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ITANAGAR, Sep 4: Gover-

nor Brig (Retd) Dr BD

Mishra and Chief Minister

Pema Khandu have extend-

ed warm greetings to the peo-

ple of the State and especial-

ly the teaching community

on the eve of Teachers’ Day,

which commemorates the

birth anniversary of great

scholar and first Vice Presi-

dent and second President

of Independent India, Dr

Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan.

The Governor expressed

hope that the occasion will

inspire members of the no-

ble profession to rededicate

themselves towards impart-

ing knowledge and value-

based education. In his mes-

Guv, CM greet teachers on Teachers’ Daysage, the Governor said that

the teachers play a key role

in students’ life in particular

and society in general.

With their far-sighted vi-

sion, knowledge, and expe-

rience, they have a huge im-

pact on the growth, devel-

opment, and well being of

the students and in turn that

of the nation, he said and

called upon the teaching fra-

ternity to follow the path of

righteousness and high mor-

als of Dr Radhakrishnan.

“May the celebrations of

this Day inspire us to follow

the ideals and values prac-

ticed by Dr Radhakrishnan,

which were in the best tradi-

tions of our great Gurukula

teachers of ancient times, and

this immensely contributed to

the building of a united, vi-

brant and dynamic Bharat,”

the Governor wished.

The Chief Minister, in a

message, said: “As the com-

mon adage goes, the future

of a country lies in the hands

of its children, and teachers,

as mentors, can mold stu-

dents into future leaders who

shape the destiny of India.

They play an important role

in our lives to become suc-

cessful in career and busi-

ness. They help us to be-

come a good human being, a

better member of society,

and an ideal citizen of the

country.

On this special day, dedi-

cated to all teachers, we hum-

bly acknowledge the chal-

lenges, hardships, and the

special role that teachers play

in our lives,” he said.

While paying his tributes to

Dr Radhakrishnan, Khandu

said, “I believe teachers of our

state would follow his foot-

steps and shape the future of

our great country India.”

Assembly Speaker Pasang

Dorjee Sona also extended

warm greetings to the teach-

ing community and called upon

them to put in their best efforts

for imparting quality education

to the students so as to help

them become responsible citi-

zens in the society.

Staff REPORTER

ITANAGAR, Sep 4: Rejecting

the Rajiv Gandhi University

Students’ Union (RGUSU)’s

claim that there is drastic hike

in the fees, the RGU authority

today said that the fee has not

been hiked and is according

to what is given in the pro-

spectus.

Addressing a press confer-

No hike in admission fees: RGUence here, RGU Vice Chancel-

lor Prof Saket Kushwaha said

there is no hike in the aca-

demic admission fees or in the

examination fees as claimed

by the students’ union.

“A committee was formed

to look into the demands of

the students’ union which

has found that the exam fee

for the intermediate and last

semester was not hiked, but

has rather been concentrat-

ed,” the VC said.

RGU Registrar Prof Tomo

Riba also said that the matter

was discussed and it was

found out that there has been

no hike in the admission fees.

He said that extension of

admission date for MPhil

scholars and concession in

the admission fee of post-

graduate, MPhil and under-

graduate (UG) courses are

not possible as it’s too late

now and should have been

done earlier.

“As most of the students

have already taken their ad-

mission and if we make con-

cessions for the remaining

students then we have to

give concessions to all

those students who have al-

ready taken admission,” he

said on the fee concession

demand by the union.

Responding to the other

demands of RGUSU, the Reg-

istrar said that the process to

refund the examination fees

collected online for the semes-

ter examinations is under way.

He further informed that

the students who have paid

extra fees for the semester ex-

amination in 2019 will also be

refunded. “The process to

refund the extra fees paid by

the students for non-practi-

cal subjects like sociology,

history and commerce is also

under way,” he said.

On the demand for inclu-

sion of a student union rep-

resentative as a permanent

member in the Academic

Council meeting, Prof Riba

said it is decided by the Min-

istry of Education, Govt of

India. Contd. on P-2

ITANAGAR, Sep 4: The All

Arunachal Pradesh Stu-

dents’ Union (AAPSU) while

strongly condemning the

frequent intrusions by Chi-

na’s People’s Liberation

Army (PLA) along the Line

of Actual Control (LAC) has

urged upon Indian army to

come up with a suitable re-

ply to any mishap from

across the border.

The AAPSU, the State’s

apex students’ body, said, we

are very much shocked and

agitated that even in times

of Covid-19 induced suffer-

ings, the Chinese are resort-

ing to war-mongering and

mentally harassing the

peaceful people living along

the LAC by their rhetorics

and notorious antics.

While talks between India

& China have been going on

since last many months at

various levels with both sides

AAPSU flays frequent intrusions by Chinese PLAagreeing on wide range of is-

sues but it is very surprising

to note that the Chinese forc-

es on the ground are doing

exact opposite of what is be-

ing jointly agreed, it said add-

ing, either the PLA is a rogue

army bereft of any discipline

or the Chinese Govt doesn't

want peace along the LAC.

“The entire state of

Arunachal Pradesh and

AAPSU stand strong with

the brave jawans of our

army. Being the voice of the

easternmost border state of

Arunachal Pradesh, we will

never propagate anything

other than peace. However,

we strongly urge our army

for giving a befitting reply to

any misadventures from

across the border.

Due to illogical and non-

sensical claims by the Chinese

Govt, people of Arunachal

Pradesh have been denied

funding for development

projects from international

agencies since last many

years,” the Union said.

After creating artificial dis-

putes with various nations

in South China Sea, forceful-

ly subjugating the people of

Tibet, mass human rights vi-

olations against Uighurs,

stifling dissent in Hong

Kong etc, it said the neigh-

bouring nation is creating

tension along our borders to

divert public attention from

the numerous problems they

are facing back home.

Stating that the Chinese

should respect the MacMo-

hon line and refrain from bla-

tant provocations, the AAP-

SU urged the Union Govern-

ment to maintain extra vigil

along the borders and also

to take up the issue of inde-

pendence of Tibet at all in-

ternational forums.

YUPIA, Sep 4: With Chief

Minister Pema Khandu re-

cently making disclosure

about resolving the boundary

row mutually with his Assam

counterpart, an inter-state

border meeting involving the

districts of Assam’s North

Lakhimpur and Arunachal’s

Papum Pare was held today.

The meeting between

North Lakhimpur Deputy

Commissioner and his Pap-

um Pare counterpart was

held at the DC’s conference

hall here to discuss various

issues relating to border dis-

putes and related matters.

Addressing the officers

from both sides, North La-

Assam-Arunachal border row: Both

sides for peace talks, joint patrollingkhimpur DC Jeevan.B

stressed the need for con-

ducting more Peace Commit-

tee meetings and carrying

out joint patrolling to diffuse

tension among the people

living in border areas.

He also said that the offic-

ers of both sides should

work for greater benefit of the

people and maintain better

coordination among each

other to tackle any situation

by explaining the people to

restrain and give more impor-

tance to peace and commu-

nal harmony.

Papum Pare DC Pige Ligu

highlighted the historical

aspects and age-old camara-

derie between people of As-

sam and Arunachal since

time immemorial and reiterat-

ed on continuing the follow

ups on peace talks and joint

patrolling by officers of both

sides to prevent flaring up

of violence in border areas

in days to come.

He also handed over the

local Commission report to

his North Lakhimpur coun-

terpart.

SP Papum Pare Jimmy

Chiram, in his speech, stressed

on proper border strategy for

peaceful coexistence and to

act in a more sensible way to

help local people living in bor-

der areas. Contd. on P-2

SFs bust extortion

racket, recover huge

cache of ammunition

CHANGLANG, Sep 4: In a

severe thrashing to the under-

ground organization, a joint

team of Changlang district

police, 171 Bn of CRPF and 14

Rajput Regiment on Thursday

busted extortion racket carried

out by ultras in Mpen area

under Miao circle, informed SP

Changlang Mihin Gambo.

Acting on an input about

the presence of armed cadre

of NSCN-K at Mpen area

under Miao circle of Chang-

lang district, a joint Cordon

and Search Operation

(CASO) was launched by the

joint team on September 3.

The joint team was led by

Kunwar Singh, 2IC, 171 Bn

of CRPF, Tasi Darang, SDPO

Miao and 14th Rajput Regi-

ment under command of a

Captain. During the CASO,

one individual identified as

SS Pvt Wangmon Khimhun,

22, was apprehended from

general area of Mpen.

One Chinese made assault

rifle, one magazine and 29 live

ammunition and other incrim-

inating documents were re-

covered from his possession.

On spot interrogation, the

arrestee revealed that he

joined ENNG in January 2020

and then left the outfit the

organization in August. Fur-

ther, he admitted that he along

with his accomplice had car-

ried out extortion at Mpen

area in the name of NSCN-K.

Based on further input and

corroborated by the arrestee,

an intensive search operation

was carried out by the joint

team of another group led by

SI J Aran of Miao PS and Insp

Raile Paul 171 Bn CRPF at the

suspected hide out area.

During search operation,

the joint team recovered an-

other huge cache of AK-47

ammunition as many as 101

live rounds, four magazines,

one pouch and one holster

from their hide out camp.

Contd. on P-2

GUWAHATI, Sep 4: Keeping

in mind the “volatile situa-

tion” along the India-China

border in Ladakh, the Govern-

ment has directed paramilitary

force Sashastra Seema Bal

(SSB) to augment manpower

with weaponry at the eastern

frontier in Arunachal Pradesh,

which shares 1080-km inter-

national border with China.

According to officials,

Tezpur frontier of SSB has

directed seven companies of

the paramilitary force to be

kept in readiness to be de-

ployed at short notice.

The ‘order’ added that the

companies have been asked

to “invariably carry sufficient

AALO, Sep 4: Post detection

of COVID-19 cases, the big-

gest village of West Siang,

Darka has refuted the accusa-

tion that the village had any

link with the ‘DJ nite’ event at

Humgo Rigo Resort though it

falls under the village.

Terming the incident as

“unfortunate”, the chairman

and secretary of Darka Gida

Isi Development Committee,

Dui Ete and Jumli Padu said

that the event was handi-

work of Bili Bolo Boys. They

have done it without any

knowledge and consultation

from the village authority

and the village authority

knew nothing about it as the

SSB asked to augment manpower,

weaponry in Arunachal bordersBP jackets, BR helmet, Anti-

riot equipments, body protec-

tor, special equipments, arms/

ammunition, communication

equipments etc, kit clothing,

medicines, as per authorisa-

tion and climatic conditions.”

“All concerned unit Com-

mandants are requested to

keep their companies in readi-

ness for further movement in

the AoR (Area of Responsi-

bility) of Lungla/Tawang

area,” the order says.

There are also reports that

Indian Army has moved

troops to the eastern

Arunachal district of Anjaw,

over which also China lays

claim as South Tibet. (UNI)

Darka refutes had any

link with ‘DJ Nite’ eventplace is located 5-6 km away

from the village.

Detecting Covid-19 positive

cases from Darka and organiz-

ing the DJ Nite at Humgo Rigo

resort in social media is an im-

age tarnishing to demean our

efforts (in battle against Cov-

id-19) for the last five months,

said the Committee.

Few of infected persons

may be the natives of Darka

but at present they are not

residing at the village, the

Committee said and added,

it has pressed for a thorough

inquiry into the incident for

organizing such an event in

a pandemic time violating

Govt SOPs. (DIPRO)

ITANAGAR, Sep 4: Continu-

ing with steep rise in Covid-

19 infections for the second

day running, the State on Fri-

day contracted a huge

201new positive cases and

also discharged as many as

113 Corona patients follow-

ing their recovery from the

virus, thus mounting its tally

of confirmed cases to 4775,

which comprised 1487 active

and 3280 discharged cases

along with eight fatalities,

according to a bulletin issued

by the Directorate of Health

Services late this evening.

Of the total infections re-

corded today in 19 districts,

Itanagar Capital Complex

(ICC) remained as the most

affected with 56 cases. West

Siang registered 42 cases, fol-

lowed by Papum Pare with 17

and West Kameng just be-

hind at 16. 13 cases were

found in Tawang and 10 in

201 new Covid cases mount State count to 4775Upper Subansiri. Changlang

and Lower Dibang Valley

came up with nine cases each,

as Lohit detected six.

Longding and East Siang reg-

istered five each and Lower

Subansiri four. Two each were

found in Tirap and Leparada,

whereas one each in Namsai,

Shi-Yomi, Kra-Daadi, Lower

Siang and Upper Siang.

27 of the ICC cases were

reported from Banderdewa

check gate, 13 from Paid

Quarantine testing centre

(Ita), 12 from TRIHMS (Nlg),

two from SQF (Lekhi) and

one each from RKHM and

CCC-SOA, Zoo area (Ita).

In West Siang, 35 are pri-

mary contacts of positive

case detected earlier, six were

detected from check gate and

one is a military personnel

detected in QF (Quarantine

Facility). 10 of Papum Pare

cases were detected from

Hollongi and seven from

Gumto check gates.

Of West Kameng cases, 11

were detected from Bomdila

check gate, one is a primary

contact of positive case de-

tected earlier in GH-Bomdila

and four are military person-

nel from MH-Dahung. All 13

Tawang cases are military

personnel detected in QF.

In Upper Subansiri, seven

are GREF personnel detect-

ed in QF, two were reported

from Flu Clinic, DH-Dapori-

jo and one from CHC-

Dumporijo. In Changlang,

five are APP personnel re-

turnees from ICR, three are

Assam Rifles personnel re-

turnees from Bihar, Uttrak-

hand & Tripura, and one is a

HCW (health care worker)

from Miao. Eight of LDV cas-

es are primary contacts of

positive case detected earli-

er and one is a returnee from

Andhra Pradesh.

Five of Lohit cases are

ITBP personnel detected in

QF and one is a returnee from

Uttar Pradesh. All Longding

cases were reported from

CHC, Kanubari. In East Siang,

three are labourers, one is a

driver and one is an inter-state

traveller from Assam.

Three of Lower Subansiri

vases are returnees from As-

sam and one is a primary con-

tact of positive case detected

earlier. Both Tirap cases were

reported from check gate. In

Leparada, one is an ITBP per-

sonnel and one is a labourer.

The lone Namsai case is an

IRBn personnel returnee from

ICR; the Shi-Yomi one is a re-

turnee from Assam; the Kra-

Daadi case is a returnee from

ICR; the Lower Siang case was

reported from Likabali town-

ship, and the Upper Siang one

is a driver. Contd. on P-2

Echo of Arunachal

SASASASASATURDTURDTURDTURDTURDAAAAAYYYYY

SEPTEMBER 5, 2020

GUWAHATI, Sep 4: In line

with Unlock 4 guidelines of

the Central government, the

Assam government today

announced of lifting week-

end lockdown and night

curfew, which were in force

in the state as precautionary

measures against spread of

COVID 19.

Chief Secretary Kumar

Sanjay Krishna informed of

the relaxations through Twit-

ter, while also issuing de-

tailed guidelines which will

be in forced till September 30.

“Weekend lockdown and

night curfew have been lift-

ed, however, please adhere

to all the COVID-19 proto-

cols to keep yourself and

others around you safe,” he

President to give nat'l

awards to 57 teachers

on Teachers DayNEW DELHI, Sep 4: Presi-

dent Ram Nath Kovind will

felicitate 57 selected teach-

ers of the country, by giving

them national awards, on the

occasion of Teachers' Day

on Saturday.

Kovind will felicitate these

teachers through video-

conferencing at 1100 hrs on

Saturday. Two of the teach-

ers are differently-abled. The

teachers are from 36 states

and Union Territories, as

well as seven organisations.

On the eve of Teacher's

Day, Mr Kovind also con-

gratulated them by underlin-

ing the role of teachers in

nation-building.

He said, 'Every year,

Teacher's Day is celebrated

nationwide on the birth an-

niversary of a great teacher

like former President Dr

Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan in

his memory. I convey my

congratulations and best

wishes to the teachers who

will be honoured tomorrow.'

President Kovind said

teachers were the guiding

force for students and true

nation builders. 'The teach-

er is not only a person who

teaches, but also a moral

guardian, who instills val-

ues within the students,' he

noted.

He said in Indian culture,

the Guru-Shishya tradition

is viewed with respect.

'Teachers, with their pa-

tience and restraint, not only

introduce students to the

rich tradition of our culture,

but also motivate students

to achieve their goals. There

is no doubt that teachers are

the driving force for the stu-

dents and the creator of the

nation,' added Mr Kovind.

