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Trouble is not over for BJPleader Tajinder Singh

Bagga as he faces fresh arrest asa court in Mohali on Saturdayissued a warrant against him inconnection with a case regis-tered against him last month.

A day after he was arrest-ed by the Punjab Police andreleased within hours after theconvoy was stopped nearKurukshetra in Haryana, thearrest warrant was issued by thecourt of Judicial MagistrateRavtesh Inderjit Singh inMohali, near Chandigarh.

“Whereas Tajinder PalSingh Bagga, s/o Pritpal Singh,r/o B-1/170, Janak Puri NewDelhi stands charged with theoffence punishable U/Sec 153-A, 505, 505 (2), 506 IPC. Youare hereby directed to arrest thesaid Tajinder Pal Singh Baggaand to produce him before me,’’the judge said in the order in adirection to the officer inchargeof the police station, Statecyber crime.

The court fixed the nextdate of hearing on May 23. Thismeans the Punjab Police willhave to arrest Bagga or the BJPleader would have to seek relieffrom a higher court to preventthe arrest.

Bagga was arrested by thePunjab Police from his Delhihome on Friday, stopped inHaryana while being taken toPunjab and brought back to thenational Capital by the DelhiPolice hours later.

The Delhi Police had onFriday registered a case of kid-

napping based on a complaintby Bagga’s father Pritpal SinghBagga that ‘’some people’’ cameover to his house around 8 amand took away his son.

Friday’s dramatic develop-ments saw police forces ofPunjab, Haryana and Delhigetting into a tussle over Baggawhile triggering a politicalslugfest.The Punjab Police hadbooked Bagga on the charges ofmaking provocative statements,promoting enmity and crimi-nal intimidation. The case wasregistered on a complaint ofAAP leader Sunny Ahluwalia,a resident of Mohali. The FIRregistered on April 1 referred toBagga’s remarks on March 30,when he was part of a BJPyouth wing protest outside theresidence of Delhi ChiefMinister Arvind Kejriwal.

Bagga was booked underrelevant sections, including153-A (promoting enmity

between different groups ongrounds of religion, race, placeetc), 505 (whoever makes, pub-lishes or circulates any state-ment, rumour or report) and506 (criminal intimidation),of the Indian Penal Code. ThePunjab Police has maintainedthat a police team had gone toDelhi to arrest Bagga after hedid not join the investigationdespite being served fivenotices.

After its team, which wasbringing Bagga from Delhi, wasstopped in Haryana, the PunjabPolice moved the high courtand filed a habeas corpus peti-tion. The Punjab Governmenton Saturday moved two appli-cations before the Punjab andHaryana High Court here,seeking the Centre be made aparty in the case, and that theMay 6 CCTV footage ofJanakpuri and Kurukshetrapolice stations be preserved.

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Sri Lanka’s beleaguered PrimeMinister Mahinda

Rajapaksa, who has repeated-ly defied calls to quit, hascome under fresh pressure toresign at a special Cabinetmeeting held before a state ofemergency was imposed byhis younger brother andPresident Gotabaya Rajapaksa.

The special Cabinet meet-ing was held on Friday as thecountry witnessed protestsagainst the government overtheir inability to tackle theeconomic meltdown which hascaused unprecedented hard-ships to the public.

President GotabayaRajapaksa declared a state ofemergency with effect fromFriday midnight, the secondtime in just over a month.

“There were opinions dur-ing the Cabinet, some evensuggested the prime ministermust resign. The President(Gotabaya Rajapaksa) was keento see an end to the politicalcrisis even with the resignationof the prime minister,” a min-

isterial source saidThe backers of the 76-

year-old prime minister hadinsisted him to stay on as thepublic demand was more forthe resignation of PresidentGotabaya Rajapaksa, hisyounger brother.

The 72-year-old presidentfor a few weeks now has beenwanting the prime minister toresign in order to set up an all-party interim government.

Although Prime MinisterMahinda Rajapaksa said at theCabinet meeting that he wouldreadily resign if the successorcould resolve the current eco-nomic crisis, he did not cate-gorically say he would resign,according to the source.

The Mirror newspaperreported that PM Rajapaksa lis-tened to the President andsaid if a new government couldsolve the economic crisis andbring in an immediate solution,then he would give his blessingsto the new government.

However, there is yet to bean official response on whetherMahinda Rajapaksa will tenderhis resignation, the report said.

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Politics and one-upmanshipbetween the rival sides con-

tinued to be at play on Saturdayas BJP spokesperson TajinderPal Singh Bagga walked freeand returned home at 1 amafter a day full of high dramafollowing his arrest by thePunjab Police.

Medical examination hasrevealed injury marks onTajinder Bagga’s body, said theDelhi Police after a medicalleave certificate revealed that hesuffered injuries on his backand shoulder. Bagga hadalleged that he he was assault-ed by the Punjab Police. In itsorder, the Dwarka Court hasnoted that Bagga has appre-hended a similar incident thatcan happen to him in nearfuture and hence SHOJanakpuri should provide himfull security.

“The SHO is directed tomake necessary arrangementsfor the safety and security of thecomplainant (Bagga).

He is a major and request-

ing that he should be allowedto go home, since he is majorthere is no requirement of anyfurther order with respect tohis stay,” the court noted in itsorder, following which theDelhi Police provided securityto Bagga.

The Punjab Police, for itspart, is planning to draw thecourt’s attention towards thedichotomy in the statements ofHaryana and the Delhi Policeregarding the timing of thehanding over of custody ofBagga.

The BJP protested outsidethe residence of Delhi ChiefMinister Arvind Kejriwal evenas Goa CM Pramod Sawantand Bharatiya Janata YuvaMorcha chief Tejasvi Suryamet Bagga to show solidarity.

On the other hand, DelhiDeputy Chief Minister ManishSisodia lambasted the BJP forprotecting Bagga. In his tweet,Sisodia said the entire BJP andits Governments are engaged insaving one of their goons whospoke against the brotherhoodin Punjab and incited riots.

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New Delhi: The CBI onSaturday conducted searchesat three properties of PunjabAAP MLA Jaswant SinghGajjan Majra in Sangrur in abank fraud case and recovered94 blank cheques carryingsignatures. PNS

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New Delhi: The Centre onSaturday defended in theSupreme Court the penal lawon sedition and the 1962 ver-dict of a constitution benchupholding its validity, sayingthey have withstood “the test oftime” about six decades and theinstances of its abuse wouldnever be a justification ofreconsideration.

A bench of three judgescomprising Chief Justice NVRamana and Justices SuryaKant and Hima Kohli, on May5, said it would hear argumentson May 10 on the legal questionof whether the pleas challeng-ing the colonial-era penal lawon sedition be referred to alarger bench for reconsideringthe 1962 verdict of a five-judge constitution bench in theKedar Nath Singh case.

“Instances of the abuse ofprovision would never be a jus-tification to reconsider a bind-ing judgment of the constitu-tion bench. The remedy wouldlie in preventing such abuse on

a case-to-case basis rather thandoubting a long-standing set-tled law declared by a consti-tution bench for about sixdecades,” said the 38-page writ-ten submission filed throughSolicitor General TusharMehta.

The reply also raised theissue of corum and opposed thesubmissions of senior advocateKapil Sibal that in a changedfact situation a bench of threejudges can also test the validi-ty of the sedition law, saying“no reference, therefore, wouldbe necessary nor can the three-judge bench once again exam-ine the constitutional validity ofthe very same provision”.

The top court, in 1962, hadupheld the validity of the sedi-tion law while attempting torestrict its scope for misuse. Ithad held that unless accompa-nied by incitement or a call forviolence, the criticism of thegovernment cannot be con-strued as a seditious offence.

The Centre’s view inciden-tally matched with the sub-missions of Attorney General KK Venugopal, who onThursday had strongly battedfor the retention of the provi-sion in the IPC, saying “refer-ring the Kedar Nath (judge-ment) to a larger bench is notnecessary. It is a well-consid-ered judgement.”

The written submission ofthe Centre, settled by the solic-itor general, referred to a hostof judgments and said, “Thebench of three judges cannotreconsider the ratio of a judg-ment of a constitution benchwithout referring the matter toa larger bench. For a referenceto a larger bench also it will beabsolutely necessary for thebench of three judges to recordits satisfaction that the ratio inthe Kedar Nath Singh is sopatently wrong that it needsreconsideration by a largerbench.”

Referring to the batch ofpetitions, the reply said none ofthe PIL petitioners has shownany justification based uponwhich this court can record afinding that the 1962 verdict “ispatently illegal requiring recon-sideration”. A holistic reading ofthe judgments evidently showsthat the constitution bench, inthe 1962 verdict, had examinedthe constitutionality from allpossible angles, includingArticle 19 (freedom of speechand expression), and there-fore, remains binding.

Venugopal recentlyreferred to the sedition caseagainst MP Navneet Rana andher MLA husband Ravi Ranain Maharashtra over theHanuman Chalisa row.

Continued on Page 6

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Amid the burden of highfuel prices, the price of

domestic cooking gas washiked by �50 per cylinder onSaturday. Now a 14.2-kg non-subsidised cooking gas cylin-der, also known as LPG cylin-der, will cost �999.50 in Delhi.It is the second hike within twomonths. The Congress criti-cised the Government for thehike and sought a rollback.

The price hike comes daysafter the price of commercialLPG cylinders was hiked by�102.50 earlier this month.

The last hike in domesticLPG prices took place onMarch 22, when the price wasincreased by �50. There was noincrease in the price of thiscylinder in the month of April.

A 19-kg commercial LPGcylinder now cost �2,355.50.

The latest price hike ofdomestic gas cylinders hascome at a time when petrol anddiesel prices are already beyond

the �100 per litre mark in sev-eral cities across the countrythrough a series of hikes soonafter the Assembly elections inUP and other four States. Lastmonth, prices of piped natur-al gas were also raised by �4.25per unit to go up to �45.86 perscm owing to rising raw mate-rial costs.

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After 88 years of being divid-ed by the Kosi river, Bihar’s

Mithilanchal region onSaturday was fully connected tothe Indian Railways network.Railway Minister AshwiniVaishnaw flagged off a directtrain service betweenJhanjharpur in Madhubani andNirmali in Supaul district tobring greater convenience tothe travellers in theMithilanchal districts ofDarbhanga, Saharsa andMadhubani.

The connectivity betweenKosi and Mithilanchal has beenre-established for the first timesince 1934 when due to Indo-Nepal earthquake and heavyfloods the rail connectivitywas washed away.

The residents of the regionused to travel a long distance ofover 100 km to go from oneside to the other due to the lackof a bridge on the Kosi river.The distance betweenJhanjharpur and Saharsa will be

reduced by half with the launchof the train service.

The first train in 88 yearschugged off the Kosi RailwayBridge bringing smiles and joyto the lakhs of residents ofMithilanchal and over Biharwho had to take a very cir-cuitous route to reach their des-tinations.

Former Prime MinisterAtal Bihari Vajpayee had laidthe foundation stone ofMahasetu over the Kosi esti-mated to the tune of �491crore on June 6, 2003 in the

presence of then RailwayMinister Nitish Kumar, who isnow Chief Minister of Bihar.

After 17 years, PrimeMinister Narendra Modi inau-gurated the Kosi Rail Bridge in2020. Notably, train services onthis route started under theBritish rule in 1887. The 1934earthquake damaged it com-pletely which separated thetwo regions — Kosi andMithilanchal.

Bihar Ministers BijendraPrasad Yadav, Sheela Mandal,MPs from Madhepura,

Jhanjharpur and Supaul, localMLA Nitish Mishra besides toprailway authorities ofSamastipur rail division of EastCentral Railway Zone of IndianRailways were present at theevent.Vaishnaw in his onlineinaugural address reiteratedPrime Minister Modi’s com-mitment towards the develop-ment of eastern States and andassured all possible assistanceto Bihar in the development ofrailways.

He inaugurated train ser-vices on the broad gauge fromJhanjharpur railway station inMadhubani district to Nirmalirailway station in Supaul dis-trict and a new rail line fromNirmali to Asanpur Kupaha atthe cost of �1,584 crorethrough videoconferencing.

He said at present threepairs of passenger trains willoperate daily on this sectionfrom Leheriasarai to Saharsavia Darbhanga, Sakri,Jhanjharpur, Tamuria, Nirmali,Saraigarh, and Supaul fromSunday.

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New Delhi: The NationalCommission for Minoritieshas written a letter to thePunjab Chief Secretary overreports that “TS Bagga was notallowed to wear his turbanduring his arrest by PunjabPolice yesterday”. PNS

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I, Vijendra Kumar S/o lateBhagwan Deen R/o 554/32Chhota barha AlambaghLucknow -226005, havechanged my son's nameRUDRA CHAUDHARY to ANAYSINGH vide affidavit dated6/5/2022 sworn before notaryR.C. Verma, LUCKNOW.

NOTICE

I, Shri Lal Bahadur (Existing name- ofSpouse as per Change of Next of KinRecord/Service Document), Spouse ofNo- 15476567K Dfr Rajbaksh Singh(Name of Son) resident of, Vill-Umramau, Post Umramau, The-Dalmau, Distt- Raebareli (UP)(Address) have changed my namefrom Shri Lal Bahadur (Exiting Nameof Spouse as per change of Next of KinRecord/Service Documents) to Shri LalBahadur Singh (Propsed/Addeptednew name) vide affidative dated.

NOTICE

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My original allotment letter(Allotment letter No.D/1916/KDA/2015/2016-J-S(2)dated 30/05/2015) Flat No.H-1/8, 1st Floor Shatabdi NagarSulabh Awas Yojna Type-3,(Shivalik) Kanpur Nagar has-been lost somewhere inGovind Nagar, Kanpur, whichwill be legal to use. (Rajesh S/oRam Kishan)

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‘‘Smt. Usha Tiwari W/o lateShanti Swaroop Tiwari is ownerof the Bhawan No. 60 LIG,Phase-04 Barra-04, Area 59.80Sq. Mtr. Kanpur Nagar andProperty (Bhawan No. 60, LIG)of original allotment Letter haslost which No.-959/DBhu/dated02/06/1982, which use is illegal’’

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I have changed my namefrom Mohammad Aslam Adil toAadil Aslam. In future I shall beknown as Aadil Aslam S/oAslam Naseem, 474, EidgahColony, Gandhi Nagar, Unnao.

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The Communist Party of India (Marxist-Leninist)demanded roll back of the �50 hike in the price of

domestic cooking gas and said the government had failedto tackle inflation.

In a statement, CPI (ML) state secretary SudhakarYadav said the government was "looting" money from thepublic by hiking the prices of cooking gas and other com-modities in the name of crisis due to the Russia-Ukrainewar.

"The cooking gas was already expensive and the gov-ernment has announced a fresh hike of �50 per cylinder.The way inflation is rising, it has become a cause of con-cern. The government should control the prices and rollback the hike on cooking gas," he said.

Yadav said the government was not lowering taxes andwas shifting the economic burden on the commonman who was already reeling under the pressure of infla-tion.

"Whenever there is a crisis, the capitalists become rich and the common man poorer as had happened inCOVID-19 times. The oil manufacturing companiesare getting richer. The prime minister passes the buck onthe state government and the state governments pass thebuck on the Union government. In both situations, it isthe public which is trapped in the inflation," he comment-ed.

Meanwhile, in a statement, Communist Party of Indiastate secretary Dr Girish said women and girls were unsafein the Yogi Adityanath government.

Girish said the Uttar Pradesh government claimed tobe taking action against the miscreants but there was nolet-up in the cases of crime.

"During the last 48 hours, a minor was raped inLakhimpur Kheri, a woman was killed in a hotel in Aligarhand a woman was hacked to death near a police outpostin Mathura. These are a few instances that expose the gov-ernment's claim on law and order," the CPI leader said andadded that the party would raise the issue very soon.

Lucknow (PNS): To serve the twin pur-poses of improving the quality of the edu-cation system and making the youth employ-able, the Uttar Pradesh government is nowgoing to collaborate with private companiesin providing employment by enhancing theskills of the youth according to the demandof the market.

The Vocational Education and SkillDevelopment department has chalked outa plan to collaborate with private companiessuch as Tata Technologies, HCLTechnologies, Tech Mahindra and IBM toassess the domestic and global needs so that

the problem of unemployment can besolved.

In this regard, the department is goingto work on the modernisation of 50 state-owned industrial training institutes (it is) withthe help of Tata Technology under itsupcoming 100-day plan.

The latest technology would be used fortraining in ITIs and modern equipmentwould be used for training youth, a govern-ment spokesman said.

According to the plan prepared by thedepartment, 10,000 youth will be given train-ing and assured employment in the infor-

mation technology (IT) sector with the helpof companies like HCL Technologies amongothers. Not only this, students will also getan honorarium during on-job training.

"The Yogi government’s thrust is on thehealth sector as well and keeping in view theneeds of the sector, the government will enterinto a contract with Tech Mahindra for cus-tomised training in new courses in the healthsector. Through this training, the youth willbe made eligible so that they may contributeto the health service of the state and at thesame time serve the people in any pandem-ic-like situation,” the official said.

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The much-hyped microdonation campaign of the

Bharatiya Janata Party hasfailed to take off in UttarPradesh as only nine ministersin the Yogi Adityanath govern-ment have contributed to thiscampaign

A senior BJP leader saidhere on Saturday that the partyworkers, senior leaders andministers were asked to donatefor the party fund throughmicro-donation.

“The party got a goodresponse from workers andleaders but the ministers prac-tically showed no interest inthis campaign and they stayedaway from the donation box,”the leader said.

The ministers who madedonations in the interest of theparty include Deputy ChiefMinister Keshav PrasadMaurya, Deputy Chief MinisterBrajesh Pathak, Baby RaniMaurya, BhupendraChoudhary, Anil Rajbhar,Jaiveer Singh, Nitin Agarwal,Sanjay Gangwar and

Dayashankar Mishra Dayalu.At the same time, three

Union ministers who belong toUttar Pradesh contributed tothe fund.

They include BL Verma,Sadhvi Niranjan Jyoti andPankaj Chaudhary.

The BJP had started amicro donation campaign onDecember 25, 2021, on formerPrime Minister Atal BihariVajpayee's birth anniversary,under which donations rangingfrom �5 to �1,000 were madein the party fund.

The campaign aimed toraise funds through small con-tributions from its membersand others.

Even Prime MinisterNarendra Modi donated�1,000.

In UP this campaign wasinitiated by Chief MinisterYogi Adityanath in March,after assembly elections andhe too made a donation of�1,000.

“We appreciate the leadersand these 12 ministers whocontributed to this fund,” theparty spokesman said.

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Uttar Pradesh FinanceMinister Suresh Khanna

said the revenue collection inthe first month of the currentfiscal 2022-23 had registered anincrease of �1,657.61 crore ascompared to the last fiscal.

He said here on Saturdaythat in 2021-22, the total col-lection in April was �11,196.49crore which had increased to�12,854.10 crore in April thisyear.

The minister saidcollection from goods andservices tax (GST) in April2022 was �5,894.56 croreagainst �5,157.11 crore in April2021.

He said the collection fromvalue-added tax (VAT) was�956.63 crore in 2022 against�826.53 crore in April 2021.Besides, he said, the collectionfrom excise duty on alcohol inApril 2022 was �3,153.32 croreagainst �3,240.77 crore in theprevious year.

Khanna said collectionfrom stamps and registration inApril 2022 was �1,911.23 croreagainst �1,218.39 crore in April2021 while the revenue frommotor vehicle tax was �734.89

crore against �553.95 crore inApril 2021. He said the revenuefrom geology and mining was�203.47 crore in April 2022against �199.74 crore in April2021.

The finance ministerclaimed that the VAT on dieseland petrol in Uttar Pradesh waslowest in the country.

He said on May 6, theVAT on diesel in UP was�13.79 per litre and its retailprice was �96.81 per litre.

He said the VAT andretail price of diesel inRajasthan, Chhattisgarh,Jharkhand, Maharashtra, WestBengal, Odisha, Tamil Nadu,Andhra Pradesh and Telenganawas far higher than UttarPradesh.

