),326 (voluntarily causing griev-oushurtbydangerousweaponsormeans),34(actsdonebysev-eral persons in furtherance ofcommon intention), 427 (mis-chief causing damage to theamount of Rs 50) and 120-B(criminalconspiracy), aswellasunder theArmsAct.Apart from Ashish and

Virendra Shukla, the otherschargesheetedareAnkitDas,thenephew of former Rajya Sabha

MP Akhilesh Das; Nandan DasBhist;SatyamTripathialiasSatyaPrakash Tripathi; Lateef aliasKalley; Shekhar Bharti; SumitJaiswal;AshishPandey;Luvkush;Shishupal; Ullas Kumar TrivedialiasMohitTrivedi;RinkuRana;andDharmendraKumarBanjara.ThebailapplicationofAshish

is pending in the High Courtwhile others have applied forbail ina local court.TheSIThadrecentlyfiledare-

port in a local court calling theOctober3incidenta“plannedcon-spiracy”.Itsaidthekillings“didnothappendue tonegligenceorcal-lousness” and that theactionsoftheaccusedwere“deliberatewithanintentiontokill”.OntheSIT'sre-quest,thecourtaddedthechargesof attempt tomurderandvolun-tarilycausinggrievoushurt.Following the incident, an

enragedmob had lynched twoBJP leaders andMishra’s driver.Sevenpeoplehavebeenarrestedin the lynching incident.Mishra,theUnionMinisterof

State forHome, hasmaintainedthat his son Ashish was at awrestling event in their ances-tral village around 2 km awaywhen the incident happened.The farmers,however,have tes-tified that Ashishwas in one ofthevehicles that ran themover.

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EXPRESSNEWSSERVICENEWDELHI, JANUARY3

THE DELHI Commission forWomenMonday issued sum-monstotheDCPofDelhiPolice’sCyberCellunitinconnectionwithphotos ofMuslimwomenbeingmisused on awebsite alongsidedemeaningcomments.GitHub, the platform using

which thewebsitewas created,meanwhile issued a statement:“GitHub has longstanding poli-ciesagainstcontentandconductinvolvingharassment,discrimi-nation,andincitingviolence.Wesuspendeduseraccountsfollow-

ing the investigation of reportsof such activity, all ofwhichvio-lateourpolicies.GitHubrespondstolawenforcementrequeststhatcomplywith established legalprocedures.We informed Indiapolice of our policy in this case,andwill assist upon receivingvalid legalprocessfromthem.”On Saturday, a Delhi-based

journalisthadlodgedacomplaintafter her photo alongside lewdcontentwaspostedon theweb-site.ThiscomesnearlysixmonthsafterasimilarwebsitewascreatedwherephotosofMuslimwomenwereuploadedalongsideoffersto“auction” them. While DelhiPolice registered FIRs in both

cases,noarrestshavebeenmadeyet. “DCW is appalled to notethat no persons have been ar-rested in the (earlier)matterbyDelhi Police despite passage ofseveralmonths.Thecallousatti-tude of the law enforcementagencyhasemboldenedculpritsand others who are continuingto‘sell’womenandgirlsonline,”reads thenotice.DCWChiefSwatiMaliwalhas

askedDCP(CyberCell)togivede-tails of cases and action takenagainstGitHubandcurrentstatusoftheprobe.TheDCPhasbeendi-rectedtoappearbeforetheDCWonJanuary6withcasefiles.Meanwhile, the Cyber Cell

said the recent case iswith theSoutheast district’s cyber policestation.OfficialssaidGitHubisyetto reply toDelhi Police’s notices.“We’ll get casedetails inadayortwo.Wehave alreadywritten toGitHubandTwitter tohelpwiththeprobe—revealnamesofusersand give their details. Theyhavepulled downwebpages and ac-countsafterweflaggedit.There’sadelaybecauseof (MutualLegalAssistanceTreaty)guidelines.Weare trying to push them,” said aseniorofficer intheCyberCell.“... We are trying to identify

users from their Twitter ac-counts.Bothcaseswillbeinves-tigated,” said theofficer.

‘Appalled at no arrests in GitHub case’

EXPRESSNEWSSERVICENEWDELHI, JANUARY3

TAKINGTOthestreetsinprotestagainstthenewliquorpolicy,theDelhiBJPMondaydemandeditsrollback and alleged that theAAP-led Delhi government hasallowed liquor shops in “non-conforming areas”, with somecoming up in close vicinity toschoolsandplacesofworship.The protest led to traffic

snarlsatseveralareas includingITO,LaxmiNagar,Akshardham,Signature Bridge and KarolBagh. At LaxmiNagar, BJP lead-ers stopped traffic anddeflatedbustyres.Tyresof30DTCbuseswere deflated allegedly by BJPprotestors, said a transport de-partmentofficial.ReactingtoBJP’s‘chakkajam’,

Delhi Deputy Chief MinisterManish Sisodia alleged that theprotestswere because BJP lead-erswere profiting from the ille-gal saleof alcohol in thecityun-tilthenewpolicycameintoforce.“BJP members in Delhi are

troubledby thenewexcisepol-icy because Arvind Kejriwal jihasstoppedthetheftofRs3,500crore. This money will now beusedbythegovernment for thepeople of Delhi. Earlier, thismoney would line the pocketsof theliquormafiaandBJPlead-ers,” he said.Delhi BJP leaders have been

protesting against the policy,whichsawtheexitofthegovern-ment from the business of sell-ingliquor,redistributionofliquor

storesacrossthecity,andupfrontcollectionof exciserevenue.BJP state general secretary

HarshMalhotrasaidthepartyor-ganised ‘chakka jam’ at 15 loca-tions, with the protest near theAkshardhamtemplebeingledbyDelhiBJPpresidentAdeshGupta.HesaideveryoneinDelhiiscon-cernedabout liquorshopscom-ingupneartheirhouses:“Whilethe CM talks about prohibitionin Punjab, he is adamant onmakingDelhiacityof liquor.We

willnot sitquietly.”Earlier, stores were distrib-

uted unequally — somewardshad nonewhile the others had9-10. Now, eachwardwill havean average of three stores. Theunequal distribution, the Delhigovernment said, had led to thegrowthof liquormafia inunser-viced areas. Overall, the totalnumber of liquor stores in thecityhas remainedat849.The AAP tweeted, “Liquor

mafiausedtostealrevenueofRs3-4thousandcroresfromillegalcontracts in Delhi. Then ArvindKejriwal government broughtthe new excise policy. Liquormafia came under control and(we)savedRs3,500croreofpub-lic(money).Now,theBJP(is)ha-rassing the people of Delhi byjamming thewheel.”Responding to this, BJP MP

Manoj Tiwari said this “showsthe AAP has admitted to theDelhi government stealing rev-enueofRs3,000-4,000crorean-nually, as it used to sell liquorfrommost government shops...L-Gmust investigate it”.

Delhi BJP stops traffic inliquor protest, AAP hits back

Theprotest ledtotraffic snarlsatmanyareas.PremNathPandey

EXPRESSNEWSSERVICENEWDELHI,JANUARY3

A 27-YEAR-OLD man fromAndhraPradeshwasarrestedatIGI Airport for allegedly cheat-ing passengers outside thepremises by posing as a collegestudent and lying that he hadmissed his flight and neededmoney. Police said he cheated

hundreds in the last fouryears.The accused, Modela

VenkataDineshKumar,was ar-rested from Terminal 2 onMondaywhile allegedly tryingto cheat apassenger.According to police, a com-

plaint was received onDecember 19 from a residentdoctorofMaulanaAzadMedicalCollege. The doctor alleged hecame from Baroda and met

Kumar at Terminal 3. Kumar al-legedly posed as a college stu-dentandsaidhemissedhisflighttoVisakhapatnam.“TheaccusedshowedafakeIDtooandsaidheneededRs6,500topayforanewticket.Hepromisedtopayitbackoncehereachedhisdestination,butstoppedtakingcallsfromthedoctor,” saidanofficer.A case was registered and

CCTVs inside airport premises

wereanalysed.Police foundthatthemanoftencametotheairport.On December 30, Kumar wasspottednearT2andarrested.SanjayTyagi,DCP(IGIAirport),

saidtheaccusedusedtoallegedlycheat passengers coming fromdifferent countries and states byposing as a student of a reputeduniversity. Five FIRs and severalonline complaints have beenrecordedagainsthim,saidpolice.

Man who posed as student, duped hundredsat IGI Airport on pretext of missed flight, held

WOMEN’SCOMMISSIONSUMMONSDCP

New Delhi

ANONNADUTTNEWDELHI, JANUARY3

DAY1ofthevaccinationdriveforthoseaged15-17yearssawDelhivaccinating 20,998 children.Numbers are expected to go upfrom Tuesday when districtsstart vaccinating at camps. Asmanyas1.01millionchildrenareeligible for theshot,asperDelhigovernmentdata.Therewere, however, some

hiccups with slots assigned onthe CoWIN portal. “Some chil-drenwereallottedsites thatad-ministered the Covishield vac-cine, which is not yet approvedfor children. So, they wereguided to the nearest Covaxincentre. The error has been cor-rectedontheportal,”saidasen-ior official from the Delhi gov-ernment.As per the central govern-

ment directive, anyone born onor before 2004 is eligible for ei-therofthetwovaccineswhereasthosebornafter2004wouldre-ceive only Covaxin. “OnlyCovaxin is approved for thoseless than 18 years. 18+ (i.e. bornin2004orbefore)areeligibleforall vaccines, includingCovishield. 15-17 years (born in2005, 2006, 2007) are eligibleonly for Covaxin,” Vikas Sheel,additional secretary, UnionHealthMinistry, said ina tweet.OnMonday, Northeast dis-

trict led the chart with over3,600 shots given to childrenwhereas theCentraldistrict im-munised the lowest—739—asperdata fromtheDelhi govern-ment.“Although many children

turned up on Monday, theturnout was lower than ex-pected. Thiswill likely improveaswe start vaccinating in campmode. Itwill alsomake it easier

for us to keep track of immuni-sationschoolwise,”saidanotherofficial fromthegovernment.Teamsofvaccinatorswill set

up camps at government andprivate schools to vaccinate allchildrenthere.OnMonday,shotswere administered at 159 gov-ernment centres in hospitals,dispensaries,andschools.“Sinceschools are closed, if parentssend their children, it will betaken as consent. It is better ifparents come along...,” the offi-cial said.Children queued up outside

theimmunisationcentreatGTBhospital till early evening, withthe centre vaccinating 131 chil-drentill5pm.Ontheotherhand,the response was slow at SirGangaRamHospital.“Sofar,only10childrenhave

takentheshot.Butthatcouldbebecauseitiscoldandtheydonotwant to wake up so early. Thenumbersarelikelytoincreasebyevening,”saidDrShaliniChawla,nodal officer for immunisationat thehospital. Byevening, only19childrenhadtakentheirshot.There were some parents

who complained of their chil-dren receiving expired shots.However, the government inNovemberhadincreasedtheva-lidityof vaccines for another sixmonths.“We had nearly 2,000 doses

of Covaxin lyingwith uswhichwere to expire in November2021,sowewrotetothegovern-mentaskingthemtobuyitback.The government, however, ex-tendeditsvaliditybysixmonths.We are using the doses now toimmunisechildren;thedemandforCovaxinhassuddenlyshotup.The government will have tomaintain supply at the samepace toensure there isnoshort-age,” saidDrNarinSehgal,med-icaldirector,SehgalNeohospital.

4THEINDIANEXPRESS,TUESDAY, JANUARY4,2022

THECITYWWW.INDIANEXPRESS.COM

COVIDVACCINATIONDRIVEKICKSOFFFORTHOSEAGED15-17

Teens line up for ‘first day, first show’

Thereare1.01millionchildreneligible for theshot inthecity,aspergovernmentdata.AmitMehra

SUKRITABARUAH,ABHINAYAHARIGOVIND,GAYATHRIMANI&PAVNEETSINGHCHADHANEWDELHI,GURGAONJANUARY3

SIXTEEN-YEAR-OLD RadhaShuklaheldherphonetoherearas she stood in line for her vac-cine shotonMondaymorning -the first day of the inoculationdriveforteenagers—attendingamathematics classoverZoom.She was among a dozen

teenagers who lined up to gettheir vaccines at aMCDhospitalinLajpatNagar.Shewasnervous.“I’m scaredof injections. Butmyparents insisted that I get vacci-natedonthefirstdaybecausethey

anticipatedthatthecrowdwouldbeless.Theyalsothoughtthatget-ting the second dose in timewouldbeeasier if I’mdueearlier.After the PM’s announcement,ourteachershadalsotoldusthatweshouldgetvaccinatedquickly,”said the classX student of a gov-ernmentschoolinAshram.While16-year-oldShreshtha

Karki stood in line, she absentlydrifted close to someof theoth-erswaitingandhermotherges-turedtohertokeepdistance.“I’malittlescared,butI’malsoexcitedbecauseI’mhereonthe‘firstdayfirstshow’.IhopeIcangooutsidea little more freely after this,thoughthemaskwillcontinuetobemypriority,” shesaid.Apart fromhis own protec-

tion, 16-year-oldHarshwas also

keenonsettingapositiveexam-ple. “There are still people inmylane—friendsandelders—whodon’twanttogetvaccinated.Nowthat I’ve got it, I can show themthat therearenosideeffectsandthat they should get it too,” saidHarsh,who studies at a govern-mentschool inLajpatNagar.SaumyaBansal,aclassXIstu-

dentgettinghervaccineinLaxmiBaiNagar,wasalsoencouragingher friends: “Itwas not scary orpainfulatall. Ihaveclickedapic-ture andposted it onmygroup,somy friends also get their firstdose. I am happy to be here onthefirstdayof thedriveasthereis no rush or long queues. Myteachers have also asked us toupdate the vaccination certifi-cate in theclassgroup.”

In themeantime, Abhi (15),wholives100metresawayfromthe vaccination centre, was notaware of the drive: “I’ve beenwanting to get vaccinated as Ihave lost some people close tometoCovid. Iwasn’t aware thatthedrivestartedforkids.Iwillgoandget itdone.”Around15childrenwerevac-

cinatedby10.30amattheCGHSDispensary at Laxmi Bai Nagar,according tohospital staff.At the vaccination site at

SDMC primary school in RKPuram, around 200 doses ofCovaxin had been set aside forthe 15-18 age group, accordingtoadoctorat thesite.Therewas both excitement

and nervousness among thosewholineduptotakethevaccine

at the site. Sidharth Abrol, a 15-year-old fromPushpVihar, said,“Itwasveryexcitingtobethefirstperson inmy class to take thevaccine.WithOmicrondoingtherounds, I’ll try to stay home andnotbeacarrier.Nowthatwearegetting vaccinated, I wonder ifschool will return to normal.Sinceschoolbusesarenotplying,gettingtoschool isdifficult.”In neighbouring Gurgaon,

Tamanna (17) a classXII studentof DAVSchool in Sector 49,wasthefirsttobevaccinatedinthedis-trict.Sportingasmileandavictorysignasshesteppedoutafter tak-ingthejab,shesaid,“Iamexcitedtobeamongthefirstlottobevac-cinated.Ihadbeenwaitingfortheinoculationstobegin.Ididnotfeelscared at all. The process was

smooth. I hopeevery teenager isvaccinatedattheearliest.”Hermother,NamitaDhingra,

said she felt a bit relieved now.“As parents, we have been anx-ious for children to get vacci-natedespeciallywiththeemer-gence of omicron variant. Thefear, while stepping out, wouldbeconsiderably reduced.”KrishnaYadav(16),astudent

of class XI, said, “Though I amslightly scared of needles, Iwanted to be vaccinated on thefirst day. The shot barely took afewseconds.Ihavebeenreadingabout the importance of vacci-nation... Sincemyterm2examsare approaching, it was impor-tanttogetvaccinatedattheear-liest somy studies are not dis-turbed later.”

81% of Delhi samplessequenced in 2 dayshad omicron variant

DDMA meeting today to decide on more curbs

ANONNADUTTNEWDELHI, JANUARY3

WITH COVID cases on the rise,HealthMinister Satyendar JainMondaysaidover81%of the to-tal samples sequenced over thelasttwodayswerefoundtohavethe omicron variant. Of the 187samples sequenced in the twodays,152wereclassifiedasomi-cron, as per the data shared bytheDelhigovernment.This is contrary tono case of

omicronbeingrecordedoverthelast twodays inDelhi as per thedata released by the Centre,though that could be the resultof a technical issue.“Datasharedbytheminister

are from three labs that se-quence samples from Delhi —LokNayak, Instituteof LiverandBiliary Sciences, and NationalCentre for Disease Control. Theprevioustwodayswereholidaysand it is likely that due to staffshortage, the data might nothave been uploaded yet. Itshouldreflectintomorrow’sbul-letin,” said a senior official fromtheDelhigovernment.Jainsaid,“81.28%of thesam-

pleswhosegenomesequencingresults came out over the lasttwo days had the omicron vari-ant. The spread would havestopped if the Centre took theright decision to stop flightscoming from abroad on time.Evenaftertherepeatedrequestsmade by the Chief Minister, no

appropriateactionwas taken.”“From the experience of

other countries, it seems omi-cron leads toa sharp increase inthenumberof casesandasimi-larquickdecline.Thegoodthingis that hospitals are seeing onlymildcases,”headded.This shows thatOmicronhas

out-competedthedeltavarianttobecomedominant in the capital.Lastweek, theminister had saidthenewvariantwascirculatinginthecommunity.TheIndianExpresswas first to report onDecember28thatDelhihaddetectedseveralomicroncasesinpersonswithnohistoryof travelorcontact.“Over80%ofthosewhowere

foundtohaveomicronvariantinthelastfewdaysdidnothaveanyhistoryoftravelorcontact,mean-ing that thevariant isnowinthecommunity. If I talk about thesamplesprocessedatmylab,50%ofallsamples,sincewestartedre-porting omicron, are that of thenewvariantandtherestaredeltaanditssub-lineages.Thepropor-tion is now increasing day byday,” saidDr EktaGupta, profes-sor of virology at the Institute ofLiverandBiliarySciences.As per Monday’s bulletin,

Delhireported4,099newcases.The number of fresh cases shotup from less than 500 a day toover4,000 in just sixdays.Thepositivityratehasalsoin-

creased to 6.46%. There are10,986activecases;ofthese,420are admitted to hospitals andsevenareonventilator.

GAYATHRIMANINEWDELHI, JANUARY3

OF THE 11 revenue districts inthe capital, five have seen athree-foldincreaseindailyCovidcases in the past five days.District officials have strength-enedtheimplementationofmi-cro-containmentzonesandplanto cordon off the area, block,colony, orRWAs if there are fiveormorecontainmentzones.According to data shared by

districtofficials,South,SoutheastandWest have seen the highestspikebetweenDecember29andJanuary 2. In this period, Southdistrict,whichhasbeenontopofthelistsincecasesstartedincreas-ing, sawaspikefrom175to484;Southeast district saw a jumpfrom124to492;whileWestsawcases increasingfrom94to464.

SouthwestandNorthwestdis-trictsreportedaspikeof94to460casesand83to449casesrespec-tively.Meanwhile,NewDelhiandCentral districts which wereamongthe topthreewhencaseshadstartedtospikehavedroppedto the fifth and sixth spotswith387and388casesrespectively.As per data, Northeast and

Shahdaradistricthavethelowestcases in comparisonwith otherdistrictsbuthavealsoseensharpriseinthelastfivedays—12to120casesand17to246respectively.“Apart from DDMA guide-

lines,we are strengthening thecontainmentplantocontrolcases.Earlier, only houseswith threecases ormoreweremicro-con-tained.Butwithcases rising,dis-trict officials are taking steps tocordonoff theentirearea if thereare four ormore positive cases.The number of containment

zones in SouthWest district hasrisenfrom17to30(inthepastfivedays),” said a senior district offi-cialwhodidwanttobenamed.Southwest district has also

startedapaid isolationcentreatAerocity. “Anyone with spaceconstraints at home, or whowanttoisolatethemselvesawayfrom family members and arewillingtopay,canstayhereatanaffordableprice,”saidtheofficial.DM East Sonika Singh said,

“We have started containinghouses and areas with a largenumber of cases. Earlier, therewere11containmentzones,nowthere are 24. Even if one persontests positive in a family,wemi-cro-contain the houses and de-ploy civil defence volunteers.Further, we have enforced theodd-even rule at markets,steppedupvaccinationandtest-ing,andincreasedprosecution.”

“I’mscaredof injections.Butmyparents insisted Igetvaccinatedonthefirstdayastheyanticipatedthecrowdwouldbe less.”—RADHASHUKLA(16)

“There are still people inmy lanewhodon’twanttoget vaccinated.Nowthat I’ve got it, I can showthemthat there are noside effects.”—HARSH(16)

“Itwasnotscaryorpainfulatall. I haveclickedaphotoandposted itonmygroup,somyfriendsalsogettheir firstdose.”—SAUMYABANSAL(16)

“I’ma little scared, butalsoexcitedas I’mhereonthe ‘firstday first show’. Ihope I cangoouta littlemore freely after this.’—SHRESHTHAKARKI (16)

“Theshotbarely tookafewseconds...Asmyterm2examsareapproaching,itwas importanttogetvaccinatedearly.”—KRISHNAYADAV(16)

“I’mexcitedtobeamongthefirsttobevaccinated...Theprocesswassmooth.Ihopeeveryteenisvaccinatedattheearliest.”—TAMANNA DHINGRA(17)

Cases Recoveries Deaths TestsJan2 3,194 1,156 1 69,650Jan3 4,099 1,509 1 63,477Total 10,986* 14,22,124 25,110 3,29,32,684

Total VacantHOSPITAL BEDS 9,035 8,596ICU BEDS 2,779 2,673

CORONAVIRUSIN THECAPITAL *T

otalactivecases

VACCINATIONS INLAST24HOURS23,614

OMICRONCASES351

OXYGENSUPPORT

124

PATIENTS INHOSPITAL: 420VENTILATORSUPPORT

7

TOTALCASES14,58,220

Southeast492

South484

West464

Southwest460

Northwest449

NewDelhi387

Central388North

319

East291

Shahdara246

Northeast120

Districtdatafromlast24hours

A C R O S S T H E C I T Y

5 districts see case spike, containment stepped up

Central

East

NewDelhi

North

Northeast

Northwest

Shahdara

South

Southeast

Southwest

West

739

2,268

2,034

1,394 3,687

1,210

1,532

1,806

1,705

2,667 1,956

Totalvaccinated

20,998

THEBREAK-UP

Day 1 sees 20,998get their first shot

GAYATHRIMANINEWDELHI, JANUARY3

DELHI COULD be in for morecurbs as ameeting of the DelhiDisasterManagementAuthorityhas been called to review theCovidsituation.Themeetingwillbeheldat11amonTuesday.According to sources, it is

likely that governmentofficials,except thoseworking in essen-tial services, will be asked toworkfromhome.Asimilaradvi-sory is also expected for privateoffices,officialssaid.Othercurbsexpected to come into force is

33% seating in Delhi Metro,down from 50% at present, andclosureof salonsandparlours.“100%work from home for

government and private hospi-talswillmostlylikelybepushedin Tuesday’smeeting. It will bedecidedwhat activities can berestrictedandclosed.Currently,we are comparing ourselveswith other states in terms ofnumber of cases, restrictions,andstepstheyhaveputinplace.After analysing and discussingall thesethings,DDMAwill takea call on further restrictions,”saidaseniorDDMAofficial.Atpresent,alleducationalin-

stitutions in the city are shut,shops inmarkets andmalls areopening on an odd-even basis,andgymsareshut.The lastDDMAmeetingwas

heldlastweek,whencaseswereunder 1,000. Since then, caseshave quadrupled and the posi-tivity ratehasclimbedto6.46%.“Weekend lockdown or a

complete curfew is not on thetablerightnow.Butitwillbedis-cussed to close other activitiesand restrict seating capacity inMetro and buses. Work fromhome ismost likely tobe imple-mented to stop movement ofpeople.Further,someotheractiv-

itieslikesalonsareexpectedtobeclosed. A final decisionwill betakentomorrow,”officialssaid.According to the Covid

Graded Response Action Plan, a‘red alert’ should have been is-suedinthecityonMonday,asthepositivity ratewas above 5% fortwoconsecutivedays.Thiswouldhave triggered a lockdown, in-cluding partial curtailment ofconstructionwork, partial shut-down of industries, closing allshopsdealingwithnon-essentialitems, shut downof restaurantsandaclosureinpublictransport.The government, however,

decided that more curbs were

not needed as hospitalisationswere low,andmore restrictionscould trigger the thirdmigrantworkerexodus fromthecity.Overthepastweek,however,

casesandpositivityratehavein-creased at a very fast pace. Theactivecasecountcrossed10,000onMonday, the first time sinceMay 31. “The silver lining so faris therateofhospitalisation.Weare in a very comfortable situa-tionandhardlyanypatients arepresentingwith serious symp-toms. Some curbsmight be an-nounced,buttheywillmostlybeminor,” a senior Delhi govern-mentofficial said.

3 arrestedfor killing18-year-oldover jacketEXPRESSNEWSSERVICENEWDELHI, JANUARY3

NEARLYNINE days after an 18-year-oldmanwas allegedly kid-nappedandkilledinOuterDelhi’sMangolpuri,policearrestedthreeof his friends after a chase ofnearly5,000kmacrossfivestates.According to police, the vic-

tim,SantoshPrasad,allegedlygotinto a fightwith the accused onDecember25overhisjacketthatoneofhis friendswantedbutherefused to lend it. Police saidhisfriends wanted to teach him alesson and allegedly attackedhimwithknives,killinghim.Prasad’sbodywasrecovered

fromacanalonMondayaftertheaccusedwerearrested.According to police, Prasad’s

parentslodgedamissingperson’scomplaintonDecember26.Twodayslater,theyallegedhewaslastseen with four of his friends.PolicefoundthatallfourmentoldtheirfamiliesthatwereinKanpur.A teamwas sent there but themen couldn’t be found. Policethen found that one of the ac-cusedwasinhisvillageinBihar.Parvinder Singh, DCP

(Outerwest), said, “Theaccusedwere frequently changinghide-outs in those nine days. Theywent from Bihar to Agra andthen to Rajasthan and Gujarat.Wetrackedthem,andfinallyar-rested three suspects fromGujarat.”

New Delhi

GOVT& POLITICS 5WWW.INDIANEXPRESS.COMTHEINDIANEXPRESS,TUESDAY, JANUARY4,2022

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DELHICONFIDENTIAL

SPREADING THE WORDASINDIArolledouttheCovid-19vaccinationdriveforchildreninthe15-18yearagegrouponMonday,UnionHealthMinisterMansukhMandaviyavisitedRMLHospital totakestockof thespecialpreparationsforthenewgroup.Duringthevisit,hein-teractedwith beneficiaries and specially requested them tospreadthewordaboutchildvaccination.Healsoaskedthemtomotivatetheir friendstocomeoutinlargenumbersfor jabs.

COVID PRECAUTIONSAMID RISING Covid cases, theMinistry of Personnel has is-suedordersthatonly50%ofofficialsbelowthelevelofundersecretarywill attend the office physically in anyministry ordepartment till January31. It also said that allmeetings, un-lessabsolutelyessential toholdphysically,mustbeheldvir-tually. It has advisedofficialsnot tohavevisitors.Office tim-ings have also been staggered to avoid overcrowding. It hasalso done awaywith biometric attendance for governmentemployees till January 31. Pregnantwomen and employeeswithdisabilityareexempt fromattendingofficephysically.

TECH ISSUESGOVERNMENTEVENTinvolvingvarioused-techplatformswasmarred by technological disruptions onMonday. EducationMinisterDharmendraPradhan,whoaddressedtheevent,saidthemannerinwhichthedisruptionshaltedtheeventreflectedthe sheer imperativeof havinguninterrupted Internet access.“ImagineyourInternetstopsworking,youarenotabletoabusesomeoneonWhatsApp, or appreciate someone, or indulge ingossip... zindagi adhuri ho jaati hai,” Pradhan said in a lightervein,drawingnervouslaughterfromofficialspresent.

Day after, Malik says hisremarks misconstrued

EXPRESSNEWSSERVICENEWDELHI, JANUARY3

TRINAMOOL CONGRESS MPSushmitaDev, the onlywomanmember of the Parliamentarycommitteeentrustedwithexam-iningtheBillthatproposestoraisethemarriageable age ofwomenfrom18to21,hasdemandedthatthepanel'smeetings be openedtoallwomenMPs.OnMonday, Shiv SenaRajya

SabhaMPPriyanka Chaturvedialso wrote to Rajya SabhaChairman M Venkaiah Naidu,pitchingformorerepresentationandparticipationofwomeninthediscussionaroundtheBill."It is of utmost importance

thattheinterestsofallstakehold-ersaretakenintoaccountandthatvoicesofall,especiallywomenareheard and understood by thecommittee,"shewrote.The 31-member

Parliamentary StandingCommittee on Education,Women, Children, Youth andSports, chaired by BJPmemberVinaySahasrabuddhe,willexam-inetheBillthatwasintroducedinLokSabhaduringthewinterses-sionofParliament.On Monday, Dev wrote to

Sahasrabuddhe, requestinghimtoopenthecommittee'smeetings

to all womenMPs, contendingthat it can be done under Rules84(3) and 275 of the Rules ofProcedure and Conduct ofBusiness in theCouncil of States(RajyaSabha).“I wish to propose that any

womanmember of Lok SabhaandRajya Sabhabe empoweredto testify either inwriting or inpersonbefore the committeeonthis issue," Devwrote. The LokSabha and Rajya Sabha have 81and29womenmembers,respec-tively. “I am sure all my hon-ourable female colleagueswillhavemuch to contribute to thediscussiononthisissue."Lok Sabha MP and DMK

leaderKanimozhialsoexpressedher displeasure over inadequaterepresentation ofwomen in thecommittee. She tweeted, “Thereare a total of 110 femaleMPsbutthe govt. chooses to assign a billthat affects every youngwomaninthecountrytoapanel thathas30menandonly1woman.Menwillcontinuetodecidetherightsof women. Andwomenwill bemademutespectators.”Chaturvedi stated that it is

"disheartening tonote that aBillso pertinent to women andIndian society will be deliber-ateduponinacommitteewherethe representation is highlyskewed".

Census: June 30is fresh deadlinefor jurisdictionalchanges in states

LIZMATHEWNEWDELHI, JANUARY3

WITHTHEOpposition citinghisremarks about PrimeMinisterNarendra Modi, MeghalayaGovernor Satyapal Malik saidMonday he lauded the PrimeMinister’smovetowithdrawthecontentious farm laws and “thePMisontherighttracknow”.SpeakingtoTheIndianExpress,

Malik maintained that his re-marks quoting Union HomeMinister Amit Shah had been“misconstrued”and“ShahdidnotmakeanycommentonthePrimeMinister” but had “askedme tokeepmeeting people and try toconvincethem”.“Actually, Amit Shah had

askedmewhydo I keepmakingstatements?ButwhenItoldhimthegovernmenthadtofindamid-dlepathfor thefarmersandcan-not let themdie,hewasveryun-derstanding.Heunderstood theissuetoo,”hesaid.Malik,whohadcriticised the

PrimeMinister and theBJP gov-ernmentover the farm lawsanddemandedtheirwithdrawal,hadalleged at a function inDadri inHaryanathatModiwas“arrogant”whenhemethim todiscuss thefarmerprotests.“Mai jab kisano ke maamle

meinpradhanmantrisemilnegayatohmeripaanchminutemeinladaihogayiunse.Wohbahutghamandmein the. Jab mai unhe kahahamaare 500 logmar gaye… toh

usne kaha‘mere liyemare hain’?(When Iwent tomeet thePrimeMinister todiscuss thefarmer issue,I ended up

fightingwithhimwithinfivemin-utes.Hewasveryarrogant.WhenI told him that 500 of our own(farmers)haddied…hesaid,‘Didthey die forme?’” hewas heardsaying in a video clip from thefunction.“Maine kaha aapke liye toh

mare the, aap raja bane huai hounki wajah se. Khair, jhagda hogayamera.UnhonekahatumAmitShahsemilo.MaiAmitShahsemila,usnekaha‘SatyaPal,iskiakalmaarrakhi hai logon ne. Tum befikarraho,milte raho ye kisi na kisi dinsamajhmeinajaye’(Itoldhimyouarekingbecauseofthem.Iendeduphavinganargumentwithhim.HetoldmetomeetAmitShahandI did. He said ‘Satya Pal, he hasbeenmisguidedbysomepeople.Youdon’tworryaboutit,youkeepmeeting. Thingswill be under-stoodoneday),”hesaid.OnMonday,Malik denied it.

“No, it’swrong. Shahdidnot sayanythinglikethattome.Heaskedme to keepmeetingeveryone.”Senior Congress leader

MallikarjunKharge,LeaderoftheOpposition in Rajya Sabha,tweeted thevideo clipofMalik’s

comments and tagged Modi.“Meghalaya’sGovernorSri.SatyaPalMalik is on record sayingPMwas ‘arrogant’ on the issue ofFarmers&HMAmit Shah calledthePMas‘mad’Constitutionalau-thorities speaking about eachother with such contempt!@narendramodiji isthistrue?”.OnModi,MaliksaidMonday:

“I publicly appreciated andpraisedthePMforthestephehastaken for the farmers.Whenhewas the Chief Minister (ofGujarat), hewaspro-farmer andwantedMSPtobegivenstatutorystatus. But after becoming thePrime Minister, he was mis-guided.Still,whenherealisedthatthe farmers did not support thelawsatanycost,hehadthehearttowithdrawitandapologise.Thatshowshis large-heartedness.Heisontherighttracknow.”Recollecting that the govern-

menthadacceptedthestandofaparliamentaryteamledbyhimonthelandacquisitionBillduring itsfirstterm,hesaid:“AmitShahhadmademetheheadofthepanel... Iknewhewas capable of sortingout things with the PrimeMinisterandwiththefarmers.”Malik said he was always

“consciousof the fact that thereis great synergy between AmitShah and Prime Minister andbothworkwell together”.

SatyapalMalik

MPs seek more womenmembers to discussBill on marriage age

A-I: SWAMYMOVESHCNew Delhi: BJP leaderSubramanianSwamyhasmovedtheDelhi High Court seeking toquashtheAirIndiadisinvestmentprocess and set aside the ap-provals given to it by authorities.AbenchofChief JusticeDNPateland Justice Jyoti Singhwill hearthepetitiononTuesday.PTI

NewDelhi:EVENASCensusenu-merationremainspostponed in-definitely due to the pandemic,theCentrehasextendedthedead-line for jurisdictional changes forall states up to June 30, 2022.Earlier, the deadline wasDecember31,2021.According to sources in the

Ministry of HomeAffairs,whichoversees the functioning ofRegistrarGeneralofIndia,thiswasdoneon the requestof the statesastheyhavenotbeenabletoup-datethejurisdictionalchangesforvariousreasons.BeforeeveryCensus,statesare

required toprovide informationonchanges in thenumberof no-tifieddistricts,villages,townsandotheradministrativeunitssuchastehsils,talukasandpolicestationsin a state since the last Census adecadeagototheRGI.Thebound-aries of administrative units arefrozenthreemonthsbeforecom-mencementofCensus.ENS

Govt workingon policy toregulate ed-techfirms: Pradhan

EXPRESSNEWSSERVICENEWDELHI, JANUARY3

THREEMINISTRIES areworkingin tandemtodevelop apolicy toregulate ed-tech firms, someofwhichhavebeen found exploit-ingstudentsandparentsinrecenttimes, EducationMinisterDhar-mendraPradhansaidonMonday.Pradhanmadetheannounce-

ment while launching freecouponsforstudentsfromsociallyandeconomicallydisadvantagedbackgroundslookingtosignupforcoursesoned-techplatforms.TheinitiativeispilotedbytheAllIndiaCouncil forTechncialEducation.Pradhanstressedthatthegov-

ernmentwasnotgoingtoimposerestrictionson the firmsbutwillnot tolerateany formof exploita-tion. “Wehavereceivedsomere-portsintherecentpastthatsomeed-techcompaniesareexploitingstudents in remote areas. Thosewhoenrollthemselvesbymakingpaymentsarefreetodosobutnoone should be lured by keepingtheminthedark,”hesaid.“Ihavedirectedschool,highereducationandskillministries to issueadvi-sories.Weare also in touchwiththeMinistry of Electronics andInformationTechnologyandLawDepartmenttoexploreastohowtoframeacommonpolicyonthis.”

