NIRAV EXTRADITION: CBI-ED TEAM TO ASSIST UKNew Delhi: A joint CBI-ED teamwill soon leave for London toassist local authorities in theextradition case of fugitive diamantaire Nirav Modi.

SCHOOLS TO REMAINCLOSED TODAYLucknow : District MagistrateKaushal Raj Sharma said thatall schools, whethergovernment or private, willremain closed on theoccasion of Sheetala Ashtamifalling on Thursday. He saidthat only those schools would remain open which hadbeen converted into pollingbooths because the sectorand the zonal magistrateswould be visiting the pollingstations.

CAPSULE

PNS n NEW DELHI

India on Wednesday achieveda rare feat when its missile

successfully shot down a livesatellite in space, displaying tothe world its anti-satellite mis-sile (A-SAT) capability. Withthis, India has become thefourth country to acquire sucha specialised and moderncapability after the US, Russiaand China.

While the Opposition par-ties have congratulated the sci-entists of the DRDO for thesuccessful test, they accusedPrime Minister NarendraModi of violating model codeof conduct by using the occa-sion to divert attention fromissues troubling the BJP in therun-up to the Lok Sabha polls.

The Prime Ministerannounced the successful testin an unprecedented address tothe nation, saying, “It shows theremarkable dexterity of India’soutstanding scientists and thesuccess of our space pro-gramme.”

He also said, “India cannow defend itself in space, andnot just on land, water, and air,after the success of MissionShakti.”

In his address to the nation,Modi said, “In the journey ofevery nation there are momentsthat bring utmost pride andhave a historic impact on gen-erations to come. One suchmoment is today. India has suc-cessfully tested the Anti-Satellite (ASAT) Missile.”

He, however, clarified thetest was not directed againstany country and the satellitewas a pre-determined targetorbiting at an altitude of 300km adding India does notbreach any international lawsor treaties.

Mission Shakti was aimedat strengthening India’s overallsecurity, he said, adding it was“a highly complex one, con-ducted at extremely high speedwith remarkable precision. Itshows the remarkable dexter-

ity of India’s outstanding sci-entists and the success of ourspace programme,” Modi said.“Shooting down a low earthorbit satellite is a rare achieve-ment for the country,” he said.

The “entire effort is indige-nous. India’s stands tall as aspace power. It will make Indiastronger, even more secureand will further peace andharmony,” Modi said.

The Prime Minister had

advertised his address to thenation on Twitter, calling it animportant message.

“Do watch the address ontelevision, radio or socialmedia,” he said, setting offspeculation across the countryon what the topic was likely tobe. Earlier in the day, theCabinet Committee onSecurity (CCS) had met at thePrime Minister’s residence.

Continued on Page 6

PNS n NEW DELHI

In a midnight drama in Goa,Chief Minister Pramod

Sawant dropped Deputy ChiefMinister Sudin Dhavalikar aftertwo of his MaharashtrawadiGomantak Party (MGP) MLAsjoined the ruling BJP, leavinghim high and dry in the coastalState. Dhavalikar was madethe Deputy CM when Sawantbecame Chief Minister after thedeath of then Chief MinisterManohar Parrikar.

Meanwhile, the GoaForward Party (GFP), a partnerin the State Government, hasexpressed fear about creation of“suspicion among partners”after the two MGP MLAs brokeaway and joined the BJP.

While forming

Government this month, theBJP had “accommodated” boththe supporting parties’ ChiefMinisterial claimants GFP chiefVijai Sardesai and MGP MLADhavalikar as Deputy ChiefMinisters with BJP’s Sawantappointed as Chief Minister.

BJP president Amit Shahand Union Minister NitinGadkari had then coordinatedthe moves to install Sawant,then Assembly Speaker, as newState CM.

The midnight coup craftedby the BJP saw two of the threeMGP MLAs — ManoharAjgaonkar and Dipak Pawaskar— giving a letter to officiatingSpeaker Michael Lobo, merg-ing their party’s legislative wingwith the BJP.

Continued on Page 6

PNS n NEW DELHI

Film star Urmila Matondkarjoined the Congress after

meeting party chief RahulGandhi on Wednesday. Theparty made the announcementby tweeting a picture of theactor receiving a bouquet fromRahul. Urmila, 45, is expectedto be chosen as the Congresscandidate for Mumbai NorthLok Sabha constituency.

“I am here because Ibelieve in the ideology of theCongress and what the partystands for. I have not joined theparty for the sake of elections.I am here to stay,” Urmila said.

Later, at a Press conference,Congress chief spokespersonRandeep Surjewala said theactor will help spread theCongress ideology andstrengthen the party.

Urmila said she felt theneed to join the Congress as thefreedom to express was underattack and there are numerous

examples in this regard in thelast five years. She said theCongress participated in thefreedom struggle and it stoodfor freedom.

Urmila lauded the leader-ship of Rahul. She said he is theone who takes everyone alongand such a leader is required intoday’s times.

AP n MOSCOW

Belarusian PresidentAlexander Lukashenko has

fired three officials, includinga governor, for keeping cows inpoor conditions at a local farm.

Video aired by state televi-sion showed Lukashenko, anavid farmer himself, scoldingthe farm managers and thegovernor on a visit to the farmin the northern Mogilev regionon Tuesday.

Lukashenko, who gave asack of potatoes to RussianPresident Vladimir Putin lastyear, compared the conditionsat the farm to those at a Nazideath camp.

The cows were shownwalking in the manure withmud caked on their bodies.

MODI’S ELECTION BLITZ FROM SPACE

PM announces Mission Shakti as India becomes 4th nation to show prowess

Urmila joins Cong Goa CM dropsDy as two MGPMLAs join BJP

Belarusian Prez fires Guv for ill-treating cows

PNS n NEW DELHI

Prime Minister NarendraModi incurred the wrath of

Opposition parties over theGovernment’s announcementof Mission Shakti onWednesday. While theOpposition leaders congratu-lated the scientists who devel-oped the anti-satellite missile,they took swipe at the PM.

Some of them questioned

the timing of the announce-ment while other wrote to theElection Commission termingModi’s announcement as vio-lation of the model code ofconduct.

However, the EC onWednesday clarified that issuesrelated to national security anddisaster management do notfall under the ambit of themodel code of conduct.

Mocking Modi, Congresschief Rahul wished him a“happy World Theatre Day”,West Bengal Chief MinisterMamata Banerjee and BSPChief Mayawati termed it agross violation of the modelcode of conduct. SamajwadiParty president Akhilesh Yadav

accused Modi of managingfree air time to divert attentionfrom real issues.

Meanwhile, claiming thatthe Government in 2012 didnot allow scientists to launchanti-satellite (ASAT) missiledespite their having capability,the BJP on Wednesday assert-ed that India’s deterrence hasincreased under the “decisiveleadership” of Modi whichwould allow the country tomaintain peace in the region.

Describing Mission Shaktias “monumental step”, seniorBJP leader Arun Jaitley saidfuture wars will be different and“our preparation is the biggestsafety for us”.

Decrying the Congress and

the TMC’s criticism, he saidthis issue was not related to theBJP but to India.

“Scientists had capability tobuild anti-satellite missile adecade ago, then Governmentnever gave permission,” said theBJP leader while congratulatingModi whom he described asdecisive leader who haschanged India’s defence doc-trine. Jaitley accused theCongress of lying on the issue.

And as for TMC chief ’scriticism, Jaitley said India’snuclear programme is a con-tinuing programme and can-not be put to halt “if it does notsuit West Bengal ChiefMinister”.

Continued on Page 6

Twitterati fly off the handlebefore PM’s address to nationPNS n NEW DELHI

Twitterati went into a tizzywith funny tweets before

Prime Minister NarendraModi’s address to the nationspeculating whether it wouldbe about Emergency, anothersurgical strike, bringing backDawood Ibrahim or killingMasood Azhar.

As the designated hour ofnoon came and went, jokes onTwitter gathered strength. Astime slowed to a tedious crawl,imagination hurriedly tookwing.

With memories of that

fateful November 8, 2016evening, when Modiannounced the demon-etisation of high valuecurrency notes stillafresh, jokes about peo-ple running to the ATMand counting cash starteddoing the rounds.

The news of Modi’s sur-prise address came from hispersonal Twitter handle at11.23 am. Within minutes, thetweet went viral and in an hourthe tweet had garnered 20,663retweets, 57,674 likes and15,000 comments.

Tweeting in both Hindi

and English, Modi said, “Iwould be addressing the nation

around 11.45 am - 12noon with an impor-

tant message. Dowatch the address ontelevision, radio or

social media.” This twitter message

made Twitterati crazy. Theannouncement from the PMcomes a month after theBalakot airstrikes in Pakistanby the Indian Air Force anddays before polling for theupcoming Lok Sabha elections.

Continued on Page 6

Congress president Rahul Gandhi greets Bollywood actor Urmila Matondkar as shejoins the Congress in New Delhi on Wednesday PTI

Belarus President Alexander Lukashenko, surrounded by officials, visits a local farm in the village of Slizhi, 240 km (150miles) north-east of Minsk, Belarus AP

Anti-satellite missile:Safety & significancePNS n NEW DELHI

The anti-satellite missile (A-SAT) test termed as

“Mission Shakti” was con-ducted by scientists of DefenceResearch and DevelopmentOrganisation (DRDO) fromthe APJ Abdul Kalam Island inOdisha on Wednesday. Anindigenously developedBallistic Missile Defence(BMD) Interceptor Missilesuccessfully engaged an Indianorbiting target satellite at analtitude of 300 km in LowEarth Orbit (LEO) in a “Hit tokill” mode.

The interceptor missilewas a three-stage missile withtwo solid rocket boosters.Tracking data from range sen-sors has confirmed that themission met all its objectives.The entire mission lasted forabout three minutes.

Explaining the signifi-cance of the test, sources saidan A-SAT can neutraliseenemy satellites in space by

blinding them or disrupting itscommunication systemsbesides providing a techno-logical base to intercept anincoming ballistic missile.

Satellites are used for nav-igation, communications andfor guiding their missileweaponry. The ability to bringdown an enemy’s missile,therefore, gives a country thecapability to cripple criticalinfrastructure of the othercountry, rendering theirweapons useless, they said.

While the US and Russiaconducted these tests in the1960s, China demonstratedits capability in 2007.

In his observation aboutthe test, DRDO chief GSatheesh Reddy said it is areflection of the country’sgrowing capability to developcritical technology and it willact as a good deterrenceadding clearance for the pro-ject was given over two yearsback.

Continued on Page 6

In this video grab taken from Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s official twitter handle,Modi announces the success of Mission Shakti, India’s anti-satellite missilecapability, in New Delhi on Wednesday PTI

Then Cong-led Govt

didn’t allow DRDO

to carry out test in

2012, rues Jaitley

Opp leaders hail scientists, rail at Modi

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Guv raps Akhilesh for ‘irresponsible’ tweet PNS n LUCKNOW

Governor Ram Naikslammed Samajwadi Party

president and former ChiefMinister Akhilesh Yadav for histweet on Tuesday, in which thelatter said that “Governors andgovernment agencies andmedia were campaigning forthe BJP.”

In his tweet, Akhilesh alsosaid that even today theGovernor visited some place ofincident in Lucknow.

Strongly rebutting thecomment, the Governordashed off a letter to the SPchief on Wednesday.

“Your tweet is highly irre-sponsible. Dragging theGovernor in politics is disre-spect for the constitutionaloffice. Usually I never takecognisance of political state-ments. As you are aware, I

never took notice of the state-ments issued by Azam Khan,”’Ram Naik said in the letter.

Senior SP leader and min-ister Azam Khan has beennotorious for making state-ments in intemperate languageagainst past Governors of UP.

“You are a responsiblecitizen. You have also servedas CM and (are) president ofSamajwadi Party. So, suchstatements by you duringelection season are unwar-ranted and such a conduct isnot expected from you. Iwant to bring it to your noticethat since the announcementof poll schedule by ElectionCommission on March 10, Ihave not participated in anypublic programme and nei-ther given any political state-ment,” the Governor wrote.

Specifically referring to anews report that he had vis-

ited some place in Lucknowon Tuesday, the Governorsaid, “It is highly inappropri-ate on your part to make sucha statement. I had gone toRajajipuram to condole thedeath of doctor Jyoti Nirvanand her four-year-old daugh-ter, who passed away in aroad accident.”

The Governor pointedout that Dr Jyoti Nirvan wasthe wife of the brother of DrAnil Nirvan, who is posted asmedical of f icer in R ajBhawan.

“It was my moral duty toshare the grief of staff mem-bers of Raj Bhawan. It was acase of accident. I also greetpeople on auspicious occa-sions. I had greeted yourfather Mulayam Singh Yadavon his birthday and also vis-ited him at his residence,” theGovernor said.

Congress General Secretary UP-East Priyanka Gandhi Vadra is greeted by party leaders and workers on her arrival at Lucknowairport Wednesday, during her three-day visit to Amethi, Rae Bareli and Faizabad for her next leg of campaigning in UP PTI

city 02LUCKNOW | THURSDAY | MARCH 28, 2019

PNS n LUCKNOW

Congress general secretaryand UP east in-charge

Priyanka Gandhi Vadra held abrief roadshow in her brotherand party chief Rahul Gandhi’sconstituency, Amethi, andexhorted booth committeemembers to gear up for the LokSabha polls.

In an interactive session,Priyanka asked party workers toreach out to villages to respond tothe Bharatiya Janata Party’s ‘jum-lebazi’ and “expose the realitybefore the people”.

Slogans like ‘Priyanka ayihai, BJP ghabrai hai’ rented theair during the welcome of theCongress leader as her motor-cade passed through the nation-al highway to approach Amethion Wednesday.

Earlier, at the CCS Airportin Lucknow, Priyanka was givena warm welcome by UPCongress leaders, includingCongress Legislature Partyleader Ajay Kumar Lalu, formerRajya Sabha member PramodTiwari, his daughter and MLAAradhana Mishra Mona andCongress state secretary VinodMishra. Priyanka sermonisedsome party candidates in toeand told them to be in their con-stituency rather than wastingtime in welcoming her.

