79% vote in Tripura where LF faces challenge from BJP

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monday, february 19, 2018 Delhi

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SP announces

nominees for

LS by-elections

page 2

PM Modi unveils plaque

for Navi Mumbai

International Airport

page 11

Don’t test us, Netanyahu

warns Iran, brandishing

drone piece

page 14

Bhuvneshwar, Dhawan

help India take the lead

in the T20I series

page 17

EDGE A 4 PAGES

DELHI METRO A 4 PAGES

NEARBY

Nearly 79% polling was reported on Sunday in Tripura, where the BJP is trying todislodge the Left Frontwhich has enjoyed an unbroken 25 year stint in power.

The polling for 59 seats ofthe 60member Assemblywas peaceful, barring minorincidents, with thousands ofcentral paramilitary forcesdeployed across the northeastern State.

Voting delayedPolling in at least 20 centrescontinued till late in thenight as voting was delayeddue to faults in electronicvoting machines (EVMs).

Chief Electoral O�cer Sriram Taranikanti said therewere 191 replacements ofEVMs during the day. At 9.15

p.m., he informed the mediathat the turnout was estimated to be 78.56% and thismight go up after �nal evaluation of voting on Monday.

Two CPI(M) supporterswere injured in Golaghat inan alleged attack by suppor

ters of IPFT. In the Kadamtala area of North Tripura district, two people sustainedinjuries when paramilitarytroops resorted to batoncharge to disperse clashingsupporters of the BJP andthe CPI(M).

In a case of mistaken identity, Biswanath Saha, a candidate of the Forward Bloc,was injured when securitypersonnel beat him up.

79% vote in Tripura whereLF faces challenge from BJPPolling for 59 seats of the 60member Assembly held peacefully

Syed Sajjad Ali

Agartala

Awaiting their turn: Reang tribal women standing in queueto vote in Telaimura district on Sunday. * RITU RAJ KONWAR

Where is the scam in Rafaleprocurement when no suchdeal was signed in the UPAera, said Nirmala Sitharaman, Defence Minister, whoon Sunday sought to tear into the Opposition’s claims ofillegalities in the purchase of36 �ghter jets from theFrench company.

“I assure you there is nocontroversy. I (as a DefenceMinister who was appointedafter signing the deal) havenot walked into any controversy, because it is notthere... They [the Opposition] just want to create ascam to equate this scamfree government withtheirs,” she said, during theconversation with N. Ravi,Publisher, The Hindu, on thetopic, “In defence of therealm: How prepared is In

dia?” She said that duringthe three years of negotiations under the UPA government, the price quoted forthe jets was revised upwards, to up to 300% of theoriginal price.

“Bids were opened and

Rafale emerged as the frontrunner. But the UPA DefenceMinister then took the �lesback, when he had no business to do so.”

No scam in Rafale deal,says Nirmala SitharamanOpposition wants to manufacture one: Defence Minister

Mohit M. Rao

Bengaluru

In defence:Nirmala Sitharaman speaking at The Huddle inBengaluru on Sunday. * K. MURALI KUMAR

‘PM CAN’T BE BLAMED’ A PAGE 12

CHINESE WHISPERS A PAGE 12

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, his wife Sophie Gregoire and children pose for a photograph during their visit to the Taj Mahal in Agra on Sunday. Mr. Trudeau’s weeklong tour is aimed at boosting economic ties * AFP (REPORT ON PAGE 10)

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Romantic start

All 66 people on an Iranianpassenger plane were feareddead on Sunday after itcrashed into the country’sZagros mountains, withemergency services struggling to locate the wreckagein blizzard conditions.

Aseman Airlines �ightEP3704 disappeared fromradar 45 minutes after takeo� from Tehran’s Mehrabadairport, the airline’s publicrelations chief MohammadTabatabai told the statebroadcaster IRIB.

The ATR72 twinengineplane, in service for 25

years, left the capital around8 a.m. (0430 GMT) and washeading to Yasuj, some 500km to the south.

Con�icting reportsAfter con�icting reports onfatalities and the location ofthe crash, o�cials said rescue teams were still not able

to �nd the wreckage. “Westill have no access to thespot of the crash,” Mr. Tabatabai told ISNA news agency.The plane was carrying 60passengers, including achild, and six crewmembers.

66 ‘killed’ in Iran plane crashRescue teamsstruggle to locate wreckage

Agence France-Presse

Tehran

In shock: Relatives of passengers gather in front of a mosquenear Tehran's Mehrabad airport on Sunday. * AFP

HIT BY SANCTIONS A PAGE 14

Suspected militantsdetonated an improvisedexplosive device, killing aNationalist Congress Party(NCP) candidate in EastGaro Hills district ofMeghalaya. Uncon�rmedreports said two of hisbodyguards were also killed.The attack on Jonathone NSangma happened around7.50 p.m. A PAGE 11

Meghalaya NCPnominee killed

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CPI(M), BJP ‘CONFIDENT’ OF

VICTORY IN TRIPURA A PAGE 11

Four injured in southDelhi restaurant brawlNEW DELHI

Four people were injured

after a �ght broke out

between two groups of

youths at a restaurant in

south Delhi’s Mehrauli on

Saturday night.

The four injured were taken

to AIIMS Trauma Centre by

locals. The doctors told the

police that two were in a

critical condition and

admitted to the ICU. The

other two were reported to

be out of danger.

DELHI METRO A PAGE 1 DDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDD

After �ve years in jail,two acquitted of murderNEW DELHI

The Delhi High Court has

acquitted two persons of

murder, �ve years after they

were arrested, after noting

discrepancies in the report by

the investigating o�cer. A

Bench of Justice S.

Muralidhar and Justice I. S.

Mehta pointed out that the

report paid “extensive

reliance on the eyewitness’s

testimonies and did not pay

attention to the

corroborating evidence”.

DELHI METRO A PAGE 1 DDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDD

As protests triggered by theselfimmolation of a Dalit activist, Bhanu Vankar, 60, intensi�ed, the Gujarat policeon Sunday detained JigneshMevani, Dalit activist and Independent MLA, and Congress legislator Naushad Solanki while they were ontheir way to a protest rally inAhmedabad. More than 70people were detained aheadof the protest rally in the city.

Parts of north Gujaratand Saurashtra came to astandstill as hundreds ofprotesters blocked highways, while several vehicleswere torched to protestagainst the death of BhanuVankar.

RAF deployedThe State government deployed two teams of antiriot Rapid Action Force inAhmedabad and Gandhinagar where Vankar’s bodywas kept. On Sunday evening, his family agreed to takethe body for cremation.

The police said Mr. Mevani and others were taken into preventive custody tomaintain law and order.

However, Mr. Mevani alleged that the police pulledhim out of his car, broke hiscar keys and detained himon way to a protest venue inSarangpur, Ahmedabad.

Land allotment issueMr. Mevani and supportersof Vankar, who set himselfablaze in front of the Collec

tor’s o�ce in Patan, in protest against the delay in allotment of land to a Dalitfamily, had earlier called foran Ahmedabad bandh.

Vankar was part of Mr.Mevani’s Rashtriya Dalit Adhikar Manch and was �ghting for Hemaben Vankar, alandless Dalit farm labourer,who had alleged that authorities were not allotting aplot of land to her familydespite collecting �22,236 asfee in 2013.

According to Mr. Mevani,who has been demandingallotment of land to Dalits,up to 56,873 acres rightfullyallotted to Dalits on paperwas still in the government’spossession, or encroachedupon.

On Saturday, the Gujaratgovernment accepted thedemands of the familymembers of Vankar.

Angry Dalits heckled BJPlegislator Karsan Solankiwhen he rushed to meet thevictim’s family members atthe civil hospital.

Dalit activist’s death setso� protests in Gujarat

Over 70 people, including Mevani, detained

Mahesh Langa

Ahmedabad

A car set on �re inAhmedabad on Sunday inprotest against Dalit activistBhanu Vankar’s death. * AP

After billionaire diamondmerchant Nirav Modi,another defaulter VikramKothari, the promoter of Rotomac Pen, has also allegedly gone abroad after swin

dling �800 crore from publicsector banks such as Allahabad Bank, the Bank of Indiaand the Union Bank of India,sources said.

The Kanpurbased company’s owner had taken aloan of more than �800

crore from over �ve Stateowned banks. According tolocal media reports, the promoter said speculation of his�eeing the country isbaseless.

Press Trust of India

New Delhi

Rotomac owner �ees after �800 cr. bank fraud?

DETAILS ON A PAGE 10

�40.5 lakh seized inpollbound Bijepur BHUBANESWAR

The police in Odisha on

Saturday seized �40.5 lakh

that was being transported

by a car in the Bijepur

Assembly constituency

where byelection will be

held on February 24.

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downloaded from : www.visionias.net downloaded from : https://t.me/Material_For_Exam

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https://telegram.me/TheHindu_Zone

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https://telegram.me/Estore33

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A ND-NDE

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NOIDA/DELHI THE HINDU

MONDAY, FEBRUARY 19, 20182EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE

DELHI Timings

Monday, February 19

RISE 06:56 SET 18:14

RISE 09:04 SET 21:29

Tuesday, February 20

RISE 06:55 SET 18:15

RISE 09:41 SET 22:26

Wednesday, February 21

RISE 06:54 SET 18:15

RISE 10:18 SET 23:25

Published by N. Ravi at Kasturi Buildings, 859 & 860, Anna Salai, Chennai-600002 and Printed by S. Ramanujam at HT Media Ltd. Plot No. 8, Udyog Vihar, Greater Noida Distt. Gautam Budh Nagar, U.P. 201306, on behalf of KASTURI & SONS LTD., Chennai-600002. Editor: Mukund Padmanabhan (Responsible for selection of news under the PRB Act).

Regd. DL(ND)-11/6110/2006-07-08 l RNI No. TNENG/2012/49940 l ISSN 0971 - 751X l Vol. 8 l No. 42

Praveen Nishad will be the Samajwadi Party candidate forthe upcoming Gorakhpur bypoll while Nagendra PratapSingh Patel would contest thePhulpur Lok Sabha byelection, the Akhilesh Yadavledparty said on Sunday.

While Mr. Yadav himselfdeclared Mr. Nishad’s name,Mr. Patel’s candidature wasannounced hours later at ameeting of party o�cebearers. .

“Praveen Nishad is the sonof Sanjay Nishad, who is thepresident of the Nirbal IndianShoshit Hamara Aam Dal(NISHAD party). Praveen today also became the memberof the SP. From the PhulpurLok Sabha seat, NagendraPratap Singh Patel has beennamed as the SP’s candidate.

Mr. Patel has been a memberof the SP’s State executive,”SP secretary and spokesperson Rajendra Chaudhary said.

Earlier in the day, SP chiefMr. Yadav said Praveen Nishad would be his party’s candidate from Gorakhpur.

NISHAD chief Sanjay Nishad and Mohd Ayub (presidentof the Peace Party) had already announced their decisionto contest the bypoll alongwith the SP.

The Congress has alreadydeclared its candidates for

both the Gorakhpur and Phulpur seats which go to the pollson March 11.

Asked about the future ofthe CongressSP alliance asboth parties were contestingthe polls separately, Mr. Yadav said “Our main aim is todefeat communal forces.” Wewill appeal to the people ofGorakhpur to support thosewho �ghting for the truth, hesaid.

‘Evidences burnt’“Last year, hundreds of innocent children lost their livesdue to shortage of oxygen,but the government did nottake any step. Now even an incident of �re has been reported from the o�ce of the principal of the (BRD) college, andall important evidences havebeen burnt,” he alleged.

Mr. Yadav claimed that the

people were feeling “harassed owing to the lies of theBJP” and exuded con�dencethat his party would emergetrumps in the bypolls.

“We will take their electionmanifestos of the Lok Sabhaand Assembly polls to the people. We will hold discussionsto bring out the truth. Theyhad earlier confused the people with ‘chai pe charcha’,and now they are planning toconfuse with ‘pakoda’,” Mr.Yadav said, taking a dig.

“When I distributed laptops, BJP people said that allof them were given to Yadavsand Muslims. The expressway, Lucknow metro wasbuilt by us, but BJP termed usas those belonging to backward class. While they wonthe polls claiming to be forward...I don’t know how tospeak lies,” he alleged.

Nishad, Patel to be SP candidatesfor Gorakhpur, Phulpur LS seatsPeople feeling “harassed owing to the lies of the BJP”, claims Akhilesh


Lucknow

Samajwadi Party president Akhilesh Yadav �anked by NishadParty president Sanjay Nishad and Peace Party presidentMohammad Ayub (right) in Lucknow on Sunday. * RAJEEV BHATT

A big pull: A shopkeeper sells Turkish lampshades at the Surajkund Crafts Mela in Faridabad on the last day of the fair on Sunday. * PTI

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Turkish charm

Farmers in western UttarPradesh have been askednot to use the water of theHindon river for growingvegetables, which are alsosold in the National CapitalRegion markets, as it hasbeen found to be pollutedand contaminated by various o�cial laboratories.Several NGOs along withthe Meerut administrationhave been creating awareness among the local farmers.

According to Raman Tyagi, director of Neer Foundation, a nongovernmentalorganisation associatedwith cleaning water bodiesin western Uttar Pradesh,farmers living on the banksof the Hindon use pollutedand contaminated water ofthe river to grow vegetables.

Content of heavy metals “Several independent testshave shown that extremelyhigh content of heavy metals and compounds likemercury, lead, zinc, phosphate, sulphide, cadmium,iron, nickel and manganesehave been found in the river water. This makes the river water extremely dangerous to use for growingvegetables. But despite thata large number of farmersuse the river water due to avariety of reasons to growvegetables. That poses amajor health risks to people,” said Mr. Tyagi, who isalso a member of NirmalHindon Abhiyan, a cleaningdrive of the Hindon riverwhich �ows in areas surrounding Meerut.

The cleanliness initiativeof the river is led by PrabhatKumar, the Divisional Commissioner of Meerut.

Alternative sources “Hence, we are creatingawareness among farmersnot to use the river waterand instead use alternativesources of water. We are also in touch with the villageheads and local administration discussing ways to

come up with alternativesources of water. Severalmeetings have been organised for the purpose,” headded. Mr. Tyagi said farmers were being made awareof organic farming and itslongterm bene�ts both forthe grower and the consumer.

‘Intensive survey’Due to the extent of pollution in the Hindon, the Kaliand the Krishna, the rivers�owing in western UP, theNational Green Tribunal(NGT) in January had ordered that Central PollutionControl Board to do an “intensive survey” of these rivers and the 136 industrialbodies which are allegedlypolluting the rivers.

The order came in response to a petition �led byan NGO Doaba ParyavaranSamiti claiming that over 50people from villagesaround the rivers died ofcancer as a result of consuming contaminatedground water.

Cancer deathsDr. Chandraveer Singh, retired scientist from the Haryana Pollution ControlBoard and director of theNGO, claimed that the water of the three rivers havecontaminated the groundwater through seepage.While directing the CPCB tosubmit the report in twomonths, the NGT observedthat it was the fundamentalduty of the State government to look after thehealth and environment ofvillagers.

Farmers told notto use pollutedHindon water togrow vegetables Found contaminated by laboratories

Staff reporter

Meerut

The state of a�airs at theHindon canal in Ghaziabad.

* FILE PHOTO: V. SUDERSHAN

Myriad forms of classical dancein India will be on dispaly at afestival beginning in Khajurahofrom February 20.

The weeklong KhajurahoDance Festival at the templetown in Chhatarpur district isbeing organised by the culturedepartment of the Madhya Pradesh government.

The February 2026 festivalwill showcase classical dancesincluding Kathak, Odissi, Bharatnatyam, Kuchipudi, Kathakali and Mohiniattam to name afew, an o�cial said.

Spectacular backdrop“This festival of classical dancesand other forms of art is heldannually against the spectacular backdrop of the magni�centlylit Khajuraho temples inChhatarpur district,” said Manoj Shrivastava, Principal Secretary, Department of Culture.

This is 45th year of thisevent, he said.

Modern Indian contemporary dance forms were added inthe festival in the recent times.

During the festival, dancesare performed in an openairauditorium, usually in front ofthe Chitragupta Temple dedi

cated to the Sun God and theVishwanatha Temple dedicatedto Lord Shiva.

The temples at Khajuraho,built by the Chandela dynastybetween 950 AD and 1050 AD,are worldwide known for their

erotic sculptures.“This year, the Art Mart

(which is part of the festival)would showcase paintings of international artists from Germany, France and China amongother countries,” he added.

‘The Art Mart would showcase paintings of international artists’


Bhopal

Celebrating culture: Artistes performing during the Khajuraho Dance Festival in Madhya Pradesh.* FILE PHOTO: A. M. FARUQUI

Khajuraho Dance Festival begins tomorrow

In an attempt to strengthen theprimary agriculture cooperative societies (PACS) and boosttheir business, the Punjab government plans to transformthese societies into ‘cooperativerural hubs’.

Pointing out that there was aneed for strengthening thesesocieties in view of their thin

pro�ts, Additional Chief Secretary (Cooperation) D.P. Reddyhas asked the department to setup rural hubs in selected PACSsin a phased manner across theState.

Custom-hiring “Besides this, more ‘agricultural service centres’ should beestablished in the PACSs to provide agriculture implements on

customhiring basis required bythe farmers to cut their capitalexpenditures in purchase ofcostly tools,” he said.

Mr. Reddy directed the o�cers to draft a roadmap within aperiod of 15 days for setting upof rural hubs which could bemade functional from April thisyear.

“Around 30% PACSs were inloses and others running with

thin pro�ts. So it was the needof the hour to strengthen thesecooperative societies visavis toturn them into pro�t earningventures,” he said, adding thatin addition to their existing agribusinesses these village levelsocieties should be empoweredto sell quality products of essential commodities, electronicgoods and other items of dailyneeds in rural areas.

Punjab plans to set up cooperative rural hubsSPECIAL CORRESPONDENT

CHANDIGARH

Uttar Pradesh Governor Ram Naik on Sunday appointed ViceChancellors of four Stateuniversities.

Professor Kamleshwar Nath Singh (whowas the head of geology department at DeenDayal University, Gorakhpur) has beenmade appointed the ViceChancellor of Uttar Pradesh Rajarshi Tandon Open University, Allahabad. ,s

Professor Narendra Bahadur Singh was

made the ViceChancellor of Harcourt ButlerTechnical University, Kanpur.

Professor Neelima Gupta (head of department of zoology at Mahatma Jyotibha PhuleRohilkhand University, Bareilly) was madethe ViceChancellor of Chatrapati ShahujiMaharaj University, Kanpur.

Former deputy director general of IndianCouncil of Agriculture Research (ICAR), NewDelhi, Professor J.S. Sandhu was appointedViceChancellor of Narendra Dev Universityof Agriculture and Technolgy, Faizabad.

UP Governor appoints four V-CsPress Trust of India

Lucknow

A �38crore proposal forconstruction of a roadthrough interior Srinagaraimed at conserving the DalLake has been submitted tothe Jammu and Kashmir government. “We have submitted a DPR at an estimated cost of �38 crore forconstruction of the WesternForeshore Road to the government,” an o�cial said.

New projectto protect Dal


Srinagar






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THE HINDU NOIDA/DELHI

MONDAY, FEBRUARY 19, 2018 3EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE

EAST

The Bargarh district policein Odisha on Saturday seized�40.5 lakh that was beingtransported by a car in theBijepur Assembly constituency where byelectionwill be held on February 24.

Following the seizure, awar of words broke out onSunday between the Biju Janata Dal and the BharatiyaJanata Party with both parties accusing each other oftrying to in�uence the voterswith the money.

A police party deployed ata checkpoint near the Mahulipali Square along PadampurBijepur road haddetected cash worth �40.5lakh from a car on Saturdayevening.

Subsequently, two persons, Om Prakash Agarwaland his son Akash Agarwalof Padampur area, were detained. Police sources saidthe fatherson duo were unable to give a satisfactoryanswer about the movementof the cash. It was suspectedthat the cash was meant fordistribution in Bijepur. Thepolice have already informed the State Election

Commission (SEC) about theseizure.

A delegation of BJP onSunday lodged a complaintwith the SEC, alleging that asum of �40 lakh, which wasseized from one Akash Agarwal, was to be used by theruling BJD in the Bijepur byelection. “We demand immediate arrest of the political leader on behalf of whichthe businessman was transporting huge cash for the

ruling party for the Bijepurbyelection,” said SajjanSharma, State BJPspokesperson.

Later, a BJD team led byMinister Surya Narayan Patro also approached the SEC.

“As ascertained, the money was to be distributedamong the electorates of Bijepur to vote for the BJP,which is a blatant violationof model code of conduct.Om Prakash Agarwal, who

was detained, is an activemember of the Vishwa Hindu Parishad,” Mr. Patroalleged.

The BJD demanded thatstringent action be takenagainst the culprit while investigation by the Enforcement Directorate and the Income Tax should also beinitiated. The VHP, however,said the father and son hadno association with the organisation.

�40.5 lakh seized from car inpollbound Bijepur, 2 held BJD, BJP accuse each other of trying to in�uence voters with the money

Staff Reporter

BHUBANESWAR

Protest lodged: A BJP delegation submitting a complaint to the State Election Commissionwith regard to the seizure of �40.50 lakh in Bargarh district on Sunday. * BISWARANJAN ROUT

A postgraduate student waskilled and four, includingthree of his classmates,were injured when a cabcarrying them crashed intothe median divider of a�yover here on Sundaymorning, the police said.

The students were ontheir way to a nationalleveleligibility test for a PhD programme at New Town fromtheir hostel at the Indian Institute of Engineering

Science and Technology(IIEST) campus in Shibpur.

The car rammed the median divider after descending from the Maa �yover onto the Eastern Metropolitanbypass, injuring the fourstudents and the driver ofthe vehicle, the police said.

While Sayantan Biswasdied after being taken to ahospital, the four others areunder treatment, an o�cerinvestigating the accidentsaid, adding that the causeof the crash was being

probed.Describing the four stu

dents as very talented andwellbehaved, IIEST director Ajoy Roy told PTI thatSayantan was the son of achild specialist doctor fromKrishnagar in Nadiadistrict.

“The four are students ofMSc (Physics). They weregoing to New Town to appear for the Joint EntranceScreening Test ( JEST) whenthey met with the accident,” Mr. Roy said.

Student killed, 4 injured as cab rams road divider Press trust of india

Kolkata

Three persons involved inthe gang rape of a minor girlof Class X in 2015 wereawarded 20 years imprisonment by a Special Judge,Protection of Children fromSexual O�ences (POCSO)court of Phulbani in Kandhamal district in Odisha, on

Saturday.The court also imposed a

�ne of �22,000 on each ofthe convicts. In case theyfail to deposit the �ne, theywould have to undergoanther four years of imprisonment.

The three convicts areChittaranjan Kanhar, Prabhat Kanhar and Rajiblochan

Kanhar.According to special pu

blic prosecutor, Asim Kumar Praharaj, the gangrapeincident took place on June12, 2015, night near Khajuripada. The three accusedhad kidnapped the minorvictim while she was returning home after attending amarriage feast. She had

been gangraped at a deserted spot near the village forseveral hours.

Later, the victim’s mother had �led a complaint atthe Khajuripada police station. Based on testimoniesof 10 witnesses, circumstantial evidences and medicalreports, the court convictedall the three accused.

Staff Reporter

BERHAMPUR

Three get 20 years’ jail for gang rape

The agitating teachers ofschools and colleges in Odisha on Sunday announcedsuspension of their weeklong strike till March 9 afterthe government assuredthem to ful�l six of their seven demands. After a meeting with two Education Ministers, the teachers put onhold the strike till March 9in view of the examinations,School College Teachersand Employees United Forum convener Prakash Mohanty said.

Teacherssuspend stir

Press trust of india

Bhubaneswar






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SOUTH

One killed, youth injuredin Kuppam bull race CHITTOOR

A 60yearold man,

Muneppa, was killed and a

youth from Tamil Nadu,

Suresh, critically injured in a

bull race organised in

Kuppam on Sunday. The

incident took place in

Chintamakula Palle village of

V. Kota mandal.

IN BRIEF

The ruling Congress in Karnataka on Sunday expelledMohammed Nalapad Haris,youth wing general secretary in Bengaluru and son ofMLA N.A. Haris on thecharge of brutally punchingand kicking an injured patron at a city restaurant.

As many as �ve personshave been detained, but Mr.Mohammed is absconding.

The incident took a political turn with the BJP andother parties staging protests on Sunday, demandinghis arrest and accusing theCongress of sheltering him.

Later in the day, HomeMinister R. Ramalinga Reddy visited the victim, Vidvat,at Mallya Hospital in the city. Mr. Reddy said he had instructed the police to arrestthe accused by Sunday

evening or face suspension.However, at the time of going to press, the police wereyet to arrest him.

The incident took placearound 11 p.m. on Saturdayat a popular restaurant inUB City Mall, where Mr. Vidvat, 24, was having dinnerwith his friend, Praveen.

As his leg was cast in plaster owing to a recent injury,

he had stretched it, to whichMr. Mohammed allegedlytook objection. According toeyewitness accounts, as Mr.Mohammed walked past Mr.Vidvat, he asked him to sitproperly.

After Mr. Vidvat repliedthat he was unable to do sobecause of his injury, the situation escalated. Mr. Mohammed and his friends al

legedly surrounded Mr.Vidvat and punched andkicked him repeatedly.

According to police o�cers, at least 10 persons, ledby Mr. Mohammed, alsobarged into the hospitalwhere he was admitted.

Damage control exerciseThe attack has come justahead of the Assembly elections and put the rulingCongress in an embarrassing position.

The party top bosses began damage control exercise by expelling Mr. Mohammed from the party forsix years.

Chief Minister Siddaramaiah took to Twitter to tellthe people that the Bengaluru Police Commissionerwould take action as per thelaw and bring the guilty tobook.

MLA’s son accused of beatingup injured man in Bengaluru Congress expels youth wing leader Mohammed Nalapad Haris for six years

Special Correspondent

Bengaluru

Mohammed Nalapad Haris Vidvat

The State government islikely to get the ReserveBank of India’s (RBI) goahead for the formation ofthe Kerala CooperativeBank by this monthend.

Sources privy to the developments told The Hin-

du that as things stoodnow, the government hadcrossed almost all majorhurdles in setting up thebank and the most signi�cant among them was apositive recommendationof the National Bank forAgriculture and Rural Development (NABARD) tothe RBI for granting inprinciple clearance for thegovernment’s proposal.

The NABARD is learnt tohave forwarded a positivereport to the RBI and nowthe report is being processed for according theapproval that will help toexpedite the process bythis month end. Recommendation of NABARD isthe primary level clearancefor merging the 14 districtcooperative banks with theKerala State CooperativeBank, sources said.

Morale boosterThe RBI had approved a similar merger proposal ofthe Jharkhand State Cooperative Bank with the sevendistrict central cooperativebanks in its purview lastyear.

That decision had comeas a morale booster to theState government and alsoinstilled the con�dencethat the RBI will not shelveits proposal too.

Once the RBI grants theinprinciple approval onthe basis of the recommendation of NABARD, itwould make the task easyfor the government to formthe new bank. It wouldhave a twotier systemcomprising about 3,825branches. All assets and liabilities of the district cooperative banks will be transferred to the new bank.

Nod forKerala banklikely soon

N.J. Nair

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM

A roundtable organised bythe Andhra Pradesh Pratyeka Hoda Sadhana Samithi onSunday resolved to urge allpolitical parties to extendtheir support to a nocon�dence motion against theNDA government.

The MPs would remaintainted unless they votedagainst the government.

The conference alsochalked out a series of programmes to mount pressureon the Central governmenton Special Category Status(SCS).

The roundtable urged thepolitical parties to wage aunited struggle to expose the‘dramas’ being enacted bythe Telugu Desam Party andthe Bharatiya Janata Party .

The political parties, in

cluding the CPI, the CPI(M),the Congress, the YSR Congress, the Samajwadi Party,the Lok Satta Party, the JanaSena Party, the Aam AadmiParty, the Indian Union ofMuslim League and the Navataram, took part in the deliberations chaired by Samithi president Chalasani

Srinivas. Pradesh CongressCommittee president N.Raghuveera Reddy stressedon corrective measures inthe Budget session that begins on March 5.

Attempts were beingmade to sidetrack the demand for the SCS.

The Congress was ready

to join hands with the TDP ifit came forward for it, hesaid.

‘Naidu deceiving people’YSR Congress leader andformer Minister Kolusu Parthasarathi said TDP nationalpresident and Chief MinisterN. Chandrababu Naidu wasdeceiving the people sayinginjustice was done to AP allthese years.

Former Minister and Uttarandhra Charcha Vedikaconvener Konatala Ramakrishna said the agitationshould be highspirited andcompel the Centre to bowdown to public sentiments.

CPI(M) State secretary P.Madhu said Mr. Naidu was also to blame for the injustice.He readily accepted the special package in lieu of theSCS.

United struggle in A.P. to ‘expose TDP, BJP’

Convention of parties resolves to support notrust move against Modi govt.

Coming together: Leaders of political parties at a roundtableconference in Vijayawada on Sunday. * CH.VIJAYA BHASKAR

Staff Reporter

VIJAYAWADA

The grand anointing ceremony of Lord Bahubaliatop the Vindhyagiri hillshere drew a huge crowd onSunday. Thousands of people attended the grandspectacle.

The gallery was packedwell before the proceedingsbegan. The space designated for ‘kalasa’ holders wasfull as 1,008 ‘kalasas’ werescheduled for the ‘jalabhisheka’ (pouring of water).

The event began around8.30 a.m.

Compared to the eventson Saturday, the proceedings were smooth with nointervention of o�cers andpublic representatives.

Not Rahul GandhiAt one point, there wascommotion when a personon microphone announcedthat Congress president Rahul Gandhi had arrived totake part in the ceremony.Journalists and photographers had a shock as therewas no o�cial informationabout Mr. Gandhi’s visit.However, it turned out tobe a businessman, whosename also begins with Rahul.

Hundreds of devotees

gathered at the feet of the statue and allowed the waterpoured on the statue to fallon them too.

The hues of the statuechanged as milk, turmericpaste, sandalwood paste,rice �our and ‘ashtagandha’were poured.

The ceremony ended withthe o�ering of �owers to Bahubali, who renounced hiskingdom in pursuit ofspirituality.

Vain bidAt the end of the ceremony,Jain monks made a vain bidto garland the statue. Buttheir repeated attemptsfailed. Chain pulleys installed on the sca�olding toplace the garland did nothelp. While one end of thegarland was �tted, the otherend fell.

The event came to an endby 2.30 p.m. By then hundreds of people had gatheredat the gates to enter the hills.

Nagaraj, a resident of Halekote in Holenarasipur, saidhe had been waiting from 9a.m. to climb the hills. Hewas �nally allowed only at2.30 p.m.

“I have no problem inwaiting for this long. Thisevent is held only once in 12years,” he said.

Thousands throng

Shravanabelagola Grand anointing ceremony a big hit

Jam-packed: Thousands of people visitedShravanabelagola on Sunday. * PRAKASH HASSAN


Shravanabelagola

Coastal Karnataka is set towitness highvoltage political activities with BharatiyaJanata Party president AmitShah visiting Dakshina Kannada and Udupi districtsfrom Monday to Wednesdayand Congress president Rahul Gandhi in the �rst weekof March.

Stakes are high for boththe national parties in the region as Congress is keen onincreasing its strength, whilethe BJP is making every effort to regain lost ground.The parties appear keen onhighlighting who is morecommunal keeping aside thedevelopment agenda.

Mr. Shah will arrive in

Mangaluru on Monday evening and proceed to KukkeSubrahmanya Temple, before which he will attend aparty workers’ meet at Malavoor near Mangaluru International Airport.

On Tuesday, he will be inBantwal, the constituency ofMinister B. Ramanath Rai

which recently witnessedsporadic communal disturbances.

Fishermen conventionAfter visiting the familymembers of Deepak Rao,who was murdered in Surathkal on January 3, Mr.Shah will travel to Udupi toaddress a mega �shermenconvention the same evening after visiting Sri KrishnaMutt and Pejawar seers.

Meanwhile, Mr. Gandhiwill make a whirlwind tourof the coastal districts during March �rst week.

Roadshows, public meetings, visiting temples andother religious centres arescheduled during his visit,according to party sources.

Rahul to come in March for Assembly poll campaign


MANGALURU

Amit Shah

Shah to visit Dakshina Kannada,Udupi districts from today

Nawab Fazal Jah Bahadur,the last surviving son of theseventh Nizam, the last ruler of the erstwhile princelystate of Hyderabad, NawabMir Osman Ali Khan Bahadur, and late Leela BegumSahiba passed away hereon Sunday after a brief illness. He was 72.

He is survived by wifeSahabzadi DarwerunnisaBegum Sahiba and a son.

According to membersof the royal family, FazalJah Bahadur spent most ofhis time and money on improvements to the MasjideJudi Mosque building andchecking the daytoday affairs of the mosque, wherehis father is buried.

He was also a trustee ofthe H.E.H. Nizam ReligiousTrust.

‘Thorough gentleman’“He was a thorough gentleman and had a loving personality by nature, due towhich he was respected byall members of the Nizamfamily,” Nawab Najaf AliKhan, a grandson of the seventh Nizam and presidentof the Nizam Family Welfare Association, told The

Hindu, sharing the news ofthe royal family member’sdeath.

The mortal remains ofFazal Jah Bahadur were buried in MasjideJudi Mosque in King Koti.

SeventhNizam’s sonpasses away


HYDERABAD

Nawab Fazal Jah Bahadur

Another letter from AndhraPradesh goes to the Centreseeking funds. Besides theunful�lled bifurcation promises, the outstandingfunds related to the Mahatma Gandhi National RuralEmployment GuaranteeScheme (MGNREGS) hasbeen added to the list of receivables.

The State government hasbeen waiting for the Centre’sresponse for the past fewmonths for the MGNREGSwage bill, according to theRural Development, Panchayat Raj and InformationTechnology Minister NaraLokesh.

‘Hoping for the best’“It’s about �167 crore whichis due to be paid as wages tothe workers. The Chief Mi

nister has already written toUnion Minister for Rural Development Narendra SinghTomar. We are hoping forthe best,” Mr. Lokesh said.

The State government hasbeen writing numerous letters seeking funds promisedby the Centre as part of theAP Reorganisation Act forthe Polavaram project, theCentral institutions, the Dug

arajapatnam port, the steelfactory in Kadapa, the railway zone, the Special Category Status and bridging resource gap among others.

As per the targets set bythe State, over 16 crore mandays of work was expectedto be provided in the current�scal and it costs over�3,000 crore. Most of theprogrammes were plannedin the backward districts ofnorth coastal Andhra andRayalaseema which consume more than 60% of thefunds, as per the government.

After the new system ofdirect electronic transferfrom the Centre, the Stategovernment has done awaywith the practice of advancepayment. The State machinery is now sending reportson the work done and thewage amount.

A.P. awaiting �167 crore for MGNREGS wage bill‘16 crore mandays of work, costing �3,000 crore, this �scal’

Appaji Reddem

Vijayawada

Nara Lokesh.

It appears there was ‘noroom’ for Prime MinisterNarendra Modi at the iconicHotel Lalitha Mahal Palacein Mysuru.

When o�cialsapproached the hotel aheadof his visit on Sunday andMonday, they were told thatthe rooms had been bookedin advance for a marriage.

Mr. Modi will arrive inMysuru on Sunday nightand will proceed toShravanabelagola onMonday to participate in theMahamastakabhisheka. Hewill return to the city to

inaugurate the electri�edMysuruBengaluru doubleline railway track, amongother projects.

Security concerns“The rooms had beenbooked for the wedding inadvance. We could sparebarely three rooms for Mr.Modi’s stay. But, in view ofthe security concerns, theyneeded more rooms, whichwe were unable to provide,”said Joseph Mathias, generalmanager of the hotel.Meanwhile, the Stategovernment and the SpecialProtection Group, which isin charge of the PM’s

security, have now arrangedaccommodation for Mr.Modi at the upscale HotelRadisson Blu. However,there was a hitch.

A wedding reception hadbeen scheduled at the hotelon February 18 evening,which threatened tocoincide with the PrimeMinister’s arrival.

The invitees had to beinformed that the receptionhad been advanced to 12.30p.m. owing to ‘securityconcerns’ in anticipation ofthe Prime Minister’s arrival.The reception, however,concluded by evening, wellbefore Mr. Modi’s arrival.

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Finding a hotel room for PM isn’t easy either With rooms in Mysuru’s Lalitha Mahal Palace being booked, o�cials had to look for other options

A �le photo of Hotel Lalitha Mahal Palace.

Laiqh A. Khan

MYSURU

As talks fail, Kerala busowners to continue stir KOZHIKODE

Private bus operators have

decided to continue their

indefinite strike as their

demand to increase the

students’ travel fare was

rejected by the Kerala

government at a discussion

with Transport Minister A.K.

Saseendran here on Sunday.

Officebearers of the Private

Bus Operators’ Confederation

demanded �2 as the

minimum charge for students’

concession tickets.

Vivek Kumar named his 15acre sporting facility on Bengaluru’s outskirts after twoaccomplished athletes. ThePadukoneDravid Centre forSports Excellence that heopened is a kind of tribute tothem and is on the road toproducing more champions.

“I’ve known Prakash [Padukone] for a very long time;he is a special sportsperson.Rahul [Dravid] is my juniorfrom St. Joseph’s College ofCommerce. We knew eachother. I wanted both of themto have a special role in this[they are now advisers] ,”says Mr. Kumar, who haspromoted the venture.

16 badminton courtsWhen it formally opened inDecember, the �50 crore

Centre for Sports Excellence(CSE) located north of the city, about 20 minutes fromthe airport, boasted a fullsized football pitch, a 10laneOlympicsized swimmingpool, 16 badminton courts,squash, tennis and basketball courts, a cricket ground,indoor and outdoor nets,

and a stateoftheart sportsscience centre.

The Prakash PadukoneBadminton Academy (PPBA)has moved in, as has DolphinAquatics, run by veteranswimming coach NiharAmeen. The football �eld,now a year old, is used bymultiple academies and

hosted the National U13Youth League. The SportsAuthority of IndiaAbhinavBindra Targeting Performance Centre, a top rehabilitation, �tness and sportsscience facility, has a cryotherapy chamber. The AbhinavBindra Foundation Trust hasrentfree access for 10 years.

More champions The venture helps coacheswho don’t have the infrastructure. “For example,”says Mr. Kumar, “the PPBAused �ve courts between 10and 5 (on its old premises).I’m sure we could have produced more champions if wehad the courts from 6 a.m. to10 p.m.”

A threetime State men’sbadminton champion, Vivekcofounded the PPBA nearly25 years ago.

A sports city opens doors to champions of tomorrow�50 crore venture in Bengaluru is guided by Prakash Padukone and Rahul Dravid

Inviting talent: The football �eld at the PadukoneDravidCentre. * SHREEDUTTA CHIDANANDA

Shreedutta Chidananda

Bengaluru






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NATION

Two killed, five injured inroad accidentBHAWANIPATNA (ODISHA)

Two persons were killed and

five injured when their vehicle

overturned on National

Highway-26 near Khairmal

village in Kalahandi district,

the police said on Sunday. The

duo died on the spot and the

injured have been to the

Bhawanipatna government

hospital, the police said. PTI

Four killed, 1 injured aftertruck overturnsSIKAR

Four persons were killed and

another was injured on Sunday

when a boring truck

overturned in Neem Ka Thana,

the police said. The driver lost

balance while trying to avert

an accident with a two-

wheeler. The post-mortem

report is awaited, cops added.PTI

Man held with 5 kgcannabis in JammuJAMMU

A suspected drug peddler was

arrested with 5 kg of cannabis

here, the police said on

Sunday. A police team noticed

a person moving under

suspicious circumstances near

a mall on Saturday evening

and stopped him. During

frisking, 5 kg of ganja was

seized from him, the police

said. He was arrested and a

case registered against him at

Bahu Fort police station. PTI

Drug bust: Jharkhand police personnel destroying illegal opium cultivation in the dense forests of Khunti district on Sunday. * PTI

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Chopping down

Highvoltage electric trapsset by poachers to kill wildboars and other wild animals have become a majormenace in Ganjam districtof Odisha.

A cowherd Gadei Gouda(48) was killed on Saturdaynear Matajhari village in thedistrict when he accidentally came in contact with onesuch trap. The trap washooked up to an overheadhighvoltage power supplycables.

Villagers of Matijharihave demanded compensation from the forest department for family of the deceased. Using glass bottlesas insulators, poachers prepare this lethal trap thatconsists of a web of nakedwires.

This trap is illegally connected to the overhead 11kVpower supply cables thatpass through the junglesand outskirts of villages.

Cowherd killedby trap set upby poachers

Staff Reporter

BERHAMPUR

In a major initiative for wildlife protection, the forestguards in Assam were onSunday given modern weapons like selfloading ri�es(SLRs) and 9 MM pistols tocheck poaching of rhinos,tigers and other wildanimals.

‘First time in country’Chief Minister SarbanandaSonowal said for the �rsttime in the country, 10 wildlife fasttrack courts havebeen set up to exclusivelydeal with poaching and oth

er related crimes againstwild animals.

“We have put protectionof wildlife in high priority.Accordingly, we have todaylaunched a new programme

modernisation of arms andequipment for protection,rescue and rehabilitation ofrhinos, tigers and other wildlife,” he said.

According to the plan, for

est guards were given 954SLRs, 272 INSAS ri�es, 133 ri�es of .12 bore, 20 of 9 MMpistols and 91 Ghatak ri�es.