Khanna said same was thecase with petrol and its pricewas the lowest in UttarPradesh. He said VAT on petrolin UP was �16.49 per litre andits retail price was �105.23 perlitre.

He said VAT on petrol inRajasthan, Chhattisgarh,Jharkhand, Maharashtra, WestBengal, Odisha, Tamil Nadu,Andhra Pradesh and Telenganawere far higher than UttarPradesh.

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With the aim to ensure thatpeople get nutritious food,

the Uttar Pradesh governmenthas set a target to increasepulse production in the next fiveyears so that despite an increasein prices of dal it does not van-ish from the common man'splate.

The production of pulseshas increased from 23.94 lakhmetric tons to 25.34 lakh MTbetween 2016-17 and 2020-21.The productivity per hectare hasalso increased from 9.5 quintalsto 10.65 quintals during thisperiod. This is only 45 per centof the state's consumption.

“According to the five-year

target set for Yogi Adityanathgovernment 2.0, the area underpulses is to be increased to 28.84lakh hectares with the produc-tivity per hectare being 12.41quintals and the productiontarget is set at 35.79 lakh MT,”a government spokesman saidhere on Saturday. He said keep-ing in view the importance ofquality seeds in production,the distribution of certified andfoundation seeds of new vari-eties of different crops of puls-es will be increased from 28,751quintals to 82,000 quintals.

“These seeds will be givento the farmers at subsidisedrates. In order to increase thearea of pulses crops; pulses(urd, moong) crops will be

encouraged in inter-croppingand zaid crops. An increase inproduction will also be achievedby using sprinkler irrigation sys-tems on uneven land, increasein production by cultivatingwith furrow and ridge technol-ogy and guarantee of procure-ment at a minimum supportprice (MSP),” the spokesmansaid. India is world’s largestproducer, consumer andimporter of pulses. Being thestate with the largest population,the maximum share of thisconsumption is from UP itself.In such a situation, the pulseproducing countries likeCanada, Australia, America,Turkey and Myanmar keep aneye not only on the production

of India and Uttar Pradesh butalso on the storage for sixmonths. In such a situation, ifthe yield is less, then in view ofthe huge demand here, pulsesbecome dearer in the interna-tional market.

The official said it also hada great impact on the positionof the dollar against the rupee.If the dollar is more expensivethan the rupee, imports alsobecome expensive. In this way,the country has to spend valu-able foreign exchange on theimport of pulses.

If Uttar Pradesh becomesself-sufficient in the productionof pulses, then the foreignexchange would also be saved,the official said.

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Shivpal Singh Yadav, theestranged uncle of

Samajwadi Party presidentAkhilesh Yadav, said the SP andits patriarch — his brotherMulayam Singh Yadav — couldhave done more to getMohammad Azam Khan out ofjail.

Azam Khan is a 10-termMLA, a former MP and theMuslim face of the SamajwadiParty.

“A lot of injustice and cru-elty is being meted out toAzam Khan. He is languishingin jail for the past 26 monthsafter several fake cases wereregistered against him. SP,under Netaji (Mulayam),should have taken upAzam Khan’s case with theprime minister or organisedprotest over injustice andcruelty meted out to himand the fake cases that havekept Khan in prison for thelast 26 months,” Shivpal Yadavsaid.

For the past several weeksafter meeting Azam Khan inSitapur jail, Shivpal Yadav hasbeen campaigning for his.

The Rampur MLA has 87criminal cases against him andhas been in jail since February

2020. Eighty-four of the caseshave been registered againstAzam Khan after the BharatiyaJanata Party won the 2017 UPassembly election, a feat itrepeated this year.

SP leader RavidasMehrotra, who made anattempt to meet Azam Khan injail on April 24, said that BJPwas trying to create distancebetween Azam Khan and theSP to wean away Muslims’support to the party.

“Azam Khan is a big leaderbut he has been denied B classfacilities that an MP/MLAshould get in jail,” he said, andadded, “Jail officials keep pro-voking him and asking himwhy no one from SP comes tomeet him,” Mehrotra said,alleging that he was not allowedby the jail officials to meet

Azam Khan.On speculations over his

joining hands with Azam Khanafter the SP leader's releasefrom jail, Shivpal Yadav said`there was no such thing as ofnow.

“Azam Khan should comeout of the jail first and fakecases against him should bewithdrawn. Then, and onlythen, will there be any talk,” thePragatisheel Samajwadi Party(Lohia) chief said.

The Supreme Courtobserved on Friday that thedelay in hearing Azam Khan'sbail petition was a travesty ofjustice, and scheduled the nexthearing in the case for May 11.

Khan approached the apexcourt after the Allahabad HighCourt reserved its order on hisbail application.

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The decision of the Samajwadi Party tomaintain equidistance from the

Congress and the Bharatiya Janata Partyin the presidential election has thrown aspanner in the unity of the opposition par-ties.

The term of President Ram NathKovind is ending on July 25 and theprocess of the presidential election has tobe completed before that.

SP president Akhilesh Yadav hadrecently announced that his party wouldneither support a BJP candidate nor aCongress nominee in the upcoming polls.The SP move is likely to benefit the BJP.

“Our party leadership is of the opin-ion that the Samajwadi Party shouldmaintain equal distance from the BJP andthe Congress in the presidential election,”said SP spokesman Rajendra Chaudharyon Saturday.

The Samajwadi Party decision is seenas a clear message to the Congress to notmess with its internal matters.

Sources said that Akhilesh Yadav hadtaken strong exception to Acharya PramodKrishnam’s recent meeting with senior SPMLA Mohammad Azam Khan in Sitapurjail. The SP is also not happy over the state-ment of the Congress leader invitingAzam Khan to join the Congress.

The ruling Bharatiya Janata Party is ina comfortable position to see its nomineethrough in the presidential poll. For the

Congress, the presidential election will bea big opportunity to position itself as themain challenger to the BJP in the run-upto the 2024 Lok Sabha elections. The sup-port of the Samajwadi Party and otheropponents of the BJP is crucial for theCongress for this end.

As the electoral college which elects thepresident comprises all members of bothHouses of parliament and MLAs from allthe states, the SP will be a noticeable play-er. Presently, the SP and its allies have 125MLAs, 16 MLCs and eight MPs (bothHouses).

Interestingly, none of the SamajwadiParty allies have so far made any commenton SP’s decision on presidential election.The Rashtriya Lok Dal (RLD), according

to sources, is “uncomfortable” with SP'sposture.

“You need to take a stand in politicsand cannot always queer the pitch. We donot understand what SP wants but we willtake a decision at the appropriate time,”said a senior RLD leader. The RLD haseight MLAs in the UP assembly.

The Suheldev Bhartiya Samaj Party(SBSP) is also an ally of the SamajwadiParty with six legislators and its presidentOm Prakash Rajbhar is also maintaininga studied silence on the issue.

Meanwhile, according to sources, asection of senior legislators of the SP is alsoagainst the decision announced byAkhilesh Yadav.

These legislators are apparently wait-ing for Pragatisheel Samajwadi Party(Lohia) chief Shivpal Singh Yadav todecide his stand on the issue and mayeventually go with him.

A senior SP MLA said, “In politics, wecannot build castles in the air. We have togo either with the Congress or the BJPbecause we are not in a position to influ-ence the outcome of the presidential elec-tion. Our leadership is not even negotiat-ing with other non-BJP parties on theissue.”

The Congress and the Bahujan SamajParty, meanwhile, have been reduced to thestatus of non-players in the presidentialelection in Uttar Pradesh. The Congresshas just two members in the state assem-bly, while the BSP has one.

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Consumer Guild, Lucknow,and Consumer Voice came

together to make FSSAI recon-sider its plan to label ultra-processed foods with ‘healthstar rating’ in view of the grow-ing crisis of obesity and non-communicable diseases (NCDs)such as diabetes, cancer andheart disease.

The jointly-endorsed posi-tion statement released onSaturday vehemently called fora mandatory ‘warning’ label toinform the consumer aboutthese unhealthy and ultra-processed food products, whichare high in salt, sugar or fats andcan negatively impact the healthof children and adults.

CEO, Consumer Voice,Ashim Sanyal said the health starrating system would defeat the7-year-long fight for safeguard-ing consumer interests and help-ing them make informed deci-sions to exercise their right tohealthy choices.

“Health star rating will mis-inform consumers and not com-pel the industry to reformulatetheir products. On the otherhand, a warning label is aninstant recognition by con-sumers of unhealthy foods.Consumers must become stake-holders for decision makingabout choosing healthy foods.Packaged food products, whichare high in unhealthy fats, salt orsugar and several of which areultra-processed, damage health

in many ways – from reducingimmunity to increasing the riskof heart disease, diabetes, obesi-ty and certain cancers,” he said.

“Star ratings can be mislead-ing as they do not clearly informthe consumers whether the rat-ing is for specific constituents,taste or shelf life,” he added.

Chairman of ConsumerGuild, Lucknow, AbhishekSrivastava said: “It is importantthat Indian regulators choose asimple and interpretive labelthat aids consumer to rejectunhealthy products. As a con-sumer organisation working atthe grassroots level, we need toemphasise that a simple warninglabel symbol is always better forconsumer understanding.”

“Food industry may like thestars on unhealthy food productsbut we believe warning labelsshould be used, as this is whatscientific evidence tells us,” headded.

“Considering obesity to be amajor driver of morbidity andmortality, people should be ableto identify foods with high calo-ries and harmful ingredients.Warning labels are a reliableway to identify harmful foods.Uttar Pradesh and the countryas a whole is burdened withNCDs and cardiovascular dis-eases. The crisis is directly linkedto excessive consumption ofprocessed food that are high insugar, salt and saturated fats.India is also one of the fastestgrowing markets for ultra-processed packaged foods,” itwas stated.

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An accused already bookedunder POCSO Act killed his

friend-turned-rival, who wassaid to be in love with the wifeof their colleague. He alsochopped off the head of the vic-tim and tried to mislead police.

The stunning fact surfacedduring the probe into the recov-ery of a 2-day-old decapitatedbody from a vacant plot inGudamba police station area.However, the accused ran out ofluck and was nabbed.

The victim was identified asNarendra of Bahraich while theaccused as Srikant of Sitapur.The victim and the accusedworked as painters and wereacquainted with each another.

PRO, Commissioner ofPolice (Lucknow), said Narendraand Srikant fell for a woman,who is the wife of their painterfriend who lives in Gudamba.During the initial days of theircourtship with the woman, bothwere unaware of each other’ssecret affair and were goodfriends. However, in due courseof time, Srikant came to knowthat Narendra was also close tothe woman and he planned toeliminate Narendra. Also, asSrikant was already bookedunder POCSO Act and had nohope to get reprieve in the caseas police were pursuing thecase against him in a court inSitapur, he made the diabolicplot.

Two days ago, he invited

Narendra to his room for abooze session and killedNarendra. He took the body tothe vacant plot where hechopped off the head with a saw.He dumped the head into apond close to the plot beforefleeing the scene.

The spokesman said thepolice recovered a diary inwhich the names of some per-sons were written. “The policeopted for a trial & error methodand stumbled upon Srikant whowas missing. The suspicion onhim deepened when the policewere told that Srikant was seenaccompanying Narendra twodays ago. Later, he was nabbedby a police team,” the spokesmansaid, adding he confessed to hiscrime.

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Lucknow (PNS): TheTalkatora police claimed tohave arrested a fraudster want-ed in several cases. Theaccused was identified as YashShukla of Rajajipuram. Heowned up his crime and dis-closed that he and his aidesused to contact people optingfor Just Dial services. He saidhe and his aides would lurepeople by offering minimumcharges and then dupe them ofcash. The police recoveredthree mobile phones, a motor-cycle and Rs 500 in cash.

Meanwhile, six candidateswere arrested for using unfairmeans while taking the examfor the post of Sub-Inspector inUP Police at a centre inMahanagar on Saturday. The

accused were identified asRajat Kumar of Mainpuri,Pinku Kumar & AshutoshSharma of Shamli, PrateekChaudhary of Bulandshahr,Deepak of Haryana and HarinChaudhary of Muzaffarnagar.A police spokesman said theexam was held online for directrecruitment as SI in UP CivilPolice between November 12and December 2, 2021.

+��$,�*��������A woman’s handbag con-

taining cash, mobile phoneand documents was stolen inBanglabazaar market inAshiyana police station area onFriday evening. Anvita Ranjanof Ashiyana (Sector-M) saidshe stopped her scooty near a

fruit vendor’s cart. “My bagwhich was hanging from thescooty’s handle was stolenwhen I was busy purchasingfruits. I was told by othershop-owners that a minor boypicked up the handbag and dis-appeared,” she said.

Elsewhere in Madiaon,thieves made off with two bagscontaining four gold bangles, agold chain, earrings and Rs20,000 in cash after breakingthe window pane of a car onThursday night. Aniket RajChauhan of Sitapur was goingto Barabanki and took a halt atJevik Bhawan for shopping.

“I returned about 20 min-utes later and found the win-dow pane broken. I found twobags missing,” he said.

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With few Covid patients inthe hospital, King

George’s Medical University isnow focusing on control ofinfection, proper antibioticusage and prevention ofcytokine storm in patients.

Incharge of InfectiousDisease Hospital, KGMU, DrD Himanshu said they are try-ing to categorise patients intodifferent kinds of infectivityprocess. “Now we are alsolooking at the possible occur-rence of cytokine storm.Earlier, we used to look at it asan expert but now as a rou-tine. Whenever we see thatpatients are not improving, wecheck and treat cytokinestorms which can occur incase of different viruses,” hesaid. He added that doctorsare more aware of the situa-tion which can occur with anyvirus in the post-Covid period.

Dr Himanshu said thatthey are focusing on the man-agement itself in which theyare categorising patients intovarious kinds of infectionssuch as air-borne and dropletinfections. It include isolationprocess and more of infectioncontrol process that hasincreased promoting the useof hand gloves by all thehealth workers, doctors, nurs-es, paramedics and class IVemployees.

“People are not usingantibiotics properly or exces-sively which also led to dis-eases like mucormycosis.Rationale use of antibiotics

and antifungals is also beinglooked into by us,” he said. Headded that they are payingmore attention to the immunecomponent of infection. “Wewere doing it earlier too butnow we are paying moreattention to it now. We saw thecytokine storm in some infec-tions and now we are trying tosee if the same kind of thingis happening in other infec-tions, so that we can respondbetter,” he said.

He pointed out that they

have been able to reach out totheir targets in the teachingcomponent through an onlinesystem. “There are manythings which are back to theoffline system because one hasto have hands-on medicaltraining but we have an onlinesystem to discuss variouscases. In the previous times,what happened was that weused to collect people to havediscussions but now when weneed to have short discussionsand we rapidly have an inter-

action online and moveahead,” he said.

Dr Himanshu said thatthis way they can have betterdiscussions and think aboutbetter ideas. “Currently, wehave kept the minimumrequirement of beds for Covidpatients requiring hospitalisa-tion. Also, if the cases riseagain, these beds can be usedand we will have time toarrange more beds,” he said,adding that they have a totalof 30 beds for Covid patients.

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Dr RML Institute of MedicalSciences announced on

Saturday that facilities of pre-natal testing have been startedin the department of Obstetricsand Gynaecology at RamPrakash Gupta MemorialMother and Child StateReferral Hospital, ShaheedPath.

The department has start-ed prenatal investigations forexpecting mothers, includingfoetal anomaly scan, chorion-ic villus sampling and amnio-centesis. “Amniocentesis is anultrasound-guided procedurein which some amniotic fluidis withdrawn from around thefoetus with the help of needleand can be subjected to chro-mosomal and molecular tests.

This can make it possible todiagnose chromosomal disor-ders (such as Down syndrome)as well as various genetic dis-orders,” a senior doctor said.

The department ofObstetrics and Gynaecologyhas also started facilities forgenetic counselling and foetalautopsy. “These tests are high-ly recommended if the preg-nant women are of 35 years orabove, at high risk scoring indouble-marker or quadruple-marker tests or has positivenon-invasive prenatal screen-ing (NIPS). These investiga-tions should also be done if afoetus has any abnormal ultra-sonography finding, or if thereis any family history of genet-ic disease (such as thalassemia,haemophilia, muscular dys-trophy) or if either both parents

are carriers or patients of anyinherited disorder, or past his-tory of any child with birth-defects,” she said.

By availing these tests, thebirth of any probable child withstructural anomalies or mentalretardation can be avoided,she added. “Also, it is possibleto determine the recurrencerate of such conditions infuture pregnancies. Thedepartment also offers geneticcounselling to couples whohave previous poor pregnancyoutcomes. The facility for foetalautopsy has also been started atthe department. A foetal autop-sy should be offered to all thebabies born with congenitalanomalies as well as those thatdie in utero without any obvi-ous cause,” she said.

Dr Neha Agrawal

(Reproductive Medicine) hassuccessfully performed amnio-centesis on a pregnant woman.Head of the department ofObstetrics and GynaecologyDr Smriti Agrawal said thatfrom now on, pregnant womencoming to RMLIMS wouldnot have to go to other centresfor facilities like prenatal inves-tigations, genetic counsellingand foetal autopsy.

Earlier, these facilitiescould be availed only atSGPGIMS in the public sector.Additional information andcounselling regarding thesetests can be availed fromMonday to Saturday inReproductive Medicine, OPDroom number 11 at RamPrakash Gupta MemorialMother and Child StateReferral Hospital.

Lucknow (PNS): A ceremonialparade was held at the OfficersTraining College, Army MedicalCorps Centre and College inLucknow as part of the trainingcurriculum of Senior CadreCourse on Saturday. As many as98 non-commissioned officerswho will be assuming higherranks in times to come weretrained at the OTC. Militarytraining to them at the OTCraised their morale, confidenceand self-esteem, preparing themto assume junior leadershiproles with values, ethos andculture of Armed ForcesMedical Service as flag-bearerseffectively. The ceremonialparade was witnessed by near-ly 450 people, including spous-es, children and relatives ofcourse NCOs, officials of vari-ous medical units in the stationand course officers of MedicalOfficers Junior CommandCourse, Medical Officers BasicCourse and AMC (Non-Tech)Post Commission Course. The

ceremonial parade was reviewedby Maj Gen JP Prasad,Commandant and ChiefInstructor, OTC, AMC Centre& College. Havildar Partha Maitiof 154 General Hospital wasadjudged the best in drill whileHavildar Manthri Surinaidu ofMilitary Hospital (Jabalpur) thebest in physical fitness test of thecourse and was awarded amemento and a certificate ofmerit by the Commandant,OTC.

Havildar Jatinderpal Singhof Command Hospital,Lucknow, was awarded the NaikDeepak Singh, Vir ChakraRolling Trophy and a mementofor securing first position in thecourse. The award has beeninstituted in the memory of Naik(Nursing Assistant) DeepakSingh who was awarded VirChakra posthumously on Jan 26last year for his unflinchingdedication to duty and excep-tional courage while beingdeployed in Eastern Ladakh.

Lucknow (PNS): BankersInstitute of Rural Development(BIRD), a premier traininginstitution set up by NABARD,touched an all-time high byconducting as many as 254training programmes duringthe financial year 2021-22.

This feat was achieveddespite disruptions caused dueto restrictions imposed in viewof the Covid pandemic. Arecord over 12,900 participantsbenefitted from the trainingprogrammes conducted byBIRD on a wide variety ofthemes relevant to commercial,regional, rural & cooperativebanks and their training insti-tutes, small finance banks,MFIs, NGOs, government offi-cials, FPOs, international agen-cies, etc.

Keeping the currentnational priorities in view,BIRD’s focus during the yearwas on capacity building ofstakeholder institutions fornurturing and financing ofFarmer ProducersOrganisation (FPO) ecosys-tem, business diversifications ofrural cooperative structure andcomputerisation of primarycredit cooperatives, infusingnew technologies in agricultureand promoting agri-exportsby bringing together the FPOs,Agtech companies and agri-start-ups, sharing of experienceand best practices among banksand MFIs in managing post-Covid challenges and promot-ing rural livelihoods.