He also said that in view of

changing times in the soci-

ety, there is a need for change

in the education system and

more contribution of teach-

ers is needed for the better-

ment of the society.

Hopefully, teachers will

continue to play their role

in building a great nation

and make the student com-

munity wise, so that they

can lead the country in the

coming days. (UNI)

No immediate plans

to test prisoners for

Covid-19 in MeghalayaSHILLONG, Sep 4: The Pris-

ons department in Megha-

laya has no immediate plans

to conduct random testing of

swab samples of prisoners

lodged in different jails in

five districts across the state.

“There are no immediate

plans as yet to conduct ran-

dom testing in any of the

jails as none of the prison-

ers have shown any symp-

toms of COVID-19,” Inspec-

tor General of Prisons, Ma-

riahom Kharkrang told UNI

on Friday.

“No visitors are allowed to

meet the prisoners to prevent

the spread of the viral infec-

tion,” he said, adding that all

communication between in-

mates and relatives are done

through telephone.

Kharkrang said that the

prisons department has cre-

ated two isolation cells in

Shillong district jail, Jowai

district jail, Tura district jail,

Williamnagar district jail and

Nongpoh district jail.

“One of the isolation cells

is for new entrants who are

kept in quarantine for a few

days and when the medical

officer is satisfied about their

health they are allowed to

move to the general ward,”

the Prisons Chief said. (UNI)

Assam does away with weekend

lockdown, night curfewwrote on Twitter.

As per the latest directives,

all schools, colleges, educa-

tional and coaching institu-

tions will remained closed till

September 30, though online

and distance learning activi-

ties have been allowed.

Students from class 9 to 12

have been allowed to visit

schools on voluntary basis

for guidance from teachers,

while 50% teaching and non-

teaching staff has also been

allowed to attend the insti-

tutes at a time.

Skill and entrepreneurship

training has been permitted

with strict compliance to

safety protocols.

Research and unavoidable

laboratory / experimental

works have been permitted

in higher education insti-

tutes in line with SoP to be

issued by the department of

Higher Education.

Public transport will be al-

lowed with strict compliance

to COVID 19 protocols from

September 7.

While the previous order of

allowing 50 people for marriage

ceremonies and 20 for last rites

will remain effective for Septem-

ber 20, it shall increase to 100

from September 21.

For social / academic /

sports / political / religious /

cultural / entertainment func-

tions, 100 people will be al-

lowed from September 21, sub-

ject to wearing of face masks

and physical distancing.

However, cinema halls,

entertainment parks, swim-

ming pools, theatres and sim-

ilar places will remain closed,

and lockdown shall remain in

force in containment zones.

The order has urged peo-

ple above 65 years of age,

with co-morbidities, pregnant

women and children below 10

years to remain at home.

Non-wearing of face mask

or spitting in public will draw

fine of Rs 1000, while flout-

ing any other guidelines will

invite action under Disaster

Management Act and under

section 188 of the IPC.

The overall COVID 19 tal-

ly has crossed 1.18 lakh in

the state, while the death toll

is at 330. (UNI)

GUWAHATI, Sep 4: North-

east Frontier Railway (NFR)

has been focusing to boost

freight train movement with-

in its jurisdiction to ensure

that more and more commod-

ities are transported giving

the much needed fillip to

economy.

Various initiatives have

been taken by NFR in this

direction. Some of the mea-

sures are as follows: The

average speed of goods

train has been increased to

almost 50 kmph (more than

75% increase in comparison

to last year). This has result-

ed into better turnaround

time for goods train leading

to better utilization of assets.

Facilities and amenities

available at about 15 goods

sheds have been drastically

improved to facilitate hassle

free loading and un-loading

IMPHAL, Sep 4: In the past

24 hours, 66 persons (39

Male & 27 female) from gen-

eral population and 24 per-

sonnel from Central Armed

Police Force (CAPF) were

tested positive for Covid-19.

The positive cases were

from VRDL, JNIMS-33; Jir-

ibam -3; Shija Hospital-5;

Churachandpur 7; Bish-

nupur - 12; Imphal Hospi-

tal - 1; Imphal East RAT-

3; Asian Hospi ta l 1 ;

Thoubal - 6; Ukhrul -2;

Imphal West RD Wing

1;Tengnoupal - 1; Babina

Diagnostics 5; Raj Medic-

ity 8; Maipakpi - 2.

They are from Imphal West

- 10; Imphal East 12; Bishnu-

pur - 13; Thoubal -8; Jirib-

am-3; Kakching -2; Teng-

NFR takes several initiatives to boost economy

through cheaper, easier transportation of goodsof commodities. The existing

policies for opening new pri-

vate freight terminals and

sidings have been further

simplified. Freight rakes are

being made available on de-

mand to transporters.

Business Development

Units (BDUs) set up in all Di-

visions and Head Quarter are

in constant touch with trad-

ers and transporters within

their jurisdiction. Time tabled

Parcel trains are being run

from places like Delhi, Mum-

bai, Kolkata, Secunderabad

etc ensuring timely delivery

of booked parcel items.

Kishan Setu Parcel trains

are being run between Gu-

wahati-Dibrugarh, Guwahati-

Agartala, Howrah-Dibru-

garh. The busy season

charge of 15% has been with-

drawn to provide tariff ratio-

nalization benefit to various

sectors. Surcharge of 5% on

two-point mini rake has also

been withdrawn. Stabling

charges for automobile con-

tainer waived till October 31,

2020.

Various non-tariff mea-

sures have also been taken

by NFR. Some of them are

as follows: Distance restric-

tion for mini and two point

rakes have been eased out.

Two point unloading al-

lowed for automobile traffic.

All private sidings opened

for loading and unloading

of parcel traffic.

These initiatives offer an

unprecedented opportunity

to the traders to transport

their goods easily in a more

economic way than ever be-

fore. This will give a boost

to the local economy and will

benefit all in this region, said

an NFR release here today.

Three more die of Covid, total

cases reach 6699 in Manipurnoupal- 15; Ukhrul -3. All

were without significant trav-

el history. They were shifted

to the Covid Care facilities.

All necessary medical pre-

cautionary measures like

containment and contact

tracing are being taken.

In the last 24 hours, two

males and one female aged

60 years (Imphal East), 39

yrs (Imphal East) and 56 yrs

(Thoubal) expired at Shija,

JNIMS and Shija, respec-

tively from Covid 19 and oth-

er co-morbid conditions.

The cumulative number of

deaths is 35.

In the past twenty-four

hours, 125 persons were dis-

charged. They were from

CAPF (37), CCC Lam-

boikhongnangkhong (28),

UNACCO(36), RIMS (2), JN-

IMS (2), NIELIT (7), Chu-

rachandpur Lanva (12) and

CCC Thoubal (1) after they

were found COVID-19 free on

RT -PCR test. The cumula-

tive number of positive cas-

es is 6699 (General Popula-

tion -5046 and Central Secu-

rity Personnel -1653). The cu-

mulative number of recov-

ered cases is 4899 (General

Population-3827 and Central

Security Personnel 1072).

The number of active cases

is 1765 (General Population -

1186 and Central Security

Personnel-579). The recov-

ery rate is 73.13 %.7, said Dr

Dr Khoirom Sashee Kumar

Mangang, Spokesperson,

Health Department, Ma-

nipur. (UNI)

CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1

201 new Covid cases take...Of the total cases, 186 are asymptomatic and 15 are symptomatic, as per the bulletin.

Of the 113 discharged cases in 13 districts, ICC remained on top with 29 recoveries,

followed by West Kameng with 23. Changlang recorded 16 cured cases, Pakke-Kessang,

Tirap and Lohit eight each, while six were discharged in Upper Subansiri. Five recoveries

were found in Upper Siang, three in Namsai, two each in Leparada, Lower Siang and

Tawang. The lone case was released in East Siang.

No hike in admission...“We will look into the matter and see if there is any criterion to include a representa-

tive,” he assured.

Regarding the demand for conducting supplementary examinations for end semester

students, Riba said the university cannot do that as there is a need for an Academic

Council meeting and has to be approved in an Executive Council meeting.

“The issue was earlier discussed with all principals of colleges and universities, where-

in it was opposed by everyone. However, we will place the issue in the next Academic

Council meeting,” he said.

Regarding the demand for mandatory provision of particulars of fees, the VC said, “Three

years back, it was the then students union who said not to give particulars of fees during

the admission for some reasons. We were just following the same order as passed to me.”

He also informed that the four-member committee is yet to make a final decision. “I

don’t know what the committee will decide upon. If the committee finds that there should

be some discount then we will have a thorough check and see where the discounts can

be applied and issue a proper list so that a discount can be given in the next semester as

refunds are not possible,” the VC said.

Prof Kushwaha also said that the normal academic session will resume by the first week

of October and students will be called to attend classes following all the standard oper-

ating procedures (SOPs). “The semester exams will be completed by September 28 next,”

the VC further added.

Assam-Arunachal border row...While assuring all kinds of cooperation and support from Police, he called for taking up

initiatives of community policing and joint patrolling from both sides.

ASP North Lakhimpur called also called for maintaining peace and harmony and coop-

eration between the both sides.

DFO North Lakhimpur, DFO Banderdewa, ADCs of Yupia and Kimin also spoke.

HoDs, admin officers and forest officers from Assam and Arunachal attended.

SFs bust extortion racket...In above incident, a case has been registered at Miao PS under relevant sections of

IPC, Arms Act and UAP Act.

The joint operation was planned and launched under supervision of SP Changlang in

coordination with CO 171 Bn CRPF and 14th Rajput Regiment under the guidance of PHQ

and DIGP (TCL).

In another incident on 2nd September, 19 Assam Rifles apprehended one SS Sergeant

Bhaity Asom (30) active cadre of ULFA (I) from vicinity of BP 172 under Nampong circle

and recovered one 9 mm pistol from jungle suspected to be hidden by the ultras. A case

has been registered at Nampong PS under arms act and UAP Act.

GUWAHATI, Sep 4: The

Press Information Bureau, Gu-

wahati today conducted a we-

binar on ‘Stress Management

during Corona Pandemic’.

Regular exercises and

Yoga, proper awareness of

safety measures, positive

thoughts and remaining

connected with family and

friends while maintaining

social distancing norms are

the key to managing stress

and anxiety during the try-

ing times of Covid-19 pan-

demic, opined the experts.

In his inaugural address, S

N Pradhan, Additional Direc-

tor General, North East Zone,

Ministry of Information and

Broadcasting, said that due

to the lockdown and subse-

quent restrictions on move-

ment of people, lifestyle of

people has undergone a dras-

tic change this year and has

had different effects on dif-

ferent individuals.

He pointed out that Prime

Minister Narendra Modi has

PIB, Guwahati holds webinar on ‘Stress Management’repeatedly stressed on the

practice of Yoga for healthy

living and for developing

natural immunity. He added

that media would do the so-

ciety great service by taking

this important idea to the

people in a manner that is

effective and impactful. He

said that Government of In-

dia has been using social

media proactively to give

various protocols and advice

on management of health in

these times. These need to

be taken by the media to the

people in a much more sus-

tained manner than is being

done presently, he added.

Speaking on the issue, Dr

Rupam Choudhury, Consult-

ant Diabetologist, Sun Valley

Hospital, Appolo Clinic, said

that the level of anxiety and

stress in the lives of people

has increased during this pe-

riod of Corona pandemic due

to a number of reasons like

social isolation, financial

problems, altered sleep cy-

cles, fear of contracting the

disease or fear for the health

of loved ones. This results in

fall of immunity levels of all

individuals and worsens

health conditions of people

who have pre-existing health

issues. Focus on positive

things, think about things

that are under your own con-

trol, exercise regularly, follow

social distancing norms but

stay connected with family

and friends through technol-

ogy, feel confident and avoid

negative thoughts. He add-

ed that people should avoid

self-medication and rely on

the advice of the experts.

Dr Chandra Kumar Das,

Consultant Cardiologist,

Hayat and Swagat Hospital,

said that a lot of mortality due

to Covid-19 is due to pre-ex-

isting heart conditions that

are aggravated due to anger

and frustration that has in-

creased in this period. He said

that anxiety and stress are

causing drastic fall in immu-

nity levels and is causing ag-

gravation of heart diseases.

Moderate and regular exer-

cise of about half hour a day

will help the people with car-

dio-vascular weaknesses.

Proper eating habit and tak-

ing medication only on the

advice of doctors are also

important, he said.

Abhishek Dayal, Director,

PIB Imphal said that PIB Gu-

wahati has been organizing a

series of webinars on differ-

ent issues since the outbreak

of the Corona pandemic with

one clear aim in mind: to bring

the experts, officials and me-

dia under one platform on

various critical issues.

He added that the chal-

lenges of the times can be

met effectively only when

we have a fully informed and

alert citizens.

The webinar was attend-

ed by over 30 persons from

medical profession, journal-

ists and officials of PIB and

ROB, North East Zone.

NEW DELHI/MOSCOW,

Sep 4: Defence Minister Ra-

jnath Singh on Friday em-

phasised that peaceful, sta-

ble and secure region of

Shanghai Cooperation Or-

ganisation (SCO) member

states demand a climate of

trust and cooperation, non-

aggression, respect for inter-

national rules and norms,

sensitivity to each other’s

interest and peaceful resolu-

tion of differences.

Both India and China are

members of the Shanghai

Cooperation Organisation or

SCO, an eight-nation region-

al grouping that primarily

focuses on security and de-

fence issues.

While addressing the

Combined Meeting of De-

fence Ministers of Shanghai

Cooperation Organisation

SCO demands climate of trust and non-aggression: Rajnath(SCO), Collective Security

Treaty Organisation (CSTO)

and Commonwealth of Inde-

pendent States (CIS) Member

States in Moscow, he said, “If

I may borrow an idea articu-

lated by our Prime Minister

in a different context, our goal

should be ‘Security and

Growth for all in the Region’.”

Referring to the threats

faced by the world today,

Singh said, “We need institu-

tional capacity to deal with

both traditional and non-tra-

ditional threats – above all,

terrorism, drug-trafficking and

transnational crime. As you all

are aware, India unequivocal-

ly condemns terrorism in all

forms and manifestations, and

condemns its proponents.”

India values the works of

SCO Regional Anti-Terrorism

Structure (RATS), he added.

“We laud RATS’ recent

work in the cyber domain to

prevent the spread of radical-

ism and extremism. The adop-

tion of anti-terror measures by

the SCO Council to counter

extremist propaganda and de-

radicalisation is a significant

decision,” the minister said.

Further, Singh expressed

his deep concern about the

situation in the Persian Gulf

Region.

He said, “India has vital

interests and links of civili-

sation and culture with all

States in the Gulf. We call

upon countries in the region

– all of which are dear and

friendly to India, to resolve

differences by dialogue

based on mutual respect,

sovereignty and non-inter-

ference in internal affairs of

each other.”

Speaking about the situa-

tion in Afghanistan, the min-

ister said, “Security situation

in Afghanistan remains a con-

cern. India will continue to

support the efforts of the peo-

ple and Government of Af-

ghanistan for an Afghan-led,

Afghan-owned and Afghan-

controlled inclusive peace

process. The SCO Contact

Group on Afghanistan is use-

ful for exchanging notes

among SCO member States.”

He also reaffirmed India’s

commitment to evolution of a

global security architecture

which will be open, transpar-

ent, inclusive, rules-based and

anchored in international laws.

Singh is on an official visit

to Moscow from September

3-5 at the invitation of his

Russian counterpart Gener-

al Sergei Shoigu. (UNI)

NEW DELHI, Sep 4: Minis-

try of Home Affairs has ad-

vised all States and Union

Territory (UTs) Govts not to

give parole or furlough to the

prisoners who had commit-

ted heinous crimes and also

to review the practices of re-

leasing inmates for a tempo-

rary period.

In an advisory issued to all

Chief Secretaries of States

and UTs, the Home Ministry,

noting that the release on

parole is not an absolute right

rather a concession, said that

the prisoners whose immedi-

ate presence in the society

may be considered danger-

MHA advises States not to grant parole or

furlough to prisoners who committed heinous crimeous or otherwise prejudicial

to public peace or who are

considered dangerous or

convicted for the offence like

assault, outbreak of riot, mu-

tiny, dacoity, terrorist crimes,

kidnapping for ransom, smug-

gling of commercial quantity

of narcotic and psychotropic

substances and such prison-

ers who in the opinion of Dis-

trict Magistrate and District

Superintendent of Police may

not report back to the prison

after completion of the fur-

lough period, should not be

released on parole or fur-

lough.