The Chief Minister said ever since the BJP came to power in Assam nearly two yearsago, 197 poachers have beenarrested and eight have beenkilled by security guards,while as many as 59 poachers have been convicted forcrimes against wildlife.

Mr. Sonowal said wildlifefasttrack courts have beenset up in 10 districts andsuch courts have been set upfor the �rst time in the country. “We hope that speedytrial and conviction of

poachers will go a long wayin protecting wildlife in theState,” he said.

Assam has �ve nationalparks and 19 wildlife sanctuaries. It is home to more than91% of Indian rhinos (2,431rhinos as per 2015 census). Itis also home to 167 tigers,248 leopards, 1,169 swampdeer besides a large numberof wild bu�aloes, di�erentvarieties of deer and otheranimals.

According to an estimatetabled in the Assembly thismonth, altogether 74 rhinoshave been killed by poacherssince 2015 and 316 poachersarrested during 201517.

Guards get modern weapons to �ght poachingAssam has �ve national parks and 19 wildlife sanctuaries and is home to 91% of Indian rhinos


Kaziranga

Grim statistics: As many as 74 rhinos have been killed bypoachers since 2015. * FILE PHOTO RITU RAJ KONWAR

Decision on Ambala MCretrograde: Cong.CHANDIGARH

Haryana Congress Legislature

Party leader Kiran Choudhry

on Sunday termed

“retrograde, regressive and

politically motivated”, the

State government’s decision

to abolish the Ambala

Municipal Corporation and

form two separate councils.PTI

IN BRIEFWeather WatchRainfall, temperature & air quality in select metros yesterday

Temperature Data: IMD, Pollution Data: CPCB, Map: Skymet (Taken at 17.00 Hrs)

Forecast for Monday: No weather warning.

city rain max min city rain max min

Agartala.................. -.... 30.0.... 14.0 Kozhikode ................ -.... 33.2.... 25.0

Ahmedabad............. -.... 32.8.... 14.4 Kurnool .................... -.... 35.7.... 19.2

Aizawl .................... -.... 29.5.... 10.0 Lucknow................... -.... 26.8.... 11.5

Allahabad ............... -.... 28.7.... 12.8 Madurai.................... -.... 34.4.... 21.2

Bengaluru ............... -.... 31.9.... 17.7 Mangaluru................ -.... 34.9.... 21.6

Bhopal.................... -.... 30.2.... 13.8 Mumbai.................... -.... 32.7.... 17.9

Bhubaneswar .......... -.... 33.1.... 16.9 Mysuru..................... -.... 31.7.... 14.4

Chandigarh ............. -.... 24.6...... 9.7 New Delhi ................ -.... 26.3.... 12.7

Chennai .................. -.... 31.0.... 21.8 Patna ....................... -.... 27.2.... 13.0

Coimbatore............. -.... 33.5.... 20.1 Port Blair ................. -.... 29.6.... 22.1

Dehradun................ -.... 24.0...... 9.7 Puducherry............... -.... 31.2.... 19.4

Gangtok.................. -.... 13.2...... 8.3 Pune ........................ -.... 33.8.... 13.7

Goa ........................ -.... 32.0.... 20.0 Raipur ...................... -.... 30.9.... 17.7

Guwahati ................ -.... 29.6.... 13.6 Ranchi...................... -.... 27.4.... 11.8

Hubballi.................. -.... 32.0.... 19.0 Shillong.................... -.... 18.5...... 5.0

Hyderabad .............. -.... 33.8.... 16.6 Shimla...................... -.... 15.1...... 5.3

Imphal.................... -.... 25.7...... 7.8 Srinagar ................... -.... 10.8...... 1.2

Jaipur ..................... -.... 29.7.... 13.6 Trivandrum .............. -.... 35.0.... 23.0

Kochi...................... -.... 32.4.... 24.0 Tiruchi ..................... -.... 33.5.... 22.0

Kohima................... -.... 20.0...... 8.4 Vijayawada ............... -.... 32.9.... 20.6

Kolkata................... -.... 29.8.... 18.5 Visakhapatnam .......... -.... 30.0.... 21.8

Pollutants in the air you are breathing Yesterday

CITIES SO2 NO2 COPM2.5PM10CODE

In observations made at4 p.m., Talcher recordedan air quality index (AQI)score of 350, indicatinghigh levels of pollutantsin the air. In contrast,Panchkula recorded a relativelyhealthy AQI score of 78.

Ahmedabad ..... ...-205..76 ..318 ......- ....*

Bengaluru ....... ..4..40..42 ....49 ......- ....*

Chennai........... ..7..13..42 ....93 ......- ....*

Delhi............... 24178104 ..271 .292 ....*

Hyderabad....... 22..52..33 ..109 .118 ....*

Kolkata ........... ...- ....- ....- ...... - ......-......-

Lucknow ......... ..4..40..42 ....49 ......- ....*

Mumbai........... 25..36..50 ....98 .123 ....*

Pune ............... 49..27..51 ....92 .116 ....*

Visakhapatnam 14....1..19 ..125 .108 ....*

Air Quality Code: * Poor * Moderate * Good (Readings indicate average AQI)

SO2: Sulphur Dioxide. Short-term exposure can harm the respiratory system,

making breathing difficult. It can affect visibility by reacting with other air

particles to form haze and stain culturally important objects such as statues

and monuments.

NO2: Nitrogen Dioxide. Aggravates respiratory illness, causes haze to form by

reacting with other air particles, causes acid rain, pollutes coastal waters.

CO: Carbon monoxide. High concentration in air reduces oxygen supply to

critical organs like the heart and brain. At very high levels, it can cause

dizziness, confusion, unconsciousness and even death.

PM2.5 & PM10: Particulate matter pollution can cause irritation of the eyes,

nose and throat, coughing, chest tightness and shortness of breath, reduced

lung function, irregular heartbeat, asthma attacks, heart attacks and

premature death in people with heart or lung disease






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NATION

10 million now followRajnath Singh on TwitterNEW DELHI

Home Minister Rajnath Singh

has become one of the top

five politicians in the country

whose Twitter followers have

crossed the 10 million mark.

Mr. Singh’s Twitter handle

@rajnathsingh crossed the 10

million followers mark on

Saturday night, a Home

Ministry official said. PTI

IN BRIEF

Job seekers protest atBihar railway stations PATNA

Thousands of youths on

Sunday staged violent

protests and indulged in

arson at three railway stations

in Bihar against reducing the

age limit for recruitment in

the Railways, leading to

services being disrupted for

some time, the police said.

The protests against the age

limit reduction for Group D

recruitment and reserving

most of the seats for ITI

holders in the Railways came

two days after hundreds

of unemployed youths

protested at the Ara

train station. IANS

Parrikar responding wellto treatment: hospitalPANAJI/MUMBAI

Goa Chief Minister Manohar

Parrikar, who is admitted

at the Lilavati Hospital in

Mumbai, is responding well to

treatment, the hospital said

on Sunday. Mr. Parrikar is

being treated at the hospital

since February 15 for a

pancreatic ailment.

“We reiterate that the Hon

Chief Minister of Goa is

being treated and is

responding well to the

treatment,” the statement by

hospital vice-president

Ajaykumar Pande said. Prime

Minister Narendra Modi met

Mr. Parrikar at the hospital on

Sunday. PTI

CIC defers hearing onplaint against 6 parties NEW DELHI

Chief Information

Commissioner R.K. Mathur

has postponed the hearing on

complaints against six

political parties for violating

the CIC’s 2013 order bringing

them under the ambit of the

RTI Act. The hearing was to

take place on Tuesday. PTI

A dam being constructed byMyanmar across a river closeto the boundary with Indiahas stoked fears of submergence and water scarcityamong border villagers inKengjoi subdivison of Manipur’s Chandel district.

Last week, residents ofKhangtung village reportedto district o�cials about thedam being built by Myanmarauthorities barely 100metres from the zero lineseparating the two countries. International ruleswarrant border countries tocheck activities in No Man’sLand – a 150metre strip oneither side of the boundaryline.

The dam, called Tuidimjang, is on the Twigem river�owing into Myanmar fromManipur. Khangtung, inhabited by the Thadou tribe, is

137 km south of Manipurcapital Imphal.

‘Fears genuine’“Local people have sentphotos and raised concern.The dam appears to be anew and small one, but thefear of the villagers is genuine. We are sending ateam next week to surveythe dam construction siteand get the coordinates. Areport will be made thisweek for sending to NewDelhi via the State government,” Chandel DeputyCommissioner K. Krishnatold The Hindu.

Houkholen Haokip, secretary of the Chandel unit ofthe Thadou Students’ Association (TSA), did not ruleout the possibility of Chinaassisting Myanmar in building the dam. “The topography of the area is such thatKhangtung and other Indian

villages will be submerged ifthe dam comes up. The villagers, dependent on the river, are already facing waterscarcity. E�orts to get intouch with o�cials and contractors in Myanmar havebeen in vain,” he said.

The TSA has written toManipur Chief Minister

Nongthombam Biren, requesting intervention.

“When the dam is completed, the entire Khangtungvillage will be inundated andthe villagers will face untoldmiseries and require relocation and rehabilitation. Thisproject will have huge negative social, cultural and eco

nomic impact on the residents of Khangtung andother Indian villages,” TSAsecretary general MichaelLamjathang Haokip said inthe letter to Mr. Biren.

Manipur has had issueswith internal dams too. InJune 2015, a tribal villagenamed Chadong in Ukhrul

The project sanction bythe Planning Commissionwas said to have inherent�aws, as a result of whichthe power component of1.5MW incorporated in theinitial design was scrappeddespite nearcompletion of apowerhouse.

Controversy has alsodogged Tipaimukh, the mega hydroelectric project proposed on river Barak in Manipur 35 years ago. Dhaka isagainst the project, as Barak�ows into Bangladesh fromManipur through southernAssam and feeds the Surmaand Kushiara rivers in thecountry.

At least three antidam organisations in Manipur anddownstream Assam havebeen protesting against theTipaimukh project to bebuilt by the National Hydroelectric Power CorporationLtd. Apart from largescalesubmergence, they fear ecological degradation, if thedam is built.

district was submerged bythe Mapithel dam on riverThoubal.

Construction of the Mapithel dam, initially knownas Thoubal MultipurposeProject that aimed to produce 7.5MW of power, irrigate 21,862 hectares of landand provide 10 million gallons of drinking water, began in 1989 amid protestsfrom people downstream.

Elders of Chadong villagehad inked an understandingwith the State government in1996 for an alternative settlement, but the 800odd villagers stayed put during thesubmergence 19 years lateras the government had failedto provide a proper relocation site.

The Khuga dam south ofManipur’s Churachandpurtown has hit turbulence too.Taken up in 1980, the project lay dormant until 2002leading to cost escalationfrom the initial �15 crore to�381.29 crore in 2009.

Myanmar dam on border worries Manipur villageStokes fears of submergence and waterscarcity; administration orders surveyRahul Karmakar

GUWAHATI

Nearly 10,000 lawyers ofthree lawyers’ association atthe Calcutta High Court willgo on a �vedaylong ceasework from Monday in protest against the severe shortage of judges at the court.

Instead of its strength of72 judges, the Calcutta HighCourt currently has only 29judges.

Three judges have retired

in February. More than 2lakh cases are pending before the court.

“We are left with nochoice but to go on a �vedaylong cease work fromMonday as the Centre hasfailed to take any action to�ll up the vacancies of judges at the Calcutta HighCourt,” Uttam Majumdar,president of the Bar Association of Calcutta High Court,said.

Lawyers to go on 5-daystrike at Calcutta HC Protest against shortage of judges

Staff Reporter

Kolkata

More than 40 languages ordialects in India are considered to be endangered andare believed to be headingtowards extinction as only afew thousand people speakthem, o�cials said.

According to a report ofthe Census Directorate,there are 22 scheduled languages and 100 nonsche

duled languages in the country, which are spoken by alarge number of people —one lakh or more.

However, there are 42 languages which are spoken byfewer than 10,000 people.These are considered endangered and may be headingtowards extinction, a HomeMinistry o�cial said.

UNESCO warningA list prepared by UNESCOalso mentioned the 42 languages or dialects that areendangered, and they maybe heading towards extinc

tion, the o�cial said. The languages or dialects

include 11 from Andamanand Nicobar Islands (GreatAndamanese, Jarawa, Lamongse, Luro, Muot, Onge,Pu, Sanenyo, Sentilese,Shompen and Takahanyilang), seven from Manipur(Aimol, Aka, Koiren, Lamgang, Langrong, Purum andTarao) and four from Himachal Pradesh (Baghati, Handuri, Pangvali andSirmaudi).

The other languages inthe endangered category areManda, Parji and Pengo (Od

isha), Koraga and Kuruba(Karnataka), Gadaba andNaiki (AP), Kota and Toda(Tamil Nadu), Mra and Na(Arunachal Pradesh), Tai Nora and Tai Rong (Assam),Bangani (Uttarakhand), Birhor ( Jharkhand), Nihali(Maharashtra), Ruga (Meghalaya) and Toto (West Bengal).

The Central Institute of Indian Languages, Mysore, hasbeen working for the protection and preservation of endangered languages in thecountry under a centralscheme, another o�cialsaid.

42 Indian languages stare at extinctionThey are spokenby fewer than10,000 people


New Delhi

Two security personnel anda civilian were killed and sixpolicemen injured when agroup of Maoists attacked aroad construction site inSukma district of Chhattis

garh on Sunday. The incident took place in the BhejjiElarmadagu area.

The Maoists also torchedseveral vehicles. Anotherencounter was reported inthe Errabore area of Sukma,in which a Maoist was killed.

Maoists kill three in Chhattisgarh Staff Reporter

NAGPUR

The bodies of the motherand the infant daughter of ajournalist were found on theoutskirts of Nagpur city onSunday, with the police suspecting murder.

Ravikant Kamble, a journalist working for a web portal in Nagpur, had informedthe Nagpur police on Saturday night that his motherUsha Kamble, 52, and 18monthold daughter Rashiwere missing since eveningfrom Pawanputra Nagar areaof Nagpur.

“My mother left home at5.30 pm yesterday. When wetried to contact her after anhour, her phone wasswitched o�,” Mr. Kambletold The Hindu.

The bodies were found

under a bridge on a streamnear Bahadura area. Mr.Kamble, a wellknown crimereporter in Nagpur, said thatthe assassin had slit thethroats of the victims.

“It does not appear to be acase of an attempted theftgone wrong or abduction forextortion. The gold ornaments of my mother and my

daughter were found intactwith their dead bodies. It appears to be a preplannedmurder after the abduction,” Mr.Kamble added.

One arrestedMeanwhile, the Nagpur citypolice claimed to havecracked the case by evening.

A press statement, issuedby the Deputy Commissioner of Police (Crime), informed that 26yearold Ganesh Sahu had been arrestedfor the murders.

“The accused had a bigquarrel with Usha Kambleon Saturday evening oversome monetary transactionswhich is why he killed heralong with her granddaughter,” the police press noteclaimed.

The Nagpur Union ofWorking Journalists condemned the brutal killingsand demanded that the mystery behind the case be unravelled as soon as possible.

Mother, infant daughter of scribe murdered in NagpurMonetarytransaction led to incident: police

Pavan Dahat

NAGPUR

Usha Kamble and Rashi.* SPECIAL ARRANGEMENT

A Supreme Court Benchsought a response from theapex court on a petition asking whether advocates’chambers situated in primespots within the SupremeCourt complex and at vantage positions across theroad from the court buildingare “heritable property” ofthe children of practising lawyers, senior advocates andjudges.

A Bench led by JusticeA.K. Sikri on February 16 issued notice to the top courton a writ petition �led by Supreme Court advocateonrecord Vishnu Shankar Jain,represented by advocate K.Parameshwar, challengingthe constitutional vires of

Rule 7B of Supreme CourtLawyers’ Chambers (Allotment and Occupancy) Rulesas amended in 2017.

As per the provision, incase an allottee advocate of aprized chamber dies, his orher child or spouse, if an advocate, inherits one half ofthe chamber.

The only criterion is forthe Allotment Committee to

check whether the child orspouse is indeed a lawyer ornot.

‘Overrides criteria’This practice continues despite the fact that the Supreme Court had issued anotice on October 30, lastyear, that chamber allotments would be based onthe minimum number of appearances of a prospectiveallottee, which would be are�ection of his or her volume of work. The court hadalso prescribed seniority.

“Rule 7B overrides boththese criteria and enables aspouse or daughter/son of anallottee to be entitled to allotment of a chamber (infact, retain the same chamber), irrespective of their seniority at the bar or numberof appearances,” the writ petition said.

The location of suchchambers is a natural profes

sional boost for lawyers,who occupy them, and theirclientele. The petition contended that Rule 7B “createsa personal heritable right ina public property/good,which leads to the concentration of material resourcesto the common detriment.”

It submitted that Rule 7Bwas unconstitutional primarily because it was “patentlydiscriminatory and violativeof Article 14 (fundamentalright to equality) of the Constitution as it is violative ofthe rule of seniority and minimum number of appearances that is prescribed forother advocates.”

“It violates the principleof level playing �eld for professional advocates who otherwise satisfy the relevantcriteria, thereby violatingtheir rights under Article 14and Article 19 (1)(g) of theConstitution of India,” thepetition said.

Are lawyers’ chambers inherited property, Bench asks top courtPetition challengesvalidity of anallotment rule

A Bench led by Justice A.K.Sikri on February 16 issuednotice to the top court.

Krishnadas Rajagopal

NEW DELHI






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EDITORIAL

Soham D. Bhaduri

Nearly 600 million people inIndia, mostly in the ruralareas, have little or no ac

cess to health care. A widespreaddisregard for norms, a perpetualfailure to reach targets, and an airof utter helplessness are whatmark the state of rural health caretoday. One can add to this anotherfact: the country is short of nearly�ve lakh doctors.

Among the range of measuresthat have been suggested in thepast decade is a rather promisingproposal which has been sidelined. If properly implemented, itmay provide rural India with a lasting pool of primary carephysicians.

The contoursA few years ago, the Union HealthMinistry drew �ak when it putforth a proposal to train a newcadre of health professionals. Under this plan, these professionals,after undergoing a short term, 33.5 year course in modern medicine, were to serve the health

needs of the rural population,with a focus on primary care.

Such shortterm courses aren’tnew in the Indian healthcare scenario. In the 1940s, primary carephysicians — who were trained under shortterm courses, andbroadly termed Licentiate MedicalPractitioners (LMPs) — would deliver quality services in the ruralsector until the Bhore Committee(1946) recommended abolishingthem in the idea that India wouldproduce enough MBBS doctors.

The committee made certainlaudable recommendations inconnection with the public healthsystem. Back then, however, nobody could have anticipated thecountry’s miserable failure inachieving most of the targets prescribed by the committee, evenyears after Independence. While apro�tdriven, private healthcaresector continued to denude thepublic health system of its quali�ed physicians, its medical education system kept losing touch withthe actual health needs of thecountry.

Starting a shortterm course inmodern medicine can provide anopportunity to design a medicalcurriculum that is much more relevant to the nation’s needs. Its entry requirements could be basedless on sheer merit and more onan aptitude for medical service

and preference should be given toapplicants from within the community. Further, a provision forlearning in the vernacular languages can be made.

Not quacksShortterm courses in modernmedicine have been consistentlyequated with producing “cheaplymade, poor quality doctors”. However, one begs to di�er with this.LMPs cannot be called quacks ifthey be adequately trained in their�eld (primary care) and have awellde�ned role in health care.The present MBBS curriculum includes a good amount of super�uous detail, including subjects suchas forensic medicine, that is of little relevance to primary care physicians. Here, we should also notethat even though nurse practitioners and pharmacist medical practitioners may be capable of servingthe same functions as LMPs, theycannot be expected to make up a

lasting pool of dedicated grassrootlevel physicians.

Another concern is that the rural population would be made tofeel like second class citizens byappointing a lower tier doctor totreat them. This can be put to restby not letting LMPs replace MBBSdoctors but instead work in a subordinate capacity.

A few changes in the publichealth system can be envisionedhere: LMPs be employed in subcentres where they perform bothclinical and administrative functions at the subcentre level. Thiswould also allow easier access toprimary and emergency care andkeep the post of medical o�cer forMBBS doctors, thereby deterringany competition between the twocadres of physicians.

Medical o�cers (MBBS) couldbe employed in primary healthcentres (PHC), and new recruitsimparted mandatory further training of a su�cient duration in basicclinical specialties. Also, inpatientfacilities at PHCs can be scaled up.PHCs should deal with cases referred to them by subcentre LMPsand also supervise their work.

Some spino�sThis has many advantages. WithLMPs working at the grassroot level, a single PHC would be able tohandle a bigger population, allow

ing for more resources to be concentrated on individual PHCs formanpower and infrastructure development and also for increasingthe remuneration of medicalo�cers.

Ancillary responsibilities can betaken o� an MBBS doctor andtheir skills put to better use. Quality emergency and inpatient attention can be made available at thePHClevel. Today, less than a handful of PHCs provide inpatient careof signi�cance. Concerns aboutthe clinical and administrative incompetence of fresh MBBS graduates appointed as bonded medical o�cers can be put to rest.

LMPs could be allowed to takeup a postgraduate course in primary care as an option to studyfurther. Those with a postgraduate quali�cation could choose tomove higher up in the publichealth system, establish their ownpractice, �nd positions in hospitals, or serve as faculty in medicalcolleges training LMPs.

Therefore, reviving LMPs canhelp address the dearth of trainedprimary care physicians in ruralIndia. The logistical entailments ofimplementing this idea would require separate deliberation.

Soham D. Bhaduri, a medical doctor

based in Mumbai, is the Editor-in-Chief of

‘The Indian Practitioner’

Doctors for rural IndiaInducting Licentiate Medical Practitioners may be the solution to the chronic shortage of doctors in rural areas

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more letters online:

www.hindu.com/opinion/letters/

As India’s salience in globalmatters grows — amply demonstrated recently by the

presence of 10 leaders from the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) at India’s RepublicDay celebrations, the visit of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to India, and Prime MinisterNarendra Modi’s latest forays tothe United Arab Emirates (UAE),Oman and Palestine — its leadersalso need to contemplate and re�ect deeply on what is happeningin India’s immediate neighbourhood.

In the vicinityFar more than East, SoutheastAsia, or West Asia, it is India’s immediate neighbourhood that directly impacts it geopolitically,geostrategically and geoeconomically. Whatever be the ambit of India’s reach elsewhere, India’s principal focus, hence, will need to beon this neighbourhood.

India can a�ord to live with demands such as the one made at therecently concluded ASEANIndiaCommemorative Summit, where itwas urged to play a proactive rolein the AsiaPaci�c region, withoutneeding to take hard decisions. Itpossibly also does not have toanswer questions as to whetherASEAN nations fully back India’smembership of the Quadrilateral(Australia, Japan, the United Statesand India), even as most of themback China’s Belt and Road Initiative. India can even a�ord to skirtthe issue as to whether ASEANIndia relations are all embracing innature or limited only to speci�caspects.

In West Asia, India still possesses enough leeway to engage in skilful manoeuvre around contentious issues without having to takea stand. India could, thus, successfully handle an Israeli Prime Minister’s visit to India just prior to Mr.Modi’s visit to Palestine, and yetavoid a negative fallout. It could al

so separate the technological“blush” of Mr. Netanyahu’s visitwithout having to take a clearstand on the issue of Jerusalem.Likewise, Mr. Modi, during his Palestine visit could conclude as many as six agreements and expressthe hope that Palestine wouldsoon emerge as a sovereign independent country in a peacefulmanner without having to speci�cally refer to a “united” and “viable” Palestine.

With the UAE and Oman, thingshave been easier. With the former,trade and economic ties as alsocounterterror aspects have beenon a growth curve. With the latter,an established friend, the optionof closer naval cooperation and ofreaching an agreement to give theIndian Navy access to Duqm portdid not prove di�cult.

It is in South Asia where troubles are mounting, where Indiacannot succeed without looking atsome hard options. For instance,how to deal with a new government in Nepal (comprising theLeft Alliance of the CPNUML ledby Oli and the CPNMaoist Centreled by Prachanda) with few pretensions as to where its sympathies lie. India also needs to nowcontemplate the prospect of prolonged unrest and possibly violence, both communal and terrorrelated, in neighbouring Bangladesh, prior to scheduled electionsin 2019. This follows the conviction by a special court in Dhaka ofBangladesh Nationalist Party leader and threetime Prime MinisterKhaleda Zia on corruption charges. Dealing with both Nepal andBangladesh will need more than�ne gestures; they will need farmore closer monitoring.

Troubled hotspotAnother and a more imminentchallenge for India is to sort outthe imbroglio in the Maldiveswhich is threatening to spill out ofcontrol. No amount of dissimulation will help. India cannot a�ordnot to be directly engaged in �nding a proper solution.

Relations between India and theMaldives have undergone signi�cant changes since the days offormer President Maumoon AbdulGayoom. After the Maldivian De

mocratic Party, headed by formerPresident Mohamed Nasheed,came to power, for the �rst timeantiIndian forces within the Maldives (including radical Islamistgroups sponsored by Pakistan andSaudi Arabia) could muster somesupport. It was also Mr. Nasheed’sinitial overtures to China that setthe stage for MaldivianChina relations. Under the current President, Abdulla Yameen AbdulGayoom, antiIndian tendencieshave steadily increased and therehas been a pronounced tilt in favour of China. The free tradeagreement that the Maldivessigned recently with China hasbeen the proverbial thin end of thewedge, providing China with anexcellent opportunity to enhanceits in�uence and retain de factopossession of the Southern Atollsin the Maldivian archipelago.

Straddling a strategic part of theWestern Indian Ocean, the Maldives today occupies a crucial position along the main shippinglanes in the Indian Ocean. TheSouthern Maldives has long remained an object of interest to themajor powers. With the U.S. takinga step back, China has begun todisplay a great deal of interest inthe area; this coincides with itscurrent outreach into the IndianOcean Region as also its ongoingplans to take control of Gwadarport (Pakistan) and establish a naval base in Djibouti in the Horn ofAfrica.

India cannot, hence, a�ord toremain idle and must come upwith an answer soon enough thatis consistent with its strategic interests. A muscular reaction wouldbe illadvised, despite the entreaties of Mr. Nasheed, as the international community is likely to reactadversely to any military adventure. China is, meanwhile, playing

its cards carefully, calling for“homegrown solutions” and“warning against any military intervention”. The critical need is to�nd a solution early — one thattakes into account India’s geostrategic and geopolitical interests inthe region. Else, it would have farreaching consequences as far asIndia’s quest for regional powerstatus is concerned.

Across the borderTwo other issues, viz., Pakistanand Afghanistan, similarly demand our focussed attention, andthat India acts with a sense of responsibility expected of a regionalsuperpower.

The virtual collapse of a Pakistan policy seems to a�ect Pakistanless and India more. The latter isfacing a daily haemorrhaging ofhuman lives due to cross border�ring and terrorist violence fromPakistan. In spite of its internalpolitical crisis, and U.S. PresidentDonald Trump’s fusillade threatening Pakistan with dire consequences if it failed to amend itsways, Pakistan shows no sign of altering its antiIndia trajectory. Democratic India can hardly a�ord toremain as blasé and let thingsslide, without e�ectively trying to�nd ways and means to change asituation which is certainly not toour advantage.

Equally vital for India is to tryand �nd a way out of the Afghanmorass. The daily massacre of innocents, men, women and children, civilian o�cials and militarypersonnel, experts from severalcountries and diplomats, marksthe start of the complete collapseof a system of governance.

Despite periodic optimistic forecasts of the Taliban being in retreat, terrorists under check, andthat the Afghan government is stillin charge, Afghanistan’s positiontoday is the worst ever since the1970s. This January, the capital city of Kabul witnessed one of theworst ever incidents of violenceanywhere, in which over 100 civilians were killed following a seriesof terror strikes. This happeneddespite the presence of foreigntroops, elements of the Afghanmilitary and also of the Afghanpolice. Notwithstanding the omni

present Pakistan hand in the violence in Afghanistan, this kind of“engineered chaos” over a prolonged period of time e�ectivelydemonstrates that the Afghanstate has virtually disintegrated.

The collapse of the Afghan statedoes have severe consequencesfor India and nations in the vicinity. As a regional power, India hassigni�cant stakes in Afghanistan.Apart from the human cost andthe fact that New Delhi has spentover $2 billion in providing humanitarian assistance to Afghanistan, India’s true stake lies in sustaining the future of the Afghanstate. Its “shrivelling” or “demise”and any premature end to the attempt to restore peace in Afghanistan will only revive memories ofthe worst days of the Afghan jihadin the 1980s and 1990s, and Indiahas every reason to feel concernedabout the fallout. Of no less consequence is the fact that if Afghanistan were to cease to exist, its civilisational links with India wouldalso evaporate. For a variety ofreasons, therefore, India cannotallow Afghanistan to collapse orcease to exist as a state in the modern sense. This is something thatdemands India’s critical attention,and specially for a display of itsleadership skills.

For all these reasons, and apartfrom those currently at the helmof a�airs in India, the leadershipsof parties and States across thespectrum must try and achieve aunanimity of purpose in regard toour foreign policy priorities. Today, the focus needs to be on ourimmediate neighbourhood. Theoutcome of the IsraelPalestinecon�ict, the turmoil in the Eastand South China Seas, or otherbigticket issues across the worldare important, but it is South Asiaand the neighbourhood that demands our concentrated attention. If India is not seen to be actively involved in ensuring that theregion is at peace and functions inconformity with its world view,any claims to leadership wouldamount to little more than treading water.

M.K. Narayanan is a former National

Security Adviser and a former Governor

of West Bengal

For India, it should be neighbourhood �rstWhile other geopolitical issues are important, New Delhi must give South Asia its fullest attention

M.K. Narayanan

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Bank scamWhatever happened to themuch heralded investitureof an autonomous BanksBoard Bureau (BBB) backon April 1, 2016 “with aview to improve thegovernance of public sectorbanks”? Its chairman,Vinod Rai, was alsosomeone who is highpro�le, a formerComptroller and AuditorGeneral who is said to havea “high reputation” andwas to put in place systemsand checks.The scam that has engulfedPunjab National Bankwould appear to stem fromlacunae in groundlevelaudit and internal alertmechanisms in public

banks. Clearly, an audit atthe secondary/tertiarylevels seems to beinadequate as we seem tohave netted not a few �shbut a whale of a scam. Thelitany of nonperformingassets should itself havemade institutions such asthe BBB and others burnthe midnight oil. Pedanticsmay run politics for a whilebut economics is a hardtask master, and retributioninstant.R. Narayanan,

Navi Mumbai

n If the BJP government nowin power got wind of thefraud, by all accounts quiteearly on in its rule, it shouldhave halted the fraud,

punished the guilty and evenexposed the Congress if ithad implicating material.Nothing of the kindhappened and the fraudcontinued to build up untillast week. The public did noteven have a whi� of the‘bomb that was to explode’.It now emerges thatsubstantial wrongdoing tookplace in the last two years.Under these circumstances,not having done anything isin itself tantamount tocomplicity. While thegovernment is no doubt keento unravel the possible roleof the Congress, it too mustbe open to scrutiny between201418. M. Balakrishnan,

Bengaluru

Cauvery verdictThough the Cauvery verdictis a slight dent in TamilNadu’s claim of its share ofwater, it is evident that theSupreme Court’s judgment is�nal. Farmers in Tamil Nadushould now look at this as anew beginning andconcentrate on cultivation ofpaddy by, henceforth,adopting the techniques oftheir Israeli counterpartswho use less water inagriculture. Frugal andintelligent use of water is theneed of the hour. Again onecan ask for help from Israel.Agriculture experts andscientists have a new role toplay. All is not lost. Bhavani Raman Iyer,

Coimbatore

studies while the wantondamage to the environmentis being denied ordownplayed by those inauthority or in business forthe sake of political orbusiness interests. Thedevelopment of Arti�cialIntelligence can be cited asan example as having a hugeimpact. Views on thesewould have been welcome. S. Raghavan,

Chennai

The ‘Huddle’Though The Hindu’s“Huddle” in Bengaluru had avery interesting lineup ofeminent speakers, it isdisappointing that experts inthe �elds of education,environment and scienceand technology were notlisted. These �elds have atremendous impact andcannot be regarded as ofonly academic interest. Thevery poor quality of schooleducation has beenhighlighted by various

LETTERS TO THE EDITOR Letters emailed to [email protected] must carry the full postal address and the full name or the name with initials.

Adding to the growing body of judicially inspired

electoral reforms, the Supreme Court has im

posed an additional disclosure norm for candi

dates contesting elections. It has asked the Centre to

amend the rules as well as the disclosure form �led by

candidates along with their nomination papers, to in

clude the sources of their income, and those of their

spouses and dependants. The court has also asked for

the establishment of a permanent mechanism to inves

tigate any unexplained or disproportionate increase in

the assets of legislators during their tenure. The verdict

of the twojudge Bench on a petition from the NGO, Lok

Prahari, is one more in a long line of signi�cant verdicts

aimed at preserving the purity of the electoral process.

These include the direction to provide the ‘NOTA’ op

tion in voting machines, and another striking down a

clause that saved sitting legislators from immediate dis

quali�cation upon conviction. It has ruled that the act

of voting is an expression of free speech, and that it is

part of this fundamental right that voters are required

to be informed of all relevant details about a contestant.

This led to the rule that candidates should furnish de

tails of any criminal antecedents, educational quali�ca

tions and assets. If disclosure of assets is mandatory, it

is only logical that the sources of income are also re

vealed. And as it is often seen that there is a dramatic in

crease in the assets of candidates at every election over

what was disclosed in previous a�davits, it stands to

reason that any rise should be explained or probed.

Few will dispute that lawmakers amassing wealth or

gaining unusual access to public funds and loans are

concerns that need to be addressed through new

norms. To give teeth to its order, the court has made it

clear that nondisclosure of assets and their sources

would amount to a “corrupt practice” under Section

123 of the Representation of the People Act, 1951. Lest a

question be raised whether the court’s order to amend

the relevant rules amounted to legislation, the Bench

has said it sees no “legal or normative impediment”, as

the Centre is empowered by the Act to frame rules in

consultation with the Election Commission. The idea of

a permanent mechanism to collect data about the as

sets of legislators and periodically examine them is

laudable, but it is not clear which authority will run it.

The court envisions a body that would make recom

mendations for prosecution or disquali�cation based

on its own �ndings. The Centre and the Election Com

mission will have to jointly address the issue. The larger

message from the verdict is that a fully informed electo

rate and transparent candidature will be key compo

nents of future elections in India.

Directing reformsIt is only logical that the sources

of income of candidates be disclosed

Sri Lanka is in the throes of a political crisis after

the two main parties in the ruling coalition suf

fered a dramatic defeat in the recent local govern

ment elections. Fissures between the Sri Lanka Free

dom Party, led by President Maithripala Sirisena, and

the United National Party, led by Prime Minister Ranil

Wickremesinghe, have deepened. The fragile ‘national

unity’ government they run together is beset by insta

bility and uncertainty. The local council polls, won re

soundingly by the Sri Lanka People’s Front, which has

the backing of former President Mahinda Rajapaksa,

have brought to the fore popular disenchantment with

the ruling parties, particularly over unemployment and

rural distress caused by drought. Even prior to the elec

tions, Mr. Sirisena disagreed often with his Prime Minis

ter over policy measures. In his campaign, he highlight

ed an inquiry report that indicted some associates of

Mr. Wickremesinghe in a mammoth scandal in the sale

of government bonds by Sri Lanka’s central bank. It was

no surprise when the parties contested separately, but

neither of them foresaw the outcome, which could

mark the return of Mr. Rajapaksa as a major political

force. After the results were out the alliance came un

der stress as Mr. Sirisena wanted the Prime Minister to

resign, but the latter has made it clear he will stay on.

Amidst e�orts by each camp to form an alternative re

gime that would exclude the other, Mr. Wickremes

inghe has said the coalition stands. There is talk of a Ca

binet reshu�e as a means of settling their di�erences,

but the durability of the alliance remains in doubt.

The coalition rides on the moral strength of the twin

mandate of 2015: Mr. Sirisena’s victory in the presiden

tial election over Mr. Rajapaksa, and the alliance’s deci

sive win in the parliamentary elections held later. It is

imperative to Sri Lanka’s interest that the President and

Prime Minister remain faithful to the original mandate,

which was for good governance and institutional re

form. Mr. Wickremesinghe says he is committed to it,

and that he will take “corrective measures” on the eco

nomic front. The fact that economic disillusionment

had in the past led to social unrest, con�ict and extreme

nationalism should not be forgotten. The alliance had

obtained public support for its reform agenda and for

showing a path away from authoritarian trends and in

stitutional decay. It would be unfortunate if partisan in

terests are placed above the people’s aspirations. The

two leaders should seek to sink their di�erences and

win back popular con�dence. The coalition should con

tinue to pursue the process of framing a new and inclu

sive constitution. It should ful�l its promises on recon

ciliation to the wara�ected Tamils, whose backing

proved crucial in their march to power. One electoral

setback should not result in the project of national re

conciliation falling victim to narrow political interests.

Alliance divided In Sri Lanka’s interest, President Sirisena and

PM Wickremesinghe should work together

corrections & clarifications:

The highlights panel that accompanied “The tour is not yetover; insists India skipper” (Sports page, Feb. 18, 2018) erroneously said the �xtures were in March. It should have beenFebruary.

The Readers’ Editor’s office can be contacted by Telephone: +91-44-28418297/28576300;

E-mail:[email protected]






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DATA POINT

It is reliably learnt that the Union Public Service Commissionhas made some progress in the preparatory work necessaryfor the introduction of the languages mentioned in the eightschedule as alternative media, at the option of the candidates,for the combined competitive examinations. Additional sta�has been appointed and equipment like typewriters etc. is being secured. Quali�ed examiners, preferably having knowledge of more than one language, are being located. It is statedboth the Government and the Commission are anxious to implement this decision as early as possible.

FIFTY YEARS AGO FEBRUARY 19, 1968

Optional media for UPSC exams

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FROM ARCHIVES

The Bengal Government has issued a Communique regardingthe arrests under the Defence of India Act of two women, bothnamed Sindhubala Dasi, in Bankura District. The women werearrested on the 3rd January and released on the 18th Januaryon the recommendation of the Inspector General of Police.The Communique states the circumstances under which thearrests were made. Among the papers of a dangerous memberof a revolutionary party recently arrested in Calcutta wasfound a slip of paper bearing the name of Sindhubala of the village Shahabarpur, district Bankura. The Calcutta C.I.D. wiredto the Bankura Police who arrested both women. After explaining the cause of long detention, the Communique saysthe order of arrest was an error of judgment and regrets thatthe two women were detained unnecessarily in jail.

A HUNDRED YEARS AGO FEBRUARY 19, 1918.

Arrest of Bengali Women. Government’s Regret.

Icarus factorBusiness

This refers to the tendencyamong managers andowners of a company topursue ambitious newprojects that eventuallyfail to earn su�cient returns, thus harming thelongterm �nancial healthof the company. For instance, a new productlaunched to capture market share from competitors can deplete the existing cash reserves of thecompany or even increaseits debt burden and othercosts without a commensurate increase in income.It is named after the Greekmythological characterIcarus who, in his excitement to �y with his newwings made of wax, �ewtoo close to the sun despiteadvice to the contrary andfell to his death as a result.

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CONCEPTUAL

India’s poorest Chief

Minister, Manik Sarkar

http://bit.ly/poorestCM

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MORE ON

THE WEB 3

Asma Jahangir will be rememberedas a fearless advocate for the rule oflaw and human rights. She challenged the notion that religion or national security were su�cientgrounds to ignore the principles enshrined in the Universal Declarationof Human Rights. At the time of herdeath on February 11, Asma served asthe United Nations’ Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rightsin Iran, documenting the injusticesand atrocities of Tehran’s clericalregime.

Taking on her father’s mantleAsma said it was her father, MalikGhulam Jilani, who inculcated in herthe belief in civil liberties. Jilani resigned from his position as civil servant in Pakistan to protest againstthe country’s �rst military coup in1958. One of Asma’s memories as ateenager related to an assassinationattempt on her father at their Lahorehome, instigated by Pakistan’s security services in 1965. Her father wasnot hurt, but an opposition parliamentarian was injured and a journalist visiting the Jilani home at the timewas killed. Jilani was in and out of jailfor much of Asma’s early life, refusing to give in to the two military dictators he confronted.

Asma took on her father’s mantleof opposing dictatorship when, at ayoung age, she petitioned Pakistan’sSupreme Court against her father’sdetention under martial law. Shewon the case when the court ruled in1972, for the �rst time in Pakistan’shistory, against the legality of a military coup. The ruling did not changethe course of Pakistan’s historythough, and within �ve years, another military dictator had taken over,duly endorsed by another pusillanimous Supreme Court.

The Islamist military dictatorshipof General ZiaulHaq during the1980s shut down most opposition. Itwas during this period that Asmaemerged as an icon of resistance toobscurantism and oppression. She

cofounded the independent HumanRights Commission of Pakistan,bringing international attention tothe rights of Pakistan’s oppressedethnic and religious minorities, women, children, and political dissidents. She also played a critical rolein organising the Women’s Action Forum (WAF), which opposed GeneralZia’s legislation aimed at rolling backmost of the rights that women hadachieved in the modern era. WAF organised demonstrations against attempts to reduce a woman’s testimony’s worth in certain legal matters tohalf the evidence o�ered by a man,among other things.

Images of Asma, whether staringdown armed police or being beatenby them while being dragged to prison, became the symbol of opposition to the Zia dictatorship and appeared on the front pages ofnewspapers worldwide. GeneralZia’s handpicked unelected Parliament (called MajliseShoora) retaliated by passing a resolution accusing her of blasphemy and calling for

her to be sentenced to death. The basis of the accusation was a commentthat she had allegedly made in a WAFmeeting. General Zia set up a commission to investigate the allegation.