Upon reaching Amethi,Priyanka attended the meetingof 1956 booth committees underthe party’s ‘Mera Booth, MeraGaurav’ programme, at AHInter College in Musafirkhana.

Priyanka warned the peopleof Amethi to beware of the

Union minister who “occasion-ally visits” the town only to con-fuse them and assured them thatif Congress won the Lok Sabhapolls, Rahul Gandhi would bethe prime minister of the coun-try. “Amethi is like a home forus and the people here are likefamily members. If Congresswins the polls then RahulGandhi will be the PM of thecountry, “ she said, interactingwith the booth level workers ofthe party.

Priyanka said due to thewrong policies of the BJP-ledNDA government like demon-etisation, people were facingproblem, while stray animalsand stopping of MNREGA pro-jects had added their woes.

During her transit toAmethi from Lucknow airport,Priyanka also walked onKamrauli road in Jagdishpur to

exchange greetings with thepeople and also at Gauriganjcrossing, where she met NSUIactivists. The AICC general sec-retary also went to the house ofUP Congress Committee mem-ber Mohammed Latif inInahauna area, who has beensuffering from cancer.

On way to Amethi,Priyanaka also spent some timeat Haidergarh in Barabanki LokSabha constituency where partycandidate Tanuj Punia and hisfather and Congress Rajya Sabhamember PL Punia were present.Priyanka also advised Tanuj tobeef up his campaign by inter-acting directly with the voters.

After interacting with thebooth committee members inAmethi, Priyanka went back toBhue Mau guest house whereshe would rest for the night.

Interestingly, Priyanka’s visit

Lucknow (PNS): The Election Commission of India will issuethe notification for the third phase of Lok Sabha polls on Thursday.Ten constituencies in the Rohilkhand region will go to polls inthis phase on April 23. Nominations for the third phase wouldcontinue till April 4 and scrutiny of papers would be done thenext day. Candidates will be able to withdraw nominations tillApril 8. There are a little over 1.76 crore voters in the third phaseof polls out of which 95.56 lakh are male and 80.92 lakh femalesand they will exercise their franchise in 20,116 polling booths.

The constituencies going to polls in the third phase areMoradabad, Rampur, Sambhal, Firozabad, Mainpuri, Etah,Budaun, Aonla, Bareilly and Pilibhit. Union minister SantoshKumar Gangwar (Bareilly) along with Samajwadi Party patronMulayam Singh Yadav (Mainpuri) and actor Jaya Prada (Rampur)will be in the fray along with Pragatisheel Samajwadi Party (Lohia)founder Shivpal Singh Yadav from Ferozabad. The Pilibhit seatrepresented by Union minister Maneka Gandhi will now be con-tested by her son Varun Feroze Gandhi while she will try her luckfrom Sultanpur Lok Sabha seat, won by Varun Gandhi in 2014Lok Sabha elections.

91 CANDIDATES IN FRAY IN 2ND PHASEMeanwhile, a total of 45 nomination papers were rejected

during scrutiny for the second phase election in which eight LokSabha of Uttar Pradesh will go to polls on April 18. During scruti-ny on Wednesday, 45 nominations were rejected out of the total136 papers filed for the second phase poll. With this, 91 candi-dates are in the fray in the eight constituencies. The highest num-ber of 18 papers were rejected in Fatehpur Sikri followed by 14in Aligarh, 13 in Mathura, 11 each in Agra and Amroha, ninein Nagina and eight in Hathras. The Election Commission hasapproved appointment of senior IAS officer Jayant Nalikar asthe new Divisional Commissioner of Gorakhpur in place of AmitGupta, who will soon proceed for training. AdditionalCommissioner of Basti division, Atul Singh, will take the placeof Pilibhit ADM Braj Kishore.

PNS n LUCKNOW

Samajwadi Party presidentAkhilesh Yadav said that

there was no confusion amongthe supporters of SP-BSPalliance and each and everyDalit and OBC communitymember would vote foralliance candidates.

While claiming that bar-ring one, the BJP would not beable to win any other seat inUttar Pradesh, Akhileshstopped short of revealing thename of the constituencywhere the Bharatiya JanataParty would emerge victori-ous.

Welcoming BJP’s sittingMP from Hardoi, AnshulVerma, into his party fold, theSP chief said, “The BJP MP’sjoining the SP is a huge set-back to the BJP-led govern-ment at the Centre and I amsure he (Verma) will exposethe real story of the‘Chowkidar team’ before thepeople during poll campaign.”

“The electorate are frus-trated with the BJP and arewaiting for the opportunity toshow them the door in UPand Delhi. The BJP singular-

ly failed in honouring itspromises to the people likefarm loan waiver and doublingincome of farmers. ChiefMinister Yogi Adityanath hasbeen making tall claims ofclearing cane dues while thefarmers are still waiting forpayment of their arrears,”’Akhilesh said.

The SP chief also criticisedthe BJP for not fielding seniorleaders like LK Advani andMurli Manohar Joshi in LokSabha polls and quipped thatits ‘hypocritical morality’ hadbeen exposed.

“What culture, way andcharacter are they presentingby showing door to ‘margdar-shak mandal’?” Yadav tweetedin Hindi.

“Youths were already notvoting for the BJP and now theelderly will also not do so,” headded. Joshi, LK Advani,Shanta Kumar, BC Khanduriand Kalraj Mishra have beendenied ticket by the BJP,apparently on the ground oftheir age and on the pretext ofgrooming younger leaders toreplace them.

Akhilesh also accusedPrime Minister Narendra

Modi of taking the nation fora ride by claiming credit forthe launch of anti-satellitemissile.

“It was an act of deceptionby the PM and he took theentire electronic media for aride and created uncertaintyacross the country for a fewhours even as elections areunderway,” Akhilesh said.

The SP chief said, “I con-gratulate the scientists of ISROand DRDO for their achieve-ment but the PM used theirsuccess for his narrow politi-cal ends and deflected publicattention from real issues.”

Akhilesh, however, dis-missed the minimum incomeguarantee scheme announcedby Congress president RahulGandhi saying, “The Congressis responsible for the povertyin the country even after 70years of Independence.

There is not much differ-ence between the Congressand the BJP. Our team isstudying the matter and wewill soon announce a packagefor fighting poverty and onlySamajwadi Party can solvethe problems of the people liv-ing below poverty line.”

PNS n LUCKNOW

Irked at being denied ticket for the 2019Lok Sabha election, Bharatiya Janata

Party’s sitting MP from Hardoi, AnshulVerma, quit the party to join SamajwadiParty on Wednesday.

Taking a jibe at Prime MinisterNarendra Modi’s ‘chowkidar’ campaign,Verma handed over his resignation let-ter to the ‘chowkidar’ (watchman) of BJPstate headquarters in Lucknow.

The Dalit MP from Hardoi alsohanded over a day’s wage to the watch-man, as he taunted the BJP over the‘chowkidar’ campaign led by Modi.

Addressing media persons inLucknow on Wednesday, Verma said theBJP denied him the seat for not prefix-ing ‘chowkidar’ to his name on his socialmedia wall.

“How many of you can say that youare making your children chowkidar? Iwas told (by the BJP) that I did not men-tion ‘chowkidar’ on my wall. ‘Vikas kiyahai vikas karenge, chowkidar nahi Anshulhi bane rahenge’ (I have done develop-ment and will continue to do so. I willremain Anshul and not become chowki-dar),” Verma said.

Accusing the BJP of being anti-Dalit, the Hardoi MP said that four of thesix MPs denied tickets by the BJP were

Dalits, Verma asked, “Are only Dalit MPsincompetent and inefficient?”

The BJP has fielded Jai PrakashRawat replacing Verma from Hardoi thistime. A Pasi like Verma, Rawat, is a for-mer four-time MP from Hardoi andMohanlalganj.

Explaining the reason for quitting theBJP, Verma said, “I was hurt that afterbeing denied ticket, no responsible BJPleader thought it prudent to talk to meor give me an appointment.”

“Besides, I was disappointed after theBJP did not act on my complaint aboutdistribution of liquor to people whoattended a Pasi sammelan organised at atemple in Hardoi in January by BJP leaderNaresh Agarwal and his son NitinAgarwal,” he said.

Taunting the BJP over its ‘chowkidar’campaign, Verma dared the ruling partyleaders adding ‘chowkidar’ to their namesto take care of wages of at least 10 watch-men in their areas and stand guard intheir place for one night every month.

In 2014, Verma won the Hardoi seatin central Uttar Pradesh by securing 3.60lakh votes against 2.79 lakh polled by theBahujan Samaj Party candidate. However,in BJP’s first list of candidates released lastweek, Verma was among the six sittingMPs who were replaced, apparently fornon-performance.

PNS n LUCKNOW

Prime Minister NarendraModi will kick-start thecampaign for the first

phase of Lok Sabha election onThursday by addressing ameeting near Sivaya toll plazaon Delhi-Dehradun highway inMeerut.

In 2014 also, as the primeministerial candidate of the BJP,Modi had started his poll cam-paign by addressing a meetingat Shatabdinagar in Meerut onFebruary 2, 2014.

“The Prime Minister willaddress over two dozen ralliesacross the state and the num-ber may go up. During 2017Assembly polls, the PrimeMinister was initially scheduledto address 12 rallies in the statebut later he addressed 21 rallies.This could be the case this timealso. UP is an important statefor us and Modiji could beasked to address more rallies,”a senior BJP leader said.

Modi will address two ral-lies on Thursday – the first willbe addressed around 11:30 amin Meerut and the second atRudrapur (Uttarakhand).

Ahead of the PrimeMinister’s poll rally, BJP pres-ident Amit Shah and othersenior leaders held a meetingon Tuesday night to assess thepoll scenario in 16 Lok Sabha

seats in western part of UttarPradesh.

The meeting with Shahwas attended by BJP’s UP unitchief Mahendra Nath Pandey,state in-charge JP Nadda,, stategeneral secretary (organisa-tion) Sunil Bansal, regionalchief Ashwini Tyagi and statespokesman Vijay BahadurPathak.

The BJP president had ear-lier interacted with party’s divi-sional and booth level chiefsand other leaders to knowabout the situation at theground level in the state.

Shah told booth in-chargesthat their target should be toensure that 51 per cent voteswere cast in favour of the partyin each booth as this would bethe mantra for winning theelection.

Polling for the first phase of2019 Lok Sabha election will beheld in eight constituencies ofwest UP on April 11.

Lucknow (PNS): The UP unit of BJPfaced an embarrassing moment whentrader leader Sanjay Gupta refused to jointhe party along with his supporters say-ing that traders were not given properrespect during the joining function atparty office on Wednesday. “We have notjoined the BJP because traders were notgiven respect they deserve,” said Gupta,president of Adarsh Vyapar Mandal.Gupta said that he along with over 1,000traders from across the state had assem-bled at BJP office in the morning but atthe time of joining the party, trader lead-ers were not given seats, which were occu-pied by the party leaders.

“We were made to stand behind in thesecond row. This infuriated traders andthey decided not to join the BJP,” Guptasaid, adding that if traders were denied thebasic courtesy at the time of joining theparty what would happen when theybecome members of the party. In the videothat went viral in social circles, the traderscan be heard shouting slogan as the trad-er leaders are made to stand while BJP lead-ers occupy the chairs. BJP state presidentMahendra Nath Pandey and party statevice-president Pankaj Singh were presentwhen traders walked away in a huff with-out joining BJP.

Meanwhile, famous Bhojpuri actor andsinger Dinesh Lal Niarhua joined BJP inpresence of CM Yogi Adityanath onWednesday. He is likely to contest poll fromAzamgarh.

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Modi to kick-start

campaign from

Meerut today

was also marred by controversywith opposition leaders putting upposters in Musafirkhana askingwhere she was during the last fiveyears.

One of the posters said, “Kyakhub thagti ho, kya paanch saalbaad hi Amethi me dikhti ho.”(you befool people and show uponly after five years). Anotherposter suggested that she woresaris just to influence voters.

Just hours after the postersappeared, SP students wingSamajwadi Chhatra Sabha leaderJaisingh Pratap Singh, whose pic-ture appeared on the posters,complained to district authoritiesdemanding an inquiry.

“This poster has been put upas an act of political vendetta bysome mischievous elements bymisusing my picture. This is aconspiracy to defame me andPriyanka Gandhi. Neither I norany party worker is involved inthis,” Singh said in a letter toDistrict Magistrate Ram ManoharMisra. “When SP presidentAkhilesh Yadav has decided notto field any candidate fromAmethi, why would party work-ers oppose Priyanka Gandhi,” hereasoned.

On Thursday, Priyanka willhold meeting with booth commit-tee members of Rae Bareli, the par-liamentary constituency of hermother and UPA chairpersonSonia Gandhi. On Friday, Priyankawill visit Ayodhya and hold a day-long roadshow after worshippingat Hanumangarhi temple.

Priyanka cautions voters against BJP rhetoric

Congress general secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra with party workers and supportersduring an election campaign in Musafirkhana, Amethi, on Wednesday PTI

Irked at being denied ticket,

Anshul Verma quits BJP

No confusion among SP-BSP supporters, says Akhilesh

Notification for 3rd

phase poll today

Trader leader Sanjay Gupta refuses to join BJP

THREE POACHERS HELD IN MUZAFFARNAGAR

Muzaffarnagar (PTI): Three poachers were arrested dur-ing an encounter with police at Biharighar here, officials said onWednesday. A half-burnt body of a wild animal and arm andammunition were recovered from them.

city 03LUCKNOW | THURSDAY | MARCH 28, 2019

PNS n LUCKNOW

The killer in the Chinhatwoman’s murder case had

visited Sundara Devi’s house ona motorcycle, which he hadborrowed from one of hisacquaintances and was bearingpolice monogram.