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Three persons were alleged-ly abducted a BCom (final

year) girl student and abusedher father when he confrontedthem. In an FIR which was reg-istered on a court’s interventionunder Section 156 (3) of CrPCfour months later, victim’sfather stated that Devendraaka Raja (40), F Lal Balmiki(50) and Sunil (52) abductedhis daughter when she wasreturning home inSarojininagar from her collegein Bijnor locality in the area.

“The incident took placearound 4 pm on January 6. Thetrio abducted my daughterwhen she was on the wayhome. They took her to some

place where they held her cap-tive. When she did not returnhome, I called her. She attend-ed the call but before she couldsay anything, her phone wassnatched by Raja,” the com-plainant stated.

He said he asked Rajaabout his daughter and was toldthat she had gone to their res-idence in Balamau of Hardoivoluntarily. “I asked Raja to letmy daughter talk to me. Rajaabused me and disconnectedthe call. He then blocked me sothat I could not call again,” thecomplainant said.

He said that he, along withother family members, reachedRaja’s home and requestedthem to allow his sister tomeet him. “Raja and his aides

called their supporters andthey thrashed us and threat-ened us with dire conse-quences. We had to flee thescene to save our lives,” healleged. He said he contactedthe local police but no helpcame his way. He said he wasasked to lodge a case with theLucknow police.

“We visited theSarojininagar police stationrepeatedly but the cops did notpay heed to our pleas and tookno action. I then gave an appli-cation to the commissioner ofpolice on March 3, but to noavail. It was then that I movedcourt and an FIR was registeredin this connection,” he said,adding that he is apprehensiveof his daughter’s safety.

�-+�,�����City Montessori School,

Gomti Nagar ExtensionCampus, organised ‘Art andScience Exhibition’ on Saturday.The exhibition was inaugurat-ed by CMS president & MDGeeta Gandhi Kingdon.Parents were mesmerised to seean array of science modelsand different types of hand-made items prepared by thestudents. The students alsoresponded to the queries ofparents and the guests abouteach artwork, project andexperiment. They demonstrat-ed with confidence theirknowledge of the subject whichthey imbibed from textbooks.

���� ���������*A career counselling ses-

sion on ‘Career opportunitiesin civil services’ was organisedunder the aegis of thePlacement Cell of BabasahebBhimrao Ambedkar University.

Coordinator of the placementcell Amit Kumar Singh saidthey are committed to provid-ing employment opportuni-ties to the students. He said itis important to prepare the stu-dents according to the

demands of the industry andtheir future requirements. DrPrashant Singh provided coun-selling to the students prepar-ing for civil services. He saidthat having a goal is the mostimportant thing to be success-ful in life.

&���.&���+��Hundreds of children took

part in a mini-marathon organ-ised by Red Rose SeniorSecondary School on Saturdayto celebrate World AthleticsDay. The 2.5-km mini-marathon was flagged off bychairperson Smita Mishra andprincipal Deepali Makhija at5:30 am.

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Covid experts slammed theWorld Health

Organisation’s estimated Coviddeath toll figures in India dueto Covid-19.

Dr Piyali Bhattacharyafrom SGPGI said that WHOpicked up the CRS data, tookpre- & post-Covid data andthen calculated the deathsreported in the country.“However, all these deathscannot be attributed to Covidbecause there were unattend-ed medical deaths, deaths dueto starvation and deaths dur-ing migration. This data can-not be relied upon. Some ofthese deaths could well berelated to Covid because every-thing had come to a standstilldue to economic crisis,” shesaid. Organised Medicine

Academic Guild secretary DrIshwar Gilada said the entireworld is aware that despiteappointing three committeesto reveal the truth on the ori-gin of SARV-Cov-2 virus,WHO has been conspicuous-ly silent. On where the WHOerred, he said that during theentire course of the pandem-ic or at any point of time,including the worst months ofApril-June 2021, it was neverever projected that India han-dled the pandemic badly.

“The WHO report statesthat their estimates have arange of uncertainty per coun-try and that level of uncertain-ty is directly related to a coun-try’s reporting capacity andvariable data quality. WHOhas put India in a poor lightdoubting its reporting capac-ity and data quality. In fact,

India did handle the pan-demic much better than mostpowerful countries globallyand came in for praise from allthe quarters. Not only that,India has helped several othercountries too and is still doingso through vaccine supplies.With the most respected andaccepted Worldometers data,of the recorded 516 millioncases, India recorded 43 mil-lion (8%) and the US record-ed 83.5 million (16%) cases,”he said.

He said all excess deathscould not be attributed toCovid. “There has been a var-ied degree of collateral damagelike deaths due to TB, malar-ia, HIV/AIDS and other infec-tious diseases as well as cancer,cardio-vascular diseases, kid-ney problems, cerebro-vascu-lar accidents, etc,” he added.

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2��4���-�������� ������������-�����Lucknow (PNS): A missingthree-and-a-half-year-old girlwas found dead under myste-rious circumstances in Nakapolice station area. Policerecovered the body from adrain (Haider Canal Pajwan) inHussainganj police station areaand said she died of drowning.

The police sent the bodyfor autopsy and after her iden-tity was ascertained. The girl,whose father is a labourer,went missing around 3:30 pmon Friday. As per reports, herfather returned home around3:30 pm and did not find her.He inquired about her from hiswife but she also had no idea.The couple started searchingfor her and were told by neigh-bours that she was playingclose to the canal (drain).

“We tried searching forher and later lodged a missingreport with police,” thebereaved father said. He said hecame to know about the recov-ery of her body from the drainin Yashoda Nagar locality inHussainganj on Saturday andhe reached there. The policesaid the girl might have diedafter accidentally falling intothe drain and the flow took thebody to Yashodanagar locality.The police said the body boreno injury marks. “The body hasbeen sent for autopsy to ascer-tain the cause of death,” thepolice said. A spokesman saidthat a missing report wasalready registered with theNaka police and a team wassearching for the girl. “Wewere told by informers that thebody of a girl has been spottedin the drain. The body wasfished out and since it wassmeared with mud, it was dif-ficult to find the wounds, ifany,” he said.

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Mother’s Day is an occa-sion to reflect that a per-

son may be 9 or 90 years oldbut they always remainattached to their mothers.

Nine-year-old TakshSrivastava said although hepretends to be independent infront of his mother but realis-es her importance in his life.“Once she had gone out of sta-tion and my father could notmanage a single thing. What Irealised was that it is not onlythe daily requirements butalso emotional requirementswhich she fulfils,” he said.

Daisy Saxena (25) saidher heart nearly sank at thetime of her ‘vidai’ after mar-riage. “I had never missed mymother as much as I did onthat particular day. It’s heart-wrenching to leave home andgo to another, but the only per-

son who you miss the most isyour mother and realise howmuch you are attached to her,”she said.

Rupesh Saxena (70) hashis mother’s photo fixed on awall in his room. “She passedaway early but I keep her life-sized photo on the wall closeto my bed because it reassuresme in a big way. I feel her pres-ence by my side,” he said.

Meanwhile, the Institute ofWomen’s Studies and depart-ment of Psychology, LucknowUniversity, jointly celebratedmotherhood to express grati-tude to mothers.

It was an interactive ses-sion with faculty, researchscholars and non-teachingstaff. Coordinator of theInstitute of Women’s Studiesand head of the departmentArchana Shukla and otherfaculty members such asMadhurima Pradhan, Manini

Srivastava and Megha Singhwelcomed Dean, Academics,Rakesh Chandra, who was thechief guest on the occasion.There was an interactive ses-sion in which the participantsshared their experiences andexpressed gratitude towardstheir mothers.

Rakesh Chandra remem-bered his mother and sharedsome childhood experiencesabout how his mother man-aged his family after his fatherpassed away.

Madhurima Pradhanspoked about how she startsher day with her mother’s pic-ture and gets strong inspira-tion from her every singleday. Archana Shukla said shemisses her mother and wouldask others how she was like.Manini Srivastava said hermother sacrificed her careerfor her children but neverregretted it.

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Adelegation of NationalSugar Institute, under the

leadership of Director, ProfNarendra Mohan, shall visitIndonesia next month to signa Memorandum ofUnderstanding with PoliteknicPerkebunan LLP, Yogyankarta,Indonesia for jointly conduct-ing training programmes fortechnical staff of IndonesianSugar Factories and to carryoutresearch work on areas ofmutual interest. Prof Mohansaid on the request approval forsigning the MoU had alreadybeen accorded by theGovernment of India.

He said Indonesia was asugar deficient country and theworking of the existing sugarfactories was much below thebenchmark. He said ‘Man sit-ting behind the machine is

equally important’ and thus theaim of this MoU was toenhance the knowledge levels

of the in-service personnel andto make them aware aboutstandard operating procedures,

latest processing techniquesand energy efficient equip-ment.

He further stated that NSIwill also educate them aboutthe importance of utilisation ofbyproducts in proper mannerso as to enhance revenues. Hesaid during the visit, the insti-tute delegation shall visit fewsugar factories also to get firsthand information about thestatus of sugar units and knowl-edge levels of working staff andIt may be mentioned here thatlooking to the scarcity of thequalified manpower inIndonesian Sugar Factories,proposed visit was also expect-ed to open new doors ofemployment for the Indianstudents, particularly fromSugar Engineering, SugarTechnology, Instrumentationand Environment Sciencebackgrounds.

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The District Magistrate, City, NehaSharma while chairing the Samadhan

Diwas at Bal Bhawan on Saturday saidthere were umpteen complaints regardingthe drug inspectors for their involvementin illegally running a pharmacy. She saidthis was a major cause of concern andthose involved will soon be exposed. Shesaid apart from this were were umpteencomplaints regarding revenue issues andrelated to KDA and KNN as well.

She said the objective of the StateGovernment was to ensure that the prob-lems related to the people at the grass rootslevel were taken up and settled in stipu-lated timeframe. She said there has beencomplaints regarding the drug inspectorsand thus special team had been set up tomake a thorough inquiry and it will be car-ried out at the earliest. She said umpteencomplaints were related to KDA wherepeople had made complailnts that they hadnot been handed over the possession. Shesaid the authorities concerned have beendirected to inquire into the issue and put

up a report on a priority.Earlier chairing the PM Swanidhi

Yojana, she said that all the banks shouldrelease the first loan to 2000 vendors andthis had to be completed latest by May 15.She said directives have also been issuedto ensure QR code to the vendors so thatthey can operate the digital payments. Shesaid the Centre was more focused on

ensuring digital transaction and said thatthe vendors should be issued QR code lat-est by May 15 and said that the given loandistribution targets should be achieved sothat the 100 monthly cashback benefits canbe availed of by the vendors.

A large number of bank managerswere peresent in the meeting along withDUDA officials.

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Under the cleanliness and health aware-ness campaign of Mission Shakti,

NCC and NSS units students of MahilaMahavidyalaya, Kidwai Nagar, carried outa cleanliness drive on the college campuson Saturday. They dug up a pit and buriedall the dry leaves littered here and thereon the college campus under the mud toconvert them into fertiliser. While carry-ing out the drive, they also gave a messagethat instead of spreading pollution byburning the dry leaves, efforts should bemade to increase fertility of the soil byburying them under the mud. The pro-gramme was inaugurated by the actingPrincipal Dr Kalpana Srivastava, while theNSS and NCC unit incharges Dr SabaYunus and ANO Lt Richa Chhibber con-ducted the proceedings.

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Activists of Kul HindJamiatul Avam, Uttar

Pradesh, led by their gen-eral secretary MehboobAlam Khan, felicitatedthe officials of police anddistr ict administrationfor their efforts made inpeaceful conduct of Eidcelebrations.

The police team deput-ed on different spots of thecity discharged their dutyunder the able stewardshipof the Police CommissionerVijay Singh Meena andJoint Police CommissionerAnand Prakash Tewari.Office-bearers of the organ-isat ion fe l ic itated theADCPs Rahul Mithas andPragyan Sukshma Prakashalong with many otherpolice officials with theshawl af ter garlandingthem.

They included SHOAnwarganj Ashok KumarSaroj, SHO Badshahi Naka,LIU Officer Sanjiv Dixit,SHO Harbansh MohalShailendra Kumar Singh,SHO Collectorganj RajeshKumar Sharma, Loha

Mandi outpost inchargeArun Kumar, Sub-InspectorDharmendra Kumar Singh,C ool ie Bazar outpostincharge, Irfan Beg (LIU)and Rajbir.

Convenor MehboobAlam Khan, Vinod Sonkarand Meghraj Arora saidsuch type of events help instrengthening the cordial

relations between massesand the district adminis-tration. Prominent activistsand area social workerspresent on the occasionwere Guru PrakashSrivastava, Shafiq Ahmad,Noor Mohd, Danish Ali,Shariq Nawab, AkhlaqAhmad Devid and SantoshGupta.

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The Director of theUniversity Institute of

Health Sciences,ChhatrapatiShahu Ji Maharaj University,Kanpur, Dr Pravin Katiyarwhile addressing the TenthInternational Conference ofIndian Academy of BiomedicalSciences organised in associa-tion with National Academy ofBiomedical Sciences, India atEra University Lucknow speak-ing on the topic Alternatives toAnimal Studies said variousanimals like mice, rats, ham-sters, rabbits, fish, birds, guineapigs, amphibians primates,dogs, cats were being used inresearch for the past very longtime.

He said the pain, distressand death experienced by theanimals during scientific exper-iments had been a debatingissue for a long time. He saidargument was that being alive,animals have the rights againstpain and distress and hence,their use for experimentationwas unethical and must bestopped. Speaking on the ‘3 Rs’,he said reduction, refinementand replacement which werealternatives to animal testingwere proposed to overcomesome of the drawbacks associ-ated with animal experimentsand avoid the unethical proce-dures.

Dr Katiyar said a strategy of‘3 s’ was being applied whichstood for reduction, refinementand replacement of laboratoryuse of animals. He said thisapproach motivated the use ofminimum number of animalsthat was ‘reduction’ in the totalnumber of animals used in anexperiment. He said the use ofanimals must be planned and‘refined’ carefully in such away that pain and distresscaused during the experimentshould be minimised. He saidif possible higher animalsshould be ‘replaced’ with alter-native methodologies and lowerorganisms and said animalreplacement was defined as,‘any scientific method employ-

ing non-sentient material whichmay replace use of consciousliving vertebrates in animalexperimentation’. He said twotypes of replacements were dis-tinguished as ‘relative’ and‘absolute’ replacement. He saidwith the help of statistical sup-port and careful selection ofstudy design one can producemeaningful scientific results ofan experiment.

Dr Katiyar said the inclu-sion of such method in studydesign helped to eliminateunsuitable compounds in pre-liminary stages only and min-imised the use of animals in fur-ther testings. He said live ani-mals and embryos were used tostudy effects of some com-pounds on embryo develop-ment.

He saild enriching the cageenvironment by taking care ofanimals reduced the stress onanimals. He said the scientistsshould refine the animal facil-ity so that pain, discomfort anddistress during animal life andscientific procedures werereduced.

Discussing replacement, hesaid various methods had beensuggested to avoid the animaluse in experimentation andthese methods provided analternative means for the drugand chemical testing, up tosome levels.

He said advantages associ-ated with these methods were,time efficiency, required lessman power and cost effective-ness.

He said computers can helpto understand the various basicprinciples of biology. He saidspecialised computer modelsand software programmeshelped to design new medi-cines. He said the computergenerated simulations wereused to predict the variouspossible biological and toxiceffects of a chemical or poten-tial drug candidate withoutanimal dissection.

He informed about theSoftware known as ComputerAided Drug Design (CADD)used to predict the receptorbinding site for a potentialdrug molecule.

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Sikandra (Kanpur Dehat) Police andSurveillance team have jointly arrested

three tricksters and recovered the cash ofRs.8.50 lakh looted from an aryurvedic med-icine trader on Friday. Police have recoveredRs 4.50 lakh from the possession of theaccused, while the amount of Rs 4 lakh lyingin their bank accounts were also seized. CCTVcamera footages collected from the Bara tollplaza helped a lot in working out the loot case.Addressing mediapersons, Circle Officer,Sikandra (Kanpur Dehat) Ravi Kant Gaur saidthe accused had called the ayurvedic medi-cine trader Sandip Bansal at their village underSikandra police station on pretext of buyinghuge religious rituals material and extendinghim attractive profit. On his reaching here,miscreants snatched the bag containingaround Rs 19 lakh from him and escaped.

Thereafter, with the help of CCTVfootages of Bara toll plaza and electronic sur-veillance, police arrested Anjani ofDharmangatpur, Jamo (Amethi); Deepak

alias Dinesh Kumar of Radha Nagar(Fatehpur) and Irshad of Muraintola(Fatehpur) who immediately confessed theirinvolvement in the loot case. Police have alsorecovered the bike used by the accused in com-mitting the crime. All the accused werefound involved in criminal cases lodgedagainst them for loot and tricksting with dif-ferent police stations in the past.

Police team comprised SHO SikandraRam Govind Mishra, SSI Rajesh Yadav, SISanjesh Kumar and constables Keshav Deo,Amit Kumar, Ashwani Patel, Neeraj and Ajit.Police recovered Rs 10,000 from Anjani, whileRs 4 lakh had been deposited by him to hisfamily member’s bank account.

Deepak was found in possession of Rs 4lakh, while Rs 40,000 were recovered fromIrshad. Balance cash looted by them werespent by the accused. CO Ravi Kant Gaur saidinvolvement of some other gang membershad also come to fore during interrogationwith the arrested accused and efforts were onto nab them.

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Noted diabetologist Dr Brij Mohan whileaddressing the Refresher Course organ-

ised by the IMA-Kanpur at the MedicalCollege auditorium on Saturday on the topic‘Insulin’ said in India alone there were 7.7crore diabetics and out of the total 3.9 crorewere undiagnosed and annually due to com-plications of diabetes a total of 60 lakhpatients die every year. He said on account ofunontrolled sugar the impact on eyes and kid-ney was more. He said the blood sugar levelsneed to be strictly controlled and people needto carry out HBA1C every three months.

He said there were umpteen myths relat-ed to the disease and thus the need was feltto organise insulin workshop. He said it wasessential to create awareness among themasses regarding hypoglcaemia and said it wasa condition in which blood sugar (glucose)level was lower than the standard range. Hesaid glucose was ones body’s main energysource and hypoglycemia was often related todiabetes treatment. He said similarly hyper-glycemia occurred when blood sugar levelswere too high. He said people developedhyperglycemia if their diabetes was not treat-ed properly.

Dr Mohan said diabetes educators canempower the patients to manage their diabetesperfectly. He said today it was necessary fordiabetologists to teach, coach and guidepatients so they understood their diabetes andhow it affected their personal lives, and workwith them to set behaviour change goals to

improve their health. He said diabetics needto adopt healthy eating habits through nutri-tion education, including meal-planning,weight-loss strategies and other disease-spe-cific nutrition counseling.

He said they need to develop problem-solving strategies and skills to self-manage dia-betes and monitor blood glucose and learnhow to interpret and appropriately respond tothe results and understand how their med-ications worked, including their action, sideeffects, efficacy, toxicity, prescribed dosage.

Expressing her views noted diabetologistCapt(Dr) Nandini Rastogi said Strategies forimplementing effective insulin therapy mightcover four crucial steps first was initiation thenintensification followed by adherence andfinally persistence. She said initiation wa thefirst stage of insulin therapy and was commonpractice to initiate insulin for patients whopresented with severe hyperglycemia, catabolicfeatures or difficulty maintaining glycemiccontrol by other agents.

She said intensification might include anincrease in insulin dose, the addition of non-insulin glucose-lowering medications or thesupplementation of short-acting insulin whenblood sugar control was suboptimal. She saidadherence required patients taking insulininjection following medical advice and final-ly, persistence was the continuation of insulintherapy.

She said patients with high insulin per-sistence were associated with better long-termoutcomes and lower risks of all-cause mor-tality than those with non-persistence.