After General Zia’s death, Asmacontinued to oppose Pakistan’s blasphemy laws, the harshest in theworld, as well as other violations ofhuman rights in the country underweak civilian governments, while also advocating civilian supremacy over Pakistan’s allpowerful military.She refused to accept political o�ceunder civilian governments, arguingthat her work was in the streets andcourts, and that she did not wish tobe encumbered by the compromisesthat are necessary in politics.

Her struggle against military dictatorship and Pakistan’s deep statecontinued through the rule of General Pervez Musharraf, from 1999 to2008. After the restoration of somesemblance of civilian rule, Asma focussed on exposing generals andjudges who interfered with the democratic process through behind

thescenes manipulation. She withstood threats against her and her family, as well as the hazard of vigilantejustice orchestrated by religious zealots.

Against blasphemy lawsAsma secured an unprecedented acquittal for an 11yearold Christianboy, Salamat Masih, and his uncleswho had been wrongly accused ofwriting blasphemous words on thewall of a mosque in a small town nearLahore in 1993. One of the uncles,Manzoor Masih, was killed outsidethe District and Sessions Court inGujranwala during the initial hearingof the case.

Asma represented Salamat Masihand Rehmat Masih when they appealed before the Lahore High Courtagainst their conviction by the trialcourt. Although she won acquittalfor both of them from the LahoreHigh Court in 1995, Justice Arif IqbalBhatti, who gave the decision, wasassassinated in the chambers of theLahore High Court in 1997. The casehighlighted the inherent injustice ofPakistan’s blasphemy laws.

Asma remained undeterred by thecontinued threats of violence to heropposing these laws, as well as discriminatory laws against the Ahmadiyya sect, until her dying day. Sheearned recognition as a competentand capable lawyer, unbothered byformalities and considerations of herstatus. Her sense of justice and fairplay was matched by her sense of humour in the toughest of times.

One could see her hopping on tothe back of a motorcycle, if her carwas stuck in tra�c, to get to an urgent hearing at the Supreme Courtfor victims of enforced disappearances. She slept on the �oor, withsome books under her head as a pillow, on a trip to investigate extrajudicial killings in Balochistan.

Asma Jahangir will be remembered by Pakistan’s oppressed anddispossessed as a woman with a hugeheart, the simplest of tastes, andgreat conviction and courage, whogave voice to that unfortunate country’s voiceless.

Farahnaz Ispahani is Global Fellow at theWoodrow Wilson Center and served as amember of Pakistan’s Parliament. HusainHaqqani is Senior Fellow at the HudsonInstitute and was Pakistan’s Ambassador tothe United States from 2008 to 2011

Asma Jahangir will be remembered for her conviction and courage

Fearless: “Asma Jahangir took on her father’s mantle of opposingdictatorship.” The lawyer at Jamia Millia Islamia in New Delhi in 2008.

* S. SUBRAMANIUM

The voice of Pakistan’s voiceless

Farahnaz Ispahani

and Husain Haqqani

Last week, some print editions of this newspaper carried a heartrending report headlined “5 year old brings dying mother tohospital” with a blurb that read: “Even ascardiac arrest claims her, he dozes o� besideher, unaware of the reality.” The online version of the story had a di�erent headline:“Weary �veyearold falls asleep next tomother’s body in Hyderabad hospital.” Thephotograph of the boy in deep sleep next tohis mother’s body was poignant and forcedone to think about India’s public health infrastructure and the people it leaves behind.

Objections to photographsOver the last �ve years, I have developed theskill to detect whether or not a photograph,or an illustration, would elicit some negativeresponses from readers. My antenna goes upwhen an image is cropped wrongly, or aframe is composed in a mannerthat does not uphold the values ofjournalism, or a picture is manipulated. In this case, I was notonly moved by the picture butalso felt that it served public interest. So, I was surprised whenwe got a mail questioning thewisdom of carrying the picture.

A reader from the U.K., MaryGiltinane, wrote: “I read yoursad story about the boy who fell asleep on hisdeceased mum’s hospital bed. While I dothink it is worthwhile highlighting situationslike this so funding may be appropriately directed, I am very shocked to see a photo ofthe deceased lady and wonder who consented to this photo being published. I do notfeel it will be helpful to this boy to have hadthis incredibly sad moment photographedand published, and suggest with respect thatthe photo be removed straight away.”

Several rules govern the publication of aphotograph. Kenneth Kobré, a photojournalist and author, wrote: “Photojournalism hasno Bible, no rabbinical college, no Pope tode�ne correct choices.” Photo editors generally wrestle with the questions of ethics,taste, and privacy before publishing a photo.The National Press Photographers Association succinctly described the role of visualsin journalism: “Photographic and video im

ages can reveal great truths, expose wrongdoing and neglect, inspire hope and understanding and connect people around theglobe through the language of visual understanding. Photographs can also cause greatharm if they are callously intrusive or aremanipulated.”

There are two strands that make up theethical framework for photojournalism: institutional ethics and photographercentricethics. Daniel R. Bersak, from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, explained thiselement of simultaneous convergence anddivergence: “The policies of a particularnewspaper or magazine would fall under institutional ethics. For example, if a newspaper chooses not to publish an image for fear itis too graphic, that is an issue of institutionalethics or taste. Photographercentric ethicshave to do with photographers’ choices atthe time news photos are captured up untilthe photos are handed o� to an editor.”

Depicting vulnerable peopleAn element that ties both institutional ethicsand photographercentric ethics is the wayvulnerable people are viewed, photographed and displayed. Here, the ethical

rule is unambiguous: “Treat allsubjects with respect and dignity. Give special consideration tovulnerable subjects and compassion to victims of crime ortragedy. Intrude on private moments of grief only when thepublic has an overriding andjusti�able need to see.”

The picture in question satis�es all the above conditions.

The overriding consideration here was empathy. The picture did not undermine thedignity of either the boy or his deceasedmother. It had the power to disturb us andforce us to think about what ails our system.The story and the photograph also documented humane responses to a tragedy.

The opinion pages have become a de factocentre for media literacy. The weekly feature‘Notebook’ in The Hindu has been documenting not just the trials and tribulations ofreporters, but also how they deal with di�cult situations. In framing an image, wheredoes empathy end and intrusion of privacybegin? We do not have easy answers. Thetime has come for photo editors and photojournalists to share their experiences in dealing with some of the ethical dilemmas theyface, and their professional challenges.

[email protected]

What is picture perfect? In framing an image, where does empathy end andintrusion of privacy begin?

A.S. Panneerselvan

FROM THE READERS’ EDITOR

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There is an ongoing debate amongstudents in Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi, about compulsory attendance. This is not a demand for the right to not attendclasses. Rather, the protests againstcompulsory attendance aim to pro

tect the university’s academic culture, which emphasisesthat learning is more than just classroom presence. Whatare the roots of this protest?

First, absenteeism has never been a problem in JNU. Students attend classes across disciplines, not just in their owndepartments. Undergraduate students complement theircore disciplines by attending lectures in allied disciplines atthe Masters level. Their motive is the pursuit of learning. Second, there are questions regarding whether the statutes ofthis university have been followed rigorously in terms of reservations and seat allocations. The circular announcing theintroduction of compulsory attendance is considered bysome to be an example of an amendment that was not tabled in the agenda of the academic council. This raises concern about the apparently unilateral announcement of themeasure. Third, when students and faculty boycotted thisorder, the university administration is said to have terminated all fellowships forthwith. Could they be unaware that students of this university come from a range of socioeconomicbackgrounds, and rely upon their fellowships for basic sustenance including mess food, photocopying services, andbook purchases? Fourth, stipulated conditions for drawingfellowships do not require compulsory attendance. In thisregard, the administration’s move stands outside of its ownrules. Fifth, almost all courses use other methods to encourage and ascertain that students participate in the process oflearning, including regular sessional examinations, termpapers, class presentations, and continuous assessment inthe form of class participation. This is a holistic form of assessment, where students learn without regimentation, andfaculty do not waste time marking attendance sheets. Sixth,given that this is a research university, students go on �eldtrips, attend conferences, go to libraries and archives outside campus, as required by their research. This makes itnearly impossible for them to go to the classroom every day.

The reason why a university without compulsory attendance has risen to be a premier research institution in thecountry is because it follows the best global standards inacademic research, is creative in its methods, and, most importantly, recognises that academic autonomy is the onlyway to guarantee independent, thoughtful, and pathbreaking research. The fact that compulsory attendance has beenimposed points to the danger of bureaucratic centralisationdisrupting nuanced and proven practices of academic heterogeneity and autonomy. There is also a risk that such ameasure may su�ocate the freedom to think independently.

Parnal Chirmuley is Associate Professor, Centre of German Studies,School of Language, Literature and Culture Studies, JNU

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Learning withoutregimentationAttending class in a research universityshould not be made compulsory

Parnal Chirmuley

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bombmaker feel whenhis creation doesn’t causeas much destruction as hewould have liked? Howdoes a survivor feel whenhis two friends die and henarrowly escapes? Andhow do Vikas and DeepaKhurana cope with theloss of their two boys? Initially �lled with rage, Deepa is determined to takerevenge. But the casedrags on and she becomesdisheartened when sherealises that what for herwas a lifechanging eventis nothing but another attack, another number, forthe rest of the world. Vikasand Deepa break down inturns, struggle to keeptheir marriage alive, andwallow in the guilt of having let their children go tothe marketplace in Delhiwhere the bomb went o�.They later start an organisation to remember smaller blasts. “The smaller attacks are more deadly,because a few have to carry the burden of the majority,” says Vikas. “Then,as these victims’ grievanc

After the Peshawar schoolattack in 2014, in which148 were killed, a majorityof them children, harrowing images came out of Pakistan — of tiny blackshoes lying in bloodsplattered classrooms and ofmothers wailing as theyleaned over small co�ns.Last week, in Parkland inFlorida, when Fred Guttenberg lost his daughterJamie in the gun attackthat killed 16 others, hesimply did not know“what to do next”, he toldThe Washington Post. “Mywife and I are broken.”

The worst tragedies arearguably those in whichchildren die. While newsreports focus on the immediate reactions of leaders and a�ected families,they are quick to move onto the next big news.Where reporters don’t linger, writers do. In his novel The Association ofSmall Bombs, Karan Mahajan examines a bombfrom all sides: How does a

es get forgotten, as theblasts themselves are forgotten, the victims ofthese small bombs turnagainst the government instead of the terrorists. Isthat a situation we want?No. That’s why… we’ve decided to take matters intoour own hands.”

In Russell Banks’ TheSweet Hereafter, in the �ctional town of Sam Dent,14 children are killedwhen a school bus namedShoe goes down a ravineand into a sand pit onewinter day. Says the fatherof one: “It was as if we,too, had died… and nowwe were lodged temporarily in a kind of purgatory,waiting to be moved towherever the other deadones had gone.” Bankslooks at the tragedy fromthe positions of four people — the bus driver, a survivor, a parent who loseshis child, and a lawyer — tounderscore how unpredictable life is and how people live as shadows of theirformer selves after tragedy strikes.

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SHELF HELP

Life after a tragedy

How parents cope with the loss of their children

Radhika Santhanam






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Expanding its money laundering probe into the�11,500crore Punjab National Bank scam, the Enforcement Directorate (ED) onSunday carried out searchesat 45 places across 11 Statesand seized more assetsworth �20 crore, taking theoverall value of seizures tonearly �5,700 crore.

“The searches were carried at 10 locations in Bengaluru, seven in Delhi, �veeach in Mumbai and Kolkata,and four each in Hyderabadand Chandigarh. Several premises in Patna, Lucknow,Chennai and Guwahati werealso searched during theday,” said a senior ED o�cial.

Auditors under scrutinyED chief Karnal Singh will bein Mumbai on Monday to review the developments inthe case. The Central Vigilance Commission may alsohold a meeting with seniorbank executives to determine the nature of lapses,owing to which the fraudulent transactions remainedundetected for almost sevenyears.

Among those under scrutiny are the internal and ex

ternal auditors of the bank,who apparently did notcheck the SWIFT messagingrecords during the reconciliation of accounts. TheSWIFT network is used forquick and secure communication between banks for international wire transfers.PNB operates 32 SWIFT accounts.

The Income Tax Department will share with the EDits appraisal report on the Gitanjali group of companies,

which is owned by coaccused Mehul Choksi, the uncle and mentor of Nirav Modi. He is currently suspectedto be in the United States.

Besides him, three of thecompanies have been madeaccused in the latest case registered by the Central Bureau of Investigation in connection with the PNB fraud.

Shell companiesIt is learnt that the IncomeTax o�cials have detected

several irregularities in theirassessment report, also indicating the role of a numberof shell companies in themovement of funds. Morethan 100 accounts have beenidenti�ed.

The report was �led withthe authorities this pastweek. The accused companies had registered cashtransactions of over �150crore during the demonetisation period, which are alsounder scrutiny.

Following instructionsfrom the Prime Minister’s Of�ce, multiple investigatingagencies and the ministriesof Finance and Corporate Affairs are coordinating witheach other on the case. Theagencies are sharing developments with the PMO on adaily basis.

Earlier on Saturday, a senior PNB o�cial briefed theED o�cials about the modusoperandi adopted by the accused to raise unauthorisedLetters of Undertaking andForeign Letters of Credit forsettling import bills sinceMarch 2011.

While the CBI has arrestedthree key accused in thecase, the agency is questioning more than half a dozensuspects.

ED searches 45 locations, seizes �20 cr. assets On PMO instructions, multiple investigating agencies and the Ministries of Finance and Corporate A�airs are working together on the PNB case

Devesh K. Pandey

NEW DELHI

Probe widens: The Central Vigilance Commission is likely tohold a meeting with senior PNB executives * R.V. MOORTHY

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s muchanticipated trip to India began onSaturday amid uncertaintiesover his meeting with Punjab Chief Minister Amarinder Singh.

Mr. Trudeau took his family to the Taj Mahal on Sunday and is scheduled to tourthe Golden Temple in Amritsar during the weeklongvisit.

Asked about Mr. Trudeau’s meeting with Capt.Singh, a source familiar withthe Canadian side, said that“uncertainties prevail” onthis.

Sajjan rowThe Canadian leader’s problems with the Punjab ChiefMinister stems from the latter’s criticism of alleged proKhalistan sentiments of Canadian Defence MinisterHarjit Singh Sajjan.

During the April 2017 India visit of Mr. Sajjan, a prominent Sikh member andDefence Minister of the Canadian government, theChief Minister described himand other Sikh Cabinetmembers of Canada as sympathetic to Sikh separatistgroups or the Khalistanis.

Mr. Sajjan is accompanying Mr. Trudeau on this tripalong with other Sikh Cabinet colleagues, Amarjeet Sohi and Navdeep Singh Bains.

On reaching India, in a social media message, the Canadian Defence Ministerposted a photograph of himwith other Indianorigin Ministers and said, “Lookingforward to spending the nextfew days here to furtherstrengthen Canada and India’s strong cultural and economic ties.”

Problems over the meeting with the Chief Ministercame while the External Affairs Ministry indicated that“all issues of bilateral interest” would be discussed withMr. Trudeau.

Ministry’s responseIn response to a question over the growing Khalistanrelated activities in Canada,the External A�airs Ministryspokesperson said on Friday, “I can tell you that all issues that are of interest to us,

which are of bilateral interest will be up on the agendabetween the two sides.”

Earlier, media reportsfrom Canada had indicatedthat the Chief Minister wasexpected to accompany Mr.Trudeau during his Amritsartrip, but the programme wasnot �rmed up till Sunday.

The visit by Mr. Trudeauwas anticipated since 2014but did not materialise eventhough other Cabinet colleagues had come here during the past four years.

Trudeau’s �rst stop is Taj MahalUncertainties prevail over Canadian Prime Minister’s meeting with Punjab CM

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau signs the visitor’s book at Taj Mahal in Agra on Sundayas his wife Sophie Gregoire and children look on. * PTI

Kallol Bhattacherjee

NEW DELHI

A video showing a BJP MPfrom Madhya Pradesh, Janardhan Mishra, cleaningthe toilet of a primaryschool in his constituencywith his bare hands went viral on social media onSunday.

When contacted, the MP,who represents Rewa constituency, told PTI, “Duringa visit to the primary schoolat Bhusudi village on February 15, I saw the toilet wasclogged with sand and soil. Icleared the blockage withmy bare hands.”

He was no stranger tosuch work, he said. “Thismay be di�cult for others,but it has become a habit forme,” he said. “I always inspect toilets wherever I go,”the MP added.

He pointed out that primary schools did not havesanitary workers. Villagersalso lacked the awareness tokeep the toilets clean, theMP said.

“I hope this will createawareness among the villagers,” Mr. Mishra said, addingthat he had cleared garbageheaps in Rewa city “manytimes, without gloves”.

BJP legislator clearsclogged school toilet Video goes viral on social media


Rewa

The gems and jewellerysector could be severelyimpacted in the comingmonths following the multicrore Punjab NationalBank scam, say captains ofthe industry in Kolkata.

At a national conclavehere, they felt that in thewake of the scam, the lending by banks to the jewellery industry is expected to“slow down.” “There willde�nitely be some ripplee�ects. Banks will be morecautious,” said PrakashChandra Pincha, regionalchairman (eastern region)of the Gem and JewelleryExport Promotion Council.

State president of the India Bullion and JewellersAssociation Limited PankajParekh said banks mightnow dub the entire industry “risky.”

“The industry does notconsist of only one person.How can the act of a particular individual impact theentire industry,” askedSubir Kumar Sen, president of the Swarna ShilpaBachao Committee, the largest organisation of jewellery traders and artisans inWest Bengal.

Jewelleryindustry ontenterhooks

Staff Reporter

Kolkata

Keeping up the pressure onthe Narendra Modi government in the Punjab NationalBank fraud case, Congresspresident Rahul Gandhi onSunday asked why FinanceMinister Arun Jaitley was in“hiding” and the Prime Minister refused to speak.

The Congress also demanded that the government bring out a White Paper in the current session ofParliament on the health ofIndia’s banks.

Targeting Mr. Modi andMr. Jaitley for their silence,Mr. Gandhi tweeted: “PMModi tells kids how to passexams for 2 hrs, but won’tspeak for 2 mins on the22,000Cr banking scam. Mr.Jaitley is in hiding. Stop behaving as if you’re guilty!Speak up. #ModiRobsIndia”.

‘Growing list’At a press conference, theformer Union Minister Manish Tewari, quoting RBI data,said that in the past �ve

years, the amount of moneylost in bank frauds stood at�61,260 crore.

“The list of such fraudskeeps growing by the day.Now, there are reports in thepublic space that a companycalled Rotomac and its owner, a gentleman called Mr.Kothari, who owe �800crore to a consortium ofbanks,” he said.

Pointing to the di�erencebetween nonperforming assets (NPAs) and bank frauds,Mr. Tewari said: “NPA refersto a default on payment ofinterest on a loan for twoquarters, but bank fraud is a

case of outright loot andscoot.”

“The linkages betweenthese alleged fraudsters andthe highest echelons of thegovernment raise some serious questions about thehealth of the Indian economy. Mehulbhai [Choksi], Nirav Modi and, as I said, thelist is growing. Therefore,the Congress demands aWhite Paper on the health ofthe Indian banking sector,”he said. The party wouldpress for it in the second halfof the Budget session starting on March 5, he said.

The Congress demandedthat banks immediately disclose NPAs as of December31, 2017. “This is people’smoney. They have a right toknow who owes how muchin which bank. Banks shouldalso publish the names offraudsters,” he said.

Congress seeks White Paper on the health of banksSpecial Correspondent

New Delhi

Rahul Gandhi

Modi won’t talk and Jaitley is in hiding, says Rahul

<> People have a right

to know who owes

how much in

which bank

Manish Tewari

Former Union Minister

Recounting the long journeyof the BJP from the days ofthe foundation of its predecessor Jana Sangh in the early 1950s, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sundaycommended the party forsuccessfully running a largecoalition balancing regionalaspirations in the days ofAtal Bihari Vajpayee.

He saw this success as anoutcome of what he calledthe practice of democraticfunctioning the Jana Sanghand the BJP had nurtured fordecades. “India has had amultiparty system. So, coalition politics was very natural. To come together forgreed is another thing, but itrequires a di�erent kind ofpractice to keep allies together and move forwarddemocratically,” Mr. Moditold a large gathering of BJPworkers at the inaugurationof the new party headquarters at Deen Dayal Upadhyaya Marg here.

“Under Atal ji’s leader

ship and in the form of theNDA, the BJP successfullycarried out an experiment oftaking allies together, channelising their strengths inthe politics of coalition, balancing regional aspirationsand sparking a new ray ofhope in the country.”

He recalled that there hadbeen some experiments ofcoalition politics in 1967, butthe “later successes werephenomenal.” “The corereason for this is that democ

racy �ows in our veins. Inour thought, behaviour, andtradition, there is democracy. It is because of this thatwe can take everyone alongto a great extent.”

The coalitions of 1967 Mr.Modi was referring to werethe Sanyukta Vidhayak Dalgovernments — a result ofthe alliance between socialists and the Jana Sangh tokeep the Congress out — thatcame to power in someStates.

Modi salutes Vajpayee’scoalition experimentAttributes success of the venture to democratic functioning


NEW DELHI

New base: Prime Minister Narendra Modi and BJP leaders atthe inauguration of the party’s headquarters at Deen DayalUpadhyaya Marg in New Delhi on Sunday. * R.V. MOORTHY

After billionaire diamondmerchant Nirav Modi,another defaulter VikramKothari, the promoter of Rotomac Pen, has also allegedly gone abroad after swindling �800 crore from publicsector banks such as Allahabad Bank, the Bank of Indiaand the Union Bank of India,sources said.

The Kanpurbased company’s owner had taken aloan of more than �800crore from over �ve stateowned banks.

Five banks on listAllahabad Bank, the Bank ofIndia, the Bank of Baroda,the Indian Overseas Bankand the Union Bank of Indiacompromised their rules tosanction loans to Rotomac,the sources said.

According to local mediareports, the promoter said

speculation of his �eeing thecountry was baseless. “I ama resident of Kanpur and Iwill stay in the city. However, I do have to travel to foreign countries for businesspurposes,” Mr. Kothari said.

Mr. Kothari took a loan of�485 crore from the Mumbaibased Union Bank of India and �352 crore from theKolkatabased AllahabadBank. A year later, Mr. Kothari has reportedly not paidback either the interest orthe loan.

Last year, the Bank of Ba

roda, a consortium partner,declared Rotomac GlobalPvt Ltd a “wilful defaulter.”

Moves High CourtThe company then movedthe Allahabad High Courtseeking removal of its namefrom the list of wilfuldefaulters.

A Division Bench comprising Chief Justice D.B.Bhosle and Justice YashwantVerma had passed the orderon a petition �led by thecompany, contending that ithad been wrongly declared a“wilful defaulter” by BoBdespite having “o�ered assets worth more than �300crore to the bank since thedate of default”.

Rotomac was declared awilful defaulter vide an order dated February 27, 2017passed by an authorisedcommittee, as per the procedure laid down by the Reserve Bank of India.

Last year, BoB listed Vikram Kothari as a wilful defaulter


New Delhi

Rotomac promoter �ees after �800 cr. bank fraud?

Vikram Kothari

Jammu and Kashmir ChiefMinister Mehbooba Muftion Sunday asked people ofthe Valley “to ensure peacefor a dialogue process andfor more crossLine of Control (LoC) links”.

“Give me peace, I willpursue dialogue and openroutes like KargilSkardu,JammuSialkot, NowshehraJhangar etc. I wish people on both sides wouldmarch together on the pathof growth and development,” said Ms. Mufti inher speech in south Kashmir’s Devsar.

The Chief Minister, whois facing heightened militancy and street protests inthe Valley, said a consultative process had begun inthe State to sort out issuesand to develop J&K as amodern State.

She expressed concernover the “deaths and destruction being reportedfrequently from the border”. “It is unfortunate thatin 21st century when people should be demandingbetter schools, good hospitals and e�cient services,they are asking for bunkersto protect themselves,” theChief Minister said.

Ensurepeace, saysMehbooba

Peerzada Ashiq

Srinagar

Actor Kamal Haasan on Sunday called on DMK patriarchM. Karunanidhi and friend,costar and aspiring politician Rajinikanth at their residences ahead of thelaunch of his political partyscheduled for February 21.

Mr. Haasan �rst met Mr.Rajinikanth at the latter’sbungalow in Poes Garden onSunday afternoon and remained closeted with himfor around 15 minutes.

Speculation about thetwo actors joining hands inpolitics was set to rest whenMr. Rajinikanth made itabundantly clear that theirpolitics will be as di�erentas their roles in �lms.

‘Our air is the same’“Even in cinema, his (KamalHaasan’s) style has been different, my style has beendi�erent. In politics too, hisstyle will be di�erent, mystyle will be di�erent,” Mr.Rajinikanth said adding,“But our aim is the same —to do good for the people ofthe State.”

The Tamil �lm superstarsaid he prayed to God thatMr. Haasan emerges suc

cessful in whatever work heundertakes.

“He is not coming to politics for fame, money orpower, but to do good forthe people,” he said.Mr.Haasan described it a courtesy meet.

“It was just a meeting offriends. This is not related topolitics. Even earlier, when Idecided to enter politics, Ihad met him and informedhim of the decision,” hesaid.

“It is a custom in both ourfamilies that if there is someevent in my house, we willinvite Rajini’s family andvice versa. We have beenfriends for 40 years,” hesaid.

The actor said he had in

vited Mr. Rajinikanth toMadurai on February 21where he will reveal his party’s name and unveil theparty �ag at a public meeting. “I have invited him. Hewill have to decide (onwhether to come or not).Can’t force him,” Mr. Haasansaid.

A few days ago, Mr. Haasan, speaking at HarvardUniversity said he hopedthat Mr. Rajinikanth’s politics would not be inclined towards ‘Sa�ron politics’. “Ihope his hue is not sa�ron,”he had said. Both actors hadmade it clear that only timewould tell if they would joinhands electorally.

Later in the evening, Mr.Haasan headed to Gopalapuram to meet DMK president M. Karunanidhi, whohas been largely con�ned tohis home for the past over ayear due to old age relatedhealth issues. The actor hadsought an appointment inthe evening from DMKworking president, M.K. Stalin, to meet the patriarch.

Mr. Haasan arrived at Mr.Karunanidhi’s residencearound 8.20 p.m. and spentabout 20 minutes with him.

Kamal meets Rajinikanth,calls on KarunanidhiMy politics will di�er from his, says Rajini


CHENNAI

Actor Kamal Haasan withfellow �lm star Rajinikanth.

* PTI






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NEWS

Poll exercise:Women from the Reang tribe after voting in Telaimura district of Tripura and, right, people outside a polling station in Agartala on Sunday. * RITU RAJ KONWAR

India is con�dent of concluding thenuclear deal with reactormakerWestinghouse Electric as it expectsthe company to come out of bankruptcy very soon, said Satish Sharma, Chairman and Managing Director (CMD) of Nuclear PowerCorporation of India Ltd (NPCIL).

“The discussions are happeningand they are of a very complex nature. Any progress will happen onlyafter bankruptcy which is likely tohappen very soon. That is why weare continuing the discussions,” Mr.Sharma said.

Some o�cials said they werehopeful that Toshiba, which had acquired the U.S.based Westinghousein 2006, was too big to fail andwould be bankrolled either by theJapanese government or the Japanese Development Bank.

Following the IndoU.S. nucleardeal, India has been in discussionwith Westinghouse since 2005 tobuild six AP1000 nuclear reactors.After protracted negotiations and

concerns on the nuclear liability,NPCIL and Westinghouse hadagreed to “work toward �nalisingthe contractual arrangements byJune 2017.”

However, the process was stalledafter Toshiba Corp declared bankruptcy and decided to move out ofreactorbuilding business.

Second site in A.P. Meanwhile, the second site for constructing additional Russian reactors in Andhra Pradesh is yet to be�nalised. “The site selection committee is evaluating a second site inAndhra Pradesh other than Kovvada which was initially proposed.There are DAE guidelines laid downfor �nalising a site,” an o�cial of theDepartment of Atomic Energy(DAE) told The Hindu.

Stating that the process is underway, the o�cial said that variousfactors such as land type, earthquake potential, availability of water should all be factored in. “Giventhat it is a coastal site, there are alsoother parameters,” he added.

India still hopeful of nucleardeal with Westinghouse ‘Reactormaker may come out of bankruptcy soon’

Dinakar Peri

New Delhi

The Naga People’s Front, acoalition partner in Manipur, has decided to withdraw support to the BJPledcoalition government in Manipur.

The NPF, which has fourMLAs in Manipur, is also aruling partner in the Naga

land government and theCentre. NPF State unit president Marung Makunga said,“The decision will be madepublic shortly after the Nagaland polls.”

At a recent public function in Chandel district,Chief Minister Biren Singhhad asked the NPF membersin the Autonomous District

Council to join the BJP. TheNPF leaders took umbrageat the remarks, saying Mr.Biren had shown disrespectto the NPF.

Some NPF leaders havealleged that even after completing one year, the government has done nothing forthe hills and that corruptionis rampant.

NPF to exit BJP coalition in ManipurStaff Reporter

IMPHAL

As Sunday’s voting to elect59 of the 60 members of theTripura Assembly passed o�peacefully, the ruling CPI(M)and the BJP exuded con�dence of an electoral victoryin the northeastern State.

Except snags reported inelectronic voting machines(EVMs) attached withVVPATs (Voter Veri�ablePaper Audit Trail) in nearly180 booths, the polling wasincidentfree. Over 75% ofthe eligible voters voted till 4p.m., when the o�cial votinghours ended.

Polling enquiriesBJP Tripura unit presidentBiplab Kumar Deb saidPrime Minister Narendra Modi, party president AmitShah, general secretary RamMadhav, Assam Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma and other party leaders enquiredabout polling in Tripura.

“People want change. People strongly wish for a BJPgovernment in Tripura. It iscertain that the BJP will formthe next government in Tripura,” Mr. Deb told the mediahere.

CPI(M) Tripura State secretary Bijan Dhar said theLeft parties were “overcon�

dent” of forming the nextState government. He saidCPI(M) general secretary Sitaram Yechury, Polit Bureaumembers Prakash Karat,Brinda Karat, Biman Boseand other central leaders enquired on phone about thepolling.

“The Prime Minister and

other BJP leaders always talkof Digital India, but in today’s(Sunday) elections a largenumber of EVMsVVPATsmalfunctioned to create serious doubts about the highpitch Digital India campaign,” Mr. Dhar said.

Tripura Congress vicepresident Tapas Dey said

that frequent inquiriesabout Tripura electionswere received from Congress president Rahul Gandhi’s o�ce in Delhi.

All India Congress Committee general secretary C.P.Joshi, secretary Bhupen Bora and other leaders alsotalked to Tripura Congressleaders on the polling, headded.

‘Poor management’Criticising the Election Department, the Congressleaders said election authorities were not impartial andelection management wasvery poor and ine�cient.

“Despite complaints fromthe Congress and Left parties, election o�cials inTripura did not take action.But election o�cials tookprompt action when the BJPlodged any complaint,” Mr.Dey added. The counting ofvotes would be held onMarch 3.

CPI(M), BJP ‘con�dent’ of victory in TripuraPolling passed o� peacefully; snags reported in EVMs attached with VVPATs in around 180 polling stations; Cong., Left criticise o�cials

Indo-Asian News Service

Agartala

Crucial vote:Manik Sarkar on his way to cast his vote in Agartala on Sunday * RITU RAJ KONWAR

Blaming previous governments for not pushing infrastructure projects, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said onSunday that projects worth�10 lakh crore were in a stateof limbo when he took o�cein May 2014 and his government had broken the impasse on such investmentsduring its tenure so far.

On a daylong tour toMumbai, Mr. Modi on Sunday afternoon unveiled thefoundation plaque at theground breaking ceremonyfor the Navi Mumbai International Airport, dedicated thefourth container terminal atJawaharlal Nehru Port Trust

( JNPT) to the nation and inaugurated the Magnetic Maharashtra investment summit.Late in the evening, he alsolaunched a new centre for arti�cial intelligence.

“The previous governments had only one policy,which was latkana (to stall),atkana (to keep it pending)and patkana (to ground welllaid plans). Projects worth

�10 lakh crore which werepending when I took overare now progressing,” Mr.Modi said, in his address atthe ground breaking ceremony of the Navi Mumbai International airport project.

“The �rst promise of thisairport was made in 1997,during the government ofAtal Bihari Vajpayee andsince then there were onlypromises which remainedon paper. When I took over, Iwent over the papers. I tooka detailed report of it and thework started. Now peoplewill come to claim credit saying it was our project, butyou now know what has happened,” said Mr. Modi.

The airport is likely to cost

�16,704 crore and is estimated to attract at least 10 million passengers per annum,once its �rst phase is operational.

Fresh ordersSince Independence, only450 airplanes were in the skyincluding both from government and private sectors,and now companies have ordered 900 planes in just oneyear, Mr. Modi said, highlighting the growth that hastaken place under his government’s watch.

Earlier governments onlytalked about the 21st century, but never visualised itand “the project only used toremain on paper,” he said.

Unveils plaque for Navi Mumbai International Airport, in limbo since it was proposed in 1997

PM Narendra Modi with Governor Vidyasagar Rao,left, and CMDevendra Fadnavis in Navi Mumbai on Sunday. * VIVEK BENDRE


Mumbai

We have pushed infra projects, says PM

Pak. bills �2.86 lakh fornavigation of PM’s flightsNEW DELHI

Pakistan has billed India

�2.86 lakh as route

navigation charges for the

Indian Air Force aircraft used

by Prime Minister Narendra

Modi during a stopover in

Lahore and visits to Russia,

Afghanistan, Iran and Qatar,

an RTI response shows. The

data was gathered by activist

and Commodore (Retd.)

Lokesh Batra. PTI

Suspected militants detonated an improvised explosive device killing a Nationalist Congress Party (NCP)candidate for the February27 elections in the East GaroHills district of Meghalaya.Uncon�rmed reports saidtwo of his bodyguards werealso killed.

The IED attack on Jonathone N. Sangma, the NCPcandidate for the Williamnagar seat, took place at Samanda around 7.50 p.m.when he was returning fromcampaigning at Sobokgreand Nabokgre villages.

The police neither con�rmed nor denied the candidate’s death. “There was ablast but we are yet to get

the details about casualty,”said DGP S.B. Singh.

But by 10.30 p.m., Meghalaya Chief Minister MukulSangma tweeted: “Deeplysaddened to hear about theunexpected loss of Jonathone N Sangma. My heartfeltcondolences to his near anddear ones. The blood of innocents spilled by the enemies of the State will not disturb peace in Meghalaya.”

Another tweet by him later said: “This desperate actwill not be tolerated. Theperpetrators of the crimewill be brought to book.”

Posters had appeared inparts of Williamnagar sayinganyone who voted for theNCP candidate would getbullets from “AK17 andpistol”.

NCP candidate killed inpollbound MeghalayaRahul Karmakar

GUWAHATI

Foreign Secretary, Armychief, NSA visited BhutanNEW DELHI

Foreign Secretary Vijay

Gokhale, General Bipin Rawat

and National Security Adviser

Ajit Doval visited Bhutan in

the first fortnight of this

month for bilateral

discussions, sources said. The

highlevel meeting, a first

since the Doklam standoff

between India and China last

year, yielded a “positive”

outcome.

IN BRIEF

‘Pak. troops backinfiltration in Poonch’SRINAGAR

The Army foiled the Pakistan

Army’s attempt to help

militants infiltrate into the

Poonch sector on Sunday

afternoon. A defence

spokesman said the Pakistan

Army initiated “unprovoked

and indiscriminate firing from

5.15 p.m. along the Line of

Control to facilitate an

infiltration attempt”.

Army officer injured in Poonch blastSRINAGAR

An Army officer was injured in

a blast in Poonch’s frontier

area on Sunday. A district

administration official said a

Junior Commissioned Officer,

Om Prakash, of the Army’s 5

Mahar, suffered splinter

injuries in Mendhar area,

which is close to the Line of

Control. The injured officer

was shifted to a hospital in

Udhampur. The Army said the

officer was in stable

condition. The blast was not a

“result of Pakistan’s shelling”.






#5 6 7 0 0 1




CMYK

A ND-NDE

Claims vs factsThis is an age when a lot of unverified

information passes off as facts. Karnataka

Agriculture Minister Krishna Byre Gowda must

have had that mind while answering some

pointed questions on the state of lakes in

Bengaluru. When a member of the audience

referred to the fire in Bellandur lake and the

pollution in many other lakes, the Minister

mentioned specific details regarding the

number of lakes that had been cleaned and

rejuvenated, and the amount of money spent.

He did not forget to add, “These are not mere

claims, you can check them.”

With a lake on fireWhile a topic of discussion at The Huddle on

Sunday was “Winning: can the Congress turn

the tide?”, the largely Bengaluru audience at

the session seemed to be more interested in

the revival of the city’s lakes, especially the

Bellandur lake. State Agriculture Minister

Krishne Byre Gowda had to field multiple

questions on the city’s infrastructure, which he

agreed needed much attention. But the

discussion on the revival of the city’s lakes

went on for so long that the moderator

quipped that probably the formula for the

revival of the Congress in the country was in

reviving the city’s lakes.

YES Bank is the title sponsor of The Huddle.

SRM University, Amaravati, is the Poweredby

sponsor, NDTV the television partner, Air India

the airline partner, Prestige Group the

supporting partner, SAIL the session sponsor,

Da Milano the bespoke partner, Parker the

writing instrument partner, and Wizrcraft the

event partner. Zebronics and Anand Prakash

are the gift partners.

From the wingsDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDD

India should take China’s riseas a given and work its strategy against that backdrop, in

stead of looking at the relationship in binaries, ShivshankarMenon, former National SecurityAdviser and old China hand,said.

“The problem is that we treatIndiaChina relations as a Twenty20 match,” he added.

In a discussion on “Asian century: does it have to be India versus China?” moderated by Narayan Lakshman, AssociateEditor, The Hindu, Mr. Menonwas joined by Husain Haqqani,former Pakistan Ambassador tothe U.S., who is now with a thinktank in Washington, and AndrewSmall, an expert on China’s foreign policy with the GermanMarshall Fund in the U.S.

Shunning the zerosum gameapproach to the rise of India andChina, Mr. Menon instead highlighted the need for the twocountries to work out a new mo-dus vivendi, to address the vacuum left by the breakdown in themodus vivendi worked out withRajiv Gandhi’s historic visit toChina in 1988. That understanding was: keep peace on the border, discuss all “our di�erences”,but don’t let the border issuestop the two countries fromcooperating where they could.Since then, the de�nition givenby the two countries to their interests had grown, and “the effort is worth making” to attemptan upgrade, he said.

Change in patternOne lens to see the change thathad come, while appreciating amutual understanding to keeptensions under control, was the

recent Doklam stando� and itsresolution. “Both [India and China] showed they did not wantthe crisis to escalate,” Mr. Menonsaid. It was little acknowledged,he said, that the China stretchwas India’s most peaceful border. But for the �rst time, therewas heightened rhetoric on theChinese side. “This is a change inthe Chinese pattern of behaviour,” he said.

“Bluster did not work,” agreed

Mr. Small. “The Chinese wereembarrassed by what happened.”

There was a sense, he added,in China that they were politically, as opposed to militarily, unprepared for India’s response.The stando� also played out during a delicate time for China, inthe runup to the 19th PartyCongress.

Huge shiftIn fact, Mr. Menon said, the Party Congress marked a huge shiftin China’s overseas approach.President Xi Jinping started talking about other countries following the Chinese model, indicat

ing a future policy of exporting away of life.

Mr. Haqqani contrasted the timelines of the two countries. “IfChina has a 100year plan, Indianeeds a 50 or 30year plan.” India has problems of human capital and military modernisation,but between the rivals any confrontation won’t be India’s decision, he said. “It is always the totalitarian state that decides whois the adversary.”

In the region, China is lookingto encircle others, he said, andmake it di�cult for them to encircle it. Pakistan has completelycast its lot with China, he said.“The U.S. is doing with India

what the British did with the U.S.after the Second World War.”That is, encourage the othercountry to take more of a lead incertain theatres where it hadbeen dominant.

The panel discussed the dynamics of this complicated IndiaChina relationship playing out inthe IndoPaci�c, and the implications and possibilities of a debttrap for various stakeholders inChina’s ambitious Belt and RoadInitiative.

But the resounding call wasfor pragmatism as the economicand political interests of bothcountries become increasingly,and variously, more global.

Breaking the Chinese whispersShivshankar Menon says India should take China’s rise as a given and work its strategy against that backdrop

Mini Kapoor

Neighbourly ties: Husain Haqqani, former Pakistan Ambassador to the U.S., writer Andrew Small, and Shivshankar Menon, former NationalSecurity Adviser, in conversation with Narayan Lakshman, Associate Editor, The Hindu, at The Huddle on Sunday. * K. MURALI KUMAR

<> The problem is that we

treat India-China ties as

a Twenty20 match

Shivshankar Menon

Former NSA

In an intense personality contest, with Prime Minister Narendra Modi on one side, who

is a match to him in theCongress?

Chief Minister Siddaramaiah is“more than a match” to Mr. Modiin Karnataka, and in every State,the party is going to come upwith voices and leaders who willcounter the Prime Minister, Karnataka Agriculture MinisterKrishna Byre Gowda said.