The Chinhat police madethe claim after it arrested theaccused and recovered the bikeon Wednesday. The image ofthe miscreant was captured inCCTV installed near the crimescene and this paved the wayfor his arrest. With his arrest,victim’s husband VijayChauhan got a reprieve fromthe police. He was detained bythe police on suspicion of mur-dering his wife.

Sundara Devi was foundmurdered at her presentaccommodation at an under-construction shopping complexin Officers’ Colony in Chinhaton Tuesday afternoon. Police

ran the theory of suicide say-ing some person had informedthe police control room that thewoman had ended her life byhanging. However, when vic-tim’s husband Vijay’s statement

that his wife was murdered asa dupatta was found tiedaround her neck after lootwent viral on social media, thepolice were pushed to the back-foot.

By Tuesday night, seniorpolice officials, including ASP,North, and CO, Gomti Nagar,AC Srivastava reached the

scene for investigation into thecase.

The victim’s husband’sclaim was endorsed when thepolice scanned the CCTVfootage and a suspect was seenreaching the house and comingout of the house in one of thefootages. The suspect was notwearing helmet and a policemonogram was foundembossed on the registrationnumber plate. Despite this, thepolice detained Vijay suspect-ing his credentials.

On Tuesday, the policesucceeded in tracing motorcy-cle owner Sushil Kumar Pandeyof Rehmanpur in Chinhat andreached his house. It surfacedthat Raj Mishra of Kanchanpurof Matiyari locality had bor-rowed the bike from Pandey.Police intensified Raj’s searchand nabbed him in afternoon.

According to CO, AKSrivastava, Raj had gone to thevictim’s house where Ashish

used to live earlier to takeback his Rs 1,000 from him.When Raj reached there, hesaw a woman (victim) wasopening some articles from abox. The victim started shout-ing atop her voice saying a thiefhad barged into her house. “Rajgot apprehensive as he thoughtthat he would be nabbed by theresidents and would be beatento death. So he gagged thewoman’s mouth to stop herfrom shrieking. Raj then stran-gled her with a dupatta and fledthe scene,” the Gomti NagarCO claimed. He said Raj didnot know victim and her hus-band Vijay.

Police theory failed toanswer many media queries.The police failed to explain whyRaj did not flee the scene whenthe woman started crying forhelp. The police also failed togive details of the autopsy of thewoman.

PNS n LUCKNOW

ABiotech IInd year girl stu-dent ended her life at the

hostel room inside the IntegralUniversity of Medical Sciencesand Research in Gudamba onWednesday morning. Policecould not ascertain the cause ofdeath as no suicide note wasrecovered from the room andthey suspected that the girl stu-dent ended her life due todepression.

The deceased was identi-fied as Ankita Srivastava (20)of Maharajganj district. Herfather Rajesh Kumar Srivastavais an advocate by profession.

As per reports, AnkitaSrivastava was staying, alongwith another girl studentAnkita Singh, in room number616 of the university hostel.Around 7 am, she, along withher room partner, went to acanteen where they had break-fast. A little later, Ankitareturned to her room sayingshe was going to study.

Around 7.45 am, AnkitaSingh also returned to theroom and found the doorslocked from inside. She waspuzzled at this and knocked thedoors desperately suspectingsome mishap with AnkitaSrivastava. She called hostelwarden and soon the college

staff, students and wardenassembled at the scene. Whenthey peeped inside the roomthrough the ventilator, theywere shocked as they sawAnkita Srivastava hanging fromthe ceiling with a dupatta tiedaround her neck.

The staff broke open thedoor and Ankita Srivastavawas rushed to the university’sinfirmary where she wasdeclared “brought dead”. Later,security guard Arun KumarVerma reached to Gudambapolice station with a memoissued by the university.

“It was stated that AnkitaSrivastava was brought in deadstate to the university hospitalby her friend Sumaiya Parveen.The reason of death was stat-ed to be suicide,” GudambaSHO RN Rai said while givingdetails of the content in thememo the police received.

He said sub-inspectorArjun Dwivedi was sent to theplace for investigation into thecase. S-I Arjun Dwivedi saidAnkita Srivastava was pursuinggraduation from Biotech andwas a student of the IInd yearof the university. He saidAnkita Srivastava hanged her-self from the ceiling and endedher life. “The police have rec-ommended autopsy and fur-ther investigation is under-way,” he said.

Gudamba inspector RNRai said Ankita Srivastava wasa brilliant student and shesecured over 90 per cent marksin her High School andIntermediate exam. “We weretold by her colleagues that shesecured 83 per cent marks in anexam that she took recently andwas under depression followingthis,” the inspector said andadded that the same was beingverified.

The inspector said Ankitaearlier was staying with herelder sister Aparajita but laterAparajita started living sepa-rately at a house on rent andAnkita Srivastava chose to stayat the hostel room. “Therewere talks that Ankita was indepression due to her perfor-mance which she thought wasaverage. We did not recover anysuicide note and so we are notsure if Ankita ended her lifedue to depression,” the inspec-tor said.

There were reports thatthe college administration wasnot in favour of autopsy on thebody. The college administra-tion rubbished the reportswhile the police refused tocomment. The college admin-istration did not allow themediamen to enter the campusand talk to the students of uni-versity due to some inexplica-ble reason.

LU to hold nat’l

meet on womenPNS n LUCKNOW

UGC Centre of Advanced Studywill be holding a national con-

ference on “Violence AgainstWomen” on March 29 and March 30.This information was given byorganising secretary Anoop KumarBhartiya at a press conference organ-ised at the Lucknow University onWednesday.

He said that women formed thebuilding stone of the family in par-ticular and the society in general yetthey were and had been subjected tovulnerability and coercion everynow and then.

“In the fast paced developingworld, women have low share in util-ising the fruits of development andare high on being abused, maltreat-ed and undergo various forms of vio-lence in different spheres of life.Violence against women (VAW)and girls is a human rights violationsall over the world. It is an evil thatknows no social, economic ornational boundaries. It is estimatedthat worldwide one in three womenwill experience physical or sexualabuse in her lifetime,” he said.

PNS n LUCKNOW

Agroup of youths, reportedlyassisted by two policemen, kid-

napped a class XI student from acolony on IM road in Madiaon onTuesday night. They later thrashedthe student dumped him on theroadside. Some morning walkers ofthe colony spotted the youth lyingin an unconscious state alongside theIIM road and informed his family.He was admitted to Ram ManoharLohia hospital. The victim had dis-closed the name of a policeman whohappened to be a relative of one ofthe attackers.

As per reports, Rahul Gupta ofMadhuvan Vihar Colony in thearea was going to pay the dues to atile shop owner on IIM road near hishouse. Around 9.30 pm on Tuesday,when he reached IIM road, theSUV-borne youths bundled him ina car. They thrashed him and loot-ed Rs 11,300 and his mobile phonebefore dumping him on the road-side.

In his statement to police, vic-

tim’s father RS Gupta, who is anUPSRTC employee, said his familyhad a tussle with property dealerMuksh Yadav, who lives near IIM.“Rahul told us that Mukesh, hisbrother Umesh and their relative andtwo policemen stopped him and kid-napped him,” he alleged.

Rahul, who regained conscious-ness at the hospital on Tuesday night,said he knew one of the policemenand he was a relative of MukeshYadav.

“They took me to Mukesh’shouse where I was beaten withbelts and also was boxed. Later, thepolicemen bundled me in their offi-cial’s vehicle and dumped me on IIMroad. I fainted after this,” he claimed.

Police spokesman AK Dwivedisaid he had no information about theincident as the Madiaon police didnot inform me. The Madiaon policeconfirmed the incident and said theywere probing into the allegations.The police said they were identify-ing the accused policemen too. Thereason was cited to be an old enmi-ty between Rahul and Mukesh.

DIOS notice

to schools

on fee hike

PIONEER NEWS SERVICE nLUCKNOW

DIOS (District Inspectorof Schools) sent notices

to all schools affiliated toboards that if they wereincreasing the school fees,they should load the informa-tion on their websites.

“This has been done sothat we can assess for our-selves that nothing has beendone against the provisions ofthe Act,” he said.

The DIOS said that theywould be very strict inthe implementation for thesame.

“We will look into thefact that if the fees has beenincreased, the salary of teachers be also increasedsimultaneously otherwise theschools had no right toincrease the fees. The formu-la for increasing fees is 5 percent plus consumer priceindex. The schools cannotincrease beyond this,” headded.

He said that a majorityof the schools were increas-ing the fees from thissession.

“The notice has beensent to more than 800 privateschools who are chargingapproximately Rs 20,000annually,” he said.

PIONEER NEWS SERVICE nLUCKNOW

District Magistrate KaushalRaj Sharma said that with

the polling day in the cityfalling on May 6, the weatherconditions were unlikely toimpact the polling percentage.

Talking to “The Pioneer”,the District Magistrate saidthat they were expecting thatthey would achieve 75 per centvoter turnout despite the factthat the polling would takeplace on May 6.

“May 6 will not be so hotas compared to the later part ofMay and June. The peak sum-mer months start after June 20and the temperature crosses 45degree Celsius only after June5. Hence we are hopeful thatthe temperature will not goabove 41-42 degree Celsiusand we will get the requiredvoting percentage” he said.

The DM said that theywere making as many modelbooths as they could whereinthey would provide manyshades as well as water to facil-itate voters.

Meanwhile, the DistrictMagistrate also took a review ofthe visit of the district admin-istration officials to variouspolling stations in the Lucknowdistrict.

The DM gave instructionsthat ramps should be con-structed wherever they wererequired, the connecting roadsshould also be cleaned and theLESA officials should be con-

tacted for any problems whichwere related to the electricity.He said that whatever lapses

were seen in the polling boothsshould be completed in thenext seven day otherwise

departmental action would betaken against the officials con-cerned.

PNS n LUCKNOW

Despite repeated campaignsand advisories from

LMRC (Lucknow Metro RailCorporation), people are stillflying kites equipped withmetallic ‘manjha’ near theMetro corridor.

LMRC officials said that itresulted in the entangling of the‘manjha’ with the high voltageOHE wires leading to the trip-ping of OHE thus disruptingMetro services.

“Such entangling not onlycauses damage to the catenarywire running along the OHE,but also has high potential ofproving fatal to the kite-flyersbecause of the very high volt-age running through the OverHead Equipment (OHE) sys-tems” said the official.

He said that on Tuesday adamage to the catenary wirestrands had occurred becauseof the metallic ‘manjha’ (string)of a kite that got entangled withthe OHE wires between

Bhootnath market MetroStation and Indira Nagar Metrostation.

“Such incidents have beenoccurring frequently invitinglife-threatening risks to kite-fly-ers and disruption of the Metrosystems. Two similar incidentstook place on March 22, thefirst being between KrishnaNagar Metro station and SingarNagar Metro station and thesecond between K.D. Singh‘Babu’ Stadium Metro stationand Vishwavidyalaya Metrostation. LMRC has lodged FIRagainst anonymous persons inview of these incidents,” he said.

Girl commits suicide

in hostel room

Weather to stay good on polling day

A voter ID and EVMs awareness camp underwy at Press Cub on Wednesday Pioneer

Chinhat woman killer held

PNS n LUCKNOW

Ayouth and a girl fell into a canalat Indira dam in Chinhat on

Wednesday afternoon under myste-rious circumstances. After marathonefforts of commuters, the girl wasfished out but the youth is stilluntraceable.

According to media cell ofLucknow police, the youth, alongwith a girl, had visited the Indiradam. “They were standing near theedge of the dam and later walked intothe water to take a bath and begandrowning. The police team rushedto the scene and the girl was pulledout by the divers later. The youth isstill missing,” the police said.

The police said the girl disclosedthe name of the youth after she was

provided medical aid and her con-dition improved. “We had informedthe family of the youth. The policeand divers are searching for him,” thepolice said. The police spokesmansaid the man and the girl hadreached the Indira dam in a red Altocar. “An investigation was underwayinto the case,” he said.

Contrary to police claim, sourcessaid the commuters rescued the girlwhile the youth was swept away bythe sturdy water current. “The com-muters later informed the police anda team reached the place. Later, thepolice pressed divers into search forthe youth,” they claimed. They saidempty cans of beer were recoveredfrom the place.

EVE-TEASINGA couple living in Indira Nagar

had a difficult time when a youthacted fresh with the woman and laterthreatened to kill her husband whenthe latter objected to his act.

The woman’s husband caughtthe miscreant ignoring the threat butthe miscreant succeeded in freeinghimself.

Reports said the couple hadgone to Old Lucknow to visit theGhantaghar locality. Near the her-itage place, the husband of thewoman stopped at a kiosk to pur-chase some snacks and the womanwas standing at some distance. “Themiscreant came to me and actedfresh. I shouted at him and called myhusband who caught him. Later,some commuters flocked to thescene and the miscreant told hisname as Abhishek Sharma ofMalihabad.

Youth, girl fall into Indira canal

Youths aided by copskidnap, assault boy

Kite-flying a big

danger to Metro

city 04LUCKNOW | THURSDAY | MARCH 28, 2019

PNS n LUCKNOW

Atraffic sub-inspector misbe-haved with a physically-chal-

lenged man whose car bore a blackfilm at Sikanderabagh crossing inHazratganj. The man got the worsttreatment when he reached the SSP,Lucknow camp office, and the pub-lic relation officer did not give himan audience. The man was laterasked to wait outside.

Pradeep Bhadauria of GomtiNagar is the principal at a govern-ment-run primary school in

Chinhat. He said that he was cross-ing the Sikanderabagh crossingwhen a TSI, whose last name heremembered as Verma, stoppedhim and asked him to take the caron the side. “Verma told me to paya fine of Rs 2,000 and I argued withhim. He asked me to come out of thecar at which I told him that my bothlegs were crippled and I could noteven walk properly. At this, Vermamocked at the disability and said ithardly mattered to police. The copspresent there also mocked at me andI felt humiliated,” he added.