New Delhi

THEINDIANEXPRESS,TUESDAY, JANUARY4,2022

GOVT&POLITICS6Lord Krishnatells me in mydreams I willform govt inUP: Akhilesh

EC urges fivepoll-boundstates toacceleratevaccinations

India can joinvirtually if itwants to avoidvisit: Pak FM onSAARC summit

DEEPTIMANTIWARYNEWDELHI, JANUARY3

DAYSAFTER theCentre’s refusalto renew the registration ofMissionariesofCharity(MoC)un-der the Foreign ContributionRegulation Act (FCRA),Panchjanya, the RSS-affiliatedmagazine, has said in an articlethattheallegationsofconversionandotherirregularitiesagainsttheorganisation foundedbyMotherTeresaarenotnew.In an article titled “Saleeb,

SattaaurShadyantra”(Crucifixion,PowerandConspiracy),ithassaidthatMotherTeresawasgiventheBharatRatnaduetothe“necessi-ties of the so-called secular poli-tics of India”, andher sainthoodwas conferred on the basis of a“lie”. TheMoCdeclined to com-mentonthearticle.“The allegations of indulging

inconversioninthenameofserv-ice have often been levelledagainstMissionaries of Charity,”saysthearticle.Citingsomebooksandarticles,itallegesthatatMoCcentres, the sick are deprived ofmedicinessothattheyexperiencethe “pain of Jesus Christ duringcrucifixion”. However, it says,when Mother Teresa fell ill inDecember 1991, shewas admit-ted to a medical facility inCalifornia.Thearticleallegesthatanun left theMoCafter shewasnotallowedtotreatasickboy.Alleging thatMotherTeresa’s

image, as a symbol of mother-hood, was created by carefullymanaging themedia, themaga-zinesaysthat“duetothenecessi-ties of the so-called secular poli-ticsofIndia,shewasconferredtheBharatRatna. Slowly, suchahalo

was created around (Mother)Teresa that it becamedifficult toaskquestions.”Her sainthoodwasconferred

on the basis of a “lie” as thewoman who claimed to havebeen curedof cancer byMotherTeresaneverhadthedisease,saysthe article. It says thatMotherTeresawas against family plan-ning andnever spoke about theculturalhistoryof thepeoplesheserved. In an interview, whenMotherTeresawasaskedtochosebetweenGalileoandtheChurch,shechosethelatter, itsays.Referringtoallegationsofchild

traffickingfromtheMoCcentreinJharkhandin2018,thearticlesaysthatWestBengalhasemergedasa hub of human trafficking.QuestioningWest Bengal ChiefMinister Mamata Banerjee’stweetthatfirstmadethedevelop-mentofMoCbeingdeniedFCRArenewalpublic,itsays:“PeopleareaskinghowMamataBanerjeegottoknowofanactiontakenbytheCentre... People’s questions areconnected to thedonations thatpoliticalpartiesarereceiving.”MoCwas refused renewal of

itsFCRAregistrationbytheMHAonDecember 25 last year basedon“adverseinputs”.TheMinistrydidnot specifywhat thosewere.TheMoChad said earlier that ithad asked its centres “not to op-erateanyof theFCaccountsuntilthematterisresolved”.On December 12 , theMoC

was booked under the GujaratFreedomofReligionAct,2003,forallegedly “luring towardsChristianityyounggirls”atashel-terhomeinVadodara. It rejectedthecharge.

INPUTS FROM SWEETYKUMARI,KOLKATA

ONMISSIONARIESOFCHARITY

Allegationsofconversionnotnew:Panchjanya

UttarPradesh ChiefMinisterYogiAdityanath interactswithteenagerswaitingtogetashotof theCovid-19vaccineatahospital inLucknowonMonday.Vishal Srivastav

EXPRESSNEWSSERVICENEWDELHI, JANUARY3

UNION HOME Minister AmitShahonMondaychairedahigh-levelmeeting toassess the inter-nalsecuritysituationinthecoun-try,andstressedonthethreatsofterrorismand theneed for coor-dinationamongcentralandstateagencies.Themeetingwasattendedby

top officials of central agenciesand forcesapart frompoliceoffi-cialsofstates.“Highlighting the continued

threatsofterrorismandglobalter-rorgroups,terrorfinancing,narco-terrorism,organisedcrime-terrornexus, illicit use of cyber space,movement of foreign terroristfighters, etc. Home Ministerstressedupontheneedforbettercoordinationandsynergyamong

the central and state securityagencies in countering the ever-changing CT and security chal-lenges,” a statement from theMinistryofHomeAffairssaid.The meeting was held just

days after security forces saidtherewere indications that lastmonth’sLudhianacourtblastwaslinkedtoKhalistaniandnarco-ter-ror elements fromPakistan.Oneperson died and several otherswereinjuredintheblastinsidetheLudhianaDistrictCourtComplexonDecember23.Sources, however, said that

“noparticularcaseorincidentwasfocusof themeeting.”

AmitShah

Shah chairs high-levelmeet on internal security

LALMANIVERMALUCKNOW,JANUARY3

FROMBULLS to bills, parties inUttar Pradesh poll race haveeverythingandeveryonecovered.Some promises are common,such as free electricity, Covid re-lief and smartphones. Some, es-pecially by the Samajwadi Partyas itpullsaheadof therestof thenon-BJPpack,aremoreingenious:aid in caseof bull attacks aswellascycleaccidents.TheAamAadmiPartywasthe

firstofftheblock.Aimingtomakean impact especially in the dis-tricts thatborderDelhi, thepartyannounced in September freeelectricityforfarmersandwaiverofpendingelectricitybillsifvotedto power, aswell as unemploy-ment allowance of Rs 5,000permonth for youths. On Sunday,AAP national convener ArvindKejriwaladdedtothisthepromisetotransferRs1,000eachmonthtoaccountsofwomenabove18years, andofAyodhyapilgrim-age. AAP UP chiefspokespersonVaibhavMaheshwari says,“All the promiseshavebeenmadeaf-ter detailed study...Themaximumburdenongovern-mentexchequerwillbefromfreeelectricity, unemployment al-lowanceandRs1,000inaccountsofwomenabove18years.Butallthese promises can be fulfilled.AAPhasthepoliticalwillpowerforthat.”With AAP’s power promise

giving it richreturns inDelhi, theSPnext offered300units of free

electricitytodomesticconsumersandtofarmers.Ithasalsosaidthatfamilies of thosewhodie of bullattacksorcycleaccidentswillgetRs5lakheach.NowthecycleisthesymboloftheSP,whileithasbeenraisingtheissueofthemenaceof

stray animals sincetheBJPgovernmentcrackeddownonil-legal slaughter-houses. PresidentAkhileshYadavsayspeopleshouldtrusttheSP,asthereisnodifferencebetween“what SP people

say”and“whatSPpeopledo”.TheCongress,whichis focus-

ing its campaignonwomen, ledby general secretary PriyankaGandhi Vadra, has promisedsmartphones forgirls inClass12,scootyforwomenpursuinggrad-uation, free public transport forwomen,threefreegascylindersayear to everywoman, freemed-ical treatmentofuptoRs10 lakh

perfamilyforalldiseases,andspe-cialincentivesandtaxexemptionstobusinesseswithmorethan50%of the workforce women.CongressspokespersonSurendraRajputsays:“Thebudgetrequiredforimplemenationoftheseprom-isescanbegeneratedjustbystop-pingtheextravaganceandcorrup-tionof thecurrentgovernment.”TheBJP isbankingonattract-

ing youth, andonDecember 25,the birth anniversary of formerprime minister Atal BihariVajpayee, Chief Minister YogiAdityanathdistributedfreesmart-phones and tablets to students.Thegovernmentpromises itwillcover one crore students undertheprogramme.Says BJP state spokesperson

RakeshTripathi:“Oppositionpar-tiesaretryingtodopoliticsoffree-bies because they have realisedthat they have lost their votebanks.ButtheUPpublic isawarethat freebies bring hooliganismandmafiaraj.”

EXPRESSNEWSSERVICENEWDELHI, JANUARY3

THE ELECTION Commission ofIndiahasurgedfivestates,whichgo to elections earlynext year, to“accelerate” their vaccinationdrive for eligiblepopulations, of-ficialsawareofthemattersaidonMonday, at a time theOmicronvariant has likely fuelled a surgeof infectionsacrossIndia.The commission wrote to

chiefsecretariesofUttarPradesh,Punjab, Uttarakhand, Goa andManipur, saying that theymustspeedup first- and second-dosevaccinations,sourcessaid.“ECI has asked poll-bound

states to ensure that pollingper-sonnelgettheprecautiondoseasthey are eligible,” one of thesourcessaid,referringtothegov-ernment’srecentannouncementthatwillexpandvaccinationforathird shot for people at high riskof infection.ThisisnotthefirsttimeECIhas

stressedon scalingup the vacci-nationdriveinpoll-boundstates.Last week, Chief ElectionCommissioner Sushil Chandrasaid in Lucknowthat theECIhasasked the five states to expandtheirvaccinecoverage.Hemade the statementdays

after the AllahabadHigh Courturged PrimeMinisterNarendraModi to consider “stopping andpostponing”rallies,meetingsandelections inviewof risingCovid-19cases.OntheHC’sobservation,theCECsaidthatallparties inUPwantpollstobeheldaccordingtoschedule.

StudentsdisplaythesmartphonesgiventothembytheBJPatadistributionevent inGorakhpur lastweek.PTI

EXPRESSNEWSSERVICEHYDERABADJANUARY3

TELANGANABHARATIYAJanataParty (BJP) president andKarimnagar MP Bandi SanjayKumar was on Monday re-manded to 14days judicial cus-tody after he was arrested lateSundaynight,forviolatingCovidrules during a protest, policesaid.KumarandotherBJPleaders

were staging a ‘jagarandeeksha’protest against Government

Order 317,whichwas regardingtransfersandpostingsofgovern-ment employees in the newlycreated districts. The govern-ment said the transfers werenecessary after23newdistrictswerecreated.Police Commissioner,

Karimnagar , V Satyanarayanasaidthatmostof theBJPworkerswerenotwearingmasksandtheyhad gathered in violation of theCovid-19protocols.BJP national president JP

Nadda condemned the arrest.“This ismurderof democracy.”

Telangana BJP chief heldfor ‘violating Covid rules’

E●EXPLAINED

KANCHANVASDEVCHANDIGARH, JANUARY3

AMIDAscrambletoreachouttovoters ahead of the 2022 stateAssemblypolls,PunjabCongresschiefNavjotSinghSidhutriedtoget one-up on the AamAadmiPartybypromising Rs2,000permonthforwomenhomemakersif the party is re-elected topower. Sidhu also promisedeight free cooking gas cylindersforhomemakerseveryyear.ThestateCongress chief fur-

ther assured two-wheelers togirlstakingadmissionincollegesfor further studies, Rs 20,000 tothosepassingClass12,Rs15,000to thosepassingClass10andRs

5,000 to those passing Class 5.The promises included a digitaltablet for girls in Class 11, an EVScooty and scholarship for col-lege students and interest freeloans for girls pursuing higherstudies/PhDs.Hedeclaredthatnoregistra-

tion,stampdutyandcourtfeefor

lands registered in the name ofwomen.Sidhumade the announce-

ment a day after the campaigncommittee of the Congress dis-cussed that AAP’s Rs 1,000promise towomenwas gettinga huge traction. During themeeting, Chief MinisterCharanjit Singh Channi sought24 hours from the party col-leaguestoworkoutthefinances.Channispentafewhoursdis-

cussing the issue with stateFinance Minister ManpreetSingh Badal till Sunday mid-night.Beforethetwocouldreacha decision, Sidhu went aheadandmadetheannouncementatBhadauronMonday.Sidhu had other freebies re-

served forwomenas part of hisPunjabModel thathepushedatBhadaur.Heannounced that33per cent of all job cards underPunjab Urban EmploymentGuarantee Mission will be re-served for women and allwomenworkingasfarmlabour-ers in small farms would getwages under the MNREGA.Further, special women com-mando battalions for women’ssafetywillbesetupineveryvil-lageandcityof Punjab,hesaid.Sidhu’sannouncementssent

the Congress government in atizzy. Cabinet minister RanaGurjeet Singh took on the PPCCchief and said that he makingpromisesevenbeforethemani-festowasannounced.

A few questioned how thegovernmentwouldpaynotonlyRs 24,000 crore as honorariumtowomeneveryyearbutalsoforeight cylinders to every house-hold. There are about 56 lakhhouseholds in the state. Sidhuhasannouncedthatthewomenempowerment schemewill befunded fromtaxeson liquor.Campaign committee chief

Sunil Jakhar also hit back atSidhubysaying, “Increasing thecollectionsfromexciseseemstobethebasisforthepromisesbe-ing doled out by all the parties.Evenif itwerenotasabsurdasitsounds, any economic modelwhich is to be primarily fuelledby sale of liquor is not whatPunjabdeserves.”

SPRINGSSURPRISEONPUNJABCONGRESS,CAMPAIGNCOMMITTEECHIEFQUESTIONSANNOUNCEMENT

NavjotSinghSidhu

DARSHANDEVAIAHBPBENGALURU,JANUARY3

A BJP minister and a CongressMP had a heated confrontationon the stage in front of ChiefMinister Basavaraj Bommai at apublic event in Karnataka’sRamanagaradistrictonMonday.At aneventorganised toun-

veil the statues of Dr B RAmbedkar and Bengalurufounder NadaprabuKempegowda, Bangalore RuralMP DK Suresh objected toKarnataka IT and HigherEducationMinisterCNAshwathNarayan’s speechmocking him

andCongress.Heconfrontedtheminister on the stage and thetwo almost came to blows.Sureshwasdraggedbackbythesecurity personnel and he latersatdownonthestage inprotestagainstNarayan.

Earlier, Congressworkers intheaudience jeeredatAshwathNarayan. Theminister retorted:“Who is that man? Show yourwork.We’reheretobringdevel-opment to the people ofRamanagara. Not like others,whowill lay the foundationbutwillnot complete theprojects.”Afterwards, CM Bommai

took themike and said that nooneshouldbring their ego toanevent dedicated to Ambedkarand Kempegowda. “As a chiefminister, I have come here tocontributetothedevelopment...Iwill requestallonthestagenotto bring politics with develop-ment.”

PRESSTRUSTOFINDIAISLAMABAD, JANUARY3

PAKISTAN FOREIGN MinisterShahMahmoodQureshi said onMonday that his country wasready to host the 19th SAARCSummit and India can join it vir-tually if the leadership in NewDelhi is not willing to visitIslamabad.Addressingapressconference,

Qureshiaccused IndiaofmakingSAARCdysfunctionalby refusingtocometoIslamabadforthesum-mit. “I reiterate the invitation forthe19thSAARCsummit.IfIndiaisnotreadytocometoIslamabad,itcan join virtually…but it shouldnotstopothersfromattendingthemoot,”hesaid.The region grouping of

SAARCmembers has not beenvery effective since 2016 and itsbiennialsummitshavenottakenplace since the last one inKathmanduin2014.The2016SAARCSummitwas

originally planned to be held inIslamabad onNovember 15-19,2016. But after a terror attackonan Indian Army camp in Uri inJammu and Kashmir onSeptember18thatyear, Indiaex-presseditsinabilitytoparticipatein the summitdue to “prevailingcircumstances”.The summitwas then called

off afterBangladesh,BhutanandAfghanistanalsodeclinedtopar-ticipateintheIslamabadmeet.

DKSuresh andCNAshwathNarayan

MAULSHREESETHLUCKNOW,JANUARY3

CHIEFMINISTERYogiAdityanathsaid Monday that the newOmicron variant of the coron-aviruswas “just a commonviralfever”, and that Covidwas on itswayout,whileaskingpeoplenottoworrybutkeeptheirguardup.The poll-bound state,which

isseeingmassiveralliesbydiffer-ent parties, has been seeing asurge in Covid cases in the pastweek.Overthepast24hours,572freshcaseswerereported,takingthe tally of active cases inUP to2,261,withnodeaths.Thismarksa 10-times jump from lastweek

when, onDecember 26, for ex-ample, the state saw 59 freshcases.Onaninspectiondriveonthe

firstdayofvaccinationsforthe15-18 age group, he said: “It is truethatOmicronishighlyinfectious.But it is also true thatOmicorn...is veryweak. It is a just amerecommonviral fever.”TheChiefMinister added: “It

is in the concluding stage, Covidwillendsoon.”Urging people to adhere to

Covidprotocolssuchasmasking,especiallythosewithcomorbidi-ties,theCMsaidstayingalertwasnecessarybuttherewasnoneedto panic. “Satarkta aur savdhanikisi bhi bimarimein aavashyak

hotihainaurismaamlemeinbhisatarkta aur savdhani aavashyakhain Ghabrane ki aavashyaktanahin (Remainingalert andcau-tious is necessary for every dis-ease, and in this case also, it isneeded.Butthereisnoneedtobeafraid).”In an interview with The

Indian Express, AIIMS chief andmember of Covid task force DrRandeep Guleria had said thattheir experience showedOmicronwasaffectingtheupperrespiratorytractandtheairways,ratherthanlungs.“Thatiswhywesee very fewer patients with adrop inoxygen saturationor theother severe symptomswe sawinDelta.”

Karnataka minister, Congress MPclash on stage in front of CM Bommai

Sidhu promises Rs 2,000/month, LPG cylinders to women homemakers

Chandigarh:WWith PunjabCongresspresidentquestioninghis ownparty’s government fornot arresting Shiromani Akalileader Bikram SinghMajithia,Deputy Chief MinisterSukhjinder Singh RandhawaMonday said he is ready to giveup his Home portfolio if thecricketer-turned-politicianwants it forhimself.“If my brother (Sidhu) says

that he wants the Homemin-istry,thenIwill immediatelyputitathisfeet.Iamreadytoresign,"saidRandhawa.Hesaideversincehewasap-

pointedthestateHomeMinister,Sidhuhasbeenupsetwithhim.The Punjab Congress chief

had earlier said nothingwouldhappenwith the registration ofanFIRagainst theAkali leader.Randhawadeniedtheallega-

tion that the state governmentdidnotwant toarrestMajithia.Afterphotosemergedonline

of Majithia, the SAD leader fac-ing arrest in a drugs case, theminister said that the AkalileaderisnotinPunjab.“Heisnoteven using his cellphone. Eventhe security personnel are notwithhim,”Randhawasaid. ENS

Will leave home ministry forSidhu if he wants: Deputy CM

Omicron common viral fever,Covid nearing end: Adityanath

EXPRESSNEWSSERVICELUCKNOW,JANUARY3

SAMAJWADI PARTY (SP) presi-dentAkhileshYadavonMondayclaimed, in a lighter vein, thatHindudeityKrishnacomestohisdreams every night to tell himthat he will form the govern-mentinUttarPradeshandestab-lish“RamRajya”inUttarPradeshafter the upcoming Assemblyelections.The former chief minister

made the remark at a functionheldto induct theBJP’sNanparaMLA, Madhuri Verma, into theSP.FormerAmbedkarNagarMPRakesh Pandey and variousother leaders from the BahujanSamaj Party and the BJP alsojoined theSP.Asked about a report that a

BJP leader hadwritten to partypresident JP Nadda about field-ing CM Yogi Adityanath fromMathura, Akhilesh said, “LordKrishna comes in my dreamsevery night and says that you[Akhilesh]aregoing to formthegovernment. The way to RamRajya is through the path ofSamajwad [socialism]. The daySamajwad is established, RamRajyawillbesetupinthestate.”TheSPchiefclaimedthattheBJPfelt the strongest “shock”whenhepromised thatagovernmentformedbyhis partywouldpro-vide300units of freeelectricityto domestic consumers.AkhileshsaidanSPgovernmentwill completepowerprojects.

AVANEESHMISHRADEHRADUN, JANUARY3

THE UTTARAKHAND police onSunday registered a second FIRinconnectionwiththethree-day‘Dharam Sansad’ in Haridwarlastmonthwhereaseriesofhatespeeches targeting Muslimsweremade.According to police officials,

the FIR, registered on the com-plaintofasocialworker,NadeemAli, has been filed under IPCSections relating to promotingenmity(153A)andwoundingre-ligious feelings (298).WhilethefirstFIRhadnamed

fiveaccused–WaseemRizviakaJitendra Narayan Tyagi, SaintDharamdasMaharaj,AnnapurnaMaa, Yati Narsinghanand andSagar Sindhuraj Maharaj – thesecond FIR only names Tyagi,alongwith"unidentifiedothers".The complainant, however,claimed that he had named atleastnineaccused.Haridwar Kotwali SHO

Rakinder Singh said the com-plaintwas filed at the Jwalapurpolice station but was trans-ferred since the incident tookplaceunderhispolicestationju-risdiction.TalkingtoThe IndianExpress,

stateDGPAshokKumarsaidthatwhile a new FIR has been filed

against the accused, Section295A (deliberate andmaliciousacts intended to outrage reli-gious feelingsof anyclassby in-sulting its religion or religiousbeliefs) of the IPC has beenadded to the first FIR.DGPKumaralso said that an

SIT has been formed with anAdditional SP and a Deputy SP-level officer asmembers to in-vestigate the speechesmade atthe Haridwar event onDecember17-19.During theSansad, repeated

callswereallegedlygivenbysev-eral speakers to wage waragainstMuslims. Former DelhiBJP spokesperson AshwiniUpadhyay was among thosewho attended the conclave andpresented Narsinghanand acopyof theConstitution.On Saturday, a massive

protest was held outside theUttarakhand police headquar-ters and the state secretariat inDehradun against the ‘DharamSansad’. Those protesting,mainly local Muslim residents,demandedtheimmediatearrestof theaccused in thecase.

Second FIR filed,SIT set up toprobe Haridwarhate speech

Stock-taking later, a bullrun for poll promises in UP

SecondFIRonlynamesWaseemRizviakaJitendraNarayanTyagi

New Delhi

7WWW.INDIANEXPRESS.COMTHEINDIANEXPRESS,TUESDAY, JANUARY4,2022

PUBLIC NOTICE

Consequence upondeath (20/04/2018) ofSh. Sobha Ram SapraDirector of M/S of MicroHydrotechnic Pvt. Ltd.w h o d i e d o n20/04/2018. We herebyinformed to change inconstitution has beenprovisionally allowedfrom Sumit Kumar(57.14%), Sh, SobhaRam Sapra (14.29%),Prem Sapra (28.57%),to Sumit Kumar Sapra(84.55%) and PremLata (15.45%) (in thename of legal heir ofdeceased) by HSIIDCv i d e l e t t e r n oHSIIDC/IMT/21/4284d t d 1 3 / 1 2 / 2 0 2 1( R e q u e s t I DCOC2021DEC02472).If any person hasobjection may file thesame in writing alongwith Affidavit in front ofEst Mgr, HSIIDC, IMTB a w a l , R e w a r i ,Haryana within 30 daysof publication of thispublic notice. In caseno objection is receivedHSIIDC will proceed forchange of constitution.

No. F.4 (406)/P&P/DSSSB/2022/Advt./07 Dated: 03.01.2022VACANCY NOTICE / ADVERTISEMENT NO. 05/22

COMBINED EXAMINATION, 2022 FOR ASSISTANT LAW OFFICER/ LEGAL ASSISTANT

POST CODE - 805/22

The opening date and closing date for receipt of online applications are as below:-Opening Date of Application: 10/01/2022 (10th January, 2022)Closing Date of Application: 09/02/2022 (09th February, 2022) (Till 11.59 pm)

Delhi Subordinate Services Selection Board (DSSSB) invites online applications from eligiblecandidates for recruitment to the post of Assistant Law Officer / Legal Assistant (Post Code -805/22) against vacancies in respect of various Departments of Government of NCT of Delhi/Autonomous Bodies/Local Bodies as below :-

*The above vacancies are tentative and based on inputs of the indenting Departments/ Bodies.DSSSB will conduct examinations (Tier-I & Tier-II) for making recruitment against the vacanciesnotified above. The date of conduct of examinations will be intimated in due course only through thewebsite of the Board. The applicants are advised to visit DSSSB's website i.ehttps://dsssbonline.nic.in to check the detailed advertisement and confirm their eligibility for theabove vacancies based on the Recruitment Rules of the indenting departments.IMPORTANT NOTE:- Only online applications will be accepted. Applications received by post/byhand/by mail etc. will not be accepted and will be summarily rejected. No correspondence will beentertained in this regard. -sd-

Deputy Secretary (P&P), DSSSBDIP/Shabdarth/0550/21-22

GOVERNMENT OF NCT OF DELHIDelhi Subordinate Services Selection Board

FC-18, INSTITUTIONAL AREA, KARKARDOOMA, DELHI-110092https://dsssbonline.nic.in

ASSISTANT LAW OFFICER/ LEGAL ASSISTANT, POST CODE - 805/22SINo

Name of Department Vacancies *

UR EWS OBC SC ST Total PwD Ex-SM Sports1 Delhi Fire Service (DFS) 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 02 Delhi Jal Board (DJB) 2 0 0 0 0 2 1 0 03 Delhi Transport Corporation (DTC) 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 04 Directorate of Education 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 05 Delhi Pollution Control Committee

(DPCC)1 0 1 1 0 3 0 0 0

6 Department of Law Justice andLegislative Affairs

2 0 1 1 0 4 0 0 0

7 Department of Trade Taxes 5 0 1 0 0 6 0 0 08 Delhi Urban Shelter Improvement

Board (DUSIB)3 0 1 0 0 4 0 0 0

9 Delhi Transco Limited (DTL) 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0

10 New Delhi Municipal Council (NDMC) 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0

11 North Delhi Municipal Corporation(North DMC)

4 0 0 0 0 4 0 0 0

12 South Delhi Municipal Corporation(South DMC)

2 0 0 0 0 2 0 0 0

13 East Delhi Municipal Corporation(East DMC)

0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0

14 Delhi Pollution Control Committee(DPCC)

1 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0

GRAND TOTAL 20 0 4 2 0 26 1 0 0

No. F.4 (405)/P&P/DSSSB/2021/Advt./03 Dated: 03.01.2022

The opening date and closing date for receipt of online applications are as below:-

Delhi Subordinate Services Selection Board (DSSSB) invites online applications from eligiblecandidates for recruitment to the post of Assistant Engineer (Electrical) (Post Code - 804/22)against vacancies in respect of various Departments of Government of NCT of Delhi /AutonomousBodies/Local Bodies as below :-

*The above vacancies are tentative and based on inputs of the indenting Departments/ Bodies.DSSSB will conduct examinations (Tier-I & Tier-II) for making recruitment against the vacanciesnotified above. The date of conduct of examinations will be intimated in due course only through thewebsite of the Board. The applicants are advised to visit DSSSB's website i.ehttps://dsssbonline.nic.in to check the detailed advertisement and confirm their eligibility for theabove vacancies based on the Recruitment Rules of the indenting departments.IMPORTANT NOTE:- Only online applications will be accepted. Applications received by post/byhand/by mail etc. will not be accepted and will be summarily rejected. No correspondence will beentertained in this regard.

Sd/-

Deputy Secretary (P&P), DSSSBDIP/Shabdarth/0548/21-22

GOVERNMENT OF NCT OF DELHIDelhi Subordinate Services Selection Board

FC-18, INSTITUTIONAL AREA, KARKARDOOMA, DELHI-110092https://dsssbonline.nic.in

ASSISTANT ENGINEER (ELECiRICAL) POST CODE - 804/22

SINo

Name of Department Vacancies *UR EWS OBC SC ST Total PwD Ex-

SMSports

1North Delhi Municipal Corporation(North DMC)

5 0 0 0 0 5 1 0 0

2East Delhi Municipal Corporation(East DMC)

4 0 1 0 0 5 0 0 0

3South Delhi Municipal Corporation(South DMC)

0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0

4Delhi Agricultural Marketing Board(DAMB)

0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0

GRAND TOTAL 9 0 1 0 0 10 1 0 0

VACANCY NOTICE / ADVERTISEMENT NO. 04/22COMBINED EXAMINATION, 2022 FOR ASSISTANT ENGINEER (ELECTRICAL)

POST CODE - 804/22

Opening Date of Application: 10/01/2022 (10th January, 2022)Closing Date of Application: 09/02/2022 (09th February, 2022) (Till 11.59 pm)

No. F.4 (404)/P&P/DSSSB/2021/Advt./05 Dated: 03.01.2022

The opening date and closing date for receipt of online applications are as below:-

Delhi Subordinate Services Selection Board (DSSSB) invites online applications from eligiblecandidates for recruitment to the post of Assistant Engineer (Civil) (Post Code - 803/22) againstvacancies in respect of various Departments of Government of NCT of Delhi /AutonomousBodies/Local Bodies as below :-

*The above vacancies are tentative and based on inputs of the indenting Departments/ Bodies.DSSSB will conduct examinations (Tier-I & Tier-II) for making recruitment against the vacancies notified above.The date of conduct of examinations will be intimated in due course only through the website of the Board. Theapplicants are advised to visit DSSSB's website i.e https://dsssbonline.nic.in to check the detailedadvertisement and confirm their eligibility for the above vacancies based on the Recruitment Rules of theindenting departments.IMPORTANT NOTE:- Only online applications will be accepted. Applications received by post/by hand/by mailetc. will not be accepted and will be summarily rejected. No correspondence will be entertained in this regard.

Sd/-

Deputy Secretary (P&P), DSSSBDIP/Shabdarth/0549/21-22

GOVERNMENT OF NCT OF DELHIDelhi Subordinate Services Selection Board

FC-18, INSTITUTIONAL AREA, KARKARDOOMA, DELHI-110092https://dsssbonline.nic.in

ASSISTANT ENGINEER (CIVIL) POST CODE - 803/22

SINo

Name of Department Vacancies *

UR EWS OBC SC ST Total PwD Ex-SM Sports

1North Delhi Municipal Corporation(North DMC)

15 4 10 6 3 38 0 0 0

2South Delhi Municipal Corporation(South DMC)

1 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0

3East Delhi Municipal Corporation (EastDMC)

19 3 10 5 2 39 2 0 0

4 New Delhi Municipal Council (NDMC) 17 5 14 5 2 43 0 0 0

5 Delhi Agricultural Marketing Board(DAMB)

0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0

6 Delhi Jal Board (DJB) 12 5 9 2 2 30 1 0 0

GRAND TOTAL 64 17 43 18 9 151 1 0 0

VACANCY NOTICE / ADVERTISEMENT NO. 03/22COMBINED EXAMINATION, 2022 FOR ASSISTANT ENGINEER (CIVIL)

POST CODE - 803/22

Opening Date of Application: 10/01/2022 (10th January, 2022)Closing Date of Application: 09/02/2022 (09th February, 2022) (Till 11.59 pm)

HOLDING OF PENSION ADALATThe Central GST, Delhi North Commisssionerate isholding a Pension Adalat pertaining to CGST DelhiNorth/Delhi East/ Delhi Audit-I/Delhi Appeal-I including allsubordinate offices of the said Commissionerates fortaking on-spot decision for prompt resolution ofpensioner's grievances at C.R. Building, I.P. Estate, NewDelhi-110109 ON 21.01.2022 from 11:30 AM onwards.All the pensioners, whose pension cases are pendingsettlement/decision., may file application before the Adalatfor settlement of their cases.

Prescribed application form for submission before theAdalat is already available at www.gstdelhizone.gov.in.

Sd/-Additional Commissioner(P & E)

Central GST Delhi North

´fi²ff³f Af¹fb¢°f IYf¹ffÊ»f¹f, IZÔYQie¹f ¸ff»f E½fa ÀfZ½ffIYSX, dQ»»fe CXØfSXOFFICE OF THE PR. COMMISSIONER,

CGST DELHI NORTHÀfe.AfSX.d¶fd»OaX¦f, AfBÊX.´fe. BXÀMZXMX, ³fBÊX dQ»»fe- 110109

C. R. BUILDING, I. P. ESTATE, NEW DELHI - 110109.

INTERNATIONAL FINANCIAL SERVICESCENTRES AUTHORITY(GOVERNMENT OF INDIA)

2nd Floor, Pragya Tower,GIFT City, Gandhinagar. Gujarat

F.No.489/IFSCA/GAD/HR/2021-22/382 December 24, 2021VACANCY NOTIFICATION

International Financial Services Centres Authority (IFSCA) is a unifiedregulatory body established by Government of India under the IFSCAAct, 2019 with a mandate to develop and regulate the financialinstitutions. financial services and financial products in the InternationalFinancial Services Centres set up in the country.2. The IFSCA invites application to post of Assistant Manager (Officer

Grade A) from candidates who appeared in the interview of CivilServices Examination-2020 conducted by the Union Public ServiceCommission (UPSC).

3. Details of posts and eligibility criteria are as under:S.N.

Name ofPost

Number Posts Eligibility Agelimit

1. AssistantManager(Officer

Grade A)

10Fresh Vacancy-08

(UR-4, OBC-2, SC-1. ST-1) Backlog

Vacancy- 02(OBC-1, SC-1)

Candidates whoappeared in theinterview of CivilServices Examination-2020 conducted byUPSC

As per UPSCnorms forCivil ServicesExamination,2020.

4. The candidates willing to apply for the above posts are requested torefer www.ifsca.gov.in for detailed vacancy notification, servicebenefits, eligibility criteria in terms of qualification and experienceetc,. The last date for receipt of application along with requisitedocuments by post is 24.01.2022 by 6.00 PM. For any query, pleasecontact at Ph: 079-61809800.

Deputy General ManagerInternational Financial Services Centres Authority

davp 15228/11/0007/2122

New Delhi

EXPRESSNETWORK8 WWW.INDIANEXPRESS.COMTHEINDIANEXPRESS,TUESDAY, JANUARY4,2022

GOVT. INDUSTRIAL TRAININGINSTITUTE BHAPRODA (JHAJJAR)

Village: BhaprodaPhone No. : 9306799649Email ID) : bhaproda.giti@hry.gov.inbhaproda.giti@gmail.comwebsite: www.itibhaproda.com

M`ÔXOXSX ³fûdMXÀfd½f¿f¹f:- ÀfaÀ±ff³f IZY ´fifa¦f¯f ¸fZÔ I`ÔYdMX³f Jû»f³fZ WZX°fb Àfc¨f³ff

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500/- ÀfaÀ±ff³f ¸fZÔ OeOe/³fI Q SÀfeQ ´fif´°f I SIZ M`ÔOS R f¸fÊ ´fif´°fI S ÀfI °fZ W`ÔÜ M`ÔOS R f¸fÊ 07.01.2022 I û Qû´fWS 2.30 ¶fªfZ °fIÀfaÀ±ff³f ¸fZÔ ªf¸ff I S½ff ÀfI °fZ W`ÔÜ M`ÔOS R f¸fÊ 07.01.2022 I û WeÀff¹fa 4.00 ¶fªfZ Jû»ff ªffE¦ffÜ M` aOS Sï I S³fZ I e Vfd¢°f¹ffa´fi²ff³ff¨ff¹fÊ IZ ´ffÀf d³fdW°f W`Ü

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·ff´fOXüQf (Óf«fSX)6634/HRY

MMAAJJ RRKK LLAAUULL,, SSCC,, 2222 JJUULL 6677 -- 0044 JJAANN 9966We pay homage to our noble martyr, who made thesupreme sacrifice while fighting the enemy in ‘OPRAKSHAK’, J & K in the year 1996. His dauntlesscourage and sacrifice will forever inspire theorganisation.

CCOO && aallll rraannkkss ooff 66tthh BBaattttaalliioonn BBrriiggaaddee ooff TThhee GGuuaarrddss

EXP E S EDU TIONR S CA

Contact for Advt. Booking: M/s Friends Publicity Service

(M): 9212665841, 9212008155

Regd. Office.: PSPCL Head Office, The Mall, PatialaCIN: U40109PB2010SGC033813; Website: www.pspcl.in

(Contact No. 96461-122219)

Tender Enquiry No.: QW-294/PO-W Dated: 03.01.2022

Chief Engineer/Stores & Workshops Organization. Sarabha Nagar, PSPCL,

Ludhiana, invites E-tender of 80,000 no. Top Hamper for PCC Poles 9 mtrs

manufactured from M.S. Flat (50x6mm) conforming to IS: 2062/1992 (with lat-

est editions) Grade - A quality and section details as per IS: 1730/1971 & tol-

erances as per IS: 1852/ 1985 with Red Oxide Primer. The seam welding of

joints should be continuous and uniform on one side. The edge cutting of Top

Hamper should be smooth and at right angle, For detailed NIT & tender spec-

ification please refer to https://eproc.punjab.gov.in from 05.01.2022 from

02.00 pm onwards.

NOTE:- Corrigendum and addendum, if any will be published online athttps://eproc.punjab.gov.in C01/22 12061/Pb

OFFICE OF THE DIRECTOR GENERAL OFPRISONS PRISONS HEADQUARTERS: NEAR

LAJWANTI GARDEN CHOWKJANAKPURI: NEW DELHI.

No.F.21(13)/DS.Prov/Local Purchase/CD-003658278/2021-2022/913-14Dated: 30/12/2021

NIT ID No.: 2021_CJT_213771_1e-TENDER NOTICE

For and on behalf of the President of India, Short Term Open e-tender(on line e-procurement website https://govtprocurement.delhi.gov.in)are invited for supply of local purchase (daily purchase) of BrandedMedicines and Drugs etc. to the Central Jails of Tihar, Rohini andMandoli for one year. The NIT has been uploaded and available alongwith terms and condition and detailed specifications. All the tenderersare requested to have digital certificate (class II and above) and then toget themselves registered with the application service provider of Govt.of NCT of Delhi e-procurement System and should apply online beforethe Last Date and Time.

Further information can be seen at:https://govtprocurement.delhi.gov.in

Sd/-Superintendent-II: PHQ

Tihar, New DelhiDip/Shabdarth/0546/21-22

Estimated Cost Of Work : Rs.08erore

Date of release of tender throughE-procurement solution

: 04.01.2022

Last date / Time of receipt of tendersThrough e-procurement solution

: 18.01.2022 at 12:00 NOON

Online bid opening date : 18.01.2022 at 12:30 PM

Regd Office: PSEB Head Office, The Mall, (Patiala)CIN: U40109PB2010SGC033813, Website: www.pspcl.in

(Contact Number: 96461-23323)Tender Enquiry No. PPR-20/2021 Dated: 31.12.2021

Chief Engineer/PP&R Organization, Shed No. D-3, Shakti Vihar,PSPCL, Patiala invites E-tender under three part bid system for supply ofElectrical Energy from Interstate/Intrastate sources viz. Generators,Traders having Valid Inter State Trading License issued by CERC forinterstate trading of energy, intrastate trading license issued by PSERCfor intrastate trading of energy, State Electricity Boards, State ElectricityUtilities, States, IPPs & CPPs from 1st February 2022 to 30th April 2022.The link for the e-Bidding portal is www.mstcecommerce.com and is alsoavailable on the website of Ministry of Power (www.Powermin.nic.in) andPFC Consultancy Limited (www.pfcindia.com).

For detailed NIT & tender specifications please reter towww.mstcecommerce.com and official website of PSPCL i.e.www.pspcl.in from 31.12.2021 onwards.NOTE: Corrigendum & addendum, if any will be published online at

https://eproc.punjab.gov.in. C-02/22 12068/Pb

OFFICE OF THE DIRECTOR GENERAL OFPRISONS PRISONS HEADQUARTERS:

NEAR LAJWANTI GARDEN CHOWKJANAKPURI : NEW DELHI.