He was quick to add that itwould be “Rahul Gandhiplus”,with a team of leaders with him.

Mr. Gowda, a young face of theCongress, was in conversationwith Nistula Hebbar, Political Editor, The Hindu, on “Winning:can the Congress turn the tide?”

Fading brandThe Minister said “Brand Modi”was already fading, opening upthe space for Mr. Gandhi to connect better, allowing people tolook at him afresh.

“One word that resonated during the feedback I got from alarge cross section after RahulGandhi’s recent tour of the State[Karnataka] was believability. Ithink believability and reliabilityis how ‘Brand Rahul’ will shape,”he said, juxtaposing it with whathe termed “hollow promises ofModi who after four years conti

nues to talk of only 60 yearspast”. “The focus is on building alongterm trustworthy relationship, promising what we can do,”he said.

Mr. Gowda pitched an empowering strong local leadership asone of the paths for the revival ofthe Congress. Asked what hadchanged with Mr. Gandhi as thenew leader of the party, he said a

subtle change had been that Mr.Gandhi had empowered the localleadership to take decisions andlead their States.

“Where there is strong localleadership, central leadership isgiving more space. While he hasallowed Siddaramaiah to developa Karnataka Model of Development, Rajasthan also has a youngteam being given space,” he said.

Karnataka modelThe Minister spoke of a “Karnataka model of development”, andpitched it as an alternative to thatof the BJP. “We have achievedhigh growth, amid prudent �scalpractices and achieved inclusivegrowth implementing pathbreaking welfare schemes. Thisis the model that we o�er,” hesaid.

But has the Congress beentreading the path of softHindut

va, with the temple visits of Rahul Gandhi during the recentGujarat and the ongoing Karnataka campaigns?

The Minister said the templevisits were nothing new, but theperception was new as the lenshad changed.

Temple visits“The BJP, to cover up its failuresin livelihood and real issues, hasbeen pushing issues of faith andidentity to the fore. Goalposts arechanging too. So the way a visit toa temple is being perceived haschanged,” he said, pointing outthat Mr. Gandhi visited templeseven during his 2008 electioncampaign in Karnataka.

“The Congress represents allwalks of life and the visits to places of worship is only a re�ectionof that. For instance, RahulGandhi visited a Su� shrine, twoLingayat places of worship andthat of a subaltern goddess,” hesaid.

“In the south, we have a farmore diverse understanding ofHinduism itself. I come from aSudra community, and we havemany religious festivities revolving around nonvegetarianism.We have many gods and goddesses in the south who are nonvegetarian. It is for the BJP to saywhether their Hindutva includesthese gods too,” Mr. Gowda explained.

Getting the Grand OldParty up to speedKrishna Byre Gowda says Congress is developing local leadership

Aditya Bharadwaj

Talking politics: Nistula Hebbar, Political Editor, The Hindu, in conversation with Karnataka Minister KrishnaByre Gowda at The Huddle. * SAMPATH KUMAR G.P.

<> I think believability and

reliability is how ‘Brand

Rahul’ will shape

“Ibelong to a time when we talkedabout great art and culture when wespoke about India,” Ratna Pathak

Shah, theatre, �lm and television actor,said regretting the fact that suddenly allthat seems to represent the nation, especially outside of our own shores, seems tobe Bollywood.

“It’s like saying that all of American civilisation is Hollywood,” she said. For her,Bollywood is not India. “It’s a vulgar, simplistic, childish idea of India. It has beenpromoting hypocrisy beyond belief,” shesaid, setting o� a blistering start to the session titled “Coming of age: the mainstreaming of parallel cinema”. She felt Bollywood was “overly representative” ofIndian cinema when a lot of experimentation is happening in cinema in all languages across India.

The scathing attack on Bollywood camein light of a query by Veena Venugopal,moderator and Associate Editor, The Hin-du, about Ms. Shah’s recent criticism of Da-bangg. She felt that the �lm sent out scary,objectionable messages about women. “Itdoes not talk well about our civilisation,”she said.

Varied pursuitsActordirector Suhasini Maniratnam compared watching a �lm with reading a book.You see a �lm at a go, can’t stop midway,nor put it down like a book and come backto it later. But if, with digitisation, you canwatch the �lm at your convenience, thenthe divide between commercial and parallel cinema will be wiped o�, she said, carrying the debate forward. She went back tothe roots of art house cinema — how itemerged as an act of rebellion against oppression. “All art cinema is not great; someof the �lms can put you to sleep,” she said.But she felt that there was a growing breedof �lmmakers now who were not using cinema to make a statement or to getnoticed.

One of them, Amit Masurkar, the director of the critically acclaimed Newton,spoke about how people wondered why hewas making a �lm on politics. They hadthis perception that the youth were not interested in politics, while he believed politics was another form of entertainment forthe people. For an independentminded�lmmaker like him, the struggle was notabout getting a �lm made or selling and exhibiting it. “The struggle is in getting theright ideas,” he said.

When quizzed about the role of actors inbridging the gap between mainstream andcommercial cinema, Ms. Suhasini said thatit was the audience that was the key in �lling up the divide. “[But] If an actor decidesto support a good �lm, nothing like it,” shesaid. In Tamil cinema, Sivaji Ganesan experimented with small, new �lms, followedby Kamal Haasan and Rajinikanth in thebeginning; Aamir Khan, Shah Rukh Khanand Akshay Kumar had been trying it inBollywood.

Ms. Shah di�ered, hoping that actorswould be cast for their suitability thantheir stardom. She spoke about the young�lmmakers of the 1970s who gravitated towards stars. They depleted the directorsrather than feed them. “Even a wellmeaning star brings a certain amount of baggage,” she said.

In response to that, Mr. Masurkar spokeabout working with younger actors likeRajkummar Rao, who do not come from�lm families. “They realise that they willhave to work hard to go ahead,” he said.

He spoke of himself as the �rst generation of �lmmakers who did not just discover �lms online but even picked up his �lmmaking skills from the Internet.

But can that equal being in a �lm schoolwith passionate mentors and peers forcompany and constant conversations oncinema?

Ms. Suhasini evocatively spoke aboutbeing the only woman among 120 men inthe �lm school. Even that did not prepareher for her tryst with international cinema.She broke down on watching BicycleThieves.

It made her realise what cinema coulddo, what her future in �lmmaking was going to be like. “In 1979, at the age of 16, itcould only happen at a �lm institute,” shesaid.

Mr. Masurkar disagreed vehementlythat independent �lms like his were stillcon�ned to a small urban niche. Newtonwas released in Chhattisgarh, Jharkhandand Gorakhpur. It ran for four weeks inDalli Rajhara.

Ms. Shah said the audience had changedradically. In two generations, there wouldbe a much more literate audience. In a nutshell, a fertile ground and time to take cinema to its next level forward.

Make space, BollywoodA heady discussion on Indian cinema, with the focusbeyond Mumbai and on niche, independent art

Namrata Joshi

Suhasini Maniratnam at The Huddle. *

SAMPATH KUMAR G.P.

<> [Bollywood] is a vulgar, simplistic,

childish idea of India. It has been

promoting hypocrisy

Ratna Pathak Shah

actor

Defence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman onSunday said at The Huddle that the InterGovernment Agreement for the Rafale dealdid not name HAL or any other companyas partner for Dassault.

Ms. Sitharaman was in conversationwith N. Ravi, Publisher, The Hindu, on thetopic “In defence of the realm: how prepared is India?”

“The InterGovernment Agreement[between India and France] is like a memorandum of understanding which onlybroadly states intention. It does not nameanybody, not HAL or any other privatecompany,” she said.

“In the UPA nondeal, HAL had clearlystated manpower which was not acceptedby Dassault [which manufactures Rafale�ghter jets]. If Dassault does a deal with aprivate company, it is absolutely nonsenseto say that it was done because the PrimeMinister handpicked the company.”

She said the Defence Ministry would getto know about the Indian partner onlywhen it applied for credit after ful�lling theo�set obligation.

Prices of the aircraft, she said, arebound to go up as India will want to upgrade the basic, cheaper �ghter jet to suitits terrain and potential use.

However, is the Centre’s refusal to reveal details of the deal — as was seen in Parliament recently — a “selfgoal” for the ruling NDA government as the Congress hasbeen claiming, asked N. Ram, Chairman,The Hindu Group.

In response, Ms. Sitharaman said: “Iwant to answer, and it would bring satisfaction to all the people here. But it will also lead to satisfaction for our enemies ...But how many times has the UPA alsosought protection under national security.We [BJP, then in the Opposition] did notexpress outrage on this.”

In her opening remarks, the Defence Minister said indigenous defence procurement was being emphasised, with 120 outof 170 defence contracts being with Indiancompanies. “Until recently, 60% of components were imported. Now, it is 35%,”she said.

However, responding to a question onthe issues of procurement of the HALdeveloped Tejas light combat aircraft, Ms.Sitharaman said that while 40 had beenprocured by the Air Force, processes werebeing completed to order another 83.

“There has to be serious improvementin scaling up of production by HAL, eitherthrough outsourcing or their own,” shesaid.

PM can’t be blamedfor Dassault’s choice: Nirmala

Mohit M. Rao

THE HUDDLE






#5 6 7 0 0 1




CMYK

A ND-NDE

Nirmala meets NasheedIn the first official meeting between the

government and the Maldivian Opposition

since the declaration of emergency in the

island nation, Defence Minister Nirmala

Sitharaman met former President Mohamed

Nasheed on the sidelines of The Huddle in

Bengaluru on Sunday. Neither Mr. Nasheed’s

office nor the Defence Ministry divulged

contents of their conversation, but Mr.

Nasheed tweeted he was pleased to “meet

and brief Ms. Sitharaman on the situation”.

The meeting was significant as India had

earlier rejected a visit by President Abdulla

Yameen’s envoy, though the Indian

Ambassador in Male met the Maldivian

Foreign Secretary last week. The meeting

comes ahead of Tuesday, when the emergency

should be lifted going by the order issued by

President Yameen.

Ending after the starsHow does it feel to come on stage after

sportspersons, politicians, economists, etc.?

Comedian Danish Sait would know, and the

thought was not lost on him. Presenting the

last session of The Huddle, he commented,

“Such high profile, important people were

called. Then The Hindu decided to drop the

level and call me to finish things off. There is

no one to interview me, no couch for me, and

no commandos to guard me.”

Economy and environmentDuring the session on “Balancing Growth and

Inflation”, a member of the audience stood up

to ask a question on the need to factor in

environment and ecology in economic

policies. After former Deputy Chairman of the

Planning Commission Montek Singh Ahluwalia

replied to the question, former RBI Governor

D. Subbarao said it was heartening to see that

the first question of the session was linked to

a subject like environment.

Mystery favourite actorRecalling a college story of ragging, actor

Suhasini Maniratnam told the gathering that

she was asked to name her favourite actor;

and when she did, she was made to run around

the premises five times. She could sense the

anticipation and wonder about her mystery

favourite actor. “I will not name the actor. I

already have 12 criminal cases, and freedom of

expression is not easy,” she said.

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While monetary and �scal policy makers grapple with the “growth

versus in�ation” debate to determine India’s economic future,they should give top priority to�nding a way out of the currentmess in the banking system andimprove the private investmentcycle.

This was the key message thatcame out of a panel discussionwith the former Governors of theReserve Bank of India C. Rangarajan and D. Subbarao and theformer Deputy Chairman of thePlanning Commission MontekSingh Ahluwalia.

“The most important thingthat we need to do is to get investments. Monetary policyalone cannot bring growth. Investment rate is falling. So weneed to do a whole lot of thingsto bring investments,” Dr. Subbarao said during the panel discussion moderated by R. Srinivasan,Editor, BusinessLine.

Banking messMr. Ahluwalia said that in addition to improving the investmentcycle, the banking system needed to be �xed.

“There should be high priority in resolving the banking messthat has been created over thepast three or four years. Thebanks should get back to lending. This is not a monetary policyissue. Clearly, the RBI and the government have a role since 70%of the banks are still public sector banks,” Mr. Ahluwalia said.

Asked what should be done bypolicy makers going forward, Dr.Rangarajan prescribed consultation with the industry to see howthe investments could bebrought in.

“It is obvious that the economy is performing below potential. The economy can grow at89%. Monetary policy will notbe able to do much here to stimulate growth. Even if interest rateis lowered, I am not sure if the

banks are in a position to pass iton. They have other problemslike NPAs [nonperforming assets]. The government also cannot raise the public investmentby more than a few decimalpoints,” Dr. Rangarajan said.

“The private investment ratehas fallen from 3334% of theGDP to something like 27%. Government should call the industry and �nd out what is reallycoming in the way of higher investments. More focussed attention to individual sectors of theindustry would be a good thing

to do,” he said.Dr. Subbarao said the ongoing

in�ation targeting frameworkhad worked well so far, but hadnot been tested.

“The test will come when thegrowth is low and in�ation ishigh. It has worked reasonablywell so far, but it has not beentested. Test will also come whenthere is capital in�ows, whenthere is pressure on the exchange rate. What will the RBI dothen? Will it control the in�ationor will it manage the exchangerate? These are the questions forwhich one cannot lay down therules and one needs to play it bythe ball as per the situation,” hesaid.

Mr. Ahluwalia criticised theCentre’s move to increase customs duties. “Domestic produc

tion can be better protected byhaving a more realistic exchangerate rather than increasing theimport duties. It is a very regrettable step,” he said.

Dr. Rangarajan said that whilegrowth was important, it had tobe consistent with some level ofstability to make the growth sustainable. “You cannot have in�ation at 78% and then say growthis important,” he said.

Mr. Ahluwalia said that policymakers were always in a dilemma. “In reality, politicians have atough job because they are interested not just in keeping in�ationlow, but they are interested inlower in�ation in every commodity. The Finance Ministerwill be terri�ed of a news itemthat says prices of onions haveshot up, even if other agricultu

ral prices are low,” he said.The former Deputy Chairman

of the Planning Commission saidthere was excessive focus on monetary policy to drive growth.

“We are upset that the RBI isfollowing the rule, but we don’tseem to mind that the �scal de�cit has been departing from therule. If you ask which part of theeconomy is not following therule set a few years ago, then it isclearly the �scal de�cit. We keeppostponing the deadline to meetthe �scal de�cit targets. It is di�cult to understand why it woulddepart from the rule next year ifGDP is growing at 7.5% and thetax structure has stabilised. Sothe destabilising in�uences arenot just on the monetary side butalso on the �scal side,” Mr. Ahluwalia said.

Keeping the economy hummingTwo former RBI Governors and a former Plan panel chief weigh in on growth, in�ation and investment

Thomas K. Thomas

It’s the economy: C. Rangarajan, former RBI Governor, and Montek Singh Ahluwalia, former Deputy Chairman of the Planning Commission, atThe Huddle. Vinita Bali, former MD, Britannia, and R. Srinivasan, Editor, BusinessLine, are seen. * SAMPATH KUMAR G.P.

<> You cannot have

in�ation at 78% and

then say growth is

important

C. Rangarajan

Former RBI Governor

Nothing in Indian badminton’s recent history hasquite had a nation on ten

terhooks as two of P.V. Sindhu’smatches over the past 18 months.The �rst was her �nal at theOlympics in Rio, where she lostto Carolina Marin of Spain. Thesecond was her gruelling, marathon battle with Nozomi Okuhara of Japan for the World Championship in Glasgow. The �rstcatapulted her to stardom; thesecond only reinforced her statusas one of India’s �nest athletes.

In the year between the twoevents, Ms. Sindhu evolved greatly as a player. “I had to work oneach and every stroke after Rio,”she told journalist Prem Panickerat The Huddle here on Sunday.

“I kept on learning. Strategyplays a very important role. Carolina is an aggressive player;Okuhara is a rally player. Women’s badminton has changed alot. Now games are extending toan hourandahalf or two hours;endurance is very important.”

Last year was a good one forMs. Sindhu — two Super Seriestitles and a World Championshipsilver, not to forget her reachingtwo other major �nals — but shehas her sights set on a lot more in

2018. “There is a lot to do thisyear. I want to win more — thereis the Commonwealth Games,the Asian Games, the Worlds andthe All England Championships.I’m aiming higher,” she said.

There has been much opposition to the Badminton World Federation’s freshly introduced regulations, which make itmandatory for the top 15 players

to play a minimum of 12 tournaments on the new World Tour,but Ms. Sindhu is not particularlyconcerned.

“After the calendar is out, youcan’t do anything about it,” shesaid. “You should know whichtournaments to play and whichnot to; you have to discuss thatwith your coach and decide foryourself.”

Managing time Given her unforgiving calendar[she trains seven hours a day,and then there are the tournaments], did Ms. Sindhu �nd timefor a personal life, Mr. Panickerwondered. She was, he remind

ed the gathering, still only 22. “I don’t take it as a burden.

Age is not a matter to thinkabout. I don’t feel I’m only 22 because if you think that and thinkthere’s a long way to go, you never know where you will be,” shesaid.

Life had changed immeasurably after the Olympics, Ms. Sindhu admitted. “I’m very happy; after the Olympics my life haschanged a lot. Having this fan following, this limelight, I’m reallyenjoying it. My father has alwaystold me one thing: no matter howhigh you go, you always have tobe grounded. I really follow that.Even when you’re on top of theworld, you should rememberwhere you’ve come from.”

She had not forgotten the sacri�ces of her parents, she said.“My mother had to retire fromthe Railways. My parents have sacri�ced a lot more than I have.Some of their colleagues andneighbours felt I would succeedat neither badminton nor academics. But my parents believedin me.”

It is worth considering thatMs. Sindhu’s best could yet lieahead. “It’s not that I won a medal at the Olympics and I amdone. There are many more medals I have to get,” she said.

Staying grounded aftertop �ights at courtThe 22yearold star shuttler says she wants to win more this year

Shreedutta Chidananda

High spirits: Badminton player P.V. Sindhu in conversation with journalist Prem Panicker. * K. MURALI KUMAR

<> I’m very happy; after the

Olympics my life has

changed a lot.

P.V. Sindhu

Badminton player

Can the goofylooking, corrupt, unethical, �ctional “Humble Politician” Nograj make a di�erence in

real life? If you ask the brains behind thecharacter, the answer is, perhaps “Yes, hecan”.

Comedian and actor Danish Sait, whopresented the talk on “Comedy is change”at The Huddle said that though his famousprank calls — made with comical accents tounwitting recipients — started as “stupidfun”, they became a platform for socialcommentary.

The satire hit at the heart of the smallerevils, and eventually, the satire became ahit. “We talked about di�erent issues, demonetisation, politicians threatening violence, destruction of the environment. People saw through politicians like Nograj. Itbecame a household name, at least amongthe 1824 year olds who are important voters,” he said during the presentation, peppered with ribtickling punchlines.

Over 15 million views, 53,000 comments and 2,22,000 likes later, the seriesof Internet videos became a pro�table�lm. “If people laugh, they open theirmouths. If they open their mouths, theyopen their eyes. And with the opening ofeyes, they open their minds,” said Mr. Sait.

While imitations of personalities keptthe audience in splits, the comedian didtake a serious moment to express his concerns when asked about controversies andcourt cases against comedians who speak

their minds. “It is they [politicians] whoshould be in trouble. Just because peoplefollow a comedian, it doesn’t mean the comedian should not have an opinion,” hesaid.

Did he run into controversy for his Kannada �lm that largely poked fun at politicians and the political system? “Politiciansare smart. No politician is going to say thathe has a problem because we showed theirscam on �lm. In fact, when we showed the�lm to over 180 local politicians, I couldsee many nudging their neighbours andsaying the character was like one corporator,” Mr. Sait said. However, a politician didask him if there was a sequel and whetherit would show the political system in a better light. “There will be a sequel as long aspoliticians don’t change. Once it changes, Iwill gladly go out of the job knowing thesystem is cleansed,” he said.

Real fun, serious changeDanish Sait narrates how his prank calls worked

Mohit M. Rao

Sharp wit: Comedian and actor Danish Saitspeaks at The Huddle. * K. MURALI KUMAR

From the wings

Tweets

Sharing ideas: Defence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman in conversation with N. Ravi,Publisher, The Hindu, and Mukund Padmanabhan, Editor, The Hindu, at The Huddle inBengaluru on Sunday. * SAMPATH KUMAR G.P.

CCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCC

Tea talk

THE HUDDLE






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WORLD

Emma Watson gives £1 mnto women’s justice fundLONDON

Actor and activist Emma

Watson has donated £1

million to kickstart a British

fund to help women facing

harassment and abuse at

work, launched ahead of

Sunday’s Baftas and backed

by hundreds of women

entertainment stars. The

justice and equality fund was

announced in an open letter

supporting the U.S. ‘Time’s

Up’ movement, signed by

around 200 women. AFP

ELSEWHERE

Indianorigin o�cer mayhead U.K. antiterror unitLONDON

Neil Basu, an Indianorigin

police o�cer, is in the

running to take charge as

Britain’s antiterrorism chief

when Scotland Yard’s

National Lead for Counter

Terrorism Mark Rowley

resigns next month, The

Sunday Times reported. Mr.

Basu is currently serving as

deputy to Mr. Rowley. PTI

Opening a business madeeasier for Saudi womenRIYADH

Women in Saudi Arabia can

open their own businesses

without the consent of a

husband or male relative. The

policy change marks a major

step away from the

guardianship system.

“Women can now launch their

own businesses... without

having to prove consent from

a guardian,” the Ministry of

Commerce and Investment

said on its website. AFP

A teenager accused of fatallyshooting 17 people at a Florida high school was investigated by police and state o�cials as far back as 2016 afterslashing his arm in a socialmedia video, and saying hewanted to buy a gun, butauthorities determined hewas receiving su�cient support, newspapers said onSaturday.

Nikolas Cruz, 19, ischarged with committingmultiple murders on Wednesday at the Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School inParkland. More than a dozenpeople also were wounded inthe deadliest shooting at aU.S. high school.

The charges can bring thedeath penalty, but prosecutors have not yet said if they

will seek capital punishment. Days after the killings,a sombre series of vigils andfunerals were being held inand around Parkland, a FortLauderdale suburb of about32,000 people.

The South Florida Sun

Sentinel �rst reported that avideo of Cruz cutting his armposted to the social medianetwork Snapchat in September 2016 raised concernsamong law enforcement andat the Florida Department ofChildren and Families.

Received help“Mr. Cruz stated he plans togo out and buy a gun. It is unknown what he is buying thegun for,” said a report written by department o�cialsafter investigators interviewed the teenager, The Sun

Sentinel said.

The newspaper reportedinvestigators ultimately decided that Cruz, then 18, wasreceiving enough supportfrom mental health professionals and from his school,and any risk in his case waslow.

The Department of Children and Families (DCF) hasasked a court to release therecords for transparency, adding it has reviewed the circumstances surrounding the2016 case.

Meanwhile, in a tweet on

Saturday night President Donald Trump criticised theFederal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) for its handling ofthe case.

“Very sad that the FBI missed all of the many signalssent out by the Floridaschool shooter. This is not acceptable,” Mr. Trump wroteon Twitter.

He accused the FBI of“spending too much timetrying to prove Russian collusion with the (2016) Trumpcampaign”. The FBI admitted on Friday that it failed toinvestigate a warning thatCruz possessed a gun and thedesire to kill.

U.S. Attorney General Je�Sessions has ordered a review of FBI procedures following the shooting, inwhich 14 students and threeschool sta� members died.

Florida high school shooter was on police’s radar in 2016Media reports say a video showing Nikolas Cruz speaking about buying a gun had raised concerns

Reuters

Parkland

Take the guns away: A rally for gun control in Fort Lauderdale,Florida, on Saturday. * AFP

A survivor of the Parklandschool shooting called outU.S. President DonaldTrump on Saturday over histies to the powerful NationalRi�e Association, as severalthousand rallied in Floridato demand urgent action ongun control.

Three days after theshooting, 18yearold EmmaGonzalez delivered a �eryaddress to a crowd of students, parents and residentsin nearby Ft. Lauderdale.

“To every politician taking donations from the NRA,shame on you!” she thundered, assailing Mr. Trumpover the multimilliondollar

support his campaign received from the gun lobby.The crowd chanted in turn:“Shame on you!”

“We are going to be thelast mass shooting... We aregoing to change the law,” shevowed — slamming the factthat gunman Nikolas Cruzwas able to legally buy a �

rearm despite a history oftroubling behaviour.

“The question on whether or not people should beallowed to own an automaticweapon is not a politicalone. It is question of life ordeath and it needs to stopbeing a question of politics,”Mr. Gonzalez told AFP.

“If the President wants tocome up to me and tell me tomy face that it was a terribletragedy and... how nothingis going to be done about it,I’m going to happily ask himhow much money he received from the National Ri�e Association,” she said.

“It doesn’t matter because I already know. Thirtymillion,” she said.


Fort Lauderdale

‘Shame on you,’ survivor tells President Trump

Emma Gonzalez. * AFP

The Aseman AirlinesownedATR72 that crashed on Sunday had been built in 1993, itsCEO Ali Abedzadeh told stateTV. The airlines’s �eet includes at least three ATR72sthat date back to the early1990s, according to the IRNAnews agency. Decades of international isolation have leftIran’s airlines with ageing�eets of planes which theyhave struggled to maintainand modernise.

Nuclear dealLifting sanctions on aviationpurchases was a key clause inthe nuclear deal Iran signed

with world powers in 2015. Following the deal, Ase

man Airlines �nalised anagreement to buy 30 Boeing737 MAX jets for $3 billionlast June, with an option tobuy 30 more. However, thesale could be scuppered if

U.S. President Donald Trumpchooses to reimpose sanctions. The U.S. Treasury Department, which must approve aviation sales to Iran,has done so for 80 Boeingjets and 100 Airbus planesfor Iran Air. The �rst few Air

bus jets have already arrivedin Tehran.

Meanwhile, o�cials saidrescue teams would workthrough the night, battlingblizzard conditions to �ndthe plane that disappearedon Sunday. Red Crescent saidthe search was being hampered by the weather.

“The mountainous terrainis impassable. Thick fog andsnow and rain have made itimpossible to use helicopters, but yes the operation isongoing and will continue,”said Morteza Salimi, head ofits rescue and relief section.He said there were 45 teamsworking around the Denamountain of Iran’s southwestern Zagros range.

The country has struggled to maintain its ageing �eet of passenger planes

Associated Press


Tehran

Inconsolable: Grieving relatives of passengers believed tohave been killed in Sunday’s plane crash in Iran. * REUTERS

Iran’s aviation sector hit hard by sanctions

Basketball star LeBronJames lashed out at television host Laura Ingrahamfor stating that he should“shut up and dribble”,rather than comment onpolitical and social issues.

Mr. James and GoldenState Warriors forward Kevin Durant had talkedabout race relations in thecountry, and had also criticised the Donald Trumpadministration on a recentshow. This prompted Ms.Ingraham to mention thatMr. James should stick toplaying the sport.

“When I �rst saw her video, I laughed. First of all, Ididn’t know who she was,but now I do. We will notshut up and dribble. Imean too much to society,to the youth, and to so many kids who feel like theydon’t have a way out. Thekids need someone to leadthem out of the situationthat they are in,” he said.

He recalled his toughchildhood circumstancesto reiterate his point. Headded that professionalathletes feel strongly aboutsocial issues, much likeanyone else in the country.

Fellow AllStar StephenCurry lent his support toJames. “...Lebron, Durant,and every single NBA athlete is much more than justbasketball players. Theseguys raise resources,funds, and awareness intheir communities, tryingto make the world a betterplace,” Mr. Curry said.

Basketballstar chidesTV host’sremarksAshwin Achal

Los Angeles

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu warned Tehran on Sunday over aggressions, by what he called Iranand its “proxies” in Syria,while showing what heclaimed was a piece of anIranian drone shot down inIsraeli airspace.

Saying he had “a messageto the tyrants of Tehran”during a speech at the Munich Security Conference, hewarned: “Do not test Israel’sresolve.”

‘Iranian drone’He brandished a rectangular piece of dark green metalwhich he called “a piece of

that Iranian drone, orwhat’s left of it, after we shotit down”.

Israel has said it shotdown the drone on February 10 after it entered thecountry from Syria, and responded with a raid on whatit said was the Iranian control systems for the craft inSyria. It marked the �rsttime Israel publicly acknowledged hitting Iranian targets in Syria since the 2011start of the civil war there.

Calling Iran’s Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif the “smoothtalkingmouthpiece of Iran’s regime”, Mr. Netanyahu said:“Mr Zarif, do you recognisethis? You should, it’s yours.”

Israel warns Tehranover Syria ‘aggression’Agence France-Presse

Jerusalem

Bags of cash delivered toa Rome hotel for favoured Italian candi

dates. Scandalous storiesleaked to foreign newspapers to swing an election inNicaragua. Millions of pamphlets, posters and stickersprinted to defeat an incumbent in Serbia. The long armof Vladimir Putin? No, just asmall sample of the U.S.'s history of intervention in foreign elections.

Rules broken?Most Americans are understandably shocked by whatthey view as an unprecedented attack on the U.S.’s political system. But intelligenceveterans, and scholars who

have studied covert operations, have a di�erent, andquite revealing, view.

“If you ask an intelligenceo�cer, did the Russiansbreak the rules or do so

mething bizarre, the answeris no, not at all”, said StevenL. Hall, who retired in 2015after 30 years at the CIA,where he was the chief ofRussian operations. The Un

ited States “absolutely” hascarried out such election in�uence operations historically, he said.

Loch K. Johnson, the deanof U.S. intelligence scholars,who began his career in the1970s investigating the CIA asa sta� member of the Senate’s Church Committee,says Russia’s 2016 operationwas simply the cyberage version of standard U.S. practicefor decades. This broaderhistory of election meddlinghas largely been missingfrom the �ood of reportingon the Russian intervention.

A Carnegie Mellon scholar, Dov H. Levin, hasscoured the historical recordfor both overt and covertelection in�uence opera

tions. He found 81 by the United States and 36 by the Soviet Union or Russia between1946 and 2000, though theRussian count is undoubtedly incomplete.

The precedent was established in Italy with assistance to nonCommunistcandidates from the late1940s to the 1960s. Covertpropaganda has also been amainstay. Richard M. BissellJr., who ran the agency’s operations in the late 1950s andearly 1960s, wrote in his autobiography of “exercisingcontrol over a newspaper orbroadcasting station, or ofsecuring the desired outcome in an election.”

At least once the hand ofthe United States reached

boldly into a Russian election. U.S. fears that BorisYeltsin would be defeated forreelection as President in1996 by an oldfashionedCommunist led to an overtand covert e�ort to help him,urged on by President BillClinton.

What the CIA may havedone in recent years to steerforeign elections is still secret and may not be knownfor decades. It may be modest. But some oldtimersaren’t so sure. “I assumethey’re doing a lot of the oldstu�, because, you know, itnever changes,” said WilliamJ. Daugherty, who worked forthe CIA from 197996. “Thetechnology may change, butthe objectives don’t.” NY TIMES

The history of U.S. meddling in elections runs deepIntelligence experts say the alleged Russian operation was simply the cyberage version of standard American practice

22 years ago: The U.S. fears that Russia’s Boris Yeltsin wouldbe defeated in 1996 led to e�orts to help him, urged on byPresident Bill Clinton. * AP

Scott Shane






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BUSINESSEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE



IN BRIEF

SEBI may revamp defaultdisclosure by listed �rms NEW DELHI

Concerned over the fraud at

PNB remaining undetected

for years, markets regulator

SEBI may give a push to its

“onhold” plan to mandate

listed �rms to disclose all

loan defaults within a day, a

senior o�cial said. With an

aim to help investors take

informed decisions in cases

of loan default, SEBI had

earlier proposed to mandate

listed �rms to make

immediate disclosures on

defaults. PTI

‘Govt. must cut stake inPSBs to below 50%‘ NEW DELHI

The fraudulent transactions

worth �11,500 crore

detected at Punjab National

Bank should act as a strong

trigger for the government

to reduce its stake to less

than 50% in public sector

banks (PSBs), industry body

Assocham said. It argued that

PSBs should then be allowed

to function on the lines of

private sector lenders with a

full sense of accountability

to their shareholders,

protecting the interest of

depositors. PTI

‘Eight PSUs to hit capitalmarkets next �scal‘NEWDELHI

As many as eight public

sector companies (PSUs),

including Hindustan

Aeronautics, will hit the

capital markets next �scal as

the government intends to

unlock the real value of PSUs

and bring in greater

accountability. Department

of Investment and Public

Asset Management Secretary

Neeraj Gupta said these

initial public o�erings will be

done in a “staggered

manner” depending upon the

size of the issuance. PTI

Banks are planning to approach the Reserve Bank ofIndia (RBI) to break the impasse with the fraudhit Punjab National Bank (PNB),which is declining to paythem the dues till investigations into the �11,500croreLoU scam are completed, according to an o�cial who attended a meeting of majorlenders on the issue.

“All the banks �rst tried toconvince PNB to honour thecommitments.

“But they are saying letthe investigations be over….so, ultimately, we decided torefer the matter to the RBIfor a �nal decision,” said theo�cial who attended a meeting of lenders on Saturday.The banks have decided toapproach the central bankthrough the Indian Banks’

Association (IBA). Last week,the staterun lender informed the stock exchangesabout the detection of $1.77billion (�11,500 crore)worthunauthorised transactionswhere fraudulent letters ofundertaking (LoUs) were issued from a branch in Mumbai to secure overseas credit.

‘Liable to pay’Bankers, at the meeting,pointed out that LoUs wereissued by PNB for buyers’credit.

Since the other banks hadextended loans to PNB (theamount was credited toPNB’s NOSTRO account)which, in turn, gave thefunds to �rms involved in thefraud, the staterun lenderwas liable to pay the otherlenders.

Allahabad Bank, for example, had an exposure of

$366.87 million and StateBank of India $212 million toPNB. If PNB did not paythem, these lenders wouldhave to classify the loans (gi

ven to PNB) as NPAs. In thatcase, the total loan impairment arising out of this particular case could rise to�20,000 crore, banking in

dustry sources said. “Bank isfully secured by LoU documents and fully con�dent ofreceiving the payments,” Allahabad Bank had informedthe exchanges.

Public sector banks, already reeling under huge nonperforming assets (NPAs), donot want to their books to beimpaired further by this issue which, they said they believed, is not of their making.As a result, they now wantthe regulator to break thedeadlock as soon as possible.

2015 guidelines“They (RBI) have already issued a guideline in 2015 forsimilar kinds of cases. Theyhave to just reiterate the guideline which covers all thesekinds of scenarios,” saidanother banker.

RBI had pointed out to thefailure of internal control of

PNB as being the main reason for the fraud takingplace. It said it was assessingthe situation and would takeappropriate supervisory action. It may be reaclled thatthe banking regulator had already undertaken a supervisory assessment of controlsystems in PNB.

‘Backed by assets’Some of the banks that hadexposure to the companiesof Nirav Modi and MehulChoksi — the main accused inthis fraud — said their loanswere backed by the assets ofcompanies such as GitanjaliGems.

The Enforcement Directorate had conducted searchesat several properties belonging to Mr. Modi and reportedly seized diamond andgold jewellery worth morethan �5,000 crore.

‘Loan impairment may cross �20,000 cr. if PNB fails to pay on time, adding to huge nonperforming assets of the lenders’


Mumbai

Banking on RBI: Lenders are looking to the banking sectorregulator to break the deadlock. * PAUL NORONHA

Banks to knock at RBI’s door on PNB impasse

The Punjab National Bankhas seen an almost 23%rise in the amount that wilful defaulters owe it, withloan outstanding of �25lakh and above, in justmore than eight monthsended January this year.

The defaulters, who hadtaken loans of more than�25 lakh, had a gross outstanding of �14,593.16crore as on January 31, asper PNB data. The bank�rst started giving out suchdata from June 2017, whenthe gross loan outstandingagainst the defaulters was�11,879.74 crore. This hadgrown over 22.8% in theeight months. The risecame especially when thebank had been aggressivefor over a year now in recovering bad loans.

PNB: wilfuldefault sumrises 23%

PRESS TRUST OF INDIA

NEW DELHI

The Confederation of IndianIndustry (CII)Indian Banks’Association (IBA) FinancialConditions Index, a key indicator in assessing shortterm �nancial conditions inthe Indian economy, for theongoing fourth quarter of201718 registered 53.2, animprovement of �ve pointsyearonyear.

However, it marked a signi�cant fall of 12.1 over thethird quarter of this �scal.There has been also been amajor compression in twosubindices — the Cost ofFunds Index (22.8 in Q4FY’18 versus 55.6 in Q3FY’18) and Funding Liquidity Index (60.3 in Q4 versus85.9 in Q3).

Two other subindices,viz. the External FinancialLinkages Index (67.2 in Q4versus 64.5 in Q3) and Economic Activity Index (62.5in Q4 versus 55.2 in Q3) haveshown an improvement inthe Q4 FY201718 quartervisà vis the last quarter.

‘Industrial activity’“Industrial activity and consequent linkages to �nancialsector are contingent on intervention in �scal, sectoraland monetary policyspace,” said Chandrajit Banerjee, director general, CII.

“There is a clear acknowledgement of actions thathave been taken by the government in �scal and sectoral space,” the directorgeneral said.

Financial conditionsimproving: CII-IBA‘Index notes govt. work in �scal space’


New Delhi

Reliance Industries (RIL),along with global �rms, isplanning to invest more than�60,000 crore in Maharashtra in the next 10 years for establishing an integrated digital industrial area for the‘fourth industrialrevolution.’

“RIL, along with otherglobal companies, will investover �60,000 crore in thenext 10 years in Maharashtrawhich will be the �rst integrated digital industrial areain the country,” said MukeshAmbani, chairman, RIL.

“I �rmly believe that whatChina could achieve with itsmanufacturing revolution,India can achieve muchmore — and much morequickly — with the businesses and services of the fourth

industrial revolution,” saidMr. Ambani, addressing theglobal investors’ summit‘Magnetic Maharashtra: Convergence 2018’ here on Sunday. As many as 20 �rms, including Cisco, Siemens,Corning, HP, Dell, Nokia andNvidia are understood tohave agreed to invest in theventure. Elaborating on theconcept, Mr. Ambani said,

“the fourth industrial revolution is a convergence of disruptive technologies in thephysical, digital and biological spheres. It is going totransform the world and oursociety in unimaginableways. It will make Maharashtra the birthplace and thecradle of the fourth industrial revolution in India.”

Harnessing AI, IoTHe said India couldn’t be leftbehind in the global race toharness arti�cial intelligence, robotics, blockchain,Internet of Things, nextgeneration virtual and augmented reality, life sciences, newmaterials and new sources ofenergy and other technologies of the future.

“India has an opportunityto be a global leader. Thefourth industrial revolution

will help Maharashtra andIndia solve the most di�cultproblems in socioeconomicdevelopment. In healthcareand education, in water security and environmental security, in boosting agriculture production, in makingall our towns and citiessmart, [as also] our villages.

“Importantly, the fourthindustrial revolution willgenerate millions of new attractive employment opportunities for the youth of Maharashtra and India,” he said.

Tata Trusts chairman Ratan Tata said the Tata industrial empire’s journey beganin Maharashtra in 1877 whenJamsetji Tata built a textilemill in Nagpur.

He added the groupwould continue to invest inMaharashtra as most of its�rms are based in the State.

India can achieve more than China via fourth industrial revolution: Ambani


MUMBAI

Mukesh Ambani

RIL eyes �60,000 cr. digital industrial area

The Virgin Group on Sunday signed an ‘intent agreement’ with Maharashtra tobuild a hyperloop transportation system betweenMumbai and Pune, saidVirgin Group chairman Richard Branson. The project aims to reduce the travel time between the twocities to 20 minutes, fromthe three hours at present.

The �rst hyperlooproute will link central Punewith the megapolis as wellas the Navi Mumbai international airport. With easier access to airport gates,the loop will be able to ferry 150 million passengersevery year. The route willallow travel at speeds up to1,000 km per hour.

Hyperloop tolink Pune,Mumbai


Mumbai






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BUSINESS REVIEW

Customer centricity was anearly lesson for Judy Marks,who grew up helping herfather in his shop. “It was asmall store and every day wediscussed the business whendad came home. My two older siblings and I, we allworked in the store. Welearnt the value of customerservice. More importantly welearnt the value of how people do business with people.”This, she said, is helping inher mission to run a $12.3billion company in startupmode. Ms. Marks, in October2017, took over as presidentof Otis Elevators Co., the 165year old �rm whose founderinvented the elevator. Excerpts from an interview:

The global economy is

recovering. What are your

challenges and

opportunities now?

n We’re excited by what wesee in the economy throughout the world; especiallyhere in India, we see demand picking up. We see stabilisation in some of the �nancial [metrics] and theeconomics here.With [growing] economies comes theopportunity to be able toserve retail customers, ourindustrial customers, andimportantly our commercialand housing customers.

What challenges accompany

recovery? In the last 78

years, large economies have

been struggling...

n When you have either stable or declining economies,you always have an oppor

tunity to evaluate your strategies and your investments.We spend time trying to understand where the potentialpockets of growth would be,what the demand signalwould look like, how to optimise both our portfolio andour manufacturing capabilities. But, most importantly[we evaluate] how to investfor the digital economy weare in today.

What potential do you see in

the Indian market?

n The opportunity to us isvery real because we believethe Indian market can bestbe served by our localised India footprint. We have thelargest service base here anda service portfolio [which is]at about 70,000 units in the

country. We view ourselvesas a ‘Make in India’ [company]. And because of that Ihad an opportunity to visitour Bengaluru factory aswell as our R&D facility inHyderabad, and our lead of�ce in Mumbai. We have 80service locations and close to3,000 employees.