He said his father is a retiredDeputy SP in police and he tried toconvince the traffic policemen beg-ging them not to speak so harsh andin an insulting way to him. “I decid-ed to plead my case to SSP, Lucknow,and reached the camp office. Theconstable deployed at the gate allowedme entry but the police officers pre-sent in the office did not come to hearmy plea,” he alleged. He also allegedthat he was asked to park his car out-side the camp office and wait there.The police refused to comment onthe issue when contacted.

Accused brother

alleges extortion

by cops

PNS n LUCKNOW

The police claim to have busted a gang ofthieves in Jankipuram was mired in a contro-

versy on Wednesday when the brother of one ofthe accused alleged that he was tortured in policecustody and had to give Rs 1.1 lakh as ‘extortionsum’ to policemen who raided the house onTuesday night.

As per reports, a team, led by Jankipuraminspector Mohammed Asraf, raided a vacant plotnear Sarriya Tola primary school around 11.40pm on Tuesday and nabbed six persons who,according to police, were planning to committheft. Those arrested were identified as RohitRawat, Anoop Rawat, Gopal Rawat, AdityaRawat, Ankit Rawat and Rahul Kanuajia, all ofsame locality. The accused were brought at policestation and were interrogated. Police spokesmanAK Dwivedi claimed that the team recovered ahuge quantity of stolen goods including gold andsilver ornaments. “They disclosed that theyused to sell the ornaments to Ashish Verma akaBablu of Madiaon,” he said.

The controversy generated when the teamraided Bablu’s house on Tuesday night and round-ed up his elder brother, who lives in another housein the area. Bablu was not found at home.

The brother of the accused jeweller said: “Iwas beaten black and blue at the police stationby the cops and was forced to own up the crime.They did not listen to my plea that I was livingseparately with Bablu and had separate shop too.They forced my family to pay Rs 1.10 lakh as thearrested thieves had told them they sold the orna-ments for Rs 1.10 lakh to me. We have no optionbut to pay the sum,” he claimed.

When asked, the police spokesman said everyaccused claimed to be innocent. “Bablu’s broth-er may have some link in the theft cases and thatwas why he was rounded up by the police. Thepolice are probing his involvement,” the policespokesman defended the police.

Traffic cop misbehaves with disabled man

PNS n LUCKNOW

NBRI (National BotanicalResearch Institute) organ-

ised a brainstorming sessionon technology developmenton Wednesday.

Prof Anil K Gupta, visitingfaculty, IIM- Ahmedabad andIIT, Mumbai, were the keyspeaker in the session. ProfAlok Dhawan, director, CSIR-IITR and Dr Alok Kalra, direc-tor, CSIR-CIMAP, were alsopresent on the occasion. Themain objective of the sessionwas to interact with scientistsengaged in research that couldreach end-users at communi-

ty level, small entrepreneursand in some cases to corporatesand try to design actionresearch models to experimentwith different approaches.

Prof. Gupta, while dis-cussing product and technolo-gy developments, emphasisedthe need of regular interactionbetween institutions, entrepre-neurs, industries and otherstakeholders for continuousdevelopment of technologiesand products for the needs ofpresent and future. He said thatthe platform might be helpfulto come over the loopholeswhile designing any societalbeneficial product and technol-ogy.

In the end, Dr PA Shirkeproposed a vote of thankswhile programme was com-pered by Dr Suchi Srivastava.

PNS n LUCKNOW

Actress Alka Kaushal findsthe old charm of Lucknow

irresistible. The actress, whowas in the city for the promo-tion of her new show “ShaadiKe Siyape”, said that she hasbeen to the city thrice beforeand loved the old charm of thecity.

She said that she hadshopped several times in theold areas of Lucknow special-ly Aminabad and that sheenjoyed the “makhan” whichwas sold over here.

“ I have come to Lucknowthrice. The first time, I came toLucknow was to get the rightsof the novel by BhagwatiCharan Verma, the secondtime I shot for a web series thatwas made recently and now Iam here for this show,” she said.

She added that she had vis-ited Lucknow’s famous eatingpoints and savoured ‘makhan”,“malai paan” and the famoustea of “Shuklaji”. “I was takento these places by the by a co-actor who belongs to Lucknow,”she said.

Elaborating on the show’sconcept while also talking in-depth about their characters,the actress and actor MishkatVarma interacted with themedia at a press conferenceorganised in the city.

Eagerly engaging with thelocals, the duo spoke at lengthabout their unique role in thenew comedy “Shaadi KeSiyape” and about their specialvisit to some of the renownedplaces around the city.

Alka finds city fascinating

“I HAVE COME TO LUCKNOW THRICE.THE FIRST TIME, I CAME TO LUCKNOWWAS TO GET THE RIGHTS OF THE NOVELBY BHAGWATI CHARAN VERMA, THESECOND TIME I SHOT FOR A WEBSERIES THAT WAS MADE RECENTLYAND NOW I AM HERE FOR THIS SHOW”

NBRI session on tech development

‘Madhyantar’ being stages at Rai Umanath Bali auditorium on the occasion of World Play Day Pioneer

Nagar Nigam employees celebrating Holi Milan Samaroh at Triloki Nath auditorium on Wednesday Pioneer

Left left aside in UP

battle of ballots

PNS n LUCKNOW

The Left has been ‘left aside’in the battle of ballots in

Uttar Pradesh. With the pas-sage of time, it has been pushedto the margins and the lasttime the party won a seatfrom this politically sensitivestate was three decades back in1991. Even in the 2014 LokSabha election, the Left partiescould manage a meagre 0.01per cent votes.

Though the Left had neverbeen a big force in UP, but itsdecline has been drastic. Theheyday of the Left was in1967, when it won a maxi-mum of six seats from the stateafter which it slipped intooblivion.

“No particular reason canbe ascribed to the decline. In

fact, there are various factorsthat led to our downfall.Initially, politics of caste divid-ed the society and then religiontook over UP politics. In thismelee, the Left lost its voice,”said a senior CPI (M) leader.

And he was not off themark. The last time Left wassuccessful was whenVishwanath Shastri won theLok Sabha election fromGhazipur in 1991. In 2014, theLeft parties got only 5,637votes, which was 0.01 per centof the total votes polled in thatelection.

The Left tasted first elec-toral victory in 1957 fromBallia constituency when SarjuPandey was declared winner.Five years later, two candidatesof the Left emerged victorious— Jai Bahadur Singh (Ghosi)

and Sarju Pandey.The year 1967 was the

best year for Left parties whenthey won six seats. SarjuPandey won from Ghazipur, JaiBahadur Singh from Ghosi,Jageshwar Yadav from Banda,Isaac Shamshi from Amroha,LA Khan from Muzaffarnagarand SN Singh from Varanasi.

The Left won four seats inthe 1971 election whereinJharkhand Rai emerged as aniconic leader by winning fromGhosi. However, in 1977, theparty failed to win a single seat.In 1980 Jharkhand Rai wonGhosi seat again.

In the 1984 election also,the Left failed to win any seatbut in 1989, it won three seats.including that of Kanpurwhere Subhasini Ali emergedwinner.

Azam’s jibe over

Balakot strike

PNS n LUCKNOW

Senior Samajwadi Party leaderMohammad Azam Khan

said that had he been the PrimeMinister, he would not havewaited for 40 seconds to launchretaliatory attack on Pakistanafter Pulwama terror strike inKashmir in which 40 jawans ofthe CRPF were martyred.

In an obvious criticism ofPrime Minister Narendra Modi,Khan said, “A total of 450 ultraswere killed in retaliatory strikeby Indian Air Force at Balakotdeep inside Pakistan. I want toknow from Pakistan govern-ment why their namaz-e-janazawas not performed for the sal-vation of the departed souls.”

The SP leader added: “Whatkind of Islamic state is Pakistan?Why it is maintaining silenceover namaz-e-janaza of 450 ter-rorists killed in IAF strike at

Balakot?” Slamming the BJP forfielding biter rival and formercine star Jaya Prada as candidatefrom Rampur, Azam Khan said,“The BJP is struggling to findcandidates so they have import-ed the candidate for Rampurseat.”

Khan is an SP candidatefrom Rampur Lok Sabha seat.Jaya Prada was elected to LokSabha as SP candidate in 2004and 2009 elections. In 2009, JayaPrada won the election despiteopposition by Azam Khan, whowas later expelled from the SPin May 2009. Jaya Prada, whojoined the BJP on Tuesday, willtake on her bitter rival and SPcandidate Azam Khan inRampur. Khan had once calledJaya Prada a “naachne waali”.The rivalry between Khan andJaya Prada began in 2009 withthe former opposing her candi-dature in the 2009.

‘Modi playing dirty politicsover ASAT missile capability’

Lucknow (PNS):Bahujan Samaj Party chiefMayawati on Wednesday hitout at Prime MinisterNarendra Modi for playingdirty politics over India’santi-satellite missile capabil-ity.

“Congratulat ions toIndian defence scientists forthe successful experimentof shooting down a satellitein space. But the PM playingpolitics over it for poll gainsis condemnable. TheElection Commission ofIndia should definitely takecognisance of this ,”Mayawati said in a tweet inHindi.

The BSP chief ’s remarkscame hours after Modiannounced that India haddemonstrated anti-satellitemissile capability by shoot-ing down a live satellite.

Meanwhile, Mayawatialso fired fresh salvo, both atthe ruling BJP and Congress,

for their ‘garibi hatao’promise, terming it a bluff.

She accused both partiesof being ‘birds of the samefeather’ who betrayed people.

“The ruling BJP callingCongress’ slogan of GaribiHatao 2.0 a bluff, is true. Butis poll bluff and reneging onpoll promises, the soledomain of the BJP? The BJPand Congress are the sameand are betraying interests ofthe poor, labourers, farmersand others,” Mayawati tweet-ed.

The Dalit leader’sremarks came after the rul-ing BJP described Congress’minimum income scheme‘NYAY’ announced by partychief Rahul Gandhi forpoverty eradication a ‘bluff ’.

On Monday, Gandhiannounced to give Rs 72,000per annum to 25 crore poorfamilies of the country ifCongress came to power atthe Centre.

LUCKNOW | THURSDAY | MARCH 28, 2019 nation 05

PNS n NEW DELHI

Ajoint team of CBI and EDwill soon leave for London

to assist local authorities in theextradition case of fugitive dia-mantaire Nirav Modi, wantedin the `14,000 crore PNB cred-it fraud case.

Modi’s bail plea will comefor hearing before a court inLondon on Friday. He is cur-rently undergoing judicial cus-tody.

A Joint Director-level offi-cer each from CBI and ED hasbeen deputed to leave forLondon Modi’s hearing on bailin London.

The ED officer will carrythe latest chargesheet filed bythe agency against Modi’s wifeAmi and the recent attach-ments made by it in the case tobuttress its extradition plea.

The team will also meetvarious officers there, includ-ing those from the CrownProsecution Service (CPS), andbrief them about the chargesand fresh evidence againstModi, his family and others inconnection with the case.

He was spotted living in an

upscale locality in London bythe UK-based newspaper TheTelegraph.

Nirav Modi was laterarrested on the basis of theextradition request of Indiaand an Interpol Red CornerNotice issued against him onthe request of the CBI last year.

Modi was produced beforethe Westminster Magistrates’Court last week, wherein hecontested his extradition toIndia.

The district court inLondon denied bail to Modiand remanded him in custody

till March 29, saying therewere substantial grounds tobelieve that he would fail tosurrender if granted bail.

UK Home Secretary SajidJavid had certified India’s extra-dition request for the fugitivediamantaire earlier this month.This led to the issuance of awarrant against him.

He is suspected to havearrived in London last year andwas able to travel in and out ofBritain at least four times sincehis passport was cancelled bythe Indian authorities inFebruary 2018.

PNS n NEW DELHI

Taking a swipe at PrimeMinister Narendra Modi,

Congress president RahulGandhi on Wednesday said hisexpression during his address tothe nation betrayed his anxietythat “his time to go has come”.

Addressing a convention ofthe party’s Other BackwardClasses (OBC) department,Rahul said the prime ministerhas realised that the Congresswill now give justice to thepoor. “He (PM) made thecountry wait for 45 minutes forhis announcement, did youlook at his face? He has realisedthat the Congress will now givejustice...Modi is now afraidthat his time to go has come,”he told the gathering at theIndira Gandhi Indoor Stadiumhere, ahead of the April-Mayparliamentary election.

The newly-announcedNYAY (minimum incomeguarantee scheme) wherebythe party promised to give Rs72,000 per year to five crorepoor families in the country tobring them out of poverty, wasjustice, the Congress chief saidand asserted that Modi’spromises were “lies” and thusinjustice.

The Congress presidentalso assured the OBC commu-nity that they would see manymore MPs and MLAs fromamong them as the Congresshad earlier given two OBCChief Ministers to the country.“I am guaranteeing the OBCcommunity that soon they will

be given more space in theCongress party. In the comingdays there will more CMs,more MLAs...This is my guar-antee. I am not Narendra Modi,I don’t lie. I have taken thischallenge to give space to theOBC, dalit, farmers, poor...InCongress,” he said.

Attacking the prime min-ister, Gandhi said he had liedabout giving `15 lakh to peo-ple in the run-up to the 2014election, but the Congresswould give `72,000 as part ofthe proposed income guaran-tee scheme. “We won’t be ableto give `15 lakh, but we won’t

lie. We will give `3.60 lakhcrore in the bank accounts ofthe 20 per cent of the poorestof the country over the next fiveyears,” he said.

He hailed the ability ofpeople belong to the OBC cat-egory to work hard and saidthat they do “kaam ki baat”(talk about work) and not“mann ki baat”, in an apparentdig at the PM’s radio pro-gramme.