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Delhi Public School Sarvodaya Nagarorganised, a function on ‘Mother’s

Day’ titled ‘Mommy Moments’ onSaturday to celebrate and rejoice thepresence of ‘Mother which was in facta blessing from God. The school hadassigned the task of welcomng themothers to the children and each childhad to welcome his or her mother. Thechildren pinned colourful badges ontheir mothers which depicted lovebetween the mother and children. The

Director Rachna Mohotra addressing theinaugural ceremony said first of all,mothers were responsible women whoplayed important role in the upbringingof a child. She said the credit of deter-mining childs attitude went to a moth-er.

She said mothers were the firstteachers in the world who not only taughtto believe in oneself but also help learnhow to behave, speak, and sharpenthinking. She said a mother was the bestteacher who improved a child’s develop-ment including physical, emotional, per-

spective, communication, cognitive, crit-ical thinking and independence. She saidthe mother played multi pronged rolesand there can be no comparison to amother.one to Mothers help surpass thechallenges or fears one faced in life as shewill be powerful support and influence.

The entire school had been beauti-fully decorated with colourful balloonsstreamers, hearts, quotations and wallhangings relevant to the theme.

The programme began with theheart touching prayer ‘My Mom – Mystrength and grace’ on mother.

U.P. POWER TRANSMISSIONCORPORATION LIMITED E-TENDER INVITING NOTICETender is invited in two parts for

the following electrical work / supply fromclass ‘A’ working organizations/firms whichare registered with GST and possessIncome Tax-payable certificate. Detailedinformation of tender is available on thewebsite www.etenderup.nic.in and for anyother amendment/extension of the tender,Please logon www.etenderup.nic.in uptodate of opening of tender. The authority toreject the tender without assigning any rea-son will be reserved with the ExecutiveEngineer, Electy. 400KV Sub-StationDivision, Sultanpur. E-tender No.02/ESDS/2022-23 To be opened on dt.06.06.2022, Tender cost Rs. 236.00,Earnest Money Rs. 2000.00 1. Attendingof hotpoint & minor breakdown, tighteningof jumpers, clamps etc. of 220/132/33KVfeeder bays at 220KV S/S Sultanpur underElecty. 400KV S/S Division Sultanpur.Executive Engineer Electy. 400KVSubstation Division Sultanpur No. 366 Dt7.5.22 Save energy in national interest.

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The Minister for PanchayatiRaj Bhupendra Singh

Chaudhary and State Ministerfor Jail Suresh Rahi held a chau-pal in Chenduli village underPahadi block to become awarewith the implementation ofthe government schemes onFriday. About the pensionunder welfare schemes theministers were apprised thatthere were 119 beneficiaries ofold age pension, 52 underhelpless women pensionscheme and 15 beneficiaries ofDivyang pension. The minis-ters interacted with each ben-eficiary and verified the distri-bution. One beneficiaryinformed that his pension hadbeen stopped for which thesocial welfare officer was askedto look into the matter. Aboutthe community toilet they wereinformed that one was opera-tional under the caretaker.

The ministers wereapprised that there were 17beneficiaries of PradhanmantriAvas and 3 were ofMukhyamantri Avas in the vil-lage. The ministers inspectedthe houses and directed to getthem completed. About thescheme Kanya Sumangala theministers were apprised thatthere were 9 beneficiaries andall the beneficiaries interactedwith the ministers. ReviewingAanganbadi the ministersenquired about the SAM andMAM children and directedthe officials concerned toensure the distribution of nutri-tious food positively as per theprovision. About the electricsupply the ministers wereapprised that it was 16 hours inthe village by officials but thelocals said that only 12 hoursof power supply was beinggiven in a day. Addressing thevillagers the Minister forPanchayati Raj Bhupendra

Singh Chaudhary said that thegovernment was committed toprovide the benefit of theschemes to all the eligible atdoorstep without any discrim-ination.

After the chaupal the min-isters inspected cow shelterhome located in Sindhora vil-lage and found all arrange-ments as proper. The ministersinspected Covid control roomalso located at Collectorate.During the inspection of divi-sional hospital the patientscomplained that the doctorswere not recommending thegeneric medicines for whichthe doctors were taken to taskand were directed to writegeneric medicines on the pre-scriptions to make available thecheaper treatment.

Reviewing the law andorder situation and develop-ment works at the meeting hallof divisional commissioner’soffice the officials were direct-

ed to work as per the policy ofthe government, recover therevenue, take stringent actionagainst all type of mafias andno laxity was to be tolerated inthe implementation of gov-ernment’s schemes of priority.The prominent among thosewho accimpanied the ministerswere MLC Shyam Narain ,MLAs Rama Shankar SinghPatel and Dr Vinod Bind, ex-MLA Shuchismita Maurya,BJP district president BrajBhushan Singh. During thechaupal held at Chenduli vil-lage, Divisional CommissionerYogeshwar Ram Mishra, DMPraveen Kumar Laxkar, SPAjay Kumar Singh, CDOSrilaxmi VS and the other dis-trict level officers were presentalong with the officials postedin the village. One LekhpalBeenu Yadav was absent fromthe duty for which the officialconcerned was directed to takeaction.

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With an aim to upgrade theinfrastructure and pro-

vide an adequate workplace forthe weavers of Varanasi, theTaneira, a Tata venture,launched the concept of“Weavershala-Nayi Kirti JismeBaseh Sanskriti.”

Talking to the presspersonson the launching occasion inRamnagar, here, the ChiefExecutive Officer (CEO) ofTaneira Ambuj Narayaninformed that the aim behindto launch the concept of“Weavershala-Nayi Kirti JismeBaseh Sanskriti” is to upgradethe infrastructure and provid-ing an adequate workplace forthe weavers of Varanasi inorder to uplift the working con-ditions of the weavers of thecity and modernise the weav-ing techniques thereby pre-serving traditional proceduresof hand-weaving for the futuregenerations as well as to part-ner with the weavers for excel-

lence in the production ofBanarasi weaves.

The new concept will helpus to elevate the craftsmanshipbehind Indian handlooms, theMD of Titan Company LimitedCK Venkataraman who wasalso present on launching occa-sion, informed and added thatit will also help to preserve theauthenticity and identity ofsuch crafts with a uniqueapproach towards growth anddevelopment. Through thesenewly introduced initiatives,

weavers will be able to optimise20% greater outputs across thetwo centres. Our aim is also toexpand this programme toother key cities and elevate theskill of the weavers across thecountry, he said. Taneira hasintroduced frame looms alongwith all basic workspace facil-ities for the weavers in collab-oration with AngikaHathkargha Vikas UdyogSahakari Samiti Limited andAadarsh Silk Bunkar SahkariSamiti Limited, located at

Ramnagar area of the city fortheir growth and developmentand it has helped them towork in a well-structured andcomfortable environment, headded.

Jagannath Prasad, Founder,Adarsh Silk Bunkar SahkariSamiti Limited said, ‘Through‘Weavershala’, we are lookingforward to broaden the pro-duction of more intricateBanarasi weaves and alsoencourage the younger gener-ation from the community tolearn the languishing tech-niques of Banarasi weaving.’Amresh Prasad Kushwaha,Chairman, Angika HathkarghaVikas Udyog Sahkari SamitiLimited added, “Our organi-sation started with the purposeof improvising weavers’ liveli-hood and transforming unor-ganised weaving units to anorganised setup. Through‘Weavershala’, the organisationaims to provide a safe andhealthy working environmentto the weavers.’

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Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) onSaturday staged a demon-

stration at the district head-quarter here in protest againstthe deteriorating law and ordersituation in the state anddemanded an inquiry by CBI toprobe the rape of a rape sur-vivor by a police sub-inspectorin Lalitpur and the death of agirl because of beating by copsin Chanduali district.

The workers of AAP inscores gathered at the districtheadquarter, here and staged ademonstration to raise theirprotest against the deteriorat-ing law and order situation inthe state. When a rape survivorreached a police station inLalitpur district of the state, theSHO of police station raped herinstead to provide justice bytaking action against the crim-

inals, the workers chargedadding that the police ofChandauli district raided thehouse of a gangster to arresthim but failed in apprehendingas he was not at home.Contrary to this, the eldest

daughter of the gangster wasfound dead in the home afterthe raid, the workers said andcharged that she died becauseof being brutally beaten by thecops during the raid. In bothcases, the guilty cops were not

arrested and even no legalaction was ascertained againstthem till date, the agitatedworkers blamed adding that thevictims and their families arestill waiting for justice from thestate government. It is veryshameful that a girl was rapedin police station and such inci-dents tarnish the image of thestate, the workers said andadded that such incidentswould not be tolerated any-more. Stern action should beascertained against the guiltycops and both incidents inLalitpur and Chandauli shouldbe handed over to the CBI forprobe so that the victims andtheir families could get justice,they demanded and handedover a memorandum to the dis-trict administration to be for-warded to the Chief Minister.Prominent among those whojoined the demonstration werePwan Tiwari and Kailash Patel.

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Amidst tight securityarrangement, the survey

team appointed by the courtreached the Gyanvapi premis-es to conduct videography andsurvey of Shringar Gauri on thesecond day on Saturday but thework could not be completedbecause of the opposition bythe Anjuman Intejamia MasjidCommittee. Meanwhile, thecommittee submitted an appli-cation before the court of CivilJudge (Senior Division)demanding the change of thecourt commissioner and hear-ing on application, the courtsought objection from theplaintiff and court commis-sioner and fixed the date ofMay 9 for the next hearing.

It is learnt that on theorder issued by the court ofCivil Judge (Senior Division)Ravi Kumar Diwakar, the courtcommissioner Ajay KumarMishra had started conductingvideography and survey ofShringar Gauri and other idolsin Gyanvapi premises on Friday

last. The advocates of AnjumanIntejamia Masjid Committeeraised questions on the fairnessof the court commissioner andsubmitted an application inthe court of Civil Judge (SeniorDivision) on Saturday tochange him. Meanwhile, thecourt commissioner AjayKumar Mishra and his team

reached the premises to con-duct survey and videographybut he and his team could notcomplete the work. A tightsecurity arrangement was madeoutside the premises when thecourt commissioner and histeam reached for the surveyand videography to avoid anyuntoward incident. While hear-

ing on the application submit-ted by Committee, the courtsaid that as the copies of appli-cation could not be made avail-able to the advocates of plain-tiff and the court commis-sioner could not appear in thecourt to put his side and so, thecourt fixed the date of May 9for the next hearing.

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Former Minister and MLADr Neelkanth Tiwari on

Saturday said that the internethas become an importantmedium to impart education tothe students in the presenttime and so, the state govern-ment is distributing tabletsand smart phones among suchstudents who could not pur-chase laptop or smartphonebecause of their financial con-dition.

While distributing thetablet among the students ofSanskrit in Shri ShastrarthMahavidyalaya inDashaswamedh, here underthe state government’s tabletand smartphones distributionscheme as the chief guest DrTiwari said that the govern-ment decided to make avail-able the tablets and smartphones to the students toempower them with technol-ogy. There is a revolution oftechnology empowerment in

the present time and in sucha situation, there is a need topromote the internet medium,he emphasised.

The guest of honour andnational president of KisanManch Vinod Singh honouredthe beneficiaries with angavas-tram.

The Principal of school DrGanesh Dutt Shastry andchairman of the managementcommittee Dr Sarnath Pandeywelcomed the guests. DrPawan Shukla conducted theproceedings and also offered aformal vote of thanks at last.Many were present on theoccasion including DrUmashankar Tripathi, DrSriram Pandey, Dr AshokPandey, Dr Amod DuttShastry, Dr Virendra PratapSingh and Pramod KumarMishra.

QR CODE INSTALLEDAT BOOKING COUNTERSOF POST OFFICES: In orderto promote digital transac-tions, the Postal department

has initiated the paymentthrough UPI-based QR Codein post offices and the facilityof digital payment has beenmade available in as many as274 post offices of VaranasiCircle.

To address the problem ofcash at counters promote dig-ital transaction in post offices,the QR Code has beeninstalled at all booking coun-ters of post offices and the cus-tomers can make digital pay-ment by scanning throughUPI, the Postmaster Generalof Varanasi Circle KrishanKumar Yadav informed andadded that these QR Codeshave also been installed atcounters in railway postal ser-vice where the facility of book-ing is available till late night.Though, the booking of postalmaterials could also be madeby paying in cash as per ear-lier, he made it clear.

The facility of UPI-basedonline payment through QRCode has been made available

in 6 principal post offices and268 sub post off ices ofVaranasi Circle including 86,54, 54, 48, 18 and 14 inVaranasi, Jaunpur, Ghazipur,Ballia, Chandauli and Bhadohirespectively, Yadav informedadding that with the avail-ability of this facility, the pay-ment of charge of speed post,registry letter, parcel, regis-tered articles, internationalair parcel, aerogram interna-tional, franking machinerecharge, business post, billmail service, departmentalexam fee, etc could be madethrough digital paymentbesides the cash.

The customer could makepayment by any UPI paymentmobile application such asGoogle Pay, Phonepe, Paytm,Amazon Pay and Dakpay byscanning the QR Code, heinformed and hoped that thisfacility will strengthen thedigital economy and alsoaddress the cash problem ofthe customers.

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The six accused arrested inthe Prayagraj mass murder

case, Bhim Kumar Gautam, hissons Manu, Naval KumarKharwar, Rohit Kharwar, PPKharwar and Akash Kharwarwill undergo a DNA test inAgra. The DNA test permissionhas been obtained from thecourt.

It was told that the processof conducting a DNA test willbegin from May 9. During theprocess, the blood and semenof the accused will be matched.If the semen gets matched, therape of charges will be con-firmed and the culprits will be

be exposed.After raping a Dalit teenag-

er on the night of November21, 2021 in Gohri, Phaphamau,her mother, father and broth-er were also murdered. Thenon November 25, their bodywas found lying in a pool ofblood. After the sensationalincident, the police arrestedthree including the allegedlover of the teenager and sentthem to jail, but due to lack ofevidence, all of them werereleased. After the fake incidentwas busted, the police consti-tuted an SIT.

Five members of the samefamily were brutally murderedin Tharvai on April 23 beforethe incident could be proper-

ly unveiled. The daughter-in-law and handicapped daughterof the family were also raped.On Tuesday night, the policearrested seven accused includ-ing a woman involved in theincident. In this, three wereinjured due to bullet injuriesduring the encounter, whilefour were sent to jail. Police saidthat women were raped inSoraon and Manda, whosesemen will be matched withthese accused. Bihar's miscre-ants Naval Kharwar, Rohit andhis brother PP, who wereinjured in a police encounter,are undergoing treatment atSwarooprani Nehru Hospital.Police said that even after thereis complete improvement in

health, they will be sent to jail.But before that their DNA testwill be done. Police personnelhave been deployed for securi-ty in the hospital.

The police have claimedthat a total of 13 miscreantswere involved in the incidentsof Phaphamau and Tharwai. Atpresent, seven accused areabsconding, for whom raids arebeing conducted. Officials saidthat the gang involved in theincident includes Murgi Pankh,Bundela alias Sagar, Debhi,Dedhgaon and others. SSPAjay Kumar said that from May9, DNA tests will be done forthe accused in Agra.Permission has been obtainedfrom the court in this regard.

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Members of Parliamentfrom different segments

raised their voices to increaserailway facilities in their respec-tive areas at a meeting of MPsof Jhansi Division with GMNCR at Jhansi. Jhansi Divisionof North Central Railway con-ducted the meeting of MPswith GM NCR Pramod Kumaron Friday. The issue of seniorcitizens could not find a placein this meeting.

The meeting was attendedby MP Akbarpur DevendraSigh Bhole, MP Banda- RKSingh Patel, MP Rajyasabha -Vishambhar Prasad Prasad,MP Bhind- Sandhya Suman,MP- Jhansi–Lalitpur AnuragSharma, while MPs ofKhajuraho, Orai –Jalaun,Tikamgarh, Mahoba, Morena,and Gwalior participatedthrough their representatives.

Mr Devendra Singh Bholewas chosen as the Chairmanfor the meeting by the mem-bers.

At the outset GM NCRwelcomed the dignitaries bypresenting them a shawl andflower pot. In his inauguraladdress, GM presented anoverall picture of NCR andapprised the house about majorachievements of NCR in recentyears and informed about theongoing developmental pro-jects. He said NCR is pro-gressing ahead and the guid-ance provided by the publicrepresentatives is of great rel-evance.

DRM Jhansi Ashutoshapprised the house regardingvarious passenger amenitiesand ongoing projects in JhansiDivision.

During discussion onagenda items, various issueswere discussed. Likewise, MrsSandhya Suman demandedBhind to Bhopal train and alsoraised the issue of developmentof Bhind station. MP Banda RKSingh Patel said considering thereligious importance ofChitrakut area, Chitrakut rail-way station should according-

ly be beautified. He also sug-gested restoring the pre-covidstoppages of BundelkhandExpress and Sarnath Express.He also demanded early com-pletion of railway works relat-ed to the Banda Bypass. He fur-ther raised the issue of unau-thorised vending.

Rajyasabha MPVishambhar Prasad Nishadraised the issue of stray animalsand encroachment on Railwayland. He said these should beresolved with prompt action.

MP Jhansi-Lalitpur AnuragSharma suggested that the localcuisine should be part of themenu supplied in trains. Healso demanded extension oftrain no-11125/26 Gwalior-Indore-Ratlam express toJhansi. He also sought solutionsto problems related to therickshaw stand at Jhansi sta-tion.

Devendra Singh Bhole MPAkbarpur and chairperson ofthe meeting raised the issue ofencroachment on Ghatampurstation. He demanded stoppage

of Pushpak express atPukhrayan and MEMU Servicebetween Kanpur-Banda andKanpur-Jhansi. He alsodemanded development of pas-senger amenities like toilets, tinsheds and drinking water atKatara Road station.

Representatives of the MPsalso put forward the demandslike additional stoppages, newtrains, enhancement of pas-senger amenities and develop-ment of facilities at stations.

The proceedings were con-ducted by Dy GM/G AnkurChandra.

All the Principal Heads ofDepartments, divisional offi-cers and other related officerswere present on the occasion.The meeting was conducted ina very cordial and healthyatmosphere. All MPs and rep-resentatives appreciated theconduct of the meeting andsaid that this meeting willprove to be very effective in thedevelopment of the regionthrough active contribution ofRailways.

���4����1�������������������1�� ��4�<��:��PRAYAGRAJ (PNS): TheSangam city, which houses theNaini central jail, will soon geta new Prayagraj district jailwith a capacity to lodge 2,600inmates. The new facility, beingconstructed adjacent to NainiCentral Jail, will help jailauthorities to check over-crowding. The starling fact isthat the capacity of the NainiCentral Jail is of around 2,060inmates, but currently lodgesover 4,500 inmates.

The new facility will haveall state-of-the-art facilities likelatest and advanced equip-ment, wide-range CCTV net-work covering barracks, videoconferencing hall, automatedkitchen and advanced hospitalwith 140 beds.

Senior superintendent,Naini Central Jail, PN Pandeytold the reporters that anamount of Rs 176 crore wasspent to construct the newdistrict jail in Prayagraj whichwould be functional by the Juneend.

He added ,“Prayagrajwould be the fifth district in thestate to have both district andCentral jail facilities afterVaranasi, Agra, Fatehgarh andBareilly.” “The new district jailcomplex is under completeCCTV camera surveillance andhas the capacity to house 2,600prisoners. Moreover, the newfacility will solve the over-crowding problem at NainiCentral Jail to a major extent.Besides, the new facility hasvideo-conferencing for high-risk inmates and those con-victed of heinous crimes andstate-of-the-art security equip-ment with extensive cameracoverage,” added Pandey.“Once the new facility becomesfunctional, all the undertrialswould be transferred/shiftedhere from the Naini CentralJail,” he said. Since ChiefMinister Yogi Adityanath hadordered the construction ofnew jails and more barracks inthe existing ones to deal withovercrowding, the construc-

tion of a new facility in Sangamcity was taken up promptlywith an aim to get the newfacility functional by June-end.“The construction of the newfacility was started about threeyears back and it aimed to haveall latest and advanced securi-ty gadgets,” said Pandey, adding“This will be the first time thatan automated kitchen is beingset up at the new facility.”Moreover, the authorities ofNaini central jail have increasedthe frequency of meeting ( jailbirds and their family mem-bers) –twice in a week- whichwas earlier restricted to once ina week. Meanwhile, the author-ities of the Naini Central Jailhave written to the ChiefMedical Officer (Prayagraj) toconduct a medical examinationof all 4,500 inmates lodged atNaini Central Jail.