Phone No.-011 & 28520695, 28520895, 28520684 Extn. 2040No.F.21(13)/003612347/CMC of medical eq./(Prov.)/2021-22/909-10

Dated: 30/12/2021NIT ID No.: 2021_CJT_213695_1

e-TENDER NOTICEFor and on behalf of the President of India, Open e-tender (on line e-procurement website https://govtprocurement.delhi.gov.in) areinvited for Comprehensive Maintenance Contract of medicalequipments / instruments of Central Jails of Tihar, Rohini and Mandoli,Delhi for one year. The NIT has been uploaded and available along withterms and condition and detailed specifications. All the tenderers arerequested to have digital certificate (class II and above) and then to getthemselves registered with the application service provider of Govt. ofNCT of Delhi e-procurement System and should apply online before theLast Date and Time.

Further information can be seen at:https://govtprocurement.delhi.gov.in

Sd/-Superintendent-II: PHQ

Tihar, New DelhiDip/Shabdarth/0547/21-22

Estimated Cost Of Work : Rs. 60 Lakhs

Date of release of tender throughE-procurement solution

: 04.01.2022

Last date / Time of receipt of tendersThrough e-procurement solution

: 24.01.2022 at 12.00 NOON

Online bid opening date : 24.01.2022 at 12.30 PM

EXPRESSNEWSSERVICESRINAGAR, JANUARY3

THE J&K Police claimed to havekilledtwomilitants—aLashkar-e-Toiba 'commander' and a for-eigner — in two separate gun-fights inSrinagarMonday.Police have termed the en-

counter-death of the militant'commander', SaleemParray, asabigsuccessandsaidhewasin-volvedinkillingciviliansandat-tacksonarmed forces.PolicesaidonMondayafter-

noon a joint team of J&K Policeand paramilitary forces cor-doned off Harwan area ofShalimar,inSrinagar,afterinputsabout Parray’s presence in thearea.“The search party was fired

upon indiscriminately by [the]hidingterrorist,whichwasretal-iated, leadingtoabriefshootoutand elimination of dreaded ter-roristSaleemParray,linkedwithproscribedterroroutfitLeT,”thepolice said inastatement.Barelyhalf-an-hourlater,po-

lice said, another gunfight

startedatGasuvillageofZakurawhen the team of joint forcescameunder fireaftercordoningthe area. A Pakistani militantidentifiedasHafiz, aliasHamza,linkedwith LeTwas killed, po-lice said.Police said Parray, a resident

of Hajin in Bandipore district,whohad joinedmilitants' ranksin 2016,was involved in attackson civilians and armed forces.TheysaidParraywasinvolvedin“severalciviliankillings”,includ-ingthatofBashirAhmadDarand

his brother GhulamHassanDarat ShahgundHajin inMay2018,andHilalAhmadParrayatParrayMohallaHajinthatsamemonth.“Besides, hewas involved in

slitting throat of many civiliansin Hajin area,” police said. “Hewas also involved in providinglogistic support to terrorists inthearea.”PolicesaidParraywasalsoin-

volvedin“revivingterrorfolds”ofLeTinHajanandadjoiningareas.Ppolice said Hafiz, alias

Hamza, was involved in recent

killing of two policemen inBandipore. “He shifted toHarwan area of Srinagar due tofrequent cordon and search op-erations in Bandipore," the po-lice quoted IGP Vijay Kumar assaying. “Hewasalso involved inkilling of a CRPF personnel atHajinBandipora,killingofacivil-ian, Nadif Hanief Khan, of BilalColony Soura in Buchpora inSrinagar.”

EXPRESSNEWSSERVICENEWDELHI, JANUARY3

ENGINEERS HAVE yet againdominatedthetoppers’listintheCommonAdmissionTest (CAT),the gateway to the prestigiousIndian Institutes ofManagement.Theresultwasde-claredMonday.Theresultof the2021edition

of the exam showed that of the47 candidates who scored be-tween100percentile and99.98percentile marks, 38 are quali-fiedengineers.The result also showed that

men outperformed womenonce again. Of the 47 toppers,only one is a female candidate,whoscored99.98percentile.Among thecandidateswith

100 percentile, four are fromMaharashtra, two from UttarPradesh, and one each fromWest Bengal, Telangana andHaryana.Four candidates each from

MaharashtraandGujaratscored99.99percentile, twoeach fromUP,HaryanaandKarnataka,andone each from Kerala, Delhi,Chandigarh, Bihar and AndhraPradesh.Inthe2020editiontooof the

exam, all the nine toppersweremales,withsevenof themcom-ing from engineering back-grounds. Of the 19 candidateswhoscored99.99percentilethatyear, onlyonewaswoman.The Common Admission

Test, scores of which are alsoused by 88 non-IIM businessschools,washeldonNovember28at438testcentresacross156cities.Around1.92lakhofthe2.3lakh registered candidates ap-peared for theexam.“Theoverall attendancewas

approximately 83%. Out of the1.92 lakh candidates who tooktheexam,35%werefemales,65%males and two candidates be-longed to the transgender com-munity,” according toCAT2021convener,Prof.MPRamMohan.

DEEPTIMANTIWARYNEWDELHI, JANUARY3

THENATIONALInvestigationAgency(NIA) onMonday arrested a familymember of former CongressMLAfromKarnatakaBMIdinabbaincon-nectionwith a case of Islamic Stateconspiracytorecruit fromIndia.“Today,NIAinco-operationwith

Karnataka Police arrested one ISISoperative MundadiguttuSadananda Marla Deepthi Marlaalias Maryam w/o Anas AbdulRahimanR/oMangalore...,” theNIAsaid ina statement.Anas Abdul Rahiman,Marlah’s

husband, is the son of B M Bashawhose father Idinabbawas once aCongressMLA.Idinabbadiedin2009.

Earlier, the NIA had arrestedAnas’sbrotherAmmar in thecase.The arrests, the NIA said, have

been made in connection with acase of IS recruitment and propa-gandaithadregisteredinMarchlastyear. It had later arrested oneMohammedAmeenaliasAbuYahyaalong with two of his associatesfrom Kerala – Dr Rahees RasheedandMus’HabAnwar. InAugust, theagency arrested fourmore people,includingAmmar.Thesamemonthit arrested twowomen fromKeralawho it claimedwere going to jointhe IslamicState inWestAsia.“Duringinvestigation,ithasbeen

revealedthatafter thedeclineof ISISCaliphateinSyria/Iraq,DeepthiMarlaand Mohd. Ameen had visitedKashmirinJanuaryandMarch,2020

forHijrah(religiousmigration)andforengaginginterroristactsandsupport-ingtheactivitiesof ISIS.InvestigationhasalsorevealedthatDeepthiMarlawas the kingpin of the instant ISISconspiracyalongwithMohdAmeen,”theNIAsaidinastatement.Till date, theNIAhasarrested11

peopleonchargesof “raising funds,radicalizing andmotivating peopleto join ISIS”.On August 4 last year, it con-

ducted searches at five locationsacross J&K and Karnataka and ar-rested four people, includingAmmar, for allegedly raising fundsandrecruiting for the IslamicState.Ammar’s niece is believed to

have been among the 13 peoplefromKasaragod in Kerala, who leftthecountry to join the IS in2016. In

achargeesheetfiledinJanuary2017,theNIAhinted thatAjmala andherhusband Shifas K P left India viaBengaluru on May 24, 2016, andjoinedIS intheNangarharprovinceofAfghanistan.SourcessaidAjmalaisbelievedtohavebeenkilledsome-timein2018.Atotalof21peopleleftKeralaaroundthetimetojointheIS.The NIA had registered a suo

motucaseagainstsevenknownandother unknownpeople under vari-ous charges of IPC and UAPA onMarch 5 last year. It alleged thatMohammedAmeenandhis associ-ates have been allegedly runningpropagandachannelsondifferentso-cial media platforms such asTelegram, Hoop and Instagram forpropagatingIS ideologyandrecruit-ingmembers.

APURVAVISHWANATHNEWDELHI, JANUARY3

THECENTREonMondaynotifiedthe appointment of three addi-tional judges of Bombay HighCourt as permanent judges andextendedtenureofanotheraddi-tional judgeof theHCbyayear.“Inexerciseofthepowercon-

ferredby clause (l) of Article 217andbyclause(l)ofArticleArticle224 of the Constitution of India,the President, after consultationwith theChief Justice of India, ispleasedtoappoint the followingasJudges/AdditionalJudgeofthefollowingHighCourts,w.e.f. thedatetheyassumechargeof theirrespective offices, vide notifica-tionsdated03.01.2022…”theno-tificationstated.While Justices Madhav

Jayajirao Jamdar, AmitBhalchandraBorkarandShrikantDattatray Kulkarni were ap-pointed permanent judges,JusticeAbhayAhuja’s tenurehasbeen extended as an additionaljudgebyayear.In July last year the Bombay

HCCollegiumhadrecommended

namesoffiveadditionaljudges—JusticesJamdar,Borkar,Kulkarni,Ahuja, and Justice PushpaGanediwala— to be appointedpermanent judges. According toa statement by the SupremeCourtCollegiumonDecember16last year, Justices Jamdar, Borkarand Kulkarni were recom-mendedforappointmentasper-manent judges with a recom-mendation to extend the tenureof JusticeAhujabyayear.Inarareinstanceofdemotion

ofanHCjudge, thecollegiumde-cided tonot recommend JusticeGanediwalaaspermanent judgeofBombayHCaftertwoofherver-dictswere closely scrutinised forcontroversialinterpretationofsex-ualassaultunderPOCSOAct,2012.JusticeGanediwala’stenureis

expectedtoendonFebruary13.Inaseparatenotification, the

government appointed JusticeAniruddhaRoy, additional judgeof Calcutta HC, as permanentjudge of the HC. In January lastyear,thecollegiumhadreiteratedits recommendation to appointjustice Roy, as Centre had notacted on the first recommenda-tionmadein2018.

Jammu: The Army onMonday said it had foiled aninfiltrationbidfromacrosstheLine of Control inHamirpurareaofPoonchdistrict.Defence PRO Lt Colonel

DevenderAnand said troopsonSundaynight sawagroupofmilitantstryingtoinfiltratethroughBhimberGali Sectorandopenedfire.Themilitantsfledback,hesaid.Hesaiddur-ing searches later, ammuni-tion and Pakistani currencywereseized.ENS

INFILTRATIONBID FOILED

Two militants killed; were involvedin attacks on civilians: J&K Police

CAT: Engineers againdominate toppers’ list

Security forcesatoneof theencountersites inShalimar,Srinagar,onMonday. ShuaibMasoodi

NIA arrests ex-MLA’s kin for suspected IS links

EXPRESSNEWSSERVICENEWDELHI, JANUARY3

SUPREMECOURTonMondayasked theCentre totakeacall on the representationof aKerala-basedman,whohas soughtdirections tobringbackhisdaughter andgranddaughter,whoare reportedlylodgedinanAfghanjailatpresent.Thedaughterandherhusbandhadtravelledto

Afghanistanin2016tojointerroroutfitISIS.Shesur-renderedbeforeAfghanauthorities afterherhus-

band died in amissile attack inNovember2019, according to thepetitioner.Making it clear it isnotexpressinganyopiniononthemer-its of thematter, Justices LNages-waraRaoandBRGavai asked theCentre todecideonVJSebastian’srepresentationineightweeks.Althoughthepetitionersought

liberty to again approach the topcourtaftereightweeks,thebench,whiledisposingoftheplea,saidhecouldapproachKeralaHighCourtifhewasstillaggrievedbythegov-ernmentresponse.Sebastianwants the govern-

menttoextraditeandrepatriatehisdaughter Sonia Sebastian, whoconverted to Islam and took thename Ayisha before marryingAbdulRashidAbdullain2011.The petitioner’s counsel

pointed out that although therewere reports of prisonsbeingde-molishedaftertheTalibancametopower, it was difficult to saywhetherSoniaandherchildwerenotindetentionastherewerealsoreportsofprisonersbeingdetainedattheborders.ThepleacontendedtheCentreisnotdoinganythingtobring them back and that thisamounted to violation of humanrights obligations under interna-tional law. “Wecannot direct thegovernment to takeadecisiononyour request because extraditionmattersarenotmatterswherewecangivendecisionsonmatterslikethese...Allthesearemattersforthegovernment to decide,” saidJusticeRao.

PRESS NIT No. 29 (2021-22)

The more detail required above can be seen on website www.delhi.govtprocurement.com

ISSUED BY P.R.O. (WATER)Advt. No. J.S.V. 940(2021-22)

Sd/-EX. ENGINEER (C) PLANT. WW

C/o CE (WW)

S.No.

Name of Work EstimatedCost

Earnest Money (Fresh)❖v As per the clause of

additional informationof NIT Para No. 1/C-(i)

TenderProcessingFee (Fresh)

Publication date oftender in e-

procurement Solution

Last date & time forreceipt of tender

from e-procurementsolution

1 Boring & Installation of 1000/1200 mm dia Tubewellsat Dwarka WTP under EE(C) Plant, WW.(Tender ID: 2021_DJB_213909_1)

19124823/- 382500/- 1000/- 31.12.2021 17.01.2022

“STOP CORONA: WEAR MASK, FOLLOW PHYSICAL DISTANCING, MAINTAIN HAND HYGIENE”

OFFICE OF THE EXECUTIVE ENGINEER (CIVIL) PLANT WWC/o CHIEF ENGINEER (WW)

DELHI JAL BOARD: GOVT. OF N.C.T. DELHICHANDRAWAL: WATER WORKS NO. II CIVIL LINES: DELHI-54Office Telephone No.:- 23815504 E-mail: eecplant.djb@nic.in

Guru Ghasidas Vishwavidyalaya,(A Central University) Koni, Bilaspur, Chhattisgarh-495009

Website: www.ggu.ac.in, Phone: 07752- 260036

Notice Ref No. 2021/22 Bilaspur Dated 31st Dec. 2021

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SC to Centre: Takecall on man’s plea forbringing daughterback from Afghan jail

Bombay High Court getsthree permanent judges

Govt seeks urgent hearing,SC says CJI to look into itEXPRESSNEWSSERVICENEWDELHI, JANUARY6

THE CENTRE onMonday urgedthe Supreme Court to take uppetitionschallengingthecriteriafor Economically WeakerSections (EWS) quota in NEET-PG(All-IndiaQuota)onTuesday,saying that there is a “genuineurgency” in thematter.Solicitor General Tushar

Mehta conveyed this toabenchheaded by Justice D YChandrachud,whoassuredthathe will take it up with ChiefJusticeof IndiaNVRamana,whowill takeacall on listing it.Thepetitionswereearlierbe-

ingheardbyabenchheadedby

JusticeChandrachud,whichhadaskedtheCentretoexplainwhatexerciseithadundertakentoar-rive at Rs 8 lakh annual incomecriteria for being eligible for thequota. Responding to this, theCentre said on November 25,2021,thatitwillrevisitthecrite-ria and sought fourweeks timetocomplete theexercise.The court had fixed thenext

date of hearing for January 6,2022.On December 31, 2021, the

government filed an affidavit inSC stating that it has acceptedtherecommendationmadebyacommittee set up by it and de-cided to retain Rs 8 lakh annualincome criteria for the currentadmissioncycle.

NEET EWS QUOTA CASE

New Delhi

EXPRESSNETWORK 9WWW.INDIANEXPRESS.COMTHEINDIANEXPRESS,TUESDAY, JANUARY4,2022

EXPRESSNEWSSERVICENEWDELHI, JANUARY3

SOMESTORIESneedadeeperun-derstandingandanalysistoassessthe enormity of their impact onpeople’s lives. This is why theRamnathGoenkaAwardshaveanon-fiction book category thatrecognises publishedwork thatcovers an issue on a scale thatnewspapers or television chan-nels cannot attempt. The awardisforbookspublishedinEnglish.ArunMohan Sukumarwon

the award in this category forMidnight'sMachines: A PoliticalHistory of Technology in India,whichwaspublished in2019. Inhisbook,Sukumarexamineshowpolitics inIndiahas ledthecoun-

try to reject or embrace certaintechnologies. He takes a broadview,from1947tothepresent,tolook at howpolitics, and thepo-liticalclass,inIndiashapethewaycitizensthinkabouttechnology.Sukumar isaPhDcandidate

at the Fletcher School, Tufts

University, and a junior fellowat the school’s Centre forInternational Law andGovernance. He heads theTechnology Initiative at theObserverResearchFoundation,NewDelhi.“We often read debates sur-

rounding technology with re-spect to Aadhaar, data breachesanduseofdataforsurveillance. Iwantedto lookintohowpoliticsin India has influenced technol-ogy; because politics has prettymuch affected all aspects of ourday-to-day lives. That is the in-spiration behind Midnight’sMachines,”Sukumarsays.The absence of other books

of a similar scale that focus ontheinfluencethatpoliticshasontechnology was one of thebiggest challenges for Sukumarwhile writing his book. “Thereare some extraordinary booksthathaveanalysedthehistoryoftechnology, including in theearly years of Independence.There are few, at least in myknowledge, that look at the in-

fluence of politics on technol-ogy,”headds.Sukumar’s book looks at

technology in its variousmani-festations—space,nuclear,agri-cultural and ‘civilian’ technolo-gies that are used by Indians intheirdailylife.“Itwasachallengetoidentifyandselectpeople,mo-ments, timelines and technolo-giesthatwerecrucialtothemak-ingofmodern India,”hesaid.He had to rely on govern-

ment recordsandnewsreports,which,hesaid,areextremelyim-portanttoidentifyapopularnar-rative.“Ididsubsequentresearchto identify what were the de-batesthatshapedthemorwhatweretheircontributionstoshap-ing Indians’ perception of tech-nology,”hesaid.

ArunMohanSukumar

Book on influence of politics in tech wins in non-fiction categoryArunMohanSukumarwon theRamnathGoenkaAward in theBooks (Non-Fiction)category forMidnight’sMachines:APoliticalHistory ofTechnology in India

EXPRESSNEWSSERVICENEWDELHI, JANUARY3

THE SUPREME Court MondaystayedtheAllahabadHighCourtorder granting bail to one of themain accused in theDecember2018 Bulandshahar lynching inwhich apolice officerwas killedamidprotestsovercowslaughter.A bench of Justices S K Kaul

and MM Sundresh asked ac-cused Yogeshraj to surrenderwithinsevendays.“Thematter is quite serious

where under the pretext of the

cow slaughter, a police officerhasbeenlynched.Primafacie, itisacaseofpeopletakinglawintotheir own hand.We are of theview that Yogeshraj should beasked to surrenderwithin a pe-riod of seven days from todayand thus to that extent, the im-pugnedordersgrantinghimbailare stayed,” thebenchsaid.InDecember2018, Inspector

SubodhKumarSinghanda localresident,SumitKumar,werekilledinmobviolencenear Siyanavil-lageofthedistrictduringprotestsagainstallegedcowslaughter.Thebenchwashearingaplea

by the officer’swife Rajni Singhagainstthe2019AllahabadHCor-der.TheaccusedwasgrantedbailinSection124A(sedition)andhadearlierbeengivenbailinothersec-tions, including 120B (conspir-acy),147(rioting)amongothers.Appearing for the petitioner,

senioradvocateSanjayHegdesaidthe accused after being releasedonbail, had contested electionsandhadbeenbookedforallegedlythreatening tokill someonewhodidnotvoteforhim. ThecounselappearingforYogeshrajsaidthereis no specific allegation againsthimof lynching.

EXPRESSNEWSSERVICEAHMEDABAD, JANUARY3

SENIORAAMAadmiPartyleaderIsudanGadhvi,whowasbookedunder the Prohibition Act onJanuary 1, was arrested inGandhinagaronMonday.Hegotbail by theevening.Gadhvihadbeenjailedfor11

days for protesting at the BJPheadquarters on December 20in Gandhinagar over a paperleak. The Gandhinagar policeclaimed that a test report of hisfrom the day of the protestshowed 0.0545 per cent pres-enceof alcohol.Thetestwasconductedafter

a woman worker of theBharatiya Janata Party com-plained that he sexually ha-rassedherduringtheprotestinadrunkenstate.Beforehisarrest,Gadhvisaid:

“I have never consumed liquorinmylife...OnDecember20po-lice detained me and told methat theywere takingme to thecivilhospitalforbloodtest. I toldthemthat Iwould like toget thetest done in a private facility aswell,which theyrefused.”“Afterthebloodtest,doctors

at the civil hospital conductedpreliminarytestsregardingpres-ence of alcohol and a breathanalyser test... in both I testednegative. I was told that theblood report will come in 48hoursbut itcameafter12days,”hesaid.Demanding that his blood

test be conducted in a statewherethe“BJPcannotinfluencethe report”, Gadhvi added, “Iwant a lie-detector and brain-mapping test conducted by thedirectorate of forensic sciencesin Gujarat and it should bevideo-recorded. I alsowant theblood sample taken fromme tobepreserved.”AAP Delhi’s legal cell secre-

taryRishikeshKumararrived inAhmedabadonMondaytoassistthe legal teamofAAPGujarat inthecases facedby their leaders.

ANONNADUTTNEWDELHI, JANUARY3

The Indian Space ResearchOrganisation is targeting thelaunchoffirstofthetwoplanneduncrewed flights under theGaganyaan mission beforeIndependenceDaythisyearandthe third lunar missionChandrayaan-3 by “middle ofthenext year”, said chairpersonDrKSivanonMonday.“Ifyoulookattheimmediate

task at hand this year, we havemanymissionstoexecute.Someof theseare launchofEOS-4andEOS-6 on board PSLV. Launch ofEOS-02 on boardmaiden flightofSSLV.ManytestflightsforCrewEscapeSystemofGaganyaanand

Launch of the first unmannedmission of Gaganyaan. In addi-tion,wealsohaveChandrayaan-03, Aditya Ll, XpoSat, IRNSS andtechnologydemonstrationmis-sions with advanced indige-nously developed technologieson-board,” Sivan said in a letterpostedontheagency’swebsite.The chairperson also gave

someupdates. “Chandrayaan-3designchangesincorporatingandtesting has seen huge progress.Themissioncouldbelaunchedbymiddleofnextyear,”hesaid.Thelaunchofthreeearthob-

servation satellites have beendelayedformonthsnow.Allma-jormissionswhichwere to takeplacein2021werepushedwhenthelaunchschedulewasrevisedafter thesecondwave.

EXPRESSNEWSSERVICEMUMBAI, JANUARY3

SAMEERWANKHEDE,Mumbaizonal director of the NarcoticsControl Bureau, Monday re-ceived orders to join to theDirectorate of RevenueIntelligence,anNCBofficialsaid.Wankhede’stenureatthecentralanti-drugs agency ended onDecember31,2021.Hewillserveas additional director at DRI’sRiskManagementDivision.Wankhede,a2008batchoffi-

ceroftheIndianRevenueService,wasbroughttotheMumbaiNCBinSeptember2020whenadrugscasewasregisteredfollowingthedeath of actor Sushant SinghRajput. Hewas granted two ex-tensions, including the one inOctober-December when theNCB arrested actor Shah Rukh

Khan’s son Aryan. “He receivedtheorderonMonday,”anNCBof-ficial said.Wankhede’s stint came un-

deracloudfollowingAryan’sar-rest. An internal inquiry wasstartedafterextortionallegationswereraisedbyawitness.Thelastthreemonths also saw allega-tions fly between WankhedeNCPleaderNawabMalik.

ISRO targets Gaganyaanlaunch before August 15

Wankhede moved to DRI

SameerWankhede’sNCBtenureendedonDec31.

SC stays Allahabad HC bail to mainaccused in Bulandshahr cop lynching

Charged underprohibitionlaw, GujaratAAP leaderheld; gets bail

SANJANABHALERAOMUMBAI, JANUARY3

AMIDA steady rise in Covid-19cases in the city, schools run bythecivicbodywillremainclosedforClasses1to9andClass11tillJanuary 31, said theBrihanmumbaiMunicipal cor-poration (BMC)onMonday.Only students of Classes 10

and12will be allowed to attendin-person classes after parentalconsentasstudentsarecurrentlypreparingforthepreliminaryex-ams, before the board exams inMarch-April. Hybrid classes forClass10and12canbeconductedbyschools.Raju Tadvi, BMC’s Education

Officersaid, “Students intheage

group of 15 to 18 will only becalled to schools for their vacci-nation.Teacherswillresumefullyonlineclasses starting January4forClasses1to9and11.”OnMonday,Mumbai began

thevaccinationdrive for the15-18agegroup.Vaccinationforthisage bracket is being carried outatninejumbocentreswitheachcentre having a capacity to vac-cinate 1,500 every day, said Dr

Mangala Gomare, ExecutiveHealthOfficer,BMC.After a week-long winter

break, thecivic-runschoolshadreopenedinthecityonMonday.However, the schools recordedlowerattendance thanbefore.Over2,000civic-runschools

had arranged for vaccination ofstudents in the15-18agegrouponMonday. Over 6.25 lakh stu-dents from the city are eligibleforvaccination.“We facilitated vaccination

of 210 eligible students fromour schools. To ensure that allstudents are vaccinated, a par-ents-teachervirtualconferencewas conducted during theweekend,” said AmbarsingMagar, Principal, SG BarveNagarmunicipal school.

MAYURAJANWALKARPANAJI, JANUARY3

WITH THE Covid-19 positivityrate jumping to 26.43 per cent,the Goa government will soonissueanotificationtoclosedownschoolsandcolleges in thestateand also impose night curfew,the state's Covid task force de-cidedonMonday.ChiefMinisterPramodSawant

said: “Weheld ameeting of thetask force (onCovid-19).Wearethinkingoveranightcurfew.Therewill be restrictionson schools. Adetailednotewillfollow.”

The state recorded 631 newcasesonMonday, taking the to-tal number of active cases to2,240,thefirsttimesinceJuly.Ofthe new cases, fivewere hospi-

talised. Therewerenodeaths.On Sunday, the state had

recorded COVID-19 positivityrateof 10.76percent.Meanwhile, 66 people on

boardacruise ship thatarrivedin Goa from Mumbai onSundayhave testedpositive forCovid-19. None of the passen-gerswasallowedentry into thestate without testing after onecrewmemberwas foundposi-tive on Sunday.

EXPRESSNEWSSERVICEPATNA, JANUARY3

SIXOF186peoplewhoattendedchief minister Nitish Kumar'sweekly‘JantaDurbar’andacookat the CMhouse tested positiveforCovid-19onMonday.“It isamatterofconcernthat

sixpeoplehavebeentestedpos-itive....we have been closelywatchingthesituation.Hospitalsare well prepared to deal withCovid surge,” NitishKumar toldreportersafterJantaDurbarpro-gramme.Meanwhile, former CMand

HindustaniAwamMorchaleaderJitanRamManjhi,hiswifeand16ofhisfamilymembersandstaffershave testedCovidpositive. Theyare inhomeisolation inManjhi’spaternalvillageofMahkarinGaya.ThisisthesecondtimeManjhihastestedpositive.The CMwill go ahead with

his scheduled ‘Samaj Sudharcampaign’ inGayaonTuesday.Separately,overtheprevious

twodays,morethan100doctorsinPatnahave testedpositive forCovid-19.

RISINGCOVID-19CASES

Mumbai:BMCschools tostop in-personclasses

Studentsarrive forvaccination inMumbai.GaneshShirsekar

Positivity rate at 26.43%, Goa to close schoolsVaccinationunderwayforthoseinthe15-18agegroup,ataschoolinBicholim,Goa,Monday.Express

Seven test positiveat Nitish’s ‘JantaDurbar’; 100 Patnadoctors infected

ABHISHEKANGADRANCHI, JANUARY3

TWOBROTHERS,aged32and27,returning home after NewYearcelebrationswere tied to a poleandassaultedformorethanonehour by neighbours, who sus-pected that their parents prac-tised witchcraft, in a village inGumladistrictof Jharkhand.Police have arrested six peo-

pleandareinvestigatingthepos-sibleinvolvementofsevenothers,includingthewomanmukhiyaofLekeya village panchayat, whohavebeennamed in theFIR. TheaccusedhavebeenbookedunderrelevantprovisionsoftheIPCand2001ant-witchcraft law.“The incident occurred on

January 1 between 8 pm and 9pm.SanjayandAjayOraonwerebeaten with lathis and bricks.Theyreceivedgrievousinjuries,”said Gumla Sub-Division PoliceOfficerManishChandLal.WhileSanjay,theelderofthe

two,sufferedinjuriesinhisbackand face, his younger brotherAjay suffered head injuries andoneof hiseyeswasgouged.Ajay, who worked as a

labourerinTamilNadu,hadcomehomeaftertwoyearstocelebratetheNewYearwithhis family.According to victims’ com-

plaint, thiswas the third time inayeartheyhadbeentargetedby

the villagers, includingmukhiyaSugimaDevi,forpractisingwitch-craft. Theysaid theyapproachedthepolicemultipletimesbuttheycontinuedtobetargeted.AccordingtoSanjay,problems

forthefamilybeganayearagoaf-ter his first cousin died whileworkinginafactoryinRanchi.“The mukhiya along with

others took us to a quack whotold us that my parents had aghost in our house, whichmaytrouble the entire village. Thequacktoldthemtocastusoutorkill us,” he said. Following this,the familywas threatened sev-eral times,hesaid.

JHARKHAND

ALTHOUGHJHARKHANDpassedtheMobViolenceandLynchingBillinDecemberlastyear,policeofficersandlawyerssayitisstillnotclearwhetheritcoversincidentsinwhichwitchcraftsuspicionsareinvolvedasthegovern-mentnotificationisawaited.Whilethestatehasa2001anti-witchcraftlaw,itremainstobeseenif themorestrin-gentanti-lynchinglawwillcovercasesof“witchhunting”.

The lawoverlapE●EX

PLAINED

2 brothers assaultedover ‘witchcraft’,eye of one gouged

new website. One of them, aCongress leader, said: “I wasshocked… itwas happening alloveragain.Theseunknownmendiscuss our rates, auctionus anduse vulgar language… I hadlodged a complaint even inMaywhenagroupofmenwerepost-ing our photos on YouTube andaskingformoneyfromothermentocontinuethe ‘entertainment’. Iwasintrauma.AndthenIfiledanFIRfor(theearlierGitHubcase); IprovidedDelhi Police all the evi-dence,buttheyneverhelpedme.”Another journalist, barely a

year into the profession, alsofoundthatshewastargeted.Sheisworking on filing a complaint.“Theonly things unifying all thewomeninthe list is that theyareallMuslimandtheyhaveallbeenvocal.Mostarejournalistsjustdo-ing their jobs, someare activists,and some are evenminors justvoicingthemselvesonsocialme-dia. Themessagehere is, ‘Wearebrazen enough to do this to youandwecandoitagain’,”shesaid.She said shewas conflicted

about how to share this experi-encewithherfamilyandwhethersheshouldgopublicaboutit.“My family is grieving the re-

centpassingofmygrandmother.ThoughIfoundoutonDecember31 that Iwas targeted, I only justtoldmyparentsaboutitandaskedthemwhatIshoulddo.Theyhan-dled it much better than I ex-

pectedandtoldmethattheywillsupportmeingoingforwardwitha complaint. To be honest, theydidn’t seem surprised,we haveseentheharassmentthatMuslimwomenjournalistsaresubjectedto,”shesaid.A pilot,whohad filed an FIR

withUttarPradeshPoliceduringthe previous case, said: “I washopeful and thought Iwouldgetjustice but the UP Police nevereven calledme for questioning. Icalled the investigating officermultiple times but it was all invain. Themenhavenowcreatedanother page.When I saw thescreenshots,Iwasshockedandal-mostmoved to tears... Theywillkeepdoingthisbecausetheywanttosilenceourvoicesandthegov-ernment is not doing anything.Maybe it’s working… I do feelweak now. I don’twish to go toworkandIamnotable tosleep. Ikeepwonderingwhy theyusedmyphoto. I never get political orgetintoanydebatesorfights.”Another journalist said a

friend whose photo was alsomisused filed an FIR with theDelhi Police and another filed acomplaint with the GurgaonPolicelasttime.“Noneofuswerecalledforquestioningoranyup-date. The Gurgaon Police nevercontactedher…It’s toostressfulandIamscared.Themenwilldothisagainif theyarenotstoppednow,”shesaid.

through the IP address of theTwitter accounts thatwereusedtouploadthephotographs.Hehasnotbeenarrestedyet.Askedif thestudentwasalso

suspected to be involved in de-veloping the app orwas part ofa larger group, the officer said:"We will be questioning himaboutall this."Basedonacomplaint filedby

oneofthewomentargetedbytheapp, theMumbai Police CrimeBranch's cyber police station(west) had lodged an FIR onJanuary1against unknownper-sonswhodevelopedtheappandsome Twitter handles that dis-seminated its content, under IPCSections 153 (A) (promoting en-mitybetweendifferentgroupsongroundsof religion),153 (B) (im-putations, assertions prejudicialto national integration), 295(A)(deliberateandmaliciousacts,in-tendedtooutragereli-gious feel-ings),354D(stalking),509(insult-ing modesty) and 500(defamation), and Section 67(transmittingobscenecontent inelectronicform)of theITAct.The appwas hosted on US-

basedGitHub onDecember 31.Doctored photos of at least 100Muslimwomen,alongwithlewdremarks and comments, werepostedonline.The Indian Computer

Emergency Response System(Cert-In), the nodal agency for

monitoring cyber security inci-dents and related threats, hasbeenasked to form"ahigh levelcommittee"toprobetheincident,andtoco-ordinatewiththecybercellsofstatepoliceforces.Late on Saturday night,

Minister for Electronics andInformationTechnologyAshwiniVaishnaw had tweeted thatGitHubhadblockedtheuser, andCert-Inandpolicewere"co-coordi-natingfurtheraction".OnSunday,inaseparatetweet,Vaishnawsaidthat thegovernmentwas"work-ingwithpolice organisations inDelhiandMumbaionthismatter".OnSunday,separateFIRswere

registered in thecasebypolice inDelhi andMumbai. In her com-plainttopolice,aDelhi-basedjour-nalist accusedunknownpersonsof promotingenmity, sexual ha-rassment,andinsultingwomen.Shiv Sena MP Priyanka

Chaturvedi had amplified thewomen's complaints on socialmedia.MaharashtraMinister ofStateforHome(Urban)SatejPatiltookupthe issuewith thestate'scyberpolicedepartment.On Monday night, Patil

tweeted,"MumbaiPolicehasgotabreakthrough.Thoughwecan-notdisclosethedetailsatthismo-mentasitmayhampertheongo-ing investigation, Iwould like toassureall thevictims thatweareproactivelychasingtheculprits&theywill facethelawverysoon."

the new bridge, is near thehalfwaymarkoftheboomerang-shapedlake.Historically a part of India,

Khurnak Fort has been underChinesecontrolsince1958.FromKhurnakFort,theLACisconsider-ablywest,withIndiaclaimingitatFinger8andChinaatFinger4.Thenorthandsouthbanksof

the lakewere among the severalfrictionpointsthatsurfacedafterthestartofthestandoff.Beforethetwosidespulledbacktroopsfromthe north and south banks inFebruary2021, theareahadseenmassivemobilisation. The twoarmieshadevendeployedtanks,barely a few hundred metresapartinsomelocations.Towards the end of August

2020,IndiaoutmanoeuvredChinatocapturethepreviouslyunoccu-piedheightsof theKailashRangeonthesouthbankofthelake.Indian troops positioned

themselveson theheights there,includingMagarHill,GurungHill,RezangLa,RechinLa, and this al-lowed them to dominate thestrategicSpanggurGap—itcanbeusedforlaunchinganoffensive,asChinahaddonein1962--andalsogave themaviewof thePLAgar-risonatMoldo.Indian troops had also posi-

tioned themselves above theChinesetroopsintheFingersareaon the north bank. During thisscramble for the heights, shotshadbeenfiredbybothsides,afirstinoverfourdecades.

Troops remained on theseheightsthroughtheharshwintermonths.Thesignificanceofthesepositionswasoneofthemainfac-tors that compelledChina tone-gotiateapullback.Both countries agreed to a

pullback from thenorth bankofthe lake, and positions on theKailashRangeintheChushulsub-sector,southofPangongTso.Sources said the newbridge

beingbuiltbyChinawillallowittomobilise troops faster in thisarea, and the purpose is to pre-vent a repeatofwhathappenedinAugust2020.Chinahasbeendevelopingin-

frastructure in the entire regionsincethestartofthestandoff.Thewidening of roads, building ofnewroadsandbridges,newbases,airstrips, advance landingbases,etc arenot restricted to the east-ern Ladakh region, but are hap-peningacrossthethreesectorsoftheSino-Indianboundary.India toohasbeenimproving

itsinfrastructureintheborderar-eas. Last year, the Border RoadsOrganisation completedmorethan100projectsinborderareas,themajorityofwhichwerecloseto theborderwithChina. India isalso improving its surveillancealongtheentire3488-kmbound-ary, and has been building newairstripsandlandingareas.Both countries have over

50,000 troops each in the areasalongtheLadakhfrontier.

FROMPAGEONEEast of LAC, China buildsnew bridge on Pangong Tso

‘Happening all overagain... unknown mendiscussing, auctioning us’

Mumbai Police detainengineering student

New Delhi

10WWW.INDIANEXPRESS.COM

TRACK THEM DOWNActagainstthosetargetingMuslimwomenfor ‘auction,’and‘sale.’Therecanbenoimpunityforcriminalbigotry-misogyny

T HEONLINE“SALE”of100-oddMuslimwomenonanapphostedontheGithubplatformisshockingandoutrageous.Thegovernmentmusttakeurgent,exem-plaryactionagainsttheperpetrators.Simplytakingdowntheapp,withoutim-posingcostsonsuchcriminalbehaviour,isonlyanencouragementofimpunity.