“We have written in ourmanifesto that any youth, be itfrom any category, doesn’t needany permission for the firstthree years for starting a busi-ness. We want make in India,not made by Ambani...We wantmake in India, not made byAmbani in France,” he said tak-ing a swipe at the govern-ment’s flagship Make in Indiascheme. “Lakhs of youth seekfinancial help to start a busi-ness, but fail to get it. We can-not accept this. We believeeveryone should get ‘NYAY’,” hesaid.

Rahul has been allegingthat businessman Anil Ambanihas benefitted from the Rafaledeal with French defence firmDassault, an allegation deniedby the industrialist and the gov-ernment.

New Delhi: The CPI(M) haswritten to the EC against theappointment of former BSFDirector General KK Sharma asspecial police observer for theApril-May parliamentary elec-tion in West Bengal andJharkhand, alleging he was pre-sent at an RSS function a yearago. The EC has earlier appoint-ed four special observers, tworetired IRS and two retired IPSofficer, to spearhead its efforts tocheck the abuse of black moneyand illegal inducements to vot-ers and monitor deployment ofsecurity forces in select sensitivestates during the Lok Sabhapolls. Sharma is one of them.

“It has been widely report-ed that the DG, who has nowretired, participated in a two-day event in Kolkata which wasorganised by Seemanta ChetnaManch, part of the RSS-backedSeema Jagran Manch, a panIndia body which aims to instil‘patriotism’ in the border areasacross the country.

“The ECI’s appointment,therefore, is patently questionableand would raise the question of

political partisanship. We would,therefore, urge the commissionto reconsider and rescind thisappointment forthwith,” the let-ter from CPI(M) Polit bureaumember Nilotpal Basu said.

On Tuesday, theTrinamool Congress had raisedsimilar objection to Sharma’sappointment. The CPI(M)has also raised the issue of apurported video clip of TripuraChief Minister Biplab Deballegedly issuing a veiled threatto the opposition parties. “Inthe clip he clearly says that theelections to the two parlia-mentary seats from Tripura willbe different from the past andimplied a threat to the opposi-tion of undermining the nor-mal course. To add emphasis,he underlined that he was notjust speaking in his enthusiasm,but in complete senses.

“This is a clear violation ofmisusing his office to threatenfree, fair and peaceful polls andwould warrant urgent remedi-al measures from the ElectionCommission,” the letter fromthe CPI(M) leader said. PNS

PNS n NEW DELHI

The Election Commission (EC) hassent a notice to four producers of the

film ‘PM Narendra Modi’ after receivingcomplaints from few other political partiesregarding the intent and timing of themovie. The Congress and Communist

Party of India (Marxist) had complainedto the ECI about the film’s release, claim-ing that it’s being done with political intent.

On March 25, a Congress delegationhad visited the EC to protest against theVivek Oberoi-starrer, alleging that the film’srelease slated just ahead of the com-mencement of Lok Sabha polls is a viola-tion of the model code of conduct.

The Congress delegation, includedRandeep Singh Surjewala, Kapil Sibal, andAbhishek Manu Singhvi, also sought a banon the release of the biopic ahead of polling.

Last week, the EC had sent notices totwo newspapers for publishing posters of‘PM Narendra Modi’ for promotions.

The movie has also got into legal trou-ble as a petition has been filed in theBombay High Court seeking a stay on therelease of the biopic on April 5.

PTI n NEW DELHI

The Supreme Court onWednesday sentenced

advocate Mathews JNedumpara to three months injail for contempt of court andattempting to “browbeat”judges but suspended the sen-tence after taking note of theunconditional apology ten-dered by him.

The apex court, whichbarred the advocate from prac-tising before it for a year, saidthe jail sentence will be sus-pended only if Nedumparaabides by the undertaking thathe will never attempt to brow-beat judges of the top court andthe Bombay High Court.

A bench of Justices RFNariman and Vineet Saran,meanwhile, issued fresh con-tempt notice to Nedumparaand three others for “scan-dalous allegations” levelledagainst both the judges in a let-ter addressed to the Presidentof India, Chief Justice of IndiaRanjan Gogoi and other judgesof the top court and theBombay High Court.

On March 12, the top courthad held him guilty of con-tempt for taking the name of

noted jurist Fali S Nariman, thefather of Justice RF Nariman, toallege that sons and daughtersof judges were given priority inawarding ‘senior advocate’ des-ignation and had said that hehas attempted to browbeat thecourts.

It had issued notice to thelawyer on the punishment to beimposed on him for commit-ting contempt of court and hadsought his response within twoweeks.

The issue of contempt had

cropped up when the benchwas hearing a petition filed byan organisation, NationalLawyers Campaign for JudicialTransparency and Reforms,which was represented byNedumpara during the hear-ing.

In its order on Wednesday,the bench said: “We sentenceMathews J Nedumpara to threemonth imprisonment in jailwhich is suspended only ifMathews J Nedumpara, infuture, continues to abide by

the undertaking/affidavit(given by him).

“Mathews J Nedumpara isotherwise barred from prac-tising as an advocate before theSupreme Court for a period ofone year.”

The court said the freshcontempt case be placed beforethe CJI for constituting anappropriate bench to hear thematter as “serious allegations”have been levelled against boththe judges of the present bench.

The bench noted in its

verdict that Nedumpara hastendered an unconditionalapology to the court by way ofan affidavit given by him.

During the arguments onpoint of punishment to beimposed on Nedumpara,Justice Nariman said: “Are you(Nedumpara) aware that I havea daughter who is a practisinglawyer and she is not allowedto enter this court? Are youaware that Justice U U Lalit’s(sitting apex court judge) fatheris a lawyer?”

When Nedumpara said hehad raised an issue-based mat-ter in the plea filed by hisorganisation, Justice Narimansaid, “The issue is not FaliNariman but about relativespractising as advocate beforejudges. Justice Lalit’s issue wasnot mentioned and this showsit is not issue based.”

When the matter wasargued in the morning session,Nedumpara told the benchthat he has sought transfer ofthe case to another bench andhe will also file an applicationseeking recall of the March 12order holding him guilty ofcontempt of court.

However, the benchreferred to a letter written by a

Mumbai-based bar body tothe President of India, the CJIand other judges and toldNedumpara that “one very verydisturbing thing has takenplace”.

“They (bar body) haveattacked us (both the judges) inthe most scurrilous fashion,”Justice Nariman said.

The bench toldNedumpara that it appeared asif he and the bar body were“acting in tandem” and have“embarked upon the task todestroy the superior judiciaryof the country”.

He later sought a pass overon the ground that his lawyerwas on his way to the courtafter which the bench saidthat it would hear the matter at2 PM today itself.

When the bench assem-bled at 2 PM in the post-lunchsession, the counsel appearingfor Nedumpara referred to theprocedure of contempt of courtand said no charges wereframed in the matter.

However, the bench said,“Having held Nedumpara guiltyof contempt of court, can otherbench deal with the issue ofpunishment? Today, the issue isonly about punishment.”

New Delhi: The Election Commissionhas said it is eaxmining whether theGovernment has the right to invoke"national security" on Prime MinisterNarendra Modi's address to the nation onMission Shakti which has triggered theOpposition charge of model code of conduct.

In a statement the ElectionCommission said, "The matter related tothe address of the Prime Minister to thenation on electronic media today after-noon (March 27) has been brought to thenotice of the Election Commission ofIndia. The Commission has directed acommittee of officers to examine the mat-ter immediately in the light of model codeof conduct." Dr Sandeep Saxsena, DeputyElection Commissioner (DEC) of theMCC division, will head the committeeto examine PM Modi's speech. PNS

Lokpal Chairperson Justice Pinaki Chandra Ghose administers oath to Archana Ramasundaram as a new member of anti-corruption ombudsman Lokpal, during aswearing-in ceremony at Vigyan Bhawan in New Delhi on Wednesday PTI

Congress party president Rahul Gandhi at National Convention organised by OBC cell of AICC in New Delhi on WednesdayRanjan Dimri | Pioneer

Modi’s time to go has come: Rahul

CPM opposes ex-BSFDG’s appointment asspecial observer

PNS n NEW DELHI

The Election Commission islearnt to have issued a

show cause notice to theRailways and Civil Aviationministries over the use of PrimeMinister Narendra Modi’s pic-tures on rail tickets and AirIndia boarding passes as primafacie it violates the model codeof conduct.

The code came into forceon March 10 when the pollbody announced the schedulefor the Lok Sabha polls begin-ning April 11.

Sources in the poll panelsaid prima facie the railwaysand Air India have violated themodel code of conduct, andreferred to clause VII of thecode which states that “issue ofadvertisement at the cost ofpublic exchequer ... Regardingachievements with a view tofurthering the prospects of the

party in power shall be scrupu-lously avoided”.

In a complaint to the EC,the Trinamool Congress hadrecently claimed that the“...Railway tickets issued bythe Indian Railways containachievements of the party inpower at the Centre (BJP) withregard to Pradhan Mantri AwasYojana and photographs ofPrime Minister Narendra Modiwhich is being displayed at thecost of public exchequer andobviously to influence minds ofthe voters.”

The display of photographwas part of an Urban

Development Ministry adver-tisement campaign.

A portion of the back sideof tickets is often used foradvertising. The railways hadlast week decided to withdrawthe tickets carrying the pho-tographs of the PM, sources inthe ministry said.

Nearly one lakh such tick-ets were printed and a few wereremaining in the lot. The min-istry is likely to reiterate thesame position to EC, they said.

The railways had said all its17 zones have been directedagainst using the tickets carry-ing the picture of the prime

minister. A boarding pass issued by

Air India had pictures of PMModi and Gujarat ChiefMinister Vijay Rupani. Theairline had said the passes fea-turing the photographs, whichwere third-party advertise-ments, would be withdrawn ifthey were found to be in vio-lation of the Model Code ofConduct.

Former Punjab DGPShashi Kant on Monday tweet-ed a photograph of his board-ing pass issued at the NewDelhi airport, questioning howpictures of the two leaderscould be on it.

An Air India spokespersonearlier said the boarding pass-es seemed to be the ones print-ed during the Vibrant GujaratSummit held in January andthe photographs were part ofthe advertisement from ‘thirdparties’.

New Delhi: The ElectionCommission on Wednesday issueda show cause notice to a memberof the BJP’s National ElectionCommittee for sharing an audio-visual advertisement titled “MainBhi Chowkidar Hoon” on socialmedia without complying with thedirections of the poll body, anofficial said.He said Neeraj has been directedto submit a reply within threedays. The poll body said its MediaCertification and MonitoringCommittee (MCMC) had issued acertificate dated March 16 to theBJP leader “in respect of the saidadvertisement subject to theexclusion of the clips depictingArmy personnel”. Earlier this month, the EC haddirected political parties to keepthe country’s defence personnelout of election campaigning andnot use their photographs inadvertisements. PTI

SC lawyer sentenced to 3-month jail for contempt

PTI n NEW DELHI

Prime Minister NarendraModi is trying to create fear

psychosis in the minds of vot-ers through warmongering,CPI leader D Raja saidWednesday, alleging that hisannouncement on ‘MissionShakti’ showed his “desperationand panic”.

“He has politicised theachievements of the scientists,taken credit for it and usedpublic broadcasting to do so.This is definitely a violation ofthe model code of conduct (forthe Lok Sabha elections). TheEC should take action imme-diately.

“Also, he is trying to createa fear psychosis in the minds ofthe people ahead of the elec-

tions and is (resorting to) war-mongering. This shows thatthey are desperate and panicky,”Raja said.

However, sources in theElection Commission have saidthat issues related to national

security and disaster manage-ment do not fall under theambit of the model code ofconduct.

India shot down one of itssatellites in space onWednesday with an anti-satel-lite missile to demonstrate thiscomplex capability, PrimeMinister Narendra Modiannounced, making it only thefourth country to have usedsuch a weapon.

Declaring India has estab-lished itself as a global spacepower after the success of theoperation ‘Mission Shakti’,Modi said the missile hit a livesatellite flying in a Low EarthOrbit after it traversed a dis-tance of almost 300 km fromearth within three minutes ofits launch.

EC issues notice over Modi’s pics on train ticketsModi trying to create fear psychosisthrough warmongering, alleges Raja

EC examining whetherPM’s Shakti speechviolates model code

Poll body sends noticeto producers of ‘PMNarendra Modi’ movie

The team will also

meet various

officers there,

including those from

the Crown

Prosecution Service

(CPS), and brief

them about the

charges and fresh

evidence against Modi, his family and

others in connection with the case

Ahead of NiMo’s bail pleaED, CBI team to leave for UK

EC ISSUES NOTICE TO

BJP OVER ‘MAI BHI

CHOWKIDAR’ ADNearly one lakh such ticketswere printed and a few were

remaining in the lot. Theministry is likely to reiterate the

same position to EC

LUCKNOW | THURSDAY | MARCH 28, 2019 nation 06

SAUGAR SENGUPTA n KOLKATA

Mamata Banerjee hasoffered to solve the

Kashmir problem, provided shewas called upon to do so, theBengal Chief Minister said onWednesday even as she under-scored the highlights ofTrinamool Congress’ electionmanifesto.

Credited with breaking the

Darjeeling impasse swiftly andsteadily and handling of theMaoist crisis in Jangalmahalareas of her State, Banerjeesaid, “I don’t believe that theKashmir problem cannot besolved. Everything has a solu-tion and Kashmir issue too canbe solved. The only need is toreach out to the people of thatState and talk to them with yourheart,” adding she was ready for

talks with the Kashmiris.“If I am asked to take up the

issue, I will gladly accept thetask. For that, I will have to goto Kashmir. I will reside therefor some period of time whenI reach out to the women folk,mothers, sisters, housewivestaking all into confidence,” theChief Minister said, adding“Kashmir issue needs a bit ofheart for it to be solved.”

Speaking about theDemonetisation issue, Banerjeevouched for an investigationinto the “biggest scam.” She hadalways been vocal againstDemonetisation which, sheclaimed was used as a money-making device for the BJP to

win elections.“We will probe into whether

and how this demonetisationwas used to make black moneywhite and who benefited fromthis step” that made the wholecountry to suffer as the country’seconomy suffered as never

before and crores of people losttheir jobs.