Despite having a hospitalinside the jail campus andmedical examination of eachand every new inmate beingconducted within 24 hours of

lodging at Naini Central Jail,the jail authorities have takenthe initiative to take betterhealth care of inmates lodgedat the central jail.

BLOOD DONATIONCAMP: Allahabad MedicalAssociation (AMA) will organ-ise a mega blood donationcamp today at AMAConvention Centre (MaharanaPratap crossing, Stanley Road)from 8 am to 8 pm. Dr SujitKumar Singh, president ofAMA said” (This is the firsttime that a voluntary megablood donation camp underthe theme of “Red – Yeh rangnahin yeh Jeevan Hai” will beorganised which will be dedi-cated to mothers.” The campwill be inaugurated by divi-sional commissioner SanjayGoyal andCMO (Prayagraj)Dr Nanak Saran. As interna-tional thalassemia day will alsofall on May 8, a cycle rally willalso be taken out on Sunday tocreate awareness about tha-lassemia.

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The Sri Lankan governmenton Saturday defended

imposing a state of emergency,saying it was required to tack-le the unprecedented economiccrisis plaguing the country,even as President GotabayaRajapaksa faced flak from theOpposition and foreign envoysfor his decision which givessecurity forces power to crackdown on peaceful protests.

In a special Cabinet meet-ing on Friday, the embattledpresident declared the state ofemergency with effect fromFriday midnight.

This is the second emer-gency declared in just over amonth.

The announcement cameas student activists kept theParliament under siege sinceThursday night.

The students blocked themain entrance to the complexdemanding the resignation ofthe government for its inabil-

ity to handle the ongoing eco-nomic crisis marked by short-ages of essentials.

In a statement on Saturday,the Government InformationDepartment said, "Sri Lanka iscurrently facing the worst eco-nomic crisis and political insta-bility ever after Independencedue to manifold reasons bothshort and long-term. The com-mon perception is that sever-al reforms in the sectors ofpolitical, economic and socialfabric should be carried out in-depth to escape from this gravesituation."

"Priority among them is tomanage the shortage of foreignexchange within the shortestpossible time and restore thesupply of goods and services,"the statement added.

The government said dis-cussions are ongoing with themulti-lateral institutions,including the InternationalMonetary Fund, to obtainfinancial assistance andrestructure outstanding debt.

"Political stability andpeace in society are two majorconditions that are demandedin building confidence andstrength to make such pro-grams a success," the statementsaid, explaining the need forthe emergency.

Sri Lanka is currently inthe throes of unprecedentedeconomic turmoil since itsindependence from Britain in

1948. The crisis is caused inpart by a lack of foreign cur-rency, which has meant thatthe country cannot afford topay for imports of staple foodsand

fuel, leading to acute short-ages and very high prices.

Thousands of demonstra-tors have hit the streets acrossSri Lanka since April 9, as thegovernment ran out of money

for vital imports; prices ofessential commodities haveskyrocketed and there are acuteshortages in fuel, medicinesand electricity supply.

Despite mounting pres-sure, President GotabayaRajapaksa and his elder broth-er and Prime MinisterMahinda Rajapaksa haverefused to quit office.

Commenting on the

ongoing negotiations, theIMF's Colombo mission chiefMasahiro Nozaki said, "TheIMF team will engage with theeconomic team of Sri Lankanauthorities from May 9 toMay 23 in a virtual missionand continue discussions onthe authorities' request for anIMF-supported programme."

According to IMF assess-ment, Sri Lanka's debt isunsustainable. Therefore,approval for IMF financing,including through a RapidFinancing Instrument, wouldrequire adequate assurancesthat debt sustainability will berestored.

Last month, the SriLankan government said itwould temporarily default onUSD 35.5 billion in foreigndebt as the pandemic and thewar in Ukraine made itimpossible to make paymentsto overseas creditors.

The present state of emer-gency gives the police and thesecurity forces sweeping

power to arbitrarily arrestand detain people. The coun-try's human rights body, themain lawyers' body, theOpposition and even somemembers of the diplomaticcommunity criticised the gov-ernment for its move.

The Human RightsCommission of Sri Lanka saidit was deeply concerned aboutthe promulgation of an emer-gency. "We urge the govern-ment to explain to the publicthe reasons for this procla-mation since protests havebeen largely peaceful andwithin the ambit of normalpolice operations," it said in astatement."We hope that free-dom of speech and assembly,the rights associated witharrest and detention as well asother fundamental rights andfreedoms will not be affectedor derogated from during theperiod of the emergency," saidthe statement.

The Bar Association of SriLanka (BASL) in a statement

issued said it was "gravelyconcerned" about the decla-ration of a State of Emergencyby the President.

"As was stated earlier onApril 2, 2022, when thePresident declared a State ofEmergency for a brief periodof time, the BASL remains ofthe view that a declaration ofa state of emergency is not theanswer to the present situationin the country including thespate of public protests andstrikes which have occurred,"the BASL said.

They have stressed that thestate of emergency must not beused to stifle peaceful protestsand dissent or to make arbi-trary arrests and detentions.The protests in turn must notbe violent and must remainpeaceful at all times.

The main Oppositionparty Samagi JanaBalawegaya's leader SajithPremadasa too questioned themove and urged for the resig-nation of the president.

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Ukrainian troops solidifiedtheir positions around the

nation's second-largest city onSaturday as Russian forcesdelivered more punishingattacks on an embattled steel-works in a bid to complete theirconquest of the southern portof Mariupol in time for VictoryDay celebrations.

As Monday's holiday com-memorating the Soviet Union'sWorld War II victory overNazi Germany approached,cities across Ukraine preparedfor an expected increase inRussian attacks.

Officials urged residentsnumbed by more than 10weeks of war to heed air raidwarnings.

"These symbolic dates areto the Russian aggressor likered to a bull," Ukraine's firstdeputy interior minister,Yevhen Yenin, said.

"While the entire civilisedworld remembers the victimsof terrible wars on these days,the Russian Federation wantsparades and is preparing todance over bones in Mariupol."

The most intense fightingin recent days has befalleneastern Ukraine, where thetwo sides are entrenched in afierce race to capture territorynot under their control.

Western military analystssaid a Ukrainian counter-offen-sive was advancing around thenortheastern city of Kharkivwhile the Russians made minorgains in Luhansk, an area

where Moscow-backed sepa-ratists have fought since 2014.

Against that backdrop,Ukrainian fighters were mak-ing a final stand to prevent acomplete takeover of Mariupol.

Securing the strategicallyimportant Sea of Azov port thatwould give Moscow a landbridge to the Crimea Peninsula,which Russia annexed fromUkraine during a 2014 inva-sion. New satellite photosanalysed by The AssociatedPress showed vast devastationat a sprawling seaside steelmill that is the last corner ofUkrainian resistance in thecity. Buildings at the Azovstalplant, including one underwhich hundreds of fightersand civilians are likely hiding,had large, gaping holes in the

roof, according to the imagesshot on Friday by Planet LabsPBC.

The bombardment of thesteel mill intensified in recentdays despite a Russian pledgefor a temporary cease-fire toallow civilians inside to escape.

Russia has used mortars,artillery, truck-mounted rock-et systems, aerial bombardmentand shelling from sea to targetthe facility. Rescuers sought toevacuate more civilians onSaturday after a week of on-and-off convoys to get peopleout of Mariupol. Dozens ofcivilians were delivered onFriday to the care of UnitedNations and InternationalCommittee of the Red Crossrepresentatives, Russian andUkrainian officials confirmed.

The Russian military saidthe group of 50 included 11children. The latest evacueesfollowed roughly 500 otherswho were allowed to leave theplant and other parts of the cityin recent days.

The Ukrainian govern-ment has called on interna-tional organisations to alsohelp evacuate the fightersdefending the plant.

By Russia's most recentestimate, roughly 2,000Ukrainian fighters remained atthe Azovstal steelworks. Theyhave repeatedly refused to sur-render. Ukrainian PresidentVolodymyr Zelenskyy said"influential states" wereinvolved in efforts to rescue thesoldiers, although he did notmention any by name.

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US Secretar y of StateAntony Blinken has held

a telephonic conversationwith his Pakistani counter-part Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari,the first such high-levelcontact since a new govern-ment took over in the coun-try, and exchanged views onvarious aspects of bilateralties.

The conversation tookplace amidst a chill in bilater-al ties and weeks after oustedprime minister Imran Khanalleged that the US was behindthe "foreign conspiracy" to

topple his government througha no-confidence vote tabled bythe Opposition.

The Pakistan ForeignMinister received a telephonecall from Blinken, the ForeignOffice (FO) said in a statementon Friday.

During the phone call,Secretary Blinken congratu-lated Bilawal on the assump-tion of his office and expressedthe desire to continue strength-ening the mutually beneficialPakistan-US bilateral relation-ship.

Exchanging views on var-ious aspects of Pakistan-USrelations, Bilawal underscoredthat Pakistan and the US have

a longstanding broad-basedrelationship.

He added that constructiveand sustained engagementbetween the two countriesbased on mutual respect andmutual interest was vital topromote peace, developmentand security in the region andbeyond.

Bilawal emphasised thatPakistan's vision was focusedon human development,regional connectivity and apeaceful neighbourhood.

According to the StateDepartment, Blinken duringthe call reiterated the desire tostrengthen the broad-basedbilateral relationship.

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Prime Minister NarendraModi on Saturday said a

hybrid system of online andoffline learning should bedeveloped to avoid overexpo-sure to technology in school-going children.

While chairing a high-levelmeeting to review the progressin the implementation of theNational Education Policy(NEP) 2020, the PM said thatin the two years since itslaunch, it has seen many ini-tiatives being unrolled toachieve the objectives of access,equity, inclusivity, and quality,as laid down under the policy.

The policy has given a bigpush to online learning withhigher education institutionsbeing allowed to run full-fledged online courses and thepermissible limit of online con-tent being raised to

The PM suggested thatsecondary schools with sciencelabs should engage with farm-ers in their area for soil testing.

From special efforts totrack out of school children andbring them back into the main-stream, to the introduction ofmultiple entries and exits inhigher education, many trans-formative reforms have beeninitiated that will define andlead the progress of the coun-try, he said.

The meeting was attendedby Dharmendra Pradhan,Minister of Education (MoE)and Skill Development &Entrepreneurship (MSDE),Rajeev Chandrashekhar,Minister of State in MSDE,Subhash Sarkar, MoS, MoE,Annapurna Devi, MoS, MoEand Rajkumar Ranjan Singh

MoS, MoE and MEA, PrincipalSecretary to PM, CabinetSecretary, Advisor to PM,Chairman UGC, ChairmanAICTE, Chairman NCVET,Director NCERT and othersenior officials from Ministryof Education.

Prime Minister wasapprised that the work of for-mulation of NationalCurriculum Framework, underthe guidance of the NationalSteering Committee, is inprogress.

Modi suggested the data-bases maintained byAnganwadi centers should beseamlessly integrated with theschool databases as childrenmove from Anganwadis toSchools. Regular Health check-ups and screening for childrenin schools should be carried outwith the help of technology.

He also suggested that sec-ondary schools with sciencelabs should engage with farm-ers in their area for soil testingto create awareness about soiland agriculture.

Prime Minister was also

informed that the guidelines forMultiple Entry-Exit for flexi-bility and lifelong learning,along with the launchAcademic Bank of Credit onDigilocker platform will nowmake it possible for students tostudy as per their convenienceand choice. In order to createnew possibilities for life-longlearning and centrally involvecritical and interdisciplinarythinking in learners, UGC haspublished guidelines accordingto which students can pursuetwo academic programmessimultaneously.

The National HigherEducation QualificationFramework (NHEQF) is also atan advanced stage of prepara-tion. UGC is revising the exist-ing “Curriculum Frameworkand Credit System forUndergraduate Programme”in alignment with NHEQF.

In order to encourage anecosystem of Start-up andInnovation, 2,774 Institution’sInnovation Councils have beenset up in HEIs in 28 States and6 UTs, the PM was updated.

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The Enforcement Directorate(ED) on Saturday trashed

allegations that the statements ofthe officials of Xiaomi Indiawere taken under coercion bythe agency. It termed such claimsas not only “untrue and baseless”but also an outcome of “after-thought.”“The officials ofXiaomi India deposed theirstatements before ED underFEMA voluntarily in the mostconducive environment on var-ious occasions,” the agency saidin a statement here.

“The statements weredeposed by them on the basis ofdocuments/information pro-vided by the company duringthe course of investigation. Theirstatements corroborate with thewritten replies submitted to EDand the materials on record,” itsaid.The agency said statementsof Xiaomi’s Global VicePresident and ManagingDirector of Xiaomi India ManuKumar Jain were recorded onApril 13, 14, 21 and 26. Thestatements of Xiaomi’s Chief

Financial Officer Head SameerB S Rao were recorded onMarch 25, April 14, 19, 21, 22and 26.

“However, no complaintwas filed by them at any pointof time during recording ofstatements at various occasions.Last statement of the officials ofthe company was recorded on26.04.2022 and the seizure orderwas passed on 29.04.2022. Itappears that the allegation nowmade after passage of substan-tial time is an afterthought. Theallegations are baseless and farfrom the facts, it further said.

It is reiterated that ED is aprofessional agency with strongwork ethics and there was nocoercion or threat to the officersof the company at any point oftime, it added. The ED’s clari-fication came in response to cer-tain news reports that saidXiaomi alleged in a recent filingbefore the Karnataka HighCourt that its top executiveswere threatened with "physicalviolence and coercion" duringtheir questioning by ED inves-tigators in Bengaluru.

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The Congress on Saturdayslammed the Government

over the hike in price ofdomestic LPG cylinder withformer party chief RahulGandhi saying millions ofIndian households are waginga difficult battle against"extreme inflation", unem-ployment and "poor gover-nance".

The Opposition party alsosaid the central governmentshould roll back the hike inthe price of domestic cookinggas cylinder and bring it to thesame level as it was for thesubsidised cylinder in 2014.

The price of domesticLPG cylinders was raised byRs 50 on Saturday. With thelatest revision, the 14.2 kgdomestic cylinder will nowcost Rs 999.50/cylinder fromSaturday. Rahul Gandhi saidduring the Congress-led UPAgovernment, the price of anLPG cylinder was Rs 414 anda subsidy of Rs 827 was being

given on every cylinder."Today, the cost of a cylin-

der is Rs 999. The amount ofsubsidy given is 'zero'," he saidin a Facebook post.

The Narendra Modi gov-ernment had removed all safe-ty nets that the Congress hadput in place to protect thecommon man, Gandhialleged."Today, millions ofIndian households are waginga difficult battle againstextreme inflation, unemploy-ment, and poor governance,"the former Congress chiefsaid."The Congress partywould have never let this hap-pen. We have and always willsupport families in need," hesaid with the hashtags'MehengaiMuktBharat' and'BJPFailsIndia'.

After the news of a hike ofRs 50 in the price of domes-tic LPG cylinder, the Congressalso claimed that the Modigovernment has increased theprice of subsidised cookinggas by over Rs 585 in the lasteight years and also ended thesubsidy that was given.

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The Left parties on Saturdaystrongly criticised the Modi

Government for the LPGcylinder price hike.

CPI(M) general secretarySitaram Yehury said that theModi Government assaultspeople's livelihood by hik-ing prices of all needy

items. "Modi Governmentassaults on people's liveli-hoods are relentless. In the 75 years of Independencethis is the most inhumanand callous Government.Must withdraw Centralcess/surcharges on petroleumproducts," Yechury tweetedreact ing to the Rs 50 hike in LPG gas cylinders forhome.

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Faced with China rapidlyimproving its infrastruc-

ture including roads all alongthe Line of Actual Control(LAC), Defence MinisterRajnath Singh on Saturdayurged the Border RoadsOrganisation(BRO)to furtherenhance its capability throughoptimum use to technologyand strive to strengthen theinfrastructure of the borderareas at a faster pace.

He also said “the Chinesepresence has increased in theNorthern sector in the recentpast. Due to their proficiencyin construction in mountain-ous areas, they manage toreach different places veryquickly. The BRO must con-tinue to work in parallel andfocus on increasing their capa-bility with full use of technol-ogy.”

This was in apparent ref-erence to the persisting stand-

offs for the past two years inEastern Ladakh between theIndian and Chinese armies.Both the sides have ramped uptheir military strength besidesinfrastructure developmentincluding roads, bridges, air-fields and helipads in the bor-der areas.

Addressing the BRO per-sonnel on the occasion of its63rd Raising Day, Rajnath alsosaid the government, on itspart, is making all efforts toprovide the required support tothe BRO in this direction.

He mentioned about therecent announcement ofincrease of capital budget of theBRO by 40% to Rs 3,500 crorein Financial Year 2022-23, reit-erating the government’s com-

mitment to the country's secu-rity and development of borderareas.

Rajnath described thedevelopment of border areas asa major part of the govern-ment’s comprehensive defencestrategy, noting that it will bol-ster the security apparatus ofthe country and bring a posi-tive change in the lives of peo-ple residing in remote areas.

Underlining the impor-tance of roads, bridges and tun-nels in the progress of a nation,Rajnath said the projects com-pleted by the BRO haveenhanced the operational pre-paredness of the Armed Forcesand improved the socio-eco-nomic conditions of the peopleliving in far-flung areas.

It is pertinent to mentionthat with just two projects in1960 - Project Tusker in theEast and Project Beacon in theNorth - the BRO has todaybecome a vibrant organisationwith 18 projects in variousstates.

It has constructed over60,000 kilometres of roads,over 840 bridges, four tunnelsand 19 airfields under adverseclimatic and geographical con-ditions along India's borders aswell as in friendly foreigncountries, thus contributingtowards our strategic objec-tives.

In 2021-22, a total of 102infrastructure projects - 87bridges and 15 roads - werecompleted by the BRO - themost in a single year. Thisincluded construction ofworld’s longest highway tunnel,above 10,000 feet Atal Tunnel,Rohtang and world highestmotorable road over Umling Lain Eastern Ladakh.

For the first time in the his-tory of the BRO, women offi-cers were given the commandof Units, with three road con-struction companies (RCCs)being currently commanded bythem. It also created the first-ever All Women RCC inJoshimath, Uttarakhand.

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The National Eligibilitycum Entrance Test-

Postgraduate (NEET-PG)2022 has not been postponedand will be conducted on thescheduled date of May 21, theGovernment said on Saturday,even as over 15,000 medicalaspirants have submitted amemorandum to PrimeMinister Narendra Modi, urg-ing him to intervene in thematter.

The development cameeven as a medical students'association moved theSupreme Court on Thursday,May 5, 2022, for the post-ponement of the examinationciting its clash with the ongo-ing counselling for NEET PG2021.

"We 15,000 aspirants writ-ing on behalf of the majorityof NEET PG aspirants suffer-ing due to the ongoing coun-selling and upcoming NEETPG 2022 exam scheduled on21 May,2022. We would like tobring it to your notice regard-ing the issues faced by theaspirants who are unable toappear for the upcomingmedical post-graduationentrance exam NEET PG2022," the memorandum stated.

Meanwhile, a fake docu-ment is doing the rounds ofsocial media claiming thatthe NEET PG 2022 exam hasbeen postponed to July 9.Calling it a fake circular, theMinistry has cautioned stu-dents to not fall into its trapas examinations will be heldas scheduled for May 21.

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From Page 1The provision has been under intense public scrutiny recent-

ly for its alleged misuse to settle political scores by various gov-ernments which had led the CJI to ask if the colonial-era law,which was used to persecute freedom fighters, was still neededafter 75 years of Independence. “Whoever, by words, either spo-ken or written, or by signs, or by visible representation, or oth-erwise, brings or attempts to bring into hatred or contempt, orexcites or attempts to excite disaffection towards, the Governmentestablished by law in [India], shall be punished with imprison-ment for life, to which fine may be added, or with imprisonmentwhich may extend to three years, to which fine may be added,or with fine,” reads section 124A (sedition) of the IPC.