We have continued to assess and implement our localisation [initiatives]. Weare proud to now manufacture escalators and our Gen2product. We are excitedabout rolling out our Made inIndia escalator product,which will be coming o� ourlines in the next few monthsfrom Bengaluru.

A lot of metro rail projects

are being executed here...

n Infrastructure obviouslyappeals to our elevator andescalator business in general. We are a company thatmoves people and every dayin the world we move twobillion people across our

products. And here in India,we think that can change theway of life. We work with ourcustomers who can provide,with our technology, a betterpassenger experience. Theymay be architects, generalcontractors, developers, thegovernment, and then obviously our service contractors or building managers.

What is your investment

plan for India?

n We are committed to ourBengaluru manufacturing facility. We’ve also grown ourpresence in Hyderabad interms of professional engineers who are very much apart of our Internet of thingsand digitalisation strategy.

Our factory here is focused on providing the bestproducts, again using localcontent, local suppliers thatwe can provide both hereand eventually someday forexport. India is an importantnode for our manufacturingnetwork and we �nd the talent here to be wonderful.

Otis has been in India for the

last 100 years. The �rst Otis

elevator was installed 125

years ago. But now it is not

the market leader. How do

you plan to regain top slot?

n We are very proud of [ourhistory] and not only did wecreate the industry here inIndia but 165 years ago ElishaOtis created the �rst safe elevator. And with that comespride and responsibility ofbeing able to support not only cities being built, but rising above four and �ve�oors. We have now for thepast several years gained

market share every year. It starts with focusing on

customers and understanding the markets we are goingto serve. We believe that thatquality and that personal relationship and innovationwill be key to securing customers. Our approach to a‘connected’ elevator that allows for a di�erent passenger experience, providingmore safety for our mechanics and riding public is important. All this is part of ourstrategy to become a leadingdigital industrial company.

You said your mission is to

run Otis as a startup.

n We have 68,000 employees globally. With thatcomes the opportunity tolead and be local everywhere. We have 33,000 mechanics making 1,20,000 visits to customers every day.

They have the opportunity to see where they can addvalue and make improvements. We should be able totake that information, fusethat, understand where customers’ needs are going,predict that and get there�rst. That’s what startupsdo. They look at things froma di�erent perspective.

They o�er solutions thathaven’t even been applied tocertain industries. That’s thespirit I am trying to instil inall of our colleagues. Yet, inour industry you have to balance that, because we are ina life safety business. Wedon’t have the opportunityto just write a software appand allow that to control anelevator without regulationor safety. So we have to balance [against] that.

INTERVIEW | JUDY MARKS

India, a key node in manufacturing networkWant to instil startup culture in Otis, whose ‘connected’ elevators can predict user needs: president

Lalatendu Mishra

<> With 1,20,000 visits

daily, our mechanics

have the chance to

see where they can

make improvements

Flipkartowned digital payments startup PhonePe saidit is expecting to overtakePaytm next month to become the largest mobile payments company in the country. The Bengalurubased�rm said it is going to surpass �80,000 crore in totalpayment volume (TPV) annual run rate by March thisyear.

“I think ‘value wise’, wewould overtake (Paytm)... byMarchend. Right now, theyare the largest,” said SameerNigam, cofounder and CEOof PhonePe, in an interview.

The company said itachieved TPV annual runrate of �58,000 crore andprocessed 45 million transactions in January this year.

Open ecosystemMr. Nigam said his �rm hadan edge over players such asPaytm, MobiKwik and Google’s mobile payment service Tez, as it is setting up anopen payments ecosystem.This would enable businesses of all sizes to build and deploy apps on its platformwith a uni�ed login and payments experience for customers.

For example, in January itformed a strategic partnership with online bus ticketbooking service redBus. The�rm had gone live with anexclusive store on the PhonePe app.

“We are building an openecosystem at a meta level,for consumers, merchantsand banking, �nancial services and insurance,” saidMr. Nigam. “Most payment

players are [ just focussingon] consumers and merchants and are trying tocreate a walled gardenaround it.”

Indigenous deviceTo take on competition, thecompany is also implementing a strategy of deployingan indigenously designedpointofsale (PoS) devicethat is powered by Bluetoothtechnology.

The device works andlooks like a traditional calculator and costs about �600.It is aimed at serving merchants of all sizes — from ‘kirana’ stores, petrol pumpsand food chains to quickservice restaurants.

The company recently entered into a �rstofitskindpartnership with Indian OilCorporation Limited (IOCL)for the adoption of thesedevices at IOCL retailoutlets.

As part of this partnership, customers can pay using the Uni�ed Payments Interface (UPI), credit anddebit cards and the PhonePewallet.

They can also pay via other external wallets such asJio Money and Freechargefor their fuel purchases,through the PoS device atIOCL’s retail outlets inBengaluru.

PhonePe is live with10,000 units of such PoSdevices in Bengaluru. It isaiming to go live with onemillion PoS devices across50 cities by the end of 2018.

“The whole purpose ofputting out a PoS (device) isdue to our learning, on thestreet. Also, India knowshow calculators work,” saidMr. Nigam.

The company said it wasopening up its software development kit (SDK), a programming package that enables a programmer to createapplications for a speci�cplatform.

This means various payments players can integratetheir service with PhonePe’sPoS device.

“You can’t preventanyone’s innovation cycle ifyou want to really win. Weare opening it (SDK) up andexposing ourselves to thecompetition, instead of taking the other approach,”said Mr. Nigam.

Besides this, PhonePe’sparent company Flipkarthad committed $500 millionto help the company take onrivals such as Paytm andGoogle Tez.

The company said it hasnow got about 21 million active users. It is being accepted by more than 60,000 online and o�ine merchantsincluding Cleartrip, PVR, Café Co�ee Day and ApolloPharmacy.

We’re hot in pursuit ofPaytm: PhonePe’s NigamSays will emerge as largest mobile payments �rm in March

Peerzada Abrar

BENGALURU

Sameer Nigam

Despite repeated cautions bythe Reserve Bank of Indiaand the Finance Ministryabout the risks associatedwith investing in cryptocurrencies and their illegalitywhen used as actual currency, the cryptoindustry is stillpretty enthusiastic about India and maintains that eventhe government’s negativestance has beenexaggerated.

The RBI has issued threewarnings about cryptocurrencies since 2013, and theFinance Ministry in December issued a stronglywordednotice likening crytocurrencies to Ponzi schemes andemphasised that buyers andinvestors were risking theirmoney by investing in theseproducts. This culminated inFinance Minister Arun Jaitley’s Budget speech on February 1, when he again reiterated the government’sposition that cryptocurrencies were not legal tenderand the government wouldlook to curb any illegal transactions and �nancing usingthese digital currencies.

Legal or not?While several commentatorstook this to mean that the government had declaredcryptocurrencies illegal, industry players in contrasttook a lot of heart from Mr.Jaitley’s statement, sayingthat instead of suggesting aban, the government lookedlike it was considering regulation of the industry.

“When Mr. Jaitley said itwas not legal tender, this isthe stand the RBI has alwaysmaintained,” said Rahul Raj,cofounder and CEO, Koinex,one of India’s rapidly growing digital assets exchanges.

“Even foreign currenciesin the country are commodities and not legal tender. Healso mentioned that they arelooking to curb the illicit �nancial of illegal activities. Ifthey are talking about illicituse, it seems to suggest a regulatory environment ratherthan destroying the entireindustry.”

In one of the Finance Minister’s media interviews,Mr. Raj added, “it came outvery clearly that he meant

regulation. “In a separate panel discussion, Economic Affairs Secretary SubhashChandra Garg said that theywere looking at a regulatoryframework before the end ofthe �nancial year, and saidthe government was notcomfortable with the words‘coin’ or ‘currency’ becausethese are not legal tender,and so instead wanted to callthem ‘cryptoassets’.”

Likewise, the industry body representing most of theblockchain and crytocurrency companies in India agreeswith this assessment.

“There is a lot of negativity... arising out of repeatedcaution by the governmentand RBI that people are investing in cryptocurrenciesat their own risk, which weagree with, and second, thatit’s not legal tender, andthird, some bank or the other says that you cannot usecredit or debit cards to purchase cryptocurrencies,” AjitKhurana, head of the Blockchain and CryptocurrencyCommittee of the Internet &Mobile Association of Indiasaid. “But none of this goesto the existence or legality ofcryptocurrencies.”

Earlier this month, Citibank banned the use of itscredit and debit cards for thepurchase of cryptocurrencies in India “given concerns, both globally and locally, including from theReserve Bank of India, cau

tioning members of the public regarding the potentialeconomic, �nancial, operational, legal, customer protection, and securityrelatedrisks” associated with dealing in them.

The central bank’s view,however, doesn’t seem ascutanddry as made out tobe. On February 8, the RBIcame out with a report onthe �ntech sector, in which itdedicated a section to digitalcurrencies (DCs). It went intothe modalities of such currencies and also their futurepotential, an indication that

the RBI was not totallyclosed to the applications ofdigital currencies.

“The implications of DCsfor �nancial �rms, marketsand system will depend onthe extent of their acceptability among users,” the report said. “If use of DCs wereto become widespread, itwould likely have materialimplications for the businessmodels of �nancial institutions. DCs could potentiallylead to a disintermediationof some existing paymentservices infrastructure.”

Some cyrptocurrencyplayers are also of the opi

nion that if the governmentwished to act decisivelyagainst cryptocurrencies, itwould have already done so.

“If the government had tocompletely ban these cryptocurrencies, then theywould have do so already,”Ashish Agarwal, founder ofBitsachs said. “I think theywant to understand whethercalling it illegal would resultin serious harm, or whethersimply declaring it illegal willstop the system or force people into buying these digitalcurrencies using cash.”

The Income Tax Department this year sent one lakhnotices to people who invested in cryptocurrencies andwhose investments didn’tmatch their income pro�le.

This too was widely seenas an anticryptocurrencymove, but industry playersdownplayed its signi�cancesaying the number of noticessent was too small and thatthey didn’t have muchweight given that the current�nancial year is yet to end.

“The Income Tax Department came to all players andsaid: ‘give us the records [ofinvestors]’,” Mr. Khuranasaid.

“Now, of the number ofrecords that were given tothem, the proportion of people to whom the noticeswent is a small fraction.While one lakh seems like alarge number, it’s not as if wegave them one lakh [worth

of] details and they sent notices to all of them. We gavethem a much larger number.One lakh is a small percentage of that.”

“Suppose somebody hassold bitcoins after April 2017,not even one �nancial yearhas gone, so it couldn’t possibly have reached their income tax returns,” Mr. Khurana added. “The maximumthat could have happened isthat they could have reported any gains they made intheir advance tax. The returns are only going to go inJuly 2018.”

“Suppose I am a low income earner who �les a return of say, �2 lakh a year,”Mr. Agarwal added. “Now,suppose I have taken a loanand invested in bitcoin andhave turned �3 lakh into �30lakh. That, of course, will notmatch my past returns,right? Most of the investorsmade their gains in 201718,so the deadline for their declarations is yet to come.”

KYC compliantAnother argument beingmade is that the reason theIT department found it soeasy to track down investorsin cryptocurrencies was because the exchanges adhered to the same KYC rulesas those followed by banks.

“From our perspective,we do the complete KYC requirements that are the samefor most banks, which is PANcard, Aadhaar number, bankaccount details; every singlepayment that comes to ushas to come through yourown bank account,” NischintSanghvi, head of exchange atZebpay said. “You cannottrade in your name and havesomebody else send thefunds.”

“Every single transactioncan be traced,” Mr. Sanghviadded. “For certain highendusers trading above a certainvalue, we even ask for income tax documents, a CAcerti�cate, and networthdocuments.

“Today, when somebodybuys a car or jewellery, eventhat can be declared or, neednot be. All the car companycan ensure is that the personis paying through the rightchannels, the car is in theirname, and the like.”

Cryptoassets: regulation in the air?Centre would have banned cryptocurrencies by now if that was its aim, say industry players

TCA Sharad Raghavan

NEW DELHI

Select focus: The 1 lakh people, to whom the I-T department sent notices, are only a section ofthe number of records we shared with the agency, says Ajit Khurana. * GETTY IMAGES/ISTOCK

<> Every payment

made to us has to

come through your

bank account

Nischint Sanghvi

Head of Exchange, Zebpay

Arti�cial Intelligence (AI)has been subject to a fairshare of debates includingconcerns around machinesovertaking, or even replacing, the human workforce.

However, ground realitiessuggest the main concernshould be the acute shortageof skills.

Need for talentOne of the biggest roadblocks in the active adoptionof AI is the sheer scarcity ofskilled professionals. Thereare simply not enough datascientists to interpret massive amounts of data that aregenerated every day, a service that cognitive computing can o�er. Further, sincethe skillset of a data scientistneeds to constantly evolvealong with technology, thedemandsupply gap is onlygrowing further.

In countries such as India,AI adoption is driven by theevolution of the IT infrastructure. According to theIDC Cognitive User AdoptionSurvey (2017), an overwhelming majority of Indianorganisations (nearly 70%) —have either adopted or haveplans to leverage cognitivecapabilities in the next 18months. This includes acombination of pilot and enterprisewide deployments.Currently, one in �ve organisations has already deployedcognitive systems, pointingto higher maturity levels ascompared with AsiaPaci�ccounterparts (where one in10 has achieved the same level of implementation).

In India, the telecom,technology and banking industries are frontrunners inadoption. State Bank of India recently announcedplans to leverage AI for its integrated platform, YONO(You Only Need One). Thisdigital banking platformgives users access to bankingas well as a host of lifestyleservices through a singlesignon.

Then there is the healthcare industry that relies on

AI to �netune the accuracyof medical predictions, andaccordingly choose a �ttingline of treatment.

Retail is another, andmore obvious industry,where AI has found a strongfoothold. Ecommerce �rmsdepend on AI tools to detectmalpractices, improve conversion ratios and foreseeconsumer buying patterns.In fact, Indian etailers areincreasingly using AI for personalised recommendationsand better optimisation oftheir supply chain networks.

For instance, Tata Cliq,and The Label Life are working with Mad Street Den thato�ers visual search technology, product recommendations and personalised homepages based on the tastesof individual shoppers. Thishelps improve customer experience considerably andleads to greater conversions.

Since the CEO of a consumer company has to lookafter thousands of marketsand stores, Manthan Analytics, based in Bengaluru, isconstructing a $100million,voicebased AI platformcalled Maya. With Maya, aCEO gets access to statisticson a speci�c market at anytime and can deduce the response of sales, daywise. Thesystem not only records social feeds but also tallies itwith market performance.

Companies such as Starbucks and Pizza Hut areworking to execute chatbots

to help accelerate customerpurchases. As chatbot technology becomes more advanced, virtual agents willenhance a more personal relationship with each customer. While they do so, theycan also track customer purchases, behaviour and preferences. This data can thenbe integrated into a conversation to recommend products or services.

Rising budgetsSuccessful companies regularly process high volumesof data to extract meaningfulinsights. Particularly in retail, businesses are deploying AI analytics to make surethe right product is in theright place at the right time.

Using AI, retailers are expanding their boundaries tocapture, manage, assess,and derive value out of thedata residing in their systems. Adopting AI helps organisations present actionable insights, drive revenues,boost e�ciencies, help thinkthrough complex problemareas and transform customer experiences.

Overall, industries are expected to experience moreAI use cases in the near future — from digital shoppingassistants in retail to carefully curated teams in sports,and factory automation systems in manufacturing.

(The writer is MD, salesand marketing group, IntelIndia)

Prakash Mallya

I know what you want: Better tracking of customer behaviourleads to meaningful recommendations. * GETTY IMAGES/ISTOCK

Slowly, but surely, AI useis rising across industries

GUEST COLUMN

But posthaste, we need data analysts in huge numbers






#5 6 7 0 0 1

Seamer Bhuvneshwar Kumartook careerbest �gures of�ve for 24 to help India easeto a 28run victory overSouth Africa in the openingTwenty20 International oftheir threegame series at theWanderers on Sunday.

Bhuvneshwar said SouthAfrica’s ploy to unsettle Indian batsmen with shortpitched balls back�red andthe key to India’s success waschanging the pace and bowling more slower deliveries.

“What I was trying to do isbring about change of pacein my bowling. I just wantedto take the pace o� the ballbecause I knew it won’t beeasy to hit the ball and that’swhat I did. The importantthing is how you mix your

CMYK

A ND-NDE

SPORTEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE



India: Rohit c Klaasen b Dala 21(9b, 2x4, 2x6), S. Dhawan cKlaasen b Phehlukwayo 72 (39b,10x4, 2x6), S. Raina c & b Dala15 (7b, 2x4, 1x6), V. Kohli lbw bShamsi 26 (20b, 2x4, 1x6), M.Pandey (not out) 29 (27b, 1x6),M.S. Dhoni b Morris 16 (11b,2x4), H. Pandya (not out) 13 (7b,2x4); Extras (lb2, w9): 11;Total (for five wkts. in 20overs): 203.Fall of wickets: 123 (Rohit, 1.5overs), 249 (Raina, 3.6), 3108(Kohli, 9.3), 4155 (Dhawan,14.4), 5183 (Dhoni, 18.1).South Africa bowling: Paterson40480, Dala 40472, Morris 40391, Shamsi 40371,

Smuts 20140, Phehlukwayo20161.South Africa: J. Smuts cDhawan b Bhuvneshwar 14 (9b,3x4), R. Hendricks c Dhoni bBhuvneshwar 70 (50b, 8x4,1x6), JP. Duminy c Raina bBhuvneshwar 3 (7b), D. Miller cDhawan b Pandya 9 (5b, 1x6), F.Behardien c Pandey b Chahal 39(27b, 3x4, 2x6), H. Klaasen cRaina b Bhuvneshwar 16 (8b,1x4, 1x6), A. Phehlukwayo cChahal b Unadkat 13 (8b, 2x4),C. Morris c Raina b Bhuvneshwar 0 (1b), D. Paterson run out 1(1b), J. Dala (not out) 2 (3b), T.Shamsi (not out) 0 (2b); Extras(b1, lb1, nb1, w5): 8; Total

(for nine wkts in 20 overs): 175.

Fall of wickets: 129 (Smuts,2.5), 238 (Duminy, 4.6), 348(Miller, 6.2), 4129 (Behardien,14.6), 5154 (Hendricks, 17.1), 6158 (Klaasen, 17.4), 7158 (Morris, 17.5), 8159 (Paterson, 17.6),9175 (Phehlukwayo, 19.4).

India bowling: Bhuvneshwar 40245, Unadkat 40331,Bumrah 40320, Pandya 40451, Chahal 40391.

Toss: South Africa.

ManoftheMatch:Bhuvneshwar.

India won by 28 runs to take a1-0 lead in the three-matchseries.

SCOREBOARD SOUTH AFRICA VS INDIA, FIRST T20I

South Africa’s injury woescontinued with its starbatsman AB de Villiersbeing ruled out of thethreematch T20I seriesdue to a knee injury hereon Sunday. de Villiers had

su�ered a blow to his leftknee a day before the �fthODI. Though the formerskipper featured in the lasttwo games, he was absentwhen the Proteas trainedon Saturday.

“He su�ered a blow tothe knee while batting

ahead of the �fth ODI, andalthough he passed a�tness test on Friday, theinjury worsenedsigni�cantly throughoutthe match,” MohammedMoosajee, South Africa’steam manager, was quotedas saying.

de Villiers out of T20I series Press Trust of India

Johannesburg

After conceding equalisersin the dying minutes twice athome Chennaiyin FC �nallyfound itself at the right endof such a situation with an89thminute strike againstJamshedpur FC.

After falling behind at thehalfhour mark, Chennaiyincame out with purpose inthe second half, was relentless in attack and dominatedproceedings. Passes were onthe money and it also won afew corners.

For the most part of thesecond period, the hometeam kept the game in theopposition’s half. Finallysubstitute Mohammed Ra�headed in a corner fromRene Mihelic, who too hadnot started the game.

Jamshedpur’s strengthhas been solid defence withits coach Steve Coppell unapologetic about his side’sstyle of play.

The team continued withits tight game and did not allow Chennaiyin to build arhythm to press forward.

In the 32nd minute, thevisitors scored with a moment of brilliance against therun of play. Andre Bikey’sfreekick into the box wascleared by Inigo Calderonbut it found Wellington Priori who volleyed it in.

Chennaiyin — despite getting an opportunity as early

as the third minute; JaimeGavilan Martinez shot wide afreekick from short distance— didn’t really show enoughurgency in the �rst half, satback and let the gamemeander.

It allowed the oppositionto press forward and JFC’sbest chance came in the 25thminute when Jerry Mawihmingthanga sent in an inviting cross into the sixyardbox, only for Farukh Choudhary to miss a simple header.

Towards the end of the�rst half, Chennaiyin madesome threatening runs butthe �nal shots were weakand lacked conviction. Raphael Augusto producedsome good runs throughoutthe game.

The Brazilian, however,was also guilty of pulling thetrigger early and not being in

the right position to makemeaningful impact.

In the 95th, Chennaiyincould have scored the winner when Mihelic sent in aperfect freekick but skipperSereno Fonseca Henriquefailed to get a proper touch.

However, coach John Gregory was a delighted and relieved man. “To be honest,after the secondhalf performance we deserved all threepoints. That is our fourthgame in 12 days and we hadto travel as well. The way wedominated the second halfshowed what we are madeof,” said Gregory.The results:

At Chennai: Chennaiyin FC 1(Mohammed Ra� 89) drew withJamshedpur FC 1 (WellingtonPriori 32).

At Kolkata: ATK 1 (Bipin Singh47) lost to Mumbai FC 2 (MarcioRozario 32, Rafa Jorda 53).

Late equaliser saves CFC’s blushes

Mohammed Ra� cancels out Wellington Priori’s strike

ISL

S. Dipak Ragav

Chennai

Saviour:Mohammed Ra� bailed out Chennaiyin FC with an89thminute goal against Jamshedpur FC. * R. RAGU

deliveries according to thewicket,” he said.

Having been sent in to bat,India plundered 203 for �vefrom its 20 overs on a �at batting wicket as opener Shikhar Dhawan hit a superb 72from 39 balls.

It is India’s highest innings

total against South Africa inthe shortest format of thegame. South Africa was inthe game until Bhuvneshwar’s �nal over when hepicked up the key wicket ofReeza Hendricks (70 from 50balls) and then dismissedHeinrich Klaasen (16) and

Chris Morris (0) o� successive balls, before Dane Paterson (1) was the fourth wicketto fall as he was run out. Thehome side ended its inningson 175 for nine.

The second Twenty20 willbe played in Pretoria onWednesday (Feb. 21), with

the �nal game on Saturday(Feb. 24) in Cape Town.

Dhawan it was who led anaggressive Indian battingperformance. The lefthander hit 10 fours and two sixesin a 39ball innings. He waslucky to escape on 10 whenhe �icked at a ball down the

leg side from Dala.South Africa appealed

halfheartedly for a catch behind and the ball was calledwide. Replays showed theball had brushed his glove.

India made a �ying start,with Rohit Sharma squarecutting the �rst ball from

Dane Paterson for six. He added a second six in an overwhich yielded 18 runs.

Rohit was caught behindo� Dala in the second overbut all the Indian batsmenfollowed his attacking example.

India captain Virat Kohli’s

run of big scores endedwhen he was leg before wicket to leftarm wrist spinnerTabraiz Shamsi for 26.

India su�ered an injuryblow, with leftarm wristspinner Kuldeep Yadav missing because of a thumb injury su�ered in Centurion.

Dhawan and Bhuvneshwar power India to a 10 lead The lefthander sets it up with a 72 before the seamer seals it with a �ve for 24

Aggressive: Shikhar Dhawan was unstoppable as he carted the South African bowlers all around the park. * AP

Reuters, AFP

JOHANNESBURG

INDIA IN SA

India’s middleorder collapsed after a �ery start asSouth Africa won the thirdTwenty20 International by�ve wickets to keep the �vematch series alive, here onSunday.

The Indian women, eyeing their maiden T20 serieswin in South Africa, collapsed to 133 in 17.5 oversfrom a solid 93 for two in the12th over.

South Africa came out �ring and overhauled the target with one over to spare.

Earlier, put in, India wascruising with skipper Harmanpreet Kaur (48, 30b,6x4, 2x6) punishing thehome bowlers with herthunderous strokes.

After losing Mithali Raj fora duck in the very �rst over,

Harmanpreet and SmritiMandhana added 55 runs forthe second wicket in quicktime.

However, once the aggressive captain and openerSmriti (37, 24, 4x4, 1x6) weredismissed, India lost wicketsin a heap. Shabnim Ismail

emerged wreckerinchiefwith a �ve for 30.The scores: India 133 in 17.5 overs (Harmanpreet Kaur 48,Smriti Mandhana 37; ShabnimIsmail �ve for 30) lost to SouthAfrica 134 for �ve in 19 overs(Sune Luus 41, Chloe Tryon 34,Dane van Niekerk 26; PoojaVastrakar two for 21).

Shabnim bowls SA to victoryIndian women pay for dramatic collapse


Johannesburg

Something to cheer: Despite losing the third T20I, the Indianwomen stayed back to root for the men. * COURTESY: BCCI

With the Supreme Courtscheduled to hear the matter related to the implementation of the Justice Lodhareforms in cricket on February 23, BCCI actingsecretary Amitabh Choudharyhas requested the BCCImembers to give their ‘express views’ on the same sothat he can put them all inhis a�davit to be placed before the apex court.

In a note mailed to BCCImembers on Sunday,Choudhary has said: “Asmany as 13 fullmember units have already written indicating their decision (on thematter of provision of cooling o� period, constitutionof the Apex Council and distribution of functions, pow

ers and responsibilities between the electedo�cebearers and the professional appointees) andmore have requested me todo the needful to bring theirviews to the notice of theHon’ble Court.

Proposal“In keeping with the said request, I propose to �le an af�davit before the Hon’bleSupreme Court, apprising itof the views of the saidmembers with regard to theimplementation of the reforms.

“However, before that isdone, the undersignedwould most humbly requestthose members who havenot expressed themselvesexpressly on the subject tokindly do so.”

Wants to put them in his a�davit to SC

G. Viswanath

Mumbai

Choudhary seeksBCCI members’ views

Syed Kirmani was a naturalbehind the stumps. He waslight on his feet and lightning quick with the big gloves.And the stylish and classicalKiri ‘bhai’ elevated ’keepinginto an ‘art’ form.

Yet, Kirmani, now,seemed resigned to thechanging demands of modernday cricket when a’keeper was picked more forhis batting ability than workwith the gloves.

It was with both sadnessand a sense of bowing to theinevitable that he said hereon Sunday, “The idea of aspecialist wicketkeeper isgone.”

Coming from a ’keepinggiant of the past, it was a bigstatement. “Even K.L. Rahulkeeps wickets these days,”quipped Kirmani.

He observed, “Thesedays, teams want a batsmanwho can also ’keep, addanother dimension to hisgame, be an allrounder. Inmy time ’keeping tookprecedence.”

Kirmani was not willing topick the best wicketkeeperin the country. “They are allin the process of becomingbetter wicketkeepers. It’s

hard to say who is the best.”Queried about M.S. Dho

ni’s rather unorthodox bute�ective ’keeping methods,Kirmani replied, “They say,we want results not technique. And that’s what Dhoni has been doing.”

Kirmani said, “During the2011 World Cup, some criticised Dhoni for his technique. But he took the country to the top, led from thefront.”

The ace stumper who’kept to the famous Indianspin quartet said, “It is notright for people to point out�aws in Dhoni’s keeping. Hehas contributed so much toIndian cricket.”

Asked whether a droppedcatch by the ’keeper mighteventually outweigh theruns he scored, Kirmani�ashed a smile andshrugged.

Kirmani resigned to changing demands of modern cricket

S. Dinakar

CHENNAI

‘Idea of a specialist ’keeper is gone’

Syed Kirmani. * THE HINDU

Roger Federer celebrated hisreturn to the top of the worldrankings by winning the Rotterdam Open on Sunday, his97th career title, and declared it “one of the bestweeks of my life.”

The 36yearold, the oldest No. 1 in history, defeated ailing Bulgarian Grigor Dimitrov 62, 62 in a onesided�nal that lasted just 55minutes.

In the Open era, onlyAmerican Jimmy Connorshas won more titles — 109.

“What a fantastic week,”said Federer. “The goal at thestart of the week was tomake it to the semi�nals.This is absolutely amazing,I’m really pleased.

“It’s unbelievable to benumber one again after allthese (six) years — this is oneof the best weeks of my life.”

Federer, the record 20time Grand Slam winner, willo�cially reclaim the No. 1ranking he last held in October 2012 when the new listis published on Monday.

He has played two tournaments this year and wonboth — the other being theAustralian Open which hewon for the sixth time.

“I saved the best for thelast,” added Federer, whohas a 120 record this season.“I had a great �rst match anda great last match. In between it was a battle, it wasnervewracking getting backto number one. But I was

able to manage my nervesand the expectations.”

100 �rstAs for chasing Connors’ record, Federer said his �rstobjective was to get to 100.“97 is not 100 yet, you’ve gotto stay healthy if you want toget close to �nals. Things canevaporate quickly,” said Fe

derer. It was his third title inRotterdam following triumphs in 2005 and 2012.

Federer will decide withina few days whether or not totravel to Dubai for the ATPevent starting on Feb. 26.

The results: Final: Roger Federer bt Grigor Dimitrov 62, 62;Semi�nal: Federer bt AndreasSeppi 63, 76(3).

Federer �nishes with a �ourish Swiss maestro cruises past Dimitrov to win his 97th title


ROTTERDAM

Thank you, folks! Roger Federer acknowledges the crowd’ssupport after winning the Rotterdam Open. * REUTERS

Napoli matched Juventuswith a 10 win over SPAL onSunday to regain top spot inItaly from the defendingchampion which had earlierwon the Turin derby by a similar margin.

The two Serie A pacesetters registered their ninthconsecutive league wins.Both clubs should thankBrazilians for the threepoints, with Alex Sandroscoring the only goal for Juventus in the 33rd minuteand Allan putting Napoliahead after just six minutes.

On Saturday, one of themost bizarre own goals ofthe Serie A season set Inter

Milan on its way to a 20 defeat at Genoa which cost itthe third place.

On the stroke of halftime, Ervin Zukanovicswung in a cross, which Milan Skriniar hooked away.But his clearance ricochetedo� Andrea Ranocchia and�ew into the net, leavinggoalkeeper Samir Handanovic stranded.The results: Serie A: Sunday:Torino 0 lost to Juventus 1(Alex Sandro 33); Napoli 1 (Allan 6) bt SPAL 0. Saturday:Chievo 2 (Giaccherini 74, Inglese 76) bt Cagliari 1 (Pavoletti 82); Genoa 2 (Ranocchia 45og, Pandev 59) bt Inter Milan0.La Liga: Sunday: Real Sociedad3 (Prieto 10pen, Juanmi 38,Canales 55) bt Levante 0; Atletico Madrid 2 (Gameiro 67,Costa 80) bt Athletic Bilbao 0.

Own goal sendsInter to its doom Sandro gives Juventus full points

Agencies

MILAN

On the ball: Alex Sandro gave Juventus its ninth consecutiveleague victory, scoring the winner against Torino.

* MICHAEL REGAN/GETTY IMAGES

EURO LEAGUES






#5 6 7 0 0 1

CMYK

A ND-NDE




SPORT

SUDOKU

Solution to puzzle 12243 Solution to yesterday’s Sudoku

DDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDD

The celestials, headed by Indra often found themselves introuble, and every time they faced danger, they ran to LordNarayana for help. But once the trouble was past, they forgot the great favour He had done them. Their gratitude wasshortlived. This is seen in the Narakasura episode, saidM.A. Venkatakrishnan, in a discourse.

The celestials had su�ered due to the cruel demon Narakasura and had petitioned the Lord for help. The Lord savedthe celestials from the wicked demon. Lord Krishna’s Consort Satyabhama desired a parijatha �ower, that blossomedin the world of the celestials. But while Indra gladly gave one�ower to his queen, he was unwilling to spare one for Satyabhama. Satyabhama was insulted and was told that shewas un�t to wear the �owers, because she was a mere mortal. One had to be a celestial to qualify to wear the �ower, Indra’s queen said. Lord Krishna then had the Parijatha treeuprooted and brought to Him. Enraged by this, Indra’s wifeasked Indra to �ght against Krishna, the One who had onlyrecently saved them from Narakasura! Urged by his wife, Indra went to war against Lord Krishna, and was, of course,defeated by the Supreme One. Such was the ingratitude ofthe celestials. When in trouble, they sought the help of theSupreme One, but when they were not in trouble, they didnot hesitate to turn against Him. But what a contrast werethe Gopikas! They sought nothing from the Lord. They hadno favours to ask of Him. All they wanted was to be besideHim always. The only thing that made them sorrowful wasseparation from Him. No wonder Uddhava was moved bythe bhakti of the unlettered Gopikas! The bhakti of the Gopikas is celebrated by everyone, because they loved the Lord,without expecting any material rewards.

FAITH

His graciousness4 Straight dismissal of boy is

perpetual (7)

5 Bribe school male rector to

admit each (7)

6 Maker without legal claim (5)

7 Fresh ceremony is said to be

causing a complaint (8)

8 Coverage's reportedly lower

(4)

14 Nice farewell (2,6)

16 Animal doll Maria destroyed

(9)

17 Against soft competitor (9)

19 Perhaps Gemini, by keeping

quiet, may have an effect (7)

20 Election Commission's

quashing of stay brings

happiness (7)

22 If not, say LL... (4)

23 Smoker's request is frivolous

(5)

25 Daughter's substandard rise

results in decline (5)

12 Alert Cole to reform a type of

college in the US (9)

13 Cover one animal (5)

15 Tart breaks cars with a short

baton (9)

18 French father's broad smile at

Oriental bird (9)

21 Child led by scholar to become

construction worker (5)

22 Covers around last of the

covers (9)

24 Sidestep car? (5)

26 Hint: insect's among the Poles

(7)

27 In sum, a couple of learners

didn't keep mum (3,4)

28 Support New York hit by a

fashionable youngster (11)

n DOWN

1 Ram's prize is a �ower (9)

2 Cancel article taken from

yearbook (5)

3 Close shave? Close it! (4,5)

(set by Gridman)

n ACROSS

1 Support at home somehow

reset about a problem (11)

9 Brown, darkstained drinking

vessel (7)

10 He's eying no small, regulated

state of cleanliness (7)

11 Brilliance of strange tale about

head of clan (5)

THE HINDU CROSSWORD 12244

HYDERABAD: Moondancer, whomaintains form, may score an encore in the first division of theDelhi Race Club Cup (1,200m),the feature event of the races tobe held here on Monday (Feb. 19).

1 DELHI RACE CLUB PLATE (Div.I), (1,200m), 4yo & over, rated

58 to 78 (Cat. II), 1.35 p.m.: 1.Baashagar (7) B. R. Kumar 60, 2.Moondancer (4) Suraj Narredu 59,3. Poll Promise (10) Dileep 58, 4.Celtic Queen (8) Kunal 57.5, 5. Palisades Park (2) Arshad 57, 6. BigHeart (6) Deepak 56.5, 7. ValleeSceptre (3) Akshay 56, 8. AakashVani (5) Kiran Naidu 55.5, 9.Dance Oh Dance (9) DeepShanker 55 and 10. Sketch OfBeauty (1) Rohit 55.1. MOONDANCER, 2. BAASHAGAR,3. VALLEE SCEPTRE.

2 PERCEIVED VALUE PLATE (Div.I), (1,100m), maiden 3yo only

(Cat. II), (Terms), 2.05: 1. AshwaArjun (7) Deep Shanker 55, 2. Corsican King (3) Kunal 55, 3. Handsome Duo (4) Deepak 55, 4. LongRange (2) Nakhat 55, 5. Rapid Fire(12) Akshay 55, 6. Rikki Tikki Tavi(1) Allan 55, 7. The Special One (11)Kiran Naidu 55, 8. Baywatch Babe

(9) Rawal 53.5, 9. Goddess OfForce (13) Sai Kiran 53.5, 10.Lucky Dolly (5) Kuldeep 53.5, 11.Noble Profession (10) B.R. Kumar53.5, 12. Royal Faith (8) Parmar53.5, 13. Secretary (14) Naresh 53.5and 14. Soul Empress (6) Tograllu53.5.

1. RAPID FIRE, 2. RIKKI TIKKITAVI, 3. SECRETARY.

3 PERCEIVED VALUE PLATE (Div.II), (1,100m), maiden 3yo

only (Cat. II), (Terms), 2.35: 1. CityOf Ayaansh (9) Parmar 55, 2. Exclusivenorthwind (3) Nakhat 55, 3.Last Time (1) Tograllu 55, 4.Nayadeep (14) Koushik 55, 5. RealChamp (2) Sai Kiran 55, 6. SuperAct (10) Akshay 55, 7. Vallee Ikon(6) Deep Shanker 55, 8. AmazingScript (12) Sweeney 53.5, 9. Autumn Spirit (4) Deepak 53.5, 10.Bhumi Bhumi Bhumi (13) Aneel53.5, 11. Blazing Speed (8) Rawal53.5, 12. Cannon Gift (5) Kunal53.5, 13. Jazz It Up (11) Arshad 53.5and 14. New Desire (7) B. R. Kumar 53.5.

1. LAST TIME, 2. EXCLUS-IVENORTHWIND, 3. AMAZINGSCRIPT.

52.5 and 14. Western Express (9)Gopal 51.1. DREAM GIRL, 2. MAGNA CARTA,3. ROYAL DYNAMITE.

6 DELHI RACE CLUB PLATE (Div.II), (1,200m), 4yo & over,

rated 58 to 78 (Cat. II), 410: 1.Green Image (1) Kuldeep 60, 2.Handy Man (9) C.P. Bopanna 59,3. Asteria (2) Arshad 58.5, 4. Numinous (3) Rohit 58.5, 5. Rubyonrails (8) Vikrant 58.5, 6. Seven Colours (5) Kiran Naidu 57, 7. Kalinda(7) Deepak 56.5, 8. Astra (6) Gaddam 56, 9. Commanding Boy (4)Kunal 56 and 10. Negress Pearl(10) Akshay 55.5.1. KALINDA, 2. COMMANDING BOY,3. GREEN IMAGE.

7 TARAMATI PLATE (1,100m), 4yo & over, rated 26 to 46 (Cat.

III), 440: 1. Royal Green (14) DeepShanker 60, 2. Arc Of History (4)Gaddam 59, 3. Heaven Can Wait(3) Parmar 59, 4. Proud Warrior(7) Kunal 58.5, 5. Racing Ikon (1)C.P. Bopanna 57, 6. Born To Do It(13) Akshay 56, 7. King David (8)Sweeney 56, 8. Indian Dreams (6)Naresh 55.5, 9. Shakesphere (2)Kiran Naidu 55.5, 10. Royal Gift(12) Suraj Narredu 54.5, 11. Good

Strike (11) B. R. Kumar 54, 12. RosePetal (10) Ajit 53.5, 13. General Salute (9) Nakhat 53 and 14. ToughPrincess (5) Sai Kiran 50.5.

1. ROYAL GIFT, 2. HEAVEN CANWAIT, 3. ARC OF HISTORY.

8 GOLCONDA PLATE (1,100m), 5yo & over, rated upto 30 (Cat.

III), 515: 1. Dublin (4) Rawal 62, 2.Patron Saint (13) C.P. Bopanna 62,3. Ultimate Risk (12) Vikrant 62, 4.Wonder Star (8) Kuldeep 62, 5. Divine Heights (7) Kunal 61, 6. GreatGlory (11) Akshay 61, 7. RomanticFire (14) Arshad 60, 8. Sefarina(10) Deepak 60, 9. Jem Star (2)Kiran Naidu 59.5, 10. Sprint Legend (3) Suraj Narredu 59.5, 11.Golden Adara (5) Tograllu 58.5,12. Good Taste (6) Parmar 57.5, 13.Blaze Of Glory (9) Sai Kiran 54 and14. Cashel (1) Gopal 54.

1. CASHEL, 2. GOOD TASTE, 3.SPRINT LEGEND.

Day's best: MOONDANCER

Double: PHENOMENAL CRUISE —KALINDA

Jkt: 4, 5, 6, 7 & 8; Tr (i): 1, 2 & 3;(ii): 3, 4 & 5; (iii): 6, 7 & 8; Tla: allraces.

4 J. S. DHARIWAL MEMORIALPLATE (1,400m), 4yo & over,

rated 42 to 62 (Cat. II), 310: 1.Columbus (4) Dileep 60, 2. HighlyAcclaimed (6) Nakhat 59.5, 3. Starlight (8) Naresh 58.5, 4. Creator (2)Rawal 57, 5. Phenomenal Cruise(10) Sweeney 57, 6. Texas Rodeo(3) B. R. Kumar 56, 7. Turf Legend(9) Ajit 56, 8. City Of Sails (7) SurajNarredu 55.5, 9. Scooby DoobyDoo (5) Akshay 55.5, 10. News O'Star (11) Kuldeep 54.5 and 11.Moon Walker (1) C. P. Bopanna52.5.