The Home Ministry also

said that while considering

the temporary release of the

prisoners, the State must in-

clude a psychologist, crimi-

nologist or a correctional

administration expert to the

‘Sentence Review Board’ or

such committees which de-

cides grant of parole or fur-

lough and should obtain

their opinion before such

temporary release.

“Parole and furlough may

not be granted as a matter of

routine and may be decided

by a Committee of officers

and behavioural experts and

this should not be granted

to the inmates sentenced for

sexual offences, heinous

crimes like murder, or child

abduction”, the MHA clari-

fied in its advisory.

MHA has has also shared

various guidelines and rul-

ings of the Supreme Court in

matters of prison administra-

tion with all States and UTs,

in the form of advisories is-

sued from time to time.

Model Prison Manual, 2016

provides that the privilege of

release on parole and furlough

should be allowed to selective

prisoners on the basis of well-

defined norms of eligibility

and propriety, the latest advi-

sory stated. (UNI)

Echo of Arunachal

SASASASASATURDTURDTURDTURDTURDAAAAAYYYYY

SEPTEMBER 5, 2020

NEW DELHI, Sep 4: Vice

President M Venkaiah Naidu

on Friday called for a well-

strategised collective action

on multiple fronts to ensure

well-being of young children

for India to take full advan-

tage of our demographic div-

idend.

"Child development

should be the foundation of

our development architec-

ture," the Vice President said

while releasing 'The State of

Young Child in India' report,

a comprehensive account of

the challenges related to ear-

ly child development in India.

Appreciating the report

prepared by Mobile Creches,

a policy advocacy organisa-

tion working with under-priv-

ileged children across India,

he said such reports helped

in policy formulation by de-

veloping greater understand-

Adequate nutrition, positive environment

key to child’s development: VP

ing of the shortcomings and

urgent needs of the children.

He also appreciated the pub-

lisher Taylor & Francis Group

for making the digital copy of

report freely available for ev-

eryone.

Underlining the impor-

tance of ensuring healthy,

happy, caring and playful

early years for children for

their holistic development,

he observed that adequate

nutrition and positive caring

environment at home play an

important role in a child’s

development. The years

from birth until the age of five

were critical, he pointed out,

an official release here said.

Quoting from the report, the

Vice President said of the 159

million children aged below 6

years in India, 21 per cent are

undernourished, 36 per cent

are underweight and 38 per

cent do not receive full immu-

nisation. "These figures un-

derline the crucial importance

to invest in early childhood for

realising the full potential in

later years," he stressed.

Maintaining that the chil-

dren are our future, he said "we

should take care of them" and

emphasised the need for uplift

of the last man in true spirit of

Antyodaya as espoused by

Mahatma Gandhi and Pandit

Deendayal Upadhyay.

Amrita Jain, Chairperson of

Mobile Creches and Devika

Singh, co founder of Mobile

Creches and N Ram, former

Editor-in-Chief of The Hindu

were among the dignitaries

who participated in the virtu-

al release of the report. (UNI)

Humane side of police came to

fore during COVID-19: PMNEW DELHI, Sep 4: Laud-

ing the good work done by

the Police during the Covid

pandemic, Prime Minister

Narendra Modi on Friday

said that the humane side of

police came to fore during

COVID-19 pandemic.

Interacting, through

video-conference, with IPS

Probationers during the

‘Dikshant Parade Event’ at

the Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel

National Police Academy

(SVP NPA) inHyderabad, the

PM said, ''The human face of

the Khaki uniform has been

engraved in the public

memory due to the good

work done by police espe-

cially during this Covid-19.''

Wishing the IPS proba-

tioners all the best for com-

pleting their training with

success, he said it is very

important that the proba-

tioners should be proud of

their uniform instead of flex-

ing power out of it.

“Never lose the respect for

your Khaki uniform,'' the PM

NEW DELHI, Sep 4: Union

Commerce and Industry

Minister Piyush Goyal said

on Friday that in the auto

sector, India should move

towards global dominance,

in terms of auto components

and automobiles.

Addressing the Society of

Indian Automobile Manufac-

turers (SIAM) annual conven-

tion, he said 'We are improv-

ing the scale & quality of what

we are producing & serving.

With this, we are seeing how

we can improve competitive-

ness to engage with the world.'

The Minister said reci-

procity, high quality, afford-

ability & good economies of

scale will help us expand our

global engagement.'

Goyal said, 'Design, Pack-

aging and Brand Buiding-

these are three pre-requisites

for us if we want to offer our

products across the world.'

He said India is looking at its

own domestic capabilities and

said.

The PM said he regularly

interacts with young IPS of-

ficers who have passed out

from the academy, but this

year due to coronavirus he

was unable to meet them.

“But I’m sure that during

my tenure, I will surely meet

you all at some point,” he

added.

Addressing the IPS proba-

tioners, Prime Minister Modi

said, “Till now you were a

trainee here in a protective

environment. But the situa-

tion will change overnight,

the moment you step out of

the academy. Attitude to-

wards you will change. Be

over conscious, first impres-

sion is the last impression.

Wherever you are transferred

your image will follow.”

The Prime Minister ad-

vised the probationers to

develop the skill to identify

the chaff out of the grain. He

asked them to not lock their

ears but to be able to filter

the things that they hear.

“Do not put locks on your

ears but place a filter instead.

Only when filtered things go

to your brain, it will help you,

sift garbage and keep your

heart clean,'' he said.

The Prime Minister urged

the probationers to develop

a sense of belonging and

pride in every station they are

posted. He urged the proba-

tioners to show compassion

on the general public. He said,

winning the hearts of the

people through compassion

rather than controlling them

through fear will last long.

He stressed on the impor-

tance of constabulary intel-

ligence helping in solving a

crime. He urged the proba-

tioners to use the technol-

ogy to the maximum possible

extent while not forgetting

the importance of the ground

level intelligence inputs. He

added there is no dearth of

information, big data and ar-

tificial intelligence. Prime

Minister termed information

available on social media is

an asset.

The Prime Minister said

that in the last few years, the

way NDRF and SDRF have

performed during the disaster

has brought about a new rec-

ognition to the police service.

He urged to organize NDRF

groups in their respective ar-

eas and help people during

natural calamity. He stressed

never to underestimate their

training. He urged to come

out of that mindset that train-

ing is a punishment posting.

Modi said the Mission

Karmayogi was launched

two days ago.

''This is a major reform in

our 7 decade old Civil Ser-

vice both in Capacity Build-

ing and Approach towards

work. This is a shift from Rule

Based Approach to Role

Based Approach,'' he said.

The Prime Minister said

this will help in mapping and

training the talent. This would

help placing the right person

in the right role he, said.

''Yours is a profession

where the factor of encoun-

tering something unexpected

is very high, and you all must

be alert and prepared for this.

There is a higher degree of

stress, and which is why it is

important to keep speaking

with your near and dear ones.

From time to time, maybe on

a day off, meet someone like

a teacher or someone whose

advice you value.”

The PM stressed on the

importance of fitness in po-

licing.

He said, the fitness devel-

oped during training has to

be maintained.

''If you will be fit, then the

companions around you will

also be fit. They will be in-

spired to see you,''he said.

PM urged to keep in mind

the verse of the Gita that

people follow the examples

set by great ones.

�यत�्�यत�्आचर�त���ेठः��

तत�्�तत�्�एव��इतरः��जनः��

सः��यत�्��माणम�्�कु�त�े�लोकः��

तत�्�अनुवत�त।े���he said. (UNI)�

India should move towards global

dominance in auto sector: Piyush Goyalexpansion of its own econom-

ic and global engagement.

'India is willing to provide

a very facilitated environ-

ment. We are engaged with

many companies who are

looking for more resilient val-

ue chains. We have to identi-

fy sectors where we have a

comparative & competitive

edge over other countries. I

am sure we will become trust-

ed, reliable partners where

countries across the world

can look at greater engage-

ment with India,' he said.

Calling upon the automo-

tive industry to work togeth-

er in the spirit of partnership,

he said 'Ours is a listening

Govt, and we are delighted

to be available to the auto

industry to find solutions

and work together in partner-

ship to achieve a better fu-

ture, increase localisation in

India & harness export po-

tential on fair terms. '

When a company works in

India, they get a large Indian

market, he added.

The Minister said, ''As we

move towards Aatmanirbhar

Bharat in the automobile sec-

tor, industry's role becomes

even more important.''

He said the Government is

willing to engage as often as

required to find solutions for

greater global engagement,

adding that a focused ap-

proach in particular sectors will

help us increase our contribu-

tion to global supply chains.

Goyal asked the automo-

tive companies present in the

country to ask their princi-

ples to reduce royalties.

He said that reducing this

could help the Indian units

of these companies to sail

through the crisis easily.

''The automakers that hold

a sizeable chunk of the coun-

try’s auto market pay millions

of dollars as royalty to their

parent companies. Reduction

in Royalty can help them re-

duce the cash outflow, bring

down the vehicle prices and

help in boosting their domes-

tic sales,'' he maintained.

Regarding the 'AatmaNir-

bhar Bharat' Self-reliant In-

dia, Mr Goyal said that the

auto industry needs to re-

strategise to emerge stron-

ger from the crisis.

He said that India is look-

ing at its domestic capabili-

ties and the expansion of

capabilities through the Aat-

maNirbhar Bharat campaign.

''India is willing to provide

a very facilitative environ-

ment to companies, looking

for a more trusting trade part-

ner and a better supply

chain. We have to look at sec-

tors where we have the edge

over other countries. The auto

industry holds that potential.

Here we have a large market

and companies can get scale

which is very important for

cost competitiveness,'' the

minister added. (UNI)

NEW DELHI, Sep 4: Su-

preme Court on Friday reject-

ed the Opposition-ruled

States plea to review the

Apex Court's August 17 or-

der allowing to conduct the

JEE-Main and NEET UG ex-

aminations in September.

"We don't find any ground

to review our order in the is-

sue," a three-judge bench

headed by Justice Ashok

Bhushan said in his order.

The order was passed af-

ter an in chamber hearing

today in the Apex Court.

"We have carefully gone

through the review petitions

and the connected papers.

NEW DELHI, Sep 4: India

has scaled new peaks in

Covid-19 testing for the past

two successive days, test-

ing more than 11.70 lakh sam-

ples across the country --

11,69,765 samples -- in the

past 24 hours.

No other country has

achieved these levels of high

daily testing, claimed the

Ministry of Health and Fam-

ily Welfare in a release.

With this exponential rise

in daily testing, the cumula-

tive tests totalled 4,66,79,145.

Even with this high daily

testing, the daily Positivity

Rate is still below 7.5 per

cent, while cumulative Posi-

SC rejects opposition ruled states plea seeking

cancellation of JEE and NEET examsWe find no merit in the re-

view petitions and the same

are accordingly dismissed,"

said the bench also compris-

ing Justices BR Gavai and

Krishna Murari.

The review petition was

filed on August 28 by cabi-

net ministers from six differ-

ent states challenging the

Supreme Court order allow-

ing the National Testing

Agency (NTA) to conduct

the JEE-Main and NEET-UG

in the month of September,

amid Covid-19 pandemic.

The petitioners were West

Bengal law minister Maloy

Ghatak, Jharkhand finance

minister Rameshwar Oraon,

Rajasthan health minister

Raghu Sharma, Chhattisgarh

food minister Amarjeet

Bhagat, Punjab health min-

ister Balbir Singh Sidhu and

Maharashtra education min-

ister Uday R Samant.

The petitioners jointly

filed the review petition

seeking a direction for can-

cellation of NEET-UG and

JEE-Main this year because

of pandemic.

The review petition also

sought a direction that the

earlier order of the Apex

Court dated August 17 be

modified. (UNI)

Over 11.70 lakh Covid samples

tested for two consecutive daystivity Rate is less than 8.5 per

cent, reflecting the success-

ful Centre-led strategy of

Test, Track, Treat, being ef-

fectively implemented by

most of the states.

With the aim to reduce the

fatality rate below one per

cent, India’s Case Fatality Rate

(CFR) has touched 1.74 per

cent following a gradient of

steady and sustained decline.

The country's substantial

increase in the testing levels

is anchored in the daily ex-

panding diagnostic lab net-

work across the country. As

on date, with 1,025 labs in the

govt sector and 606 private

labs, the country-wide net-

work is strengthened with

1,631 total lab facilities.

These include 827 Real-

Time RT PCR based testing

labs (465 Government and

362 private), 683 TrueNat

based testing labs (526 Gov-

ernment and 157 private) and

121 CBNAAT based testing

labs (34 Govt and 87 private).

The sustained higher test-

ing on a wide scale enables

early diagnosis, prompt iso-

lation and timely hospitalisa-

tion. Effective treatment

based on Standard Treat-

ment Protocol both in super-

vised home isolation and in

hospitals, also results in low-

er mortality rate. (UNI)

NEW DELHI, Sep 4: The

Centre on Friday exhorted

four states to proactively

curb the chain of transmis-

sion of Covid-19 and bring

the mortality rate below one

per cent.

At a review meeting held

by Union Health Secretary

Rajesh Bhushan through

video conferencing with the

Health Secretaries of 15 dis-

tricts across four states of

Andhra Pradesh, Punjab,

Karnataka and Tamil Nadu,

he shared the overall status

and performance of the dis-

tricts on the key parameters

of testing, positivity and

case fatality, focusing on the

need of continuing contain-

ment measures, increasing

testing, effective clinical

management of patients.

The states were advised to

take steps on limiting and

eventually breaking the

spread of the infection by

implementing stringent con-

tainment measures and fol-

lowing social distancing

measures, strict peri-meter

control, and active house-to-

house case search, an offi-

cial release here said.

Centre directs 4 states to curb Covid

transmission, bring deaths below 1 pcEarly identification by

ramping up testing across the

districts, optional utilisation

of RT-PCR testing capacity

and use of Rapid Antigen

Tests as a screening test in

hotspots and densely popu-

lated areas and effective

monitoring of home isolation

cases and early hospitalisa-

tion in case of disease pro-

gression was also stressed.

State Health Secretaries

provided an in-depth analy-

sis on the current status of

Covid-19 in these 15 districts

covering aspects of contain-

ment measures, contact trac-

ing, surveillance activities,

facility-wise case fatality

rates, trends in terms of week-

ly new cases and deaths, etc.

and shared their detailed

roadmaps and action plans

for the next one month.

These 15 districts comprise

Chittoor, Prakasam, Mysuru,

Bengaluru Urban, Ballari,

Koppal, Dakshina Kannada,

Davangere, Ludhiana, Patia-

la, Chennai, Coimbatore, Sa-

lem, Lucknow and Kanpur

Nagar. They have been exhib-

iting higher active caseload,

fatality rates and a surge in

the Covid cases for the past

four weeks. (UNI)

NEW DELHI, Sep 4: In the

presence of Union Minister

for Tribal Affairs Arjun Mun-

da, an agreement was signed

on Friday between Ministry

of Tribal Affairs (MoTA) and

Indian Institute of Public

Administration (IIPA), New

Delhi for setting up of Na-

tional Institute of Tribal Re-

search (NITR) at the IIPA

campus, here.

The proposed National In-

stitute will be functional in a

few months and will be en-

gaged in quality tribal re-

search in collaboration with

reputed government and

non governments NGOs

spread over the country.

The agreement was signed

by Deepak Khandekar, Sec-

retary Ministry of Tribal Af-

fairs and S N Tripathi, DG,

IIPA at the valedictory ses-

sion of “National Tribal Re-

search Conclave” organized

by Centre of Excellence (CoE)

for Tribal Affairs, (M/o Tribal

Affairs), Indian Institute of

Public Administration (IIPA),

New Delhi here today.

Addressing at the valedic-

tory session of two days 'Na-

MoTA, IIPA sign agreement

for setting up of NITRtional Tribal Research Con-

clave' being held virtually

through webinar, Munda

said,"the Ministry of Tribal

Affairs designed workable

models which provide end to

end solution as part of action

research to be implemented

by policy initiatives."

Munda said that the Tribal

Research Institutes (TRIs)

have a very important role to

play and their research should

focus on drawing road map

for future development.

"The Ministry is funding

Tribal Research Institutions

for research on various as-

pects of tribal life and cul-

ture but now intervention of

research with policy should

be emphasized in their re-

search," the minister said.

He also suggested that the

new National Institute of Trib-

al Research should also have

an educational wing to educate

students on tribal development

and tribal art and culture.