On Goods and ServicesTax, the Chief Minister said ifOpposition parties come topower, they would consider thereviewing of the GST so as tolessen its burden on the people.

Will solve J&K problem, probe DeMo, review GST: Didi

PNS: The party will try to findout “why was demonetisationcarried out? To serve whoseinterests? We want a judicialprobe monitored by a formerSupreme Court judge.”

Again “Our aim is to gen-erate employment for youthsand students. We are proud tosay we have reduced unem-ployment by 40 per cent inBengal.” Besides “every vacantseat for SC/ST/OBCs must befilled.”

The manifesto said “eco-nomic security of farmers andensuring their livelihood mustbe ensured. We will see to itthat farmers do not have to selltheir products at low price.”

It also said that “socialsecurity of the workers in theunorganised sector must betaken care of,” particularly,

“we will lay special emphasison the empowerment ofwomen.”

On the GST it says that“the basic idea behind theGST was initially completelydifferent. But the way theCentral Government imple-mented the GST, it did notbenefit anybody from thesmall business to the generalconsumer. So, the GST will bereviewed so that the public,buyers and small and mediumenterprises benefit from it.”

It also says, “we want 100Days’ Work to be increased to200 days, and their daily wagesto be doubled. This will ensuretheir livelihood and improvetheir quality of life. We will tryto ensure employment anddouble the labourer’s wage.”

To further strengthen the

federal structure, a new modelof Planning Commission willbe established it has saidadding “continuous commu-nication with the States will bemaintained. The PlanningCommission will become thefocal point of development.”

The manifesto seeks tocreate better social infrastruc-ture; we will increase invest-ment in education and healthsectors. Besides laying stresson science, research, econom-ic progress, agriculture, indus-try and service, our focuswoul also be on new invest-ments and holistic develop-ment of the country.” It alsowrites about how the party“will encourage sports and allcultural thoughts for the bet-terment of the people of thenation.”

HIGHLIGHTS OF TMC MANIFESTO

West Bengal Chief Minister and TMC supremo Mamata Banerjee addresses a Press conference as State's Finance MinisterAmit Mitra looks on, after the release of party manifesto ahead of Lok Sabha Election 2019 in Kolkata on Wednesday PTI

DRDO achievement pridefor nation, let us not playpolitics: Ram Madhav

Ahmedabad: Prime MinisterMinister Narendra Modi isunlikely to contest electionfrom Gujarat is spite of thedemands from the BJP's Stateunit, a party leader here hassaid.

Modi had won fromVadodara and Varanasi in 2014and chose to retain the latter.

As BJP president AmitShah will be contesting fromGandhinagar, the chances ofanother national-level leadercontesting from the state arevery slim, a state BP leader saidon the condition of anonymi-ty.

"I do not think that theywill field two national leadersfrom one State. There is nochance of Modi fighting froma seat in Gujarat," the BJPleader said.

State BJP leaders haverequested Modi to contestfrom Gujarat to boost partyworkers' morale, especially inthe aftermath of the 2017Assembly elections when theCongress managed to restrictthe BJP to 99 seats, lowest intwo decades, and increased itsown tally by 16 seats to 77 inthe 182-member LegislativeAssembly. PTI

Modi unlikely

to contest

from Gujarat

Mumb ai: Abdul KadirNajmudin Sathak, an allegedaide of Islamic preacher ZakirNaik, on Wednesday deniedthat he helped the contro-versial televangelist withmoney laundering.

Sathak, a jeweller, wasarrested Friday under thePrevent ion of MoneyLaundering (PMLA).

He is accused of helpingNaik by transferring "funds ofdubious origin from the UAE(United Arab Emirates) tofacilitate production andbroadcasting of incriminatingvideos for spreading com-munal hatred and radicalisa-tion of a particular commu-nity".

In his bail plea beforespecial PMLA judge M SAzmi, filed after he was sentin judicial custody, Sathaksaid there was nothing toshow that he "acquired ordealt with any property"obtained through crime. PTI

Zakir Naik's

‘aide' denies

charges of money

laundering

PTI n NEW DELHI

Amid speculation that he maybe the Finance Minister if an

Opposition alliance wins theensuing general elections, formerRBI Governor Raghuram Rajanhas said he is willing to return totake an opportunity where hecould be of use.

Rajan, a former ChiefEconomist at the InternationalMonetary Fund who was denieda second term as Reserve BankGovernor by the BJP-led gov-ernment, said he is “very happy”where he is, but is open to

opportunities.“I am very happy where I

am. But if there is an opportuni-ty to be of use I will always bethere,” he said at the launch of hisnew book ‘The Third Pillar’ onTuesday evening.

Rajan, who is currently theKatherine Dusak MillerDistinguished Service Professorof Finance at the University ofChicago’s Booth School ofBusiness in the US, was asked ifhe would like to return to Indiain public service or even a polit-ical role. Speculation in politicalcircles has been that he may be

a choice for Finance Minister ifthe ‘Grand Alliance’ of oppositionparties such as TMC, SamajwadiParty, BSP and TDP were to winthe April/May general elections.

Congress President RahulGandhi had on Tuesday statedthat Rajan was among top econ-omists that his party had con-sulted to draft its minimumincome guarantee scheme,Nyuntam Aay Yojana or NYAY.

The scheme assures up to`72,000 a year or ̀ 6,000 a monthincome to 20 per cent of India’spoorest families if the Congressis voted back to power in the Lok

Sabha elections next month.In an interview to CNBC

TV18 Tuesday, Rajan said it was“premature” to discuss if he wasapproached by any of the partiesto take up a policy-making posi-tion if they were to win.

“I think it is premature tohave this discussion. I reallythink that this is an importantelection for India and I also thinkwe need a new set of reforms. Iwould be happy to push thoseideas and we are trying to do thatmore broadly to anybody wholistens,” he had said.

Rajan, who is credited with

taking some bold decisions oncleaning up of bank balancesheets as the RBI Governor,when asked what his prioritieswould be if he was the financeminister of the country, he said“I think there are short-termissues”. “A number of economists,of which I was one, have puttogether a set of policy ideas andthey are out there for anybody toread. They are coming out in abook but let me say very quick-ly that certainly, I would focus onshort-term actions that could puta lot of projects back on track,”he said.

Also, cleaning up the banksas quickly as possible and setthem back on credit growth, andfinding two or three key reformsthat could unleash growth wouldbe his focus, he said. “Certainlyone of them has to be how wereview agriculture in a way thatreduces distress. Second would bethe issue of land acquisition. Canwe learn from the best practicesof the states and find methodsthat seem fair and in a sense alsogive states the freedom to pick themethod that works best for themso that we learn from each other’sexperiments?

Will return if a opportunity to be of use: Rajan

From Page 1Reddy said the technology

used for the test was complete-ly developed indigenously andthe project was implemented inthe fastest way possible

Soon after the PrimeMinister’s address, the ExternalAffairs Ministry brought out alist of frequently asked questionsabout the test and said this wasa technological mission carriedout by DRDO. It also said thehighlight of the test is that Indiahas tested and successfullydemonstrated its capability tointerdict and intercept a satellitein outer space.

On using the “kinetic kill”technology rather than “fly bytests” and jamming, the Ministrysaid this is a technology wherewe have developed capability.Space technologies are con-stantly evolving. We have usedthe technology that is appropri-ate to achieve the objectives setout in this mission.

As regards concerns aboutdebris arising out of the test inspace, it was clarified the test wasdone in the lower atmosphere toensure that there is no spacedebris. Whatever debris that isgenerated will decay and fallback onto the earth withinweeks, it added. About questions

raised on the timing of the test,the Ministry said it was done toverify that India has the capa-bility to safeguard our spaceassets. Moreover, the test wasconducted after the scientistshad acquired the requireddegree of confidence to ensureits success, and reflects theintention of the Government toenhance India’s national securi-ty.

According to report put outby news agency Reuter, theUnited States performed thefirst anti-satellite tests in 1959,when satellites themselves wererare and new. Bold Orion,designed as a nuclear-tipped bal-listic missile re-purposed toattack satellites, was launchedfrom a bomber and passed closeenough to the Explorer 6 satel-lite for it to have been destroyedif the missile had been armed.The The Soviet Union per-formed similar tests around thesame time. In the 1960s andearly 1970s, it tested a weaponthat could be launched in orbit,approach enemy satellites anddestroy them with an explosivecharge, according to the Unionof Concerned Scientists, a non-profit research and advocacyorganisation.

In 1985, the United Statestested the AGM-135, launchedfrom an F-15 fighter jet, destroy-ing an American satellite called

Solwind P78-1. There were notests for more than 20 years.Then in 2007, China entered theanti-satellite arena by destroyingan old weather satellite in a high,polar orbit. The test created thelargest orbital debris cloud inhistory, with more than 3,000objects, according to the SecureWorld Foundation, a group thatadvocates sustainable and peace-ful uses of outer space. The nextyear, the United States carriedout Operation Burnt Frost, usinga ship-launched SM-3 missile todestroy a defunct spy satellite

Debris from anti-satellitetests can create problems forother satellites and spacecraft inorbit, as tiny bits of junk whizthrough space many times fasterthan a rifle bullet. TheInternational Space Station, forexample, regularly tweaks itsorbit to avoid debris of all kinds.

China’s 2007 test is consid-ered the most destructive.Because the impact took place atan altitude of more than 800 km(500 miles), many of the result-ing scraps stayed in orbit. TheUS test in 2008 did not create asmuch orbital debris, and becauseit was at a lower altitude, atmos-pheric drag caused much of it tofall toward Earth and burn up.

With the successful test onWednesday, India theoreticallyholds other countries’ satellitesat risk.

From Page 1The DRDO later said the

test demonstrated the nation’scapability to defend its assetsin outer space. It is a vindica-tion of the strength and robustnature of DRDO’s pro-grammes adding the test hasonce again proven the capa-bility of indigenous weaponsystems.

“India’s anti-satellite mis-sile test is a reflection of thecountry’s growing capabilityto develop critical technologyand it will act as a good deter-rence, DRDO Chairman GSatheesh Reddy saidWednesday. Reddy said clear-ance for the project was givenover two years back.

Reddy said the technolo-gy used for the test has beencompletely developed indige-nously. The shooting down ofthe satellite with a missileref lected that “we havematured to develop technolo-gy which could achieve accu-racy in terms of centimeters”.

The Government alsotried to allay apprehensionsabout weaponisation of outerspace and said it has no inten-tion of entering into an armsrace in outer space. It was alsomentioned that the nationhas always maintained that

space must be used only forpeaceful purposes and sup-port international efforts toreinforce the safety and secu-rity of space based assets.

Also, India is a party to allthe major internationaltreaties relating to Outer Spaceand already implements anumber of Transparency andConfidence BuildingMeasures(TCBMs) - includingregistering space objects withthe UN register, prelaunchnotifications, measures in har-mony with the UN SpaceMitigation Guidelines, par-ticipation in Inter AgencySpace Debris Coordination(IADC) activities with regardto space debris management,undertaking SOPA (SpaceObject Proximity Awarenessand COLA (CollisionAvoidance) Analysis andnumerous international coop-eration activities, includinghosting the UN affiliatedCentre for Space and ScienceTechnology Education in Asiaand Pacific. India has beenparticipating in all sessions ofthe UN Committee on thePeaceful Uses of Outer Space.

India supports the sub-stantive consideration of theissue of Prevention of anArms Race in Outer Space(PAROS) in the Conferenceon Disarmament where it hasbeen on the agenda since1982.

From Page 1He said Indian advance-

ment in national security areaswould go on “elections or noelections”.

The Congress congratu-lated ISRO and theGovernment for acquiringAnti-Satellite missile capabil-ity but extended credit to for-mer Prime MinistersJawaharlal Nehru and IndiraGandhi, while a senior partyleader said the ‘ASAT’ pro-gramme was initiated duringUPA rule.

Rahul also congratulatedthe Defence ResearchDevelopment Organisation(DRDO). “Well done DRDO,extremely proud of your work.I would also like to wish thePM a very happy WorldTheatre Day,” he said onTwitter.

Mamata hit out at PrimeMinister saying it was “yetanother limitless drama” to“reap political benefits” aheadof the Lok Sabha polls. Termingit a gross violation of the modelcode of conduct, Mamata saidthere was “no great urgency” ofannouncing the mission by a

Government “past its expirydate” and asserted that it seemsto be the “desperate oxygen tosave the imminent sinking ofthe BJP boat”.

Mamata said she will lodgea complaint with the ElectionCommission while CPI (M)Sitaram Yechury has alreadylodged a complaint to the pollwatchdog.

“India’s mission pro-gramme is world-class formany many years. We arealways proud of our scientists,@DRDO_India, other research& space organisations,” Mamtasaid adding research, spacemanagement and developmentare a continuous process overthe years and “Modi, as usuallikes to take the credit foreverything”.

She said “credit to thosewho really deserve it, our sci-entists & researchers.”

Senior Congress leaderAhmed Patel credited theUnited Progressive AllianceGovernment for initiating theASAT (Anti-Satellite) pro-gramme and lauded thenPrime Minister ManmohanSingh’s leadership.

From Page 1Dhavalikar, the lone MGP MLA who did

not break away from the party, hit back,terming the development as “dacoity bychowkidars”. On Tuesday, MGP presidentDipak Dhavalikar had claimed that his partywas the target of a conspiracy by opponents.

In a communication addressed to GoaGovernor Mridula Sinha, Sawant informed herabout dropping Dhavalikar.

“I have dropped Sudin Dhavalikar from theCabinet. The decision on filling up the vacantseat will be taken very soon,” Sawant was quot-ed as saying by PTI. The CM’s recommenda-tion to drop Dhavalikar was accepted by Sinha.

Dhavalikar said, “People are stunned theway, in the middle of the night, ‘chowkidars’conducted dacoity on MGP. People are watch-ing and they will consider their course ofaction,” he said.