Indeed, this is not the first instanceof targetedharassmentofMuslimwomen, especiallythosewithanassertivepresenceonsocialmedia. In Junelastyear,asimilarapphadstagedan“auction”ofwomen fromthecommunity,with language thatdehumanised theminto“dealsof theday”.Thepolice investigation into thosewhocreatedthatapphasmade littleprogress,apparentlybecauseofthelackofadequateresponsefromGithub,whichdoesnothaveapresenceinIndia.True,theanonymityof theinternetmakesitpossibleforcriminalstomasktheirdigital footprintsandidentity.Butthegovernmentandits investigativeagen-cieshavetheexpertiseandresourcestotrackoffendersdown,andtheclouttomakemulti-nationalsocialmediacompaniescomplywhentheywishto—ashasbeenseenintheCentre’sdealingswithTwitter, forinstance.Toframethisasafreespeechissuewouldbewilfulblindness.Fromdoctoringwomen’s

photographstolewdcommentstocommunaldog-whistling,theycrossoverintocriminal-ity and sexual harassment inways that call for cyber-crimecells to takeurgent attention.Acrosstheworld,womenexperiencetheinternetasaplaceofhostilityandabuse,onethatpunishesthemforspeakingtheirmindortellingtheirstories,thatseekstopushthembackintoacornerbyshamingandsexualisingtheirbodies.Butthe“auction”ofwomenfromtheminority community is not just standard-issuemisogyny. In a climateofmajoritarianex-cess,attacksonminoritiesandopenunpunishedcallsformassmurder,thechoreographedhumiliationofMuslimwomenpanderstotheworstcommunaltendenciesandfantasiesofviolence.Itseekstopushoutanalreadyembattledcommunityfromthedigitalpublicsquarebyattackingthedignityof itswomen.Itisevenmoreimportant,therefore,forthegovernmenttodrawtheredlinesandsend

out a strong, clearmessage. The NarendraModi government’s stated commitment towomen’sempowermenthas led it todesignschemessuchasBetiBachao,BetiPadhao. IthasoftencongratulateditselfasachampionoftherightsofMuslimwomenbyholdinguplegislationagainsttripletalaq.Itcannotnowaffordtobeslow-footedinfollowingthroughin a case of such flagrant violation. The Centre has oftenweaponised the IPC to go afterdissentersandactivists.Thistime, itmustusepushonlineplatformstoassistwiththein-vestigationandidentifytheoffenders.Theremustbefirm,visibleactionagainstthiscrim-inalbigotryandmisogyny.

NO TIME TO LOSEStatesmustutiliseCentre’sCovidfundstothefullest.Countrycannotaffordarepeatofdevastationwreakedbysecondwave

O NEOFTHEcrucial learningsof thepast twoyears’ battle against the coron-avirusisthatauthoritiesateverylevel—policy-makers,scientificandadmin-istrativeagencies—mustendeavourtostayseveralstepsaheadoftheconta-gion. Yet, the story of unpreparedness seems to be repeating itself as the

countrystaresatapotentialthirdwaveofthepandemic.Atareviewmeetingofstatehealthministersandseniorofficialsofthestatehealthdepartments,UnionHealthMinisterMansukhMandaviyareportedlytoldstatesthattheyhadcollectivelyutilisedonly17percentoftheRs23,123croreemergencypackageapprovedbytheCentre inAugust torampupmedical in-frastructure.Sevenstates—UP,Karnataka,Maharashtra,WestBengal,TamilNadu,MadhyaPradesh,andAndhraPradesh—weretosetupICUfacilitieswithmorethan1,000beds. It’sworrying that fourof them—Maharashtra,WestBengal, TamilNaduandKarnataka—areamongststatesthataredrivingthecurrentspikeinthecountry’scaseload.Sincethesecondhalfof lastyear,theCentrehasgivenstatesleewayinmakingregional

anddistrict-specificanti-Covidplans,while ithas takenontheroleof a facilitator,provid-ing fundsandguidance.However, theresponseof thestateshas largelybeenemergency-drivenandtakentheformofimposingcurbsonthemovementofpeople.Theeconomiccostsof such restrictions and the social distress they cause should have beenobvious bynow.With the improvements inmedical knowledge over the past two years, the use of suchbluntmeasuresshouldbekepttothebareminimum, ifnottotallyavoided. It’s important,therefore, that infrastructural facilities are bolstered in time, instead of resorting to last-minutemake-shift arrangements like turninghotels, sports stadia, andother largeprem-ises into Covid-fighting zones. The emergencyplanhas a significant rural component toaddbedsinprimary,secondary,andcommunityhealthcarecentresinsixstates—UP,Bihar,AndhraPradesh,Assam,andJharkhand.GiventhetolltakenbythevirusinruralIndiadur-ingthesecondwave,theurgencyofputtingthesefundstoproperusecannotbeoverstated.Hospitaloccupancyrates seemtobe lowso far in thecurrentoutbreak.Butwith the

high transmissibility rate of theOmicron variant,which seems to be driving this surge,nothing shouldbe left to chance. Experts reckon that thenext six toeightweekswill becrucial inthefightagainstthevirus’snewestavatar.Thescarsof thesecondwavehaven’tyethealedandthecountrycannotaffordanotherscrambleforICUbedsandoxygencylin-ders. Stateshavenotimeto lose.

Apoorva Javadekar

Apublicdiscoursearoundquestionsofitsmeaning,repertoire,purposeandlimitswillhavetobeenriched

ON CAPEX, A REALITY CHECKDatasuggestsit’stooearlytopredictavirtuousinvestmentcycleinIndia

THENEWYEARbringsachallenge.Corrosionofdemocracyformsthebackdroptothe75thyearof freedom,overshadowingthecelebra-tions. The officialwebsite calls themoment“azadi ka amritmahotsav”, though in the re-centpast,thosetalkingofazadiwerehoundedasthetukde-tukdegang.Suchisthefractureinour public psyche that azadi canbe equatedwithananti-nationalpositionontheonehandandontheotherhand,amyopicviewofazadiallowsdismembermentof itscore—democ-racy.Thechallenge,therefore,istokeepIndia’sdemocracyalive.Areweuptoit?Theunexpected spread of democracy at

the fag-end of the last century produced aglobal overuseof the term, denuding it of itsmeaning. Evenas the industry ofmeasuringandrankingdemocraciesthrived,thepracticeof trading off democracy’s substance for itsskeletalformbecameaboomingbusiness.Justas the “D”wordbecamepolitically themostusefulandusedword,italsobecamesovaguethatitsadversariesnolongerneededtoargueagainst it. Rather thananti-democratic argu-ments,wenowwitness theskillful tamingofdemocracy.In India, the taming of democracy is

markedbythreemaladies.First,electoralma-joritiesareunderstoodtohaveelectedasuper-herowithunboundedwisdom.Thebeliefthatthe“kingcandonowrong”wouldpaleinthebackdropof faith in the leader’smotives andactions.Thepopularlanguageofmandatebe-comespoliticallycentraltothisphenomenon.Insteadofelecting(andchanging)representa-tivesresponsibleforgovernance,electionsbe-comethemythicalritualofcoronation.Whilemostpartiesareafflictedwiththismisconcep-tion and sundry representatives invoke it tojustify their power and prestige, NarendraModihas taken it to anunprecedented level.Notonlyhasheassumedtheroleofbeingtherepresentative of 125 crorepeople, he is alsoseenasthepersonificationofpopularwill.Thispersonification is then translated into legit-imising a fundamental reworkingnot just ofthephysicalstructuresofthepolity,butitsnor-mativepracticesandideologicalbases.Two, electoral majorities are seen un-

abashedlyas flowingfrom,andreflectingthemajorityofonecommunityconstructedfrommany sects and traditions. At an ideologicallevel,attemptstoconflatethenationwithonecommunity have gained ground. At amore

practicallevel,thepublicsphereisseizedwiththe issueofwhatwedowithcitizensnotbe-longing to themajority faith. In governanceterms, they are beingpushed into the shad-owy recesses of invisibilitywhile inpoliticalterms,theyarebroughtforwardasenemiesofthenation. This violent discourseproduces aslippageofdemocraticrhetoricintonational-istrhetoric,sometimesjuxtaposingthenationagainstdemocracyandsometimesconflatingthenationalwiththedemocratic.Three, 21st century manipulations of

democracyhave almost successfully robbedpeople’s agency fromdemocracy. An over-sized image of the leader, claims ofwisdombytheelectedautocracyandconsistentdele-gitimisationofanydifferenceasanti-nationalhavemeantthatthecategoryofpeopleexistsas the symbolic legitimiser of power. Peoplealsoexistasmanufacturedexpressionsofpub-lic unreason to be unleashed against oppo-nents of the regime. But people as a demo-craticforcedonotexistoratleastdonotcountformuch.All three afflictions have global parallels.

They rundeep in our polity and are shapingourpoliticalculture.Aboveall,theyhavedem-ocratic pretensions,whichmakes it tough toidentifythem,critiquethemandisolatethem.Democraciesareadeptatcounteringopen

attacks. Theywill have to invent newstrate-giesforfacingwhatscholarshavebeencalling“democratic”waysofsubvertingdemocracy.InIndia, the list of expectations and failures islong. Thebureaucracyhaspathetically cavedin, investigating agencies have practicallytransformed into a legalmafia, judiciaryhasbecomeasermonisingpriestatbestand ide-ologicalpartnerofexecutiveatworst.Theme-dia prides itself on being the trumpetingbrigadeofpseudo-nationalismbesideswork-ingasPRagenciesof theregime.Inthisbleakbackdrop,threepathwaysare

worthconsidering.Thefirstisthemostattrac-tiveandoneinwhichdemocratsinvestalot—protests,agitationsandmovements.Fromstu-dentstofarmerstominorities,thisregimehasantagonisedmany sections of society. Poorgovernance and callousmanagement of theeconomy pushesmanymore to the brink.Ideological varnishmay stall or postponeor-ganisedprotests,butnotforlong.Whiletheseprotests have not substantially altered thecourse of democracy’s erosion, theydohave

thepotentialofrejuvenatingpeople’sagency.But thepathwaymost readerswill be in-

triguedby is normal politics. Politics centredonaleaderhasblindedusforfartoolong. It istimeIndiamovesbackto“politicsasusual”—powerpolitics,intra-partyfactionalism,com-petitionover leadership, thecocktailof ideas,machinationsandroutinebargains.Notrevo-lutionsbutordinarypoliticscankeepthespiritofdemocracyalive—thatnoparty,noleader,noidea,nodreamisfinalorinvincible.Americamay not have substantively set asideTrumpism,butanon-dramaticBidenvictorysetasidetheauraof Trump.That is thevirtueofnormalpolitics.Suchnormal politics, of course, is only a

smallstepinkeepingdemocracyalive.Anide-ologicalengagementattheintellectuallevelisunavoidable.Thatengagementisnotabouttheclassical ideas of left and right, not aboutna-tionnorevenabout religion.All thesebattlesareimportant,butthecriticalengagementur-gentlynecessarywillbeaboutwhatwemeanbydemocracyandwhatwedowithit.The20thcenturywasseenasthecentury

of democracy’s expansion. Ifwedonotwantthepresentcenturytobethatofdemocracy’sdecay,thenrenewedpublicdiscoursearoundquestionsof itsmeaning, repertoire, purposeandlimitswillhavetobeenriched.Theideaofdemocracywillhavetobetakentothepeopleonceagainwithanemphasisoninclusion,in-stitutions, procedures anddeliberation, butchieflyasthequestionofpower-sharing.This is a global challenge. FromRussia to

Brazil, Turkey to Thailand, andHungary toChina,governmentshaveturnedintoregimes.These regimes are busy controlling people’sdestiniesandarenearlysuccessfulincontrol-lingourminds.Thechallengeistorupturetheregime-nessofentrenchednetworksofpowerandpushthepowerfulforwhattheyare—justpower-holders, deservingly scrutinised fortheiruseofpower.Thiswill not necessarily happen through

grand theory. Intellectual interventions of adailynatureanduntiringresponsestotherou-tinedistortionsofdemocracywillberequired.Democracy can remain alive at the intersec-tionofpoliticsandpoliticalcriticism.

Thewriter, basedatPune, taughtpoliticalscienceand is chief editorofStudies in

IndianPolitics

ECONOMISTSAREpredicting apotential vir-tuouscapitalinvestments(capex)cycletokickingloballyasweemergefromthepandemic.TheEconomist rananarticle ,“Capexcarnival:An investment bonanza is coming”.MorganStanleyhaspredicteda“Red-hotcapexcycle”globally, including in India. If lower interestrates andmonetary supportdidnot lead toalargecapexcyclepostthe2008financialcrisis,whyareanalystsupbeatthistimearound?Corporates are less leveraged today com-

paredto2008.IndiancorporatesrepaiddebtsofmorethanRs1.5trillion.Companiesarealsomoreconfidentofdurablefiscalandmonetarysupport.HouseholdshavelargeexcesssavingsbuiltduringCovid—$1.7trillionintheUSandroughly $300billion in India asper aUBS re-port. Lastly, corporates are sitting on a largecashpile–S&P500firms’cashhassoaredfrom$1trillionpre-pandemicto$1.5trillionnow.Some corporates are already pushing

aheadwithcapex.TSMC—theTaiwan-basedsemiconductor manufacturer — has an-nounced$100billionincapexoverthreeyearsandApple, $430 billion over five years. The$1.2-trillionUS Infrastructure Bill is alreadysending cement and steel company stockshigher.InIndia,theGatiShaktiProject,thepushtowards EVs, data centres, the production-linked schemes and the recent announce-ments for the semiconductor industryareallbeingseensimilarly.Whatdoesthedatasay?First,India’sfixed

capitalformationratehassteadilyfallenfrom

36per cent of GDP in2008 to 26per cent in2020,while China and theUS registered im-provementsinthecapitalformationratiofrom37percentto42percentandfrom18percentto21percent,respectively.Forasetof718listedcompaniesforwhichdataisconsistentlyavail-able from2005, the capex growth rate hasdwindledfrom7percentin2008toaround2percentin2020.Thereturnoninvestedcapi-talinFY21isstilllowat2-3percentcomparedwith16-18percent returns in2005-08.Landacquisitionisstilltough,changestolabourlawshavebeen slow, and reformuncertaintyhasresurfacedwiththerollbackoftheagriculturereform laws. It is difficult to project a capexwaveagainstthisbackdrop.More current data does not provide a

happy picture either. As per CMIE data, thequarterending in June2021sawRs2.72 lakhcroreworthofnewprojectsannounced.ThisfelltoRs2.22lakhcrorefortheSeptember2021quarter and to Rs 1.80 lakh crore betweenOctober1andDecember14,2021.ThisismuchbelowtheaverageofRs4lakhcroreaquarterof newproject announcements during2018and2019. Further, newprojects are concen-tratedinfewerindustries(power,andtechnol-ogy)withthetopthreeaccountingfor44percent of the total of newprojects announced.Importantly,capexstoodat16percentoftotalgovernment expenditure for Apr-Sept 21,whichisnothigherthaninpreviousperiods.At the same time, capacity utilisation for

corporate India is at an all-time low. Froma

peakof 83per cent in2010,whencapexwasrunninghot, utilisation levels declined to70percentjustbeforethepandemic,andfurtherto60percentinJune2021aspertheRBI’slat-estOBICUSdata. Theaverageorderbooksizehascollapsedby30percentfromRs243crorein theMarch2021quarter toRs 171 crore inthe June quarter. It is hard to project strongcapexwhenorderbooksarefallingandcom-panieshave40percentsparecapacity.Capex is fundedeither fromfreshdebtor

equityissuesorfromaccumulatedcash.Largefirms are repaying debt. Though IPOs arebooming,theyformasmallfractionofcorpo-rate fundraising.Andhistorically,highercashdoesnotpredicthighercapex.Forthe718firmsconsideredearlier,cashhas increasedfromRs1.95 lakh crore inMarch2017 toRs2.50 lakhcroreinMarch2020,withoutacorrespondingpickupincapex.Sothefact thatcashhasfur-ther increased toRs 3.21 lakh core inMarch2021doesnotnecessarilyleadtohighercapex.The simplest regressionanalysis suggests

thatinIndia,theelasticityofcapextofreshdebtis around0.30, to freshequity is around0.48,but to cash is close to0. Thismay reflect thatcompanies build cash to ease liquidity con-cernsratherthanfundupcomingcapex.Finally, it istooearlyinthecycletopredict

anythingwithconfidence,buttomyeyes,weneedmoreevidencetopredictacapexcycle.

Thewriter isassistantprofessorof finance,IndianSchoolofBusiness

Politics centred on a leaderhas blinded us far too long.It is time India moves backto ‘politics as usual’ — powerpolitics, intra-partyfactionalisms, competitionover leadership, the cocktailof ideas, machinations androutine bargains. Notrevolutions but ordinarypolitics can keep the spirit ofdemocracy alive.

Capacity utilisation forcorporate India is at an all-time low. From a peak of 83per cent in 2010, when capexwas running hot, utilisationlevels secularly declined to70 per cent just before thepandemic, and further to 60per cent in June 2021 as perthe RBI’s latest OBICUSdata. The average order booksize has collapsed by 30 percent from Rs 243 crore in theMarch 2021 quarter to Rs 171crore in the June quarter. It ishard to project strong capexwhen order books are fallingand companies have 40 percent spare capacity.

FOUNDED BY

RAMNATH GOENKA

B E C A U S E T H E T R U T H I N V O L V E S U S A L L

§ §

THEINDIANEXPRESS,TUESDAY, JANUARY4,2022WORDLYWISE

Paleoanthropology is not a science that endswith the discovery of a bone... It is a

life-long task.—Richard LeakeyTHEEDITORIALPAGE

PM ON SCIENTISTSANATIONALENTREPRENEURSHIPdevelop-mentboardwillbesetuptocheckunemploy-ment among scientists and technologists,Indira Gandhi announced in Mysore.Addressing the 69th annual session of theIndian Science Congress at the MysoreUniversitycampus,shesaidthatallvacanciesin the field of science and technologywouldbefilled.Shesaidthenationalscienceandtech-nologyentrepreneurshipboardwouldbecon-stituted to link idle science and technologymanpowerwithunder-utilised institutionalfacilities. The PM said the governmentwaslaunchingathree-prongedprogramme,which

wouldtakecareoftheinappropriateemploy-mentofsuchqualifiedpersons.

NO WAR PACTINDIAHASAN“openmind”onano-warpactwithPakistan,ExternalAffairsMinistersaidinan interview toPTI. He said that the govern-ment’sresponseontheissuehadbeen“posi-tiveandcorrect”.Theministerwasansweringquestionsonthehecticdiplomaticactivitybe-tweenthetwocountries.Raorecalledhisstate-mentinParliamentthatPakistanhad“conve-niently” rejected India’s repeated offers of ano-warpact,firstmadein1949.Still,thiscoun-tryhadrespondedinapositivemanner.

SIKH-HINDU UNITYMILITANT SIKH LEADER Sant Jarnail SinghBhindranwale said inNewDelhi thatHindu-Sikh unitywas an article of faithwith him.AddressingahugecongregationatGurdwaraRakabganj,organisedtoendthemourningpe-riodforJathedarSantokhSingh,Bhindranwalesaid thepresshadwronglydepictedhimasaHindubaiter. TheSikh leader saidhewantedHindus and Sikhs to live peacefully. He saidHindusandevenMuslims,whodidnotsmoke,shouldbehonouredatSikhplatformsandpre-sentedwith“siropas”.HesaidhewassurprisedthatHinduleaderswerenotreciprocatingthecall for“Sikh-Hinduunity”.

JANUARY 4, 1982, FORTYYEARSAGO

INDOMITABLE FIGHTERRichardLeakeywasagroundbreakingpaleoanthropologist,whoselifeandworkweremarkedbypugnacityandtenacity

T OANYONEWHO followedRichard Leakey’s action-packed life, the frequentcomparisonstoIndianaJonesmadebyprofile-writersandotherswhoencoun-teredhim,donotsurprise. Leakeydidn’t carry theswashbuckling fictionalar-chaeologist’sbullwhip,butthatwaswherethedifferenceended.Inhis77years,

theKenyanpaleoanthropologistandconservationist,whodiedthisweek,hadbeenaground-breaking fossil expert, bestselling author and televisionpersonality, pioneering conserva-tionist,aswellasaprominentpoliticalfigureinhishomecountry,campaigningagainstcor-ruption,foundingapartyandheadingthecivilservice.Born to Louis andMary Leakey,whosediscoveries inEastAfrica’sOlduvaiGorgedrew

popular attention to the then-burgeoning fieldof paleoanthropology, theyounger Leakeyinitiallyworkedasasafariguide. Inthe1970s,agranttodig inKenya’sLakeTurkanaregionchangedthecourseofhislife.Hiswork,includingthe1984unearthingoftheHomoerectusskeletonnicknamed“TurkanaBoy”,helpedprovethathumanityevolvedinAfrica.Whenhequit the field in the late1980s, itwas to return tohis first love,wildlife.HeheadedKenya’sWildlifeServicewherehemadeanameasaruthlesspursuerofpoachers,orderinghismentoshootatsightandorganisingpublicburningsofseizedivory.Leakeywas,aboveall, a survivorandfighter. Inrecentyears,hehadbattledskincancer,

aswellaskidneyandliverdisease.Hemademanyenemieswhilefightingtheivorytrade,aswell as inpolitics,whichheentered in the1990s. Leakey’s pugnacitywasnotdilutedevenafterhelostbothlegsin1993,whentheCessnahewaspilotingcrashed.Itwaswidelybelievedthatthis—likethebeatingatthehandsofhiredthugsthathewastoendurelater—wasor-chestratedbyenemiesbutLeakeyhimself refusedto indulge therumours, saying, “Imadethedecisionnottobeadramatistandsay: ‘Theytriedtokillme.’ Ichosetogetonwithlife.”

Suhas Palshikar

The democracy challenge

New Delhi

11THEINDIANEXPRESS,TUESDAY, JANUARY4,2022

WHATTHEOTHERSSAY“Looking back on 2021, China has further strengthened its national cohesionwith its new development achievements, while providing great certainty to thisunstable and uncertain world.” —GLOBALTIMESTHE IDEASPAGE

WWW.INDIANEXPRESS.COM

Although the idea of a‘Common European Home’shaped the rhetoric, Moscowincreasingly felt like asubaltern in the new regionalorder. In the last decade anda half, Russia has pushedback with interventions inGeorgia and Ukraine androutinely challengedWestern policies in Europe.Putin has now drawn a redline against NATO’s furtherexpansion to the east andUkraine’s absorption intothe West. He is threateningto go to war if there is noformal agreement with theUS and NATO on these twoissues. Whatever might bethe nature of the settlement,it will have significantimplications for India and itsSouth Asian neighbours.

NOWTHATTHEMinistryofHomeAffairshas finally decided to cut off foreignfunding toMotherTeresa’sMissionariesof Charity, this international order ofnunswillhavetostopitscareof thepoor-est of the poor. What was surprising isthat it took the government more timethan expected to concoct a plausiblestory to justify its action. A couple of theaccused in theBhimaKoregaon case sayit tooka couple of years to fix their com-puters inorder to rope themin. It shouldhave been much, much easier to foistfalse cases on unsuspecting Catholicnuns whose only mission in life is tospread love and compassion andwhoseknowledgeofworldlyaffairs is confinedto theirwork for thepoorest of thepoor.A centre run by them in Gujarat for

destitutegirlswasvisitedby thegovern-ment’sminions.Theyfoundthegirls “be-ing indoctrinated inChristianbeliefsandforced to attend Christian prayer serv-ices”. These are charges that could havebeen made much earlier if they werebased on truth. But since they are obvi-ously not true, it was only aroundChristmas Day of 2021 that the revela-tionswere announced.A concerted attack on Christian

schools and places of worship in thestatesruledbytheBJPhasbeenmountedin the past two or three months. Is it tointimidatethemtovote for therulingdis-pensation? I doubt it. Christians canmake some small difference in a smallstate like Goa but surely not in UttarPradesh or even in Punjab orUttarakhand.Sowhat is it that is getting the Sangh

Parivar all agog with excitement all of asudden?Honestly, I cannot figure it out.If it is “conversions”, that is an old horsethat has been flogged almost to death.The cognoscente knows well that thereare no “forced” conversions. That is outof thequestion intoday’sdayandage,es-pecially under today’s political dispen-sation.Evenwhen“SoftHindutva” ruled,itwould not have been tolerated.Mass conversions would attract at-

tention and consternation. That, too, isnot happening. The last mass conver-sions that were reported were ofScheduled Caste Hindus to Buddhism.That was some decades ago inMaharashtra, home to their icon,BabasahebAmbedkar.The only plausible explanation I can

offer is theSanghParivar’sdrummingupof pure prejudices against a small com-munity that has nowhere to go whenthreatened or bullied. The “Christian”countries are not going to accept them,as religion is not an emotive issue withthem like it is in South Asia or in theIslamic nations of the Middle East orSoutheast Asia. Muslims, who consti-tuted the first and themain target of theforcesofHindutva,wereadvised togo toPakistan.Whichcountrywillbeassigned

to the poor Christians?If BJP MP Tejasvi Surya had his way,

the Christians would not be required toleave.Abettersolutionhathhe inastate-ment he later withdrew. They wouldhavetorevert to thereligionof their fore-fathersbyundergoing thepurifyingcer-emonies of “ghar wapsi”. Hinduism hasneverexistedwithout theallottedcastes.What caste would be assigned to theprodigals? I supposeSuryawoulddecidethat delicate issue also.But let us revert to the government’s

refusal to renew the FCRA licence of thereveredMother’sMissionariesofCharity.Without foreign aid, the nuns will haveto abandon thepoorest of thepoor to anuncertain fate. Unless, of course, theHindutva brigade’s softer side steps inand takes up the work from the Sisters.The love and compassion that guidesthose good womenmay gomissing butat thevery least thedestitutewill escapedeath by starvation. And that would bethe least we should expect from thesesoldiers of the “New India”. At present,the only job entrusted to them is thelynchingofMuslim“beef traders”andvi-olence against Christian “proselytisers”.Let them get accustomed to busyingthemselveswithpositivework, simulta-neously.Theotheraspectof this sadaffair that

should bother us is the habit the Modi-Shah government has formed of twist-ing facts to suit its ideological agenda. InthecaseofMotherTeresa’sorderofnuns,I amwitness to the fact that theMothermade it an article of faith to ensure thatparentswhowereacceptedasguardiansor foster parents were of the same reli-giousdenominationasthechildwhowasputup foradoption. InRomania,where Iwitnessed the process, the OrthodoxChristians, whowere the dominant fac-tion in the land,wouldnot have counte-nanced orphans being assigned toCatholic foster parents of more affluentcountries.I have mentioned in earlier writings

that Mother Teresa inaugurated the re-openingof amosque inAlbaniaat there-questof agroupofMuslimboyswhoap-proachedher.Shejustifiedherconsenttodothatbytellingmethat itgladdenedherheart toseeareturntogodinthatatheistcountry inwhich her parentswere bornand lie buried. The country was 70 percentMuslim before the Communist dic-tator Enver Hoxha declared it to be offi-cially atheist andclosedallmosquesandchurches for publicworship.In any case, the main objects of

Mother’s attention, and hence her fol-lowers as well, were abandoned babiesand the old and feeblemen andwomenleft by an indifferent society to fend forthemselves on the street in their dyinghours. Even ifMotherwanted toconvertthemwherewas the scope?Allegationsof Christianprayers recitedat the timeoftheir death, even if true, do not makethese poor souls into Christians. Thatprocess is time-consumingsincethecon-vertshave toassimilateChristianbeliefsandvaluesandthis takesat leastayearorso to accomplish.

Thewriter, a retired IPS officer,wasMumbai police commissioner, and a

former Indian ambassador to Romania

WHENTHEUSandRussia sit down for talksnextweek on strategic stability in Europe, afewwords couldwreck the negotiations—“Ukraine”and“sphereof influence”.ManyinWashington and Brussels view RussianPresidentVladimirPutin’srecentdemandsasbeing about lettingUkraine slip back into aRussiansphereofinfluenceandcedingavetotoMoscowoverWesternmilitarypolicies inCentralEurope.Moscow, however, says the problem lies

elsewhere — with the expansion of theWesternsphereofinfluenceclosertoRussia’sborders.While the Soviet-ledWarsawPactwas dissolved in 1991 at the endof the ColdWar,Russianspointout,theWesternmilitaryalliance, the North Atlantic TreatyOrganisation, persisted.Moscow insists theUSandEuropeviolatedpromisesnottopushNATOeastwards.Although the idea of a “Common

European Home” shaped the rhetoric,Moscow increasingly felt like a subaltern inthenewregionalorder.Inthelastdecadeandahalf,Russiahaspushedbackwithinterven-tions in Georgia andUkraine and routinelychallengedWesternpolicies inEurope.PutinhasnowdrawnaredlineagainstNATO’sfur-ther expansion to the east andUkraine’s ab-sorptionintotheWest.Heisthreateningtogotowar if there is no formal agreementwiththeUSandNATOonthesetwoissues.Whatevermightbethenatureofthesettle-

ment, itwill have significant implications forIndiaanditsSouthAsianneighbours.Asianna-tionalists used todenounce spheres of influ-ence—orcarvingoutexclusivezonesamongthedominantstates—asavery19th-centuryconcept. Thatwasnatural, given the fact thattheyhadbeenatthereceivingendofEuropeanimperialism.Buttheideahasalongerlineageand is verymuch part of the framework toavoidconflictbetweenmajorpowers.Asian powers are hardly innocentwhen

itcomestospheresofinfluence.AsJapanroseto be a great power by the turn of the 20thcentury,itwantedtocarveoutitsownsphereof influenceinAsia—calledthe“GreaterEastAsianCo-Prosperity Sphere”. Japan justifiedtheexpansion in thenameof liberatingAsiafrom the influence of European colonialismand building a newAsian order. The idea of“Asia for Asians” has not disappeared fromthe regional agenda. That slogan is nowownedbytheregion’snewaspiringhegemon—China. Although President Xi Jinping de-niesseekinganAsiansphereof influence,hispolicies underline the search for one. TheseincludeattemptstopushAmericaoutofAsiaanddemandingavetooverthesecuritypoli-cies of its neighbours. That, in fact, is theessence of a sphere of influence— securingone’s area of interest from intervention byothergreatpowers.SomeChinascholarstellustotakeiteasy;

they say Asia, at least East Asia, has alwaysbeenpartofChina’ssphereofinfluence.Theypoint to the so-called tributary state systemthat China ran until the European colonialpowerslandedinAsia.IfBeijing’sdominance

is the “natural state” of East Asia thatwe arenow reverting to, China hands tell us, weshouldsimplygetusedtoit.Indiaisnostrangertospheresofinfluence

either.Althoughthetraditional Indianrheto-ricproclaimssovereignequalityofnationsandrejectspowerpolitics,Delhi’s regionalpolicyhasbeenanythingbut.Althoughallstatesareequalonpaper,whatmattersintherealworldis theunevenpowerdistributionamongna-tionsandthepoliciestocopewithit.Atthetimeof Independence, Indiainher-

ited an expansive sphere of influence in theSubcontinentandtheIndianOceanfromtheBritishRajthathaddominatedtheregionfromtheearly 19th century. But an India thatwasdividedalongreligiouslinesturnedeconom-ically inward and kept its distance from theWest,andfoundithardtosustainthatlegacy.Buttheaspirationneverceased.A rising India today is trying to reclaim

some of that influence in the SubcontinentandtheIndianOcean,butitconfrontsanewlypowerfulChinathatisrapidlygainingground.Growingnational identity in the region alsomakesithardtoenforcethetraditionalframe-workof regionaldominance.India is not the only one.Manymiddle

powersareseekingtobuildorrebuildspheresof influence—Iran,SaudiArabia, TurkeyandEgypt in theMiddle East and the Horn ofAfrica. Australia is fending off the growingChinese influence in the Pacific islands. ThefearofAmericanretrenchmenthascreatedanurgencyfortheregionalpowersintheMiddleEasttoexpandtheirnetworksof influence.Realists argue that theunipolarmoment

haspassedandthattheUScannolongerruntheworldonitsown.AsHarvardUniversity’sGrahamAllisonputsit,theunipolarmomentwasabout theAmericanglobal sphereof in-fluence.Intheunfoldingmultipolarworld,hesays,therewillbemanyspheresof influence.Thislogicshouldleadtosomeaccommo-

dation betweenWashington, Brussels andMoscowonEuropeansecurity.But thedevil,as always, is in the details.Meanwhile, anypeacefulaccommodationbetweenRussiaandtheWestwill inevitablybeat theexpenseofUkraine.Ataminimum,UkrainewillhavetoacceptthelossofCrimea,whichRussiatookbyforcein2014.TheWesthasimposedmanysanctionson

Russia andpromisesmanymore ifMoscow

invades Ukraine. But theWest makes nopromiseaboutusingmilitaryforcetoreversethe Russian occupation of Ukraine. That theUSandNATOhavenodesire to fightRussiantroopsonMoscow’sbordersisPutin’sleveragein the upcoming talks. If Putin overplays hishand,however, thelong-termcoststoRussiatoowillbeheavy.Thatistheassumptionguid-ing Biden to seek a reasonable compromisewithPutin.What lessons does Ukraine offer South

Asia? If Delhi lets problemswith the neigh-boursfesterforlongandactsinahigh-handedmanner,thesmallerstateswillmobiliseotherpowers to strengthen their strategic auton-omyfromIndia.Delhican’tforgettheimpor-tanceofbeingsensitivetoitsneighbours’con-cerns. Thepursuit of a SouthAsian sphereofinfluence also demands thatDelhi think re-gionally rather than justnationallyon issuesthataffecttheSubcontinentasawhole.ButifIndia’sneighboursgotoofar,say,inoverplay-ingthe“Chinacard”againstDelhi,theyinviteIndia’sinterventionintheirinternalaffairs.Atthatpoint,theymightfindthatChinacan’tre-allyhelpthemagainst Indiathat isnextdoor.RecallthatneithertheUSnorChinacouldstopIndiafrombreakinguptheirallyPakistanhalfacenturyago.India’sneighbourscan’tignorethereality

thatDelhi’s stakes in the SouthAsianneigh-bourhoodwillalwaysbehigherthanthoseofChina.AndthatDelhi,despiteitsmassiveandgrowingpowerasymmetrywithBeijing,willfightforitsinterestsintheregion.TheRussianeconomy,forexample,isbarelyatenthoftheEuropeanUnion’s GDP at about $17 trillion;butMoscowhas run rings around BrusselsandWashington inCentral Europe.Moscowhas shown its interests can’t be ignored, butthe cost has been steep in the formof eco-nomicandpolitical isolationfromtheWest.Spheresofinfluenceareheretostayasin-

struments to regulate competition betweengreatpowers.Buttheyendureonlywhenthedominant power iswise and its neighboursareprudent.Otherwise,neitherthebigpowernoritsneighbourswillbesecure.

Thewriter isvisitingresearchprofessorattheInstituteofSouthAsianStudies,NationalUniversityofSingaporeandacontributing

editoroninternationalaffairsforTheIndianExpress

In bad faithWiththeirforeignfundingcutoff,MissionariesofCharitywillhavetoabandonthepoor.WilltheHindutvabrigadetakeuptheirwork?

FALLING BEHINDTHIS REFERS TO the article, ‘A roomfull of learners’ (IE, January 3). Thehigh hopes for 2022 were sooncrushed with the announcement offresh curbs, including the closing ofschools in somestates. It hasbecomea task for teachers, parents and stu-dents toshift fromnotepads tosmart-pads. The situation is worse in ruralareaswhere the “right to education”isnothingwithout the“rightof accesstoeducation”. Thedisparity inoppor-tunities to learn is evident. Thoughthe annual report for 2019-20 byNCERT talks extensively of its onlinecourses, e-repositories, e-portals etc.,the process of making such e-pathshalas accessible to rural India isunknown. The only hope now isfor the government and socialorganisations to come together torampupbotheducationplanningandbudgets.

Aerika Singh, Chandigarh

CHINA STRATEGYTHIS REFERS TO the editorial, ‘TheChinahand’ (IE, January3).China’sriseunderPresidentXi Jinpinganditscon-sequences on global politics is anemerging area of study for strategicanalysts.For India, theseconsequencesare particularly significant. ThoughIndia isworkingwithQuadmembersonmilitarymodernisationandexpectsthe Quad’s support in any exigency,India needs to look at the China issue

fromageographical point of view.Nocountry in theQuad—except India—sharesa landboundarywithChina.So,it maywell need to fight its own bat-tles in the region. On the economicfront, the trade deficit with China is acauseforconcern.Alongwithrenewedefforts to signedmore FTAs, reducingthe trade deficit in general and withChina, in particular, is what Delhishouldworkon.Finally, internalcohe-sion is a must. Internal tensions havesomeimpactonexternalrelationsandNewDelhican’t ignorethis,especiallywhenpolarisationappears tobe rear-ing its ugly head.

DewangGanesh, Thosar

A SAFE POLLTHIS REFERS TO the article, ‘Free,fair and safe’ (IE, January 3). Theideaofpostponingassemblyelectionsdue in the first half of this yearwouldbe detrimental to not just the consti-tutional requirementof ourpolitybutthe overall crisis management. TheElection Commission must devisesmart techniques to reduce the foot-fall in an individual booth, bymakingthe election in each boothmore thana day-long affair, and spreading outvoting in multiple phases, to makesure that theelectionmachinery isn’toverstretched. Massive electoral ral-lies shouldbeoutrightlybanned, andsmall meetings in neighbourhoodsshould be encouraged.