"We have to make life of trib-

als easier and livable in their

original tribal habitat. Indige-

nous seeds and products

should be protected," he said.

He emphasised that the

Biodiversity Management is

very important for the ecologi-

cal balance of the earth and we

should always take care of it.

Munda said that the

Branding and Marketing of

ethnic tribal products should

be given due importance be-

cause these persuade cus-

tomers to buy the products.

"We should also try to find

those products which have

an international demand and

develop those too for inter-

national standards," the

Minister said.

Referring to Panchayati

Raj Institutions (PRIs) he

said that there is a need to

develop creative leadership

in the Panchayats to ensure

all round development.

The two days National

Tribal Conclave held virtual-

ly through webinar conclud-

ed today. The representa-

tives from various organisa-

tions and institutions work-

ing in collaboration with

Ministry of Tribal Affairs for

Tribal Research and Develop-

ment viz- Bharat Rural Liveli-

hood Foundation. (UNI)

NEW DELHI, Sep 4: Indian

Army chief Gen MM Narav-

ane on Friday urged all ranks

to remain vigilant and main-

tain a high order of opera-

tional readiness in eastern

Ladakh amidst the height-

ened border tensions with

the China’s PLA in the re-

gion.

The army chief, who was

on a 2-day visit to Ladakh,

concluded his trip on Friday

by undertaking the firsthand

assessment of the situation

along the Line of Actual Con-

trol (LAC).

He interacted with soldiers

and local commanders de-

ployed in difficult High Alti-

tude forward areas, an Indi-

an Army spokesperson said.

Gen Naravane appreciated

their high morale and stan-

dards of professionalism ex-

Eastern Ladakh: Gen Naravane

urges all ranks to remain vigilant

hibited by the units in safe-

guarding own territorial in-

tegrity.

Later, at Leh, Northern

Army Commander Lt Gen YK

Joshi and Fire and Fury

Corps commander Lt Gen

Harinder Singh briefed him

on the state of operational

preparedness and on the lo-

gistics arrangements for sus-

tenance of forces in winters.

The chief expressed satis-

faction on the efforts being

made to ensure operational

effectiveness and capability

enhancement of the forces.

It was his first visit to Lada-

kh after troops of India and

China engaged into fresh

faceoff at south bank of

Pangong Tso in eastern Lada-

kh on August 29-30 night.

So far, the chief has visit-

ed fourth times since the

border standoff between

two forces erupted in early

May. (UNI)

Echo of Arunachal

SASASASASATURDTURDTURDTURDTURDAAAAAYYYYY

SEPTEMBER 5, 2020

A partial relief

The Supreme Court’s decision this week to allow

telecom service providers 10 years’ time to set

tle their adjusted gross revenue (AGR) dues to

the government comes as a partial relief to the debt-

laden industry. This will give the older providers, espe-

cially Vodafone Idea, the crucial breathing space to fig-

ure out how they can reconfigure their business plans

to stem the relentless flow of operational losses and

garner the resources to make the sizeable annual pay-

ments to the Centre over the next decade. However, in

setting a time frame, the Court, which acknowledged the

troubled landscape facing the lynchpin industry, seemed

to brush aside both the companies’ requests for a longer

horizon as well as the Centre’s well-deliberated recom-

mendation for a 20-year repayment period, merely term-

ing it “excessive”. The government having realised the

enormity of the problem and its potential for significant-

ly disruptive consequences to not just the industry but

the larger economy as a whole had thrashed out the

matter at various levels, including within the Cabinet,

before submitting its view. Without naming any compa-

ny, the Centre had made clear that were the AGR dues to

be sought at one go, it could well push a service provid-

er into insolvency proceedings. Such a turn could po-

tentially impact millions of subscribers, with the surviv-

ing operators finding their capacities stretched to han-

dle a sudden surge of mobile portability requests while

simultaneously maintaining quality of service.

The Indian Banks’ Association (IBA) had also ex-

plained its position in seeking a judicious and non-

disruptive outcome. The IBA represented the various

lenders, who have much at stake given that industry

debt including that which is under resolution as part of

the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code process amounts

to over Rs 4-lakh crore. The Court, in its order, did take

cognisance of the multiple threats to the industry’s

well-being: the depressed levels of average revenue

per user; the fraught competitive landscape where a

new entrant’s tariffs had triggered a price war hurting

revenues; a surge in data usage even as the price of

such data plans remained almost unviably low; and an

overall diminishing ability to continue to invest in cap-

ital spending for infrastructure upgradation and new

technology including the upcoming adoption of 5G net-

works. While the companies themselves are yet to de-

cide on whether to seek a curative review of the latest

verdict, the future of India’s ambitious dreams of en-

abling a pan-Indian digital ecosystem that seamlessly

connects the remotest rural inhabitant with a plethora

of e-enabled services hinge on ensuring the industry

stays healthy and vibrant. For that, the government

needs to look beyond the AGR issue and reimagine the

way it prices and seeks to monetise the precious yet

immutable public asset of radio spectrum in future.

SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 5, 2020

HELP US TO HELP YOUThe members of Arunachal Pradesh Union of Working Jour-

nalists (APUWJ) and the Arunachal Press Club (APC) have

unanimously taken the following decisions applicable for news-

papers published from Arunachal Pradesh:

In view of too many appointment orders, formation of unions

and forums beginning from colony, village level to state level,

congratulatory and thank you notes clogging up various news-

papers offices published from the state, the APC and APUWJ

unanimously deem it fit to set a standard for accepting such

releases for printing.

Henceforth, releases pertaining to appointments and resigna-

tion of various office bearers of any organisation, formation of

organisations, congratulatory and thank you notes and inti-

mation of programme would not be entertained.

Press releases containing demands not addressed to the state

government/authorities concerned; bandh announcements not

addressed to the Deputy Commissioner/ District Magistrate;

demands made to the state government but not addressed to

the Chief Minister, the Chief Secretary or the Minister con-

cerned; and payment demands addressed to the editor instead

of the HoDs concerned will not be entertained under any cir-

cumstances from any quarter.

In light of the constant menace of bandh calls given by

various organisations/unions, it will be mandatory for such

bodies to convene a press conference in Itanagar to an-

swer questions from media persons before declaring any

bandh at Capital Complex. Failure to do so will result in

non-publication of their 'news'.

Condolences will not be entertained anymore unless the per-

son in question was a prominent personality at the state

level or was in a position not less than 'A' Grade officers.

Anything else can go as obituary/paid news.

Regarding the conduct of press conference at APC - Saturday,

Sunday, Monday and Tuesday (4 days in week) - has been

fixed for holding such PC. However, this isn't mandatory for

those PCs which come under the scope of emergency cases.

Also, considering the paucity of time for journalists, it is also

decided that once the PC slot/period is elapsed, according to

its allotted time, won't be accepted, unless a fresh date is is-

sued, with fresh fee, by the PC holders.

The PC fee, once paid, shall be non-refundable in nature.

NOTE: Unsolicited telephonic or personal enquiries shall not

be entertained. Any attempt to influence the above rules shall

tantamount to interference and may invite legal actions. There-

fore, the newspapers request all sections of society to co-oper-

ate for independent functioning of the media in the state in their

own interest.

Dr Jayadeba SAHOO

Teacher guides us to

wards the success in

every aspect of life.

It is important for both to re-

spect the relationship.

Teacher's Day is a tribute

to the hard work and devo-

tion of the teachers all year

long, to educate a child. In-

dian Teacher’s Day is dedi-

cated to Dr Sarvepalli

Radhakrishnan, who was

one of the most distin-

guished diplomats, a philos-

opher a zealous advocate of

education and one of the

greatest scholars and teach-

ers par excellence of all times,

and his contribution towards

Indian education system

apart from being the first Vice

President and the second Pres-

ident of India. As a tribute to

this phenomenal great teach-

er, his birthday is observed as

Teacher's Day across India.

As a matter of fact, when his

students and friends asked

him for the permission to cele-

brate his birthday, it was he

who asked them to celebrate

the day as Teacher's Day, hon-

Teachers Day: Celebrating Teachers - the Sculptors of Future

Saluting Visionary Teacher Dr Sarvepalli Radhakrishnanoring the efforts of teachers

across the country.

Birth & Education

Dr S Radhakrishnan born

on September 5, 1888, at

Tiruttani, near MAdras grad-

uated with a Master's Degree

in Arts from Madras Univer-

sity. In April 1909, he was

appointed to the Department

of Philosophy, at the Madras

Presidency College. From

then onwards, he was en-

gaged in a serious study of

Indian philosophy and reli-

gion, and went on to become

a teacher of Philosophy.

His Works

Dr Radhakrishnan penned

down a number of books

during his lifetime, some of

which are like The Hindu

Views of Life, The Idealist

View of Life, Religion and

Society, Eastern Religions

and Western Thought and A

Source Book in Indian Phi-

losophy. He had also written

for some of the most reput-

ed international journals.

Presidency of India

Dr Radhakrishnan was the

Vice-President of India from

1952 to 1962 and the Presi-

dent, General Conference of

UNESCO, from 1952 to 1954.

He held the office of the Chan-

cellor, University of Delhi,

from 1953-62. In May 1962, Dr.

Radhakrishnan became the

President of India, a post he

served till May 1967. He was

honored with Bharat Ratna in

1954. He was also knighted

by the British government in

the year 1931, but, he used

only his academic title ‘Doc-

tor’ throughout his life.

Contribution towards Indi-

an Education: Just after In-

dependence Dr Radhakrish-

nan Chaired the University

Education Commission in

1948-49. As Erich Fromm told

“Education makes machines

which act like men and pro-

duces men who act like ma-

chines.” He realized that our

Education system does not

appear to fulfill the true aim

of education. He said, “The

three things- vital dynamism,

intellectual efficiency and

spiritual direction together

constitute the proper aim of

education. Moral and spiritu-

al training is an essential part

of education. Enfranchise-

ment of the mind, freedom

from prejudice and fanaticism,

and courage are essential.

What we need today is the

education of the whole man-

physical, vital, mental, intel-

lectual and spiritual………

If education is to help us to

meet the moral challenge of the

age and play its part in the life

of the community, it should be

liberating and life giving. It

must give a basic meaning to

personality and existence and

equip us with the power to

overcome spiritual inertia and

foster spiritual sensitivi-

ty…....... Seat of learning

should produce men and

women who will move togeth-

er to develop common ideals

and purposes, love each oth-

er and co-exist to create a co-

operative common wealth.”

Radhakrishnan had also

strongly recommended the

teaching of spiritual and eth-

ical aspects of the religions

as it is evident in the report

of the University education

commission of which he was

the Chairman. The report

maintained that: “Unless

morality is taken in a larger

sense it is not enough. If we

exclude the spiritual training

in our institutions, we would

have to be untrue to our

whole historical develop-

ment. To be secular is not to

be religiously illiterate. It is

to be deeply spiritual and not

narrowly religious.” To en-

able students to become en-

lightened civilized citizen, he

used to lay stress on the

need of ethical teaching while

addressing them.

The significance of

celebrating Teachers' Day

The Radhakrishnan Com-

mission's suggestions

helped mould the education

system for India's needs. Dr

Radhakhrishnan believed

that "teachers should be the

best minds in the country".

Teachers Day is the only

occasion when we remember

the time spent with our

teacher, what they taught

and what we are today.

Teacher guides us towards

the success in every aspect

of life. Teachers are the prime

movers who commit their

whole life to the welfare of

the youth; hence they are

the greatest builders of a

society or a nation. If we are

proud of our country, our

progress, our wealth and

power, then we should be

proud of our teachers.

When Dr APJ Abdul Kalam

became President of India,

he located his centenarian

class VIII science teacher

Siva Subramania Iyer (who

had changed his life with a les-

son on how birds fly) in Tamil

Nadu and put him on stage

with him to share his honour.

Dr Kalam said, “The launch of

the rocket is most crucial. If it

is given the right take-off, it

can reach the moon. The

teacher is the launching pad

of every great person who

reaches for the sky.”

On this day, we gratefully

remember the great educa-

tionist, apart from honoring

all the teachers that have

made our life much more

knowledgeable and fulfilled,

as serving as our beacons of

light. {The writer is Faculty,

Brahma Kumaris & ex-Head

& Dean, Dept of Education,

RGU and can be reached at

drjayadeb12 @gmail.com)

NEW DELHI, Sep 4: Union

Minister for Road Transport,

Highways and MSMEs Nitin

Gadkari on Friday said the au-

tomobile industry is one of the

largest contributors to the

manufacturing GDP of the coun-

try and a sector that has the

highest number of employment.

Addressing the 60th Annual

Convention of SIAM through

VC, he underlined that a lot

stands on the shoulders of this

industry in the current times.

Gadkari assured to resolve

NEW DELHI, Sep 4: Union

Minister of State (I//C) for

Culture and Tourism Prahl-

ad Singh Patel has said cul-

ture is the bonding force

above all manmade demarca-

tions, and connects people

through love and harmony.

Patel virtually attended

'5th BRICS Culture Ministers’

Meeting on Thursday. The

'5th BRICS Culture Ministers’

Meeting was held through

video conference under the

chairpersonship of Russian

Federation.

According to the Minister,

''COVID-19 has been a sad

experience for us, but it has

again showed us that nature

does not discriminate among

countries. It does not differ-

entiate between people on

the basis of caste and creed.

''Humans have divided the

countries and defined bor-

ders by putting fences, but

culture is the bonding force

Culture is bonding force above all

manmade demarcations: Prahlad Patelabove all man-made demar-

cations and connects people

through love and harmony.

Therefore, when we meet

through such programmes,

we come back, more enriched

than before."

The delegates from Cultur-

al Ministries of the Federa-

tive Republic of Brazil, the

Russian Federation, the Re-

public of India, the People's

Republic of China and the

Republic of South Africa par-

ticipated in the meeting.

During the meeting, the

discussion was held on the

impact of the epidemiologi-

cal situation on the cultural

sphere in the BRICS coun-

tries and review of the pos-

sible implementation of joint

cultural online-projects with-

in BRICS.

Patel addressed partici-

pants of the meeting and pre-

sented the country's per-

spective to strengthen the

cultural cooperation within

BRICS through alternative

mechanisms of sharing and

organising cultural events in

online format, given the pre-

vailing pandemic situation.

Some suggestions/events

proposed by Indian side in the

Culture Minister's address in-

clude - to explore the possibil-

ities of hosting a Digital On-

line Exhibition on a Shared

theme towards the end of 2021

under the auspices of BRICS

Alliance of Museums, and to

extend full cooperation and

content sharing for website

envisaged under the BRICS

Alliance.

Opening the BRICS Corner

under the auspices of BRICS

Alliance of Libraries, pro-

posed to be inaugurated dur-

ing the the country's BRICS

Presidency in 2021, the Cor-

ner will disseminate informa-

tion related to the history and

culture of BRICS countries.

The corner will display the

books, periodicals and other e-

resources gifted by the BRICS

countries, viz Brazil, Russia,

China and South Africa.

The National Gallery of

Modern Arts, New Delhi will

host the BRICS Joint Exhibi-

tion titled 'Bonding Regions

& Imagining Cultural Syner-

gies,' under the auspices of

the BRICS Alliance of Art

Museums and Galleries.

The exhibition is proposed

to be organised in 2021, co-

inciding with the BRICS

event that India would be

hosting in 2021. The exhibi-

tion aims to present around

100 works of art from the five

prestigious institutions un-

der the BRICS Alliance.

At the end of the meeting

Declaration of the V Meeting

of the BRICS Ministers of

Culture was agreed upon and

signed by all the representa-

tives of BRICS Nations. (UNI)

Auto sector has huge responsibility of employment generation: Gadkarithe concerns of the industry

in the interest of society and

economy.

The Minister also expressed

confidence over achieving

Road safety targets in near

future. He said the automobile

industry has progressed a lot

in that direction.

He noted that vehicle man-

ufacturers have implement-

ed regulations crucial to ve-

hicle safety such as crash

norms, ABS, airbags, seat

belt reminder, reverse park-

ing assist and VTS.

These regulations have

brought the auto industry in

India at par with the global auto

industry. This has been possi-

ble with extraordinary coordi-

nation and commitment of In-

dian automobile industry, he

added, while applauding the

automobile industry in leap-

frogging to BS-VI standards.

The current rate of road

building per day has aver-

aged to 30 km a day, with the

highest being 40 km per day

of highways, informed the

Minister.

He said India has now the

second largest road network

in the world, being fuelled by

the tremendous growth in

construction of expressways

and highways.