He claimed the MGP was an outfit of themasses and would not be eliminated by suchmoves.

Dhavalikar was allotted portfolios ofTransport and Public Works which would benow looked after by Sawant.

Governor Sinha, who is in New Delhi now,has cut short her visit and would be arrivingin Goa later during the evening to administerthe oath to the new Minister replacingDhavalikar.

Parrikar was heading a coalitionGovernment comprising the BJP, three MLAseach of the GFP, the MGP and threeIndependents.

The Congress is currently the singlelargest party in the State with 14 MLAs. TheBJP has 12 legislators in the 40-memberAssembly, whose strength now is 36 afterParrikar’s death.

From Page 1As the appointed hour

came and went with no sign ofthe Prime Minister on theirscreens, debate intensified -- inhomes and offices, buses andmetro trains, on Twitter andtelevision channels.Speculation about a possiblesecurity-related announcementgained traction when somechannels reported that theCabinet Committee onSecurity (CCS) had gone intoa huddle at the PrimeMinister’s residence. The elec-tronic media or TV anchorsheightened the suspense whenthey repeatedly insisted thatthe Prime Minister cannotmake any policy announce-ment when the model code ofconduct was in force for theelection. While TV presentersworked themselves into a fren-zy over what message thePrime Minister could possiblygive, people had existentialconcerns on mind.

The surprise tweet ledmany to speculate on theimportant message with for-mer Jammu & Kashmir ChiefMinister Omar Abdullah say-ing, “Modi is going to declareresults of the general elec-

tions.” One twitter user said,“Are you banning 2000 Rupeesnote ? One Twitter user, said,“Another #Demonetisation?Did they catch Masood Azharor Dawood? Are we takingover Pakistan? OMG I am#anxious now.”

One twitter user said:“Another #Demonetisation?Did they catch Masood Azharor Dawood? Are we takingover Pakistan? OMG I am#anxious now,” AnotherTwitter handle responded witha meme that said, “Pal bhartheher jaao, dil ye sambhaljaaye”. “ I was going to theATM... Just turned back. Nowbuying stuff I don’t need withany remaining cash I haveCheers #modi#ModiHaiToMumkinHai#Demonetisation wala feeling#politics”, tweeted Shahenshah(@Shhahenshah). “Dawoodarrested brought back? HafizSaeed or Masood Azhar elim-inated?#PMtoaddressnation,”added social media user, SagarRai.

“#PMModi ji is going toaddress the nation today. I amalready at the ATM,” said auser Amir Pathan.

“#PMModi’s announce-

ment to address the nation justtested Imran Khan’s BP for awhile,” read the caption.“Congress has already sent adelegation to ElectionCommission to complainmodel code violation, Rahulpreparing for Press Conference#PM to address the nation,”another user tweeted.

The address finally startedat 12.25 pm, and social mediausers bombarded Twitter withtheir theories while they wait-ed. Among them was formerJammu & Kashmir ChiefMinister Omar Abdullah whotweeted, “He’s declaring theresults of the Lok Sabha elec-tions. #JustSaying.” Congresspresident Rahul Gandhi alsotweeted “Well done DRDO,extremely proud of your work.I would also like to wish thePM a very happy WorldTheatre Day.”

Taking a dig at the PM,one user said, ‘’Now some aresaying that PM is about to tellthe ending of Avengers EndGame.”

Pictures of former PrimeMinister Indira Gandhiaddressing the country toannounce the imposition ofEmergency were also circulat-

ing on the microblogging site.PM Modi, however, man-

aged to really surprise hisskeptics when he announcedabout India registering itself asa space power and theresounding success of MissionShakti.

PM Modi said that Indiahas shot down a low orbitsatellite, demonstrating itsspace warfare capability. PMModi said India had demon-strated anti-satellite missilecapability by shooting downa live satellite, describing it asa rare achievement that putsthe country in an exclusiveclub of space super powers.“With this, India has regis-tered itself as a space power,”he said.

“In the journey of everynation there are moments thatbring utmost pride and have ahistoric impact on generationsto come. One such moment istoday,” he said in an unprece-dented broadcast to the nationon television, radio and socialmedia.

Earlier in the day, theCabinet Committee onSecurity met at the PrimeMinister’s residence, settingoff further speculation.

Twitterati fly off the handle before... Anti-satellite...

Modi’s election

blitz from space

Opp leaders hailscientists, rail...

Goa CM drops Dy...

Shillong: Coal mining ban in Meghalaya hasbecome a major poll issue in the State with bothChief Minister and NPP president Conrad KSangma and his predecessor Mukul Sangma of theCongress harping on the issue.

Conrad K Sangma on Wednesday accusedMukul Sangma of failing to challenge the coal min-ing ban in the State by the National Green Tribunal(NGT) when he was Chief Minister.

The ban has not only affected livelihood of thepeople but also led to financial loss for the State,Conrad, also National People's Party (NPP) pres-ident, said while addressing election rallies in SouthGaro Hills district.

The NGT had imposed a blanket ban on min-ing and transportation of coal in Meghalaya in2014, citing unscientific methods and absence ofsafety measures. Mukul Sangma was the chief min-ister at that time.

An NPP-led coal it ion, MeghalayaDemocratic Alliance (MDA) which includes theBJP, ousted the Congress Government in thestate in the assembly election held early lastyear. "In 2014, the NGT had banned coal min-ing in Meghalaya. I ask Mukul Sangma why hehad failed to challenge the NGT order in theSupreme Court. In 2018, when the MDAcame to power, the government had to startfrom scratch and now is fighting the case in theSupreme Court," Conrad said.

Conrad crossesswords withpredecessor

Jammu: With the Oppositionaccusing Prime Minister Modiof trying to get electoralmileage by announcing amidthe poll process the successfultesting of India's anti-satellitemissile ability, the BJP onWednesday cautioned politicalparties against playing "politicson the issue".

Terming DRDO scientistsachievement as a "pride" of thenation, BJP national generalsecretary Ram Madhav said "letus not play politics" on theissue. Modi announcedWednesday that India demon-strated its anti-satellite missilecapability by shooting down alive satellite, and described it a"rare achievement" that puts thecountry in an exclusive club ofspace super powers.

"Let us not play any politics(on the achievement). Thewhole country takes pride inthe achievement of our scien-tists," Madhav told reportershere.

Replying to a question ona reported Congress' claim thatthe country developed thiscapability way back in 2012, theBJP leader said, "If it wasdeveloped in 2012, I don'tknow why it was never tested

or never told to the people.""We have come to know

about it through a successfultesting today, so we give cred-it to our scientists for the greatachievement," he added.

"The BJP congratulates theDefence ResearchDevelopment Organisation sci-entists and the people of thecountry. It is a phenomenalachievement in the spacepower and has filled our heartswith pride. Congratulations toour Government and the PrimeMinister," he said.

The BJP leader said the suc-cessful testing has placed Indiain the elite club of major coun-tries in the space technologyand "it is a big achievement forIndia because cyber area isgoing to be future of all conflictsand the challenges the countryis going to face in future.

"Mastering this kind oftechnology is a great relief forthe country and a big achieve-ment," he said.

Congress spokespersonRandeep Singh Surjewala ear-lier had said in tweet that "thebuilding blocks for success" ofanti-satellite programme"were laid during UPA-CongGovt in 2012". PTI

Bharatiya Janta Party national general secretary Ram Madhav, State party presidentRavinder Raina and senior leaders during a meeting with State office-bearersregarding the Parliamentary elections in Jammu on Wednesday PTI

nation 07LUCKNOW | THURSDAY | MARCH 28, 2019

KUMAR CHELLAPPAN n

CHENNAI

The Chidambaram familyhas succeeded in buying

silence from Congress leaderSudarshana Nachiappan, whohad revolted against the HighCommand’s decision to nom-inate Karti Chidambaram asthe party candidate fromSivaganga parliamentary con-stituency.

In a hurriedly convenedpress meet at Karaikudi lateTuesday evening, Nachiappan,a strong contender for the seat,shook hands with Karti anddeclared that he would work forthe success of the latter. “Ourultimate dream of makingRahul Gandhi the PrimeMinister of the country wouldmaterialise only if Karti winsfrom here. Moreover, Karti ismy loveable brother and thereis no issue between us,” saidNachiappan while speaking toreporters at the Congress officein Karaikudi. He also recitedverses from the scriptures todrive home his stance that hewas not after power or wealth.

The Congress leadershiphad deputed AICC secretary

Sanjay Dutt to Karaikudi to sortout the issue. Tuesday morningsaw a series of phone callsbetween various Congressleaders in the State andNachiappan. The rebel leadercame down from his intransi-gent stance after he got a callfrom Chidambaram, said asenior Congress leader in theState. Following some plainspeaking by Chidambaram,who was once the HomeMinister of the country,Nachiappan rushed to the partyoffice, shook hands with Kartiand offered peace.

But Karti, who had forfeit-ed his security in the 2014 LokSabha election from the sameconstituency may have to sweatit out this time as theChidambarams are no more

that popular in the region,according to a former Congressleader in Sivaganga. “If theAIADMK led front succeeds inmobilising the Mukkulathoorcommunity votes in favour ofH Raja, the BJP nominee, itwould be a tough task for Kart,”said Arunagrinathan, formerSeva Dal chief of the district.

Meanwhile, Chidambaramgot another success in the runup to the election as RajaKannappan, the AIADMKleader who had contestedagainst him in the 2009 electionfrom the same constituencydeclaring that he would active-ly campaign for Karti. TheAIADMK leader who lost nar-rowly to Chidambaram in the2009 election had filed a peti-tion in Madras High Courtchallenging the latter’s electionwhich is in the final stage ofhearing.

Raja Kannappan’s argu-ment was that the data entryoperators employed in thecounting station by the thenDMK government entered thevotes polled by him in theaccount of Chidambaram andvice versa. J Jayalalithaa, thethen Leader of the Opposition

herself wrote to the ChiefElection Commissioner statingthat Chidambaram’s win was byfraudulent means and notbased on the votes cast by theelectorate.

Jayalalithaa said in the let-ter that 3400 votes polled byKannappan from 11 pollingstations were entered in favourof Chidambaram and 1617votes polled by the later wereentered in favour of theAIADMK candidate. She saidthis was done by the DEOs atthe behest of the then DMKgovernment and no action wastaken against the operatorswho indulged in such graveoffences.

The court is all set toexamine Pankaj Kumar Bansal,the then Returning Officer onApril 22.On Monday, whenthe matter came up for hearing, the new judge PushpaSathyanarayana issued a sternwarning to all concerned andsaid that the case should not beprolonged further. Kannappan,who crossed over to the DMKrecently following denial ofseat to him by the AIADMKhas said that he would notwithdraw the cases.

ANTI-KARTI REVOLT

Aggrieved neta shakes hands

Panaji: Goa Chief Minister Pramod Sawant will beinducting former MGP MLA Dipak Pawaskar, whohas merged the legislative wing of the party withthe BJP, into the State Cabinet at 11.30 pm onWednesday, a senior official said.

The swearing-in ceremony will be held at theRaj Bhavan where Governor Mridula Sinha willadminister oath to Pawaskar, a senior Governmentofficial told PTI.

The swearing-in was scheduled to be held inthe morning, but could not take place as Sinha wasin New Delhi.

"The Governor has cut short her Delhi trip andwould be arriving in the evening to administer oath,"the official said.

Pawaskar and another MaharahstrawadiGomantak Party (MGP) MLA Manohar Ajgaonkarmerged the legislature wing of the party with theBJP in the early hours of Wednesday.

The MGP is now left with only one MLA —Sudin Dhavalikar — after the split.

Dhavalikar, who was the Deputy Chief Minister,was dropped from the Cabinet after the early morn-ing developments. Pawaskar is the first-time MLAwho represents Sanvordem constituency in SouthGoa district. During the wee hours of Wednesday,Ajgaonkar and Pawaskar gave a letter to officiat-ing Speaker Michael Lobo, merging their party's leg-islative wing with the BJP. PTI

MGP MLA

Pawaskar to be

inducted into

Goa Govt

Tiruvarur (TN): Six people were killed andthree injured in an explosion on Wednesdayat a firecracker unit at Mannargudi, about 28km from here, a fire and rescue official said

The explosion was triggered when theworkers were handling raw materials tomake crackers in the unit, he said.

The owner of the unit was among thedeceased.

The explosion was so powerful that thebuilding that housed the unit collapsed andportions of it were flattened, he said, addingthere was no blaze.

"While four of them were flung outsideunder the impact of the explosion, two gottrapped under the rubble and all of themdied," a rescue official told PTI.

Several teams of fire and rescue person-nel from here and nearby areas were pressedinto service to rescue the victims and clear therubble.

6 killed in blast at

TN cracker unit,

building collapses

Jammu: Retired senior IAS officerVinod Koul, instrumental in the cre-ation of 659 new administrative unitsin Jammu & Kashmir during theOmar Abdullah regime, joined theCongress on Wednesday.

Son of former Congress ministerManohar Nath Koul, a prominentpolitician from south Kashmir, the 62-year-old former bureaucrat joined theparty in the presence of Jammu &Kashmir Pradesh CongressCommittee (JKPCC) chief GulamAhmed Mir.

"I have joined Congress party ata function in Srinagar today. It was ahome coming, in a way, for me as Ibelong to a family connected with theCongress party in Jammu & Kashmir,"Kaul told PTI.

The former relief commissioner ofthe state, Koul said he wanted tostrengthen the secular forces inJammu & Kashmir and continue thelegacy of his father.

"If at all I wanted to join politics,it was only Congress. So, I com-menced the journey following in thefootsteps of my father," Kaul said,adding that his joining the Congresswas a homecoming.

Koul, who attained superannua-tion in 2017, served as administrativesecretary of different departmentsincluding revenue, technical educa-tion, youth services and sports, ani-mal husbandry among others.