1. PHENOMENAL CRUISE, 2. STAR-LIGHT, 3. CITY OF SAILS.

5 STARSKY PLATE (1,200m), 5yo & over, rated 42 to 62 (Cat.

II), 340: 1. Royal Dynamite (13)Sweeney 60, 2. Magna Carta (5)Vikrant 58.5, 3. Dream Girl (12)Suraj Narredu 58, 4. Platinum (7)Akshay 56.5, 5. Composure (4) Nakhat 56, 6. Cash Landing (11)Koushik 555.5, 7. Magical Skill (14)C. P. Bopanna 55.5, 8. Ruby's Gift(6) Rawal 55.5, 9. Kireeti (10) Aneel 54, 10. Mandy (1) Gaddam 54,11. Act In Time (3) Deepak 53, 12.Humaaghar (2) B. R. Kumar 52.5,13. Time To Climb (8) Sai Kiran

Moondancer may score an encore

MUMBAI: Pesi Shrofftrained Madagascar, ridden by S. Zervan,claimed the Gracias Saldhana Memorial Million, the main event ofSunday’s (Feb. 18) races. The winner is owned by Mr. MehernoshH. Deboo & Mr. & Mrs. Shapoor P.Mistry rep. Manjri Horse Breeders’ Farm Pvt Ltd. Shroff had twomore winners on the day.

1 VELVET ROPE TROPHY(2,400m), Cl. I, rated 80 and

upward: SQUARE MOON (S. Amit)1, Vulcan (Chouhan) 2, Palatial(Trevor) 3 and PhenomenalMemory (Dashrath) 4. 13/4, 13/4and 11/4. 2m, 31.93s. �37 (w), 14and 11 (p). SHP: 23, FP: 110, Q: 89,Tanala: 53 and 22. Favourite: Palatial. Owners: M/s. Kishore P.Rungta & Adhirajsingh Jodha.Trainer: Adhirajsingh Jodha.

2 SECRET HALO PLATE DIV. II(1,400m), Cl. V, rated 1 to 26:

RICARDUS (C.S. Jodha) 1, Whoopsidaisy (G. Amit) 2, Advance ToContact (Merchant) 3 andShevchenko (Neeraj) 4. 31/2, 11/2and 11/2. 1m, 26.71s. �44 (w), 14,48 and 20 (p). SHP: 185, FP: 1,248,Q: 281, Tanala: 4,270 and 1,830.Favourite: Diwali Lights. Owner:Mr. Rajesh Monga. Trainer: S.K.Sunderji.

3 DR. GOVIND R. GURBAXANIMEMORIAL TROPHY (1,600m),

Cl. III, rated 40 to 66: BRAIN-STORM (Probert) 1, Brabourne(Trevor) 2, Zanzibaar (Chouhan) 3and Grande Vitesse (Nazil) 4. 11/4,5 and Sh. 1m, 37.80s. �12 (w), 10and 21 (p). SHP: 24, FP: 36, Q: 30,Tanala: 104 and 87. Favourite:Brainstorm. Owners: Mr. NirajTyagi and Mr. Vikas Sachdeva rep.Blazing Saddles (PF) & Mr. HareshN.Mehta and Mr. Manav H.Mehtarep. Rohan Bloodstock Pvt Ltd.Trainer: P. Shroff.

4 GRACIAS SALDHANA ME-MORIAL MILLION (1,200m), 3

yo only: MADAGASCAR (Zervan) 1,Riquewihr (Probert) 2 and Star Inspiration (Suraj) 3 . 13/4 and 6.1m, 11.37s. �28 (w), SHP: 14, FP: 77.Favourite: Star Inspiration. Owners: Mr. Mehernosh H. Deboo &Mr. & Mrs. Shapoor P. Mistry rep.Manjri Horse Breeders’ Farm Pvt

Ltd. Trainer: P. Shroff.

5 Y.M. CHAUDHRY MEMORIALTROPHY (1,400m), Maiden 3

yo only: SPITFIRE (Probert) 1,Shae (Chouhan) 2, Iron Age (Zervan) 3 and Jetfire (Dashrath) 4. 4, 1and 21/2. 1m, 23.97s. �19 (w),12,14,13 (p). FP: 113. Q: 49. SHP:42. Tanala: 213 and 66. Favourite:Spitfire. Owners: Mr. & Mrs. KekiD. Mehta and Mr. Dara K. Mehtarep. Darashaw Bloodstock Pvt.Ltd. & Manjri Horse Breeders’Farm Pvt Ltd. Trainer: P. Shroff.

6 LE GRIS CHEVAL PLATE(2,000m), Cl. IV, rated 20 to

46: GOSHAWK (Sandesh) 1, Adonijah (Probert) 2, Grand Accord(C.S.Jodha) 3 and Ventura(G.Amit) 4. 2, Hd and 21/4. 2m,3.67s. �25 (w), 10, 16 and 23 (p).SHP: 52, FP: 76, Q: 40, Tanala: 191and 135. Favourite: Adonijah.Owners: Mr. & Mrs. Vijay B.Shirke, Mr. Jay V. Shirke & Mr. &Mrs. K.N. Dhunjibhoy rep. FiveStars Shipping Co Pvt Ltd.Trainer: M.K. Jadhav.

7 FEDORA PLATE (1,000m), Cl.IV, rated 20 to 46: LOCARNO

(Zeeshan) 1, El Tycoon (Merchant) 2, Gloriana (Trevor) 3 andRoyal Mews (Nazil) 4. 11/4, 3/4and 1/2. 59.11s. �71 (w), 21, 14 and14 (p). SHP: 53, FP: 534, Q: 100,Tanala: 619 and 271. Favourite:Gloriana. Owner: Mr. Aziz Jaffer.Trainer: Mansoor Shah.

8 SECRET HALO PLATE DIV. I(1,400m), Cl. V, rated 1 to 26:

TILL END OF TIME (T.S. Jodha) 1,Dixieland (Sandesh) 2, AngelsHarmony (Chouhan) 3 and Manzanita (Dashrath) 4. 1/2, 1 and 21/4. 1m, 25.38s. �31 (w), 11, 14 and20 (p). SHP: 34, FP: 164, Q: 63,Tanala: 288 and 156. Favourite:Dixieland. Owners: Mr. & Mrs. I.Nathani, M/s. Murad I. Nathani &Zain I. Nathani rep. Alpha Studand Farms Pvt Ltd. Trainer: M.K.Jadhav.

Jackpot: 70%: �10, 060 (77 tkts.)and 30%: �965 (344 tkts.).

Treble: (i): �507 (52 tkts.), (ii)�955 (48 tkts.).

Super Jackpot: 70%: �12,675 (11tkts.) and 30%: �866 (69 tkts.).

Madagascar claimsmain eventHYDERABAD: Dream Catcher (Ak

shay Kumar astride) continued hiswinning streak by claiming theKasu Brahmananda Reddy Memorial Cup, the main event of theraces held here on Sunday. Thewinner is the property of Mr. Chitturi Krishna Kannaiah and trainedby M. Satyanarayana.

1 PRINCE PRADEEP PLATE(1,600m), 4yo & over, rated 42

to 62 (Cat. II): FAR SIGHT(Kuldeep) 1, Euro Zone (C.P.Bopanna) 2, Bayrd (Deepak) 3,Treasure Striker (Sweeney) 4. Sh.hd, 23/4 and 1/2. 1m, 38.655s. �23(w), 8,5 and 7 (p). FP: 126. Q: 45.SHP: 17. Tanala: 514. Favourite:Treasure Striker. Owners: MissAmeeta Mehra, Mr. Berjis MinooDesai & M/s. So Blest TradingCompany Private Limited rep. byMr. Atul N. Amersey. Trainer: K.V.

Srinivas.

2 BEST OF FUN PLATE (DIV. II),(1,800m), 4yo & over, rated

26 to 46 (Cat. III): ROYAL HERO(Akshay Kumar) 1, George Cross(Arshad Alam) 2, Silver Dollar(Vikrant), Hope Is Eternal(Sweeney) 4. 1/2, 81/4 and 23/4.1m, 53.53s. �24 (w), 8,9, and 19(p). FP: 123. Q: 55. SHP: 28.Tanala: 1146. Favourite: Hope IsEternal. Owner: Mr. Md. JunaidAli Khan. Trainer: Faisal.

3 CHOWMAHALLA PLATE (DIV.II), (1,200m), 4yo & over,

rated 26 to 46 (Cat. III): GLAD-STONE (Kunal) 1, Money Time(Deepak) 2, Lord Gift (Kuldeep),Lady Admiral (Naresh) 4. 43/4,sh. hd and 2. 1m, 12.09s. �7 (w), 6,12, 7 (p). FP: 72. Q: 49. SHP: 46.Tanala: 309. Favourite: Gladstone. Owners: Mr. M. Sudheer

Reddy & Mr. Teegala VijenderReddy. Trainer: K.S.V. PrasadRaju.

4 BEST OF FUN PLATE (DIV. I),(1,800m), 4yo & over, rated

26 to 46 (Cat. III): SAN VINTO (Ajit)1, Golden Xanthus (Rawal) 2, FreeEagle (Gopal) 3, Valee Tiger (Akshay) 4. 2, 21/2 and 1. 1m, 53.94s.�13 (w), 9, 21, 11 (p). FP: 374. Q:283. SHP: 49. Tanala: 3828. Favourite: Valee Tiger. Owner: Mr.M. Rama Krishna Reddy. Trainer:L. D’Silva.

5 KING’S CROWN PLATE (DIV. I),(1,100m), md 4yo & over,

rated upto 30 (Cat. III): REACHTHE HEIGHTS (Kunal) 1, Cashel(Nakhat) 2, Yes Baby (B.R. Kumar)4. 1/2, sh. hd. and 1. 1m, 07.53s.�13 (w), 7,8, 13 (p). FP: 60. Q: 36.SHP: 24. Tanala: 245. Favourite:Reach The Heights. Owners: Mr.

12.52s. �23 (w), 6,6,8 (p). FP: 78.Q: 45. SHP: 13. Tanala: 138. Favourite: Ashka Ashka Ashka.Owner: M/s. Baldev Singh, RajeshSanghani, Wg.Cdr.D.S. Gill (Retd)& Mr. Chander Kumar Patny.Trainer: D. Netto.

8 KING’S CROWN PLATE (DIV.II), (1,100m), 4yo & over,

rated upto 30 (Cat. III): ROHINI(Koushik) 1, Gaandeevan (SaiKiran) 2, Top Sprint (Ajit) 3, NewHope (Deepak) 4. 3/4, nose andhd. 1m, 07s. �34 (w), 9, 22, 11 (p).FP: 1361. Q: 415. SHP: 85. Tanala:21492. Favourite: Sharp Eye.Owner: Mr Teegala Balreddy.Trainer: R.H. Sequeira.

Treble: (i): �558 (69 tkts.), (ii): 65(503 tkts.), (iii): 358 (153 tkts.)

Jackpot: 30%: �125 (1045 tkts.) and70%: �4875 (63 tkts.).

Teegala Vijender Reddy & Mr. G.Lakshmi Prasad. Trainer: K.S.V.Prasad Raju.

6 KASU BRAHMANANDA REDDYMEMORIAL CUP, (1,400m), 4

yo & over, rated 74 & above (Cat.I): DREAM CATCHER (Akshay) 1,Exclusive Wind (Koushik) 2,Amorous White (Sweeney) 3,Breezeofthesouth (Sai Kiran) 4. 11/2, 1 and 1/2. 1m, 24.33s. �10 (w),7,33, 12 (p). FP: 305. Q: 301. SHP:141. Tanala: 1569. Favourite:Dream Catcher. Owner: Mr. Chitturi Krishna Kannaiah. Trainer:M. Satyanarayana.

7 CHOWMAHALLA PLATE (DIV.I), (1,200m), 4yo & over,

rated 26 to 46 (Cat. III): TITUS(Deepak) 1, Exclusive Symbol(B.R. Kumar) 2, Vallee Bllomer(Akshay) 3, Ashka Ashka Ashka(Aneel) 4. 2, 41/4 and 3/4. 1m,

No catching Dream Catcher in feature event

England won the sixth T20International triseries bytwo runs against New Zealand but failed to qualify forthe �nal as it needed to winby at least 20 runs.

Coming in to bat �rst, England posted 194 runs for theloss of seven wickets withthe help of skipper Eoin Morgan’s magni�cent unbeatenknock of 80 (46b, 4x4, 8x6).

However, Morgan’s e�ortswent in vain as the visitors’lone win in the series didn’tguarantee them a place inthe �nals.

Dawid Malan struck a halfcentury (53, 36b, 2x4, 5x6)as Jason Roy contributedwith 21 runs in the consolation win.

For New Zealand, ColinMunro and Martin Guptillcame out to open the inningsand struck brisk halfcenturies. Munro hammered seven sixes before he was dismissed by Adil Rashid for 57,while Guptill went on to hit62.The scores: England 194 for seven in 20 overs (D. Malan 53, E.Morgan 80 n.o.; Boult three for50, Southee two for 22) bt NewZealand 192 for four in 20 overs(M. Guptill 62, C. Munro 57, M.Chapman 37 n.o.).

Kiwis in �nal despite lossMunro plays a blinder after Morgan shines for England

IANSHAMILTON

Good, but... Eoin Morgan led from the front with anaggressive unbeaten 80 which set up England’s win but not a place in the �nal. * AFP

TRI-SERIES

ILeague: Star Sports (SD &HD), 8 p.m.

TV PICKS

Test opener Gautam Gambhir has returned to the Delhisquad for the knockoutphase of the Vijay Hazaretournament after sitting outthe league phase due to anankle injury. He submittedhis �tness certi�cate to theteam management on Sunday and became an automatic selection.

The Delhi selection committee and captain IshantSharma picked the squad forthe clash against Andhra tobe played from February 21to 27. Delhi, despite beingthe host, will play the matchat Palam, its second choicevenue, and not at the Kotla.

From the team that playedin the league, three changeshave been e�ected — HarshTyagi, Gambhir and HimmatSingh in place of MananSharma, Kshitiz Sharma andSubodh Bhati. Specialist leftarm spinner Tyagi was preferred over Manan, a battingallrounder, while Himmatreturned in place of Kshitiz.

Seamer Bhati, despite agood performance, lost outto the combination of fourfast bowlers since the teammanagement insisted on anextra batsman.

Gambhir returns toDelhi squadThree changes made to squad thatplayed Vijay Hazare league phaseSpecial CorrespondentNEW DELHI

Tyagi, who has been animpressive performer inthe junior circuit and hasIshant’s backing, is the lonenew face in the team.

Manjot Kalra, the lefthander who excelled at therecent ICC U19 World Cup,could not be accommodated due to the consistency ofthe top order where Unmukt Chand, Hiten Dalal,Dhruv Shorey, Nitish Ranaand Rishabh Pant have allbeen among the runs.

The lone slot in the middleorder went to Himmat.

The team: Ishant Sharma(captain), Gautam Gambhir,Unmukt Chand, Rishabh Pant,Nitish Rana, Hiten Dalal,Dhruv Shorey, Lalit Yadav,Himmat Singh, Kulwant Khejroliya, Pradeep Sangwan, Navdeep Saini, Pawan Negi, HarshTyagi and Milind Kumar.Standbys: Anuj Rawat, Subodh Bhati, Manjot Kalra, Manan Sharma and Shivam Sharma.

Gautam Gambhir. * FILE PHOTO

The promising Manavaditya Singh Rathore has wona silver medal in the QatarOpen Shotgun meet in Lusail, Qatar.

Participating in the junior men’s trap event, Manavaditya shot 118 to �nishsecond on the podium behind Italy’s Angelo Scalzone, who shot 119.

Germany’s JeremySchulz won the bronze medal with a score of 115.

Son of Sports Ministerand Athens Olympics silvermedallist RajyavardhanSingh Rathore, the 19yearold Manavaditya startedwith 23 in the �rst series of25 shots and improved it to24 in the next three series,but could manage only a 23in the �fth and �nal seriesyesterday.

The �eld had a total of 11shooters, including JamesDedman of Great Britain,who recently switchedfrom double trap to trapshooting.

Manavaditya has earlierwon bronze in the AsianShooting Championshipsheld in Almaty in 2013.

Manavadityabags silver Press Trust of India

NEW DELHI

Bangalore Universityedged past University ofChennai 65 on shootoutsto enter the �nal of the25th Nehru all India interuniversity hockey tournament at the National Stadium here on Sunday.

The Chennai boys struckearly to go into the breakwith a 20 cushion, only forBangalore to �ght back inthe second half to levelscores.

Bangalore would nowtake on VBPS University,Jaunpur, in the title clashafter the latter managed todefeat Punjab University31 in the other semi�nal.

The Punjab side tooklead with a penalty cornerin the very �rst minute butthe joy didn't last long asVBPS equalled in the 13th.

Two goals by DipakSingh in the last seven minutes, including one seconds from time, gave theJaunpur side passage intothe �nal to be played onMonday.

The results (semi�nals):VBSP, Jaunpur 3 (Dipak Singh2, Kamlesh yadav) bt PunjabUniversity, Chandigarh 1 (Joginder Singh); Bangalore University 2 (Mokshith Uthappa,Dhanish M) bt University ofChennai 2 (T. Arun Kumar, V.Veeratamizhan) 65 in shootouts.

Bangalorevarsity in �nalSpecial CorrespondentNew Delhi

Yugal scores centuryYugal Saini scored a matchwinning 114 as Bal BhawanSchool beat Blue StarAcademy by 23 runs toenter the �nal of the HCAUnder17 crickettournament.

The scores: Bal BhawanSchool 234 in 39.5 overs(Yugal Saini 114, Arpit Rana48; Sushant Dhankar three for44, Prateek Kumar three for45) bt Blue Star Academy 211in 38.5 overs (Manish Rautela55, Sushant Dhankar 52;Vanshraj Kumar three for 42).

Himmat shines Ranji player Himmat Singhscored an unbeaten 29ball55 and his Delhi teammateTejas Baroka picked upthree wickets as Rann StarClub beat Maulana AzadClub by seven wickets toenter the quarter�nals ofthe 6th Sahibzada ZoravarSingh & Fateh Singh T20cricket tournament. In another match, YogeshSharma and ParvinderAWana picked up threewickets each as Lala RamCharan Club beat RPAcademy by seven runs. The scores: Maulana AzadClub 93 for nine in 20 overs(Bhavesh Seth 30; TejasBaroka three for 22, SunilDalal three for 23) lost toRann Star Club 96 for three in12.3 overs (Himmat Singh 55not out); LRC Club 114 forseven in 20 overs (DineshDabas 32 not out; SarangRawat two for 21, GurvinderSingh two for 25) bt RP

Academy 104 in 19.5 overs(Yogesh Sharma three forseven, Parwinder Awana threefor 25).

Saket Court posts winKunal Kant's 54 runs andAnirudh Nagar's threewickets helped Saket Courtbeat Tiz Hazari Court by 32runs in the 7th K.K. Luthramemorial crickettournament.

The scores: Saket Court 169for eight in 20 overs (KunalKant 54; Rahul Nahar three for26) bt Tis Hazari Court 137 forseven in in 20 overs (TaraBisht 35, Rabin Rao 32;Anirudh Nagar three for 31).

Luv Kapoor signs forSpain’s oldest FCA Delhibased under19defensive mid�elder, LuvKapoor, has been signed upby Palamos FC, the oldestfootball club in Cataloniaand third oldest in Spain.Palamos FC is a 4th tierSpanish Club (TerceraNacional division). This isthe highest level at whichany Indian player has everbeen signed on in theSpanish football system.Luv has trained in Englandand France for over threeyears. His transfer has beenprocessed by the All IndiaFootball Federation, and heis expected to make a debutfor the club soon. This isthe �rst time in 120 years ofPalamos’ history that theyhave signed on a player ofIndian origin.

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\ DELHI ROUND-UP \






#5 6 7 0 0 1

CMYK

A ND-NDE




SPORT

Utah Jazz shooting guard Donovan Mitchell lived out achildhood dream when hewon the Slam Dunk contest,at the NBA AllStar weekendhere on Saturday.

Mitchell turned back theclock, donning Vince Carter’s Toronto Raptors jersey,and recreating Carter’s famous 360degree windmilljam. The nostalgia�lled effort earned Mitchell 48points in the �nal dunk,helping him edge out Cleveland Cavaliers’ Larry NanceJr. by two points.

“Growing up, I wasn’tmuch of a basketball player. Ijust dunked and played defence, and I watched a lot ofVince’s videos. Believe it ornot, I’ve been preparing forthis since I was a kid,” Mitchell, 21, said.

IncredibleEarlier in the evening, DevinBooker of the Phoenix Sunsmade an incredible 20 out of25 shots (28 points) in the �nal round to win the ThreePoint Contest.

Booker broke the recordfor most points in a round,previously held by StephenCurry (27 points, in 2015).

“Getting the record is a bigdeal. Legends of the gamelike Peja Stojakovic and LarryBird have won the ThreePoint contest; there is a lot ofgreat history involved. I’mglad that my name can bementioned with those guys,”Booker said.

Brooklyn Nets point guardSpencer Dinwiddie claimedthe Skills Challenge title.

The unheralded Dinwiddie, who has seen his fairshare of injury and form set

backs, stated, “It’s big for meto even be at the AllStar weekend, considering the upsand downs I’ve seen in mycareer. It feels like life hascome a full circle, because I

have won this title in front ofmy family, in my home townof Los Angeles.”

(The writer is in Los An-geles at the invitation of NBAand Sony Six)

Mitchell jazzes up Slam Dunk contestSuns’ Booker takes ThreePoint Contest with record score

Ashwin Achal

LOS ANGELES

Bang! Donovan Mitchell �ies high to basket the ball during the Slam Dunk contest. * AFP

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B AllStar game, live on SonySix SD, Sony Six HD, SonyTen 3 SD, Sony Ten 3 HD,6.30 a.m.

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NBA ALL-STAR

NBA Commissioner AdamSilver stated that Indiacould host an NBA preseason match in the nextfew years.

“One of the things we'relooking at, which we hopeto do relatively soon, is tobring a preseason game toIndia. It is dependent onthe arena infrastructure,but we've heard some goodnews about plans to buildnew arenas in Delhi and

Mumbai. I think we canbring a preseason game toIndia in the next few years,”Silver said, at a mediainteraction here.

Silver added that therecent launch of the NBAAcademy at Greater Noidawill go a long way in helpingyoung Indian basketballplayers reach their fullpotential.

“I don't want to makepredictions on when anIndian player will make itbig in the NBA. There is no

magic around it. It's theresult of hard work,discipline, appropriatetraining techniques, andpassion.

“There is an enormousamount of basketball beingplayed in India. But unlessyou have access to propertraining, facilities, andcompetition at a young age,you cannot produce starIndian players. That is whywe made the decision toinvest in the NBA IndiaAcademy,” Silver said.

NBA’s preseason game in India soonCommissioner Silver says NBA Academy is a big value addition

Ashwin Achal

LOS ANGELES

Adam Silver. * AFP

Birthday boy Dipanda Dickanotched a brace and AkramMoghrabi netted the winneras Mohun Bagan came out32 victor over Neroca FC todash the home side’s titlehopes in the ILeague hereon Sunday.

Felix Chidi and SingamSubhash Singh scored thegoals for the home side butallowed the visitors to get

back into the game at theKhuman Lampak Stadium.

Chidi was brought backinto the lineup in place ofNedo Turkovic as Neroca FClooked to win and stay ontop of the table.

Bagan coach SankarlalChakraborty made threechanges to his side — Kinshuk Debnath, Yuto Kinowaki and Mallick replaced Rana Gharami, Faiaz andRaynier Fernandes.

Bagan pips NerocaPress Trust of India

Imphal

Oleksandr Abramenko picked up Ukraine's �rst medal of thePyeongchang Winter Olympics, the men’s freestyle skiingaerials on Sunday. The 29yearold was sixth at Sochi fouryears ago, 24th at Vancouver 2010 and 27th at Turin 2006.

* CLIVE MASON/GETTY IMAGES

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Fourth time lucky

B. Soumya set a new National record, beat the favouriteand booked herself a ticketto the Gold Coast with a blistering �nish in the �nal lapof the 20km category at the5th National race walkingchampionships here onSunday.

Soumya, who belongs toKerala but has representedDelhi in the event since being posted here with theCRPF, crossed the �nish linein 1:31:28.72 seconds, almost10 minutes faster than herprevious personal best andmore than 11 seconds quicker than the previous mark of1:31:40.00 set by KhushbirKaur in 2014. Her own previous best was 1:41:04.

Favourite Khushbir, wholed for 19 of the 20 laps, �nished second with 1:32:16.96,while sister Karamjit wasthird (1:34:08.60). All three,were within the qualifyingmark of 1:35:00 set by theAFI to be considered for selection for the 2018 Commonwealth Games in April.

The top two timings werealso inside the qualifyingstandards set for the AsianGames.

“I am so happy to havewon this race. Last year I wasreturning from an injury butnow I am in very good shape.This is the �rst time I havebeaten Khushbir and it is avery important win for me asthe Commonwealth Gameswould be my �rst international tournament,” Soumyasaid.

Irfan on topAmong the men, national record holder K.T. Irfan couldnot better his own best per

formance from LondonOlympics but still managedto �nish at the top with a timing of 1:21:31:25, two secondsahead of Rio Olympian Manish Rawat, who clocked1:23:31.72.

Neeraj completed the podium with a time of1:21:39.20, all three men also�nishing well inside thequali�cation standard of1:23:00 seconds set for boththe CWG and the AsianGames.

A �nal team for both the

CWG and the Asiad, however, would only be named bythe Athletics Federation ofIndia after the Asian racewalking championships inNomi, Japan, on March 18.All the podium �nishershere are expected to participate at the Asian meet.

The results (20km): Men: K.T.Irfan 1:21:31:25s, 2. Manish Rawat 1:23:31.72, 3. Neeraj1:21:39.20.

Women: B. Soumya 1:31:28.72,2. Khushbir Kaur 1:32:16.96, 3.Karamjit Kaur 1:34:08.60.

Top three �nishers in both sections meet the CWG qualifying mark

Uthra Ganesan

NEW DELHI

Soumya walks to new National mark

Terri�c trio: B. Soumya, who set a new National mark on her way to the top spot, �anked bysecondplaced Khushbir Kaur, right, and Karamjit Kaur. * SPECIAL ARRANGEMENT

The sporting attitude of thecountry was very much evident, as 102 million viewerswatched the Khelo IndiaSchool Games on Star TV.

According to the broadcaster who provided the details to The Hindu, a crew ofover 100 specialists spreadover multiple arenas, covering over 70 events, delivered eight hours of live coverage each day across threechannels, as well as Hotstar.

“I am delighted with thekind of response Khelo India School Games hasevoked in sports fans all over India.

“The quality of broadcastand the viewership that wehave garnered for the inaugural edition is a proof to thekind of potential that we seein sports to shape India’s future champions,” said theUnion Sports Minister, Col.Rajyavardhan Rathore.

Healthy campaign The Star India Managing Director Sanjay Gupta saidthat it was an honour to produce Khelo India School

Games and reach out to millions via worldclass broadcast that “inspires parentsand teachers to encouragetheir kids to emulate thefeats of sporting stars.”

Tremendous potential “The athletes have tremendous potential and are already behaving like true champions, whilst celebratingtheir triumphs, on television. With this support, encouragement and partnership, I am con�dent that inabout four to �ve years,these athletes will be worldclass,” Rathore said.

“The spectators viewership we have received is atestament to the supportand intent that India hasshown towards embracingsports.

“The tremendous response has further motivatedus to realise a vision of making 30 crore children actively participate in sporting activities for an our every day,”Gupta said.

The Khelo India pledgehas already been taken bymore than 1.5 million people across the country.

Khelo India SchoolGames popular on TVKamesh Srinivasan

NEW DELHI

Tennis ace Novak Djokovichas invited Frenchlookalike Winter Olympicchampion Pierre Vaultierfor a gettogether after thesnowboard gold medallistnoted the resemblancebetween the two men.

Vaultier told French TVhe was a fan of Djokovicand had always wanted tomeet the Serbian star.

Djokovic respondedswiftly on Twitter with aninvitation to the FrenchOpen at Roland Garros.“@pierre_vaultier let’s

make it happen. See you atRG (Roland Garros)! Andcongratulations on yourOlympic medal(s)!”

Vaultier said the likenessbetween himself and thetall, dark Djokovic hadbeen raised in the past andadded: “When I amwatching him play, hisexpressions and hisintonation, I feel like I amwatching myself.”

The 30yearold Vaultierwon the Olympicsnowboard cross gold onThursday, retaining thetitle he won in Sochi fouryears earlier.

Djoker cheers doppelganger!

Seeing double! Olympics snowboard champion PierreVaultier and tennis ace Novak Djokovic * AFP


PyeongChang






#5 6 7 0 0 1

With the annual board exams and �nal assessments approaching, students across various boards are reporting increased anxiety, panicand overall stress. It is okay for oneto get stressed and use ‘eustress’(positive stress) during exams to beproductive but it's important not tolet it get out of control and getdisstressed.

Study well and push yourself because this is the �nal lap, you can almost see the �nish line. No one else,but you alone can make it happen!However, don't lose sight of the factthat there is life postexams and results. Stress in the right amounts ishelpful and motivates you to workhard.

Make sure you are on top of yourportions, read the chapters thoroughly, make handy notes, mindmaps, acronyms and be familiarwith the portion. Breathe easy andutilise the leftover time wisely andproductively to revise and learn concepts that you are not thoroughwith. Use a revision method (auditory, visual, writing notes, rote) that’stried and tested and one that worksfor you. There is still enough timeand nothing is lost even now.

Dos and Don’tsPlan: Set a realistic timetable thatyou plan to accomplish everydaythat is doable by you across subjects. Stick to it!

Environment: Dedicated a dailyspot – study table / dining table, notyour bed. Get everyone at home topartner with you to motivate youand make the home conducive foryou to study.

Study: In speci�c blocks of 50 minutes each, for 56 blocks a day.Take a break of 1015 minutes afterevery block. A break is a real break,a stress reliever — go for a walk, havea juice, call a friend, play with a pet,help your mum, chat with dad.

Avoid: Unnecessary competitions and comparisons with friendswho seem better prepared. You never know what magic you can churnat the �nish line.

Rest: Ensure you get enough restand are not sleep deprived. Pleaseclock in a minimum of eight hours(everyday) or more, the night beforethe exam. This will minimise fatigue, constant tiredness, and di�culty to wake up or study late atnight.

Food: Eat well. Ask your parent/primary caregivers to cook the foodthat you like (fresh fruits, vegetables, juices) — avoid eating junk andoutside food. Do not skip meals.

Exercise: Get a minimum of 45minutes to 1hour of exercise — whatever you enjoy and makes you happy like swimming, running, walking,yoga, or meditation. This will helpyou centre yourself, destress yourmind and keep you active and agile.Build it into your timetable.

Enjoy your exams

It’s time topull upyour socksand bepreparedfor theBoards

b NANDINI RAMAN

FR

EE

PIK

The night before • Do a complete revisionand close the books and getsome rest.• Ensure your uniform,shoes, socks and exam bagare set well in advance.• Keep everything ready —exam pad, stationery pouch,extra pens, hall ticket, and abottle of water. Morning of the exam • Have a good night’s rest.• Wake up early.• Do a quick revision of yournotes and mind maps.• Eat a good breakfast.• Leave your books andnotes at home.• Do not engage with anxious and over smart friendsat the school – steer clear andkeep yourself calm. • Try not to learn anythingnew at the eleventh hour. During the exam • Stay calm in the hall.• Abstain from talking andany nonverbal communication with your friends.• Take two minutes and focus on your breath and relax.• On receiving the questionpaper – spend 10 minutesand read it.• Allocate time appropriately across the di�erentsections.• Take the big questions�rst and work it backwardsto answer the smaller questions later.• Answer con�dently andwrite fast.• Be aware of the time.• Focus on the presentationof the paper. After the exam • Forget about the paperthat you just wrote. • Do not check the textbookand notes or discuss the rightanswers with friends afterthe exam, its it’s just atimestealer.• Regret is a wasted emotion and just makes you feelbad.• Eat, relax and start studying for the next exam.

Value ADD)

CM

YKND-X

DELHIMonday • February 19, 2018

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www.thehindu.com/education

www.facebook.com/thehinduedge

www.twitter.com/thehinduedge

Improve or shut down The Mozambican government warned that sub-standard higher education institutions will beforced to close down if they do not improve theirperformance by October. Out of the 52 privateinstitutions, more than half are under threat. Thewarning came from Jorge Nhambiu, Minister ofScience, Technology and Higher Education.

Global Ed)

<>You can never be overdressedor overeducated. Oscar Wilde

For climate change actionThirteen universities across North America havelaunched the ‘University Climate ChangeCoalition’ (UC3) to leverage their research andresources to spur local climate action. It wasannounced by Janet Napolitano, president,University of California. Some of the universitiesare Arizona State University, California Institute ofTechnology, Tecnológico de Monterrey, Ohio StateUniversity, and University of British Columbia.

Empowering special studentsAccording to department spokeswoman Liz Hill,Education Secretary DeVos will donate nearly$200,000 of her salary to four charities focusingon education and special needs. One of thegroups, Dreams Soar, works to encourage girls topursue careers in science, engineering andmathematics. Kids Hope USA helps at-riskchildren. Vision to Learn provides eyeglasses tolow-income children, and Special Olympics helpsphysically-challenged children and adults.

With the Board exams and JEEMain almost here, it is time foryou to get your preparationaligned with your schedule, sothat your scores re�ect your efforts. This is the phase whenyou must not only focus onscoring well, but also perfectthe art of simultaneous preparation for both major exams.While such an exam preparation is daunting , with almostall exams having a cuto� basedon your Class XII percentage, itis certain that Boards cannotbe taken lightly, and thus, boththese exams need to be dealtwith equal zeal.

However, the challenge hereis about where to focus andhow to go about both exams.Here are some tips to masterthe simultaneous preparation:

Draft a solid plan: Havethe right preparation strategyand follow it strictly. Make themost of the preparation timefor board exams to optimiseyour JEE Main preparation.Plan out a wellstructured strategy that caters to the requirement of both exams.

Divide prep time: Spendequal time to revise each section and on the following day,attempt the sample papers ofrespective subjects. Preparation should be a mixed basketof revision of the syllabus andsample papers. This way, youwill be able to revise the syllabus while attempting samplepapers .

Pick the right textbooks:When you are �ooded with reference books from di�erentpublishing houses, it is vital tofollow the right book withoutlosing track. NCERT textbooksserve the best purpose for serious students.

Get your basic conceptsclear: Physics comprisesthree major sections — modern, optics and electricity.Spend more time on sections

that are challenging. Chemistry, and numerical questionsare easy. Hence, choose themover theory to score moremarks.

Get the formats right:Preparing for two exams simultaneously needs to bedone cautiously especiallywhen it is about getting used tothe exam pattern. Be aware ofthe di�erences between theboard exam paper pattern and

the JEE pattern. Previous years’ papers:

Attempting previous years’test papers of both exams willhelp you hone your skills andconcepts that you are not con�dent about.

Mock tests: It is not too lateto �nd out your weak areasand work accordingly tobridge that gap. Attemptingmock tests will acquaint youwith your preparedness and

shortcomings. In case you areappearing for JEE Main online,online mock tests will behelpful.

Stay healthy: Preparationfor such exams require dedication, but at the same time, youhave to ensure the state of yourhealth is in perfect condition.The mental and emotionalstrain of long nights of hardwork can take a toll on yourbody. Thus, eat healthy, take

small breaks to relax and staystressfree in order to deliveryour optimum on the examday.

Focus on exclusiveBoard questions: There arecertain subtopics in varioussubjects which generally getmore weightage in the Boardsbecause the questions are subjective type. There are alsosome topics which are part ofJEE Main but not part of the

JEE Advanced exam whichsome tend to ignore duringpreparation. For example, inphysics, the chapters on electronic devices and communications systems are part of JEEMain and the Board exam, butnot part of the JEE AdvancedExam. Carefully study thesechapters along with the questions from the sample papersso that you can comfortablyhandle descriptive questionsfrom these chapters. Take alook at the archive of JEE Main/AIEEE questions of the previous years for JEE Main, alongwith sample papers for board.

Prepare to dwell in theexamination tempera-ment: For the JEE Examination, what matters is not howmuch we know, but how muchare we able to deliver in thethreehour examination. Manystudents make the mistake ofattempting the questions sequentially and �nd that thereis not enough time left to attempt questions that theywould otherwise know. Remember that in JEE, scoring aslow as 60% marks will get astudent a decent rank andfetch him or her a good branchin a reputed college. Ratherthan aiming to solve all questions, attempt all those you arecon�dent of doing correctly.The best way to do this is toquickly scan the question paper and solve the easy questions�rst before attempting themoderate ones, and �nally, thetough ones without losingtime.

The writer is FIITJEE Expert.

The twin challenge

Preparing for the Board exams and the JEE Main simultaneously? Here is what you ought to know to ace both

b Ramesh Batlish

Strategise right: Draft a prep plan well in advance.

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Attempting previousyears’ test papers of bothexams will help you honeyour skills and conceptsthat you are notcon�dent about.

IST

OC

K

b NEET UG 2018

Objective: The NationalEligibility cum EntranceTest will be conducted byCBSE for admission toMBBS/BDS courses.Based on the exam rank/merit, seat allotment willbe provided under All India Quota seats, State government quota seats,Central Institutions/ universities / deemed universities, State/ management/ NRI quota seats inprivate medical/ dentalcolleges or any privateuniversity and Centralpool quota seats.Test Date: May 6Test Centres: Select centresacross the countryTest Pattern: A 3hour penand paper mode (o�ine)test consisting of one paper containing 180 objectivetype multiple choicequestions from physics,chemistry and biology(botany & zoology). Eligibility: Must have completed 17 years of age ason Dec 31, 2018. Upperage limit is 25 years, withrelaxation of 5 years forSC/ST/OBC/PWD categories. Must have passedHigher Secondary Equivalent examination withphysics, chemistry, biology/ biotechnology, English and secured 50%marks in science subjects(SC/ST/OBC candidatesrequire 40% marks andPWD candidates require45% marks) in the qualifying examination. Thoseappearing for class XIIBoard Examination in2018 can also apply.Those who have passedPlus Two from OpenSchool or as private candidates and those whostudy Biology / Biotechnology as an additional

subject in Plus Two willnot be eligible.Application Fee: General /OBC candidates – ₹1,400;SC/ST/PH candidates –₹750.Application Mode: Online Deadline: March 9Deadline for fee payment:

March 10Results: June 5www.cbseneet.nic.in

b Agricultural Research:ARS and NET

Objective: The AgriculturalScientists RecruitmentBoard will hold a combined Agricultural Research Service (ARS) Examination2017–Preliminary (qualifying exam for ARS 2017–Main) and National Eligibility Test (NETI) 2018.Candidates successful inARS 2017 (Main) and vivavoce will be recommended for appointment asAgricultural Scientist.NET determines eligibility for the position of Lecturer/ Assistant Professorin Agricultural universities and colleges.Test date: April 613; ARS2017 (Main) – June 24Exam mode: Online (At 23centres across thecountry)Eligibility: Master’s degreein Agriculture and allieddisciplines.Age limit: ARS – 2132 years;NET 2018: 21 years as onJanuary 21, 2018. Application fee: ARS: URand OBC ₹500; SC/ST/Women – Nil. NET: UR –₹1000; OBC – ₹500; SC/ST/Women – ₹250Application Mode: Onlineopen nowDeadline: March 2www.asrb.org.in

Compiled by Gopakumar Karakonam

save the date)With over half the population in thecountry under the age of 25, education plays a signi�cant role. Considering it is not only critical to personal development, but more so tothe e�ective growth and development of the nation, it is hearteningto see this year’s budget address theissue of lack of quality educationand infrastructure in the country.

“We are glad that the 2018 Budget has a forwardlooking visionwith bene�ts for those sectorswhich especially need them. As announced, speci�cally for the education sector, having an integratedB.Ed. programme, with teachertraining as its main focus, will helpthe workforce to become moreaware and skilled,” says VandanaArora, Principal of Nahar International School. “With cutting edgetechnology, we feel that Digital India will increase the digital intensityof the education sector. It is also apleasure to hear about the move towards digital smart boards, becauseit is a sign of how extensively education has been considered whileforming the budget,” she adds.

Online learning“With the number of schools andcolleges falling short of the requisite, the launch of ‘RISE’ — Revitalising Infrastructure and Systems inEducation — with an investment of₹1 lakh crore in the next four years,raises the hope of witnessing drastic improvement in the current education infrastructure and technolo

gy across the country,” says RaghavGupta, India Country Director ofCoursera, an educationfocusedtech company. “With a strong focuson quality education and emergingtechnologies like Arti�cial Intelligence, Machine Learning And Internet of Things (IoT), online learning platforms will gain importanceas the providers of standardised,world class content.”

However, Dr. RupamanjariGhosh, vicechancellor, Shiv NadarUniversity, commented that technology alone will not enable thisgoal, as there are serious socialchallenges that still need to be addressed.

“A strong governmental push inthe form of an innovation policywill help. The ‘PM research fellows’need not be restricted to only elitepublicfunded institutions; oneneeds to create an entire ecosystemof excellence in the country, andnot just a few islands of merit,” saysDr. Ghosh.

“With the recent allocations ineducation sector and expectedhigher concentration in RashtriyaUcchtar Shiksha Abhiyan, the MDMprogramme under Sarva ShikshaAbhiyan can be expected to furtherenhance and develop into a sustainable nutrition charter to combathunger issues, improve the nutrition status of children and providea boost for quality education,” saysShridhar Venkat, CEO of The Akshaya Patra Foundation that aims to�ght issues of hunger and malnutrition in children.

A digital impetus What do the stakeholders in the educationsector think about Budget 2018?b Neha Rupeja

New focus: On technology in education.

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stupid scheme. Our politicians often come upwith birdbrainedschemes.”

“How about this example?The Minister’s birdbrainedanswers left the audiencewondering how the manmanaged to get elected.”

“That’s a good example.The word ‘birdbrain’ is frequently used in informal contexts with people as well. Myformer boss was a realbirdbrain.”