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Promising opener Yashasvi Jaiswal made adream comeback with a career-best 68 as

Rajasthan Royals well and truly remained in huntfor a play-off berth beating Punjab Kings by sixwickets, which also happened to be their first whilechasing in this edition of IPL.

Drafted in place of Karun Nair, the 20-year-old showed superb game awareness and pickedthe gaps at ease in a 41-ball 68 (9x4, 2x6) to bril-liantly set it up for the Rajasthan Royals in theirtall 190-run chase at the Wankhede which wascompleted with two balls to spare.

With its first successful run-chase, Royals teamare now on 14 points from 11 matches in thirdplace and one more win will firmly put them incontention for a a to-four finish.

The win also meant that the five-time cham-pions Mumbai Indians became the first team tobe eliminated from the IPL-15 season.

The loss meant a big blow to Punjab playoffhopes as they now have 10 points from 11 match-es.

The young gun, who was retained amongthe three players by the franchise, was playing onlyin his fourth match this season, came into his ele-ment after Orange Cap holder Jos Buttler (30 off16 balls; 5x4, 1x6) departed inside the powerplayafter a flying start.

Skipper Sanju Samson (23) was dismissedcheaply and there was a sense of concern in theRajasthan camp when Jaiswal showed what he’scapable of with his clean hitting all over the park.

He raced to his third IPLfifty, first this season off just 33balls, toying the Punjab attackwith ease.

Be it with his unorthodoxreverse sweep to Rahul Chaharor lap-scoop off RishiDhawan or the classicaldrives, Jaiswal looked intotal control in a 37-ball56-run partnershipwith DevduttPadikkal.

Jaiswal finallydeparted after mis-cuing one toArshdeep Singhgiving a sigh ofrelief to Punjabbut the equationwas then reduced

to an easy 49 off 35 balls.There was a bit of drama towards the end after

tournament’s best death overs seamer ArshdeepSingh (2/29) bowling a brilliant penultimate

over giving just three runs and taking thewicket of Padikkal (31).

Needing eight runs from the last over,Hetmyer struck a six to seal the chase withtwo balls to spare.

It was in fact the experiencedlegspinner Yuzvendra Chahal who

earlier brilliantly set it up forPunjab bowling a tidy 4-0-28-3which included 10 dot balls.

Chahal, who had just twowickets from the last four match-

es, started to look threateningagain.

He dismissed the duo ofMayank Agarwal (15) and their top run-get-

ter Jonny Bairstow (56 off 40 balls) off threeballs to derail them in the middle overs (10-15)

where they made just 34 runs and lost three wick-ets. Earlier, Bairstow signalled his return to formwith a fine half-century before Jitesh Sharma’scameo propelled Punjab Kings to challenging189/5. On a day when their leading run-getterShikhar Dhawan (12 from 16b) struggled to getgoing, Bairstow looked effortless once he had set-tled down and reached his first IPL fifty this sea-son, eighth overall, in 34 balls.

Bairstow however failed to convert it into abig one as Punjab lost three wickets for 30 runswith current ‘Purple Cap’ holder Chahal dentingtheir progress with his triple-strike.

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South Africa’s Indian origin legendaryfast bowler Hoosain Ayob has died fol-

lowing a prolonged illness, never havingplayed for the country due to apartheid.He was 81.

Ayob had been internationally recog-nised as one of the greatest players in thehistory of the country but wasn’t allowedto represent it because of apartheid.

He succumbed to a kidney ailment ina hospital on Saturday morning while vis-iting family in Port Elizabeth.

The pacer had overcome many hur-dles in his life, both personal and profes-sional, which he documented in his 2020book ‘Crossing Boundaries’.

In the foreword of the book, celebrat-ed cricketer Clive Lloyd wrote: “Hoosain’sresilience and persistence in achievingexcellence were exceptional.”

After the United Cricket Board (pre-sent day Cricket South Africa) was inau-gurated, and South Africa was readmit-ted to the international fold, Ayob playeda pivotal role in the International CricketCouncil’s development committee.

Even in his 70’s, Ayob undertooktraining of coaches and made the odd tripinto Africa, where he spent the lastdecade of his life spreading the game ofcricket.

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Rashid Khan is enduring anordinary IPL this year with

the ball in terms of wickets, butthe Gujarat Titans spinner isnot to bothered about the sta-tistics as long as he can produceeconomical spells for his team.Rashid has so far claimed 11wickets from as many games atan economy rate of 6.84, fig-ures which definitely won’tplease him much.

But the star Afghan crick-eter has taken it in stride.

“While bowling in T20s it’salways great to take wickets butfor me, it’s a bit differentbecause I always focus on econ-omy and that is somethingwhich puts pressure on the bat-ters,” Rashid said at the post-match virtual press conferenceafter GT’s five-run loss toMumbai Indians on Friday.

“But definitely compared toother IPLs, got less wickets thisyear. In a couple of games I did-n’t bowl as good as I shouldhave. But that’s T20, there is somuch for you to learn.”

Rashid had a good gameagainst MI, picking up 2 for 24besides collecting threecatches.

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Madhya Pradesh, Haryana,Punjab and Maharashtra

registered wins over theirrespective opponents in poolmatches on the second day ofthe 12th Hockey India SeniorWomen NationalChampionship here onSaturday.

Prashu Singh Parihar(23rd, 51st minutes) nettedtwice, while Jyoti Pal (1st) andSeema Verma (21st) scored agoal each as Madhya Pradeshbegan the day two proceedingswith a 4-0 win over Bihar in thePool A match.

In Pool B, Haryana regis-tered a massive 18-0 win overBengal.

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India won its second gold medalin shooting at the ongoing 24th

Deaflympics in Caxias do Sul,Brazil with Abhinav Deshwal claim-ing the men’s 10m air pistol title.

The 15-year-old from Roorkee,Uttarakhand, was tied with silverwinning Ukranian OleksiiLazebnyk at 234.2 points apiece atthe end of the 24-shot final, beforewinning gold in a shoot-off wherehe shot a 10.3 to his opponent’s 9.7.Chinese Taipei’s Hsu Ming-Jui wonthe bronze.

Abhinav made the top eight

final round after finishing secondin the 60-shot qualification roundwith a score of 575 out of 600. Hewas tied on points there too withKim Kihyeon, but the Koreantopped on account of more inner10s. Shubham Vashist, the secondIndian in the field, also made it tothe finals, finishing sixth with ascore of 563. He bowed out in thesame position in the finals as well.

It wasn’t all easy going forAbhinav in the finals as he startedslowly. He was fifth after the firstfive-shot series and moved up tofourth after 10 shots.

He, however, displayed great

consistency and fight to stringtogether some good scores as thesingle shots began and slowlyclimbed up the ladder, eventuallycatching up with Oleksii who hadmaintained a top-two positionthroughout the final.

Going into the final two shots,Abhinav was 0.6 behind Oleksii.

He displayed nerves of steel tomaintain high scores when it mat-tered the most even as Oleksii fal-tered, enabling the Indian to clinchthe title.

India now has four medalsfrom the shooting competition atthe Deaflympics.

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Rafael Nadal wasn’t losing any sleep afterhis loss to Carlos Alcaraz in the quar-

terfinals at the Madrid Open.His focus hasn’t changed. It’s still all

about getting ready for the French Openin a few weeks.

“I accept this loss naturally and withtranquility,” Nadal said after Friday’s three-set defeat.

“I’m know the path I have to stay onso I can arrive (in Paris) with real optionsin two-and-a-half weeks’ time. That’s what

I’m working on right now.”Nadal came to Madrid without being

able to prepare properly because of a six-week injury layoff. He said ideally he shouldhave skipped the tournament but in the endwas happy with how it turned out.

“I have done what I could,” he said. “I have had better days, worse days. But

it has not been a disaster in any case. I havecompeted with the correct attitude. I haveplayed two, two-and-a-half hours, nearlythree, I think three matches, this is a pos-itive outcome.”

The 35-year-old Nadal was trying to

win his sixth Madrid Open title. He opened with a straight-set win over

Miomir Kecmanovic then needed to savefour match points to get past David Goffinin three sets in his second match. He wasoverpowered in the quarterfinals by the 19-year-old Alcaraz, one of the hottest play-ers on tour this year and considered bymany in Spain as Nadal’s successor.

“I was out there with the correct atti-tude and analyzing every single morningwhat I had to do to generate options formyself and to improve,” Nadal said.

“It’s clear to me what I need to

improve. Now is the moment to work andto be confident that things will evolve inthe right way.”

The 21-time Grand Slam championsaid he has fully healed from the rib stressfracture that kept him from playing inMiami, Monte Carlo and Barcelona. Thefourth-ranked Spaniard was off to a greatthis season start before getting injured, hav-ing won three titles, including theAustralian Open in January.

“Some days the injuries don’t allow youto do the right things correctly to improveyour game,” he said.

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The Asian Games postpone-ment has come as a huge

disappointment for few athletesbut it has also taken away thedilemma of National SportsFederations (NSFs), whichwere forced to finalise separateteams for Asiad, BriminghamCommonwealth Games andthe world events.

The continental multi-sport showpiece, scheduled inHangzhou for September 10-25, was on Friday postponeddue to worsening pandemic sit-uation in China, which is wit-nessing a surge in omicronvariant cases.

NSFs such as WrestlingFederation of India (WFI),Hockey India and ArcheryAssociation of India (AAI) arenow gearing up to field their

best teams at the CWG and theWorld Championships in theirrespective sports.

Since the gap between theCWG (July 28-August 8)and Asian Games (beforepostponement) was lit-tle over a month, thesports federations haddecided to send sep-arate teams at thesetwo big-ticket eventsand at the Worldevents lined up thisseason.

This wasbecause asking theathletes to com-pete in back-to-back global events would havebeen very taxing for them. Itwas not ideal, physically andmentally, for athletes in toughcompetitions such as these.

Since the Asian Games

also serve as an Olympic qual-ifying event for sports such ashockey (both men and women)and tennis (men’s and women’ssingles), the federations hadplanned to send strong teams

to Hangzhou and its ‘A’ teamsto CWG.

The wrestling andarchery federations had

also planned ina way thattheir second-best athleteswere to com-pete at theworld eventsthat are sched-uled during

the year and the best playerswould have competed at theCWG and the Asian Games.

However, now that one bigevent is off the calender, NSFshave devised new plans.

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Khalin Joshi and Viraj Madappa, the lasttwo Indians to have won on the Asian

Tour, were five shots behind sole leader,Bio Kim (68) after the penultimate roundof the GS Caltex Maekyung Open here onSaturday. Joshi (69), the last Indian to winan Asian Tour event in 2018 and Madappa(72), who won a few months before him,are both Tied-fifth at 5-under 208 and willmake a bid to end India’s title droughtsince late 2018 on Sunday.

Kim was 10-under for three days atNamseoul Country Club.

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Largest ever contingent of8500 players from across the

country would participate inthe 4th Khelo India YouthGames, Union Minister forYouth Affairs & Sports AnuragThakur said during the launchof logo, anthem, jersey andmascot for the Khelo IndiaYouth Games 2021 inPanchkula on Saturday.

Stressing for the preserva-tion of traditional sports,Thakur said that five tradition-al games namely Gatka,Kalaripayattu, Thang-Ta,Mallakhamba and Yogasanawould be part of the upcomingKhelo India Youth Games2021. He said that the YouthGames and the recently con-cluded University Games underKhelo India would definitelyinspire youth to go for big tar-gets in future.

“Jaya” the black buck and“Vijay” the tiger are the mas-cots for Khelo India YouthGames. The name of the mas-cot for Haryana for KheloIndia Youth Games-21 is“Dhakad”. The 4th Khelo IndiaYouth Games is going to be

held from 4 June to 13 June inHaryana.

Haryana Chief MinisterManohar Lal, Haryana DeputyChief Minister DhushyantChautala, Haryana LegislativeAssembly speaker Gyan ChandGupta and Haryana Minister ofSports Sandeep Singh amongothers were present at theevent. Stating that the State isfully prepared for the event,Haryana Chief Minister presentthanked the Prime MinisterNarendra Modi for givingopportunity to the State forhosting Khelo India Youthgames 2021. He said that theState is not just producingfood grains for the country butalso medals through theirsports persons.

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Quinton de Kock laid the platformwith a commanding fifty and his

pacers then terrorised Kolkata KnightRiders to record a crushing 75-run vic-tory for Lucknow Super Giants whichput them on top of the table with an IPLplay-off berth being a formality now.

For last year's runners-up KKR,eight points from 11 games with adeflating negative run-rate now putsthem closer to the exit door with lack-lustre performance and unimaginativecaptaincy combining for what hasturned out to be a disastrous season sofar.

Invited to bat, De Kock slammed a29-ball-50 but Lucknow almost fritteredaway a solid start before some lusty hit-ting in a 30-run penultimate over offShivam Mavi took them to 176 for 7.

The LSG bowlers then raised to theoccasion to bundle out KKR for 101 in14.3 overs, despite the heroics of AndreRussell (45 off 19 balls) to gather twocrucial points and take their overall totalto 16 points in the IPL standing.

KKR remained at the 8th spotafter suffering their 7th loss in 11 games.

Defending 177, LSG left KKR tot-tering at 25 for four with four bowlerspicking up their first wickets.

While Mohsin produced a wicket-maiden to get rid of to Baba Indrajith,Chameera sent back Shreyas Iyer afterrattling him with a short and quickdelivery. It has now been an all toofamiliar script for KKR skipper whosediscomfort while facing quick bounc-ers is well-documented and nationalcoach Rahul Dravid would only be wor-ried with this glaring technical deficien-cy.

Aaron Finch too perished as hismiscued pull was poached by de Kockas KKR slipped to 23 for 3 in the firstsix overs.

Nitish Rana was then cleaned up byAvesh Khan with a yorker as KKRlooked down the barrels. Russell thenused his brute force to hit Holder allacross the park. One was whacked at

midwicket for a maximum, the secondone was slapped to deep, while a flat-batted pull earned him another six andthe last one was a four over short third.

After amassing 25 off the Holderover, Russell produced another maxi-mum off Ravi Bishnoi as KKR reached64 for 4 in 10 overs.

He and Sunil Narine (22 off 12) pro-duced a small partnership but onceRussell was out to Avesh Khan in the13th over, it became a downward slidefor KKR as they folded in 14.3 overs.

Avesh and Holder returned withthree wickets each.

Earlier, De Kock, who was involvedin a terrible mix up with skipper KLRahul, who got a 'Diamond Duck' (outfor 0 without facing a ball), redeemedhimself with an innings studded withfour boundaries and three maximums.

He added 71 with Deepak Hooda(41 off 27 balls) to give LSG a good startafter being invited to bat. Hooda made

up for the loss of Rahul's with his backto-back boundaries over extra cover offShivam Mavi (1/50 in 4 overs), while DeKock too joined in with a special treat-ment to Tim Southee, clobbering himfor two fours and a six in the 3rd over.

Left-arm spinner Anukul Roy andpacer Harshit Rana were next in line asDe Kock smashed the former for a fourbefore lunching into the latter for a fourand two sixes to take LSG to their bestscore in the powerplays this season, a66 for one.

De Kock, however, couldn't staymuch longer as he was holed out in deeponly two balls after completing his fifty.

Hooda, who hit four boundariersand two sixes in his entertaining 27-ballknock tat took LSG past 100-run markbefore falling to a Andre Russell deliv-ery with his miscued pull ending in safehands of skipper Shreyas Iyer.

Krunal Pandya then tried to keepthe run-rate high and slammed two

fours before ending at the hands ofAaron Finch at deep point.

The decision to promote AyushBadoni (15 not out off 18) didn't bearresult as the young Delhi batter wasunder pressue after a quiet over andcouldn't find his rhythm with runs dry-ing up between 12th to 16th over.

However, Marcus Stoinis (28 off 14balls) changed things when he clob-bered Mavi for three successive sixesbefore holing out. However, new manJason Holder (13 off 4 balls) slammedthe next two balls for two more maxi-mums as the 19th over yielded 30 runsfor LSG.

In the bowling front, KKR missedthe experience of Umesh Yadav, whomissed out due to a muscle pull, withHooda and de Kock going hammer andtongs early on. However, AndrewRussell (2/22) was rewarded for bowl-ing back of length , while Sunil Narine(20/1) and Tim Southee (1/28) also keptthings tight but the rest of bowlers bledplenty in their stipulated overs.

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�What was the inspiration behind writingthe book?As a dancer, having learnt from great mae-stros and have been a professional performeron stage for more than 60 years, the existenceof Kathak villages came as a surprise. This

sparked off a curiosity to learnmore about it, the reason for its

name and the significance ofthe name. Eventually itbecame a research project for

each information led to a newset of doors and information.Finally, we shared our knowl-

edge with everyone through thebook Kathak Lok: Temples,

Traditions and History with a DVDKathak Lok of Kathak Villages based on

this research.

�Please share your experience ofwriting the book.This research has been a great learning expe-rience for we came to know how the popularnarratives of today—narratives and mindsetsthat we all have grown up to believe as trueand as historical truth are actually farremoved contrary to ground realities andpractice. We learnt about the ancient practiceof the Kathak Lok as recorded in ancient shas-taras, gap between theorists and practice

especially when speaking of the termKathak, temple traditions and role of the

Kathaks (Kathak community), caste fac-tors, kinds of patronage, strict adher-

ence to primary sources and originalarchival records to comprehend the

gaps between recorded archival history andpopular narratives and beliefs, etc.

�What does the passing away of PanditBirju Maharaj means to you personally andto the world of kathak?To me, the death of Maharaj ji was like losinga friend, a guru, an anchor and a great artiste— an artiste, who had taken kathak to newheights of aesthetics and excellence.

�Tell us about your bond and experiencewith Pandit Birju Maharaj.I started learning from Birju Maharaj ji in1964 being one of his most early disciples.Later from 1970, he started getting a wholebattery of disciples. So, in a way we all grewand evolved together. For me, he was not onlya guru but also a great artiste who wasextremely versatile, innovative, creative, for-ward looking while being completely ground-ed in tradition, not wearing tradition like amill around his neck. In later years, he was agreat friend.

�Where do you think India stands when itcomes to classical dance?India, in any terms, shines like a uniquebrilliant star in the horizon of classicaldance. It is here that the classical danceforms are considered to be bhakti yoga—path to spirituality and worship; it is in thissub-continent alone that our deities are alsorevered as classical performing artistes. Inits delineation, it breathes the fragrance ofour Indian philosophy and practices of lifesuch as yoga.

�What would you like to tell the next gener-ation about kathak?I think all generations present, next and allgenerations to come in the future should knowof its rich kathak heritage, a heritage that goesback to Samveda, a community of BrahminTemple Kathaks who sermonised with use ofmime and movements, whose practices findreflection in the codifications of Natyashastraand the Abhinaya Darpan, and that popularnarratives and mindsets are far removed fromactual ground realities. It is a form thatbreathes the philosophy of our country.

�How did the pandemic affect dancers andmusicians? The world of classical performing arts, whilebeing badly hit in economic terms as most hadno source of livelihood, yet in the face of allobstacles and challenges, their positivity andcreativity saw them learning new medium ofonline, sharing their creativity with the rest ofthe world sinking in the vortex of depressionand thus bringing moments of happiness andjoy in such lives. Many artistes if not all, inter-connected with lives across the globe, teachingonline, holding seminars, discussions, andperforming too. But the question that needs tobe reflected upon is while receiving solacefrom the creativity of performing artistes, howmany of the general public even spared them athought about what these artistes must begoing through. Isn’t it a pity that a countrywhere we revere our Gods and Goddesses asperforming artistes, the general public thinksart and artistes are unimportant? I refer to thesurvey of 2020.

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Atraditional Lucknowioutfit designed toenhance the beauty of

the bride, ghararas come withthe fashion perks of being wornby any lady, irrespective oftheir body shape - whether theyare petite or curvy as theensemble can be styled as peryour liking and even moderncustomizations of sarees andsuits. A gharara ropes in thecharm of the bygone era, mak-ing us fall head-over-heels inlove with the ethnic wear andencouraging us to move overregular ethnic wear while ele-vating our Indian stylewardrobe this wedding seasonwith a sultry spin.