Stressing that making the

vehicles safer alone would

not bring down the accidents

and fatalities significantly, he

said, the same should be

complemented with proper

road designs and enforce-

ment. This includes being

equipped and future ready.

He said the future of mo-

bility demands integration

with infrastructure. Accord-

ingly, all highways/express-

ways are being made with

demarcated roads and lane

markings, suitable for imple-

mentation of advanced driv-

er assist technologies.

This century has been de-

fined by the rise of digital and

connected features that have

become an integral part of

life. Recognizing the impact

of Digitalization, the Motor

Vehicle Amendment Act 2019

has promoted use of digital

technologies for traffic safe-

ty and rule enforcement, add-

ed the Minister.

He said with the coopera-

tion of the industry, electron-

ic toll collection with FAST-

ag was successfully imple-

mented and with its linking

to the Vahan portal, FASTags

would enable toll crossings

seamless and smooth. (UNI)

AALO, Sep 4: The skill

upgradation training pro-

gramme on wood carving,

Thangka painting and carpet

making, organized under

BADP, has got underway at

Mechuka Craft Centre on

Thursday.

Inaugurating the training

programme, Shi-Yomi Depu-

ty Commissioner Mito Dirchi

exhorted the trainees to learn

new skills and improvise their

methods of wood carving,

thangka painting, carpet

making.

He said that the village folk

can double their income by

Skill upgradation training

under BADP at Mechuka

engaging in such craft works

in their leisure hours apart

from their principal profes-

sion and source of income.

Mechuka valley is rich in the

tourism sector and demand

for such products in the dis-

trict would increase, he said.

ADYH Teresa Padu also

spoke and highlighted the

main objective of conduct-

ing the programme. Later, the

DC and his team of officers

including trainers and mem-

bers from SHGs visited the

District Emporium where

such activities are being car-

ried out. (DIPRO)

GUWAHATI, Sep 4: With a

steep rise in number of COV-

ID 19 cases in the state in the

last few days, Assam Health

Minister Dr Himanta Biswa

Sarma today said that it will

be a ‘disaster’ for the state if

the cases increase at this rate.

He expressed concern at

the number of deaths of peo-

ple post-COVID, urging the

people to wear face covers

and maintain physical dis-

tancing to check the spread

of the virus.

Addressing a press confer-

ence here, Dr Sarma said, “We

have been getting about 3,000

Disaster imminent for Assam if COVID cases keep pilling: Himantanew cases daily now. If this

trend continues, we will have

90,000 new cases in September.

And if are to get about 1

lakh cases in one month, it

will be a disaster. The doc-

tors and health workers are

already fatigued. It will be

very difficult for us.”

He pointed that the posi-

tivity rate has increased to

over 6% over the last few

days, which was a rise by

about 1.5% since August.

The minister also noted

that post-COVID complica-

tions were mounting in re-

covered patients and death

of COVID recovered patients

is also increasing.

He said, “The COVID

death toll is at 330. But if we

are to combine it with num-

ber of deaths of people

post-COVID, it would be

about 1,000. I don’t take the

actual numbers, but what we

have been able to gauge

from our feedback, the toll

would be around 1,000.”

“The situation has not im-

proved and we cannot fool

ourselves. The situation is

getting more complicated but

we have to lift the restrictions

as we have to keep the econ-

omy running,” Dr Sarma,

who also holds the Finance

portfolio, said.

He informed that the GST

collection has come down

from estimated Rs 960 crore

to Rs 590 crore and the gov-

ernment cannot run in ‘so

much deficit’.

“Since last two years, we

had been making some sav-

ings which was originally to

be used for election year

schemes. Thankfully that

money was available with us

and we could use it to handle

COVID situation. Otherwise

our situation would have

been like many other states,”

he said, reiterating that COV-

ID 19 treatment continues to

be free-of-cost in the state.

The minister further said

use of face mask and physical

distancing were the main in-

struments now in checking

the spread of the virus and the

state government will launch

a massive publicity campaign

shortly in this regard.

“As per Unlock 4 guide-

lines from the Centre, state

governments cannot declare

lockdown now without prior

permission from the Centre. So

there are now limited means in

our hands,” he added.

Appreciating a Gauhati

High Court directive yester-

day on ensuring compulso-

ry wearing of masks, Dr Sar-

ma said, “The High Court has

directed to collect Rs 500 as

fine without fail for not wear-

ing mask. The deputy com-

missioners and superinten-

dents of police are personal-

ly liable to oversee that the

penalty is imposed.

We will have a meeting to-

morrow with the districts for

strict implementation of the

order and come out with an

SOP.” (UNI)

Echo of Arunachal

SASASASASATURDTURDTURDTURDTURDAAAAAYYYYY

SEPTEMBER 5, 2020

GarfieldGarfieldGarfieldGarfieldGarfield by Jim Davis

PPPPPeaneaneaneaneanutsutsutsutsuts by Charles M. Schulz

BBBBB.C.C.C.C.C..... by Johnny Hart

QUICK CROSSWORD

Across1 Attention-seeking behaviour (13)8 Silence — joke (3)9 Relating to government (9)10 Adolescent (8)11 Skip (4)13 Smartly turned-out (6)14 In Ancient Greece, gazing into hereyes was petrifying! (6)

16 State of feeling (4)17 Relish (8)20 Occurring at three-year intervals (9)21 Behave unnaturally (3)22 Entrenched (4-2-3-4)Down1 Roget (anag) — plant disease (5)2 Dynamite (4,9)3 Aircraft such as the de HavillandTiger Moth (8)

4 ___ Girls, chorus line dancers (6)5 Cereal (4)6 Unable to have contact with other people(13)7 Citizen army (7)12 Military wake-up call (8)13 Downgraded (7)15 Orthopaedic immobilising device (6)18 Praise (5)19 Hostile to (4)

WORD PUZZLE

PREVIOUS ISSUE’S SOLUTION TODAY’S SUDOKU

SUDOKU, is a Japanese, fun puzzle game. It requires the player to fill in the 9x9 square grid with the numbers

one to nine. The numbers should be arranged in such a way that each row, column and mini-grid contains one

of each number. A single error in a Sudoku throws the whole game out.

PREVIOUS CROSSWORD SOLUTION

Mass vaccination against Covid

unlikely before mid-2021: WHOGENEVA, Sep 4: The World Health Organization (WHO)

on Friday said that mass vaccination against the Novel

Coronavirus (COVID-19) is unlikely before the middle of

2021. Talking to media here, spokeswoman for the WHO

Margaret Harris described WHO's expected timeline to start

mass vaccination. "In terms of realistic timelines, we're re-

ally not expecting to see widespread vaccination until the

middle of next year," she said.

Harris added that currently there are a considerable num-

ber of candidates that have entered phase three vaccine

trials while at least six to nine have got quite far with the

research already.

Harris explained that the world is seeing many different

vaccines, and there is a need to compare them to asertain

which one is offering the "best protection and the greatest

safety levels as well." (UNI)

Trade among BRICS nations to

rise despite pandemic: RussiaMOSCOW, Sep 4: Trade among the BRICS (Brazil, Russia,India, China and South Africa) nations today has risen by45 percent compared to 2015 levels and it will continue torise despite the coronavirus pandemic, said Russian For-eign Minister Sergey Lavrov on Friday while addressingan online ministerial-level meeting of BRICS.

Lavrov pointed out that the combined GDP of the fiveBRICS members adds up to 25 percent of the world economythis year, while the share of BRICS in international tradewas nearing 20 percent.

Lavrov sounded confident that the mutual trade wouldcontinue to expand "And most importantly, our domesticmutual export (among the BRICS countries), the export ofour five countries in five years increased by 45 percent.This trend, of course, will continue in the future, no matterwhat adjustments are made by the global coronavirus cri-sis," he said.

Sputnik quoted the minister as saying that the progres-sive development of the BRICS strategic partnership dur-ing the current Russian presidency proves that positivetendencies in mutual trading will be sustained. (UNI)

UNICEF urges int'l support for

schools affected by Beirut blastsBEIRUT, Sep 4: The UNICEF urged on Friday the interna-tional community to urgently scale up support for educa-tion for children in Beirut following the explosions thatdestroyed a big number of schools in the city.

"UNICEF is working with its partners in areas affectedby the explosions to support rehabilitation of damagedschools and replacement of furniture and equipment, pro-mote school safety guidelines, train teachers in psychoso-cial support, and coordinate on the distribution of educa-tion supplies and early childhood development kits to teach-ers and caregivers," the agency said in a statement.

It added at least 163 public and private schools, and 20technical, vocational education and training schools weredamaged by Beirut port's explosions, impacting around77,300 students and 7,600 teachers approximately.

UNICEF Lebanon Representative Yukie Mokuo said thateducation can provide a vital lifeline to children whoselives have been turned upside down by such a disaster,providing a safe space at school and a sense of normalcyamidst the chaos. (Xinhua)

At least 15 militants killed,highway reopened in Afghanistan

KABUL, Sep 4: Afghan forces have reopened the high-way connecting western Badghis province to Herat afterheavy fighting and killing 15 militants, deputy to Baghispolice chief, Shir Aqa Alkozay said on Friday.

Officials said that the planes began on Thursday morn-ing on a highway connecting Badgis to neighboring Heratprovince. the officials said the militants fled, leaving 15bodies behind, news agency Xinhua reported.

Six more militants were injured and one army soldier wasalso injured, the official further said.

The operations would last until the area is cleared of theinsurgents, the official asserted.

Taliban militants who are active in parts of the restiveBadghis province have yet to make comment. (UNI)

10 killed in rain-triggered incidentsin Pakistan's Punjab

ISLAMABAD, Sep 4: Rain-triggered incidents of roof andwall collapse claimed 10 lives on Friday in Chakwal districtof Pakistan's eastern Punjab province, rescue officials said.

Rescue officials in the area told local media that the roofof one house collapsed in the Lakhwal area of Chakwal,and the debris of the house fell on the adjacent house,killing four people and injuring several others.

Following the incident, rescue teams rushed to the sceneand shifted the bodies and the injured to hospitals afterretrieving them from the debris.

Both houses had been affected by recent heavy down-pours and were in a dilapidated condition, said rescue offi-cials, adding that there were several visible cracks in thewalls even before the incident happened.

In another incident, the wall and roof of a house col-lapsed in the Gagh area of Chakwal, killing three womenand a child on the spot.

Separately, two members of a family were killed and twoothers sustained serious injuries when the roof of theirhouse collapsed in Chakwal. Rescue officials said inces-sant rains weakened the roof of the house.

Earlier on Wednesday, Pakistan Meteorological Depart-ment forecasted more rains in parts of Punjab, northwestKhyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) province and northern Gilgit-Baltistan (GB) region on Thursday and Friday. Heavy fallsmay generate urban flooding in several cities of Punjaband trigger landslides in vulnerable areas of KP and GBduring the period, according to the weather office. (Xinhua)

NEW DELHI, Sep 4: India

and Syria have agreed to

continue close consulta-

tions and cooperation on is-

sues of mutual interest both

bilaterally and at multilateral

and international forums.

Minister of State for Exter-

nal Affairs V Muraleedharan

and Syrian vice minister of

foreign affairs and expatri-

ates Fayssal Mekdad held a

meeting through video con-

ference on Thursday.

The meeting provided an

opportunity to comprehen-

sively review the bilateral

relations and chart a road

map for further cooperation

in areas of mutual interest,

the ministry of external af-

fairs said.

“India-Syria relations have

been historically warm and

friendly, which have been

nurtured through regular ex-

change of visits,” it added.

Syria has been deeply ap-

preciative of India’s unwaver-

ing support and continued

developmental assistance

during its crisis years, and has

extended unconditional sup-

port to India's candidatures

for various multilateral and

international organisations,

the minister said.

Dr Mekdad thanked the

Indian government for the

timely gift of 10 MT of medi-

cines in July 2020 to help Syria

in fighting the COVID-19 pan-

demic as also for the gener-

ous provision of 1,000 schol-

arships to Syrians under the

Study in India Programme,

besides 90 slots under ITEC

and 25 slots under ICCR Gen-

eral Scholarship Scheme giv-

en annually.

483 Syrians had benefited

from an artificial limb fitment

camp organized by the min-

istry in Damascus in Janu-

ary 2020 in partnership with

the Bhagwan Mahaveer Vik-

lang Sahayata Samiti

(BVMSS), Jaipur, it said.

The Indian government

has earlier provided US$ 12

million in humanitarian assis-

tance to the Syrian govern-

ment since the conflict broke

out in 2011.

Furthermore, India has set

up a biotech park and an IT

Centre and extended USD

265 million in line of credit

for projects in steel and pow-

er sectors.

Murleedharan, in turn, ap-

prised Dr Mekdad about the

steps the government was

taking to address both pub-

lic health and socio-econom-

ic challenges posed by Cov-

id-19.

There was also a brief dis-

cussion on the progress

made by India in vaccine re-

search and development, the

ministry said.

Thanking Dr Mekdad for

his assessment on the evolv-

ing situation in Syria and the

region, he reiterated India's

hope to see a comprehensive

and peaceful resolution of

the decade-long Syrian con-

flict, through a Syrian-led and

Syrian-owned dialogue, in-

volving all parties to the con-

flict that takes into account

the legitimate aspirations of

the Syrian people while pre-

serving the unity, sovereign-

ty and territorial integrity of

the country. (UNI)

India, Syria agree to continuecooperation on mutual interests

Global COVID-19 scenario at a glanceCOVID-19: Bangladeshreports 1,929 new cases,

29 more deathsDHAKA, Sep 4: Bangladeshhas reported 1,929 new Coro-navirus cases and 29 newdeaths making the tally at321,615 and death toll at 4,412,the Directorate General ofHealth Services (DGHS) saidon Friday. The official datashowed that 13,073 sampleswere tested in the last 24hours across Bangladesh.The total number of recov-ered patients in the countrystood at 216,191 including2,211 new recoveries on Fri-day, said the DGHS.

According to the officialdata, the Coronavirus fatali-ty rate in Bangladesh is now1.33 percent and the currentrecovery rate is 67.22 percent.nCoV cases in Sri Lanka

surpass 3,100COLOMBO: The number ofnovel Coronavirus cases inSri Lanka rose to 3,111 afterseveral new patients weredetected in recent days fromamong those repatriatedfrom overseas, Health Min-istry said on Friday.

Out of the total reported todate, 2,907 patients have re-covered and been dischargedwhile 192 are under observa-tion in hospitals, with 12deaths reported so far.

Sri Lankan authorities saidwearing masks is still manda-tory for the public, with stricthealth regulations such asmaintaining social distancingand hand hygiene, newsagency Xinhua reported.

Further, schools re-opened earlier this month willbe operated under stricthealth guidelines imposedby the Health Ministry.

Sri Lanka's internationalairports have been closedsince March and officialsexpected them to reopenonly after the repatriationprocess was completed.NZ reports first Coronavi-

rus death since MayWELLINGTON: New

Zealand has reported firstdeath from Coronavirussince May 24, authoritiesconfirmed on Friday.

According to the HealthMinistry, a man in his 50s, whowas part of Auckland cluster,died at Middlemore Hospital.With the new fatality, the coun-try death tally rose to 23.

"The man was a confirmedcase of COVID-19," the min-istry in a statement, adding hehad been admitted to the hos-pital from quarantine and wasreceiving treatment in the in-tensive care unit. New Zealandreported its last death fromCoronavirus on May 24.

Over the past 24 hours, thecountry also reported five newinfections, bringing the tally

to 1,764, while 1,630 patientshave recovered, according tothe Health Ministry.

Indonesia reports 3,269new nCoV cases, with 82

deathsJAKARTA: The novel

Coronavirus cases in Indo-nesia rose by 3,269 withinone day to 187,537, with thedeath toll adding by 82 to7,832, the Health Ministrysaid on Friday. According tothe ministry, 2,126 more peo-ple were discharged fromhospitals, bringing the totalnumber of recovered pa-tients to 134,181.

The virus has spread to allthe country's 34 provinces.

Specifically, within thepast 24 hours, Jakarta record-ed 880 new cases, West Java385, East Java 350, East Kal-imantan 281 and Bali 196.

No more new positive cas-es were found in two prov-inces of Central Sulawesiand West Sulawesi.Iraq reports highest 5,036

daily COVID-19 cases,252,075 in total

BAGHDAD: The IraqiHealth Ministry on Fridayreported 5,036 new COVID-19 cases, the highest sincethe outbreak of the disease,raising the total number in thecountry to 252,075.