SudipKumarDey,Barasat

LETTERS TO THEEDITOR

THE PRIMARY YARDSTICK analysts use tomeasuretheeconomy’shealthisGDP.TheRBIandmultilateral agencies useGDP statisticstomakeclaimsaboutthefuturegrowthpath.Buthowreliable istheIndianGDPdata?TheNSOreleased thecurrentGDPseries

in2015, using2011-12as its base year. Sincethen, the new series has been embroiled incontroversy.Somehavearguedthattheprob-lemin thenewseries is the real growth rate.This is debatable. Scholars have pointed tomeasurementproblems,bothinthenominalandrealGDPgrowthrates.Yetnoneof thoseproblemshasbeenaddressed.Asaresult,themeasurement errors still persist. There arethreemajor reasonswhy theGDPdata, andhence any narrative of economic recoverybasedonit,arequestionable.First, the growth rate of real GDP is con-

taminatedbythe“doubledeflationproblem”.Thenewseriesentailedashiftfromavolume-basedmeasurementsystemtoonebasedonnominalvalues, therebymakingthedeflatorproblemmore critical. Simply put, theNSOcalculatesrealGDPbygatheringnominalGDPdatainrupeesandthendeflatingthisdataus-ing various price indices. The nominal dataneeds tobedeflated twice:Once foroutputsand once for inputs. But theNSO—almostuniquely amongstG20 countries—deflatesthenominaldataonlyonce.Itdoesnotdeflatethevalueof inputs.To seewhy this is a problem, consider

whathappenswhenthepriceofimportedoil

goes down. In that case, input costswill falland theprofits recordedby Indian firmswillrise.Thisincreaseinprofitsismerelytheresultof a fall in input prices, so it needs to be de-flatedaway.Afterall,GDPismeanttomeasurethe amount of production in the country,whichhasn’t changed, at least in the first in-stance.But theNSOdoesn’tdeflateawaytheincreaseinprofits. Instead,itrecordsapurelynominal increase as a real increase in GDP,therebyoverstatinggrowth.Simulationshaveshownthatthiseffectcanbesubstantial.Sincethecostofinputsismeasuredbythe

WPI (wholesale price index), a crudemeas-ure of the overestimation caused by the ab-senceof“doubledeflation”isgivenbythegapbetweentheWPIandtheCPI(consumerpriceindex). In the 2014-2017 period, oil pricesplunged,causingtheWPItofall sharplyrela-tive to the CPI. Thismeant that real growthwasprobablyoverstated.Inthelastfewmonths,theexactopposite

hasbeenhappening.WPIinflationissoaring.Itreached14percentinNovember,whileCPIinflationhas“only”been5percent.Therapidincrease in theWPI relative to the CPI is im-partinganupwardbiastothedeflator,whichincreasedattheremarkablerateof8percentinthesecondquarterof2021-22.Ifthisdefla-tor is being overestimated, then real GDPgrowth rate could be underestimated rightnow. Some have argued that the deflatorswereimprovedinthenewseriesbyshiftingtotheCPI,butthefactremainsthatinmanycases

theWPIisstillusedfordeflation.Asecondreasonwhygrowthmightbeun-

derestimatedisthattheNSOhasnotupdatedthesectoralweights.WhenitcalculatesGDP,ittakesasampleofactivityineachsector,thenaggregates the figures by using sectoralweights. Tomake sure that theweights arereasonably accurate, theNSOnormally up-dates themonce a decade. It has nowbeenmore than 10 years since theweightswerechanged,andtherearenosignsofabaseyearrevision. As a result, the sectoralweights arestillbasedonthestructureoftheeconomyin2010-11,when inparticular the informationtechnologysectorwasmuchsmaller.Inotherwords,thefast-growingITsectorisbeingun-derweighted,whichimpliesthatGDPgrowthisbeingunderestimated.But beforewe jump to conclusions, we

needtotakeintoaccountthethirdmeasure-ment problem— thisworks in the oppositedirection.Measurement of the unorganisedsectorhasalwaysbeendifficultinIndia.Oncein awhile, the NSO undertakes a survey tomeasure the size of the sector. In themean-time, it simply assumes that the sector hasbeengrowingat the same rate as theorgan-ised sector. This practicewasworkingwellwhen the two sectorsweremoving in tan-dem.However, starting in 2016 the unorgan-

ised sector has beendisproportionately im-pacted by a series of shocks. First came de-monetisationwhichwas a severe blow to

cash-dependent firms in this sector. Nextcamethe implementationofGST,whichne-cessitatedaparticularlydifficultandcostlyad-justment forunorganisedsectorenterprises.Then, in2018, theNBFCsectorreportedseri-ousproblems,whichinturnimpactedunor-ganised sector firms since theywereheavilydependentonNBFCsforfunds.From2020on-wards,thepandemichasimpactedtheunor-ganisedsectormorethantheorganisedsectorenterprises.Despite these shocks, theNSOdoes not

seem to havemade any adjustments to itsmethodologyforestimatingthegrowthoftheunorganisedsector.Theycontinuetoassumethatunorganisedsectorenterpriseshavebeengrowingasfastasthoseintheorganisedsec-tor. In that case, therewould be an upwardbiastothereportedGDPgrowth.So,what is the bottom line? Canwe say

whetherthelatestGDPnumbersoverstateorunderstategrowth?Theanswerisno,becausethemeasurementproblemsgoindifferentdi-rections.WithoutmoreinformationfromtheNSO on theirmethodologywe cannot saywhether the positive factors outweigh thenegativeone,orviceversa.Whatisclear,how-ever,isthereareseriousproblemswithIndia’sGDPdata.Anyanalysisof recoveryorgrowthforecastbasedonthisdatamustbetakenwithahandfulof salt.

Thewriter isAssociateProfessorofEconomics, IGIDR

The flaw in the numbersSeriousproblemswithIndia’sGDPdatamakegrowthforecastsunreliable

Spheresof influenceareheretostayasinstrumentstoregulatecompetitionbetweengreatpowers.Buttheyendureonlywhenthedominantpoweriswiseanditsneighboursareprudent

For South Asia, a Ukraine lesson

RAJA MANDALA

ByCRajaMohan

CR Sasikumar

Julio Ribeiro

Rajeswari Sengupta

New Delhi

CLASSIFIEDS&TENDERS12 WWW.INDIANEXPRESS.COMTHEINDIANEXPRESS,TUESDAY, JANUARY4,2022

Government of OdishaOffice of the Superintending Engineer, Rural Works Circle, Sambalpur.

Tel-0663-2548268, E-mail Id serwcirclesbp@yahoo.comBid Identification No. Road tender Online - RWCSBP-42 No: 3691 Dated: 30.12.2021

The Superintending Engineer Rural Works Circle, Sambalpur on behalf of Governor of Odisha invites online percentage rate Bid from experienced & eligible bidders for 1 ( one) No. group of road worksunder Periodical renewal of Post DLP roads for the year 2021-22, such as renewal coat with laying SDBC in the districts of Sambalpur.

* Further details can be seen from the e-procurement portal www.tendersorissa.gov.in. (https//tendersodisha.gov.in)* Subsequent modification/ corrigendum/Addendum if required shall appear in website only.* The amount put to bid is exclusive of GST.* Bidder should inspect the road before bidding and quote his rate accordingly.

O-1609

1. Name of work : Periodical renewal of Post DLP roads for the year 2021- 22, such as renewal coat with laying SDBC under R.W Division, Sambalpur.

2. No of works : 1(One) no group details as per DTCN.

3. Estimated cost : Approximately varies from Rs.117.98 lakhs

4. Class of Contractor. : B and A

5. Cost of tender paper and mode of deposit. : Rs. 10,000/- per set.( to be deposited On-line) in favour of concerned Executive Engineer.

6. Mode of submission of tender : Tender should be submitted only On line in website www.tendersorissa.gov.in. (https//tendersodisha.gov.in)

7. EMD and mode of deposit : No. EMD is required but Bid Security declaration should be furnished by the bidders as mentioned in DTCN.

8. Summary of key dates are provided below: :

Procurement Officer Bid Identification No. Availability of Tender on-line for bidding Last Date & time for seeking clarification Date & Time of opening of tender

From To Technical Bid Financial Bid

1 2 3 4 5 6 7Superintending Engineer Rural, Works Circle Sambalpur Road Tender Online - RWCSBP- 42 05.01.2022 at 1.00.A.M. 18.01.2022 up to 4.00 P.M. 13.01.2022 to 5.00 P.M. 19.01.2022 at 11.00 A.M. To be intimated later

Sd/-Chief Construction Engineer,

Rural, Works Circle, Sambalpur,OIPR- 25091/11/0054/2122

Government of OdishaOffice of the Chief Construction Engineer,

Rural Works Circle, SambalpurTel-0663-2548268, E-mail Id serwcirclesbp@yahoo.com

Bid Identification No. Road Tender online- RWCSBP- 46/2021-22 No. 3702 Dated: 30.12.21The Chief Construction Engineer Rural Works Circle, Sambalpur on behalf of Governor of Odisha invites online percentage rate Bid from experienced & eligible bidders for 1 ( One)no of Improvement of Roads funding under MMSY Scheme during the year 2021-22.

O-1613

Procurement Officer Bid Identification No. Availability of Tender on-line for bidding Last date & time for seekingclarification

Date & Time of opening of tender

From To Technical Bid Financial Bid

1 2 3 4 5 6 7Chief Construction Engineer Rural, WorksCircle, Sambalpur

Road Tender Online-RWCSBP-46/2021-22

05.01.2022at 11.00 A.M.

18.01.2022 upto5.00 P.M.

13.01.2022 up to5.00 PM

19.01.2022at 11.00 A.M.

Will be intimatedlater

* Further details can be seen from the e-procurement portal www.tendersorissa.gov.in. (https//tendersodisha.gov.in)* Subsequent modification/corrigendum/Addendum if required shall appear in website only.* The amount put to bid is exclusive of GST.* Bidder should inspect the road before bidding and quote his rate accordingly.

Sd/-Chief Construction Engineer,

Rural, Works Circle, SambalpurOIPR-25091/11/0061/2122

1 Name of work : Improvement of Roads funding under MMSY Scheme during the year 2021-22

2 No of works : 1(One) no as per DTCN.3 Estimated cost : Approximately Rs. 551.40 lakhs4 Class of Contractor : ‘A’ & Special5 Cost of tender paper and mode of deposit : Rs. 10,000/- per set. ( to be deposited On-line) in favour of concerned Executive Engineer.

6 Mode of submission of tender : Tender should be submitted only On line in website www.tendersorissa.gov.in.(https://tendersodisha.gov.in)7 EMD and mode of deposit : No. EMD is required but Bid Security declaration should be furnished by the bidders as mentioned in DTCN.

8 Summary of key dates are provided below :

GUJARAT MEDICAL SERVICES CORPORATION LIMITED(A Government of Cujarat Undertaking)

Regd. Office: Block No. 14/1,Dr. Jivraj Mehta Bhavan. Sector· 10, Gandhinagar

Ph: 079-23250767, 23250766, 23257698

TENDER NOTICE NO: GMSCL/D-28/2021-22Tenders are invited online from reputed Manufacturers / formulator/ directimporters for Purchase of Auto Disable Syringe 0.5ml on Rate Contractbasis and details of specification, quantity is available on,http://gmscl.gujarat.gov.in All tender documents can be downloaded free onthe website: http://gmscl.nprocure.com Interested bidders are requested rosubmit the tender through e-tender process.Duration of downloading of tender document (online):-01/01/2022 to 24/01/2022 up to 18.00 Hrs.Last date for Submission (online): 24/01/2022 up to 18-00 HRSLast date for submission of physical document: 25/01/2022 upto18:00 HRSOpening of Teennical Bid-Date (online) 28/01/2022: At 15-00 HRS.INF/1875/21-22 MANAGING DIRECTOR

PR 260944(Rural Work Department)21-22*DuukkssMMyy iinnkkff//kkddkkjjhhbZ&izksD;qeZUV lsybZ&izksD;qeZUV lsy

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foLr`r tkudkjh ds fy, osclkbZV jharkhandtenders.gov.in esa ns[kk tk ldrk gSA

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GOVERNMENT OF JAMMU AND KASHMIR

DIRECTORATE OF TOURISM, JAMMUwww.jammutourism.gov.in Ph.0191-2548172

e-mail dirtsmjmu@gmail.com Fax. 0191-2548358

Subject:- E-tenders inviting bids for conceptualizing and organizingGarden Festival at Bagh-e-Bhour from registered companies/agencies

E-NIT No – 58 of 2021Dated – 31/12/2021

For and on behalf of Lieutenant Governor of Jammu & Kashmir, Directorate ofTourism, Jammu invites e-tenders for conceptualizing and organizing followingfestivals from registered companies/agencies.

Sr.

No.

Name of Work Max Value

of the

Work (Rs)

Fixed Bid

Security (Rs)

Cost of Bid

1

1. GardenFestival at Bagh-e-Bhour on

09-01-2022 & 10-

01-2022

35.00 lac

Rs. 100,000/-

Rs. 1000/ -

(in shape of TreasuryReceipt MH: 1452-

Tourism)/RTGS/NEFT/IMPS.

Critical Dates and time

Date of Publication 31-12-2021

Last Date of downloading of tender6-01-2022

Last date for submission of Bid 6-01-2022

Date of opening of technical bid 6-01-2022 (03.00 PM)

Date of opening of Financial Bid 06-01-2022 (03.00 PM)

Date of presentation 07/01/2022

Date of event 09-01-2022 & 10-01-2022

1. The Bid documents consisting of instructions to Bidders (ITB), Bid Data Sheet(BDS), Eligibility Criteria and Documents to be furnished with the Bid, General&Special Conditions of Contract, Contract Data, Specifications, and set of termsand conditions of contract and other forms will be available on the website:www.jktenders.gov.in

2. Cost of bid documents (Rs. 1000 /-) must be paid either by depositing inJ&K Govt’s treasury in MH 1452 (Tourism) or via bank transfer in the

following bank account. Bank A/C No. 0097010100002025 Name of theBank – J&K Bank, Town Hall. Jammu, IFSC CodeJAKA0TNHALL.Copyof the Treasury Remittance Challan / Bank acknowledgement slip (As thecase may be), clearly mentioning the amount, transfer reference number,

date and time of the transfer.Sd/-

No:-DTJ/Estates/378-80 (Director Tourism)

Dated: 31/12/2021 JammuDIPJ-11415

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ClassifiedsPPEERRSSOONNAALL

LLOOSSTT&&FFOOUUNNDD

PUBLIC NOTICEHereby informed to public at large that myclient Sh. Chandram S/o Basau R/o VPOMehrana, Jhajjar, Haryana, hereby cancelledregistered/ unregistered G.P.A. dated20.09.2021, earlier executed by him in favourof his elder brother Nand Kishore regardingproperty i.e. H.No. 52, Kavita Colony,Nangloi, Delhi-110041 and now onwards, Mr.Nand Kishore is left with no power, authorityand right to execute any title document(s)and/or to deal with any person on basis ofG.P.A. dt. 20.09.2021. If any person(s) dealswith Nand Kishore, He/she shall be liable forconsequences thereof.

Sd/-DEVINDER SAINI

AdvocateEnrl. No. D-313/2008

Chamber No.1424, 14th Floor,Lawyers Chamber Block Rohini,

Delhi-85

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IIHAVECHANGEDMYNAMEFROMVARUNKUMARPATHAKTOVARUNKUMARS/OAMARNATHR/O-GA-1208, ASSOTECHWINDSORCOURT, SECTOR78,NOIDA. 0040598155-1

I,VinayAwasthi,s/o TaluRam,R/OVill&Post BhamHoshiarpur Punjab-146103,have changedmyname toVinayKumar,for all purposes.

0040598128-6

I,RENU JAIN,W/O.TARSHCHANDJAIN, ADD-74,RISHABH-VIHARKARKARDOOMADELHI-110092.Changedmyname toKALPANAJAIN, permanently.

0040598135-2

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0040598109-8

IItt is for general information thatI KhushbuDevi (Present name )W/oMr. PuranChandar, R/oB669, CBlock 1, Dindayal puri,Ghaziabad,U.P.-201001declarethat Iwant to changemynamefromKhushbuDevi (Presentname ) toKhashti Devi (NewName)and iwill be knownasKhashti Devi for all futurepurposes. 0040598069-1

II,,hhiitthheerrttoo knownasSANJAYKUMAR@SANJAYKUMARNAGI,S/o-KIMATLAL,Residingat,901/29,Fateh-Nagar, New-Delhi-110018,have changedmynameandshall hereafter beknownasSANJAYNAGI.

0040598144-2

II,,VVIIJJAAYY LAKSHMI SRIVASTAVAW/OSURJEETSINGHSAYAL,R/O604,RISHINAGAR,SHAKURBASTI,DELHI-110034.CHANGEDMYNAMETOVIJAYLAXMI. 0040598128-2

II,,TTRRIIPPTTAA SHARMA,W/O. RAJIVSETIA, ADD-D-806, SARASWATIVIHARPITAMPURADELHI-110034. Changedmyname toTRIPTASETIA, permanently.

0040598135-1

II,,TTAANNIISSHHQQ,,SS//OOUDAYVIR, ADD-RZ-25ASTREET.NO,2, RAGHUNAGARPANKHA-ROAD,NEWDELHI 110045,Changedmyname toTANISHQCHHIBBER,permanently. 0040598128-10

II,,SSuurreesshhMMairaj S/oKashiNathR/o 116, Group-1, JantaFlats, Hastsal, UttamNagar,Delhi-110059have changedmyname toSureshKashinathMahimai Raj. 0040598082-1

II,,SShhiivvaanniiAwasthi,D/OTaluRam,R/OVill&Post BhamHoshiarpur Punjab-146103,have changedmyname toShivani,for all purposes.

0040598128-5

II,,SSaavviittaa Sharma,W/oPawanSharma,R/oH.No.B-204,NearJanki Public-School Adarsh-Nagar Ballabgarh, FaridabadHaryana-121004,declare thatSavita Sharma&PriyaSharmabothare same&oneperson.

0040598128-4

II,,SSUUNNIILLKUMAR,S/OTEJRAM,R/o-25ASHERAMOHALLA,GARHI, SRINIWASPURI, SOUTH/DELHI, DELHI-110065,Changedmyname toSUNILBASOYA.

0040598144-1

II,,RRoohhttaasshh S/OPuranRamR/O,C-112/108, Plot.No-1/56, KarolBaghDelhi-110005,havechangedmyname toRohtashKumar. 0040598109-7

II,,RReetteesshh Sachdeva,S/oDevenderKumachSachdev,R/o 946,Sector-17,Faridabad,have changedmyname toReteshKumarSachdeva.

0040598135-9

II,,RRaavviinnddeerr S/o-Surinder Singh,R/o-326/2, NearDevCinema,Mehrauli-Road, Gurgaon(Haryana)-122001,havechangedmyname toRavinderKumar. 0040598109-4

II,,RRaammeesshhChandSharma,S/oBachi RamHarari R/o-E-163,Gali.No.8,Khajoori KhasDelhi-110094,have changedmynametoPandevHarari,for allpurposes. 0040598128-7

II,,RRaajjeesshhRay,S/o-RamnathRay,R/o-40, Saidpur,ChakDaria,Sultanpur, Saran, Bihar-841101,declare that RajeshRay&RajeshswarnRoyareone,and the sameperson.

0040598122-3

II,,RRaaddhhee ShyamSharma,S/OSaudan,R/O, 98,Vidhepur TehsilSasni DisttMahamaya-NagarUttar-Pradesh-204216, havechangedmyname toRadheShyam. 0040598109-9

II,,RRAAFFIIKKAHMEDS/OSAFFI R/O J-12-A, JJ CAMP,TIGRI, SOUTHDELHI,DELHI-62, have changedmyname toRAFIQAHMAD.

0040598109-3

II,,PPaavviitteerr SinghS/oMohinderSinghR/o-Kh.No.620,Hari,Enclave,near Rishikul School,AlipurDelhi-1110036,changedmyname toPavitar Singh

0040598122-2

II,,PPaarrvveeeenn sonof LaxmanSingh,R/OF-10Harkesh-NagarOkhlaphase-2,NewDelhi-110020,have changedmyname toPraveenBhadana,permanently. 0040598128-3

II,,Zuber S/oSuleman, R/o-VPO.Noorpur,Mewat (Haryana)-122105,have changedmynametoMohd. Juber. 0040598109-5

II,,BabalooKumar, S/oPhoolbadan, R/oVillageMuzarBuzurg, Amila,Mau, UttarPradesh-275301, have changedmyname toAnantKumar.

0070767468-1

II,,PPaallllaavvii SahniW/oYatinBahri,R/oBG-6/244-C,Paschim-Vihar,Delhi-110063,have changedmyminordaughter’s name fromShivanya toShivanyaBahri,forall purposes. 0040598137-9

II,,NNiittiinnAgarwal S/o,SureshChanderAggarwal R/o-162,VivekanandPuri,Azad-Marg,Sarai-Rohilla, Delhi-110007,inform thatNitinAggarwal andNitinAgarwal bothare oneandsame-person. 0040598117-2

II,,MMaannuuGupta,D/oSh.MahendraKumarGuptaR/o.H.No.A-70,DassGarden,S. No.26,Baprola-Vihar, Delhi -110043,HaveChangedMyName toSuhaniGupta,ForAll Future Purposes.

0040598109-1

II,,KKrriisshhaannKaushik,S/oSyoniRamKaushik,R/o E-24/05,G.F.BPTPPark Elite-Floor,Sector-85, Faridabad,havechangedmyname toKrishanKumarKaushik 0040598135-8

II,,KKaahhkkaasshhaannW/oMohammedBilal,R/oKH.No-485MasjidChakkarwali,MathuraRoad,HazratNizamuddin-East,Newdelhi-110013,have changedmynameKahkashan toKehkashan,for all furposes.

0040598135-5

II,,PPaannkkaajjWalechaS/o,Sh. D.NWalecha,R/o-House.No.C-205,Dlf Capital GreensShivajiMargMoti-Nagar,New.Delhi-110015,have changed,myminor sonname,fromKabeerWalecha toKabirWalechaFor,All Future.Purposes.

0040598109-10

II,,JJeeeettuu S/oShri.ChandR/o.Ward.No.1, NuhRoad,Hodal, Palwal,have changedmyname toJeetu Jangid. 0040598135-10

II,,JJaasspprreeeettKaurKohli,W/oGhunjeet SinghAnand,R/o-89,G.T.Karnal Road-StateBank-Colony, Dr.Mukherjee-Nagar,Delhi-110009,HaveChangedMyName,from Jaspreet KaurKohlito Jaspreet KaurAnand,After-Marriage. 0040598128-9

II,,JJYYOOTTII//JJYYOOTTII THAREJAW/OBIMALTHAREJAR/OWZ-664,SRI-NAGAR, SHAKUR-BASTI,RANI-BAGH,DELHI-110034.CHANGEDMYNAMETOMEENUTHAREJA. 0040598128-8

II,,JJAAGGDDEEVV SINGH, S/O.TARSAMSIDHU,ADD-354,POLICE-COLONYAHATAKIDARASADARBAZARNORTHDELHI-110006,changedmyname to JAGDEVSIDHU, permanently.

0040598135-3

II,,GGeeeettaannjjaallii LakhaniW/oDeepak Lakhani R/o.B-50 first-floor,NewGupta-ColonyG.T.B-Nagar,Delhi-110009,inform thatVanshika Lakhani andGeetanjali Lakhani BothnameAre the sameperson

0040598135-4

II,,TTeeeerraatthh SinghS/O, Payra SinghR/O, 1007-B, Rani-BaghShakurBasti Delhi-110034,havechangedmyname toTirathSingh. 0040598109-6

II,,GGaaggaannpprreeeettKaur,W/o JaspreetSinghMinhas,R/oH.No.2, Road.No.71,West Punjabi-Bagh,Delhi-110026,HaveChangedmyname toGaganpreet KaurMinhas,for all,futurepurposes.

0040598128-1

II,,DDeeeeppaakkW/o-SuchaSingh,R/oD5A, SouthAnarkali, Gali.no.1,Krishna-Nagar, Delhi-110051,have changedmyname toDeepika,for all,futurepurposes. 0040598109-2

II,,BBiirreennddrraa Tiwari S/oHariharTiwari R/o-D-158,Tripathi,EnclavePremNagar-2,Kirari,SulemanNagarDelhi-110086, changedmyname toVirenderKumarTiwari.

0040598122-1

II,,AAnnuuppaammaa,,WW//ooManishGupta,R/o Flat.No.11-C, Block.C-2D,JanakPuri, Delhi-110058,have changedmyname toAnupamaGupta,for allpurposes. 0040598135-6

II,,AAnnkkiittaaGoelW/o,Sahil Goel R/o-H.No.8, Road-No.61,West-Punjabi Bagh,N.Delhi-110026,inform thatAnkitaBansal andAnkitaGoel bothareoneandsame-person.

0040598117-1

II,,Vishal KumarS/oNaurang LalR/o 136 Second Floor Pocket-22Sector-24Rohini Delhi havechangedmynameasVishalAgarwal permanently.

0040598091-2

II,,UmayammaN,D/ONarayanapillai bornon11/11/1961 residingatC2 106,bharat city phase 1,indraprasthayojna, nistauli,ghaziabadUttar Pradesh, havechangedmyname toUmaAmmaNarayanapillai videaffidavit dated 20/08/21 atGhaziabad 0050189806-1

II,,SimranKaurKhuranaD/oKanwaljit SinghR/o-Flat-No.S-3, Second-Floor, Backside, Plot-No.B-32, Ramprastha,Ghaziabad-201011havechangedmyname toSimranKaur. 0040598117-3

II,,ShahinZuberi,W/oAnwarUlHaqSiddiqui, R/o 4/315, HathiDooba,M-4, GirlsHostel, AmirNishan, Koil, Aligarh, UP-202001, have changedmynameto Ishrat FatimaSiddiqui.

0070767467-1

II,,SURJEETKAUR,W/ORAJ SINGHR/OB-44 STREET.NO-6BHAJANPURADELHI-110053,HAVECHANGEDMYNAMETOSURJITKAUR. 0040598135-7

II,,SAPNA JAIN,W/ORAJESHDHADIWAL, R/OFLATNO. 6A12,ATSGREEN-VILLAGE, SECTOR-93A,NOIDA,GAUTAMBUDDHANAGAR,U.P.-201304, HAVECHANGEDMYNAMETOSAPNADHADIWALFORALLPURPOSES.

0070767474-1

II,,RounakSinghS/oHarvinderSinghSabharwal R/o-H.No.308/24, OnkarNagar-B, Delhi-110035have changedmynametoRounakSinghSabharwalpermanently. 0040598117-8

II,,RavinderKour SindhuW/oGurmeet SinghR/oA-108,Second-Floor, Shastri Nagar,Delhi-110052 have changedmyname toRavinderKaur.

0040598117-5

II,,Nitin, S/oChatar Singh, R/o E-30, Sector-36, Noida, UttarPradesh-201301, have changedmyname toNITINSINGH for allfuturepurposes. 70767475-1

II,,NitinGupta, S/oPawanKumar,R/o 31,MewlaTransportNagar,RamLilaGround,Meerut, UttarPradesh-250002, have changedmynameandshall hereafterbe knownasNetenGupta.

0070767465-1

II Jasbir SinbghS/oGulabSinghR/oA-24, KhyalaRoad, ShyamNagar, NewDelhi-110018havechangedmyname to JasbirSingh 0040598094-1

II,,MukeemKhan,S/o-Nazir Khan,R/o-L-101/C, gali no-5,shivajimarg, kartar nagarDelhi-110053,have changedmynametoMukimKhan 0040598122-6

II,,MrigankarNathbrother ofNo.4384263YSepAdityaNathpresently residingat villageKomoraguri , PO-Komoraguri,DistrictMorigaon(Assam),have changedmyname&DOBfromMrigankaNath toMrigankarNath& 24April 2002to 22April 2002 videAffidavitdated 18/12/2021beforeDCCourtMorigaon. 40598097-1

II,,MonikaGoswamiW/oKamleshKumarR/o-D41/42/43C, Chankya-Place, UttamNagar, D.K.MohanGarden,Delhi-110059,have changedmyname toMonikaSinha.

0040598117-6

II,,MohdAkram, S/oMohammadShafi, R/oHNo-9/15, Gali No-5,AmbedkarBasti, SitaraKhanWali Gali,Maujpur, Delhi-110053, have changedmynameandshall hereafter be knownasMohd Ikram. 0070767463-1

II,, Latasha@Kajal, D/oRajKumar, R/oH.No: B-410, B-Block, Jahangir Puri, Delhi-110033, have changedmynamefromKajal to Latasha for allfuturepurposes. 70767476-1

II,,Hemali BhanuprakashBhansali,W/o-PraveshGolchha,R/o-H-26 double story LajpatNagar-4Delhi-110024havechangedmyname toHemaliGolchha 0040598122-5

II,,Harvinder SinghS/oGurdeepSinghR/oH.No.308/24, OnkarNagar-B, Delhi-110035havechangedmyname toHarvinder SinghSabharwalpermanently. 0040598117-7

II,, Firoj KhanS/oDaulatAli R/oR-278RaghubirNagar, NewDelhi-110027have changedmynamefromFeroz Khan to Firoj Khanfor all legal purposes in future.

0040598098-1

II,,Davinder SinghS/oKundanSingh R/oWZ-496Rishi NagarRani BaghDelhi have changedmynameasDevender Singhpermanently. 0040598091-1

II,,Ashwin JalanS/o,Ajay JalanR/o-H.No.122, 2nd-Floor, Pkt-9,Rohini, Sector-21,Begumpur,Delhi-110086,have changedmyminor-daughter’s nameGracyJalan toRadhika Jalanaged-15-years. 0040598117-4

II,,Anuj Sharma, S/oPremChand,R/o l-64, KrishanVihar,Sultanpuri, CBlock, Delhi-110086, have changedmynameandshall hereafter be knownasAnuj. 0070767462-1

II,,Akanksha,D/o-SushilKumar,residingat 1967/152,4th-Floor,GaneshPuraA,Tri-Nagar, NewDelhi,hasbeenchangemyname toAKANKSHAGARG,for all future,purposes.

0040598122-4

IIVandanaD/o Late JagdishPrasadW/oSh. ArvindKumarDixit R/o 251, UGF, Nagin LakeApartments, PaschimVihar,Delhi-110087have changedmyname toVandanaDixit for allpurposes. 0040598093-3

IISimranjeet kaurW/oBaljeetSinghR/oWZ-85, STREETNO.10, OLDSAHIBPURA,MBSNAGAR, TILAKNAGAR,DELHI-110018 inform that simranjeetkaur andSIMARANJEETKAUR issameandoneperson

0040598089-1

IIMayaVarmaW/oNandKishoreR/o 3/A134RachnaVaishaliGhaziabadhave changedmyname fromMayawati Varma toMayaVarma 0050189804-1

IIKritikaD/O, SantoshKumarVermaR/o 1203,Memory, 7Lamps, Vatika IndiaNext,Sector 82, Gurgaon,Haryana122004have changedmynametoKritikaVerma for allpurposes. 0040598095-1

II,,PPoouullaammiiBhattacharyya,W/ONaval KishorGupta,R/O-B903,BullandElevates, Gaur-City-2,Greater-NoidaWest-201301,have lostOriginal-DegreeofMASocial-Work issuedbyJamia-Millia Islamia,(Roll.No.05-SWM16) inNoida. Call:9958463366). 0040598109-11

II,,JJiitteennddeerr S/oRamAvtarSingh,R/o 4Z-114,Gali.No.8,Kailashpuri ExtensionPalam-ColonyNewDelhi-110045havelostmypropertyOriginal Paperof property.No.RZ-26P/2,Gali.No.37/38 IndiraParkPalam-ColonyVillage-Nasirpur,NewDelhi-110045,finderCont.9811462326. 0040598137-10

II,,MMaannoojjKumarS/oDal Chandhave lost original Agreement toSell of built-uppropertyarea.33 sq.yds. Kh.No.43/13,Gali.No.17,Blk-C,Village,BurariIndraprasth,Nathupura,Delhi,FinderContact-9540393719.

0040598122-10

PUBLIC NOTICEBe it known to all concerned that myclients Mrs. Ram Sakhi wife of LateRam Lakhan residents of House No. A-1/750, J.J. Colony Madanpur Khadar,New Delhi- 110062., dishonest/disinherits her son Dev Shankar,daughter in law Mrs. Kiran, and grandsons Chandan from her all moveableand immovable properties for allpurposes, she have become dishonestand disobedient. My clients shall not beresponsible for any acts and anymanner whatsoever done by them. Ifthey body deals with them her will to soown her costs, consequences.

Sd/- PRABHU DAYAL (Advocate)Chamber No. 572, Saket Court

Complex, Saket New Delhi- 110017

Y(4)

PUBLIC NOTICEMy client Sh. Satya Prakah Ranjan S/oSh. Arvind Kumar and his wife Smt.Shimla Chakraborty R/o 176, B 10,Aastha Apartment, 3rd Floor, Sector-3,Rohini, Delhi- 110085 has severed alltype of relations with his brother Mr.Rajeev Raj Ranjan (Appu) and his wifeMrs. Julie (Radhika) presently residingat upper ground, Plot no. 79, Block- B9,Sector-4, Rohini, Delhi- 110085 due totheir disobedience/ disrespectfulattitudes henceforth if anybody dealwith them, the same would be at theirown risk, cost and Consequences. MyClients shall not be liable or responsiblefor the same in any manner.

Sd/- K.C. AGARWAL (Advocate)Ch. No. 1313, Lawyer’s Chamber

Block Rohini Court, New Delhi- 110085

PUBLIC NOTICETo be known to all that I KanikaGoyal D/o Anil Goyal R/o 167,Pushpanjali, Delhi-110092 is thepurchaser One Built Up Flat Up FlatBearing Pvt No. 2, on Ground Floorwithout Roof Rights at Plot no. J-9/1,Block-J, Out of Khasra No 44,Situated at West Jyoti Nagar, LoniRoad, in the area of Vill. Sikdarpur,Illaqa Shahdara, Delhi 110032. Theoriginal Sales deed the above plotshave been lost. An FIR NCR of thiseffect has lodged in Police StationCrime Branch, Delhi Police vide LRNo: 1078391/2021 on dated20/12/2021.Any Person(s) calming any rightinterest, having any objection orfound Original Sale deed, may writecontact with above named address/phone no 9810013340.

G e n e r a l P u b l i c i s h e r e b yinformed that Original Sale Deedno. 17292 Dated 20-03-1998 Infavour of Sh. Chander ShekharTaneja S/o late Sh. Ram LalTaneja registered in the Office ofSub-Registrar, Gurgaon relatingto House No.1212A, Block-J,Palam Vihar,Gurgaon have Beenmisplaced and is not traceable.It is further informed that theabove ment ioned house isMortgaged With Punjab NationalB a n k , G u r g a o n . A n yperson/institution having anyclaim in respect thereof by way ofSales, Mortgage, Exchange, Gift,Charges, Trust, Inheritance,Possession, Lien Or lease orotherwise are requested toinform the same in writing to theundersigned within 7 Days failingwhich the claim(s) if any of suchperson(s) / inst i tut ion wi l l beconsidered to have been waivedand / or abandoned.

S d / - R . K . G o ya l , A d v oc a t eChamber No. 93, Block- B, Distt

Court, Gurgaon. Ph- 9811803503

rkgoyal107@gmail.com

PUBL IC NOTICE

General Public is hereby informedthat my client intends to PurchaseHouse No.C-1827, Sushant Lok-1,Gurgaon & has paid advancepayment to the Owner, Smt. SheenaSethi. The owner has informed thatOriginal Builder buyer AgreementDated 06-09-1991 in favour of Sh.Ashok Kumar Singh, change of RightLetter Dated 06-09-1991 & 23-09-1994 issued by M/s Ansal Properties& Industries Ltd relating to HouseNo. C-1827, Sushant Lok-1, Gurgaonhave been misplaced and is nottraceable. A FIR in this regard hasbeen lodged with Delhi Police on 31-12-2021. Any person/institutionhaving any claim in respect thereof byway of Sales, Mortgage , Exchange,Gift. Charges, Trust, Inheritance,Possission,Lien or lease or otherwiseare requested to inform the same inwriting to the undersigned within 7days falling which the claim(s) if any ofsuch person(s) / institution will beconsidered to have been waived and/or abandoned & the Deal will beConcluded.

Sd/-A.K.Munjal AdvocateM-6/14,DLF-2,Gurgaon.

Ph : 9560492323munjal.anil@gmail.com

PUBL IC NOTICE

“It is to inform to the public at largethat Mrs. Aarti Singhal acquired 2ndFloor, (RHS ) of Property No. 613/7,measuring 222 Sq. Yards, KhasraNo. 642, village Chandrawali, KesriMohalla, Gali Jain Mandir, Shahdara,Delh i v ide Sale Cert i f icate dt .09.11.2017 executed by Vijaya Bankthrough Mr. Deepak Kumar, duly Regd.as Doc. No. 8157 and now Mrs. AartiSinghal is the undisputed owner ofthe above said property. Any person /firm / institution / company having anyclaim or right in respect of the saidProperty by way of inheritance, share,sale, agreement, lease, license, gift,possession, legal heirs, partners orencumbrance howsoever or otherwiseis hereby required to intimate in writingto the undersigned within 07 days fromthe date of publication of this noticeof his/her/their share or claim, if any,with all supporting documents at belowmentioned address. After expirationof notice period, the claims, if any, ofsuch person shall be treated null andvoid and also treated as waived and notbinding on our client.