“Meaning that he was stupid. Like your boss, my nextdoor neighbour is a birdbraintoo. Was your boss grumpylike my neighbour?”

“Grumpy? De�nitely not! Ifyou ask me, he was always ingood humour.”

“You’re late! You should havebeen here half an hour ago.What happened?”

“Sorry about that! I ran into an old friend of mine at thesupermarket. Manjunath.”

“Manjunath! Now, that’s aname I haven’t heard in awhile. Isn’t he the chap whoused to come up with birdbrained schemes to get richquickly?”

“Birdbrained schemes?Does it mean crazyschemes?”

“When you say that something is a ‘birdbrainedscheme’, you mean that it’s a

“Good humour? Do youmean to say that your bosscracked a lot of jokes andkept people entertained?”

In good humour“The expression ‘in good humour’ has nothing to do withone’s sense of humour. Whenyou say that Revathi was ingood humour, you mean thatshe was in a cheerful mood.”

“In other words, you’retalking about the mood of theperson and not whether he’scapable of being humourousor not.

Jayanth is always in goodhumour. I’ve never seen himget upset about anything.”

“Unlike his sister, whenever Kailash’s friends tease him,he takes it all in good

humour.”“My cousin Nagesh has

been in good humour eversince he got engaged toRemya.”

“There’s a delicious bit ofgossip going around aboutthat. Apparently...”

“Delicious bit of gossip?Don’t we normally use theword ‘delicious’ with thingsthat we can taste or smell? Wecan talk about a deliciouscake, but can we...”

“That’s true, but the word‘delicious’ can also be used totalk about something thatgives you a lot of pleasure.”

“In other words, something that is pleasing or enjoyable can be called delicious.”

“That’s right! The babygave a delicious smile before

nodding o� to sleep.”“The songs in my favourite

hero’s latest �lm were delicious. How does that sound?”

“Sounds great! Someonesaid that the movie was a delicious comedy about theworld of football.”

“Talking about sports, tellme, which is correct? Is it ‘India win’ or ‘India wins’ the�rst one day international? Insome newspapers, it’s ‘wins’,and in others ‘win’. I’m a bitconfused.”

“Actually, both are correct.It all depends on how youview the team. If you think ofthe team as consisting of several individuals, then younormally use a plural verb —are, have, were, etc. If, on theother hand, you think of the

team as being a single unit,then you use a singular verb.For example, Arsenal hasn’tbeen doing well this season.”

“But I can also say, Arsenalhaven’t played to their potential this year.”

“You certainly can. Indiahave/has a good chance ofsweeping the one day series.”

“Every time you say something like that, we alwaysend up losing the nextmatch.”

* * * * * Sports are the reason I am

out of shape. I watch them allon TV. — Thomas Sowell

The author teaches at the

English and Foreign Languages

University, Hyderabad.

[email protected]

Here’s a delicious piece of newsknow your english)S. UPENDRAN

::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::

EAR SHOT

ASHOK RAJAGOPALAN

Look Up“I have 422 friends, yet I’mlonely...” begins thespoken word film thatappeals to the onlinegeneration to look up fromtheir phones and live inthe moment.

Written and performedby Gary Turk, an awardwinning filmmaker and spokenword artist, the performance is mixed with a filmednarrative that highlights our overuse of technology andsocial media that is meant to make us more connected, butdoes just the opposite. “Social media is anything but...”says Turk.

Research studies confirm this too. It has been found thatpeople are increasingly becoming depressed and lonely,despite more avenues to connect, be engaged andentertained. All one has to do is look around to see all theheads down, glaring at phone screens, be it at restaurants,parks, trains, or even parties. We are lonely in a crowd.

Turk insists that the video is not to ask people to give uptechnology completely. It is also not against being alone —one could be productive and engaged being alone readinga book, painting a picture or working out. “It’s aboutfinding a balance; making sure you are awake, alive andliving life in the moment, instead of living life through ascreen.”

The video which has attracted over 500 million viewsworldwide launched Turk to global fame.

Remember, after you look this video up online, gooffline and live life the real way. “Because when the endcomes, nothing is worse than regret.”

youtube.com/watch?v=Z7dLU6fk9QY

::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::

VIDEO CAFE

Q1.

The Government of Ma-harashtra had proposed tobuild a statue of a belovedleader on the coastline of

Mumbai in 2014, by 2020. If built, itwould be the tallest statue in theworld, with a height of 210 metres. Incomparison, The Statue of Liberty is‘only’ 93 metres tall.

Which historical figure is likely to get a statue,whose birth anniversary is today?

Q2.

‘I Think, Therefore I Play’ isthe autobiography of thelegendary Italian midfielder___. The title is an anglicised

reference to a quote by a famous Frenchmathematician and philosopher. Thebook talks about his life in AC Milan andJuventus, about nearly joining Barcelonaand playing PlayStation before the WorldCup, etc. Who is the football player, andwho is the philosopher?

Q3.

A Japanesecompany, ori-ginally estab-lished as a ship-

ping company, now has over75 subsidiaries and is one ofthe largest conglomerates of Japan. Among otherthings, they own Nikon, the photography company. Theliteral translation of their name into English is three wa-ter caltrops/chestnuts. Identify the company.

Q4.

Since ancienttimes, a certainIndian traditionhas been done,

because the associated bodypart is believed to be a majornerve point. It is done to pre-vent the loss of energy andenhance concentration. It isalso believed that this act also activates a few chakrasin the body, releasing hormones beneficial for the body.What act/tradition is this?

Q5.

‘Look Who’s Back’ byTimur Vermes, is a bookin which ____ wakes upafter about 60 years

after his death at the same place andcontinues to act the same way heused to back then. He is enraged tofind that he is just a meme and a buttof ridicule on a few YouTube videos.When he talks to other people, they just think that he isa really committed actor and praise him to no ends.Identify the subject of the book.

Q6.

Most Minesweepergames were gettingover too soon be-cause of a particular

aspect of the game. So, aftermany complaints from patrons,Microsoft changed something to make games last alittle longer. Because of that, games got a lease ofabout two seconds more; apparently enough for play-ers. What change did Microsoft introduce?

COURTESY: WALNUT KNOWLEDGE SOLUTIONS

y y y y y y y y y y y y y y y y y y y y y y y y y y y y y y y y y y y y y y y y y y y y y y y y y y y y y y y y y y y y y y y y y y y y y y y y y y y y y y y y y y y y y y y y y y y y y y

AnswersA1. Maharaj Chhatrapati Shivaji.A2. Andrea Pirlo, Rene Descartes. The quote was Cogito ErgoSum, or ‘I Think, Therefore I Am.’A3. Mitsubishi.A4. Applying ‘tilak’ on one’s forehead.A5. Adolf Hitler.A6. One would no longer lose (die) on the first click of thegame.

Recently, a vicechancellor of astate university was arrested for allegedly taking bribes to appoint someone to the post of an assistantprofessor. The day the news broke,a friend asked me whether I wasshocked. I replied, “I was neithersurprised nor shocked. Rather, Iwas happy that an o�cial holding akey position in an educational institution has been caught redhandedwhile accepting bribes. All alongpeople have discussed and debatedacademic corruption prevalent inthe country. Now there is proof ofsomeone taking bribes. It may openthe eyes of the academia to see thedirty reality and raise their voiceagainst the culture of academic corruption in the country.”

Stories such as “academics” paying crores of rupees in bribes to getvicechancellor posts, research supervisors demanding money tohelp their scholars get PhD degrees,teachers working in governmentschools and colleges o�ering bribesto politicians, bureaucrats, and others to get transfers to the places oftheir choice, candidates paying

lakhs of rupees to get teachingposts, and cronyism and nepotismplaying a dominant role in facultyappointments and promotion, politicians interfering in the a�airs ofeducational institutions, vital nexusbetween corrupt politicians and university o�cials, and so on, are notunheard of. Heard stories are bitterand those unheard could be morebitter. It is deeply rooted in theminds of people that the academiain India is corrupt. The commonpeople have always believed thatmoney power wins and mind power loses in the race. Shame!

No place for meritDoes corruption a�ect the qualityof education in the country? Yes, itdoes. As the saying goes, “Powercorrupts and absolute power corrupts absolutely.” Corrupt peopleholding top positions will focusmore on making money than onproviding quality education. Expecting such people to bring aboutreforms in the education system islike expecting a rooster to lay eggs.In corrupt academic systems, merithas no place. As long as corruptionrules academia, quali�ed and talented people will be driven out.

Those who o�er massive bribesto get teaching positions will try tomake more money in many ways bydemanding bribes from their scholars and students for their “noble

services” such as helping the scholars publish plagiarised researchpapers and awarding marks generously to undeserving students. It isa cyclical process.

Corruption breeds corruption.As a result, the quality of educationand research will continue to beeroded. Any system that is rife withbribery and corruption will ruin thenation. Not only those who receivebut also those pay bribes are corrupt. Let us assume that a teachersays, “If I hadn’t bribed the authorities, I would not have got the job. Iwas helpless.” Should we considerthe teacher innocent? No. I would

say that the particular teacher is also part of the corruption ma�a.

Because of such dishonest teachers, many talented and meritoriouscandidates are unable to get thejobs they deserve.

It is unlikely that those who paidbribes to get their teaching positions come out and say #MeToo andshare their stories. It will be great ifsome teachers openly share their#ITooBribed stories. PhD scholarswho have been victims of corruptsupervisors should share their #MeToo stories. The need of the hour isto name and shame people who accepted bribes and misused their

power. We need to start a movement against corruption in Indianacademia.

How many of us have the courageto speak about the corrupt practices that are prevalent in the country?How many of us have the intellectual courage to question the corrupt education system? How manyof us are really interested in improving the quality of education in thecountry?

Brazilian thinker and educatorPaulo Freire, in his book Pedagogyof the Oppressed, says that “Our advanced technological society is rapidly making objects of us and subtly programming us into conformityto the logic of its system to the degree that this happens, we are alsobecoming submerged in a new ‘Culture of Silence’.”

It is true that the teaching community is becoming submerged inthe culture of silence. Any countrythat turns a deaf ear to academiccorruption will not be able to provide quality education. We need toeducate India to break the cultureof silence. Culture of academic corruption will lead to culture of violence if sincere e�orts are not madeto cleanse the system. Are we readyto act before silence turns intoviolence?

The author is academic, columnist and

freelance writer. [email protected]

Break the silence against corruptionThe culture of academic corruption continues to erode the quality of education and research

wide angle)ALBERT P'RAYAN

Intellectual courage: To question the corrupt system.

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On my bedside, there is acertain presence that isat times menacing. It isnot uninvited, neither isit misplaced. It is simplymismanaged and I haveonly myself to blame.

I’m referring to thepile of unread books,which seems to be growing because I buy themin earnest, greedy toread them. In Japanese,the word for this is tsun-doku. The word apparently has its origins inthe Meiji era (18681912)and means to allow something to pile up.

Common It’s not that I don’t intend to read thosebooks. I allow the pile togrow out of my own inability to create the time.Which is why I thinktsundoku is a telling metaphor for another troubling phenomenon mostof us grapple with in ourdaily lives — commonlyknown as time management.

Like a tsundoku, wehave tasks piling up anddespite our best e�orts,we leave them un�nished or unaddressed.This is where the challenge of prioritisationand managing tasks becomes relevant. As Ihave mentioned in a previous column, we aremostly incapable of mul

titasking. At the sametime, we do have professional and personal activities we need to takecare of. And some ofthem can’t be allowed topile up like tsundoku.

There are a zillionmanagement theories,guidelines, tips andbooks thriving today onhow to manage time.There’s the famous urgent/important/not urgent/not important quadrant that can be used tocategorise tasks. There’sthe curious ‘Eat thatfrog’ concept made popular by Brian Tracy (borrowed from Mark Twainwho said, “If it’s your jobto eat a frog, it’s best todo it �rst thing in themorning. And if it’s yourjob to eat two frogs, it’sbest to eat the biggestone �rst.”)

Eating that frog, or �nishing o� that huge task,is never a simple a�air,and quite often we tendto postpone it only forthat reason. We postpone it till the frog becomes a monstrous creature that begins tothreaten us with unpleasant consequences. Andbefore we know it, thereisn’t one frog but manyhopping around us.

At times, the challenge lies in also not being able to recognisewhich is the task to behandled �rst. The question to ask ourselves ishow do we prioritise? Ifthere are multiple taskswhich demand our attention, how do we knowwhich is the one to be

tackled �rst. A lot ofthis comes with experience, especially in thework environment. Butit is also about plain,oldfashioned, commonsense.

One can address thetasks that are urgentand require immediateattention �rst. Therewill also be tasks thatare important but noturgent. Those requireattention too. And if wedon’t know the di�erence between ‘urgent’and ‘important’, wecan simply ask a coworker for context andadvice. Choosing tostay ignorant and ignoring or postponing thetasks don’t help in theleast.

In my case, I draw inspiration and timemanagement lessonsfrom my husband. I seehim going about eatinghis frogs and addressing his tasks in the mostdisciplined and discerning manner. It isfrustrating at times because I seldom live upto those standards. Butthen I’m constantly reminded if he can do it,so can I.

The author is a writer and

literary journalist. She

also heads Corporate

Communications at UST

Global. @anupamaraju

Eat that frogOr �nish o� that huge task. It’s notsimple, but prioritising can help

Ps & QS)ANUMPAMA RAJU

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Moore’s Law, coined by Intel’scofounder Gordon Moore in1965, refers to his observationthat the number of transistorson a computer chip doublesevery two years. He predictedthat this trend would go on forat least a decade, but it continued to be true for manymore thanks to advances inphotolithography and fabrication tools that allow for millions of transistors to occupy atiny area — for example, a millimetre square on a chip. Inthe past decade, however, therate of growth has sloweddown because of technicalchallenges; the best chance fora revival is a breakthrough inelectrical engineering. Researchers in the �eld like Dr.Maryam Shojaei Baghini arehard at work looking for newinnovations that will make better devices.

What it isElectrical engineering is thebranch of engineering that

deals with the science of electricity and the technologyemerging from it. When the�eld �rst emerged, it involvedexperimenting with batteriesand fairly simple circuits, buttoday it has evolved to muchlarger scales to include powerstations, navigation systems,and more. According to theU.S. Department of Labor’sOccupational Outlook Handbook, “Electrical engineers design, develop, test and supervise the manufacturing ofelectrical equipment such aselectric motors, radar and navigation systems, communications systems and power generation equipment.” This isslightly di�erent from electronics engineering — theformer deals with electricalcircuits that can power machines, but the latter focuseson equipment that has decisionmaking capabilities.

ResearchOne of her research areas islinked to Moore’s Law, whereshe is experimenting with different electrical strategies toovercome the obstacles to produce better devices withoutcompromising on size. Eventually, she wants to combinedevice engineering and circuit

design to optimise circuits tohandle high power. For this,she sees promise in a technology called CMOS (complementary metal oxide semiconductor) which is frequently seenin the electronics of today. Maryam is excited about CMOSbecause it is relatively a�ordable and allows for extremelydense and highperformanceintegrated circuits. She alsolooks towards nature for ecofriendly solutions such as organic transistors.

Maryam also uses her expertise to design electrical solutions in agriculture. She hasdeveloped sensors that canmeasure environmental conditions such as humidity, temperature, soil pH, and nutrientcontent to optimise agricultural practices such as irrigation.A paper in which she and herteam described some of thisresearch won her the RichardFeynman Prize for the bestpaper published in the ICE(U.K.) Journal of Emerging Materials Research in 2013.

BackgroundMaryam was born in Iran. Shecompleted her bachelor’s andmaster’s degrees in electricalengineering (majoring in electronics) from Tehran’s premierSharif University of Technology, continuing there for aPh.D. She then came to IITBombay for postdoctoral studies and after that, took up afaculty position there. Todayshe is a professor in IIT Bombay’s Department of ElectricalEngineering.

The author is a science writer

and co-founder of the Life of

Science project. To know more

about women scientists of India

and their research, visit

www.thelifeofscience.com.

Charging aheadMeet Dr. Maryam Shojaei Baghini, an electrical engineerlooking to invigorate Moore’s Law

Maryam and team: Where the magic happens.

LIFE OF SCIENCE)NANDITA JAYARAJ

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Biomedical Engineering�rst appealed tome while Iwas pursuing mybachelor’sin Audiol

ogy and Speech Language Pathology at Bharati Vidya Peeth Society, Pune. I realised the need andscope for innovation in medicaltechniques and the technologybeing used. Thus, I decided totake up a master’s in BiomedicalEngineering.

I chose the University ofStrathclyde for the unique natureof the programme and the university’s high ranking. It isamong the few institutions thataccept nonengineers for the biomedical course. It is also amongthe top �ve colleges in the U.K formedical technology.

Industry insights As I researched more about thiscourse, I discovered that it allowsscientists from a range of �elds totake up engineering. Within the�rst term, students from nonengineering backgrounds areequipped with a basic understanding of engineering such thatthey can go on to specialise during the second term.

As part of the course, we get tolearn from practising professionals who give insights into theworkplace, �nding jobs aftergraduating, and how the �eld isgrowing. From these profession

als, I got to know about di�erentareas within the �eld which I didnot know before. .

The university prides itself onbeing a place of practical learning, and rightfully so. We aretaught not just engineering butalso how to work and grow alongwith one’s peers. Personally, Iwas excited to be part of a culturally diverse class, learning abouttheir varied views of the world.Also looking at engineering fromtheir perspectives has been an incredible and irreplaceable experience.

The multicultural experienceexpands outside the classroom aswell. From �atmates to people ofthe city of Glasgow, I �nd myselfimmersed in a culture based onhospitality and kindness. The un

iversity, being at the heart of thecity centre, allows me to interactwith people on campus as well asthose in restaurants and shops ona daily basis.

I am honoured to have received the Biomedical Celebration Award for India certi�cate of£6000 as aid. I am happy to havethe opportunity to study in thisuniversity, supported by such agenerous scholarship. I hope touse this degree to further research and aid in the development of technologies in the �eldsof audiology and speech therapy.

Pushkar Deshpande is pursuing

Master’s in Biomedical Engineering

at the University of Strathclyde,

Glasgow, U.K.

Postcard from... Glasgow)

Cultural immersionUniversity of Strathclyde’s unique Biomedical Engineeringprogramme accepts non-engineers too

Name:

Pushkar DeshpandeCollege:

University of Strathclyde, Glasgow,

U.K.Course:

Masters in Biomedical Engineering

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MONDAY, FEBRUARY 19, 2018 3EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE

A Mensa member and a management Guru, Sankar Krishnan issoftspoken. The intelligence behind the polite smile is clear asday. After spending years helping organisations around theworld as a management consultant at McKinsey & Company, heis now helping build the nextgeneration of leaders as provicechancellor of Ashoka Universitywhile also serving on the advisory board of a number of enterprises in healthcare and technology.

He talks to Edge about his student years, which began at College of Engineering Trivandrum(CET) as a B.Tech student, andwhat he thinks about the education system in India.

School to college

Although Loyola School takesacademics seriously, they had alot of other extracurricular activities for students and we hadto choose what we wanted to do.So, I learned to prioritise choicesin school itself and that is something that came in handy during college life. The major di�erence in college is that you haveto do a lot of things on yourown. In school, many help youto get through, but not incollege.

During my time, computerscience was new to India andI’ve always been curious aboutnew things. So, choosing it was aspur of the moment decisionand I had a wonderful timelearning it. For instance, Thiruvananthapuram hosted the National Games for the �rst time in1987 when I was in my secondyear and some of us studentswere fortunate enough to takepart in the backend operationhelping Keltron make a softwarefor games management.

Similarly, management wasmore of a happenstance than aplanned decision. There weretalks at that time on the meritsof taking a management degreeafter engineering. The examsweren’t as hard as they are now.So the group study sessions werefun rather than stressful.

Becoming a manager

I had great teachers at bothCET and IIM. But the system ofteaching was totally di�erentthere. Classes moved forwardthrough discussions mooted byprofessors and there were openbook examinations.

While in CET, the answerswere tothepoint, for management studies we were taught

that there could be more thanone way to answer somethingand usually the correct one wasnot something precise but acompromise between di�erentanswers. It was not as rigid asthe setup at CET.

After IIM, I joined McKinsey &Company, Mumbai. Putting intopractice what I learned wasquite an experience. You realisethe di�erence between theory

and practice. You’ll have to takethe views and concerns of di�erent parties into considerationbefore making a decision.

Management outlook

Indians are trained to be competitive from a young age. Oursystem is designed around exams and a lot of data. So, we arenaturally good at analysing numbers and �gures. It is a handyskill and something highly appreciated by others. Yet, we areoften vague when it comes tocommunication, especially when

it comes to saying no.That was one of

the things that Inoticed while

workingwith peoplefrom di�erent countries. Theydon’t have

any qualmsin saying what

they want.

Though I haven’tstudied in universities outsideIndia, during my career I’ve hadthe opportunity to visit manytop institutes abroad. The thingthat struck me the most is the atmosphere of intellect and knowledge in universities there. It isunlike anything I’ve felt. Walkingin Princeton, you can feel thepresence of geniuses like AlbertEinstein and John Nash.

Education here

The issue here is that we focus on knowledge dumping andexams. What we need to do ismake the system more liberaland let the students explore before they choose something toexcel in. That is what we are trying to do at Ashoka. The students are free to explore di�erent subjects in the �rst year andonly in the second year theyneed to choose a major.

Courses take an interconnected and interdisciplinary approach to instil in students a curiosity to be critical and makethem better rounded for the future. The aim at schools and colleges should be to teach themhow to learn something ratherthan throwing tons of information at them.

my college years)

Be curious,

be criticalPro-vice chancellor of Ashoka UniversitySankar Krishnan shares his views oncollege, management studies and the needfor a liberal approach

b Aswin V.N.

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There were talks atthat time on the

merits of taking amanagement degree

after engineering.The exams weren’t ashard as they are now.

So the group studysessions were fun

rather than stressful.

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Description: The test isintended to helpschoolgoers with �nancial aids that they canavail for higher education, with the showcaseof calibre, and supporttheir parents andthemselves.Eligibility: Those in ClassVIII or those waiting forboard results can apply.Prizes and rewards: Top�ve rank holders will begiven cash prize of �8,000 to �50,000Last date to apply: Feb 25Application: Online onlyhttp://www.b4s.in/EDGE/SAS3

ities can apply.Eligibility: Candidatesmust be studying inclass X with English asthe �rst language andmust have obtainedgrade A in all subjectsof class IX and preboards of class X .Prizes and rewards: Scholarship worth SGD90,000 will be givenper student, and studyin class XI and XII inSingapore. Last date to apply: Feb 28How to Apply: Throughpost http://www.b4s.in/EDGE/GSG6

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Monthly stipend of $3,000, air fare up to $2,500, health insurance of up to $ 1,000,contingency up to $ 750and conference allowances of up to $1,000.Last date to apply: Feb 28How to Apply: Online http://www.b4s.in/EDGE/IFF3

b GIIS Singapore GlobalCitizen Scholarship2018

Description: Ten students are provided opportunity to study inSingapore post class Xboard examination.Academically brightstudents with strengthin extracurricular activ

b Indo-U.S. Fellowshipfor Women in STEMM2018

Description: Departmentof Science and Technology, Government of India, and IndoU.S.Science and Technology Forum is providingfellowships to womenholding Ph.D. degreesin science, technology,engineering, mathematics and medicine.Eligibility: Doctorate degree holder of age between 2750 years holding a regular position inany government recognised academicinstitution.Prizes and rewards:

scholarships)

b M.E. in Cloud Computing

Institution: Manipal Academy of HigherEducationDepartment: School of Information SciencesDuration: Two years Curriculum: Includes cloud architecture andmanagement, cloud application develop

ment, machine learning, data mining anddata warehousingDeadline: May 15

b M.Sc. in Medical Laboratory Technology

Institution: Manipal Academy of HigherEducationDepartment: School of Allied Health SciencesDuration: Two yearsSpecialisations: Microbiology, immunology,clinical biochemistry, public health

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b PG Diploma in Sports Communication

Institution: Manipal Academy of HigherEducationDepartment: School of CommunicationDuration: One yearCareer options: Sports media, sports eventmanagement, content writing for sportsDeadline: May 8 For more details, www.manipal.edu

admissions)

b Content Writer atBrandFoxie

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b Business DevelopmentIntern at Instant AccessHealth IT Private Limited

category: Sales/businessdevelopmentLocation: Chandigarh, Bhopal, Pune, Udaipur, NashikStipend: � 2,000 /monthWho Can Apply: BBA/BBM/BBS/MBA/PGDM Deadline : February 28 https://goo.gl/EeuBwx

b Marketing intern at MSIXEngineering & DesignSolution Pvt Ltd

Category: MarketingLocation: Bhagalpur, Patna,Mumbai, DarbhangaStipend: �3,000 –�6,000/monthWho can apply: All studentsDeadline : February 28https://goo.gl/LtSdjZ

b Book Writing Intern atSPRAT - Society forPromoting Rationality

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internships)






#5 6 7 0 0 1

Name:

Mithu RoyOrganisation:

Eclectic SolutionsDuration:

Two monthsCollege:

B.P. Poddar Institute of Manage-

ment and Technology

It all started as a bad dream. I couldn’tsit for any MNCs during campus placements due to my poor academic results.I had lost my con�dence and was surethat I wouldn’t get any internship either.I was waiting for my �nal semester results when I �nally started applying forinternships online in Mobile App Development. I had done B.Tech in Information Technology. Though I wasn’t muchinterested in coding, I learned androiddevelopment for a month before applying for internships.

I soon got shortlisted for the company Eclectic Solutions and a facetofaceinterview was scheduled with the CEO.He interviewed me on android conceptssuch as activity lifecycle, and more, after which he asked me to create a sorting programme using Java.

Soon, I got to know that I was selected for the internship. On August 8, 2016,I started work. It was exciting to workwith Sublime Text and FileZilla! I wasprovided with a PC and asked to set upeverything that I might need for thework. I set up Android Studio, Genymotion, and so on. My �rst task was tocreate a portfolio app for the companyafter taking all the required informationfrom the o�cial website. I learned a lotwhile developing this app. As they

didn’t have any existing project in android, and I was the only android developer there, I had to create everythingfrom scratch.

On the last day of my internship, Iasked the CEO why he had hired me despite my below average academic results.He said, “I don’t believe in a mark sheet.You were con�dent that day, performedwell in the interview, and I could seethat you had the ability and eagerness tolearn quickly. So, I selected you.” I wastouched by his answer, but I had alreadyunderstood this during my tenure there.

I’m now working as a fulltime android developer at another companycalled Codelogicx Technologies. The experience I gained during my internshiphas helped me get ahead in my careerby building technical skills and con�dence. Whatever doubts I had in myabilities, this experience helped meovercome them. I did my internship after graduation, but I recommend everyone to do it while they are studyingbecause real, practical knowledge liesoutside the con�nes of a classroom.

Mithu Roy completed B.Tech in Information

Technology at B.P. Poddar Institute of

Management and Technology.

Courtesy: Internshala

My internship)

When marks didn’t matterWhen found unsuitable for placements, Mithu Roy says an internship revived his career

EDGE

CM

YKND-X



MONDAY, FEBRUARY 19, 20184EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE

in brief)

Moot winnersSchool of Law, SASTRA DeemedUniversity, Tamil Nadu, won the 14th KKLuthra International Moot beatingUniversity of Lucknow in the finals. Thewinning team comprised thirdyearstudents Vishvas Bharadwaj, LakshmiNarayana, and Sankarshanan. Theyreceived a trophy and were awarded acash prize of �25,000. A total of 78teams registered for the moot, includingseveral international teams. The prizedistribution ceremony was presided overby Supreme Court Justice NageswaraRao.

Consumer rights advisorshelp consumers in safeguarding their interests andprotecting their rights. Inthis premise, they render every bit of service required toachieve the objective, fromraising a complaint to getting the due compensation.To take on these challengeswith upright positivity oneneeds to be smart and caringwhile writing, interrogatingthe minute details of thecase and sharing them precisely and accurately withseniors, lawyerincharge,governing councils and media professionals. Even theslightest error can changethe orientation of thecourse. This means, a consumer right adviser must beattentive and focused onperforming his/her duties orresponsibilities.

Although a career as consumer rights advisor/consultant is a hot profession in thedeveloped countries of Europe and Americas for decades, it is still considered arare career choice in India.There is vast scope in this�eld as the demand for quali�ed professionals is exceptionally larger than theiravailability. Moreover, withthe high penetration ofsmartphones and a revolution in exchanging information through social mediachannels and Whatsapp,consumers are empoweredto raise their issues. Subsequently, numbers of complaints are also increasingrapidly with a sudden spurt

in the ecommerce sector; asegment which is super�uously covered in the existingconsumer protection law.

Career opportunities inthis rapidly growing sectorare increasing exponentiallyafter recent reforms in the�scal and industrial policies,and the introduction of GST.Now, openings for consumerrights advisors are not restricted to public departments, trading standards departments, accreditationagencies, governmentwatchdog organisations. Establishment of many consumer grievances forumsand consumer rights platforms in the private sector iscreating enormous opportunities to young aspirants.Various largesized businesshouses which have dedicated consumer complaint departments seek smart andquali�ed professionals tosave their brand imagethrough zero dissonancepolicy.

ResponsibilitiesWith the changing dynamicsin economic and legal frameworks, the roles and responsibilities of consumerrights advisers and consultants are also changing. Regularly interacting with customers through phones orpersonal visits, reportingand assessing their problems, maintaining data/records, compiling statistics,studying the cases and exchanging accurate information with lawyers, making

dialogues with oppositions,and liaising with other relevant organisations are someof the core responsibilities ofconsumer rights advisers ina modern setup.

Quali�cationsAs one has to interact with alarge number of people fromdiverse backgrounds and experience, the personality ofa consumer right advisor

matters a lot. One should begood at communication, con�dent in expressing views/opinions, bold in sharing thefacts, and intelligent in making negotiations with the second party. Although educational quali�cations areimportant, they play the second lead in this industry.Preferably, law graduates andcandidates from psychology,public administration, etc.,

are more soughtafter thancandidates from otherstreams. But, doors are opento anyone who has good interpersonal skills besidessubstantial knowledge of consumer protection law. Also,prior experience in a similarcapacity always gives an extraedge.

The author is CEO, Consumer

Sathi, an a�ordable Legal help

for Indian Consumers.

Offbeat...customer care)

Safeguarding interests: Role of a consumer advisor.

Want to champion the rights of theconsumer? Here’s a rewardingprofession

b Manav Bajaj

Consumer is King

MO

HA

MM

ED

YO

USU

F

With low graduation scores, I haven’t got

any placement. I searched for a job and

found one but turns out it is a BPO,

though they keep telling me it's not a BPO

job. I tend to think a lot but not act. I

want to pursue a government job but feel

it's a huge risk and involves a lot of com

petition. I am desperate to start a new

life. Please help. Aakash Upadhyay

Dear Aakash,You obliviously seem frustrated with

your current job and life. I sense hugecomplacency creeping in as well andyou are not happy. The time is NOW!Make the most of your life right nowwhen you are young and you can set thefoundation of what you would want toreap in the future. Set a goal and anachievable target for yourself to startanew, afresh and take up the government job exams with new zest and motivation. The choice is always yours!“Past is Past, you cannot change it, youcan only look forward to the future”!Good Luck!

I am completing class XI. I like to click

pictures, take videos, combine them

through video editing software, and pre

sent them as a short documentary. This is

my interest, hobby and passion. I can’t

live in peace without doing any of these

tasks. I would like to take up a multime

dia course after class XII, as an o�beat

path. But I am confused whether it is

right to do so. Please advise. Kushal

Dasgupta

Dear Kushal,What a wonderful email I am so hap

py that you are so aware of what youlove and are passionate about. Godbless! There is huge scope with yourpassion and interests post your classXII. There are many good institutes andcolleges in India and overseas that o�eran array of interesting courses – certi�cations, diplomas and degrees that youcould consider for your undergraduation videography training for multimedia, animation, photography, videography, art of telling a story – via script,screenplay, direction, editing, music,virtual reality engineering, shooting

and editing digital videos and short�lms, �lm making �lm production,�lm editing, script writing, documentary �lm making, etc.,to name a few. Ensure that it is from an institute of reputeand that they have some good alumnicredentials. Also, read through thecourse and curriculum choices in detailto ensure that you resonate with thesubjects and this is what you want to doin the full programme. You can followthis up with an internship at a production house / director / editor / scriptwriter closer to completion of your coursework. Wishing you the very best!

I am sharing with you a link. Do you

think I can become an actor? I am now

preparing for competitive examinations

(Bank and SSC). I have done theatre for

about six months and completed gradua

tion in BSc Hons. Biochemistry from DU.

Lakshay Nagpal

Dear Lakshay,Thank you for sharing the video clip. Itwas brilliant, to say the least. Very welldone indeed. I have no doubt that youcannot become a successful actor, however, you need to be practical and notonly romantic about this dream. Thereare millions who nurture fondestdreams of becoming blockbuster heroesin Bollywood but then there is only oneSRK, Salman and Varun. I feel you mustgive your competitive entrance examsyour very best right now and see whatdoors can open for you. It will get you afoothold to stay con�dent, economically stable and boost your selfesteem. However, do not give up on your actingand theatre classes. Continue doingwhat helps you express yourself – bewho you are – in fact, get a portfolioclicked and send it to modelling agencies, casting o�ces – take part in auditions, contests and shows that can helpshowcase your good work to the rightpeople and agents in Bollywood. I amsure one day, not so far away, you will beable to showcase your talent to theworld. All the best!

Disclaimer: This column is not a substitute for longterm therapy. It ismerely a guiding voice. Some issuesmay need medical intervention.

The author is a practising counsellor and a

trainer. She has worked extensively with

students and young adults across a range of

issues. She will answer questions sent to

[email protected]. The subject

line should be: ‘O� the edge’.

At a crossroads

OFF THE EDGE )NANDINI RAMAN






#5 6 7 0 0 1

CMYK

B ND-NDE

follow us:

thehindu.com

facebook.com/thehindu

twitter.com/the_hindu

monday O february 19, 2018

IN BRIEF

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Lok Adalatsease burdenLok Adalats, held across the

country on February 10,

managed to clear over 12

lakh cases Page 2

Language ofemotions Karan Johar says we don’t

need to to tweak our

cinematic syntax to reach

out to the world Page 3

Dog eat dog world Wes Anderson quirky �lm

Isle of Dogs opens the

68th Berlin International

Film Festival Page 3

Big-gamehuntingWhen fun turns addictive

and interferes with life,

signs of addiction to look

out for Page 4

Sheila, Maken kick o�‘campaign’in JangpuraNEW DELHI

Anticipating byelections to20 Delhi Assemblyconstituencies that recentlyhad their MLAs disquali�ed,the Congress on Sunday helda convention for workers inJangpura, one of the seatslikely to go to the polls.

CITY A PAGE 2

DDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDD

Man arrested for rapingundergraduate student GHAZIABAD

A man was arrested here for

allegedly raping an under

graduate student and making

a video of the act with the

help of his accomplice, police

said on Sunday. The victim

lodged a complaint on Friday

after which Mehtab was

arrested. She has also named

three other persons in the

complaint. PTI

Four people were injured after a �ght broke out betweentwo groups of youths at a restaurant in south Delhi’s Mehrauli on Saturday night.

The police said that a callwas received at 9.20 p.m.about a scu�e at a restaurant in Mehrauli’s Ward No.1. When a police teamreached the spot, they weretold that four youths: Akash,Praveen, DK and Vikas, weresitting in the restaurantwhen they were attacked bymembers of a rival gang withsharpedged weapons.

The four injured were taken to AIIMS Trauma Centreby locals. The doctors toldthe police that Akash andParveen were in a criticalcondition and admitted to

the ICU. The other two werereported to be out of danger.

An old issueThe police said that the scuf�e broke out over an old issue between Vikas and a rival gang member Shikari.

On Friday, Vikas and Shikari had engaged in a verbal

sapt following which Shikarihad damaged Vikas’s newmotorbike.

“Vikas along with histhree other friends was sitting in a restaurant whenaround 9 p.m., an enragedShikari along with four others: Deepak, Manish, Mohitand Roshan, barged into the

restaurant and attacked thefour youths. After stabbingthe victims, they �ed fromthe spot,” said VijayantaArya, ADCP (South).

A case of attempt to murder has been registered. Thepolice said that all the youthsinvolved in the incident belong to Mehrauli Ward No. 2and are known to each other.

“We are examining CCTVfootage to identify if therewere more people involvedin the scu�e. We haveformed a team to arrest theaccused,” said Ms. Arya.

On December 31 last year,a 30yearold man was shotat following an argument at aNew Year’s Eve party insidea bar in south Delhi’s GreaterKailash. The bar was illegallyoperating till after permissible time limit.

Four injured in brawl insouth Delhi restaurantTwo youths in ICU after they were attacked with sharpedged weapons

STAFF REPORTER

New Delhi

The police said the scu�e broke out at a restaurant inMehrauli’s Ward No. 1. * SPECIAL ARRANGEMENT

The Delhi High Court has acquitted two persons of murder, �ve years after theywere arrested, after notingdiscrepancies in the reportby the investigating o�cer.

A Bench of Justice S. Muralidhar and Justice I. S.Mehta pointed out that thereport paid “extensive reliance on the eyewitness’stestimonies and did not payattention to the corroborating evidence”.

The case relates to a murder of a man at ChameliPark, near Raghubir Nagar,on November 19, 2013. Thehead of the victim was foundpartially crushed.

The main witness in thecase was the grandmother ofthe deceased, who at thetime of her deposition wasabout 75 years of age.

She had stated that on thefateful day around 5 a.m.,she noticed her grandsonbeing forcibly pushed into arickshaw by the two accused— Prahalad and Devanand.

She claimed that she followed the rickshaw from

Ghorewala Mandir to Chameli Park. When shereached the park, she sawthe accused beating the victim with a big stone and awooden stick.

Beaten with stoneA blow from the stonecrushed the victim’s headand blood spurted onto theaccused. The grandmothersaid she screamed and theaccused �ed. She said thatshe then ran back home.

The woman had said thatonce she regained control ofherself, she went back toChameli Park around 8 a.m.by which time the police hadarrived. She then identi�edher grandson’s body andgave an account of what hap

pened to the investigatingo�cer.

Witness account suspectThe High Court, however,pointed out that she had inher statement before themagistrate claimed to havegone to the police stationwith other people from thelocality and lodged a report.

Noting that a woman ofher age could not possiblyfollow a rickshaw on foot,the court said: “It would besafe to conclude that theseinconsistencies and contradictions were materialenough to discredit hertestimony”.

The court also raisedquestions on the way thetwo accused were arrestedon the same day. “Why theywould continue wearingthose trousers and be waiting around to be arrestedfrom an open parking spacein the vicinity has not beenexplained at all,” the Benchremarked.

“Suspicion, howsoeverstrong, cannot substituteproof,” the Bench statedwhile acquitting the duo.

HC notices discrepancies in report by investigating o�cer

Staff Reporter

New Delhi

After �ve years in jail, two acquitted of murder

A Delhi University studentwas allegedly molested andthrashed by a group of menin northwest Delhi’s Mukherjee Nagar on Fridaynight. The incident happened when the 23yearoldvictim was returning to herhostel with a friend, the police said.

The matter came to forewhen the victim’s friendmade a PCR call stating thatshe was being beaten by agroup of men, said a seniorpolice o�cer.

The victim in her statement said that the incidenthappened so quick that shewas unable to react.

While narrating the incident to the police, she saidthat on Friday evening,along with �ve of herfriends, she had gone towatch a movie in a nearbytheatre. After the movie,they took a cab, whichdropped them at their locality around 10 p.m.

Pulled o� her capWhile four of her friends dispersed in di�erent directions, she along with another friend, started walkingtowards her hostel.

She was a few metresaway from her hostel when aman, who appeared to be inhis early twenties, suddenlypulled o� her cap. She stat

ed in her complaint that theact agitated her and shepushed him aside. Angeredby this, the man shouted outto his friends who were sitting nearby at an eatery.

A group of six men, all ofwhom appeared to be college students, circled herand started beating her up.

The student said she triedher best to retaliate but wassoon overpowered.

The police have registered a complaint undercharges of molestation andvoluntarily causing hurt.

“We have recovered a fewCCTV images from the spotand areas adjoining it. Weare trying to identify the accused,” the o�cer added.

DU student molested,thrashed by six men23yearold was returning to her hostel in Mukherjee Nagar

Staff Reporter

New Delhi

A 22yearold engineeringstudent of Jamia Millia Islamia was among three menarrested for a series of burglaries at south Delhi homes,the police said on Sunday.

RazaulMustafa, a thirdyear civil engineering student, is involved in two pre

vious registered cases ofthefts, said the police.

Mustafa and his twofriends, Mohd. Faim andMohd. Naim, would break into houses in posh localitiessuch as New Friends Colony,Sarita Vihar and Jamia Nagar.

“Faim is involved in 11 previous cases of burglaries andNaim in one,” said Chinmoy

Biswal, DCP (southeast).“Since they were aware of

the locations of CCTVs in thelocality, they would wearmasks while committing theburglaries. They used housebreaking tools to enter thehouses whose occupantswere away,” said Mr. Biswal.

The three men werecaught while they were car

o�cer.Five laptops, an LED TV

and a stolen motorcyclewere recovered from the accused, the o�cer added.

The three accused stay inthe same neighbourhood ofJamia Nagar. “Naim andFaim roped in Mustafa tohelp them with the burglaries,” added the DCP.

rying stolen goods on a stolen motorcycle, said Mr. Biswal. The police also arrestedRahul Sharma, who deals insale and purchase of usedlaptops, for allegedly receiving the stolen goods.