The new cases included1,941 in the capital Baghdad,366 in Wasit, 349 in Basra,315 in Nineveh, 273 in Du-hok, 245 in Dhi Qar, and 243in Karbala, the ministry saidin a statement.

It also reported 84 deathsduring the day, raising thedeath toll to 7,359, while 3,611more patients recovered,bringing the total number ofrecoveries to 191,368.

The new cases were re-corded after 23,802 testingkits were used across thecountry during the day, anda total of 1,694,285 tests havebeen carried out since theoutbreak of the disease, ac-cording to the statement.

The ministry frequently at-tributed the recent increase ofCOVID-19 infections to thelack of public compliance withthe health instructions, as wellas to the increased testing ca-pacity with more labs in Bagh-dad and other provinces.

Iraq has been taking a se-ries of measures to containthe pandemic since Februarywhen the first coronaviruscase emerged in the country.

China has been helpingIraq fight the COVID-19 pan-demic. From March 7 to April26, a Chinese team of sevenmedical experts spent 50 daysin Iraq to help contain the dis-ease, during which theyhelped build a PCR lab andinstall an advanced CT scan-ner in Baghdad. (Agency)

CMYK

Echo of Arunachal

SASASASASATURDTURDTURDTURDTURDAAAAAYYYYY

SEPTEMBER 5, 2020

ARIES TAURUS GEMINI CANCER

Aries, a long-

awaited letter or

call could come

from a love partner

or beloved friend, bringing

much happiness into your life.

Don't be surprised if the

person needs a shoulder to

cry on. You could experience

some powerful psychic

insights today, and this might

be a bit frightening. Don't let

that get in the way of seeing

these revelations objectively.

They could be important.

Projects that you've

worked on in the

past may finally

bear fruit today,

Taurus. Financial benefits and

career advancement are

strongly indicated, and you be

basking in the glow of

success. Don't bask too long,

however. This is only the

beginning! You're on a roll.

Throw yourself into new

projects you enjoy and you're

likely to continue in this

fortuitous manner for a while.

Today your desire

for sex and

romance is going to

receive a powerful

surge, Gemini. Perhaps

memories of past partners will

come back to haunt you, or

maybe a current love interest

will look especially sexy now.

You're likely to be projecting

glamour and sensuality, so

don't be surprised if strangers

notice you. Plan a romantic

encounter for tonight, and

dress for the occasion.

You're spiritually

inclined, Cancer,

and today you

could feel especial-

ly so. You might be attracted

to online meditation groups or

the study of the texts of

various religions. You're also

likely to feel especially

psychic, and you might

experience some premonitions

that actually come true. This is

a good time to train your

psychic abilities or try reading

runes or tarot cards.

LEO VIRGO LIBRA SCORPIO

If you happen to be

thinking about a

particular friend

today, Leo, don't be

surprised if you hear from him

or her. You're especially attuned

to telepathic messages, and

you may send out a few. While

you usually enjoy solitude, you

might be more interested in

communicating with others

today. Don't fight the urge. Go

for it. You could talk to some

interesting new people who

become your friends for life.

Sudden and

unexpected

changes could

have you feeling a

bit confused, disoriented,

and doubtful about the

future, Virgo. Relax! The

changes may be not only

beneficial for your career but

also for your finances. Don't

think those in authority

haven't noticed your skills

and ingenuity. In fact, you

may receive some sincere

compliments and gratitude.

You should wake up

feeling hopeful and

optimistic about the

future, Libra. Your

self-confidence is stronger than

usual, and your enthusiasm is

contagious. Success in joint

efforts should have you glowing

with satisfaction. You could

even receive public acknowl-

edgment of your efforts. Today

bodes well for relationships of

all kinds, particularly romantic

ones. Celebrate your good

fortune with a lover tonight!

Today, Scorpio, you

might turn to

practices like

meditation or

psychic development. Some

vivid dreams over the past few

days may have brought up

personal issues that you need

to clear up in order to progress.

You may pick up on the

thoughts and feelings of others

more strongly than usual. If

you've been thinking about

learning to read tarot cards or

runes, this is the day to start.

SAGITTARIUS CAPRICORN ACQUARIUS PISCES

A new romance

may be in store

today, Sagittarius,

perhaps with

someone you've known for a

long time, but you suddenly

view in a new light. You

could see a side of this

person that you've never

seen before, totally changing

your perception of him or

her. Any new relationship

formed today shows a lot of

promise of developing into a

lifelong connection. The

bonds involved will run deep.

You could be in a

fanciful mood all

day, Capricorn, so

you may not be too

focused on this world. This

is great for artistic or

metaphysical studies, as

well as being sensitive to

others. Beware of a

tendency to daydream when

you should pay attention!

You might want to break out

of the mundane world and

follow your dreams, but this

isn't the day to do it. It's a

good day to plan.

You're intuitive by

nature, Aquarius,

and today you

could almost be

clairvoyant. Obey your

instincts today. Don't let

your rational mind get in the

way. This isn't the day to

be logical! You can sense

the needs of others, so

you could earn some

gratitude by giving them

what they need without

being asked. Romantic

relationships should be

warm, loving, and intimate.

Creative inspira-

tion could come

from either your

own past or from

history, Pisces. You might

want to try painting,

music, or poetry, but

today it's more likely that

you'll turn that inspiration

toward your home. If

you're planning to refur-

nish or redecorate, this is

the day to start. Your

taste and aesthetic sense

are operating at a high

level.

DAY STATION DEPT. TIME STATION ARR. TIME

MON Naharlagun 08:30 Guwahati 09:50

Guwahati 10:30 Tawang 11:40

Tawang 12:00 Guwahati 13:10

Guwahati 13:55 Naharlagun 15:15

TUE Naharlagun 08:30 Guwahati 09:50

Guwahati 10:30 Tawang 11:40

Tawang 12:00 Guwahati 13:10

Guwahati 13:55 Naharlagun 15:15

WED Naharlagun 10:00 Guwahati 11:20

Guwahati 13:30 Naharlagun 14:50

THU Naharlagun 08:30 Guwahati 09:50

Guwahati 10:30 Tawang 11:40

Tawang 12:00 Guwahati 13:10

Guwahati 13:55 Naharlagun 15:15

DAY STATION DEPT. TIME STATION ARR. TIME

FRI Naharlagun 08:30 Guwahati 09:50

Guwahati 10:30 Tawang 11:40

Tawang 12:00 Guwahati 13:10

Guwahati 13:55 Naharlagun 15:15

SAT Naharlagun 08:30 Guwahati 09:50

Guwahati 10:30 Tawang 11:40

Tawang 12:00 Guwahati 13:10

Guwahati 13:55 Naharlagun 15:15

SUNDAY — OFF /MAINTANCE

Flight Schedule of Alliance Air - ATR-42 to

Pasighat from Calcutta/Guwahati

Sunday, Monday, Wednesday and Friday. Arrival Time at

Pasighat Airport - 09:05 A.M. Departure Time - 09:25 A.M.

NB:- 1. CONDITIONS APPLY (VIP MOVEMENT/ BAD WEATHER/ PATIENT EVACUATION/ TECHNICAL SNAG/PASSENGER AVAILABIL-

ITY AND EMERGENCY ETC).

2. THE PASSENGER SERVICE WILL BE OPERATED TO ALL SECTORS SUBJECT TO FULFILMENT OF SAFETY NORMS &

OTHER MEASURES DULY CONFIRMED BY THE CONCERNED ADMINISTRATIVE OFFICES.

HOSPITALS APST BUS SERVICEITANAGAR: (9774034571/8729868842)

NAHARLAGUN: (03602351490)A NIGHT SERVICES    1 Itanagar-Shillong 4.00 pm Daily2 Ita/Nlg-Daporijo 12 noon Daily3 Itanagar-Khonsa 1.00 pm Monday &Thursday4 Itanagar-Namsai 1.00 pm Daily5 Itanagar-Bomdila 4.30 pm Daily6 Itanagar-Aalo 2.30 pm Daily7 Itanagar-Dimapur 3.00 pm Daily8 Itanagar-Liromoba/Kamba 1.00 pm DailyB DAY SERVICE1 Itanagar-Guwahati 6.00 am Daily2 Itanagar-Pasighat 6.00 am Daily3 Itanagar-Pasighat 11.00 am Daily4 Itanagar-Aalo 6.00 am Daily5 Itanagar-Lilabari 3.30 pm Daily

(Except Sunday)6 Itanagar-Bomdila 6.00 am Alternate day

(Except Thursday)7 Itanagar-Jote 6 am & Daily (Except Sunday)

12 noon8 Naharlagun-Leporiang 7.00 am Alternate day

(Except Saturday)9 Nlg-Pakke-Kessang 6.00 am Alternate day

(Except Sunday)10Naharlagun-Sonajuli 11.00 am Daily

(Except Sunday)11 Naharlagun-Balijan 1.00 pm Daily

(Except Sunday)12Naharlagun-Hawa camp 12 noon Daily

(Except Saturday)13Naharlagun-Kakoi 1.00 pm Daily

(Except Sunday)14Naharlagun-Gohamukh 1.00 pm Daily(Except Friday)15 Itanagar-Roing (Sumo) 6 AM Daily16 Itanagar-Koloriang(Sumo) 6 AM Daily17. Seppa-Itanagar 6 AM Daily

POLICE STATION

General Hospital0360-2246677 (Casuality Wing) / 0360-2244293 (O)CMO 0360-2244156 (O) Med. Supdtt. / Ambulance

General Hospital 0360-2244479

R.K. Mission Hospital:9485231263 & 2212263 Admission & Enquiry/Ambulance:(8:00 am to 8:00 pm), 9485231263 Emergency/Ambu-lance: (8:00 pm to 8:00 am) 9485231259 NICU & Dialy-

sis unit 9436631237 Office

Y.J Ambulance Service 9402073264, 8131820481

Heema Hospital: 8794236321, 2291094

NIBA HOSPITAL, PAPUNALLAH:

0360-2244574, 2351200

ASSA Diagnostics & Nursing Home,Pasighat : 0368 - 2223015/2224509

Raj Bhawan Dispensary:

0360-22122402

Hospitals in Guwahati:GNRC Hospital - 0361-2227701, 2227702, 2227703Down Town Hospital - 9864101111, 9864102222GMC Hospital - 0361-2528417, 2529457International Hospital - 0361-2347700, 2347701B. Barooah Cancer Institute - 0361-2472364

POWER HOUSE ENQUIRY

ITANAGAR: C Sector- 2212241, Central Power House- 2212251,

MOWB-II- 2212260, RK Mission- 2212269, Chandra Nagar- 2290409

NAHARLAGUN

Power House- 2244173, 22440038, Nirjuli- 2257577, 2257546,

Banderdewa- 2266246, Doimukh- 2277243

Itanagar- 0360-2212233, Naharlagun- 0360-2244329, Banderdewa- 0360-2266236, Nirjuli (OP)- 0360-2257220, Doimukh- 0360-2277220. FIRE SERVICE: Itanagar- 0360-2212640|Naharlagun- 0360-2244399

CHILDLINE 1098

ARUNACHAL PRADESH HELICOPTER NON-SCHEDULE FLIGHT PROGRAMME OF MI-172

(SKYONE) HELICOPTER FOR NAHARLAGUN - GUWAHATI - TAWANG SECTOR W.E.F - 18.02.2017

MUMBAI, Sep 4: Maharash-

tra Home Minister Anil Desh-

mukh on Friday stated that

Kangana Ranaut has no

right to stay not only in

Mumbai but also across

Maharashtra.

Cautioning the 'Queen' ac-

tress, he told that strict ac-

tion can be taken against

Kangana over her tweet re-

garding the city police.

In a strong-worded tweet,

Minister Deshmukh said,

"Mumbai Police is compared

to Scotland Yard. Some peo-

ple are trying to target Mum-

bai Police. An IPS officer has

gone to court against this.

Kangana Ranaut has no right to stay in Mah:HM Deshmukh reacts to her Mumbai Police tweet

After, her (Kangana Ra-

naut's) comparison of Mum-

bai Police, she has no right

to live in Maharashtra or

Mumbai."

Kangana, who is openly

bashing some B-town per-

sonalities post Sushant

Singh Rajput case, has

tweeted a couple of days

back that she is more scared

of the Mumbai Police than

mafia goons after, BJP MLA

Ram Kadam batted for her

safety.

In his letter to Chief Minister

Uddhav Thackeray, the MLA

sought protection for Kanga-

na on the ground that "she is

ready to expose the Bolly-

wood-drug mafia nexus".

Reacting to the same, she

tweeted, "Thank you for

your concern sir, I am actu-

ally more scared of Mumbai

police now than movie mafia

goons, in Mumbai I would

need security either from HP

government or directly from

the Centre, No Mumbai po-

lice please."

Firebrand Shiv Sena lead-

er Sanjay Raut slammed her

statement in a Saamana edi-

torial, and wrote that her

'treachery' was shameful,

given the fact she makes a

living in the maximum city

NEW DELHI, Sep 4: Bolly-

wood actress Yami Gautam

is all set to portray a play-

school teacher in Ronnie

Screwvala's psychological

thriller 'A Thursday'.

A direct to digital release,

the movie is directed by Be-

hzad Khambata.

It is produced by Ronnie

Screwvala and Premnath Ra-

jagopalan.

Taking to micro-blogging

site Twitter, RSVP Movies on

Friday said,"Thrill & Chill!

On this #FridaysWithRSVP,

we bring you to #AThursday

of unforgettable events!

Starring @yamigautam, the

film will be a direct to digital

release."

Yami to portray playschool teacher in 'A Thursday'

MUMBAI, Sep 4: Actress

Shamin Mannan says she

was always inspired by Sus-

hant Singh Rajput and that

it is heart-wrenching to not

have a clarity regarding his

mysterious death.

Sushant was found dead

at his Bandra home on June

14, and the cause of death is

currently under investiga-

tion by the CBI.

Soon after the actor's

death, it was said that he was

suffering from depression.

Shamin feels that people

should avoid talking about

his mental health and life-

style, and instead remember

him as the successful actor

that he was.

"Although I didn't know

Sushant personally, I have

been following Sushant's

case since day one and have

been awaiting a justified clo-

sure just like the whole coun-

try. With so many different

theories and speculations

TV star Shamin Mannan: Heart-wrenching to

not have clarity on Sushant's demisearound his mysterious death,

it is heart-wrenching to not

have any clarity even after

two months," said the "Ram

Pyaare Sirf Humare" actress.

"Sushant achieved all the

success in his life relying on

sheer talent and hard work,

and one should refrain from

speculating anything wrong

about his lifestyle or mental

health condition and remem-

ber him just as the success

story that he was. I don't

know if he was depressed, but

I wish people don't demean

depression as a taboo disease

and understand that depres-

sion doesn't make you a weak-

er person," she added.

She also mentioned that

the late actor was an inspira-

tion for her and said "Sush-

ant has been a role model for

so many actors like me. His

career graph personally in-

spired me to work hard to-

wards my goal. He seemed so

motivated in his career, and

at the same time, he was so

intelligent with so much

knowledge about every-

thing, not just limited to act-

ing. He was not just an actor,

he was much more than that."

"I have followed his jour-

ney from 'Pavitra Rishta'. His

transition from TV to Bolly-

wood was exemplary. He had

a flourishing and inspiring

career. It is disheartening to

read so much stuff about him.

I just wish that the CBI

comes out with the truth

soon," she added.

Shamin concluded by say-

ing that Sushant's family de-

serves justice.

"Be it a murder or suicide,

Sushant and his family de-

serve justice and respect.

There are too many ques-

tions yet to be answered.

Having faith in the system

and the CBI, I believe the

truth will come out sooner or

later and justice will prevail,"

said the actress. (Agency)

and yet criticised the police

force.

"We kindly request her not

to come in Mumbai. This is

nothing but insult to Mum-

bai police. The Home Minis-

try should take action over

it,” he wrote.

Reacting to the same, Kan-

gana took to Twitter stating,

"Sanjay Raut Shiv Sena lead-

er has given me an open

threat and asked me not to

come back to Mumbai, after

Aazadi graffitis in Mumbai

streets and now open

threats, why Mumbai is feel-

ing like Pakistan occupied

Kashmir?" (UNI)

"A Thursday, starring

Yami Gautam, will be a direct

to digital release," it added.

Ronnie Screwvala

said,"The thrill of bringing

new cinema continues one

movie at a time. This, #Fri-

daysWithRSVP, we bring

#AThursday starring

@yamigautam in our direct

to digital slate of films."