Ajay Kumar Giri, Advocate“H.No. 26/161, Basement, Vikram Vihar,

Lajpat Nagar 4, New Delhi 110024”

PUBLIC NOTICE

PUBLIC NOTICEMy clients Smt. Sunita W/o Sh.Jagannath and Sh. Jagannath bothR/O T-144, Gali No.7, Gautam Puri,New Seelampur, Delhi-110053 havedebarred and disowned their SonKrishna S/o Jagannath and his wifeSantosh W/o Krishna from all theirmovable and immovable propertiesdue to their disrespectful behaviourand severed all their relations withthem. If anybody deals with them inany manner he/she shall do so ath i s / h e r own r i s k co s t andconsequences. My Clients shall not inany manner be liable and responsiblefor the same.PAWAN KUMAR ADVOCATE

366, Bakhtawar Pur,Delhi-110036

New Delhi

WWW.INDIANEXPRESS.COM

@ieExplained#ExpressExplainedIf there are questions of current or contemporary relevance that youwould likeexplained, pleasewrite to explained@indianexpress.com

THEINDIANEXPRESS,TUESDAY, JANUARY4,2022

ANURADHAMASCARENHAS&KAUNAINSHERRIFMPUNE,NEWDELHI, JANUARY3

MORETHAN40 lakh teenagers in the15-18agegroupreceived their firstdoseof Covid-19 vaccines onMonday as India began itsdrive to vaccinate the younger populationgroups. Some concerns were raised about‘expired’Covaxinbeingadministeredtothisyounger group, leading to the HealthMinistry issuingaclarification.TheMinistry described these claims as

“false andmisleading” and said thesewerebased on “incomplete information”. Itpointedoutthattheshelf lifeofCovaxin,theonly vaccine being given to the people be-low 18 years of age, had been extended inNovember after proper regulatory scrutiny,andassuchthesevaccinedoseswereasgoodasany.

What ledtotheconcerns?The anxiety arose after several people

pointed out that vaccine batches thatweresupposedtoexpireinNovemberwerebeingadministered to the younger people onMonday.Thegovernmentlaterclarifiedthatthe shelf life of these vaccines hadbeen ex-tended from ninemonths to 12months inNovember itself, and therefore there wasnothingwrongwith thesebatches.TheHealthMinistry said the shelf life of

vaccines isextendedbythenational regula-tor, Central Drugs Standard ControlOrganisation,orCDSCO,basedonacompre-hensive analysis and examination of stabil-itystudydatafurnishedbythevaccineman-ufacturers.ItalsopointedoutthatCDSCOhasearlierapprovedtheextensionofshelf lifeofCovishield aswell, and nothing special hadbeendone toCovaxin.

Whywasthedateof expiryofCovaxinextended?InresponsetoanapplicationfromBharat

Biotech, themanufacturer of Covaxin, theCDSCOonOctober25,2021approvedtheex-tension of the shelf life of this indigenouslydevelopedvaccinefrom9to12monthsfromthedate ofmanufacture. This approvalwasbased on the availability of additional “sta-bilitydata”whichwassubmittedbythefirmtoCDSCO.With the shelf-life extension, hospitals

could utilise the stock thatwas nearing ex-piryandavoidvaccinewastage.Anestimated

20 crore vaccine doses are required to fullyvaccinate the nearly 10 crore people in the15-18agegroup.Inarecentstatement,BharatBiotechhad

said that they had documented excellentsafetyandimmunogenicitydatareadoutsinchildren.More than15 crore Covaxin doseshave been administered in the country toadults since vaccination commenced lastyear.

Whatare ‘stability’and ‘shelf life’of avaccine?Vaccines are complexmixtures of pro-

teins,carbohydrates, lipids,inactivatedvirus,oradjuvants—whicharesubstancesthatareintendedtoenhanceimmuneresponseandsubsequent clinical efficacy of the vaccine.Thesetogethercontributetooverallvaccineefficacyandsafety.Like othermedicinal products, vaccines

comewithadateof expiryandshelf lifede-terminedbythemanufacturerandapprovedby regulatory authorities. The constituentsof avaccinecangobadover timebecauseofslowchemical reactionsand loseefficacy.According to the World Health

Organization (WHO), stability is the abilityof a vaccine to retain its chemical, physical,microbiological and biological propertieswithin specified limits throughout its shelflife.Aseriesof testsaredesignedtoobtainin-

formationonthestabilityof avaccine inor-der todefine its shelf life andutilisationpe-riod under specified packaging and storageconditions.Anddependingonthenatureof

the antigenandother components, and themanufacturingprocess,stabilityparametersare selected on a case-by-case basis, theWHOguidelines state.Therearethreespecificobjectivesofsta-

bilitystudies,whichdifferthroughoutavac-cine’s lifetime.First, it isconductedtodeter-mine shelf life and storage conditions.Second, the stability studies, monitor vac-cine stability in the post-licensure period,that is, when the vaccine ismarketed com-mercially. Third, according to the WHOguidelines,stabilitystudiesareconductedtosupportmanufacturingchangesbydemon-stratingcomparabilityof productmanufac-turedbydifferentprocesses.

Howisshelf lifecalculated?Shelf lifeiscalculatedbystoringtheprod-

uct at different temperatures for variouslengthsof timeandthentestingitseffective-ness,leadingvirologistDrShahidJameelsaid.By storing the particular product at varioustemperatures, and thenperiodically check-ing if there is any degradation of the prod-uct, anexpirydate isarrivedat.The duration overwhich the product is

stable and effective in the specified condi-tionsisconsidereditsshelf life.Therearevar-ious biochemical ways inwhich the degra-dationcanbeestimated,saidDrVineetaBal,leading immunologist.According to theWHO guidelines, the

shelf lifeofavaccineistheperiodoftimedur-ingwhich the vaccine, if stored correctly, isexpectedtocomplywiththespecification,asdeterminedbystabilitystudiesonanumber

ofbatchesoftheproduct.Theshelf lifeisusedtoestablishtheexpirydateof eachbatch.For vaccines, it is done by injecting into

smallanimals(typicallymice)toassessif theability tomake antibodies goes downwithstorage time and temperature, Dr Jameelsaid.Anexpirydatemeans that roughlybe-yondthat,thevaccinewon'traiseimmunityaswell as earlier. It may still work but sub-optimally,hesaid.“Theshelf lifeofavaccineisareflectionof

howlongthevaccine retains itspotencyandstability at a given storage temperature andthereforeitseffectiveness.Theshelflifeisusedto establish the expiry date of each batch ofthe vaccine product. Expiry dates do not af-fectthesafetyofthevaccine,ratherarerelatedto the potency or amount of protection thevaccine gives,” theWHO regional office forAfricahadsaidinastatementinMaylastyear.TheWHOhadsaid thatanyextension in

the shelf lifewill only apply to vaccines notyet labelled and distributed. Hence the ex-piredornear-to-expiredosesindistributionforusewillnotbeaffectedbyanyfuturede-cisionof shelf lifeextension.

Is thisextensionofdateaspecial favourgiventoCovaxin?No. As mentioned, the CDSCO had in

February last year extended the shelf life ofCovishield fromninemonths to12months,after a similar process. Themanufacture ofthevaccinehas to submit data to showthatits vaccine retains its stability for longerpe-riods. If the regulator is satisfied with thedata, it canextendtheexpiryperiod.

SHRUTIDHAPOLANEWDELHI, JANUARY3

Theopen-sourcesoftwarerepositoryserv-iceGitHubisinthenewsafteritwasusedtocreateandshareanoffensivelynamedappthat sexually harassedMuslimwomen inIndia.Theappusedpicturesof thewomenstolenfromtheirsocialmediahandlesandinvited"users" tobid for them.ITMinister Ashwini Vaishnawhas an-

nounced thatGitHubhasblocked theuser,and the Indian Computer EmergencyResponseSystem(Cert-In),thenodalagencyformonitoringcybersecurityincidents,hasbeen asked to form “a high-level commit-tee”toinvestigate.DelhiandMumbaiPolicehaveregisteredFIRsoncomplaintsbysomeof thewomenwhoweretargeted.In June 2021, another appwith a simi-

lar-sounding name,which toowas hosted

onGitHub,hadbeenusedtoharassMuslimwomeninthesameway.PoliceinDelhiandNoidahadregisteredFIRs,buttheprobehasnot progressed. Delhi Police have saidGitHub isnotcooperating.

What isGitHub?GitHub is the world’s largest open-

source developer community platformwhereusersuploadtheirprojectsandcodeforotherstoview,edit,andtweak.TheideaofGitHubisthis:anydevelopercanuploadwhateversoftwarecodeorappcodeorsoft-ware idea they have on the platform, andhave others collaboratewith them to helpimprove it, finderrors, and fixproblems.Anypublicprojectcanbeviewedbyoth-

erson theplatform.Mostof the featuresoftheplatformarefreeforusers.Organisationscanuse paid accounts to upload their soft-wareandprojects forcollaboration.TheplatformusesthesoftwareGit,which

wascreatedin2005byLinusTrovalds,thede-veloperoftheopen-sourceoperatingsystemLinux,totrackchangesinasetoffilesandforcoordinationinsoftwaredevelopment.

Whathas it saidonthecomplaints?GitHubhastakendowntheapp,buthas

not revealedwhowasresponsible for it.“GitHub has longstanding policies

against content and conduct involvingha-rassment,discrimination,andincitingvio-lence.Wesuspendedauseraccountfollow-ing the investigation of reports of suchactivity,allofwhichviolateourpolicies,” itsaid inastatement.

What isnotallowedonGitHub?GitHub'sstatedpoliciesrequirecontent

toberespectfulandcivilatalltimes.Threatsofviolence"towardsothersorusingthesiteto organise, promote, or incite acts of real-worldviolenceorterrorism"arenotallowed.

Topicssuchas"age,bodysize,disability,ethnicity, gender identity and expression,levelofexperience,nationality,personalap-pearance, race, religion, or sexual identityand orientation" are not forbidden. Butspeech that attacks a person or group ofpersonson thebasis of their identity or onanyof these topics isnotallowed.Theplatformclaimsitdoesnot"tolerate

bullyingorharassment", and"anyhabitualbadgeringorintimidationtargetedataspe-cificpersonorgroupof people". In thecur-rentcase,however,MuslimwomeninIndiahavebeentargetedtwiceinthespaceof sixmonths,with the use of apps that are verysimilar. Someof thewomenhavesaid theyhavebeentargetedbybothapps.GitHub also says it does not allow

doxxing—revealingpersonal informationwithmaliciousintent—andtheinvasionofprivacy. It claims sexually obscene andpornographiccontentisnotallowedonthe

platform, even though this does notmean“all nudity or all code and content relatedtosexuality isprohibited”.Postinggratuitouslyviolentcontent,mis-

informationorfakenews,activemalwareorexploitsontheplatformareprohibited.

Whencananaccountbesuspendedorremoved?Ifauserisreportedasviolatingtherules

oftheplatform,GitHubcanremoveorblocktheircontent,andsuspendorterminatetheaccount. But it is not clear how long a sus-pensioncan last.The policy page states, "We'll review

eachabusereportonacase-by-casebasis.Ineach case, wewill have a diverse team in-vestigatethecontentandsurroundingfactsand respond as appropriate, using theseguidelines toguideourdecision."Given the idea of GitHub, anyone can

open an account and upload a code after

providing justanemail id. Soeven if anac-count is blockedor terminated, a newonecanbecreatedwithanotheremail id—andtheoffensive softwarecodeorapps canbeuploadedagainwithperhapsaslightlydif-ferent name. This is what seems to havehappened in the two instances of harass-mentofMuslimwomenin India.AseniorofficerofDelhiPolice'scybercell

saidGitHubisyettosupplyinvestigatorswithdetails of "theusers or accusedpersons" intheearliercase."Wewrotetothemandsentthemalegalnotice.GitHubofficialsaskedusto followMutual Legal Assistance Treatyguidelines...Weagainsentarequestandtheyforwardedittotheirlegalcell.Theysaidsomedocumentsweremissingandwehadtoap-ply again.Wehave approached theHomeMinistry to push for an investigation fromtheir(thecompany’s)side,"theofficersaid.

(WITHJIGNASASINHA)

The shelf life of vaccinesSIMPLYPUTQUESTION&ANSWER

Howlongdoesavaccinestaypotent?Thisdependsonstabilitytests,andcanbeextendedbasedondata,ashashappenedwithCovishieldandCovaxin.Whatdataareanalysed,andhowisshelf lifedetermined?

EXPRESSNEWSSERVICEMUMBAI, JANUARY3

EVERSINCEhedeliveredalandmarkverdictin 2019 asking the Pakistan Army and thecountry’sintelligenceservicestostaywithintheir mandate, Justice Qazi Faez Isa of thePakistanSupremeCourt,whoisinlinetobe-come the chief justice of Pakistan inSeptember 2023, has hadmultiple run-inswiththeall-powerfulestablishment.In the latest incident, Justice Isa’s wife

SarinaIsahasallegedthatfourmenincivvieshadwalkedintoherparents’homeinKarachionDecember29andaskedhertodeclareherpolitical affiliations and other personal de-tails in a detailed questionnaire. Two of themen had claimed to be from MilitaryIntelligence,andtheothertwohadsaidtheywerefromtheIntelligenceDepartment,sentbytheInteriorMinistry,shewroteinathree-page complaint to the Federal Defence andInteriorsecretaries,andtoprovincialauthor-ities inSindh.

The Labbaik caseIn 2017, the far right Tehreek-e-Labbaik

party had staged aweekslong protest at animportanttrafficjunctionthathadparalysedthetwincitiesof IslamabadandRawalpindi.ThePakistanSupremeCourthadinitiated

a suomotucase in the“Faizabadsit-in”mat-ter— and in a judgment passed in February2019,atwo-judgebenchledbyJusticeIsahadraised questions about the role of the Armyand the ISI in theprotest, and inbrokering adealbetweentheprotestersandthegovern-ment (then led by Shahid KhaqanAbbasi ofthe PML-N) thatwas an effective surrenderbythe latter.An ISI generalwas seen invideo footage

distributing cash to the protesters as theydispersed.

“Theconstitutionemphaticallyprohibitsmembersofthearmedforcesfromengaginginanykindofpoliticalactivity,whichincludessupporting a political party, faction, or indi-vidual,” the ruling said. “The government ofPakistan through theDefenceMinistry andrespective chiefs of the army, the navy, andthe air force are directed to initiate actionagainstthepersonnelundertheircommandwhoare foundtohaveviolatedtheiroath.”

Establishment reactionThePakistandefenceministry filed a re-

view petition, and Imran Khan’s PakistanTehreek-e-Insaf—whoseelectionvictory in2018wasengineeredinnosmallmeasurebytheArmyandISI—askedtheSupremeCourttooverturnJustice Isa’sverdict.Also,apresidential referencewasfiled in

Pakistan’sSupremeJudicialCouncil,anover-sightbodyof theSupremeCourt,makingal-legationsofundeclaredforeignassetsagainstfivejudgesincludingJusticeIsa.Hadthealle-gationbeenupheld,itwouldhavepotentiallyledtohis removal.However, in June 2019, the Supreme

Court, actingonapetitionfiledby IsaandbyseveralbarassociationsinPakistan,threwout

thereference,callingit“invalid”,andquashedall proceedings against the judge in theSupremeJudicialCouncil.

BackgroundJusticeIsa,whosefatherQaziMuhammad

Essa played a prominent role in the forma-tion of Pakistan as an associate ofMuhammad Ali Jinnah, belongs toBalochistan.HeisacousinofAshrafJehangirQazi,who

served as Pakistan’s high commissioner toIndia inthe later1990s.In2016,JusticeIsaheadedaone-member

judicialcommissiontoinquireintothemas-sacreof90people—mostofthemlawyers—in a suicide bombing at Quetta GeneralHospitalinAugustthatyear.Thelawyershadgatheredatthehospitalafterthebodyof thepresidentoftheQuettaBarAssociation,whohadbeenkilledinanattackthatmorning,wasbrought there. Justice Isa’s reportwasanall-roundindictmentofthesecurityandpoliticalestablishment, and their conduct inBalochistan.Justice Isawill have a 13-month term as

chief justice, if he ascends to the position inSeptember2023.

What is GitHub, at the centre of an online sexual harassment probe?

Teenagersqueueupfor theirdoses inNewDelhionMonday,as Indiabeganvaccinationfor the15-18agegroup.AmitMehra

JusticeQaziFaezIsa, inlineforthePakistanCJ’sposition,hashadseveralrun-inswithgovernment.

New chapter in judge vs Army in Pak

CORONAVIRUSDASHBOARD

INDIANEWCASES (last 24 hours) 33,750

NEWCASES, TOP5STATES

DOSESONJANUARY2: 24,76,301JAN1:27,88,855 (1st DOSE: 7,46,195; 2nd: 20,42,660)

ACTIVECASES, JANUARY2:145,582 ( Jan 1: 1,22,801)

INDIATOTALDOSES 145,68,89,306(1st DOSE:84,62,78,939; 2nd:61,06,10,367)

Maharashtra 11,877WestBengal 6,153

Delhi 3,194Kerala 2,802

TamilNadu 1,594

Source:MinistryofHealth&FamilyWelfare; Jan2 figuresupdatedon Jan3

DOSESONJAN2, TOP5STATESTamilNadu 10,76,060UttarPradesh 3,77,836

Odisha 1,33,349Jharkhand 1,07,862Haryana 1,07,299

■Firstdose ■Seconddose

Dec24 Jan2LAST 10 DAYS (daily)

40,000

30,000

20,000

10,000

0

7,189 6,531

6,3589,195

13,15416,674

6,987

27,55333,75022,775

Dec24 Jan2

60,00,000

30,00,000

0LAST 10 DAYS (daily)

53,45,226

16,18,115

18,01,290

6,75,011

SURGE INTHECITIES: LAST10DAYSDELHI

24Dec2021 02Jan2022

4000300020001000

0180

3,194

PUNE

24Dec2021 02Jan2022

1000750500250

0

256

850

MUMBAI

24Dec2021 02Jan2022

10000750050002500

0

683

6,347

BENGALURU

24Dec2021 02Jan2022

1000750500250

0

254

923

KOLKATA

24Dec2021 02Jan2022

4000300020001000

0

217

3,194CHENNAI

24Dec2021 02Jan2022

800600400200

0

146

776

13 E EXPLAINED

New Delhi

14 WWW.INDIANEXPRESS.COMTHEINDIANEXPRESS,TUESDAY, JANUARY4,2022

Government of Jammu & KashmirOFFICE OF THE EXECUTIVE ENGINEER MECHANICAL HOSPITAL AND

CENTRAL HEATING DIVISION SRINAGAR(Tele-fax No: 019-2496089, e-mail id: xenmhchdk@yahoo.in)

e-NIT NO: MHCHD/TS /2021-22/262/e-tenderingDated:-30.12.2021

For and on behalf of the Lt. Governor, UT of J&K e-tenders are invited from registered firmsregistered undercompanies Act or Registered A class Civil/Electrical Contractor with J&K Govt.or MSME/NSIC registered forthe below mentioned work:-

1. The Tender document Consisting of qualifying information, eligibility criteria, specifications, Bill of quantities(B.O.Q), Set of terms and conditions of contract and other details can be seen/downloaded from the departmentalwebsite wwwwww..jjkktteennddeerrss..ggoovv..iinn from31.12.2021(18.00 hrs).

2. The bidders shall deposit their bids in electronic format on the above web site from31.12.2021 (18:00 hrs) to15.01.2022 (15:00 hrs) in two (02) cover.

3. The bids uploaded on the website up to due date and time will be opened on16.01.2022(15.00 hrs) or any dateconvenient to the department in the office of ExecutiveEngineer, MHCHD, Srinagar.

Sd/-Executive Engineer,

MHCHD, SrinagarNo: MHCHD/TS/9020-24Dated:30.12.2021 DIPK-16106

GOVERNMENT OF ODISHAOFFICE OF THE CHIEF CONSTRUCTION ENGINEER,

NORTHERN (RANDB) CIRCLE: SAMBALPURe-Procurement

BID IDENTIFICATION No.CCENC (RAND B) / 19/2021-22No: 3682 Dtd. 23.12.2021

1. The Chief Construction Engineer Northern (R&B) Circle, Sambalpur on behalf of Governor of Odisha invites Percentage Ratebids in double cover system in ONLINE MODE for the construction of Road works as detailed in the DTCN from the eligible classof contractors.

2. No of works = 14 (Fourteen) (Road Works)3. Tender Cost: Rs. Rs. 10,000/-4. Class of Contractor: - “B” Class, “A” Class, “Special” Class and “Super” Class5. Date & Time of available in web site & receipt of Bids From 06.01.2022 to 17.00 Hours of 24.01.2022.6. Date of opening of Technical bid : - 25.01.2022 at 11.00 Hours.7. The Bidders have to participate in ONLINE bidding only. Further details can be seen from website "www.tendersodisha.gov.in.8. Any corrigendum / Addendum will be displaced in the website www.tendersodisha.gov.in

Sd/-Chief Construction Engineer

Northern (R&B) Circle, SambalpurOIPR-34035/11/0022/2122

B-944

GOVERNMENT OF ODISHARURAL WATER SUPPLY & SANITATION ORGANISATION

OFFICE OF THE SUPERINTENDING ENGINEERRWS&S DIVISION DHENKANAL E-mail- eerwss-dkl@nic.in

INVITATIONS FOR BIDS THROUGH e-ProcurementBid Identification No — 25/S.E/RWSS/2021-22/Dhenkanal/Dt. 29.12.2021

The Superintending Engineer, RWS&S Division, Dhenkanal on behalf of Governor of Odisha invites Percentage bid throughe-procurement in Double cover system from contractors having experience as mentioned in DTCN of work for the Projectsaccording to norm of e-Procurement system in on-line mode.Nature of Work: - Execution of Rural Piped Water Supply Scheme in Sadar Block under Dhenkanal District.

Sd/-Superintending Engineer,

RWS&S Division, DhenkanalOIPR- 25029/11/0005/2122

O-1606

1. No. of Tenders : 01 No.

2. Tender Paper Cost : 10,000/-3. Value of work : Rs. 365.554. Class of Contractor : A & Special5. Date & time of availability of bid document in portal : 07.01.2022 at 11.00 A.M 20.01.2022 Up to 5.00 P.M6. Date & time of seeking tender clarification : 19.01.2022 up to 05.00 P.M7. Date & time of opening of tender : 21.01.2022 at 11.00 A.M in the office of the Superintending Engineer, RWS&S

Division, Dhenkanal.

8. Time of completion : 11 (Eleven) Months9. The bidders have to participate in online biding only. Further details can be seen from the website https://www.tendersorissa.gov.in.

10. Corrigendum if any shall be publish in the above website only

State Water & Sanitation MissionWater Supply & Sanitation Department

Government of Maharashtra1st Floor, CIDCO Bhawan, South Wing,

CBD Belapur, Navi Mumbai-400614Phone No. 022-27562546, 27562363

Ref No.: WSSD/SWSM/JJM/EPC/291-220/2021Empanelment of Contractors for Execution of Rural Water Supply Schemes in

various packages under Jal Jeevan Mission in the State of Maharashtra.THE Mission Director, State Water and Sanitation Mission (SWSM) is inviting online bid

applications from eligible registered contractors for "Region wise and State wide Empanelment ofContractors for Execution of Rural Water Supply Schemes in various packages under Jal jeevanMission in the State of Maharashtra" as per the details mentioned below :

Interested firms who qualify as per the eligibility criteria mentioned in the RFE document, may submittheir proposals online on https://mahatenders.gov.in latest by 13.01.2022 up to 13.00 PM.

RFE documents are available on https://mahatenders.gov.in and advertisement is also available onwww.wsso.in, www.water.maharashtra.gov.in. If there is any change in scheduled dates or any otherchanges made in the RFE document's etc. will be published only on these web sites.

Sd/-Mission Director

State Water and Sanitation MissionDGIPR/Roc-2021-22/3454

S.No. RFE Ref No. Work Category Work Area Range of est. cost ofindividual schemes

1 WSSD/SWSM/JJM/RFE/01/2021 A Entire State Above Rs. 50 cr

2 WSSD/SWSM/JJM/RFE/02/2021 B Entire State Rs. 5 to 50 cr

3 WSSD/SWSM/JJM/RFE/03/2021 C Amravati Region Rs. 0.5 to 5 cr

4 WSSD/SWSM/JJM/RFE/04/2021 C Aurangabad Region Rs. 0.5 to 5 cr

5 WSSD/SWSM/JJM/RFE/05/2021 C Konkan Region Rs. 0.5 to 5 cr

6 WSSD/SWSM/JJM/RFE/06/2021 C Nagpur Region Rs. 0.5 to 5 cr

7 WSSD/SWSM/JJM/RFE/07/2021 C Pune Region Rs. 0.5 to 5 cr

8 WSSD/SWSM/JJM/RFE/08/2021 C Nashik Region Rs. 0.5 to 5 cr

OFFICE OF THE EXECUTIVE ENGINEERJAL SHAKTI (PHE) DEPARTMENT, DIVISION, SOPORE

email : xenphesopre@gmail.com

TENDER DOCUMENT(Technical Bid-Volume-I)

TOP SHEETFreshE-NIT .65 of12/2021,dt.30 -12-2021

E- TENDER FORS. Name of WorkNo

01 Design, Soil testing ,construction of 0.15 MGD Filtration Plant, 2 No. OHT's having capacity 30000 gallons & 45000gallon with staging height of 20 Mtr and Sump Cum Pump House at Saidpora and Dangerpora and allied works/ electromechanical components for W.S. Scheme Saidpora Dangerpora (under NRDWP) JJM

2. Design, Soil Testing, Construction of 0.30 MGD RSFP/ Clear water Sump, Balance work for intake channel, SumpCum Pump House & Design/Construction of 0.58 Lacs gallons OHT and other allied works and electro mechanicalcomponents for WSS Seer Jagir(Under NRDWP) JJM.

Sr. Description DATENo. DD MM YYYY Time

1 Publishing date of NIT 30 12 2021 6.00PM

2 Download start date 30 12 2021 6:00PM

3 Bid submission start date 30 12 2021 6:00PM

4 Bid submission end date 17 01 2022 04:00PM

5 Bid opening date (Technical Cover) 18 01 2022 11:00AM

The Bidding documents consisting of eligibility criteria, specification, bill of quantities (B.O.Q) set of terms & conditions of con-tract and other details can be seen/ downloaded from the e-procurement Portal “http://jktenders.gov.in” as per schedule ofdates given below:-

For and on behalf of the Lt. Governor UT of Jammu & Kashmir.SD/-DIPK-16077

PR 260928 Drinking Water and Sanitation(21-22)#D

Office of the Executive EngineerDrinking Water and Sanitation Division, LateharE-Procurement Short Tender Notice (SBD)

rdTender Reference No. DWSD/LTR/SVS/CLTR-16/21-22 (3 Call) Date – 03.01.2022

Executive EngineerD.W. & S. Division, Latehar

· Estimated Cost & EMD Cost may be changed.· Further details can be seen on website http://jharkhandtenders.gov.in

Sl.No. Particular Details

Name of Work

Detailed survey, designing and drawing, Construction of 13835 nos. FHTC indifferent block of Latehar District comprising of suitable R.C.C/Frame

Structure ESR, Distribution Lines, Source (as required) & 05 years Operationand Maintenance all complete job “On Turnkey Basis” under D.W. & S.

Division, Latehar for the Year 2021 -22 under (JJM)

Group No. No. ofPanchayat

No. ofFHTC

EstimatedCost (In Lac)

E.MRequired(In Lac)

Cost of BOQ(In Rs.)

Time ofCompletion

1

BRT/SVS/CLTR/02(A)(ii) 3 2395 912.13 9.13 10000/- 09 MonthsCHN/SVS/CLTR/03(A)(i) 3 2421 935.47 9.36 10000/- 09 MonthsBRD/SVS/CLTR/07(A)(i) 3 2019 755.23 7.56 10000/- 09 MonthsBRD/SVS/CLTR/07(B)(ii) 4 2426 895.83 8.96 10000/- 09 MonthsMAH/SVS/CLTR/08(B)(i) 2 2337 902.17 9.03 10000/- 09 MonthsMAH/SVS/CLTR/08(B)(ii) 3 2337 892.34 8.93 10000/- 09 Months

2 Date of Tender Uploadingin Website 05.01.2022 AT 5:00 PM

3 Date of starting submitionof Bid 05.01.2022 AT 5:00 PM

4 Last date receipt of Bid 15.01.2022up to 5:00 PM

5Last Date Submission Costof BOQ and EMD (Hard

Copy)

17.01.2022 up to 5:00 PM in the Office of –1. Executive Engineer D.W. & S. Division, Latehar

2. Superintending Engineer, D.W. & S. Circle, Medininagar3. Regional Chief Engineer, D.W. & S. Department Ranchi Zone, Ranchi.

6 Date of Opening Tender 18.01.2022 at 3:00 PM

7 Name &Address ofOpening Officer Executive Engineer D.W. & S. Division, Latehar (Jharkhand)

8 Name &Address of TenderInviting Authority Executive Engineer D.W. & S. Division, Latehar (Jharkhand)

9 Contact No. of ProcurementOffice 9430725642, 6202470446, 6201242103

10 Contact No. of ProcurementCell 0651-2480345

OFFICE OF THE CHIEF ENGINEER

KASHMIR PHE JAL SHAKTI DEPARTMENT SRINAGARNOTICE INVITING TENDER

e-NIT No. 121 OF 2021-22 Dated: 30.12.2021

For and on behalf of Lt. Governor of UT of J&K, Chief Engineer Jal Shakti (PHE) Department, Kashmir/Jammu invites e-tenders from reputed andresourceful Contractors/Firms/Companies/Joint Venture of all classes registered in JKPWD/ CPWD/ Railways or any other state Government for“Empanelment of Eligible Contractors at Provincial Level and fixing of item rates for HILLY AREAS (LIFT) falling in District Baramulla for Execution ofJal Jeevan Mission (JJM) works costing Above 3 crores up to 10 crores and above (GROUP V)”, details of which are given below. The bidding processshall be completed online in two covers viz. Cover 1st consisting of Pre-Qualification Bidding, tender fee, earnest money, General Terms andConditions and Technical Specifications. Cover ‘2nd’ shall consist of Financial Bid in the prescribed BOQ.

Position of funds: Approved Under Jal Jeevan Mission (JJM)The tender inviting authority is Chief Engineer, Kashmir/Jammu Jal Shakti (PHE) Department.The awarding authority is District Jal Jeevan Mission (DJJM).Note: In view of the fact, that this NIT for item rate contract has been framed for the first time in the Department, a helpdesk shall be established

at the Direction office level as well as district level for encouraging and facilitating the intending bidders for participation in the instantNIT to ensure wide participation across all the Districts.

KEY/CRITICAL DATES:

1. Bid documents can be assessed at and downloaded from the websites http://jktenders.gov.in2. The pre-bid meeting will be held in the office chamber of the Chief Engineer, Kashmir/Jammu, PHE Department, through virtual/online mode.3. The Bids shall be deposited on the websitehttp://jktenders.gov.in4. The complete bidding process will be online http://jktenders.gov.in.5. The Financial bids of the bidders shall be opened online in the office of the Chief Engineer, Kashmir/Jammu, Jal Shakti (PHE) Department.6. Bids must be accompanied by bid security and cost of Tender Document as specified in column 6 & 7 of the table and shall be payable at

Srinagar/Jammu.a. Bid Security to be pledged in favour of FA/CAO, Kashmir/Jammu, Jal Shakti PHE Department. Bid Security will have to be in form of CDR/ FDR/BG

of any scheduled Bank and shall have to be valid for at least one year after last date of submission of Bid. The Bid of bidders having bid securityless than as specified above will be rejected.

b. The cost of downloaded tender documents should be in form of DD /TR/e challan in favour of FA/CAO, Kashmir/Jammu, Jal Shakti (PHE)Department.

7. The hard copies of cost of tender document in shape of DD/TR/e-challan, Earnest money in shape of CDR/FDR/BG and other relevant documentsshall be obtained from the bidder who is declared as L1 after opening of financial cover.

8. The bid shall remain open for acceptance for a period of 180 days from the date of opening of price bids. If any bidder/tenderer withdraws his bid/ten-der before the said period or makes any modifications in the terms and conditions of the bid, the said earnest money shall stand forfeited and the bidshall be declared non-responsive.

9. Other details can be seen in the bidding documents from the website http://jktenders.gov.in.10. Queries by email if any should be made at kmrphed@gmail.com/phecejmu@gmail.com

No: CE/PHE/Kmr/34420-35 Chief Engineer,

Date: 30.12.2021 DIPK-16016 Kashmir, Jal Shakti, PHE Department.

Sr. Particulars of the work Estimated Cost of Earnest Bid Time ofNo. Cost Document/Tender Money Validity Completion of

(Lacs) Fee (in rs.) (Lacs) Work (Days)

1 2 3 4 5 6 7

1. Work/Scheme 1000/- 180wise details given Days

in Section-II oftender document

Group-V Above 3 Crore upto 1.00 180 Days10 Crores & above

Empanelment of eligible contractors at Provinciallevel and fixing of item rates for each district/geo-graphically different zone for execution of JalJeevan Mission (JJM) works. These works arebroadly consisting of:a. Construction of water supply schemes by way of

filtration plants, pump houses, service reservoir,Overhead tanks, laying of distribution mains.

b. Retrofitting of electro-mechanical equipment’sat various Water Supply Schemes

I PUBLISH DATE 31.12.2021

II DOCUMENT DOWNLOAD/SALE START DATE 31.12.2021

III CLARIFICATION START DATE 31.12.2021

IV BID SUBMISSION START DATE 04.01.2022

V CLARIFICATION END DATE 20.01.2022

VI PRE-BID MEETING DATE 04.01.2022

VII DOCUMENT DOWNLOAD/SALE END DATE 28.01.2022

VIII BID SUBMISSION END DATE 28.01.2022

IX DATE AND TIME OF BID OPENING 31.01.2022

GOVERNMENT OF ODISHAOFFICE OF THE CHIEF CONSTRUCTION ENGINEER

RURAL WORKS CIRCLE: SUNDARGARHAT/PO- SANKARA, SUNDARGARH-770020,

E-mail address- serw_sundargarh@yahoo.comNo. Tender Online - RWCCESNG -31 of 2021-22 Letter No. 3869/Dtd. 29.12.2021

e-Procurement NOTICE

O-1624

1. Type of the Work : Road along with Bridge

2. Class of Contractor : As specified in the column-6 of the Annexure

3. Time of Completion : As specified in the column-5 of the Annexure

4. Detail Projects : As per Annexure attached

5. Estimated Cost : As specified in the column-4 of the Annexure

6. Other details :

ProcurementOfficer

BidIdentification

No.

Availability of Tenderon-line for bidding

Last Date &Time ofSeekingTender

Clarification

Date & Time ofopening of tender

From To TechnicalBid

FinancialBid

1 2 3 4 5 6 7Chief

ConstructionEngineer, RuralWorks Circle,Sundargarh

RWCCESNG-31 of 2021-22

31.12.202111:00 AM

21.01.20225:00 PM

20.01.20225:00 PM

24.01.202211:00 AM

Will beintimatedseparately

Further details can be seen from the website www.tendersodisha.gov.in

Sd/-Chief Construction Engineer,

Rural Works Circle, SundargarhOIPR- 25133/11/0043/2122

PR 260903 Road(21-22).D

Executive EngineerRoad Construction Department

Road Division, DumkaPin-814101

Further details can be seen on websitehttp://jharkhandtenders.gov.in

OFFICE OF THE EXEOFFICE OF THE EXECUTIVE ENGINEERCUTIVE ENGINEERROROAADD DDIIVVIISSIIOONN,, DDUUMMKKAA,, JJHHAARRKKHHAANNDD

e-Procurement NoticeFor National Competitive Bidding

e Tender Reference No. RCD/DUMKA/2462 Date- 01.01.2022

1. Name of the workReconstruction of Dumka Airport to

Kurwa More Road (Total Length – 2.040Km) for the year 2021-22.

2(a) Approximate value of Work(Rs. In Lacs )

Rs 761.46700 Lacs(Rupees Seven Crore Sixty One Lakh

Forty Six Thousand Seven Hundred Only)(b) Bid Security ( Rs In Lacs ) Rs 7.62 Lacs3. Time of Completion Three months

4. Last date/Time for receipt ofbids

25.01.2022Up to 12.00 Noon.

5 Date of Publication ofTender on website

17.01.2022AT 10.30 A.M

6. Name & address of officeInviting tender

Executive EngineerRoad Division, Dumka

7. Contact no. of Procurementofficer 7070190875

8. Helpline number of e-Procurement cell 0651-2401010

Government of IndiaMinistry of Agriculture & Farmers Welfare

Department of Agricultureand Farmers Welfare

NATIONAL CENTRE OF ORGANIC FARMINGHapur Road, Kamla Nehru Nagar, Ghaziabad-201002.

Ph. 2764906, 2764901, 2764212 Fax 0120-2764901Web: http://ncof.dacnet.nic.in Email : nbdc@nic.in

Ref.No.: 5-10/2007-NCOF/Vol.2/ Dated : 30/12/2021.PUBLIC AUCTION NOTICE

It is hereby informed for public aution of ONE Maruti Gypsy havingregistration No. UP 14-B-8987 condemned vehicle lying in the officepremises of the National Centre of Organic Farming, Ghaziabad. Thereserved sale price of the said vehicle is Rs. 12000/- (Rupees twelveThousand only). The auction of vehicle will be done on 17.01.2022 at 1100hours.The auction is on “As is Where is” basis and interested bidder/ purchasercan inspect the vehicle on the date of auction between 0930 hours and 1100hours.Every bidder/purchaser should have deposited Rs.2000/- (Rupees Twothousand only) as security money.The security money will be retained till finalization of the deal. Thesuccessful bidder/ purchaser shall have to pay the entire amount on thesame day in cash after finalization of the deal.The successful bidder/purchaser will have to pick-up the auctioned vehicleon the same on his/her expenses. GST or any other tax liability will be borneby the bidder/ purchaser.In case the bidder/purchaser fails to pay the amount and take delivery of theveicle, the security money of the bidder/purchaser will be forfeited and thevehicle may be desposed off in any manner at the discretion of the Director,National Centre of Organic Farming, Ghaziabad.The security money of the successful bidder/purchaser will be adjustedtowards final payment of the auctioned vehicle. The bidder/ purchasermoney of the unsuccessful tenderers will be refunded after completion of thedeal.No bidder/ purchaser will be allowed for grouping during the bidding. If anybidder/purchaser found to do so, his/ her bid will be cancelled and he/shehas to vacat the premises immediately.The Director, National Centre of Organic Farming, Ghaziabad reserved therights to accept/ reject any bid/ bidder/ purchaser without assigning anyreason.