Currently in trend for theiredgy traditionalism and a mod-ern contemporary feel, ghararawas traditionally worn bywomen in the Indian subcon-tinent and is now a viral fash-ion fad in Pakistan and theHindi Belt of modern-dayIndia. They are a pair oftrousers that are narrow andstraight at the waist to theknees and heavily flared orwide-legged from below theknees and up to the toes witha thick lace hiding the jointwhere the cloth is gathered orruched up to form the flare ofthe pants.

Heavily embellished tra-ditional gharara

Gharara is a new stylestatement that one must have ina wardrobe. This gharara isheavily embellished with zar-dosi, pearls, sequin and stones.Gharara with heavy embroi-dered straight kurti is taking itselite position and getting clearattention in being the essentialpiece of a bride's main day. Theauthentic dupatta is just a cher-ry on a cake. This style givesyou the perfect royal bridallook. Gharara with a little tailin the back gives you a princess

feeling on your big day and isperfect for your traditionaloccasion.

Gharara with long kurti It is very trendy these days

and women have started don-ning floor length or chatapatigharara when attending wed-ding rituals and special occa-sions. Gharara paired with along kurti gives you the royalbridal look if carrying a ghung-

hat or drape with it. This lookis a statement look that you canopt for any of your special occa-sions. The ghunghat drape canbe styled in many ways as it'scomfortable and you can playwith the drape according to yourimagination but comfy enoughfor a wedding in summer.

Bridal nawabi ghararaThe bridal nawabi gharara

uses antique embroidery or

chata patti embroideredgharara. This bridal nawab suitis designed in such a way wherethe design is crafted on thefront, on the back as well as onsleeves. This suit is designedwith a V-neckline and is intri-cately detailed with antiqueand chata patti design, giving itthe perfect bridal outfit vibes.This gharara suit is one of themost favourable suits when it

comes to occasions like mehen-di, sangeet or even the mainwedding day.

Gharara with jacketModern gharara has a

tight tunic in comparison toconventional ones and is plat-ed more below the knee withthe joint. A gharara styled witha jacket gives you a completemodel look. Simultaneously,the embroidery on the jacket

and gharara gives you that richroyal look which you can com-fortably carry on all tradition-al occasions. It slightly takes awestern effect and the lookmakes you feel elegant and sochic. Gharara and kurti in thisstyle are embellished with a lotof zardosi, thread, pearl, sequinand stone work.

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Haryana--- Hari + Yanameaning the abode ofHari/Vishnu--- is prove-nance of the Bhagvad Gitaor the Song of God/the

divine song, the golden words of philos-ophy uttered by Shri Krishna on the bat-tle field of Kurukshetra. The BhagvadGita occupies an exalted position inIndia's culture and its philosophicalprecepts have gained much acclaimworldwide. In the text Kurukshetra isdescribed as Dharmakshetra,, the fieldof righteousness and in a collection ofhymns of the Maitrayani Samhita,Kurukshetra is first mentioned by nameas a place of divine sacrifices. In mythol-ogy, the name Kurukshetra applies to acircuit covering over 100 kilometres withan abundance of holy places, temples andtanks, connected with ancient Indian tra-ditions.

Literary tradition speaks ofKurukshetra not merely as a singleplace or site, but rather as a sacred andreligious landscape extending beyond thepresent city. This long held associationwith the Epic and Vishnu worship is notmerely a myth. Archaeological andinscriptional material from Pehowa,Thanesar, Rohtak and Gujjar Kheri haveunveiled a vast, ancient and rich religiouslandscape.

A journey from Delhi toKurukshetra and thence Chandigarhreveals numerous sites of ancient Hindutemples and remains. In the context ofHindu remains, the most well-known siteis Surajkund, a 10th century CE steppedwater tank, the banks of which once hada temple dedicated to Surya.Undoubtedly, it would seem that manyother temples must have existed inHaryana, clues to which are found inarchaeology and inscriptions.

The historical village of Gurawara,is located about 50 kilometres fromGurgaon and 8 kilometres north east ofJhajjhar. A votive stone temple of Vishnufrom Gurawara was built in 897 CE andimages of Sheshashayi Vishnu (Vishnulying on snake), Parvati, Ganesha,Mahisasurmardini and pillar fragmentsof 10th to 12th century CE speak of atemple lost in time.

From Jhajjar, at a short distance ofabout 45 kilometres, is the well-knowntown of Rohtak, or ancient Khokhrakot.The archaeological remains fromKhokhrakot show a developed townshipfrom 1000 BCE to Gupta period. Coinsof the Yaudheyas (a Republic that findsmention in Panini’s Ashtadhyayi of 6th/5th century BCE), moulds and evi-dences of mints were discovered at thesite of Garhi Majra. Recovered duringexcavations were an image of Kubera anda terracotta female figurine of 2nd to 4thcentury CE. A ruined brick temple of 4th

to 6th century CE was excavated and avotive red stone Hindu temple of the 11thcentury CE was reported.

Travelling ahead on Highway 9, thenext site with clues to temples of anancient past is Hansi. The inventory ofsculptural remains from various locationsfirmly establish that Hansi did once havea temple. The earliest dated image is ofNarasimha of the 7th century CE andtwo images of Mahishasurmardini (7thto 9th century CE). Other Hindu deitiesrecovered and reported include Vishnu,Nar Varaha (Varaha in male form), siximages of Surya and Ganesha (10th cen-tury CE). The Digambar Jain temple hastwo images of 10th /11th century and12th /13th century CE. All this points toHansi’s past as a religious establishment,covering a span of almost 400 years.

Further ahead at a distance of about50 kilometres along the same Highwayis the town of Agroha, steeped in histor-ical significance. The archaeological siteis situated about 1.5 kilometres awayfrom the present town. According to tra-dition, Raja Agra, later named as Agrasenof Agrawal community, used to live here.The remains of the Fort on the top ofthe mound are connected with his resi-dence. The excavations revealed a settle-ment dating from circa 4th century BCEto 14th century CE, and more important-ly, remains of a Buddhist stupa and aHindu temples. The site had two templeswhich existed from the 4th century CEto the 11th century CE. Terracotta seal-ings (small clay seals) with Sri NarayanaDeva inscribed (3rd /4th century CE)seem to suggest that the temples had aVaishnavite affiliation. This is the onlysite with early evidence of musical notes- ni, dha, pa, ma, ga, re, sa- beinginscribed on a terracotta clay tablet (9thcentury CE).

From Agroha, one continues onHighway 10 till Barwala, then takingHighway 52 to Badowala. FromBadowala, Highway 152 leads to Kalayat.Upon reaching Kalayat, one is amazed atthe beauty of the only surviving bricktemple of the Gurajara Pratihara period,8th /9th century CE. Located on thebanks of a sacred water tank, the tem-ple and its environs transports one intothe realm of peace and calm. The lay-out of the temples indicates aPanchayatana scheme, a central templesurrounded by four smaller shrines. Ofthese , only two have survived-- one inits original form, and the reconstructed.The name Kalayat is believed to have itsorigin in the word “Kapilayatana”, or thehome/ base of Kapila Muni.

Further ahead en route is the site ofPehowa, on the banks of mythical andrevered Sarasvati River. Pehowa is of spe-cial interest as it is here that inscriptionsspeak of three temples dedicated to

Vishnu and his Avataras. The inscriptionof the time of Mahendrapala, 895-905CE, mentions a horse fair at Pehowa, vis-ited by numerous horse dealers from var-ious localities, and records the construc-tion of a triple temple to Vishnu by threebrothers. It further records the collectionof a voluntary tax from each trader forthe purpose of maintenance of theseVishnu temples. From a mound stonesculptures depicting scenes from theRamayana and the Mahabharata andremains of an ancient temple plinth werereported. The structural remnants of ear-lier temples, such as pillars, have beenreused in the relatively modern templestructures of Garibnath Temple andSaraswati Temple at Pehowa.

The sacred site of Kurukshetra is just25 kilometres from Pehowa, and rem-nants of its past have been recoveredfrom the area of Thanesar located on theoutskirts of Kurukshetra. The city wasearlier known as Thaneshwar and attimes Sthaneshwar. It is believed that atthe Sthaneshwar Mahadev Temple, thePandavas prayed to Lord Shiva for vic-tory in the battle of the Mahabharata.The ancient site of Thanesar has a longperiod of occupation covering almost2000 years, beginning from the 1st cen-tury CE. Thanesar finds mention inBanabhatta’s Harshacarita (The Deeds ofHarsha), a historical poetic work of the7th century CE. The city was also visit-ed by the Chinese traveller Xuanzang in634 CE. The excavated mound of Harshka tila brought to light Hindu and Jainasculptures, dating from the 6th to 12thcentury CE. An inscription from theSouth East Asian country of Laos (sec-ond half of the 5h century CE) establish-es the fact that the fame of Kurukshetrahad spread beyond India. The inscrip-tion of Maharajadhiraja Sri Devanika,compares the king to Yudhishthira,Indra, Dhananjay and Indradyunna, iteulogizes the merits of Kurukshetraand records that the king planned toestablish a new Kurukshetra in Laos.

Travelling northwards fromKurukshetra on NH 44 towards Kalka,the well-known Pinjore Garden is just5 kilometres before Kalka. The 17th cen-tury Mughal style garden is located inthe foothills of Himalayas and was builtby Nawab Fidai Khan during the reignof Aurangzeb (1658-1707). The gardenwas renamed to ‘Yadavindra Garden’ inthe memory of Maharaja YadavindraSingh of the princely state of Patiala whorestored it to its former glory. In thevicinity of Pinjore garden are the ves-tiges of a glorious temple. The BhimaDevi Temple Complex, also called theKhajuraho of North India, consisting ofthe restored ruins of an ancient Hindutemple dated between 9th and 11th cen-tury CE. The inventory of Hindu sculp-tures includes those of Shiva, Shakti,Parvati, Chamunda, Uma Maheshvara,Nandi, Karttikeya, a fragmentaryVaraha, colossal images of Ganesha,Vishnu (fragmentary), and Surya (frag-mentary) and also 19 Jain images.

Another site that deserves mentionis Kheri Gujjar , which is located southof Kurukshetra along Highway 44 head-ing towards Panipat and Delhi and 10kilometres before Murthal. Excavationsat an old archaeological mound atKheri Gujjar brought to light numeroussculptures, including three stone panelsculptures depicting scenes from theKrishan Leela. The first image isbelieved to be of Lord Krishna in astanding posture, whereas the second isa representation of the episode ofKaliya Daman, and the third showsKrishna as Murli Manohar. A Shivalinga from the site is of 5th century CEand the early medieval images includesculptures of Vishnu, Uma-Maheshwara, Karttikeya,Mahishasurmardini, Surya, Ganesh,Brahma, Ganga and Yamuna, Nandi andKarttikeya. The masterpiece is a buffsandstone image of Karttikeya with sixfaces of the 9th century CE. Pillars,architectural pieces and even sculpturesof an earlier religious structure havebeen reused in comparatively new tem-ples.

These sites are just a glimpse of therich heritage of Haryana which includesnumerous other locations with vestigesof Hindu sculptural remains from thepast. The terracotta plaque from Sugh,located in the village of AmadalpurDayalgarh, Yamunanagar district,speaks of Haryana’s rich artistic and lit-erary heritage. The plaque of 2nd cen-tury BCE, now housed in the NationalMuseum at New Delhi, depicts a childseated comfortably on the floor andholding a Takhti in his hands, attempt-ing to write the alphabets in Brahmiscript, and on the tablet is visible whatis colloquially known as the Barakhadi.

The writer is a research scholar,worked as Project Associate and

recipient of Devangana Desai SeniorFellowship CSMVS Mumbai. She has

also co-authored two book

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Last month, the World HealthOrganisation (WHO) flaggedconcerns that anxiety and depres-

sion have increased more than 25 percent since the onset of the Covid-19 cri-sis. Young people and women are theworst hit.

The global health agency alsopointed out that concerns about poten-tial increases in mental health condi-tions has already prompted 90 per centof countries to include mental healthand psychosocial support in theirCovid-19 response plans, thoughmajor gaps and concerns still remain.

India on its part has launched tele-services in the healthcare sector to helpaffected people deal with mental healthdisorders. But just depending on thetele-services to sort out mental healthproblems is not enough. For, India isalready burdened with huge mentalhealth issues so much so that in 2017,President Ram Nath Kovind assertedthat the country is “facing a possiblemental health epidemic” and muchmore needs to be done. This includesprevention services for all, early iden-tification and intervention for those atrisk which need more number of pro-fessionals in the sector; and access tointegrated care and treatment forthose who need it to ensure their holis-tic treatment.

Reports say that one in 5 adults willbe diagnosed with mental illness or dis-order. We all know that mental health

is a critical component of overall well-ness. There is no denying the fact thatintervening effectively during earlystages of any disease can save lives; andthat’s true for people living with men-tal health conditions also.

However, in countries like Indiathe mental health issues continue to bemired in stigma and fear of ostraciza-tion. Moreover, treatment is consideredto be too expensive and a lengthyprocess in view of shortage of profes-sionals.

In actuality, it is yet to be reachedto the point of acceptance. So, whencelebrities like Deepika Padukone,Anushka Sharma and Hrithik Roshanshare their stories of struggles aboutseeking help to deal with mentalhealth issues, the message is sent farand wide that ‘you are not alone’ inseeking help from a mental health pro-fessional. Usually, when people’s rolemodels are willing to talk about theirstruggles, their followers feel like thereis no abnormality in having mentalissues.

As a result, what can be treated intime, the gap worsens the disease. Somuch so that at times it becomeschronic, requiring lifelong manage-ment.

Shubhrata Prakash, an IndianRevenue Services officer who haspenned down her journey of depres-sion in the book ‘The D Word’, tells you

that she had been trying to dignifymental disorders. “For someone hav-ing anxiety disorder, you will neverknow the battle they are fighting withthemselves. These psychosocial inabil-ities exist. People having it must keeptheir dignity and talk about it and sen-sitize people around,” she says. Andthat’s what she has been doing very sen-sitively.

Many factors contribute to men-tal health problems such as biologi-cal factors like genes, physical illness,injury, or brain chemistry. Others areLife experiences, such as trauma or ahistory of abuse. However, contraryto general perception, people withmental health problems can get bet-ter and many of them recover com-pletely if detected early and giventimely and adequate treatment, saysDr Smita Deshpande, former head ofthe Centre of Excellence in MentalHealth, ABVIMS- Dr RML Hospital,Delhi.

It is important to understand whywe suffer from psychological disorders,

she asks. “... like a nuclear family wherethere is no one to share our issues with,too much professional workload, com-petition in every sphere of life to per-form better than others, and a highexpectation level from parents. All aretaking a toll on our mental health,” DrDeshpande explains.

Doing his bit, wrestler and moti-vational speaker Sangram Singh is soonplanning to launch a programme tohighlight the stigmas associated withmental illness and substance use dis-order. “Wherever I go to interact withyoungsters, I am often asked about howto attain physical fitness goals. But, Ioften tell them that more than physi-cal fitness, they should aim at mentalhealth, growth and discipline.

“Being healthy is more importantthan being fit. Youth are going throughlots of mental health issues. We shouldencourage them to talk about it, dis-cuss it. It is high time we should addressmental health issues among youngstersand encourage them to aim for over-all health,” he says matter-of-factly.

Life's Simple 7 is defined by the American Heart Associationas the 7 risk factors that people can improve through lifestylechanges to help achieve ideal cardiovascular health.

��������������������High blood pressure is a major risk factor for heart dis-

ease and stroke. When your blood pressure stays within healthyranges, you reduce the strain on your heart, arteries, and kid-neys which keeps you healthier longer.

�����������������High cholesterol contributes to plaque, which can clog

arteries and lead to heart disease and stroke. When you con-trol your cholesterol, you are giving your arteries their bestchance to remain clear of blockages.

������������������Most of the food we eat is turned into glucose (or blood

sugar) that our bodies use for energy. Over time, high levelsof blood sugar can damage your heart, kidneys, eyes andnerves.

�����������Living an active life is one of the most rewarding gifts you

can give yourself and those you love. Simply put, daily phys-ical activity increases your length and quality of life.

�����������A healthy diet is one of your best weapons for fighting car-

diovascular disease. When you eat a heart-healthy diet, youimprove your chances for feeling good and staying healthy –for life!

����������When you shed extra fat and unnecessary pounds, you

reduce the burden on your heart, lungs, blood vessels and skele-ton. You give yourself the gift of active living, you lower yourblood pressure and you help yourself feel better, too.

�������������Cigarette smokers have a higher risk of developing car-

diovascular disease. If you smoke, quitting is the best thingyou can do for your health.

Yoga is considered to bevery effective for asthma

patients as it opens the lungsand helps them to breathe bet-ter. However, not all asanas aremeant for asthma patients.

Dr. Ishwar V Basavaraddi,Director, Morarji DesaiNational Institute of Yoga(MDNIY), Delhi says thatdetoxification kriyas like kun-jal, jalneti and kapal Bhanti arevery important for asthameticpatienst and should be donebefore sunrise for best results.He also cautions that all kriyasand yoga asanas should bedone under the guidance of acertif ied yoga trainer.According to Basaavaraddi bestyoga asanas to manage the res-piratory disease are:

Nadi Shodhan pranaya-ma (Alternate Nostri lBreathing technique)/KapalBhati/Ardha Matsyendrasana(Sitting Half Spinal Twist)/Pavanamuktasana (WindRelieving Pose)/SetuBandhasana (Bridge Pose)/Bhujangasana (Cobra Pose)/Adho Muk ha Svanasana(Downward-Facing DogP o s e ) / B a d h a k o n a s a n a(Butterf ly Pose)/Poorvottanasana (UpwardPlank Pose)/Shavasana(Corpse Pose)

%��0�3�����2�5���:�����2���6● Coughing that is constant, is

intermittent or seems linkedto physical activity

● Wheezing or whistling soundswhen your child breathes out

● Shortness of breath or rapidbreathing.

● Repeated episodes of suspect-ed bronchitis or pneumonia

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Exposure to dust, tree or grasspollen/* Exposure to strongsmells such as perfumes andodours/ * Exposure to smoke,or occupational dust *Exposure to certain class ofdrugs eg. aspirin, NSAIDs(non-steroidal anti-inflamma-tor y drugs) Ibuprofen,Diclofenac, blood pressuremedicines (Beta blockers)/ *Stress/ * Non-compliance withtreatment/ * Alcohol, cigaretteor drug abuse /* Employmentor income problems leading tonon-compliance /* Viral infec-tions/ * People who have exer-cise induced asthma, will havesymptoms aggravated duringexercise.

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Dr Naval Kishore Vikram, a leading Endocrinologistand Professor at the Department of Medicine of theAll India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS),

Delhi, takes time out from his busy professional sched-ules to cater to his passion for playing badminton.

He says it keeps him “calm, clear and focused.” It isincredible to see how Dr Vikram finds time for playingbadminton given his hectic schedule amidst patients whilealso teaching students.

It all depends on perspective, he reasons. “I make sureto play every alternate day. Unlike in many sports like crick-et, you don’t need many players in badminton and, inAIIMS we are lucky to have an indoor court too.”

The doctor enlists the benefits of playing badminton.It is a total body workout, improves your mental wellbe-ing, heart health, reduces health risks and so many otherailments, the doctor tells you, asserting that he never miss-es out on his practice on the badminton court.

Talking about how sports boost one's health, the seniordoctor gave an instance of a Parkinson’s patient, a DU pro-fessor Pramesh Ratnakar, who had been managing wellwith his neurodegenerative disease because of his passionfor several games like squash, badminton and tennis.

Dr Vikram happened to play badminton withRatnakar at an event last month to mark the Parkinson’sDay at AIIMS here. “Ratnakar gave a good fight despitebeing afflicted with the neuro-degenerative disease thatprimarily affects movement due to the loss of specific braincells. He has coped well with his condition due to hisengagement in various games.