Yami said,"More than the

weekend, this time, waiting

for #AThursday."

The flick will release in

2021 on a digital platform.

(UNI)

NCB arrests Showik Chakrabortyand Samuel Miranda

MUMBAI, Sep 4: The Nar-

cotics Control Bureau (NCB)

on Friday evening arrested

Rhea Chakraborty's brother

Showik and Samuel Miranda

in connection with the drugs

angle in the case of the death

of Bollywood actor Sushant

Singh Rajput.

The arrests were made un-

der the NDPS Act after day-

long interrogation of the two.

Earlier the NCB had seized

the laptops and mobile

phones of the two.

The NCB had in the morn-

ing carried out raids at their

premises and seized their

laptops and mobile phones.

Showik and Miranda had

joined the investigation af-

ter they were summoned

during the raids at their resi-

dences

The NCB has already ar-

rested two alleged drug ped-

dlers Zaid Vilatra and Abdel

Basit Parihar operating in

Mumbai. The two had admit-

ted to their connections with

Showik Chakraborty. (UNI)

NEW DELHI, Sep 4: Life is

nothing but a series of learn-

ing opportunities and expe-

riences.

Many aspiring actors

dream of having a success-

ful career. With time, dedica-

tion, passion and patience,

the vision can eventually

become a reality. But, one

secret ingredient to excel and

grow as an actor is experi-

ence.

Aparna Dixit, who started

her career at a young age,

considers experience as her

only teacher in this industry.

Describing her journey

from the time she made her

debut to 'Pyar Ki Luka

Chuppi' which airs on

Dangal channel, Aparna

Dixit says,"My journey has

been beautiful. Whatever I

have learnt from my ups and

downs has crafted my jour-

ney. I still remember, during

my initial days I would not

understand the camera

angles, profiles etc. The

knowledge I have gained to-

Experience has been my only teacher: Aparna Dixitday is all from my experience.

I never joined any acting

school. Experience has been

my only teacher. Learnings

from one show were imple-

mented in another and so

on."

'I learnt a lot from all the

senior actors that I shared

the screen with and stayed

grounded. There were times

when I would become ner-

vous to shoot some tough

scenes, but today, when I

see the difference in my

graph, I have realized that

those moments have made

me who I am. There are times

now also, when I feel ner-

vous, but then I would want

that to stay with me. I would

never want to become over-

confident," she said.

"I want to keep learning

and growing. I believe I am

an actor because I love my

work the most and this rea-

son drives me to achieve

more. I feel grateful to be a

part of this industry that has

blessed me in ways I can’t

be thankful enough," adds

Aparna.

Aparna believes every ac-

tor has a different journey

and one really can’t compare

one with another. (UNI)

Echo of Arunachal

SASASASASATURDTURDTURDTURDTURDAAAAAYYYYY

SEPTEMBER 5, 2020

KOLKATA, Sep 4: "I still feel

goosebumps when I go back

to that evening of 4th Sep-

tember 1962," India's former

stopper back Arun Ghosh

goes down to his memory

while narrating India's tri-

umph over Korea Republic

nearly six decades ago.

The Senayan Main Stadi-

um in Jakarta was jam-packed

with a partisan 1,00,000-

strong Indonesian crowd

cheering for Korea Republic

at the top of their voice.

"But we had our support

too.Any guesses? Strange

as it may sound, the Paki-

stan Hockey team cheered

for us. Unbelievable, but

true," Oympian and Asian

gold medalist Arun Ghosh

told All India Football Fed-

eration.

The hostile atmosphere

'Even as entire Indonesia wanted us to lose,

Pakistan Hockey Team cheered for us': Arun GhoshLAUSANNE, Sep 4: The In-

ternational Table Tennis Fed-

eration (ITTF) on Friday an-

nounced a restart plan for

international table tennis,

with the Women's World

Cup, the Men's World Cup

and the ITTF Finals to be

staged in China in Novem-

ber.

International table tennis

action has been suspended

for half a year due to the

COVID-19 pandemic.

Called #RESTART, the

plan will feature a special

series of events scheduled

for November 2020, operat-

ing in a regional approach to

ensure a smooth transition

from national to internation-

al activity for players.

Both World Cups and the

Finals will be staged in Chi-

na with support from the

Chinese Table Tennis Asso-

ciation (CTTA), meaning

that the Women's and Men's

World Cups will no longer

take place in Bangkok, Thai-

land, and Dusseldorf, Ger-

many as originally planned.

"Ensuring a safe return to

international table tennis has

ITTF World Cups, finals scheduled in November in China

49TH BATTALION, INDO-TIBETAN BORDER POLICE FORCEAUCTION NOTICE

Following govt stores of unit shall be auctioned on the date and time fixed against the

each store mentioned below in the premises of 49th Bn, I.T.B. Police Force, Basar, Dist-

Leparada (Arunachal Pradesh) interested parties are requested to participate in the auction.

Terms & condition for auction:-

1. Each bidder will have to deposit security money of Rs. 2500/- (rupees two thousand

five hundred only)

2. Full payment has to be made before lifting the store i.e within 24 hrs after the auction

is over failing which same shall be deemed to be null and void,

3. Successful bidder will have to deposit the sale tax as fixed by the Arunachal Pradesh

govt. Counterfoil of which is mandatory to be deposited to this office.

4. Commandant 49th Bn, I.T.B.Police force reserve the right to accept/cancel full or part

bidding/auction without assigning reason.

5. Bidder shall not be allowed to bring extra men and have to abide by the rules and

regulations of campus during the auction. Checking of bidders will be done by sentry

at main gate. For security reasons, bidders are not supposed to move out of the area

prescribed for auction.

Sd/- COMMANDANT

davp-19112/11/0077/2021 49TH BN I.T.B. POLICE

Type of store Auction date Time

1. Clothing items

2. GIA/welfare/misc items

3. Snow misc items

4. Trg/sport items

5. Pnr tools/misc items

6. Electronic/electric items

7. Vehicle spare part

8. Utensil items

9. Burnt oil

22-09-2020 0930 hrs to 1500 hrs.

�

LOSTI, Smt Nabam Amzi, D/o ShriNabam Takang, CLFColony, Nirjuli, Papum Paredistrict, have lost my Class-X pass certificate bearingRoll No. 3102244 andClass-XII pass marksheetbearing Roll No. 3201111near Nirjuli area.

Finder may pleasecontact at 8258030541 /

9436637855

been our utmost priority ever

since the pandemic broke

out. I am delighted that, with

the fantastic support and

hard work carried out by ev-

eryone at the ITTF over sev-

eral months, we have man-

aged to get events back up

and running before the end

of 2020," said the ITTF Pres-

ident Thomas Weikert.

CTTA President Liu Guo-

liang called "it very signifi-

cant that the ITTF has cho-

sen China as the host to re-

start competitions after what

has been an extremely chal-

lenging year for our sport."

"We are able to come out

from the darkness and to cel-

ebrate our return to the ta-

ble. This is a moment of im-

mense joy for all members of

the international table tennis

family," the Chinese table

tennis legend noted.

"After many months away

from the table, it is extremely

important for us to get inter-

national table tennis events

back running again," said

Steve Dainton, ITTF chief

executive officer.

The World Cups will fea-

ture 20 female and 20 male

athletes, including the world

champion, qualified players

from all completed continen-

tal events (Africa, Europe

and Pan America), players

selected by world ranking

from the other continents

(Asia and Oceania), and oth-

ers according to the provi-

sional World Cup playing

system. A maximum of two

players per association are

allowed for each World Cup

event.

The top 16 world-ranked

male and top 16 world-ranked

female players will partici-

pate in the ITTF Finals, with

a cap of four players for ev-

ery association.

Since the ITTF rankings

have been frozen since April

2020, the restart plan will of-

fer players the opportunity

to elevate their world rank-

ings before the end of 2020.

The ITTF is closely coop-

erating with CTTA to ensure

safety measures are in place

to protect athletes, coaches,

officials and supporting staff

within the competition "bub-

ble." (Xinhua)

made Indian players more

determined as the match

moved ahead.

" Pradip-da (Pradip Kumar

Banerjee) gave us the lead

before Jarnail (Singh) dou-

bled it three minutes later.

Jarnail had stitches on his

forehead and was, hence,

played as a centre forward

(striker) in the match," the

former celebrated footballer

recalled .

There was pin-drop si-

lence at the stadium when we

went 2-0 up. Though Korea

Republic scored a late goal,

goalkeeper Peter (Thangaraj)

saw off the danger till the

end.

The animosity against the

Indian continent was so

high that no one came to

congratulate us even after

the match. But, what a night

it was for Indian Football!

In the second match of the

group stage, we faced a mas-

sive setback as Jarnail Singh

had to be stretchered off.

Following a collision, he

started bleeding profusely

and received ten stitches.

The substitution rule was

yet to be introduced in foot-

ball then, and hence, we had

to play one-man down for

most of the match.

The terrific trio of Chuni-

PK-Balaram was on target

and we edged past Thailand

by a whopping 4-1 margin.

Rahim-saab (Syed Rahim,

Coach) knew his players like

the back of his hand. He

knew how to bring the best

out of a certain player. After

Jarnail got injured, he

switched me from right-back

to centre-back (central de-

fender) and I lived up to his

expectations.

"Since then, I have always

played as a centre-back for

the Blue Tigers till I hung my

boots".

His other masterstroke

was to bring a heavily ban-

daged Jarnail Singh back

against South Vietnam in the

semi-final. But not as a de-

fender, rather as a centre-for-

ward. Everyone got stunned

but Jarnail scored in back-to-

back games.

"When we started to play

as a defender, our aim was

primarily to clear the ball and

avert the danger. But Rahim-

saab changed the percep-

tion. He taught us -- 'Attack

starts from the goalkeeper.'

He taught us the nuances of

ground-passing and taking

the game forward individu-

ally. The entire vantage point

was changed and we started

to notice the result soon. :

We couldn't give a good ac-

count of ourselves in the first

match of the group stage

against Korea Republic.'

"To start a tournament like

Asian Games with a 0-2 loss

took a toll on us. Our confi-

dence took a hit but Rahim-

saab knew how to keep ev-

eryone motivated. It worked

wonders for us.'

A win always helps you

regain confidence. A team

which got unsettled in the

absence of the main central

defender Jarnail Singh out-

played Japan 2-0 within

twenty-four hours of beating

Thailand. After the comfort-

able win against Thailand,

we started believing in our-

selves." (UNI)

Ecuador midfielder Franco fires AtleticoMineiro to win over Sao Paulo

RIO DE JANEIRO, Sep 4: Ecuador international midfielder

Alan Franco scored two first-half goals as Atletico Mineiro

beat Sao Paulo 3-0 in Brazil's Serie A championship on

Thursday.

Franco put the hosts ahead in the 35th minute by chip-

ping a shot over goalkeeper Tiago Volpi after collecting

Jair Rodrigues's through ball.

The 22-year-old netted again on the stroke of half-time

with a powerful left-footed finish after Hyoran Kaue's as-

sist.

Atletico continued to create the best chances and

Rodrigues added his team's third goal by heading in on the

hour mark to put the result beyond doubt.

It was Atletico's fourth win from six matches this cam-

paign and lifted Jorge Sampaoli's side to third in the 20-

team standings, four points behind leaders Internacional.

In Thursday's only other match, Sport Recife won 2-1 at

Gremio thanks to goals either side of half-time from Patric

Cabral and Iago Maidana. Pepe pegged a late goal back for

the hosts. (Xinhua)

Cirstea upsets 9th seed Konta in US

Open second round marathonWASHINGTON, Sep 4: World number 77 Sorana Cirstea

of Romania has produced a sparkling performance to come

from behind and beat No. 9 seed Johanna Konta of Britain

2-6, 7-6 (5), 6-4 in almost three hours to move into third

round of the US Open.

The first set, on Thursday, was dominated by the world

No. 13, but Cirstea hung tough in the second and pinched

it in the tiebreak. After that, Cirstea never looked back.

"Surprised? No. Frustrated? Obviously," said Konta. "I

think what we've seen time and time again in every tourna-

ment is that these are the best players in the world, so on

any given day they can play incredible tennis."

Cirstea will face No. 20 seed Karolina Muchova of the

Czech Republic in third round. (Xinhua)

PSG announce three more

COVID-19 cases, six in totalPARIS, Sep 4: Three more Paris Saint-Germain players

tested positive for COVID-19, taking the total number of

infected within the squad to six.

"The latest tests for PCR SarsCoV2 carried out on the

Paris Saint-Germain first team confirmed three new posi-

tive cases," the French Ligue 1 title holders said in a state-

ment on Thursday.

"The players are following the appropriate health mea-

sures."

The club didn't revealed the names of the three players,

but French sports paper L'Equipe reported that the new

three cases are Brazilian defender Marquinhos, Argentin-

ian striker Mauro Icardi and Costa Rican goalkeeper Keylor

Navas.

Neymar, Angel Di Maria and Leandro Paredes, as previ-

ously reported, were the first three to be confirmed infected

one day prior.

ll six spent a holiday on the Spanish island of Ibiza after

PSG's Champions League final loss against Bayern Munich

on August 23.

PSG are due to play their first league match of the new

season away at Lens on September 10, but the current

situation has cast doubt on whether the match will go ahead.

French football's governing body has ruled that a team

must cancel its training sessions if four or more positive

COVID-19 cases are found, with the possibility that its

matches could also be postponed.

But L'Equipe reported that the league is considering soft-

ening the restriction to decree that as long as 20 players of

the total 30 on the club's roster test negative, the game can

be held.

If the new protocol is confirmed, it will allow the PSG-

Lens game to go ahead. (Xinhua)

NAIROBI, Sep 4: Kenya is

backing World Athletics'

(WA) new testing program

that was launched on Tues-

day targeting top road run-

ners in marathon, half-mara-

thon and long distances.

With the running calendar

slowly resuming amid glo-

bal COVID-19 setbacks,

WA's anti-doping watch-

dog Athletics Integrity Unit

(AIU) is stepping up mea-

sures to increase testing of

athletes with Kenya, a long

distance running power-

house key in their testing

program.

Kenya which currently has

laws to criminalize doping in

the country, has been em-

broiled in doping scandals

involving its top runners.

Some of the country's top

athletes serving sanctions

for the doping offices in-

cludes 2008 Beijing Olym-

pics 1,500m champion As-

bel Kiprop, 2016 Rio Olym-

pics women's marathon

champion Jemimah

Sumgong, and former

three-time Boston Mara-

thon champion Rita Jeptoo,

among others.

"We have been informed

that the AIU is going to or-

ganize a number of group

testing sessions specifical-

ly for road runners. The ses-

sions will be held at a num-

ber of locations across Ken-

ya during September," the

country's athletics running

governing body Athletics

Kenya said in a statement on

Thursday.

"Athletics Kenya is pro-

viding them with all the re-

quired logistical support for

a smooth and safe conduct

of these activities in line with

health guidelines of our gov-

ernment. We are hundred

percent committed to sup-

porting the AIU in its aim of

protecting the integrity of our

sport," it said.

The group testing ses-

sions will include some ad-

vance-notice testing, where

the main focus will be on

building the profiles of ath-

letes for the Athlete Biologi-

cal Passport (ABP) program.

The samples collected

from these athletes will be

used to establish the initial

values for their ABP profiles

before regular non-notice

target testing resumes on a

much more extensive basis

in 2021. (Xinhua)

Kenya commits to new World Athletics' anti-doping program

Cristiano Ronaldo, stuck on 99 goals,

doubtful for UEFA Nations League matchPORTO, Sep 4: Cristiano Ronaldo may have to wait a few

days longer before he can attempt to score his 100th Portu-

gal goal after a toe infection made him doubtful for

Saturday’s Nations League match at home to Croatia.

Ronaldo, Portugal’s all-time leading scorer and most

capped player, has been stuck on 99 goals for 10 months

since scoring in the 2-0 win away to Luxembourg in its last

international.

“I have a few doubts as to whether he will be fit,” coach

Fernando Santos told reporters.

“Cristiano trained very well on Monday and Tuesday

but on Wednesday, he had this pain in his toe.

“It looked a bit like a bee sting but it turned out to be an

infection. It has been treated with antibiotics and seems to

be back to normal but we still have to evaluate it.”

There have been no international matches played in Eu-

rope since last November due to the coronavirus pandemic,

which forced the postponement of Euro 2020 until next

year.

Ronaldo, 35, is bidding to become only the second player

to score 100 goals at international level after Iran’s Ali Daei.