Sd/-(Abhijit Chakravorty)

Sr. Admn. Officer & HOOdavp 01143/11/0001/2122

New Delhi

15SENSEX: 59,183.22 ▲ 929.40 (1.60%) NIFTY: 17,625.70 ▲ 271.65 (1.57%) NIKKEI: 28,791.71 ▼ 115.17 HANG SENG: 23,274.75 ▼ 122.92 FTSE: 7,384.54 ▼ 18.47 DAX: 16,031.36 ▲ 146.50

THEINDIANEXPRESS,TUESDAY, JANUARY4,2022

ECONOMYWWW.INDIANEXPRESS.COM

Internationalmarketdatatill1900IST

GOLD`47,053

RUPEE`74.28

OIL$77.08

SILVER`61,037

Note:Gold,silverratesatDelhispotmarket,goldper10g,silverper1kg;Crudeoil (Indianbasket)asofDecember31

AASHISHARYANNEWDELHI,JANUARY3

THEDEPARTMENTofTelecomm-unications (DoT) is likely tomeetseniorofficials fromtheMinistryof Home Affairs (MHA), theMinistry of Civil Aviation, theMinistryofDefence(MoD)andtheIndian Space ResearchOrganisation (ISRO) soon to sortout the final details on5G spec-trumairwaves and thedifferentbandscurrentlyoccupiedbytheseministries,sourcesinknowofthedevelopmentsaid.TheDoT, officials said,wants

this“formality”tobecompletedassoonaspossiblesothat thespec-trumauctionfor5Gairwavescanbeheldasearlyaspossibleduringthenextfinancialyear,andnolaterthan the end of the April-Junequarter.InOctober last year, theDoT

hadwritten to theMoD, askingthem to vacate 100megahertz

(Mhz) of spectrum in the fre-quencybandof3,300-3,400Mhzand insteaduse the3,000-3,100Mhzfrequencyband.Apart fromthis, ithadalsore-

questedISROandtheDepartmentof Space tonotpress for its claim

on the 26MHz, so that the DoTcouldmakeavailableatleast3000MHz,inlinewiththerecommen-dationsmadebytheInternationalTelecommunicationUnion(ITU).Later,inJanuarylastyear,ISRO,

theDepartmentofSpaceandMoDhadagreedtotheDoT’sdemandstovacatespectruminthefrequen-cies requestedby the latter. Thesaid frequencies areworth overRs60,000crore,anofficialsaid.“Only the formalities ofwho

willoperateinwhichbandsneedsto be agreed upon.Wehope tocompletetheauctioninMarchattheearliestbutnolaterthanJune,”theofficialsaid.While theDoT iswaiting for

thefinalrecommendationsoftheTelecomRegulatoryAuthorityofIndia (Trai) on5Gspectrumpric-ing andother details, it has saidthatcitiesofGurgaon,Bengaluru,Kolkata,Mumbai, Chandigarh,Delhi, Jamnagar, Ahmedabad,Chennai, Hyderabad, Lucknow,Pune,andGandhinagarwouldbe

among the first ones to get 5Gservicesin2022.Trials for 5G services and its

competencyhavebeenongoingatspecificlocationsinthesecitiesforsometimenow.Thethreeprivatetelecomserviceproviders, BhartiAirtel,RelianceJioInfocomm,andVodafoneIdeahavebeenworkingwithtelecomequipmentmakerssuchasEricsson,Nokia, andoth-ersandhavebeenconductingtri-alsattestsitesinthesecities.5Gorfifthgenerationisthelat-

estupgradeinthelongtermevo-lution mobile broadband net-works. 5Gworks in3bands, low,midandhighfrequencyspectrum,allofwhichhavetheirownusesaswell as limitations. Though thegovernmenthassaidthattheauc-tionof 5G spectrumwould takeplaceeitherinMarchorAprilnextyear,someexpertssaythatitcouldbedelayedbyatleastonequarteras telecomserviceproviders areyettocompletetheirtrialsandtestvariousaspects.

AIMSTOSORTOUTDETAILSONSPECTRUM,BANDSHELDBYMINISTRIES

REUTERSBENGALURU,JANUARY3

APPLEINConMondaybecamethefirst company in theworld tohit$3trillioninmarketcapitalisation,thankstoinvestorconfidencethatthe iPhone maker will keeplaunchingbest-sellingproductsasit exploresnewmarkets suchasautomatedcarsandmetaverse.On the first day of trading in

2022, the company’s shares roseto $182.88 inmid-day trading, anew record. The world’s mostvaluable company is the first toreach themilestoneas investorsbetthatconsumerswillcontinuetoshellouttopdollarforiPhones,MacBooks and services such asAppleTVandAppleMusic.Apple’smarchfrom$2trillion

to$3trillioninmarketvaluetookabout 16 months as its stockroaredhigher, leadingagroupofmegacap technology companies

that benefited as people reliedheavilyontechduringthecoron-aviruspandemic.Apple’s shares have climbed

around5,800per cent since co-founder and former ChiefExecutiveSteveJobsunveiledthefirst iPhone in January 2007, faroutpacing the S&P500’s gain ofabout 230 per cent during thesameperiod.

ENSECONOMICBUREAUMUMBAI,JANUARY3

GIVINGAbigpushtodigitaltrans-actions in areaswithpoor inter-netconnectivity,theReserveBankof India (RBI) has allowedofflinemode of payments using anychannelor instrument likecards,wallets ormobile devices. Thenewframeworkisapplicablewithimmediateeffect, theRBIsaid.AccordingtotheRBI, transac-

tions are subject to a limit of Rs200per transactionandanover-alllimitofRs2,000foralltransac-tionsuntilbalanceintheaccountis replenished. An offline digitalpayment means a transactionwhichdoesnotrequireinternetortelecomconnectivity.Under thisnew framework, suchpaymentscan be carried out face-to-face(proximitymode)usinganychan-nelorinstrumentlikecards,wal-lets and mobile devices. SuchtransactionswouldnotrequireanAdditional Factor ofAuthentication(AFA),theRBIsaid.

“Sincethetransactionsareof-fline, alerts (bywayof SMSor e-mail)will be receivedby thecus-tomer after a time lag. Balancereplenishment canonlyoccur inanonlinemode,”thecentralbanksaid. TheRBI saidofflinemodeofpaymentcanbeenabledonlyaf-ter obtaining specific consent ofthecustomer.Customerswillen-joy protection under the provi-sionsofcircularslimitingcustomerliabilityissuedbyReserveBank,asamendedfromtimetotime.“Offline transactions are ex-

pected to give a push to digitaltransactionsinareaswithpoororweakinternetortelecomconnec-tivity, particularly in semi-urbanandruralareas,” itsaid.

However, replenishment ofusedlimitshouldbeallowedonlyintheonlinemodewithAFA.“Theissuershallsendtransac-

tion alerts to users as soon astransactiondetails are received.There is no compulsion to sendalert for each transaction.However,detailsofeachtransac-tion should be adequately con-veyed.Theacquirershall incurallliabilities arisingout of technicalor transaction security issues atmerchant’send,”theRBIsaid.TheRBIannouncedtheframe-

work after getting the feedbackfromthepilotexperimentsonof-fline transactions conducted indifferentpartsofthecountrydur-ing the period fromSeptember2020 to June2021. “The absenceof—orerratic—internetconnec-tivity, especially in remote areas,is amajor impediment for adop-tionof digital payments,” it said.Availabilityofoptionstomakeof-flinepayments,usingcards,wal-letsormobiledevicescouldboosttheadoptionofdigitalpayments,theRBIsaid.

ENSECONOMICBUREAUMUMBAI,JANUARY3

THE INSURANCERegulatoryandDevelopmentAuthority of Indiahasalignedthetenureofchiefex-ecutivesanddirectorsofinsurancecompanieswiththebankingsec-torsetbytheReserveBankofIndia.The tenureofMDs,CEOsand

whole-timedirectors(WTD)ofaninsurancecompanyhasbeensetat15years.Asapplicabletobanks,theprescribedmaximumageofthese functionaries will be 70years.Themaximumagelimitforchairmanandnon-executivedi-rectorshasbeenfixedat75years.Thetotaltenureofanon-exec-

utivedirector(NED),continuouslyor otherwise, on the board of abank, shouldnot exceed8years.After completing 8 years on theboard,thepersonmaybeconsid-ered for re-appointmentonlyaf-teraminimumgapofthreeyears.ForWTDs,ManagingDirectors

andCEOs,theremunerationstruc-turewillbedividedbetweenfixed

pay,perquisites andvariablepay.Fixed Pay should be reasonableandall the fixed items, includingperquisites, shouldbe treatedaspartof fixedpay,IRDAIsaid.For non-executive directors

(NEDs),apartfromsittingfeeandotherexpenses,itprovidesforpay-mentof remunerationcommen-suratewithanindividualdirector’sresponsibilities anddemandsontime,whichareconsideredsuffi-cient to attract qualified compe-tent individuals, in the formoffixed remuneration. Such remu-neration,however,shouldnotex-ceed Rs 20 lakh per annum foreach such director excludingChairman.FortheChairmanoftheboard, the remunerationmaybedecidedbytheBoardofDirectorsoftherespectivecompany.

Irdai sets tenure ofinsurance CEOs, dirs

ENSECONOMICBUREAUMUMBAI,JANUARY3

IGNORINGTHE risingOmicroncases in the country, domesticstockmarketsonMondaykickedoff thenewyearonastrongfoot-ing followingpositive cues fromglobalmarkets. ThebenchmarkSensexralliedby1.60percent,or929points,andcrossedthe59,000level tocloseat59,183.22andtheNSENiftyIndexgained272pointsto17,625.70.The rupee settled at 74.28

againsttheUSdollar,registeringagain of 1paise over its previousclose,onthebackofcapitalinflows.Banking,metalandautostocks

wereinfocusasinvestorswentforbargainhuntinginleadingstocks.Another factor that buoyed thesentiment was that India’sManufacturingPMIcontinued tobeintheexpansionzoneat55.5inDecember supported by strong

momentum in production andneworders,althoughthegrowthwassloweronasequential basis,saidVinodNair, headof researchatGeojitFinancialServices.Foreigninvestorswhowerebig sellers inDecemberboughtstocksworthRs903croreonMonday.“...theupdateontheCovidsit-

uation combinedwith the per-formance of the globalmarketswouldplaya critical role ahead,”said Ajit Mishra, VP-research,ReligareBrokingLtd.

■Paymentcanbedoneusingcards,walletsormobiledeviceswithoutnetconnectivity

USING CARDS,WALLETS

RBI allows payment up to `200per transaction in offline mode

Open Close

Intra-day, Jan 3SENSEX

58,000

58,250

58,500

58,750

59,000

59,250

59,500

58,310.09

59,183.22

Previous close: 58,253.82

Sensex kicks off yearwith 1.6% rally, shrugsoff Omicron worries

Apple becomes1st company to hit$3-tn market value

Asapplicabletobanks,theprescribedmaxageof thesefunctionarieswillbe70years

INDUBHANNEWDELHI,JANUARY3

FUTURERETAILMondaymovedtheDelhiHighCourtseekingtode-claretheongoingarbitrationpro-ceedings in Singapore withAmazonover its Rs24,500 croremergerdealwithRelianceRetailas“illegal”and“contrarytolaw”.Itarguedthatthe2019dealby

which the e-commerce firmac-

quireda49percentstakeinFutureCoupons (FCPL), and whichformedthebasisforittoassertitsrightsoverFutureRetailhadbeenkept in abeyance by theCompetitionCommissionofIndia(CCI) lastmonth.Hence,AmazoncannolongerobjecttoitsmergerdealwithRelianceRetail. FutureRetailsaid“thecontinuationoftheentirearbitrationproceedingsisaperpetuationofillegalityinallow-ingAmazon toassert rights con-

trarytoIndianlaw”.Afterathree-hour long hearing, Justice AmitBansalreservedtheorderandsaidthe samewill bepronouncedonTuesdayat4.30pm.TheCCIhadonDecember17

suspended itsapproval accordedmorethantwoyearsbacktothee-commerce firmtoacquire a49%stakeinFutureCoupons,followingareviewofallegationsofconceal-mentofinformationwhileseekingregulatorynodforthedeal.FE

Declare arbitration with Amazonillegal, Future Retail urges court

‘AS EARLY ASPOSSIBLE NEXT FY’

■TheDoT,officialssaid,wantsthis“formality”tobecompletedassoonaspossiblesothatthespectrumauctionfor5Gcanbeheldasearlyaspossibleinthenextfiscal,andnolaterthantheendoftheApril-Junequarter

Toexpedite5Gauction,DoTtomeetMoD,ISRO,otherofficials

ENSECONOMICBUREAUNEWDELHI,JANUARY3

ONGC’S DIRECTOR of HumanResourcesAlkaMittalonMondaytook over additional charge ofChairmanandManagingDirector(CMD)ofthecompany,becomingthe firstwoman tohold thepostattheMaharatnacompany.MittalreplacesSubhashKumarwhosu-perannuatedonDecember31.Mittal tookoverasDirector—

HR of Oil and Natural GasCorporation(ONGC)inDecember

2018andwasalsothefirstwomantohold thepost of a full-timedi-rectorontheboardofONGC.ONGChasnotappointedafull

timeCMDsincetheretirementofShashiShankerinMarchlastyear.The Public Enterprises SelectionBoard had in June interviewednine candidates, including twoserving IAS officers, for the toppostbutdidn’tselectanyoneopt-ing instead to announce that itwouldsetupasearchcommitteetofindanewCMDforONGC.

AANCHALMAGAZINENEWDELHI,JANUARY3

UNEMPLOYMENT RATEtouchedafour-monthhighof7.9 per cent last month inIndia,datafromtheCentreforMonitoring Indian Economy(CMIE)showedonMonday.

Whatisthelatestunemploymentrate?The unemployment rate

rose to 7.9 per cent inDecember 2021,up from 7.0 percentinNovember.The previoushighest unem-ployment ratewas8.3percentinAugust. Itstoodat9.1 per cent inDecember2020.Urban unemployment

rate rose to 9.3 per cent inDecember2021 from8.2percent in the previousmonth,while the rural unemploy-mentrateincreasedto7.3percentfrom6.4percent,thedatashowed.

Whataretheriskstoemployment?Urban unemployment

rate on a weekly level hadspikedtoadouble-digitratetoaround10.09percentinmid-December. Urban employ-mentisaproxyforbetterpay-

ingjobsandade-cline in its num-bers reflects theimpactonbetter-payingorganisedsector jobs.Economicactivityandconsumption

levelshavebeenaffectedwithrisingcasesofOmicroncoron-avirusvariantandrestrictionsimposed by many states,which could adversely affecteconomicrecoveryfurthergo-ingahead.OnMonday, the country

reported33,750 freshCovid-19casesand123deaths.With10,846 recoveries, the activecaseloadstoodat1,45,582.The December employ-

mentnumbersarealsosignif-icantastheyshowadecliningtrend even before the newCovid-19 wave has forcedfreshrestrictionsonbusiness.

SECTORWATCHEMPLOYMENT

■Unemploymentrateroseto7.9%inDecember2021,upfrom7.0%inNovember,accordingtodatafromCentreforMonitoringIndianEconomy(CMIE)

RISES TO 7.9%INDECEMBER

Jobless rate touches‘4-mth high’: HowOmicron fears mayhit numbers further

MID-TIER softwareexportingcompaniesare likelytodeliverrevenuegrowthof5-6%inconstantcurrencyterms,andhealthyoverallgrowthof20-34%annualised

STRONGREVENUEgrowthledbyhighdiscretionaryandcontinuingtransformationspendingisexpectedinDecember,whichisaseasonally leanperiodduetofurloughs

Industry has seen strong headcount addition with higher fresher intake, amid high attrition on onehand andmuted total new contracts on the other Source: Kotak Institutional Equities/PTI

‘Software exporters set forstrong revenue growth in Q3’

Earningspershare(EPS)growthtobeweakon-yearwith:■MutedWipronumbers■HCLreportingdecline■ Infosysoffering6%■TCS,TechMahindrainlow-teens

Export-dependent software companies are set to report astrong sequential revenue growth of 2.6-6% in theDecember quarter, a Kotak Institutional Equities report said

ONGC gets first woman CMD

AlkaMittal,CMD,ONGC via@ONGC_Twitterhandle

ENSECONOMICBUREAUMUMBAI,JANUARY3

MANUFACTURINGSECTORactiv-itymoderatedlastmonthbutout-putremainedinthegrowthterri-tory,amidslowerriseinsalesandnew orders and concerns sur-rounding supply-chain disrup-tions, newCovid variant and in-flationary pressures, amonthlysurveyIHSMarkitsaidMonday.The seasonally adjusted IHS

Markit India ManufacturingPurchasingManagers’Index(PMI)eased to55.5 inDecember2021,fromNovember’sten-monthhighof 57.6. The latest reading stillpointedtoarobustimprovementin overall operating conditionsthatwas elevated by historicalstandards.Moreover, the latestquarterly readingwasat 56.3, itshighest since the final quarter offiscal2020-21, IHSMarkitsaid.“ThehealthoftheIndianman-

ufacturingindustryimprovedfur-therinDecember,withgrowthofnew work and production re-maining sharp in spite of losingmomentum,”itsaid.Althoughin-put costs rose sharply, rate of in-flationeasedtothree-monthlow.

BRIEFLYNewOPECheadCairo:OPEC secretary gen-eral-electHaithamal-Ghaissaid global oil demandshould return topre-Covidlevelsby2022-end.

EvegrandescripHongKong:Evergrandesaidits shareswere suspendedfromtrading. REUTERS

MarutioutputNewDelhi:Maruti Suzuki’sproductiondropped2% lastmonth.Itsaiditshippedover2lakhvehiclesin2021. PTI

TurkeyinflationIstanbul:Turkey’sannualin-flationratesurgedto36.1percentlastmonth.REUTERS

CryptoindexNewDelhi:CryptoWire an-nounced launch of India’sfirst cryptocurrencies index,IC15,totrackperformanceoftop 15most traded liquidcryptoslistedglobally. PTI

‘ManufacturingPMI slips evenas new orders,output grow’

36

42

48

54

60Manufacturing PMI Services PMI

Dec 2020 Dec 2021

56.4 58.1

55.552.3

Note: Reading below 50 suggests contractionand above it indicates expansion, Source: IHS Markit

RISESINCE iPHONELAUNCH

■Apple’s shareshaveclimbedaround5,800percentsinceco-founderandformerchiefexecutiveSteve Jobsunveiledthefirst iPhonein January2007, faroutpacingtheS&P500’sgainof about230percentduringthesameperiod

5,800%

ENSECONOMICBUREAUNEWDELHI,JANUARY3

MERCHANDISEEXPORTSrosetoanall-timehighof$37.3billionlastmonth, up 37 per cent over theyear-ago period due to a sharpgrowthinexportsofengineeringgoods, petroleumproducts andgemsandjewellery,datafromtheCommerce Ministry showedMonday.Thenation’simportstoohit an all-timehigh of $59.3 bil-lion, rising 38 per cent on-yearamidanincreaseinimportofpe-troleum products, electronicgoods andmachinery. The tradedeficitalsorosesharplyto$22bil-lioninDecember2021,up40percentfromDecember2020.CommerceMinister Piyush

Goyal saidmerchandise exportsduringApril-Decembergrew48.9percentovertheyearagoperiod,surpassing exports in the entireFY21 fiscal. Imports, however,havegrownevenfaster,at69.3percent in thesameperiod,pushingIndia’stradedeficitto$144billion.Goyal said hewas confident

that India’smerchandiseexportswouldreach$400billionthis fis-caldespitetherecentriseinCovid-19infectionsduetothespreadoftheOmicronvariantofSars-Cov2.“Wearemakingfulleffortsandwebelievethatwewillcross$400bil-lion,”hesaid,notingthatshippinglines and container availabilitywould likely become issues duetothespreadofCovidglobally.Theministeralsosaidthatthe

countryisontracktoreachanall-timehigh$230billionofservices

exportsinFY22.Headded that theCentredid

notexpectanyimmediatedisrup-tions in the global supply chainduetothepandemic,notingthatnomajor countrieshad imposedlockdownsanddisruptionswouldlikelybeduetothespreadofCovidamongshippingstaff.Goyal also said therewas “no

extraordinary increase (in trade)withChina,” in response to con-cernsthatIndia’stradedeficitwithChinahadrisensharply.“Infact,it(tradedeficitwithChina)was$48billion in2014-15,whenwehadjustcomeintogovernmentandin2021, itwasbroughtdown to44billion,”Goyalsaid,addingthatthetradedeficitwithChinahad “in-creaseddrastically”from$1.5bil-lioninFY05to$36billioninFY13underthethenUPAgovernment.The minister also said that

India’soveralltradewithallcoun-tries had increased. India’s tradewithChinahadgrownby44percent, but thatwithAustralia hadgrownby102percent,withSouthAfricaby82percent,andwiththeUAEby65percent,headded.

APRIL-DECEMBEREXPORT/IMPORTGROWTH

In 9 mths, exportstop full FY21 figure;imports rise nearly70% over a year ago

■ ForDecember, bothmerchandise exportsand imports rose toall-timehighsof $37.3billion and$59.3billion, respectively, asper governmentdata

RECORDNUMBERSINDECEMBER

Tradedeficitwidens to$144billion

New Delhi

16THEINDIANEXPRESS,TUESDAY, JANUARY4,2022

THEWORLDWWW.INDIANEXPRESS.COM

BRAZIL

BolsonarohospitalisedinSaoPauloBRAZILIAN PRESIDENTJairBolsonarowastakentoa Sao Paulo hospital fortests earlyMonday afterexperiencing abdominaldiscomfort, the govern-ment said. Bolsonaro is“doingwell” and furtherinformationwill be pro-vided later in a medicalbulletin, a governmentstatement published bythe Globo media outletsaid.BolsonaroreturnedtothefinancialcapitalduringthenightfromaNewYearbreakonthecoastandwasimmediately taken toHospitalVilaNovaStar,ac-cording to Globo. GloboquotedBolsonaro’sdoctor,Antônio LuizMacedo, assaying Bolsonaro hadstomach pains. MacedooperatedonBolsonaroaf-terhewas stabbedatapo-litical rally in2018. AP

BrazilPresidentJairBolsonaro

TOPOFTHEWORLD

NIGER

Policeseizeover200kgofcocainefrommayor’struckPOLICE INnorthernNigerhaveseizedmorethan200kgofcocainewortharound$8.7millionthatwasbeingtransported in the localmayor’s official truck, twopolice sources said onMonday. Themayor andhisdriver,whowereinthevehicle at the time, werearrestedwith199bricksofcocaineatacheckpointontheroadheadingnorthoutofthedeserttradinghubofAgadez on Sunday, thesources said.West Africa,most often a transit routeforillegaldrugsonthewayfrom South America toEurope,hasregisteredase-ries of record busts in re-centyears. REUTERS

THEKOREAS

ManwhocrossedDMZwaspreviousdefectorfromNorth:SeoulAMANobserved crossingtheheavilyfortifiedborderfrom South Korea intoNorthKorealastweekisbe-lievedtobeaNorthKoreanwhopreviouslydefectedtothe South in 2020 in thesamearea,Seoul’sdefenceministry said onMonday.SouthKorea’sJointChiefsofStaffhadsaiditcarriedoutasearchoperationafterde-tecting the person onSaturday on the easternside of the DemilitarisedZone(DMZ)separatingthetwoKoreas. REUTERS

ALYSSALUKPAT&CHRISTINECHUNGJANUARY3

RICHARD LEAKEY, the Kenyanpaleoanthropologist and fossilhunterwhosediscoveriesofan-cient human skulls and skele-tons helped cement Africa’splace as the cradleof humanity,diedSundayinKenya.Hewas77.PresidentUhuruKenyattaof

Kenya announced Leakey’sdeathinastatement,butdidnotspecify the cause of death.LeakeydiedathishomeoutsideNairobi,saidprofessorLawrenceMartin, director of Stony BrookUniversity’s Turkana BasinInstitute,whichLeakeyfounded.

Leakey’s parents, Louis andMaryLeakey,weretoweringfig-uresinpaleontology,butLeakeywasdeterminedtoavoidhispar-ents’field.Hefoundworkasasa-fariguide,butheeventuallysuc-cumbedto fossil fever.Hemight have changed his

mind on a 1967 flight, when helooked down over the rocky

shoresof LakeTurkana inKenyaandhada feeling thearea couldyielda troveof fossils.The fossils that Leakey and

his“HominidGang”foundtherewould change the world’s un-derstandingofhumanevolution.One of his most celebrated

finds came in 1984 when hehelpedunearth“TurkanaBoy,”a1.6-million-year-old skeletonofayoungmaleHomoerectus.Theotherwas a skull called “1470,”foundin1972,thatextendedtheworld’sknowledgeof theHomoerectus species several millionyearsdeeper into thepast.Hewasn’t just important for

exploringnewgroundandfind-ing fossils, said professor JohnHawks,apaleoanthropologistat

the University of Wisconsin-Madison,butalsofor“creatinganentirescientific,interdisciplinaryinfrastructure that enabled dis-coveries” andestablishedanewmodel forscientific research.Leakey parlayed his fossil

hunterfameintoapoliticalcareer.Among his roles were Kenya’sheadof public service, thedirec-tor of theNationalMuseums ofKenyaandthechairof theboardfor the KenyaWildlife Service,Kenyattasaidinhisstatement.Leakeywasalso apassionate

conservationistwith a fieryper-sonality.In1989,hedrewinterna-tional attentionwhenhe took astand against the ivory trade byhelping to burn the country’sstockpileof12tonnesofivory.NYT

Richard Leakey, fossil hunter who helped cementAfrica’s standing as cradle of humanity, dies at 77

RichardLeakeyin1997.Reuters

Australia set to push aheadwithreopening amid record Covid casesREUTERSSYDNEY, JANUARY3

AUSTRALIA’SGOVERNMENTsaidthemilderimpactoftheOmicronstrain of Covid-19 meant thecountry could push aheadwithplanstoreopentheeconomyevenas new infections hit a record ofmore than37,000 and thenum-berofpeoplehospitalisedrose.Record daily case numbers

were reported on Monday inthe states of Victoria,Queensland, South Australiaand Tasmania, as well as theAustralianCapital Territory.In New South Wales, there

were 20,794 cases, higher thanSunday’sfigurebutbelowthedailyrecordof 22,577setonSaturday,with testingnumbers lowerovertheNewYear’sholidayweekend.The national daily total hit a

recordofmore than37,150cases,exceedingSaturday’s35,327cases,withWesternAustralia and theNorthernTerritorystilltoreport.“We have to stop thinking

about case numbers and thinkaboutseriousillness, livingwiththe virus, managing our ownhealth and ensuring that we'remonitoring those symptomsandwe keep our economy go-ing,” Prime Minister ScottMorrison toldChannelSeven.Hospitalisations rose to1,204

inNewSouthWales,upmorethan10% fromSundayandover threetimesthelevelonChristmasDay.FederalHealthMinisterGreg

Hunt said the advice to the gov-ernmentwas that theOmicronstrainwasmoretransmissiblebutalsomilder than other variants,whichreducedtherisktobothin-dividualsandthehealthsystem.Michael Bonning, chairman

of the Australian MedicalAssociation’s New SouthWalesCouncil, said the significant in-crease in hospitalisations com-binedwiththepeakholidaype-riod and the number of healthworkers exposed to Covidwereputtingpressureoncapacity.“With both the Christmas

periodandwithhospitalwork-ers being furloughed due totheirclosecontactstatus...we’refindingthat it isbecomingquitedifficult to staff, especiallycriti-cal areas of hospitals,” he toldABCTelevision.InlateDecember,thegovern-

ment changed its advice onwhen people should get a freePCRtestforCovid-19,andiscall-ing for greateruseof rapidanti-gen tests, inpart to relievepres-sureontestingcapacity.

Wehavetostopthinkingaboutcasenumbersandthinkaboutserious illness:PMMorrison

ISRAELFACESOMICRONSURGE:PeoplequeueintheircarstobetestedforCovid-19inAshdod,Israel,onMondayasthecountryfacesasurgeininfectionscausedbytheOmicronvariant.Reuters

AMANDAMORRISJANUARY3

IF ASKED to show her vaccinecard, Stacey Ricks can choosefromthree.Ricks,49,akidneytransplant

recipient who takes immunesuppressingmedication, didn’tdevelopantibodiesafterherfirsttwoModernashots.In June, without disclosing

she already had received theModernashots,shegotadoseofthe Johnson & Johnson vaccinebeforefederalhealthofficialshadapprovedanyoneforathirdshot.Getting her fourth and fifth

shotswas trickier. By July, phar-macyrecordsintheHoustonareawhere she lives finally showedher prior shots. Armedwith adoctor’snoteexplainingthatshehadn’t developed antibodies,

Ricksconvincedapharmacist togive her two doses of the Pfizervaccineover thesummer.Ricks is one of many people

with compromised immunesystems in the US who havesidesteppedgovernmentguide-linesandreceivedunauthorisedfourthor fifth shots.The US Food and Drug

Administration and theCenters

for Disease Control andPrevention are in charge of de-termining when additionaldoses should be administered,butsomepatientsandtheirdoc-tors feel that federal agencieshaveacted too slowly toprotectthemostvulnerable.TheCDCupdatedtheirguide-

lines in late October to say thatimmunocompromised groupswould be eligible for a fourthdosesixmonthsafterathird.Forthosewhofollowedtherules,theearliest eligibility for a fourthwouldbe in lateFebruary.However, as new variants

likeOmicronariseandvaccina-tion rates continue to be slug-gish in many areas, worryingthose withweak immune sys-tems,manyof themaregettingextra shots without beingcertainofwhether theyaresafeor effective. NYT

Washington: US DefenceSecretary Lloyd Austin saidSundayhehastestedpositiveforCovid-19 andwas experiencing

mild symptomswhilequarantin-ingathome.In a state-

ment Sundaynight,Austinsaidhe plans to at-tend key meet-ings and discus-sions virtually in

thecomingweek“tothedegreepossible”. He said DeputySecretaryKathleenHickswouldrepresent him in appropriatematters. AP

THE US is expanding Covid-19boosters as it confronts theOmicron surge, with the FoodandDrugAdministrationallow-ingextraPfizershotsforchildrenasyoungas12.Boosters already are recom-

mended for everyone 16 andolder, and federal regulators onMonday decided they’re alsowarranted for 12- to 15-year-olds once enough time haspassedsince their lastdose.But the move, coming as

classesrestartaftertheholidays,isn’t the final step. The Centersfor Disease Control andPreventionmustdecidewhetherto recommend boosters for theyounger teens. Dr RochelleWalensky, the CDC’s director, isexpectedtorule later thisweek.TheFDAalsosaideveryone12

andolderwho’seligibleforaPfizerboostercangetoneasearlyasfivemonthsaftertheir lastdose. AP

AP&REUTERSDUBAI, JANUARY3

YEMEN’SHOUTHI rebels seizeda ship in the Red Sea, armeddronestargetedBaghdad’sinter-nationalairport,andhackershita major Israeli newspaperMonday — a string of assaultsthatshowedthereachof Iran-al-liedmilitias on the anniversaryof America’s killing of a topIraniangeneral.All three coincided with a

massivememorial inTehran forQassem Soleimani, the generalkilled by a US drone strike in2020 in Iraq. Iran’s hard-linePresident Ebrahim Raisi de-manded the world prosecuteformer US President DonaldTrump and sentence him todeath forordering thestrike.“If Trump and (former US

secretaryofstateMike)Pompeoarenottriedinafaircourtforthecriminal act of assassinatingGeneralSoleimani,Muslimswilltakeourmartyr'srevenge,"Raisisaid inaspeechonMonday.Monday’s events highlight

tensionsinWestAsia,whichhasbeenroiledbyTrump’s2018de-cision to unilaterally withdrawAmerica from a deal aimed atlimiting Tehran’s nuclear pro-

gram. As talks continue inVienna to try to resuscitate theaccord, Iran remains able to ap-plypressure fromoutsideof thenegotiations even as it issqueezed by sanctions and ashadowwarwith Israel.The takingof theEmirati ship

RwabeemarksthelatestassaultintheRedSea,acrucialroutefor in-ternationaltradeandenergyship-ments. The Iranian-backedHouthisacknowledgedtheseizureoff the coast of Hodeida, a long-contestedprizeofthegrindingwarinYemenbetweentherebelsandaSaudi-ledcoalitionthatincludestheUnitedArabEmirates.Astatement fromtheSaudi-

led coalitionsaid the ship wascarryingmedical equipment.A Houthi military

spokesman, Yahia Sarei, de-scribed the ship as an Emirati“military cargo ship” carryingequipment into Yemen’s terri-torialwaters.Meanwhile,nogroupimme-

diatelyclaimedresponsibilityforthe hacking of the JerusalemPost’s website. The hackers re-placedthePost’shomepagewithan image depicting a missilecomingfromafistbearingaringlongassociatedwithSoleimani.In a tweet, thePost acknowl-

edgedbeingthetargetofhackers.

HUIZHONGWU&ZENSOOHONGKONG, JANUARY3

AGROUP of lawmakers loyal toChina’s Communist Partyweresworn in to Hong Kong’sLegislature onMonday follow-ing an electionwithout opposi-tion candidates, as yet anotherpro-democracynewsoutletan-nounced it could no longer op-erateamidagrowingcrackdownonfreedoms in the territory.The founders of news outlet

Citizen News said the news sitewillstoppublishingonTuesday.While theyhavereceivednoor-

der to close, they saidMondaythat deterioratingmedia free-doms in the financial hub put

theminan impossibleposition.“Wealllovethisplace,deeply.

Regrettably, whatwas ahead of

us is not just pouring rains orblowingwinds, but hurricanesandtsunamis,”CitizenNewssaid

inastatementonSunday,whenitannouncedtheclosure.CitizenNewswas founded in

2017by a groupof veteran jour-nalists.Thesmall site focusedonpoliticalnewsandanalysispieces,aswellasinvestigations—andinrecentmonths became a refugeformanyjournalistswhohadlosttheir jobs when other outletsclosedorfacedotherpressures.Meanwhile, new laws have

changedhowHongKongersvotefortheirrepresentatives, includ-inga requirement that anywhoseekofficemustbe“patriots,”ef-fectively bringing the body un-derBeijing’s control. AP

More Americans are gettingunapproved 4th or 5th doses

Vaccinationratescontinuetobe lowinmanyareas,worryingthosewithweakimmunesystems.NYT

Pentagon chiefsays he testedpositive for Covid

FDA expandsPfizer boostersfor more teens

Israel to offer 4th Covid shot to people over 60MAAYANLUBELLJERUSALEM,JANUARY3

PRIMEMINISTERNaftaliBennettsaidonSundaythatIsraelwouldoffer a fourth dose of Covid-19vaccinetopeopleover60andtomedicalstaffasitfacesasurgeinOmicronvariant infections.

Israel last week approved afourthdoseofthevaccinedevel-oped by Pfizer and BioNTech, asecond booster, for peoplewhoare immune-compromisedandtheelderly living incarehomes.“Wenowhaveanewlayerof

defence,” Bennett said in a tele-vised news conference, addingthat Israel’s top government

medicalofficial,whoseapprovalisneededtoexpandtheboostercampaign,hadsignedoff onthelatestmove.“Israelwill once again bepi-

oneering the global vaccinationeffort,”Bennett said.Earlier, theHealthMinistry’s

Director-General NachmanAshsaid Israel could reach herd im-

munity as Omicron infectionsmountedandMerck’smolnupi-raviranti-viralpillwasapprovedforuseinCovidpatientsover18.Herdimmunityisthepointat

which a population is protectedfromavirus, either throughvac-cinationorbypeoplehavingde-veloped antibodies by contract-ingthedisease. REUTERS

LloydAustin

Supportersof thePopularMobilizationForcesholdpostersof IranianGeneralSoleimaniontheanniversaryofhisassassination, inBaghdadlastweek.AP

Yemen rebels seizeUAE ship; hackershit Israeli newspaper

WESTASIANTENSIONSRISE

DAVEYALBAJANUARY3

TWITTER ON Sunday perma-nently suspended the personalaccount of US RepresentativeMarjorie Taylor Greene, aRepublican of Georgia, after thecompanysaidshehadviolateditsCovid-19misinformationpolicies.Twitter suspendedGreene’s

account after she tweeted onSaturday, falsely, about “ex-tremely high amounts of Covidvaccine deaths”. She included amisleadingchart thatpulled in-formation from a governmentdatabase of unverified rawdatacalledtheVaccineAdverseEventReporting System, or VAERS, adecades-old system that relieson self-reported cases frompa-tientsandhealthcareproviders.TwittersaidthatGreenehada

fifth“strike”,whichmeantthatheraccountwill notbe restored. Thecompanyhad issuedhera fourthstrike inAugust after she falselypostedthatthevaccineswere“fail-

ing”. Greene was given a thirdstrike less than amonth beforethatwhenshehad tweeted thatCovidwasnotdangerousandthatvaccinesshouldnotbemandated.Greene’sofficialCongressional

account,@RepMTG, remains ac-tivebecausethataccount’stweetsdidnotviolatetheservice’srules.On the alternative social

messaging platform Telegram,Greene said that Twitter “is anenemytoAmericaandcan’than-dle the truth”.Her suspension comes as

coronavirus cases have surgedagain in theUS. NYT

ChrisYeung,CitizenNewsfounder,outsidehisoffice inHongKongonMonday.AP

Twitter permanentlysuspends account ofMarjorie Taylor Greene

REUTERSMOSCOW,JANUARY3

CHINA, RUSSIA, Britain, theUnited States and France haveagreed that a further spread ofnuclear arms andanuclearwarshouldbeavoided, according toa joint statementbythe fivenu-clear powers published by theKremlinonMonday.It said that the fivecountries

—whoarethepermanentmem-bers of the United NationsSecurity Council — consider ittheir primary responsibility toavoidwar between the nuclearstates and to reduce strategicrisks,whileaimingtoworkwithallcountriestocreateanatmos-

phereof security.“We declare there could be

nowinners in a nuclear war, itshould never be started,” theRussian-languageversionof thestatement read.“As the use of nuclear arms

wouldhave far-reaching conse-

quences, we also confirm thatnuclear arms— as long as theyexist — should serve defensiveaims,deterrenceagainstaggres-sionandpreventionofwar.”France also released the

statement,underscoringthatthefive powers reiterated their de-

termination for nuclear armscontrol anddisarmament. Theywould continue bilateral andmultilateral approaches to nu-cleararmscontrol, it said.Thestatementcomesamidin-

creasedgeopolitical tensionsbe-tweenMoscowandWesternna-tionsoverconcernsaboutRussia’smilitarybuild-upnearneighbour-ingUkraine.Moscowsays it canmoveitsarmyarounditsownter-ritoryasitdeemsnecessary.Last Thursday US President

JoeBidentoldhisRussiancoun-terpartVladimirPutinthatapos-siblemoveonUkrainewilldrawsanctions and an increased USpresence in Europe, where ten-sionsarehighafterRussia'smil-itarybuildupat theborder.