“I advise my patients to take up any physical activityor sports to stay in good stead. There is no substitute togood health,” says Dr Vikram, who has well-known author-ity on metabolic disorders with special emphasis on insulinresistance and obesity.

Father of two children, Dr Vikram is a first genera-tion doctor in his family. His wife, Dr Sujata Sharma, aprofessor at the Department of Biophysics of the AIIMS,also dons multiple hats: she's a writer and a dancer.

(Medicos may write to us at healthp100@gmail.com)

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India is home to around 34.3 mil-lion asthmatics, that is 12.9 per centof the global 262 million cases.

According to the latest data from theGlobal Burden of Diseases (GBD)study in 2019, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar andOdisha are among the top three withthe highest number of asthmatics.

Asthma is a serious, chronic dis-ease that causes the airways in thelungs to become swollen or inflamedand over-reactive to triggers likepollen, dust or smoke. Severe asthmarequires inhaled medications, con-troller medications, and oftentimesoral corticosteroids, and, if ignored cantake a significant toll on people livingwith this disease.

Prof (Dr) GC Khilnani,Chairman, PSRI Institute ofPulmonary, Critical care & SleepMedicine and member, technicaladvisory Group of WHO Global AirPollution and Health, says that asth-ma is a health issue that largely goesundiagnosed. The patients haveepisodic cough, chest tightness,breathlessness and wheezing (awhistling sound from the chest).“These issues can usually be treatedwith the help of inhalers or with coughsyrups, warm water, antibiotics orother home remedies. In young chil-dren and infants, it is seen as frequentcough and rapid breathing. Fever isnot a symptom of asthma. Diagnosis

of asthma is carried out by doingspirometry, where a patient blows intoa machine that measures the calibreof the airways.”

Doctors say that by reducing lev-els of atmospheric pollution, India cancut down the burden of the diseasecaused by asthma. They add that theoverall framework for managing asth-ma requires considerable attention toenvironmental exposures (indoor andoutdoor) and control practices.

Dr. Ravi Shekhar Jha, Director,PulmonologyFortis Escorts Faridabadnotes, “asthma is mostly an allergicdisease, which has multiple triggers.Most of the time, asthma is triggeredby dust, smoke and pollution. Thosewho have hypersensitivity of airwayscan experience worsening of symp-toms when they come in contact withsuch irritants. Therefore, the bestthing one can do to prevent asthmaattacks is to reduce their exposure tothese irritants.”

Must remember, smoking is oneof the commonest irritants. Anotherimportant thing we should keep inmind is that if prescribed, we musttake inhalers. Inhalers have no addic-tion and it is one such thing which canstop the progression of the disease.

According to Dr Ambuj Roy,professor of Cardiology at AIIMS,elderly people, patients with lungand heart problems, Covid-recov-

ered patients and pregnant women aremost susceptible to issues arising outof the polluted air.

���������������������������The best way to prevent asthma

attacks are to identify the possible trig-gers so that you can avoid or minimiseexposure to those. You must take yourmedications as prescribed. Your doctorprescribes medications known as asth-ma preventers such as inhaled corticos-teroids. Track your asthma and recog-nise early signs that it may be gettingworse, and you can have an action planfrom your doctor to know what to dowhen your asthma is getting worse.

At the same time, Dr. SandeepNayar, Senior Director & HOD , Chest& Respiratory Diseases, Max Hospitalechoes similar views. “Asthma patientsshouldn’t discontinue inhaler therapy.“Inhalers play an advantageous rolecompared to tablets or injections in asth-ma therapy. And it is my sincere adviceto patients that under no circum-stances they should not stop takinginhalers, until the doctors have pre-scribed to do so.

“Even for pregnant women, whoworry about how the changes of preg-nancy will affect their asthma, inhalerstherapy is most successful when awoman receives regular medical careand follows her treatment plan closely.”

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Speaking at the Boao Forumat a time of geopolitical

turmoil across Asia andEurope, Chinese President XiJinping’s speech titled “Risingto challenges and building abright future through cooperation” has brought tocentre-stage yet again his goalof building a “community witha shared future for mankind”.Such a vision, adorned with“Chinese characteristics”, hasbuilt itself as a counter to theUS-centric pax-Americanaworld order, vying for replace-ment with a pax-Sinica drivenPeking model of governance. Inthe latest attempt at exportingthe Chinese governance model,Xi’s Boao Forum keynoteaddress has seen the ideation ofthe notion of building an “indi-visible security community”via proposing Global SecurityInitiative (GSI).

Ambiguously described asa “vision of common, compre-hensive, cooperative and sus-tainable security”, the GSIideation is an attempt tocounter the efforts of democ-ratic like-minded countries inthe Indo-Pacific which Chinahas long heralded as misguid-ed under “Cold War mentali-ty” and “bloc confrontation”politics. By opposing “the wan-ton use of unilateral sanctions

and long-arm jurisdiction” referencing Western sanctionsagainst both China and Russia,and embracing “a global gov-ernance philosophy”, the GSI’srhetoric despite its flamboyantdescription spells imminenttrouble for India and her partners.

Xi’s speech gave little infor-mation on what the GSI wouldessentially look like; whether itwould follow a Quad likemodel of engagement or bemore framed as a Chinese ver-sion of a security alliance is tobe seen. As China’s fears of an“Asian NATO” grow — firstanticipated by them as early as2003 — Xi’s goal via the GSI isto present an image of uphold-ing “true multilateralism”.However, for India, the fresh-ly invoked “principle of indi-visible security”, which the GSIdespite all its talks about build-ing a balanced security archi-tecture is focused on, is a causefor concern.

A concept with its root inEurope, starting with the 1975Helsinki Act, “indivisible secu-rity” essentially means thatsecurity is a collective conceptand if actions by one statethreaten the security of anoth-er, it marks a breach of indi-visible security. Hence, no stateshould be able to make itself

stronger at the expense ofanother. Importantly, it is aterm most frequently used byRussia while opposing NATO’sexpansion. The same also playsin tune with China’s favoureddiplo-speak while opposingconcepts that look to derail itsown unilateral rise, withAUKUS being an “arms race”starter; Quad being a “ColdWar mentality” bloc; andactions by India to build itsown comprehensive nationalpower being intrinsically “uni-lateral” in nature.

In rather hypocriticalrhetoric for any Indian analyst,

Xi spoke of opposing “the pur-suit of one’s own security at thecost of others’ security” whilearguing for swift and peacefulresolution of disputes via dialogue.

In a post-Galwan securityscenario — wherein disen-gagement talks have nowentered their 15th round amidChina’s categorical refusal toback down from key frictionpoints like Depsang, Demchokand Hot Springs on the Indianside of disputed boundary —India’s vision of China as a rev-olutionary revisionist powerhas grown. Without officially

terming it so, Indian foreignpolicy has certainly acceptedthat China’s peaceful rise seemsto be all but over.

By evoking “indivisiblesecurity”, Beijing hopes tomakes actions taken in defenceof its own national interestsappear more legitimate. Underan “indivisible security” ban-ner, claiming the moral highground amid retaliation insensitive areas along the Line ofActual Control (LAC) withIndia or in the South China Seaor Taiwan becomes moreimplementable. For India, theconcept stays much in linewith recent Chinese legislativeattempts at justifying its uni-lateral actions that threatenDelhi’s own sovereignty ;between the New Coast GuardLaw and the new Land BorderLaw, Chinese actions have beenanything but opposed to build-ing Chinese “national securityon the basis of insecurity inother countries”.

Ultimately, disguised undera banner of global security andprotected by its loosely word-ed vision, GSI emerges as aventure that no one couldpotentially object to as it seeksto build a “common, comprehensive, cooperativeand sustainable” security architecture. Nonetheless,

behind its ostensible notion ofhope, GSI shows that Xi is keento regain control of the Asiansecurity narrative that he seemsto have been losing for the pastfive years. At this juncture, withexamples like Sri Lanka withrespect to the Belt and RoadInitiative (BRI) standing tall,the international world orderhas become well-versed withChinese larger-than-life ven-tures turning into tools forimbalanced geo-economicpower growth in favour ofBeijing. Importantly, Indiamust note that the GSI is moreintended for Chinese domesticaudiences as well, especially asXi feels the need to retake con-trol of his “strongman polity”image ahead of the upcomingNational Party Congress wherehe is vying for an unprece-dented third term in office.

While envisioning a multipolar world with China asa leading player, Xi wants tomake Beijing a leading playerin setting global standardsacross sectors ranging fromeconomy to technology tosecurity. Aligned with his wolf-warrior style diplomats, thegoal for Xi via GSI would be tobring into the fold smallerdeveloping countries — asattempted with BRI — withpremise of building a uniform

security system that guaranteesthem respite in economic,political and defence relatedturmoil. By touting GSI asopposing “exclusiveness” and“clique” style politics — oftenascribed by China to the Quad— China’s security leadershipambitions are unravelling viathe GSI, coupled with ventureslike its Himalayan Quad.

Inclusion of parties likePakistan, Afghanistan andNepal into a GSI framework —possibly owing to the growingdependence of these countrieson China — would be a majorcause of concern for India, fur-ther building tensions in itsstrategic neighbourhood.Moreover, building of a veryactive maritime militarist tan-gent of the at present abstractGSI, details of which have notbeen released in public, couldbe a possibility with China lednaval exercises in the IndianOcean Region (IOR). Such atrajectory would shadow theQuad, which with the inclusionof Australia in Malabar upgraded the same to a navalexercise with all four members.

(The writer is head ofResearch and OperationsDirector at the Organisation forResearch on China and Asia,New Delhi)

The road ahead for ChinesePresident Xi Jinping is chal-

lenging as Beijing’s “zeroCovid” approach is encoun-tering mounting challengesand Shanghai is experiencingthe worst of the coronaviruscrises ever in the country sincethe onset of the pandemic in2020.

There are credible reasonsbehind Xi’s constant concernabout the health emergency inShanghai at a time whenalmost the whole world hasrecovered from the pandemic.In fact, by leaps and bounds,the most powerful businesscapitals of the world such asNew York, Tokyo, London,Frankfurt, Hong Kong,Singapore, etc, are back tonormal business.

But China, which has beenconstantly facing the wrath ofthe West, is seriously understrain as there is no let-up inCovid-19 severity in its pow-erhouse called Shanghai.

Why is the ShanghaiCovid-19 breakout critical forthe global economy? With theCovid-19 becoming a night-mare for Shanghai residentsand big corporations, Chinamay find it too difficult toachieve its 5.5 per cent growthrate set for this year.

This year-end, Xi’s gripover the Communist Party ofChina is heading for a crucialleadership reshuffle. Xi’s high-ly ambitious political agenda isconstantly getting unmasked.Behind his steely facade, someChina observers opine thatconfidence over the all-pow-erful Xi is gradually ebbing. Ashe is inching towards his thirdterm by early next year, he hasbeen tightening control overthe party, military and thegovernment.

Today, China’s worstCovid-19 disaster has comeunder control. But nearly amonth-long lockdown was tooharrowing and punishing forthe city. But Beijing’sCommunists have vowed tostand by their so-called “ZeroCovid Strategy” despite havingmounting business losses in thefinancial hub. The number ofnew infections has come downsince April 22 but city officials,including the Vice-Mayor WuQing, have come out in publicto announce that “currently ourcity’s epidemic prevention andcontrol situation is steadilyimproving, and the epidemic

has come under effective con-trol”.

For now, community trans-mission has been curbed. Buthealth experts are sounding anote of caution saying there isa chance of rebound. Therefore,it would be difficult to relax therestrictions altogether.

Finally, it can be said Xi isfacing the test of time. At themoment, global power calculusis also seriously disturbed bythe ongoing Ukraine war. AndChina has a big stake in thedevastating conflict as Xi hasdirectly backed Russia againstthe severe sanctions imposedby the western nations overMoscow. Putin is heavily rely-ing on India and China.Against the backdrop of all theNATO and the EU alliesmarching against Russia, lend-ing support to a war mongerlike Putin might cost serious-ly to both Delhi and Beijing in

the aftermath of the war. China for long was expect-

ing a stiff resistance to the glob-al liberal order spearheaded bythe US since the end of theSecond World War. Hence, Xiis undoubtedly happy, but heshould not expect that Putinwill act as a junior partner ina China-led future global order.Neither India will accept anAsian or world order led byChina in anytime in future.

Having been embroiled ina protracted border conflict inEastern Ladakh and over thehistoric McMahon Line inNorth-East, it would be reallydifficult for Delhi to meetBeijing in a normal bilateralmeet. These all are complicat-ing Xi’s manoeuvring space athome, in the neighbourhoodand at the global stage.

Hence, the maintenanceof Covid-19 fortress inShanghai beyond the upcom-

ing Party Congress may be toodifficult for him. And hisdetractors are waiting for achance. Certainly, there wouldnot be any open rebellionagainst his leadership. But hisever-greater control over theparty and leadership may slow-ly decline. This will seriouslyhamper his grand plan toremain the permanentPresident of China.

Shanghai’s importance isever-growing since the estab-lishment of the People’sRepublic of China (PRC) inOctober 1949. Started as afishing village in the 11th cen-tury, the city has become themost powerful financial hub ofChina. It is also known as the“Magic City” in China. By the1800s, it became the largest cityof the country. And mostimportantly, Shanghai gradu-ally came to the limelight forgrowing cotton by the mid-

18th century. Through the 90s,the city witnessed a steadyeconomic growth between 9per cent and 15 per cent.

Again, Shanghai holds thekey to administration in China.It is a provincial administrativeregion of the PRC.

It is very close to the heartof the Communist Party ofChina as it was the birthplaceof the party. It is situated in thewest coast of the Pacific Ocean,the east coast of the Asian con-tinent, at the front edge of theYangtze River delta, and exact-ly at the middle of the country’snorth-south coastline. Apartfrom its alluvial soil, it has theadvantage of having a sub-tropical monsoon climate, verymild and humid with four dis-tinct seasons throughout theyear. Besides, Shanghai receivessufficient sunshine and abun-dant rainfall. It has all the

power because of its geographiclocation.

Economically, Shanghai isthe centre point of China. It’sthe world’s third most popu-lous city behind Tokyo andNew Delhi. Today it is aninternational financial centre.And since the coming of HuJintao to power in 2002, theChinese Government has beenmaking consistent efforts tomake Shanghai a global busi-ness hub, competing withLondon and New York. WithXi, these efforts have beendoubled so as to bring China tothe economic powerhouse ofthe planet. Furthermore, theShanghai Stock Exchangedirectly governed by ChinaSecurity RegulatoryCommission is today consid-ered the country’s most pre-eminent market for stocks inregard to turnover.

Today, Covid-19 menace in

Shanghai is pushing Xi toanother struggle both withinand outside China. These dayspeople have witnessed growingquiet reprisals and rising tideof criticism against Xi in theparty. The man who has so farbeen termed as the most pow-erful “Paramount Leader” onlyafter Chairman Mao Zedongand Deng Xiaoping is facing anuphill task this year. Mao beingthe founder of the People’sRepublic of China (PRC) con-tinued unchallenged as theChairman till his death inSeptember 1976. Then after abrief lull of uncertainty of HuaGuofeng’s tenure from 1976-78,Deng took over the leadershipof China. Deng became thefather of modern China byopening the country to a mar-ket economy while safeguard-ing the unique nature of theChinese political system.

He ruled China from 1978to 1992, solidifying theCommunist Party of China(CPC), its leadership andChina’s influence in the glob-al governance system.Interestingly, he made a changein the Chinese Constitutionthat no single individual cancontinue in power beyond twoterms i.e. 10 years as he strong-ly propagated the concept ofcollective leadership to keep atbay any chance of “CultLeadership” tendency the wayMao preached and practised.

The Shanghai Covid-19crisis is testing Xi’s patience andleadership. Its more than 25million people are mostlytrapped at home. In March thisyear, he renewed his threat topunish any cadre who fail intheir fight against Covid-19spread in Shanghai. This clear-ly shows how serious he is overthe issue as the country’s mostcrucial financial hub is wit-nessing an unprecedentedgrowth of Covid-19 cases.Indeed, he is in a bind overwho to blame and hold respon-sible for the mess in Shanghai.

(Dr Makhan Saikia hastaught political science andinternational relations for overa decade in institutions ofnational and internationalrepute after specialisation inglobalisation and governancefrom Tata Institute of SocialSciences, Mumbai. He is thechief editor of the Journal ofGlobal Studies, an internation-al research journal)

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Someone came seeking answer to lotof unresolved questions that haskept her unnerved for long: “Sir, I

had love marriage, but it broke off soon.I have been brooding and contemplatingwhere I went wrong, and how I made abad choice? Would have a traditionalmarriage proved better? I am not able tofigure out and so I am under acute stress.Of late, my health condition has beentroubling me. I was overweight. Throughintermittent fasting I reduced it, but inthe process, my vitality went down. Mymenstrual cycle became disorderly. Ithen had Covid. It was followed byCataract in my eyes at such a young age.If that was not enough, I had waterretention in my lungs, and I had to behospitalised. Why it has been happeningwith me? Are these reflected indicated inmy chart? Please throw light and guide.”

At the outset, let me offer you a pieceof advice: Don’t fall into a guilt trap. Youcan’t be alone responsible for your failedmarriage? Both the partners would beaccountable one way or other. You can’tclap single handed. Don’t get stuck toyour past. That has become a historynow. Learn lesson out of it, and prepareyourself in a way that next time you

make a reasoned choice. Large numberof love marriages have proved a success,and equally great number of traditionallyorganised marriages fail. You can’t blamethe mode of marriage. Marital failureshappen because of clash of personalitytraits.

The 5th lord Venus identified withlove life is placed in the marriage signify-ing 7th house. It implies that you weredue for love marriage, and so it hap-pened. Mind signifying Moon sand-wiched between mischievous Neptuneand Rahu, made you stuck to your fanci-ful dream perception. You passionatelypursued it blindfolded, not caring to lookbeyond for a reality check, is how youmade a wrong choice. Moon happens tobe the lord of marriage signifying 7thhouse also and is afflicted. It is tenantedin a dual sign coinciding with the 12thhouse, which meant that you were vul-nerable to failure of the 1st marriage.Now that you have discharged yourKarmic debt carried over from the past,there is no reason to carry any fear aboutfuture. You are quite young. You must gofor a second marriage. But before thatbecomes due, and which is not far off,better purify your mind of its limitations.

You may then be able to apply properforethought before making your choice.The probability of success, would then beobviously high.

Now coming to your health issues,lagna sub-lord Jupiter is tenanted in thenakshatra owned by Ketu, which occu-pies the 6th house identified with ail-ment. Such a close connection of thelagna and 6th house makes your healthprofile fragile. You are susceptible toquick infections. The 6th sub-lord Venusis combust. It occupies the nakshatraowned by Ketu in Gemini sign where the6th cusp falls. This makes you vulnerableto lungs related problems. CombustVenus, read together with afflicted Moonin the 12th house, is indicative of Eyesrelated problems, hormonal imbalance,irregular menstrual cycle, and worrisomemind susceptible to stress. Also, itaccounts for serious emotional issues.Combust Venus, does also mean thatgiven an adverse situation, your workspirit will go for a toss. You have alreadyencountered the above issues as indicat-ed above.

Having said that, let me inform youthat if 6th house indicates ailment, theplanets signifying the 5th and 11th hous-

es promise recovery. Rahu and Moonstrongly signify the 5th house. Mars sig-nifies the 11th house. So, during theperiod of these planets, you are assuredof recovery. As of now Rahu dasha isrunning. So rest assured, you will comeout of your ailments. But the carryovereffect of the health issues in hand willstretch on for another year, by whichtime, you are expected to be in control ofthings.

You carry immense potential aswould Sun conjunct Jupiter and Mercuryconjunct Venus imply. That, however,may play out unhindered, only when yourise above the limitations of mind andemotion. For, the negatives will continueplaying spoil sport within your mind,which may not allow you the mind spaceand energy necessary to process yourthoughts objectively. Follow the mind-detoxification process suggested in allsincerity. Memory imprints from the pastwill go out of reckoning over a period oftime, when you may come out with yourbest.

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