Portugal’s following match is away to Sweden on Tues-

day.

KOLKATA, Sep 4: He has

big shoes to fill but Hydera-

bad FC's new coach Manuel

Marquez is ready to take the

challenge head on and feels

the pressure to perform can

bring out the best in him and

his side when they take the

field in the upcoming season

of the Indian Super League

(ISL).

Former UD Las Palmas

coach Marquez was appoint-

ed in a hurry after Hydera-

bad's preparation for the sea-

son was disrupted by Albert

Roca's decision to vacate the

role of the head coach and

become FC Barcelona first

team's new fitness coach af-

ter he was offered the job by

the Catalan giants.

"When you arrive at a new

club, it's always a big respon-

sibility. We are used to tak-

ing over as the new head

coach two months before the

beginning of the Champion-

ship in Spain. In this case, it

is quite challenging too. But

I know what this project at

Hyderabad is exactly and so

we are prepared for the sea-

son," Marquez told media in

an interview on Friday.

The newbies of Indian

football finished rock-bot-

tom in their debut season

last time, managing only 10

points from 18 matches.

Since then, the team manage-

ment joined hands with Ger-

man football giants Borussia

Dortmund (BVB) last month

in a bid to strengthen their

academy structure as well as

guiding the club's coaches

on coaching education.

Asked if there will be pres-

sure on the 51-year-old re-

placing Roca who will now

be part of Barcelona first

team coaching staff and has

also tasted success in Indi-

an football, Marquez said "I

like the pressure. If you have

pressure, it means that you

are in for a great challenge

and I'm sure that our work

will be good. We'll put in a

lot of passion and we want

our fans to be proud of us.

For me, one of the key as-

pects is that all the people,

the fans, players, staff, and

the board have to go in the

same direction."

Roca guided Bengaluru FC

to a historic AFC Cup final

in 2016 and also helped the

ISL side reach the final of the

league.

At Hyderabad FC, Roca

handpicked the players be-

fore his switch to Barcelona.

"Yes, Albert chose the

players, but they are really

good players and all the

coaches want these kinds of

players in their team," said

Marquez who has worked

with a number of top La Liga

coaches, including current

CD Leganes manager Javier

Aguirre and former Barcelo-

na and Real Betis coach

Quique Setien.

"I know all the staff as well,

and Xavi (Gurri) the assis-

tant coach has been with the

team in the ISL last season.

For me, I will have to surely

adapt to India, the habits, the

players, etc. But this is the

same that happens in every

team even in Spain.

"When you look at it, it's

not the same to train in Es-

panyol (Barcelona) and then

in Las Palmas (Canary Is-

lands) or even in Croatia. I

am sure that we will enjoy

this experience and the sea-

son will be very good. The

only thing that is different

this year and season is the

coronavirus pandemic, un-

fortunately. But this problem

is present in the entire world,

not only in India and we have

to learn to co-exist with it."

Marquez further said ISL

is very popular in Spain.

"Firstly, I want to say that

ISL is very famous in my

country. There are a lot of

Spanish players in ISL and

in the I-League too. I am a

part of it now. It means that I

am a professional and I have

to know the maximum things

about the teams, their play-

ers, the facilities, the stadi-

ums, and I am happy because

the club is helping me in all

the ways." (Agency)

ISL: New Hyderabad FC coach Marquez

ready to thrive under pressure

NEW DELHI, Sep 4: After

three Indian wrestlers

tested positive for

coronavirus at the Sports

Authority of India (SAI)

centre in Sonepat, the Wres-

tling Federation of India

(WFI) is facing growing calls

to postpone the men's na-

tional camp. Some grapplers

in quarantine in Sonepat --

have expressed concern and

said that to start the camp

soon could "backfire".

Speaking to media, a se-

nior wrestler, on the condi-

tion of anonymity, said that

the federation must speak to

the SAI and postpone the

camp immediately.

"They put us at risk. Why

is everybody going so mad

about starting the camp so

early? What is the hurry?

Which tournament we are

playing this year? This (na-

tional camp) is going to back-

fire. Better postpone it imme-

diately," said the wrestler.

Another wrestler said that

the athletes present in

Sonepat are giving excuses

to leave the camp. "Wrestlers

have started giving personal

reasons to leave the camp.

Some said their mother is not

well and some have given

other reasons. Nobody

wants to take any chance

with life," he said.

On Thursday, three wres-

tlers - Deepak Punia (86kg),

Navin (65kg) and Krishan

(125kg) - tested positive for

Covid-19 in Sonepat, where

they were in a 14-day quar-

antine ahead of a national

camp, raising doubts about

the start of the training on

September 15.

But the federation insisted

that the development

wouldn't have a negative

impact on the national camp.

According to a source, eight

men wrestlers have reached

the venue so far and they all

are inside their rooms, serv-

ing the mandatory 14-day

quarantine period.

Speaking to media, World

championship silver medal-

list Deepak said he under-

went a second test on

Thursday. "I gave the test

again last evening. Till date,

I have no symptoms. I am

perfectly all right," he said.

"I would request all the

people who came in contact

with me, last week or so, to

get checked or isolate them-

selves."

The WFI had earlier post-

poned the women's camp af-

ter many wrestlers, including

star grappler Vinesh Phogat,

refused to join it. (Agency)

Postpone the men's camptoo, wrestlers urge WFI

Owned and Published by Nanni Dai from Echo of Arunachal, T.T. Marg, Opp. SBI, Itanagar - 791 111, Arunachal Pradesh. Printed by Tashi Khandu at Gourichen Graphics, Industrial Estate, Papum Pare District,

Naharlagun - 791 110, Arunachal Pradesh. Editor: Nanni Dai, Associate Editor: Tapan Kr. Das. E-mail: echoofarunachal@gmail.com, Phone 2212969 (Advt), Fax -2211227.

Echo of Arunachal, SATURDAY,,,,, SEPTEMBER 5, 2020

Serena Williams, Kenin into US Open third roundSumit Nagal exits after losing to Dominic Thiem in 2nd round

NEW YORK CITY, Sep 4:

American star Serena Will-

iams and Australian Open

champion Sofia Kenin both

advanced into the third

round of the US Open after

making light work of their

respective opponents.

Williams defeated Russia's

Margarita Gasparyan 6-2, 6-

4 while Kenin needed an

hour and 22 minutes to ma-

neuver past Canadian

youngster Leylah Fernan-

dez 6-4, 6-3 on Thursday.

The 38-year-old Williams

closed out the first set with

ease but had trouble in the

second when she was bro-

ken twice by Gasparyan.

"I feel like every day I'm

on a new journey, and in this

tournament in particular and

this year," Williams said. "So

I feel really good. I feel like

I'm on that journey and I'm

going in the right direction."

The six-time US Open

champion will next face com-

patriot and 2017 champion

Sloane Stephens.

Kenin, who won her first

Grand Slam title at this year's

Australian Open, did not

face a break point in her

match against 17-year-old

Fernandez before nailing her

convincing win.

The win puts Kenin into

the third round at the US

Open for the fourth year in a

row. The American has come

up short against top players

like Maria Sharapova (2017),

Karolina Pliskova (2018) and

Madison Keys (2019) at this

stage in the past.

This year, world number

four Kenin counts herself

among the top players, but the

challenge won't get any easi-

er as Tunisia's Ons Jabeur, one

of the most in-form players of

2020, awaits in the next round.

Elsewhere, Belarus' fifth

seed Aryna Sabalenka lost to

compatriot Victoria Azarenka

6-1, 6-3, ninth seed Johanna

Konta of Britain was stunned

by Romania's Sorana Cirstea

2-6, 7-6 (5), 6-4 and tenth seed

Garbine Muguruza from

Spain lost to Bulgaria's Tsvet-

ana Pironkova 7-5, 6-3.

In men's draw, second seed

Dominic Thiem of Austria

celebrated his 27th birthday

by notching a comfortable 6-

3, 6-3, 6-2 second-round vic-

tory over India's Sumit Nagal.

"I was playing well today,"

said Thiem. "I had a good

plan for the match. He's very

dangerous when he can dic-

tate with his forehand. I was

exactly trying to avoid that.

He also has very, very fast

legs. I was trying to play my

fastest tennis to keep him on

the backhand, to not let him

dictate with the forehand."

The Austrian will now

challenge 2014 champion

Marin Cilic of Croatia in third

round. Thiem has a 2-0 lead

in their head-to-head series.

"He's one of the big cham-

pions of the last decade, one

of the very few active play-

ers, who won a Grand Slam

tournament here in New

York," Thiem said of Cilic.

"Even though he's not on the

top of his game, he's always

dangerous for a deep run in

these big tournaments. He's

not a guy I want to face in

the third round as he's a

former champion. On a good

day, he can beat anybody."

Third seed and last year's

runner-up Daniil Medvedev

of Russia and sixth seed

Matteo Berrettini of Italy also

made it to the third round.

In the women's doubles,

Xu Yifan from China and

America's Nicole Melichar

reached the second round

after edging past their oppo-

nents in straight sets.

India's top-ranked men's

singles tennis player Sumit

Nagal's US Open 2020 cam-

paign came to an end in the

2nd round after he lost to

World No 3 and 2nd seed

Dominic Thiem.

Nagal went down 3-6, 3-6,

2-6 to Thiem, who celebrat-

ed his 27th birthday with a

commanding performance in

the second round at the

Athur Ashe stadium on

Thursday.

The Indian player, who had

become the 1st Indian men's

singles player to win a Grand

Slam main draw match in 7

years on Tuesday, showed

some glimpses of promise,

but couldn't capitalise on that

as Thiem wrapped up the

match with ease.

"I was playing well today.

I had a good plan for the

match. He's very dangerous

when he can dictate with his

forehand. I was trying to

avoid that. He also has very,

very fast legs,' said Thiem

after the match.

'I was trying to play my

fastest tennis to keep him on

the backhand, to not let him

dictate with the forehand. I

did that very well today," he

added.

The Austrian will now

challenge 2014 champion

Marin Cilic of Croatia in the

third round. (Agency)

DUBAI, Sep 4: All Chennai

Super Kings players, except

for the COVID-19 afflicted

duo of Deepak Chahar and

Ruturaj Gaikwad, have test-

ed negative for Covid-19

once again and will finally

start training from Friday.

The coronavirus-free play-

ers were made to undergo

two additional tests after 13

cases were confirmed last

week in the CSK camp, de-

laying the team's training.

"All those who had tested

negative, including support

staff, previously have tested

negative again. We (CSK) will

start practice today," Super

Kings' CEO Kasi Viswanathan

told ESPNcricinfo.

Deepak and Ruturaj, along

with 11 staff members of the

contingent, who tested pos-

itive last week are in the midst

of their 14-day isolation in

another hotel.

The two infected players

will be undergoing two tests

after completing their 14-day

quarantine. They need to re-

turn with two negative tests

IPL 2020: CSK's coronavirus-free players to start training after extended quarantine

before being allowed to train.

Chennai Super Kings, who

had arrived in UAE on Au-

gust 21, are the only team

who have not begun train-

ing for the IPL 2020.

The 13th edition of IPL was

shifted out of India due to the

COVID-19 pandemic and will

be played from September 19

to November 10 across 3 cit-

ies in the UAE - Sharjah, Abu

Dhabi and Dubai.

However, BCCI hasn't an-

nounced the fixtures for the

tournament till now. (UNI)

BENGALURU, Sep 4: Indiamen's hockey player HardikSingh has said that he is look-ing to become a much moreevolved player and is deter-mined to book a place in theIndian team for the Olympics.

Hardik has played only 37matches for the senior Indi-an team. He played an impor-tant role in the gold medal-winning campaign at the FIHMen's Series Finals 2019 andwas also part of the Indianteam which defeated Russiain the FIH Hockey OlympicQualifiers last year.

"The days leading up tothe Olympics is going to bevery crucial for all of us. I amvery happy about the factthat I could perform for theteam at the FIH HockeyOlympic Qualifiers, howev-er, I am very determined tobecome a much moreevolved player and becomea regular member in the Indi-an team for the Olympics, '

Determined to book place in Indian Olympic

team, says hockey midfielder Hardikthe midfielder said.

'I have been working onmy game in whatever capac-ity I can in the last fewmonths and I am sure thatmy hard work will pay off oneday," he added.

The journey for 21-year-old hasn't been easy. Themidfielder from Khusropurvillage near Jalandhar inPunjab was on the verge ofgiving up his dream of play-ing for India in 2017.

"I went from the sub-jun-ior level to the senior level ata good pace after I joined theMohali Hockey Academy asa 14-year-old. However, aftera few years, I found myself ina situation where I lost confi-dence about being a regularplayer in the Indian squad.

I thought about going to theNetherlands in 2017 to playclub hockey there. But thenmy uncle Jugraj Singh con-vinced me that I should con-tinue working hard and I will

be a regular player in the Indi-an squad. Thankfully, I stayedback and I have been lucky toplay in big tournaments likethe Hockey Men's World Cupin 2018," said Hardik.

The India player alsomentioned that he finds him-self in a very fortunate situ-ation to be playing alongsideIndian men's hockey teamcaptain Manpreet Singh inthe midfield region.

"We have some wonderfulplayers in the midfield whoensure that the communica-tion between the forwards andthe defenders are intact. Weare the bridge between theforwards and defenders and Iam very fortunate to be play-ing alongside someone likeManpreet Singh, who giveseverything he has in any matchhe plays for India,' he said.

'He covers the entire groundbrilliantly and I hope I can beas good as him in the upcom-ing years,' he added. (UNI)

CHENNAI, Sep 4: Chennai

Super Kings (CSK) off-spin-

ner Harbhajan Singh on Fri-

day pulled out of the Indian

Premier League (IPL) 2020

citing personal reasons.

'Dear Friends I will not be

playing IPL this year due to

personal reasons. These are

difficult times and I would

expect some privacy as I

spend time with my family.

@ChennaiIPL CSK manage-

ment has been extremely

supportive and I wish them

a great IPL Stay safe and Jai

Hind,' Harbhajan tweeted.

Tagging his twet, CSK

CEO K S Viswanathan,

posted in the official twitter

handle of the franchisee and

said Team CSK was support-

ive of his decision and

stands by him and his family

during these testing times.

Viswanathan said

'Harbhajan Singh informed

us he won’t be available due

to personal reasons. Team

Chennai Super Kings is sup-

portive of his decision and

stands by him and his family

during these testing times.'

The CSK also wrote 'Stay

strong Pulavarey, will miss

you in yellove!.

After Raina, Harbhajan pulls out of IPL-2020, citing personal reasons

Earlier, vice-captain and

south paw Suresh Raina

pulled out of the IPL also cit-

ing personal reasons and re-

turned home soon after the

team landed in Dubai. (UNI)

ISLAMABAD, Sep 4:

Former Pakistan captains

Shahid Afridi and Sarfaraz

Ahmed will play for Galle

Gladiators, in the inaugural

edition of Lanka Premier

League (LPL), Sri Lanka's

franchise-based T20 league.

The 40-year-old Afridi,

who has been also named as

the icon player of Galle Gladi-

LPL: Shahid Afridi, Sarfaraz Ahmed to play for Galle Gladiatorsators, took to social media to

make the announcement.

''Proud to be the icon player

for Galle Gladiators. I want to

thank Nadeem Omar bhai and

also congratulate him for be-

ing the first franchise owner

from Pakistan in the #LPL. I’ll

be seeing you all in,” tweeted

Afridi, who last played a T20

event for Multan Sultans in

the PSL this year.

Initially, the LPL was

scheduled to take place be-

tween August 28 to Septem-

ber 20, but was postponed

due to the continuously

evolving Covid-19 situation

in Sri Lanka.

Now, the inaugural event

is scheduled to be held from

November 14 to December 6.

The 23 match League will

be played on the 3 interna-

tional venues of Rangiri

Dambulu International

Cricket Stadium, Pallekele

International Cricket Sta-

dium and Suriyawewa

Mahinda Rajapakse Interna-

tional Cricket Stadium.

Five sides named after the

cities of Colombo, Kandy,

Galle, Dambulla and Jaffna

will take part in the tourna-

ment. (UNI)

All ranks of Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP)’s North East Frontier Headquarters,

Itanagar took part in the 10-km ‘Fit India Freedom Run’ on Friday. Aimed to gener-

ate awareness among the masses for a fit India, the Fit India Freedom Run campaign

was launched on August 15 under the aegis of Ministry of Sports at all its border posts

and formations in the country. Photo courtesy - Twitter

ITBP organizes Fit India Freedom Run