RepresentativeMarjorieTaylorGreene

China tightensgrip onHongKong

CHINAHASbeentight-eningitsgriponHongKongoverthepastcou-pleofyears,andtheim-positionofanewsecu-ritylawhasseenseverelimitationsbeingplacedonfreedomofspeechinacitythathadpreviouslybeenknownto

haveafreeandaggres-sivenewsmedia.Anumberof independ-entnewsoutletshaveshutdown,including

CitizenNews,StandNewsandAppleDaily,andseveraljour-nalistsandactivistshavebeenarrested,chargedorhavefled.

HK news site to shut; pro-Beijing lawmakers sworn in

Russia, China, Britain, US and Franceagree: No one can win a nuclear war

Theheadquartersof the InternationalAtomicEnergyAgency.China,Russia,Britain,FranceandtheUSsaid itwastheirprimaryresponsibility toavoidanuclearwar

Iranvowsrevenge forSoleimanikilling if Trumpnotputontrial

New Delhi

SPORT/CALENDAR 17WWW.INDIANEXPRESS.COMTHEINDIANEXPRESS,TUESDAY, JANUARY4,2022

CROSSWORD4628

ACROSS1Talkof arrangingareplay(6)4Novelisthas todrinkwithoutsomethingtoeat (8)9Staractorsupset (6)10Scholarly in theory (8)12 It’sawordofwarningofcourse (4)13Timeof strain?(5)14Arecord’shighpoints (4)17 Inneedof arestcure?(4,3,5)20 It’suseful formakingacomeback(6,6)23Shoemakingtools (4)24Bert’sgettingout theport(5)25Alifetimeofbridge (4)28Sinner inaction(8)29A3hpRussianvehicle (6)30Entertainer;possiblySudanese (8)31Askedforbreakfast inbed?(6)

DOWN1Afightingopponent(8)2Anewstricterlimit(8)3Hisvictimsloseheart(4)5Bywhomhotelguestsmaybetakenin(12)6Bathingresortwithnothingundercover(4)7Ancientcityloomdesignedthedecoration(6)8Taxcut(6)11Itmayprovidetherearsquad(12)15Leftportcarryingcargo(5)16Evilcharacterliveduptoabadname(5)18Missingphysicalexercise(8)19Criterionfollowedbyacavalryregiment(8)21Scoldanumberinasharpway(6)22Possiblydeignstodraw(6)26Theadvantagebeingsharpgivesone?(4)27Allowtogofornothing(4)

ARIES(Mar21-Apr20)Today'spassionateplanetaryrelationshipsencourageyour

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TAURUS(Apr21-May21)Youmayhavebeendeeplyconfusedbyeventsbeyondyourcontrolor

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GEMINI (May22- June21)There is still a slightriskof arguments,possiblyover trivialpointsandwith

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CANCER(June22- July23)The immediatecrisisatworkseemstobepast,but thereremainsadanger

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LEO(July24-Aug23)ThefieryplanetMars isnowpassingthrougha favourableandsupportive

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VIRGO(Aug24-Sep23)InyoursolarcharttheradicalandphilanthropicsignofAquarius

representsyourability tobringanentirelydifferentquality towork,whetherpaidemploymentordomesticchores.Rightnowthis indicatesthatyouwill findnewwaysto teamupwith like-mindedpeople.

LIBRA(Sep24-Oct23)Youcertainlyappeartobe livinguptoyourreputationassomeonewitharare

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SCORPIO(Oct24-Nov23)Nobodyhassuchasharpeye for thetruthasyou.Yousee,youknowexactly

howfolk inauthorityare likelytobehave.Youalsorealise thatit isverydifficult forpeople tofulfil theirpromises. So,whydon’tyougive themthebenefitof thedoubt?

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cherishedgoal.The firstrequirement, though, is tosortout thecontinuingcomplicationsdoggingyourfinancialaffairs. Inmattersoftheheart, keeptalking: if youdon’t tell lovedoneswhat’sgoingon, thentheycan’tbeblamedfornotknowinghowyoufeel.

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allof usyouhavechangedandcometoappreciate that tobemoreopenwithyour feelingsleads to improvementsallround.Youmaysoonbeexperiencingsensations thatyouneverknewexisted.

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nowrealise that thereareperiods togo italoneandmoments tobendtootherpeople’sdesires.Everythinghingesaroundyoursenseoftiming; sowaitandmakesureyoupick theperfectmoment.

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onesarewaiting foryoutomakeadecisivemove,butnobody isyetsurewhat is thecorrect stepto take.Youmayhavetowaitanotherweekorsobefore thedust settlesandyoufeel clearabout thenextphase.

SUDOKU470

4

DifficultyLevel4sInstructionsTosolveaSudokupuzzle,everydigitfrom1to9mustappear ineachofthenineverticalcolumns, ineachoftheninehorizontalrowsandineachofthenineboxes.

DifficultyLevel1s=Veryeasy;2s=Easy;3s=Medium;4s=Hard;5s=VeryHard;6s=Genius S

OLU

TIONSUDOKU470

3

Givenbelowarefour jumbledwords.Solvethejumblestomakeproperwordsandmovethemtotherespectivesquaresbelow.Selecttheletters intheshadedsquaresandjumblethemtogettheanswerforthegivenquip.Don'tbrood.Getonwith___and___.Youdon'thaveforever.-LeoBuscaglia(6,.,6)

SOLUTION:IDIOT,GRILL,AWNING,VOTIVEAnswer:Don'tbrood.Getonwithlivingandloving.Youdon'thaveforever.-LeoBuscaglia

DTIIO WANING

GLILR EIOTVV

SolutionsCrossword4627:Across:1Sepia,4Forkout,8Ego,9Snowdrift,10Gripped,11Organ,13Triads,15Strops,18Tonic,19Flavour,21Entertain,23Ice,24Steamer,25Latin.Down: 1Sleight,2Provision,3Aesop,4Fiords,5Redcoat,6Obi,7Titan,12Geologist,14Decorum,16Surgeon,17Affair,18Tress,20Annul,22Toe.

JUMBLEDWORDS

CALVIN&HOBBES byBillWatterson

MARVIN byTomArmstrong

DAYTODAY BYPETERVIDALOVERTHEHEDGE byMichael Fry&TLewis

Evenas their rivalsentertain,PremierLeague leaders incontrolof title race

REUTERSMANCHESTER, JANUARY3

ENGLISH FOOTBALL treasures the packedprogrammeofactionoverthefestiveseasonand,despitethedisruptionofCOVID-19andthe complaints of somemanagers, it againdelivered inspades.Assooften,theintensespellofgamesnot

onlyprovidedfanswiththechancetogetoutof the house and leave the leftovers in thefridgebut led to real clarity in the title race.Chelsea and Liverpool produced a

Premier League classic on Sundaywith anenthralling2-2drawatStamfordBridge,butthatonlyhelpedManchesterCity,whonowhavea10-point leadat the topof the table.CitybeatArsenal2-1at theEmirateson

Saturday, the winning goal coming in thefinal seconds from midfielder Rodri. Inmanyways, thosetwogamesencapsulatedthis title race—City foundaway towin forthe 11th game in a row, while their rivalsentertained in frantic fashion but gave upcrucial points.The quality of Chelsea and Liverpool is

undeniable. Both have been crownedEurope'sbest inthepastthreeyearsbywin-ningtheChampionsLeague,anhonourthathasevadedCity.Butbothareperhapsbettersuitedtothe

high-octane challenges of a knockout com-petition than the long haul of a PremierLeague season that by its nature rewardsconsistency. PepGuardiola's City, on coursefor their fourth Premier League title in fiveyears, play a style of football inwhich theyusuallycontrolgames,wearingdownoppo-nentswith their unmatched ability to keeppossessionandcreateopenings.Theyhaveevolved in recent seasonsbut

Guardiola's fundamental approach to thegame, honed at Barcelona, is unchanged --thehightechnicallevelofhissuperblydrilledteam and their understanding of their ap-proach togamesdelivers consistently.The German coaches of Liverpool and

Chelsea, JuergenKloppandThomasTuchel,instead prefer a more high-energy gamewithattackslauncheddowntheflanksbyat-tacking full-backs, intensepressingand fastbreaks in transition.

Imported style fromBundesligaThe style imported from the Bundesliga

isenthrallingtowatchandhasthepotentialto sweep asideweaker opponents but feelssomewhat anarchic comparedwith City'sdisciplineddestructionof opponents.Liverpool found the consistencyneeded

duringtheirtitlerunin2020whentheywereclose tounstoppable, goingonan18-matchwinningstreakmid-seasonandwinningall

butonehomegame.This year, they have already dropped

pointsathomethreetimesandwononlysixof11awaygames."WhatLiverpoolarelack-ing now that they had in the title-winningseasoniscontrolofafootballgame,"saidfor-mer Liverpool captain and now Sky Sportspundit JamieCarragher,whocompared theperformance at Chelsea toKlopp's first twoseasonsat the club. "ThatwasthebestgameI'veseenthisseason,butintermsofLiverpoolwinning the title, that'swhat's going to costthem. Five timesnow, they've taken the leadthis season and they've notwon the game.That's thedifferencebetween Liverpool andManCityrightnow."Chelseamay still be a work in progress

one year after Tuchel took over from FrankLampard, and the problemswith their bigsummersigningRomeluLukakuarehardlyhelping.Tuchel's sidehavewonjustonce in their

last five games -- dropping points againstBrighton,WolverhamptonWanderers andEvertonbeforeSunday's thriller.The title race isn't over, but the fight for

Champions League qualification is lookinglike the bigger battle .Arsenal currently oc-cupy the fourth slot butWest HamUnited,TottenhamHotspurandManchesterUnitedareallincontentionwithjustfourpointssep-aratingthem.ShouldUnitedbeatWolvesonMonday theywouldgo levelonpointswiththeGunners.

In Chelsea-Liverpool stalemate,ManCity emergewinners

HOWTHEYSTANDP W D L GD Pts

ManCity 21 17 2 2 40 53

Chelsea 21 12 7 2 29 43

Liverpool 20 12 6 2 34 42

Arsenal 20 11 2 7 8 35

WHam 20 10 4 6 10 34

ChelseaandLiverpoolplayedoutanentertaining2-2drawonSunday.Reuters

It isabiggap.They(ManCity)havethetitle,maybe, to losebutanythingcanhappen.”

VIRGILVANDIJKLIVERPOOLDEFENDER, ONTITLERACE

London: Chelsea record-signingRomeluLukakuheadsintotalkswithmanager Thomas Tuchel uncertainwhenhewill play againbut assuredhe has a future despite beingdropped for going public with hisfrustrations.Thestriker,whomissedSunday's 2-2 draw with Liverpool,hadsaidhewas"nothappywiththesituation" at Chelsea and indicatedhe didn't like Tuchel's style of play.ThecommentswerelastSundayandagain onWednesday. AP

Lukaku set for crisistalks with manager

PRESSTRUSTOFINDIASYDNEY, JANUARY3

ENGLAND'SPREMIERall-rounderBenStokeshasmadeitclearthathehasnocaptaincyam-bition,backing,tothehilt,hisunder-fireTestskipper Joe Root and head coach ChrisSilverwoodinthewakeoftheAshesdebacle.Root and Silverwood have faced sharp

criticism following England's dismal showin the ongoingAshes series,which the visi-torstrail0-3.Roothascomeunderfireforhiscaptaincy during the Ashes with GeoffreyBoycott,MichaelAtherton, IanChappellandRicky Ponting amonghismorehigh-profilecritics. "I've never really had an ambition tobe a captain," Stokes, the Englandvice-cap-tain, told reporters.The30-year-oldhas ledEngland inone

previous Test, a defeat by West Indies in2020whenRootwasonpaternity leave.Healso led England to a 3-0 ODI series winover Pakistan last year when an entiresquadhadtobereplacedbecauseof anout-break of COVID-19."Captaincy is more than about setting

fields, picking the team,making decisionsout there in themiddle. "A captain is some-oneyouwanttogooutandplayfor. JoeRootis someone Ialwayswant toplay for."Root is set tobecomeEngland's longest-

servingTest skipperwhenhe leads the sideoutinthefourthTesthereonWednesday.HewillovertakepredecessorAlastairCook,whocaptained theside fora record59matches.WhileRoothasbeen in imperious touch

withthebat, this is thethirdAshesserieshehasledwithoutawin,butStokesdoesn'tex-pect the31-year-old tostepdownjustyet."It'stotallyJoe'sdecision.Heshouldn'tbe

forced intodoing it. I'msureCooky(AlastairCook)felt thesameway.Hedidit forsolongandwhenheknewhistimewasup,histimewas up. Those discussions haven't enteredanywhere near Joe yet. I don't sense that atall with Joe. He's brought this team a longway.He'sdonesomegreatthings.Obviouslythis series hasn't gone toowell, not from acaptaincypointofview,butfromateamandresultspointof view,"hesaid.StokesalsobackedSilverwood,whosejob

hangsinbalance."Unfortunately,thecaptainandcoachbearthescrutiny,butthereare10other guys out there in the field," saidStokes."Chris Silverwood is a real players'coach. He stands up for you as individualsandplayersaswell.Allthehypeinthemediarecently about their futures, it's your job towritethat,buttheyknowfullwelltheyhavethe support of everyone in there and that'sall thatmatters," Stokessaid.

Smith surprisedStar Australian batter Steve Smith on

Monday said England pacer Stuart Broad'slimited role in theongoingAshes series hasleft even thehometeam"surprised".Broad,whohas snared 526Testwickets

for England in 150 games, only featured inthe Adelaide match, missing out on theopening and Boxing Day Tests. "We havebeenabitsurprised.Twowicketsthatwouldhave suited him pretty well," Smith wasquoted as saying by cricket.com.au. "Hebowledwell inAdelaide.He'salwaysbeenagood contest forme. He's gotme out quitefew times, I've scored some runs off him soit'sbeenadecentbattle," Smithadded.WhileBroad is in line tobowl in tandem

with fellow veteran pacer James AndersoninthePinkTest,startinghereonWednesday,England will only be fighting to avoid awhitewashashostsAustraliahavetakenandunassailable3-0 lead in theseries."They've got quality bowlers. Him and

Jimmy (Anderson) together are twoworldclass performers, they have been for a longtime.Maybewe'llseethemoutheretogetherthisweek, I'mnot sure," Smithadded.Smith'scommentscomeafewdaysafter

teammate DavidWarner, who struggledagainstBroad inEngland in2019, said 'fromour perspective, I think it's great he is notplaying,' after theMCGTest.The southpaw has been dismissed by

BroadaremarkableseventimesinfiveTestsin2019.England'sselectionintheserieshascopped up sharp criticismwith questionsalso being raised over skipper Joe Root'sleadership and head coach ChrisSilverwood,who is also responsible for se-lecting the squads.

FOURTHASHESTEST: LiveonSonySportsNetwork,5am (Wednesday)

Stokes backs Root, says ‘noambition’ to be captain

BenStokessupportedhiscaptainandcoachaheadof thefourthTest.AP

AIFF suspendsI-League after risein Covid-19 cases

EXPRESSNEWSSERVICEMUMBAI, JANUARY3

AFTER ONLY one round of matches, thecountry's second-division football champi-onship, the I-League, was suspended for atleast six weeks following a fresh Covid-19outbreak among the teams inside the bio-bubble inKolkata.According to the Press Trust of India, the

Covid-19 case count within the I-Leaguebubble stood at 45 onMonday,marking analmost four-fold increase in the number ofplayerswhohavetestedpositiveinlessthanaweek.OnDecember29,whilesuspendingtheleagueforaweek, itwasreportedthatatleast eight players and three officials hadtestedpositive for thevirus.Following the latest round of testing on

Monday, the All India Football Federation's(AIFF's) League Committeemet online anddecided topostpone the league."TheLeagueCommittee,abidingconsen-

sus of all participating clubs as per the sug-gestion of Dr. HarshMahajan (member ofAIFFSportsMedicalCommittee)ratifiedthedecision to postpone the ongoing Hero I-League 2021-22 for at least 6 weeks," theAIFF said inastatement.The I-League Committee, chaired by

AIFF's senior vice-president Subrata Dutta,willhaveareviewmeetingafter fourweeksto take stockof the situationanddecide thefuturecourseofaction.However,withCovid-19casessurgingalloverthecountry, includ-ing thehost cityKolkata, it remains unclearwhen the league can resume.Mahajan saidtheywilltakeintoconsiderationthegovern-ment regulationsandpoliciesbeforedecid-ing thedates for resumption.The health protocols of the bio-bubble

will continue till January 7, as all teamswillbe tested again onWednesday. The teamscan travel back to their respective destina-tionsonce theyare testednegative.Players and officials, who have tested

positive intheteamhotelsandhavealreadybeen isolated, will be treated and quaran-tined in Kolkata as per the health parame-terslaiddown.Theywillbeallowedtoleavethebio-bubbleafter they testnegative.So far, only sixmatches of the I-League

season have been played so far - onDecember 26 and 27 - before it was sus-pended.LeaguedebutantsKenkreFCaretheonly teamyet toplayamatch.

Odisha stunMumbai CityOdisha FC completed a scintillating sec-

ond-half comebacktorecorda4-2winoverdefending championsMumbai City in theIndian Super LeagueonMonday. The resultleaves Des Buckingham’s menwinless inthree gameswhile Odisha's victorymeansthey are only three points separate themfromtheleagueleadersdespitebeinginsev-enthplaceonthe table.

Unfortunately, the captain andcoach bear the scrutiny, butthere are 10 other guys out therein the field."

BENSTOKESENGLANDALL-ROUNDER

18THEINDIANEXPRESS,TUESDAY, JANUARY4,2022

SPORTWWW.INDIANEXPRESS.COM

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ProteaspacersdismissKohli-less India formodest total to take first-dayhonours insecondTest

ABHISHEKPUROHITJANUARY3

THEFIRSTnineoversof theWanderersTestsuggestedanear-repeatof the firsthouroftheCenturionTest.SouthAfricahadsquan-dered thenewballonBoxingDay,bowlingtoowide and serving up toomanybound-ary balls to build any sort of pressurewiththe new Kookaburra. India’s openers KLRahulandMayankAgarwalhadgoneontoadd 117, and the match was to slip awayfromSouthAfrica right there.Butinsharpcontrast,attheendoftheday

inJohannesburg,hostswerethehappierlotaf-terdismissingIndiafor202andreaching35/1.Had itnotbeenforaresolutehalf-centurybyKLRahul, leadingIndiaintheabsenceofViratKohliwhoisnursinganupperbackspasmandavaluablecameofromRavichandranAshwin,thetouristswouldhavestruggledtocross150.With the pitch offering some spice for

pacers, it seems to be game on going intothe second day.On the first day of the NewYear’s Test,

Duanne Olivier shared the new ball withKagisoRabadainhishighly-anticipatedreturntoTestcricketafterathree-yearKolpakcareerinEngland.Hisopeningspelllastedfourovers.Ashemoveditinandoutgentlyinthemid-

120s, one started towonderwhetherhewasstill in county cricketmode. After all the fussover Oliviermissing Centurion and all thebuild-upaheadof theWanderers game, hadSouthAfricasacrificedanall-rounderforthis?WiaanMulder had bowled a tad quicker atCenturion,andissupposedtoofferafewrunswiththebattoo,unlikeOlivier.The 29-year-oldOlivier hadmadeRahul

hoptoalifterthathadmissedtheoutsideedgeand nicked his shoulder on its way to the’keeper,butthathadbeenabouttheonlythreathe’dposed,andithadcomeoutofnowhere.Attheotherend,KagisoRabadahadbeen

surprisinglyshornofspeedandbite,andIndiahadtickedalongto32innineovers.Then came Lungi Ngidi, bang on target

from ball one and allowing a single run inhis first three overs. Angling the ball inaroundoff-stumpandmaking it straighten,Ngidi was posing a constant threat. But itwas to beoneof thosedays; hewould endwicketless in 11 overs.But Ngidi, andMarco Jansen after him,

tightenedthingsupconsiderably,andthelat-ter broke through soon. The previous fiveovers had brought only four runs, and thefirstballafterthedrinksbreak,Agarwalsawone pitched up and decided to drive to endthe brief strangle. But the young left-armerJansencangetittoriseevenfromafulllengthbecauseofhisimmenseheight,andAgarwalnicked itbehind.Something snapped into place for the

SouthAfricannew-ball pair now, especiallyOlivier; thepace increased slightly, but cru-cially,hestartedgetting it to takeoff tennis-ball like from a good length, something hehasbeenknown for andbroughthimaTestaveragebelow20.

VeteransdisappointCheteshwarPujarahadalreadybeenmade

tofendacouple,outof thereachofbackwardshort-leg. Hewasn’t as luckywhenOliviermadeitclimbagain,andlobbedittopointoffthe splice. Pujara has often got into troubleoverseas forhis tendency to sort of leanhalf-forward and try to ride the extra bounce.Hefailedagaintryingthat, forjust3.Pujarahadlasted33balls;thesecondun-

der-pressure veteran, Ajinkya Rahane, wasto go first ball. Olivier found bounce oncemore, but itwould have been a straightfor-

ward leave had Rahane not gone fishing toedge it to thecordon.Thepitchseemedtobeplayingquicker

now as it baked under the sun. Followinga brief resistance in his first Test in a year,HanumaVihari got a snorter fromRabadafor Rassie van der Dussen to take a flyingcatch at short leg.Allthiswhile,Rahulhadbattedinacocoon

of his own. It’s like hehas squeezedhimselfintothisprotectiveshellandwillnotbeluredto stepout of it nomatterwhat is thrownathim.Heholds thebat calmlybehind thepadto letdeliverieson fourthor fifth stumppass.Thebatdoesnotstrayawayfromthebodyde-spiteenticementsgalore,nordoesthebalancebetrayhim.Almost an identical ball from Jansen to

the one that got Agarwal on the drive,Rahulplayedoutwithout fussawhile later.Hewas able to do that because he had notcommitted and watched the ball closelyuntil the very last instant.EvenasAgarwal took the leadat the start

withafewfours,Rahulwason1off28.Hethengot a full delivery on the pads fromOlivier.One’dexpectasubcontinentbatterinparticu-lar tobedelightedat theofferingandwhip itsquare or throughmidwicket for the releaseshot.ButRahulhasdisciplinedhimself to theextent that he accounted for the bit of lateswing, and eased itwith a dead straight batthroughmid-onforfour.Thatdiscipline,however,wastodeserthim

soonafter he reachedhis half-century.Withtwomen in thedeep for thehook, Rahul stillplayedtheshotoff Jansenandfell toanexcel-lentslidingtakebyRabada.An enterprising 46 off 50 by Ashwin

stretched the innings from 116/5 to 202,but itwaswayshortof theaverage first-in-ningsscoreof 317atWanderers. Inonlyhissecond Test, 21-year-old Jansen finishedwith figures of 17-5-31-4.DeanElgarandKeeganPetersensurvived

an18-overbarragefromstand-invice-captainJasprit Bumrah&CoevenasAidenMarkramfelltoMohammedShamiforthethirdtimeinthree innings. India will be worried thatMohammedSirajwalkedoffthefieldwithoutcompletinghis fourthover.UnlikeCenturion,theydonot have the cushionof runs toplaywithatWanderers.

SCOREBOARDIndia1st Innings:KLRahul cRabadab Jansen 50MayankAgarwal cVerreynneb Jansen 26CheteshwarPujaracBavumabOlivier 3AjinkyaRahanecPetersenbOlivier 0HanumaViharicvanderDussenbRabada20RishabhPantcVerreynneb Jansen 17RavichandranAshwincPetersenbJansen46ShardulThakurcPetersenbOlivier 0MohammedShami c&bRabada 9JaspritBumrahnotout 14MohammedSiraj cVerreynnebRabada 1Extras: (B-8LB-3NB-5) 16Total: (All out in63.1overs) 202Fallofwickets:1/36,2/49,3/49,4/91,5/116,6/156,7/157,8/185,9/187,10/202Bowling: Kagiso Rabada 17.1-2-64-3,DuanneOlivier17-1-64-3,LungiNgidi11-4-26-0, Marco Jansen 17-5-31-4, KeshavMaharaj1-0-6-0.SouthAfrica1st Innings:DeanElgarbatting 11AidenMarkramlbwbShami 7KeeganPetersenbatting 14Extras: (LB-2W-1) 3Total: (For1wicket in18overs) 35Fallofwickets:1/14Bowling: Jasprit Bumrah 8-3-14-0,Mohammed Shami 6-2-15-1, MohammedSiraj3.5-2-4-0, ShardulThakur0.1-0-0-0.

Olivier adds the twist

DuanneOliviercelebratesafter takingthewicketofCheteshwarPujara. Reuters

What India wanted from Pant, Ashwin delivered – an attacking cameoSRIRAMVEERAMUMBAI, JANUARY3

NOTMANY tinker with the batting tech-nique and set-up as much as he has doneover the years. A flip-book of him at thecreasewill throw up somuch variety thatit canbewilder: thebat tappingtheground,held high in the air andparallel to ground.That’s just the bat. The knee also has

beencontorted invariousdegreesover theyears. It flexesupanddownat thecrease, ithas stayed a bit firmer, upright. The upperbody too has had its variations. Upright,crouching,mid-way.Sodoes thehands.Hecanrockandcra-

dle that bat back and forth at crease as hedoes these days. The elbow too can becrooked up, like now, ala Imran Khan. Theangle of his posture too; it’s been mostlyside-on but he has also tried the open-stance.Clearly,he is someonewholoves tobat;

after all as a kid, batting was his first lovenot just inthegullycricketbutevenincom-petitive cricket till an injury opened thedoor to theworld of offspin.The overthinking, as tabled above, can

bequiteamusingand interesting towatch.

Not easy for a batsman to keep tinkeringlike this. In the past, through a series, hehashadadifferent set-upaccording to theconditions and the pitches.Sometime in the last18monthsorso, it

dawned on him that he should stop fuss-ing toomuch.AjinkyaRahanehelpedwithsome straight talk.“A lot of my batting was about me in-

ternally thinkingaboutwhatwashappen-

ing with the crease, the set-up, the tech-niqueandall that sortof stuff.Whereasmybatting was more about hands, gettingthrough theball and sort of thinking tacti-cally rather than thinking technically,”Ashwin said last February.“Ajinkya [Rahane] played a crucial role

in terms of telling me that I’m overthink-ing it andhave to just get it done. All thosethings played a massive role but that in-ningsSydneyreallyset thetone forme,”hehad added.That innings is part of cricketing folk-

lore already. The battle with the body, thebattle with the Aussies, the intense focusto even conceive that one coulddefendonfor hours, and thediscipline for anusuallyinnovativebatsmantocurball thoseurgeswas quite something.This one at Johannesburg was far eas-

ier in composition. Not in execution asthere weren’t many runs from top orderbatsmen, thepitchthrewupawkwardvari-able bounce but in terms of mental disci-pline. Itwas clear that an attacking cameowas theway to go andhedidn’twaste anytimedoing it.He drove the on-the-up, punched over

the infield but in the V, and drove at everyopportunity. The bat cradled in his hands

atcrease, theelbowstayedcrookedup,andthe bat swing was supremely fluid. He isone of the best timers in this Indian team.Unsurprisingly, South Africans tried to

bouncehimout.Alwaysadone thingwithhimandalwayswortha try.Hiship swivelcanbeabit slowerat times,andhecan lap-pull it in theair.Hehasalso founditdifficultto sway or duck and more often than nottries toputbat to theshortball. That’swhyin Sydney, he correctly decided the risk-percentage wasn’t on his side and tookbody blows.That’s how ithasplayedout for the last

year.Not just inAustraliabut thenhecameback and starred with a ton at his home-town Chennai against England. Tactically,he isveryastute:heknowswhentoattack,whentodefend.Heidentifies therightpaceof batting better thanmany.And that’s why his over-thinking frus-

trated him in the past. “My batting wasmore about hands”. He had veered awayfromthat realisationandcouldn’tproducescores consistently. In an interview withCricbuzz couple of years back, he hadtalked about how he had grown too “de-fensive” in hismindsetwhile batting. Andintendedtosort thatoutby trustinghis in-stinct. And thewonderful batting hands.

RavichandranAshwintook50ballsforhis46runswhilehittingsix4s. Reuters

VITAL CONTRIBUTION

Pujara, Rahane can’t seem to turn a corneras batting woes continue at WanderersSHAMIKCHAKRABARTYJANUARY3

APOROUSIndianmiddle-orderbecameevenweakerafterbackspasmsruledViratKohlioutof the secondTest. Even in themiddle of anelongatedfallowperiod,Kohlihasbeenscor-ing30sand40s,andIndiamissedtheircaptaintoday.Inhisabsence, theonusfellontwosenior

batsmen, Cheteshwar Pujara and AjinkyaRahane, toraisetheirgame.Pujara ishorriblyout of format themoment. Rahane, despitenot scoring big in the first Test at Centurion,lookedgoodandshowedintent.Bothcametothis tourwalking a tightrope and so far theyhavefailedtoliveuptothepressure.OnMonday, if Pujara fell prey to extra

bounce,Rahaneplayedalooseshot.Kohli’sre-placement,HanumaVihari, got out by com-mittingtofront-footearly.

Pujara stays lowTostartwith,Pujara’sapproachtobidehis

timewas fraughtwith risks.Awicketwasal-ways just around the corner on this surface.TheWandererspitchwasunusuallydryonDayOneallright,butithaditscustomarybounce,steepenough for thebatsmen to leavedeliv-eriesonlength.Thenagain, Pujarahasplayed like this all

hislife,absorbingpressureandwearingdownthebowlers.Whenoutofform,though,hecanbeinabind.SouthAfricanfastbowlershadaclearplan

forPujara,shortballintothebodyoffalength.A leggullywas inplaceandacatchnarrowlyescapedthefielderonce.On the face of it,maybePujarawas a tad

unlucky thewayDuanneOlivier’s deliveryreared fromback-of-a-length and took theshoulderofthebattopoint.ButSunilGavaskar,onair, spokeabout Pujara staying low (inhisforwardpress)andhowdifficultitcouldbefora batsman to counter the bounceby stayinglowonthis.Hedidn’tmeettheballbelowhiseye-line anda littlemoreuprightnessmighthave allowed Pujara to counter the extrabounce.The33-year-oldhasbeenplayinghis94th

Test, scoringmore than 6,600 runs. He hasbeen successful on the bouncier pitches inAustraliaalso.Butheisnotgettinganyyoungerand struggling for form,he failed to smotherthebounce.

Rahane fishesoutsideoffRahane came at No. 4 and got a golden

duck,apoorshotbringingabouthisdownfall.Olivier once again bowled back-of-a-lengthoutsideoffandthebatsmanhunghisbatandgave catching practice to Pietersen at gully.Onceagain,Gavaskarwasn’timpressed.“After

these twodismissals, one can say that theyprobably have just next innings, both PujaraandRahane,tosavetheirTestcareers,”thebat-tingmaestrosaidwhilecommentating.Pujarasofarhasscored19runsinthreein-

nings.Rahanehas68runsfromthreeoutings.

Vihari’s forwardpressAs long as the SouthAfricanpacerswere

bowlingfull,Vihariwashappilyblocking.ButKagisoRabadaandcompanyquicklyrectifiedtheirmistake,draggedthelengthbackandthebatsmanwas in all sorts of trouble. Rabadamadeoneriseoffalength,theballflewofftheinsideedgeandRassievanderDussentookafinediving catch at short leg. Committing tothe front-foot early undidVihari,whohad agoodbedding-inperiodintheseconditionsbe-foretheseries,playingforIndiaA.

AshwindefendsbattersStayinguprightworkedtoAshwin’sadvan-

tage, allowinghim toplay through covers aswell. He also played a lofted drive over thebowler’shead.Theseniorplayerofferedhis insight,ashe

spokeatthepost-daypressconference.“Everybatsmanisdifferent.Andyouhavetoskinthecatthewayyoufeelit.Andwhenyougotobat,youalsoneedthatbitof lucktogoyourway. Ithought therewas a very honest attempt interms of howwewent about our business.Someofthosedismissalshappen.”About thepitch,he said: “Thepitchwasa

little two-paced.Generally,Wanderers has atendencytostartabitslowerandthengettingalittlequicker.Itdidquickenupabit,butIthinkthisfeelsalittledifferenttoatypicalWandererspitch.Wehavetowaitandseehowitrespondstomorrow.”

AjinkyaRahane exits the stage after agoldenduck. AP

NehrasettobecomeheadcoachofAhmedabadIPLteamNewDelhi:Former India fast bowlerAshish Nehra will be AhmedabadIPLfranchise'sheadcoachduringthe2022 IndianPremier League seasonwhileEnglandopenerof yesteryearsVikram Solanki is in line to become'DirectorofCricket'.WorldCup-win-ningformer IndiacoachGaryKirstenwill be the 'Mentor' of the franchisewhich is expecting to get its formal'Letter of Intent' (LOI) during themonth. "As far as I have heard, theyhave signed Ashish as their headcoach and someone who would bein overall charge of the franchise.Solanki will be the 'Director ofCricket' andalsoexpected todoubleupas batting coach andKirstenwillbe inamentorshiprole,"a senior IPLsource told PTI on conditions ofanonymity. PTI

WilltrynewlineupsforAsiad:ManpreetJaipur:Anticipating tough competi-tion at the Asian Games this year,Indian men's hockey team captainManpreet Singh says the FIH ProLeaguewill be a perfect platform totry out new combinations for thebig-ticket event in Hangzhou.Manpreet had led India to firstOlympicmedal in41years inTokyo,where the team won a historicbronze. "AsianGameswillundoubt-edly be the biggest event for us thisyear. Surely the competitionwill bequite toughat theAsianGamesasallteams will be vying to make theOlympics cut (bywinninggold),"hesaid. Gold medal-winning countryat the Asian Games, startingSeptember 10, automatically quali-fies for theOlympics. Indiahadwona bronze in the Jakarta Games in2018. "The FIH Pro Leaguewill helpus gain some really goodmatch ex-perience ahead of Asian Games.Additionally, itwill giveusgreatop-portunity to try out different com-binationsaheadofAsianGames,"hesaid in aHockey India release. PTI

Dennerby:IndiainhunttomakeknockoutsNewDelhi: Indianwomen's footballteamheadcoachThomasDennerbyin-sistedthat"wewillfightwithourlives"toreachtheknockoutstageof theAFCAsianCupandrealisetheirdreamofse-curing qualification to the 2023 FIFAWorldCup.Asked if he is confident oftakingIndiatotheirfirstFIFAWomen'sWorldCup in2023,Dennerbydidnotgiveadirectanswerbutsaid"anythingcan happen" if his team reaches theknockout stage (quarterfinals) of theAsianCup."Let'stakeitstepbystep.Ofcourse,wehaveadream,andthatstartswith us being one among the eightteamsinthequarter-finalsoftheAsianCup," said the experienced SwedeonFIFAwebsite."Ifwecanreachthatlevel,anythingcanhappen.Icanonlyprom-iseeveryonethatwewillgooutwithawinningmentalityandputinahugeef-fort. And thatwewill fightwith ourlives." Five teams fromtheAsianCup,tobeplayedinMumbaiandPunefromJan20toFeb4,willqualifydirectly forthe2023WorldCup. PTI

BRIEFLY

SAQLAIN REFUSES FULL-TIME PAK JOBFormer Pakistan spinner Saqlain Mushtaq has conveyed to the PCBthat he would be unable to take up the head coach job with thenational team on a full time basis due to his personal commitments.The PCB has already given advertisements for five coaching positionsincluding a power hitting batting coach and head coach for the HighPerformance Centre. PTI

Kolkata: A BACK injury forced ViratKohli out of the second Test againstSouth Africa at Johannesburg, withKL Rahul leading India in his ab-sence. “Unfortunately Virat has anupper back spasm. Physios areworking on him. Hopefully, he willbe OK by next Test,” stand-in skip-per Rahul told the host broadcasterafterwinning the toss.Kohli,with98Testmatchesunder

hisbelt,wassettoplayhis100thTestatCapeTown, thevenuefor thethirdmatch,before the injurystruck.India’s next Test series will be at

homeagainstSriLanka,atwo-matchassignmentduringwhichKohli isex-pected to play his landmark 100thgame.ThefirstTestisscheduledtobeheldinBengalurufromFebruary25,avenuewhich is Kohli’s second homebecause of his long stint with RoyalChallengersBangalore. ENS

B’luru likely to beKohli’s 100th Test

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