“The three burglars wanted to splurge on their girlfriends and impress themwith money,” said a police

Engineering student among three held for burglaries Accused were caught while they were carrying stolen goods on a stolen motorcycle STAFF REPORTER

New Delhi

The Delhi Police on Sundayarrested a man who had leftthree women injured andbleeding from their earswhen he snatched their earrings in Dwarka.

Over the last week, threeseparate incidents of snatchings were reported acrossDwarka.

The police were able tomake a sketch of the suspectbased on the description bya victim. These sketcheswere widely distributed,and on Saturday, a tip wasreceived about the suspectand he was detained at Uttam Nagar bus stand.

Another arrestThe police also arrested aman who had purchased thesnatched earrings from theaccused.

The snatcher, 23yearoldMujibul, tried to mislead thepolice by saying that heworks in a garment factoryand was working at the time

of incidents. “This wasfound to be incorrect. Onsustained interrogation, hedisclosed his involvement inthe crimes,” said Atul Kumar Thakur, DCP (Dwarka).

He also disclosed his involvement in a similar incident in Vikaspuri on February 16.

Based on his instance, jeweller Sudhir Soni was arrested for buying the stolengoods. Mr. Soni runs a jewellery shop in Mohan Garden.

1 held for snatchings,hurting three women Jeweller arrested for buying stolen goods

STAFF REPORTER

New Delhi

The accused in policecustody on Sunday.

* SPECIAL ARRANGEMENT

Hitting out against the BJPruled Centre, Chief MinisterArvind Kejriwal on Sundaysaid the fact that businessmen Nirav Modi and VijayMallya left the country withhuge debts owed to bankspointed to the involvementof those “at the top of theCentral government”.

“It is not a coincidencethat Nirav Modi ran awaywith ₹11,000 crore and VijayMallya with ₹9,000 crore indebts. Many agencies are involved. It is not possiblewithout a green �ag fromthe top. The people at thetop of the Central government are involved,” said Mr.

Kejriwal.The Aam Aadmi Party

(AAP) convenor added thatpeople were worried whether their money was safe inbanks and some had approached him with suchconcerns.

‘No scam stopped’“The BJP is saying that thisstarted in 2011 and the Congress is saying it started later. But, it was going on tillnow. We are saying that thescams that started in thetime of the Congress are stillon today. Not one scam hasstopped. First the Congressused to make money, nowthe BJP does,” said Mr.Kejriwal.

‘Top people in Centrebehind Nirav Modi case’Staff Reporter

NEW DELHI

Celebrating Delhi PoliceWeek, a group of 60 seniorcitizens from the SouthEastdistrict were taken out for aheritage tour of the city onSunday by the force.

The participants, escortedby beat o�cers, were �rst taken to the DCP southeast of�ce before making their wayto Humayun’s Tomb, Nizammuddin, in two buses.

“Participants were accompanied by ACP (Sarita Vihar)Dhal Singh. Before the tour,

we discussed their views andvisions on safety and securityof senior citizens,” said Chinmoy Biswal, DCP (southeast). The group was given a

tour of Humayun’s Tomb by aguide. The trip ended with alunch, after which the participants were dropped o� attheir homes by beat o�cers.

Delhi Police take 60 senior citizens on heritage tourSTAFF REPORTER

NEW DELHI

At Humayun’s Tomb on Sunday. * SPECIAL ARRANGEMENT






#5 6 7 0 0 1




CMYK

B ND-NDE

CITY

Talk: International Seminar: India andIndonesia: Exploring Cultural, Religious and Linguistic Pluralities and Inclusive Identities. Inauguration by N. N.Vohra, President, India InternationalCentre. Introduction to the seminar byAmbassador S. T. Devare, former IndianAmbassador to Indonesia. Address byH.E. Mr. Sidharto Reza Suryodipuro, Indonesian Ambassador to India, Addressby Dr. Lokesh Chandra, eminent scholarand author at Seminar Rooms – II & III,Kamaladevi Complex, India International Centre (IIC), 10:30 a.m.

Talk: "Civil Society and Nuclear Disarmament: Why 2017’s Nobel Prize isYours!" Speaker: Dr. Vidya ShankarAiyar, Nuclear Disarmament activist.Chair: Mani Shankar Aiyar at Conference Room II, Main Building, India International Centre (IIC), 6:30 p.m.

Dance and Music:Kathak recital by PtDeepak Maharaj followed by tabla solorecital By Pranshu Chatur Lal at C.D.Deshmukh Auditorium, Main Building,India International Centre (IIC), 6 p.m.

Dance and Music: Tarana Art & MusicSangeet Utsav 2018. Kuchipudi danceperformance by Mautushi Mazumdarand group. Followed by Mohan Veena &Satvik Veena Jugalbandi by Pt. VishwaMohan Bhatt and Pt. Salil Bhatt. Abhishek Mishra on tabla at The SteinAuditorium, India Habitat Centre (IHC),7 p.m.

Exhibition: "Madhyama" a groupshow of young artists from MadhyaPradesh curated by Akhilesh at Shridharani Gallery, Triveni Kala Sangam,205, Tansen Marg, Mandi House, 11a.m. – 7 p.m.

Exhibition: "Silent Expressions”group show of paintings, ceramics andphotography fusing together 21 artistsat All India Fine Arts & Craft Society , 1Ra� Marg, 11 a.m. – 7 p.m

Exhibition: "Beyond Transnationalism: The Legacies of Post IndependentArt from South Asia" group show curated by Arshiya Lokhandwala at All India Fine Arts & Craft Society (AIFACS),1 Ra� Marg, 11 a.m. – 7 p.m.

(Mail your listings for this column [email protected])

DELHI TODAY

To ensure last mile connectivity for metro commuters, the Delhi Metro RailCorporation (DMRC) onSunday announced thatthey have integrated theCommon Mobility Card inits feeder buses and a fewof the parking lots in thenetwork.

Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal in Januaryhad launched the CommonMobility Card in the city.

The DMRC on Sunday

said that the move was initiated to expand the utilityof the card which will alsoensure the last mileconnectivity.

“The smart card users,who are using feeder buses, can now use it for making payment for travel inthese buses,” a statementissued by the DMRC read.

200 feeder busesThe Delhi Metro is currently running a �eet of morethan 200 feeder buses covering over 40 routes

across di�erent lines of theDelhi Metro network.

The card can now alsobe used at parking lots of 13stations for paying parkingcharges—Vishwavidyalaya,Saket, Karkarduma, Dilshad Garden, Akshardham,Patel Chowk, KashmereGate, Rohini sectors 18 and19, Shastri Park, NHPCChowk, Mewala Maharajpur, Old Faridabad, andSector 28 Faridabad.

DMRC has also updatedthe software in the HandHeld Terminal (HHT), the

device that is used to readthe card and deduct theamount, in feeder buses.

“The new software willsimplify the ticketing process in the feeder busesand will also save time inthe ticketing transaction.The minimum and maximum fare of the feeder buses is �5 and �15 respectively,” the statement read.

Around two lakh peopleare currently availing theMetro feeder bus serviceson a daily basis, the DMRCsaid.

‘Mobility card integrated with feeder buses’Delhi Metro Rail Corporation says move will ensure last-mile connectivity

Staff Reporter

New Delhi

Under a nationwide publicoutreach campaign to dispel myths about Electromagnetic Field (EMF) Emissions, an awarenessprogramme was organisedby the Department of Telecommunications (DoT), inassociation with MunicipalCorporation of Gurugram(MCG), on EMF emissionsand mobile towers in Sector10A on Sunday.

Delivering the technicaladdress, Arjun Singh, DDG(Technology), said that Digital India initiative wasaimed at providing universal access to mobile connectivity and Internet to allcorners of India.

Health of citizensHe stressed upon the needfor installation of the required number of towers invarious localities for bestwireless connectivity and

ken adequate steps to ensure that telecommunications service providersstrictly adhere to thesenorms,” he said.

Gaurav Antil, Joint Commissioner of the MCG, stated that the civic bodyaimed to drive economicgrowth and improve thequality of life of people inGurugram by promotingtechnology that can lay thefoundation for SmartGurugram.

Quality of Service (QoS). He further added that

the department was fullycommitted to protect thehealth of our citizens andaccordingly the standardsfor Electromagnetic Radiation limit that DoT haveprescribed for emissionfrom mobile towers wereten times stricter than theinternational standards recommended by the WorldHealth Organisation.

“The government has ta

Awareness campaign about EMF emissions Staff Reporter

GURUGRAM

Anticipating byelections to20 Delhi Assembly constituencies that recently hadtheir MLAs disquali�ed, theCongress on Sunday carriedout campaign preparationswith a convention for workers in Jangpura, one of theseats likely to go to the polls.

Though the 20 Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) MLAs whowere disquali�ed in Januaryfor holding o�ce of pro�thave moved court and thehearing is on, the Congresshas started preparations forpotential bypolls.

The convention on Sunday was the third to be heldafter Laxmi Nagar and Wazirpur.

All 20 constituencies willhold such conventions, theCongress had said.

For the second time in lessthan a week, former ChiefMinister Sheila Dikshit andDelhi Congress presidentAjay Maken presented a united front as they addressedthe crowd at Jangpura. Reported di�erences between

the two leaders had led tofriction during the 2015 Assembly elections.

Addressing a press conference together last week, Mr.Maken said he took theblame for not reaching outearlier.

On Sunday, the Congressleaders addressed partyworkers and planned a series of boothwise meetings.

Mr. Maken said that Delhiites were remembering thetenure of the Congress afterthree years of the AAP government.

“The people of Delhi haverealised that the Congress isthe only party that can run

the government. The Congress government underSheila Dikshit had made Delhi into a beautiful city. Butnow Delhi is once again a gaschamber,” he said.

‘World-class city’Ms. Dikshit said that in her15year tenure, from 1998 to2013, the Congress government had turned Delhi into aworldclass city. “You willnot bene�t from us talking.You will bene�t the day youoverturn the governmentand return to the era whenDelhi went forward… TheCongress does what it promises,” she said.

Sheila, Maken kick o� ‘campaign’ in anticipation of byelections Organise workers’ convention in Jangpura

Staff Reporter

NEW DELHI

Sheila Diskshit with Ajay Maken (centre) and P.C. Chacko atJangpura on Sunday. * R.V. MOORTHY






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Mukul Dev, known for hiscomic timing and action avatar, is turning a new leaf inhis career as he returns to television with 21 Sarfarosh-:Saragadhi 1897 on Discovery Jeet. It is based on a realbattle fought in September1897 between Sikh soldiersof the Brtish Indian Armyand Pashtun Orakzai tribesmen. A multifaceted personality, Mukul has alsopenned the story of HansalMehta's Omerta, based onthe life of Omar SaeedSheikh

ExcerptsTell us about your cha

racter in The Battle ofSaragadhi...

The creative head at thechannel did a deep researchon the character of tribal Afghan leader named Gul Badshah. His gestures, way ofwalking, speech, manipulative ways were discussed minutely. Though I played anAfghan in Waar Chhod NaYar, it was di�erent from itas it was a funny role. I haveobserved Afghani peopleand their Urdu is not aschaste as it should be andthat re�ects in the way theyspeak. Their native languageis Pashtun. The mentalgraph was already designedwhich helped me as an actor.Also, the stories narrated tome in childhood helped inunderstanding the psyche ofthe character.

Please elaborate...The folklore actually

shapes your imagination as achild and leaves an imprintin mind which in a waybuilds relatability. The stories of Battle of Saragadhi,Maharana Pratap and manysuch tales of valour weretold to us for generating afeeling of love for the motherland. My father knows Urdu and Persian very well andthat helped me in getting theright pronunciation. Hehelped me by replacing regular words with those whichsound more authentic.

Two other �lms are being made on the samesubject...

There is no copyright onhistorical �lms and subjects.Every person has a right tomake �lms but the audiencewill examine which of theseis more authentic. There aremany �lms on Gandhi's lifebut most of us remember theone which was made by Richard Attenborough.

We are witnessing ahuge in�ux of �lm actorsand directors to seriesbased content ontelevision

It is because there is aplethora of talent in the industry which is not gettingchance in �lm industry. Weonly have a few good �lmsand only some actors canwork in it. Most of the actorsdo �lms with poor contentbecause they do not have options. If an opportunity

comes their way where theyget the same cinematic feeling and creative satisfactionwhich you get while doing aSanjay Leela Bhansali or anImtiaz Ali �lm, they will gofor it.

Tell us about your experience of working inSouth Indian �lms

Language does not matterto audience if content isgood. It is the director’s belief which is translated onscreen and roles are writtenaccording to his imagination.It does not matter what is thebackground of actors as longas they �t the role assignedto them. If a person comesfrom a di�erent industry, hebrings his own universal selling point. And, if he alsospeaks the language, it is awinwin situation for all.

Did you record yourown dialogues?

Yes. Majority of my nonHindi �lms have my ownvoice.

Was it di�cult to getthe accent?

I believe a good actor doesnot have an accent of hisown. Yes, it was tough, but itwas my job.

What brought you toacting?

My interest in acting wassimilar to any Delhi boy whowatches cinema, grows hishairs and repeats the dialogue which he hears intheatre. I used to do mimicryof many actors in my childhood which remained withme till I went to becoming apilot from Indira Gandhi Flying Academy in Rae Bareilly.I was jobless after becoming

a pilot which brought me tomodelling and that led toacting. I was fortunate that Igot directors like MaheshBhatt and Tanuja Chandrawho taught me on sets. I never did theatre for learningacting. Film sets were myacting school.

You seem to be a closetwriter as well. Tell usabout Omerta...

There is a di�erent sort ofcontentment in writing asyou see your name as a creator and not just as a collaborator. Writing is very close tome though many people donot know me about this aspect. But it is not somethingI want to hide. I always pushHansal to tell people that Iwrote the story as I too wantsome publicity (laughs).There are many storieswhich I have written butthey are still with me. Omer-ta is the �rst one to comeout. I initially wanted to direct it too but he told me thatI can't give away seven eightmonths from my schedule asam primarily an actor. It wasalso a practical choice tomake.

What drew you to thisstory?

I wrote the story around200607. He is a real life character to which I came acrossthrough a book written by ajournalist where he wasmentioned as a terrorist. Ifound him too unusual for aterrorist and that excited meto write a story around him.It took me seveneightmonths to write the story. Infact, Hansal took more timeto write the screenplay.

‘A good actordoes not havean accent of his own’As Mukul Dev returns to televisionwith 21 Sarfarosh:Saragadhi 1897, theactor talks about how folklore helpedhim in understanding his character ofa Afghan warlord, and his fascinationfor writing stories

Atif Khan

Keeping it realistic: Mukul Dev * SPECIAL ARRANGEMENT

Maha Shivratri is one festival thatbrings with it an ecstatic fervour notfound in other festivals. Devotion toShiva is a perennial observance. Shivbhakti precedes other observances asis evident from the Ramayana, Mahabharata and the Puarnas too. Thethird god of the Hindu Trinity is notonly a destroyer but also a protectorwho, easily swayed by devotion tohim, showers gifts on his devoteeswith abundance, said the old panditof Hari Nagar’s Mohan temple lastweek. The princely rulers veneratedhim as he was the one who bestowedpower which they venerated morethan anything else because of theirKshatriya ancestry which markedthem out as the warrior caste and theprotectors of their ancient domain,where pigeons were not killed, asthey were sacred to Shiva, and wholearnt the story of creation from himwhile he told it to Goddess Parvati.

“Bhole Nath”, as he is fondlycalled, gives an idea of the innocentbenevolence of Shiva. No wondereven on vans, trucks and other vehicles you will �nd the slogan, “Bhole kifauj karegi mauj” boldly displayed.When Shivratri comes and peopleworship the bel leaves, they are harking back to the time when a huntertaking shelter on a bel tree kept plucking its leaves the whole night andthrowing them down without beingaware that in doing so he was unconsciously paying homage to Shiva onwhose image below it fell, added thefasting panditji.

“Bolo bhai bam/Ke bolo bhayibam/Ke bam Bhole” is the chant ofthe devotees who travel on Shivratrito distant Shivalayas to o�er water toShambo Nath, whose seat is in thesnowy Himalayas. Armed with lathisand wearing vests and kacchas (underwear), they go about even in thedark to ful�l their mission withoutany fear, amid the cry of “Jai, Jai ShivShankar/Kanta lage na kankar”, Delhihas several Shivalayas, not countingthe ones in Mehrauli where the Tomar and Chauhan rajas o�ered worship for power, strength and fortitude, as did Prithviraj Chauhanbefore the First Battle of Tarainagainst Mohammad Ghori, which he

won — though he lost the second onebecause of treachery. A foreign tourist, David Sharpe visiting Delhi wasfascinated by the small Shiv templeson the roadside, under trees with�ickering diyas, and beneath the oldcity wall, where a lone sadhu sat inmeditation for the whole night, quiteunmindful of the wordly happenings,lost in thoughts of Shiva, cosmic dancer with the damru.

David Sharpe had come from Australia and what he saw amazed him.His interest was not in the new colonies but in the old ones — the mohallas of the Walled City where a whiteladdoo or a kulhar of dahi or milk wasleft by someone as a humble o�eringto Shivji. A Christian, he at �rst usedto make the sign of the cross thinkingthat what he was seeing was a manifestation of devil worship but slowlylight dawned on him and he came torealise that it was God who was beinghonoured thus in the quaint ambience of Shiv devotion. The photographs David took back home werenot only a record of his rambles but adiscovery he wanted to share with hisfolks about strange worship and practices of which his countrymen werenaturally ignorant. Here is a note heleft behind by him with this scribe in1973:

“A sadhu sits trishul in hand at thegate of the Udaseen Ashram near theKamla Market. His matted locksmatch his mien. Behind him on thecool ashram �oor several inmates areeither asleep or lying with an air of resignation that is peculiar to asceticswho drink bhang of Lord Shiva,whose ‘Bhagts’ they are. Hardly anysunlight seems to penetrate the place.Perhaps long ago when Delhi was stillpartly inhabited with a Pather Ghati

in the centre, this ashram was just amound below a tree where wandering sadhus set up abode for a whileand went their way, like the GauriShankar Mandir which also came upon one such site.

“Now the place has an identity.Some of the sadhus are resident hereand willynilly a�ected by the modernity of the Capital. There are amongthem those who go about with briefcases and bifocals. Perhaps it helps tostrike postures —a certain turn ofspeech, a gentle gaze, a �erce look,quick turning of the head, a gestureor a frown — all have a psychologicale�ect on devotees.

“Among the ashramites are the sadhus who sing bhajans morning andevening. They move in a group, sixsa�ron robed men who wake up theresidents with the popular ‘Uth jagmusa�r bhor bhai’ (awake, oh traveller, for morning has come). In theevening the song is of a di�erent kindwith its emphasis on the introspection that comes when the day ends.

“But to see these men at the ashram is a di�erent experience. Herethey move about as individuals bothold and young, the �erce looking andthe gentle ones. The ones who sit atthe gate look like the sentries of Shiva.These sanyasis do have an air of mystery. What secrets of life and death dothey harbour?” David Sharpe ofcourse doesn’t rattle the damru ofShiva in faraway Melbourne at MahaShivratri or intone, “Arthi karo Shanker ki” but says he still relishes anevening at a Chandni Chowk shivalayalong ago while munching “rebaris” given as prasad.

The ambience of ShivaDelhi’s Shivalayascome alive duringMaha Shivratri

For Lord’s blessings: Devotees o�ering prayers on Maha Shivratri * SUSHIL KUMAR VERMA

R. V. Smith

DOWN MEMORY LANE

the author is a veteran chron-

icler of delhi

Giving a push to Indian cinema’s global ambitions, theMinistry of Information &Broadcasting, in partnershipwith the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII), participated in the European FilmMarket at the ongoing BerlinInternational Film Festival inBerlin. The Indian delegation was led by directorproducer Karan Johar. “We havea very impressive delegationwith eminent �lmmakerslike Shaji Karun and JahnuBarua. The idea is to enhance the global in�uence ofIndian cinema by makingsure that we actually openthe doors of our country to�lmmakers from across theworld, not only to �lm butalso collaborate with us. Theidea of the I & B Ministry andthe CII is to communicatethat India is open to all kindsof possibilities,” said Karanover a telephonic conversation.

On concerns about safety,Karan said that it was reiterated that India was a “stableand strong country.” “Wehave a diverse demographyand all kinds of topographythat you can visualise andexpress on celluloid.” Underlining that Indian cinema’s relationship with Germany goes back a long way,Karan recalled his experience in Berlinale when heand Shah Rukh Khan walkedthe red carpet for My NameIs Khan. “Germans are inlove with Bollywood. I washere in Berlin eight yearsago with My Name Is Khan

and it got a resounding reception when the �lmopened at the festival. I cansee that the love has grownamong German audiences. Itis not just Germany, thewhole Europe is resonatingwith our content. It is in addition to our success in China and West Asia. It goes toshow that our cinema is notjust restricted to the boundaries of our country and istravelling across the world.”

Recently, a couple of hisproductions have been shotin Israel. “Why not, wherever your content takes you,you should shoot. The worldis a global village.” Of course,but for some time we are getting a sense that Hindi �lmindustry is looking for morerooted and local stories. “Ifthe theme is universal, youhave to travel. Lunchboxwasmade with European collaboration but it was shot inMumbai. Secret Superstar isdoing well in China. Youhave to collaborate intelligently with cinematic forces.”

Beyond the pale ofpolitics

There is a section of creative fraternity that wants toisolate Israel because of itsalleged human rights abusein Palestine. Karan sees itsdi�erently. “Cinema isbeyond world of politics. Ci

nema speaks its own language, a universal languageof emotions. If we startthinking about individualpolitics of every country, itwill eat into the creative forces that we are here to promote. It is not about individual political atmosphere ofa country, it is about raisingthe bar of Indian cinema. Iwould like to talk about cinema not as a political endeavour but as an emotional endeavour.”

On whether some kind oftweaking is necessary in ourstorytelling to reach out to aglobal audience, Karan said,“Why should we tweak ourlanguage, emotions are universal. I think there is toomuch noise about us winingthe Oscar. For me, it is aboutmaking �lms that get eyeballs. I want to make �lmsthat are seen globally; itdoesn’t matter whether youwalk the red carpet at theAcademy Awards or not.What is important is increasing the bandwidth of youraudience. We have to makesure that our cinema travels.”

Before rushing to anothermeeting, Karan hoped thathe would return to director’schair next year. As for hisnew sharp look is concerned, Karan laughed. “It ismy own creation. Fatherhood makes me happy.”

Karan Johar sayswe don’t need toto tweak ourcinematic syntaxto reach out tothe world

Anuj Kumar

Sharp cut: Karan Johar in Berlin * PTI

‘Cinema speaks thelanguage of emotions’

Four years after The GrandBudapest Hotel (2014)opened Berlinale, Wes Anderson returns to the �lm festival with his latest outing, Is-le of Dogs. The 68th BerlinInternational Film Festivalopened with the world premiere of Anderson’s stopmotion adventure �lm, set ina dystopian Japan.

Dressed in a brown jacket,tweed tie and checked greenshirt, Anderson addressed apress conference after ascreening for the media. Hewas accompanied by the castof the �lm, including BryanCranston, Koyu Rankin, Greta Gerwig, Liev Schreiber,Bill Murray, Bob Balaban, Je�Goldblum and Kunichi Nomura; and screenwriters Roman Coppola and JasonSchwartzman. Tilda Swinton, who was present at theconference, chose to be apart of the audience. “I’vebeen here since 1985, andhave done everything,” she

says. “Except being a cleaner.Maybe I’ll do that next year”.

Isle of Dogs �nds its genesis in Anderson’s desire totell a simple story of dogsabandoned in a garbagedump. It later evolved as hishomage to Japanese �lmmakers Akira Kurosawa andHayao Miyazaki, and his admiration for the Japanese culture. Despite not speakingthe language himself, the�lmmaker chose to make amovie that’s bilingual — English and Japanese. The humans in the �lm speak Japanese while the dogscommunicate in English. TheJapanese dialogues aren’t accompanied with subtitles,and it is left to the dogs to interpret them for the audience. In doing so, the �lmmaker — in typical Andersonquirk — creates a rhythm inthe narrative that is both engrossing and thrilling, whichkeeps you on your toes. “Asigni�cant part of the �lm isspent translating,” chucklesAnderson. “I always knew we

were making our own concoction.”

The use of language tocreate humour in Anderson’s�lm also extends to intertitles. Isle of Dogs is packedwith English and Japanese intertitles that are cleverly written, including some very witty haikus.

Anderson’s �lm is a storyof a 12yearold boy who setsout on a journey to �nd hisdog after the mayor of histown demands all dogs to besent o� to a trash island. Themayor claims that all dogsare incurably infected by adisease and must be quarantined.

He uses military might toget this radical decision implemented, and misleads citizens using the media. It israther inevitable then tothink of the �lm as an allegory of our times. But Anderson insists otherwise. He saysthe �lm wasn’t conceptualised to be a mirror to the society. Since the movie was setin a �ctional world, it be

came imperative to inventthe politics of the city. Overthe two years that the �lmtook to make, Anderson says,the world changed so muchthat he eventually sought inspiration from reality. “So wethink this �lm is right for themoment,” he shares.

Refreshingly originalBeyond the narrative, the

stopmotion, animated �lmis told through refreshinglyoriginal visuals, layered withJapanese minimalism. It israther evident that the �lmmaker used live models andpuppets to achieve the slowmotion e�ect, lending the�lm an authentic sheen. Anderson informs us that nopart of the �lm is purely computergenerated imagery.“With The Grand BudapestHotel, and before that withMoonrise Kingdom, I realised I love models. It’s something I associate with cinema history. I liked it whenmodels popped up in AlfredHitchcock’s �lms,” he says.

The stopmotion modelsare brought to life by an exemplary cast, which Anderson informs, was as per hiswish list. “Most actors [in the�lm] are who I’ve workedwith before, or loved foryears,” he says. “One thingabout animated movies isthat you can’t say, ‘I’m notavailable’. You can record itanywhere, you can record itin your house,” he laughs.

The �lm is set to release later next month in the UnitedStates. For now, Isle of Dogshas been enthralling festivalgoers at Berlinale, and is incompetition for the Silverand Golden Bear. Andersonhas previously presentedthree �lms in the BerlinaleCompetition: The Royal Te-nenbaums (2002), The LifeAquatic with Steve Zissou(2005), and The Grand Bu-dapest Hotel (2014), whichwon the Silver Bear Grand Jury Prize. It remains to be seenif 2018, the year of the dog,will bring Anderson his �rstGolden Bear.

Wes Anderson’s dog eat dog world The American �lmmaker’s witty, quirky and refreshingly original �lm, Isle of Dogs, opens the68th Berlin International Film Festival

Kennith Rosario

Man’s best friend: Isle of Dogs �nds its genesis in Anderson’s desire to tell a simple story about abandoned animals






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reer or family or relationships.They feel bad about it, too, butthey just can’t help it. It’s beyondthem!”

The signs of addiction“The most obvious manifestations of a gaming addiction thatyou should look out for are disturbances in physiological func

tions,” explains Dr ManojSharma, of SHUT (Services for Healthy Use ofTechnology) Clinic,

NIMHANS, Bengaluru.“Going to bed very late,waking up too early, taking too many short naps tomake up for the sleep deficit, irregular meals, anda sharp increase in appetite for junk food, are allred �ags. One may evenexperience pain in theeyes, neck and wrist.”

In some cases, as in Badiger’s, the signs are more so

cial — decreased communication, avoiding people, locking

When Vivekananda B Badiger, aBengalurubased web developer,was in college, he started gaming.He would go to a gaming arcadeowned by his brotherinlaw, regularly with his friends, and they’dplay for hours. “Age of Empireswas my favourite,” he tells us. “Iwas so good, I started taking partin and winning tournaments,which seemed great becausethese games weren’t free to play,either.” Badiger would win a tournament and put the prize moneydown for more games. Soon, itbecame a vicious cycle. He stayedcooped up in his room, for as longas 18 hours a day, sticking hishand out to take his meals fromhis mother, not helping around,not meeting anybody except hisgaming friends,not studying orgoing to college. “I lost ayear at college andmy girlf

the room, decline in academic orprofessional performance, absenteeism and behavioural changes.“In fact, we often get patientswho’ve been brought in by theirfamilies, with the complaint ofbehavioural issues,” says Dr Balhara. “It’s only once we start looking into it that a gaming problemis discovered.”

However, be careful not tooverreact. According to a 2010study, published in the Interna-tional Journal of Mental Healthand Addiction, there is a di�erence between ‘excessive gaming’and ‘addictive gaming’, determined not by the number ofhours a game is played, but by thepsychological motivation andmeaning that gaming has in one’slife. According to the study authors, gaming addiction should bede�ned by how much the gamenegatively impacts other areas oflife, not by how much time isspent playing. “There is a �ne linebetween being an active gamerand a gaming addict,” Dr Balharawarns. “Since knowledge on thesubject is still limited, there is atendency to overreach and attachlabels at the slightest instance. Instead, if you suspect that a lovedone may be an addict, seek a consultation.” There are numerousgaming addiction scales availableonline, but it is better to get a professional diagnosis, so there’s no

ambiguity. “We use the ICD (International Classi�cation of Diseases) 11, published by the WHO,to test for behavioural addictions,” he explains. “The ICD 11doesn’t yet, but will soon includegaming addiction as a separate category — that’s how big a problemit is turning into.”

Who’s at risk?“While we don’t have any empirical data, as yet, to say who’s more

at risk, in my experience, themost prone are teenage boys andyoung adults, with access to technology and, usually, a certainamount of loneliness, boredomand lack of structure in theirlives,” says Dr Sharma. “Anxiety,social phobias and other mentalhealth issues play a role, too.” DrBalhara concurs. “Most of our patients are aged 16 to 24, and aremales; we’ve had only one casewhere the addict was a woman —also atypical because she was 30years old, was married and had achild,” he reveals. “What was typical about her, however, was thatshe had anxiety issues. One of thefactors that pushes the addictionis the need to �nd their own kind,who will not reject them.” Perhaps why, as revealed by a 2010study in Addiction Research &Theory, multiplayer roleplayinggames were associated with gaming addiction more often than any

other video game genre.Having said that, the role of ex

isting friends cannot be denied.“Peer pressure is an importantfactor,” says Dr Sharma. Something we see in Badiger’s case. “Allmy friends were gamers, so toplay or not wasn’t really a question, to start with,” he tells us.“And then I was also very good atit, which made it even harder toresist.” “Sometimes, in the case ofolder men, it starts as a mode towind down and relax, after a longday at work,” explains Dr Sharma.Somewhere down the line, thethrill of it all just takes over.

Getting over the addictionThe good news: You can quit coldturkey. Badiger did. “My brotherinlaw, who owned the gaming arcade we played at, realised whatwas going on,” he tells us. “Whenthe realisation of what all I’d losthit me, especially since I understood that I was a bright studentand I shouldn’t be throwing it allaway, I just gave it up. I didn’thave the heart to close all my accounts, since I’d built them all upfrom scratch to really high levels;I gave them to my friends.” Thecalm face his mother put upseemed to have helped his recovery. “She was very matteroffactabout it, even though I’d lost ayear, but that helped me comeback to normal, faster,” he says.Something that Dr Sharma encourages loved ones of addicts todo. “You have to be nonjudgmental about it all — discuss it and accept it,” he says. “Even though agaming addiction is the same as asubstance addiction in its manifestations, it is not the same in itsimplications. You have to startwith understanding that technology can’t be avoided or takenaway. Awareness helps with thequitting process.”

If you have been an addict,realise ‘this has happened to me;it can happen again’. “Focus onwhat went wrong and restrict thetime you spend playing, if youmust play,” says Dr Balhara. DrSharma cautions against mixingtechnology with other activities.“Like playing while at the diningtable,” he elaborates. Keeping itseparate from your everydaytasks will keep you from fallingdown the abyss. “But most of all,bear in mind: This is a real problem and help is available,” saysDr Balhara.

When fun turns addictive andinterferes with life

WHAT’S IN A NAME?

Mario was actually named afterthe landlord of Nintendo’s firstwarehouse, Mario Segale. Thegame’s hugepopularity led tothe explosion inthe number ofchildren namedMario around this time.

SOCIAL MEDIA ADDICTION VS GAMING ADDICTION

Social media addiction and gaming addiction both fall within the widergambit of internet addiction. Even so, the two are as di�erent as chalkas cheese. “Usually, gaming addicts are introverts, looking for theirown kind,” says Dr Balhara. “Social media addicts, on the other hand,may or may not be introverts.” The di�erence lies between looking foracceptance, as opposed to looking for attention. In the experience ofboth Dr Balhara and Dr Sharma, the kind of addiction is, in large part,dictated by gender. Nearly all their patients with gaming addictionsare male, while a majority of those addicted to social media arefemale.AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA

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huntingriend of �ve years,” he lets on. Butwhat was it, about gaming, thathad him so helplessly and hopelessly hooked? “That is the verynature of addiction — a loss ofcontrol,” explains Dr Yatan PalSingh Balhara, who heads the Behavioural Addiction Clinic at AIIMS, New Delhi. “It isn’t that theperson who is addicted doesn’trealise the value of what’s atstake, or doesn’t care for their ca

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“I wish I could go back to tell my 13yearold self, ‘You don’t have to push yourselffor validation, you don’t have to apologise constantly for everyone’,” says Aakanksha Luthra, a 28yearold Instagramblogger from Udaipur. It was only when aformer boss pointed out to her that shewas always apologetic, mostly for otherpeople’s lapses, did she sit down to thinkabout how fatshaming had a�ected her.

The same storyMost overweight women identify withLuthra’s experience. Vishakha Bhaskar,23, from Delhi, was used to having herselfesteem take a beating each time someone called her “fat”, “moti”,“bhains”, “elephant”, until one day aclassmate told her, “You’re too pretty fora body like that.” It was then that she feltthe need to write about it, choosing Instagram as a platform that she felt had thelargest reach.

Neha Parulkar, 25, Mumbai, says thatit’s not just strangers who are unkind;school teachers and relatives were too,comparing her to cousins who weren’toverweight, or saying no one would marry her. She too found a voice on Instagram. “When people reject you becauseof your body, it’ a�ects your selfcon�

dence. One �ne day, I said, ‘Enough isenough; please let me breathe’.”

Speaking upParulkar started talking about her struggles and the compromises people hersize often had to make, via Instagram. “Istarted grooming myself, socialisingmore, and became my own role model,”she says. She also started telling peoplewho were rude and cruel that their wordshurt and that they had no right to comment on her physical appearance.

Today, Luthra has a following of 22.9kand has the words ‘body positive’ in herbio. Bhaskar tells people to “Fearlesslylove yourself”, while Parulkar, who haswalked the ramp at the Lakme FashionWeek thrice, calls herself a “body positivity in�uencer”. Ishleen Sethi, 23, fromDelhi, another Instagram blogger, is at40.2k followers. All found expression infashion: it built their con�dence. As theybegan mopping up followers, brandstook an interest, o�ering them productplacement monetary opportunities. Anumber of these are clothes for plussizewomen, but there are also several thatare shapeneutral.

Body shaming is not restricted to women who aren’t the ‘perfect’ size though.“I get PMs from school kids who are skinny, who are at the receiving end of hate

comments,” says Sethi. When she startedher blog four years ago, she says she gotmany messages in poor taste. “Today,that has changed,” she feels, in part because of the growing movement of selflove, and to a great extent because herown con�dence levels have risen. She also speaks of it as a community on Instagram, with more and more girls realisingthat they didn’t need to hide just becausethey were not at their ideal body weight.

Springboard for kindnessUnlike Twitter, seen as a newsandviewssocial media platform, or Facebook, a familyandfriends connector, Instagramlooks at itself as a blogging site that promotes kindness, both in its products andservices. “We have an understanding thatthere isn’t such a thing as a standard image of beauty, and our community is saying to the world: ‘This is my story; I dealtwith it this way’. Perhaps, others will takeinspiration and �nd support. The aim isto break stigmas and create awareness,whether it is about bullying or being comfortable sharing a picture of unwaxedlegs,” says Tara Bedi, Policy Programmes

and Community Partnerships, Instagram, India. The #KindComments hashtag that originated at a transcommunityevent, saw an outpouring of stories, withevents world over springing up spontaneously to spread the message.

It is possible to �lter out words youdon’t want to see under Comments.There’s an Automatic Filter that hidescomments that may be o�ensive, alongwith a Manual Filer that enables you toput in keywords (such as fat) that youmay not want to see. In the Story Settings, you can hide your pro�le from individual handles, prevent the Allow Sharing feature that lets others share photosand videos from your story as messages,block users, prevent others from resharing, and use a few other tools.

The other sideThe body acceptance movement has twosides, says Kolkatabased psychologist,Mansi Poddar, herself an obese youngadult, who changed that by 25. “Thebright side is that people feel con�dent;they go out and interact with the world.Selfhate will not fuel selflove and untilwe accept ourselves, we can’t changeourselves,” she says. Which takes us tothe dark side of it: the fact that it may prevent change, and promote an unhealthylifestyle. “There has to be some focus onhaving parameters within what is considered a healthy range,” she says.

She talks of reverse body shaming,where people, on a mission to ‘accept’themselves, may put down those whochoose healthy eating and exercise, becoming proobesity without understanding the health consequences. “It’s simplythe other end of the spectrum: you’re focussing on shape,” she says. She hopesthat the focus shifts from shape to selfesteem. “That should not be based on theway you look, but on your inner self andhow you think of yourself.” As Sethi putsit, “It’s not about promoting a plussize;it’s about shedding insecurities.”

Mind and bodyfearlessIn a largerthanlife world, where plussizes in Indiaare looked down upon, these young Instagrambloggers send out messages of body positivity

Flaunt it: (Clockwise from left ) Neha Parulkar,

Aakanksha Luthra, Ishleen Sethi * SPECIAL ARRANGEMENT

Man anglesThese men speak about body image indi�erent ways.J Jasjyot Singh Hans

(@jasjyotjasjyot) An illustrator basedin Baltimore, he does art around the#BigIsBeautiful theme. His nudes arewomen with bodies that have variationsfrom what is considered beautiful.

J Raikchak Reang (@raichu.copper)

A graphic designer based in Bengaluru,who drew Wonder Woman with bodyhair. More recently, he illustrated cancerpatients undergoing chemo assuperheroes who need to build their ownsuperpowers.

J Thasveer Muhammed (@thasvy) Amodel and stylist based in Kochi, he is anamputee who su�ered a great deal aftera bike accident. He leaves bodypositivemessages on almost all his pictures.

It is 4 a.m. The moon is visible from mybedroom window, a faint crescenthopscotching between clouds andtrees. I tear myself out of bed and stagger to the kitchen. Lady Mo (short forLady Mohawk, a white cat with a blackpatch on her head), hoping for a spotof breakfast, is blatantly ignored, as Irummage through the shelves lookingfor a cup, spoon and saucepan. Milk isextracted from the recesses of the refrigerator and warmed on one burner,while warm water bubbles on the other. Miss Mo looks disgruntled and nipsmy bare legs. I ignore her. She glaresand stalks angrily around the kitchen,tail bristling with exasperation.

But until the milk is poured in (stopping slightly before it turns café au lait)and I take my �rst sip, I am Oscar theGrouch. And Lady Mo, who has knownme for over �ve years, is very aware ofthat. Like TS Eliot’s Alfred Prufrockwho, “measured out my life with coffee spoons,” I moderate my moodswith them. And yes, co�ee is to mewhat opium was to Coleridge: I need ahard knock of it to write.

So it was with a sense of great trepidation that I read that co�ee may sooncome with a cancer warning in California. Under Proposition 65, The SafeDrinking Water and Toxic Enforcement Act of 1986, the state is supposedto regularly publish and update a list ofchemicals that are found to cause cancer, birth defects, or negatively impactreproductive health. Acrylamide, produced when food is cooked at a veryhigh temperature (including roastingof beans), is on that list. It was this

chemical that put co�ee on the WorldHealth Organization’s list of carcinogens for nearly 25 years, before theyreversed the warning in 2016, to declare that there was no conclusive evidence against co�ee (though they didmention that all “very hot drinks” arecapable of causing cancer).

Going by the �urry of activity on theinternet, co�ee appears to have splitthe �tness world right in the middle.There are those that swear by it, declaring that it has fatburning properties, increases performance and focusduring workouts and is chockfull ofantioxidants that technically lowercancer risk.

The other side has plenty to say too,and they would not be incorrect. Coffee does cause insomnia and acidity; itcan be highly addictive; it does turn onthe stress hormones. There is a �oodof ‘I gave up co�ee and this is whathappened’ articles on the internet,which claim that abstinence o�eredmany bene�ts, including better sleep,nicer skin and weight loss (stressmakes you fat, but that is anotherstory).

I’ll be honest — I’m addicted to thestu� and I know it. But too much hasalready been sacri�ced on the altar ofbetter health over the last 18oddyears, and I simply refuse to make onemore. I simply can’t think of a life without perfectly brewed espresso, wellmade �lter co�ee, a cappuccinotopped by foam (and minus hearts andfaces, please) and the odd frappé (holdthe ice cream and syrup).

As Jerry Seinfeld once said, “Wewant to do a lot of stu�; we’re not ingreat shape. We didn’t get a goodnight’s sleep. We’re a little depressed.Co�ee solves all these problems in onedelightful little cup.”

I rest my case.Disclaimer: Two cups of co�ee have

gone into the writing of this column.

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THE FITNESS GAME

Co�ee for the soul

Prerna Singh Butalia

Sunalini Mathew

Preeti Zachariah






79% vote in Tripura where LF faces challenge from BJP

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