As commissioner/secretary of thestate's revenue department, Kaul wasthe brains behind the expansion of theadministrative units to reach thestate's grass-root level under theNational Conference governmentback in 2014. As many as 659 newadministrative units including 46 subdivisions, 135 tehsils, 177 CommunityDevelopment (CD) Blocks and 301Niabats across the State were approvedby the Government.

He was widely appreciated by thestate's political leadership for hisproactive role in gearing up the Statemachinery for relief and rescue worksafter the devastating floods that hitKashmir in 2014.

Koul, who belongs to Vessu ham-let of Anantnag district, was also thearchitect of the `44,000-crore mem-orandum submitted by the NC-Congress regime to the Union gov-ernment for rehabilitation of theflood victims. PTI

Former J&K IAS officerjoins Cong, vows tostrengthen ‘secular ethos'

Congress general secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra poses for a selfie during party's election campaignahead of Lok Sabha elections en route Amethi on Wednesday PTI

Mumbai: The Bombay HighCourt on Wednesday refusedto stay proceedings before amagistrate court in a 2016criminal defamation casefiled by Nusli Wadia againstRatan Tata and some otherdirectors of Tata Sons.

A single bench presidedover by Justice MridulaBhatkar refused to extendher March 18 order wherebyshe had restrained the mag-istrate court from hearingthe case until Wednesday(March 27).

The court was hearing awrit petition filed by Tata andthe other directors seekingthat the complaint, FIR andthe charge sheet filedagainst them in the case bequashed.

While senior advocateAbhishek Manu Singhvi, whorepresents Tata in the case,sought an extension of suchstay, Justice Bhatkar pointedout that the next hearingbefore the magistrate courtwas in July this year. She saidthe HC will hear the quash-ing matter before July and,therefore, the stay was notnecessary.

In December 2018, amagistrate court in the cityhad issued notices to RatanTata and other directors ofTata Sons in the criminaldefamation case filed byWadia.

Wadia had filed the casein 2016 after he was voted outof the boards of some TataGroup companies. PTI

Mumbai: The Bombay HighCourt on Wednesday directedthe dean of JJ Group ofHospitals here to constitute apanel of doctors to assess themental health condition of a20-year-old college student,who has approached the courtseeking to terminate her preg-nancy.

The petitioner is in 23rdweek of pregnancy, which is aresult of a "consensual" rela-tionship.

She approached the highcourt saying though the foetushas no known abnormalitiesand the pregnancy doesn'tpose a threat to her physicalwell being, carrying the preg-

nancy to its full term will bedetrimental to her mentalhealth.

In her petition, filedthrough advocate Neha Philip,the woman submitted opinionsof some private medical prac-titioners affirming she suf-fered from some mental healthproblems and that her mentalcondition was "fragile".

The petitioner claimed shewas also incapable of havinggiven a coherent consent tosuch a relationship.

The Medical Terminationof Pregnancy (MTP) Act pro-hibits termination of preg-nancy beyond 20 weeks.

The Act permits abortion

after consultation with onedoctor up to 12 weeks.Between 12 to 20 weeks, med-ical opinion of two doctors isrequired for termination ofpregnancy.

Beyond the 20-week,exceptions are legally permis-sible only if continuation of thepregnancy poses a threat to themother's health and life.

However, in the recentpast, the Supreme Court andseveral high courts, includingseveral benches of the BombayHigh Court, have taken anexpansive view of the defini-tion of health and risks to thelife of the woman as definedunder the Act. PTI

HC refuses tostay proceedingin defamationcase againstTata, others

College student moves Bombay HC toabort foetus, cites ‘fragile' mental health

Plumes of dense smoke rises from the vessel allegedly used in smuggling `500 crore worth drugs from Pakistan in Porbandaron Wednesday PTI

On January 28, 1964, The NewYork Times reported: “Generalde Gaulle’s Government broketoday with the United States(US) policy of isolating com-

munist China and announced the establish-ment of diplomatic relations with Peking.”The US newspaper added: “France’s recog-nition of the communist regime was thefirst by any major power since the KoreanWar began nearly 14 years ago.” The USdeeply regretted the French move at a timethe Chinese communists were “promotingaggression and subversion.” So as FrenchPresident Emmanuel Macron and his wifeBrigitte Macron received the Chinesepresidential couple for an intimate dinnerat Beaulieu-sur-Mer, a resort on theRiviera, the stakes have changed. Chinanow has the upper hand.

In 1964, former French PresidentCharles de Gaulle had affirmed: “La Chineest un grand pays” (China is a big country)but today it has become power No 2 on theplanet after the US and Xi Jinping plans todethrone America with his own dream.Fifty-five years later, the same New YorkTimes reported the arrival of the ChinesePresident: “The Promenade des Anglais [inNice] — the palm-lined beachside avenuethat is the city’s premier attraction — wasclosed to traffic all weekend.” This neverhappened before.

In March last year, Xi made news whenhe was given a life-long term as Presidentof China. The international Press thenmainly noted the Emperor-for-life aspect,forgetting that Xi wanted to transformChina into the No 1 world power. A yearlater, partly due to Twitter attacks from USPresident Donald Trump, Xi is not so self-assured and an economic crisis, loominglarge over China, has weakened the MiddleKingdom. Officially, its growth was only 6.5per cent in 2018, the slowest pace since thedepths of the global financial crisis in 2009.Bloomberg noted: “Tariffs on Chineseexports to the US imposed by PresidentTrump are starting to pinch the country’sfactories.”

Xiang Songzuo, a professor at theRenmin University School of Finance,wrote that China’s GDP growth would onlybe 1.67 per cent and not 6.5 per cent in2018. According to the website Chinascope,Xiang also warned that “nowadays, Chinesehave become addicted to playing with debtand high leverage financing. This is actu-ally a mirage and will collapse soon.”

L’Affaire Huawei has been a turningpoint for the Western views on the MiddleKingdom; the telecom equipment compa-ny has been at the centre of media atten-tion for the wrong reasons; US officialscharged the company with stealing technol-ogy from T-Mobile, one of its business part-ners and wanting to impose its own stan-dards for the 5G, the latest generation ofcellular mobile communications. This is the

background of Xi’s visit toItaly, Monaco and France.

Chinese strategists wereaware that Italy is the weakestlink in the Europe Union (EU)and while more and morecountries realise that the Beltand Road Initiative (BRI), sodear to Xi, is not offering freemeals but often plunges thebeneficiary nations into deepdebts, Beijing managed to finda European “client.”

On March 23, Xinhuareported that Xi and ItalianPrime Minister GiuseppeConte jointly “elevated theChina-Italy relations into anew era”. A Memorandum ofUnderstanding to advance theconstruction of the Belt andRoad was signed. In a diplo-matic jargon, the Chinese newsagency said that “the two coun-tries have continuously deep-ened their communication andcooperation in various fields,which helped each other’ssocial and economic develop-ment.”

Xi urged the two sides toaccelerate negotiations on aChina-EU investment agree-ment, enhance synergy of theBRI and the EU’s developmentstrategies. Conte answered theChinese President: “Italy isglad to seize the historic oppor-tunity in joining the Belt andRoad construction.”

Other European countrieswere not amused, though Xiassured Italy that the BRIwould be a two-way road forinvestment and trade. GermanForeign Minister Heiko Maas

told Welt am Sonntag newspa-per: “In a world with giants likeChina, Russia or our partnersin the US, we can only surviveif we are united as the EU…and if some countries believethat they can do clever businesswith the Chinese, then they willbe surprised when they wakeup and find themselves depen-dent.”

The EU’s German budgetcommissioner, GuentherOettinger, told the Funke news-paper group that Europeshould ensure it retains itsautonomy and sovereigntywhen dealing with China.

French President Macronforcefully asserted that thetime of European naivety overChina was over: “For manyyears, we had an uncoordinat-ed approach and China tookadvantage of our divisions,” hesaid. He called for stricter ruleson Chinese investments in theEU; German ChancellorAngela Merkel expressed sim-ilar views.

French Finance MinisterJean-Yves Le Drian remarkedthat “Silk Road cooperationmust go in both directions”.

The French Press quotedthe Sri Lankan experience as“the dark side of the new SilkRoad.” It mentioned the port ofHambantota and how in themid-2000s Colombo agreed“to entrust Beijing with theconstruction of an ex-nihiloport in the town ofHambantota, in the south ofthe island. It is not yet a ques-tion of the Silk Road …but all

the ingredients were there.”Like for the China-

Pakistan Economic Corridor,Chinese funds, engineers andworkers would build the infra-structure in partnership, sup-posedly becoming a ‘win-win’venture. But Sri Lanka, likeMalaysia and many other coun-tries, has now discovered thatit was in fact a lose-lose oper-ation, with the new assetsbecoming Chinese as soon asthe client state is unable torefund the ‘loans’.

Xi probably did not con-vince Macron, Angela Merkeland European CommissionPresident Jean-Claude Juncker(the latter two joined Macronin Paris to meet the ChinesePresident) of Beijing’s bonafide,despite the Chinese President’senigmatic words: “In politics,we should not only build astrong ‘dam’ of mutual trust,but also a ‘lighthouse’ of ideal.”

However, at the end of hisvisit, Xi left a small present forthe European firm Airbus, a$35 billion jet deal, whichincluded 290 A320-series nar-row-body planes and 10 A350wide-bodies. President Macronobserved that Xi’s official visitwas an “excellent signal” of thestrength and reliability of rela-tions between China andFrance. He added that the twocountries are ready to build a“strong Euro-Chinese partner-ship, based on clear, strict andambitious rules” …minusnaivety. Will it work?

(The writer is an expert onIndia-China relations)

Poor Vinoo Mankad. The former Indian

cricketing legend had in India’s first post-

independence cricket series in December

1947 ‘run out’ Australian batsman Bill Brown

for ‘backing up’ at the runner’s crease. His

actions were condemned by cricket authori-

ties, sports journalists and at that time, the

extremely racist sports fans in Australia.

Notably though, Australian batsman and leg-

end of the game Don Bradman never did call

out Mankad’s actions. And over seven

decades later, the ‘spirit’ of cricket, that forms

a preamble to the rules of the game, still has no mention of this particular action.

So as such, what Ravichandran Ashwin did to English batsman Jos Buttler dur-

ing an Indian Premier League (IPL) game this past Monday is not officially or

even spiritually a wrong thing to do. Buttler should have known better since the

same thing happened to him in a One-Day International against Sri Lanka in 2014.

Keep in mind that Ashwin is no run-of-the-mill squad cricketer, making a liv-

ing from the IPL. He is India’s best spin bowler of his generation and the spear-

head of a bowling attack, both in India and abroad, besides being an extremely

intelligent cricketer. In addition, Ashwin is a ferocious competitor and we have

to keep that in mind before condemning him. What if Buttler took a sharp sin-

gle and missed being run out by a fraction of an inch? Would the half-a-yard he

stepped out of his crease not helped him then? While Buttler is not unique among

players to do this — although falling victim to the same thing twice does mark

him out as a particularly egregious batsman taking advantage — in an era where

the game is so heavily biased towards batsmen, this is taking advantage of bowlers

trying to play within the spirit of the game.

Cricket today, both international games and in domestic tournaments, par-

ticularly in extremely lucrative T20 tournaments like the IPL, is hyper-competi-

tive. Making the playoffs in the IPL can add significant bonus to the salaries of

players. And Ashwin’s actions have shown how far the IPL has progressed from

a fun-filled drug and sex-fuelled entertainment show to a league that is compet-

itive and serious. So yes, while Ashwin could have given Buttler a warning, this

is a not a five-day test match — this was a rapid T20 game — every inch counts.

Ashwin knows that the game is biased against those of his ilk and he has right-

ly taken a stand for his fellow bowlers. And so had Mankad. Therefore, it is wrong

to criticise the bowlers for their actions here. They are following rules. The neg-

ative connotations of this action have to go as should the term ‘Mankaded.’ It

is unfair on Mankad and has negative and racist implications. It should highlight

the actions of batsmen taking advantage instead.

As a nation, we may have clod-hopped

our way while steering through prime

livelihood issues but when it comes to

space exploration and leaving an extra-terres-

trial footprint, India is up there with the big pow-

ers and has even outshone their combined will

and talent. It is through this prism that we must

look at Mission Shakti or the launch of an anti-

satellite missile (A-SAT) that shot down one

of our own defunct, low earth satellites yes-

terday. Undoubtedly a milestone by scientists

at the Defence Research and Development

Organisation (DRDO), it makes India the fourth country to have tested such a

weapon system after the US, Russia and China. It further puts it in the league

of space warriors, who can defend the earth together if needed, while giving each

a strategic depth in the time of technological warfare and emergent threats. With

this feat, India has also set up another layer of deterrence, not only from long-

range missiles but also from any attacks on our existing space assets. In a digi-

tised India, our daily lives depend on them. So Prime Minister Narendra Modi

resorted to a national address to assuage fears that this was not just an aggres-

sive design to weaponise outer space but a confident move to enhance the bou-

quet of our national security. That India, as a signatory to all major internation-

al treaties relating to outer space, would be responsible for honouring them and

was committed to no-first use. Neither did it target anybody else or infringe on

other trajectories during the mission but shot down one of its own satellites which

would find its way into our waters. Perhaps, this assurance needed heft, one

that was provided by the Prime Minister as the elected head of a democracy.

However, the trouble with DRDO is that its achievement comes at a time when

the country is in election mode and the code of conduct means that a lame-

duck government cannot announce any project, no matter how prestigious, except

in cases of national emergency. And although the Election Commission quick-

ly stepped in to clarify that it would investigate if an exception could be made

as A-SAT was a matter of national security, the fact of the matter is DRDO’s feat

became fodder for politicking. Opposition parties slammed the announcement,

saying it was a dramatised rendition of success which was clearly denied to the

scientists concerned and that the DRDO brass should have held forth and not

an outgoing Prime Minister. Besides, no matter what the technicalities at play,

there is no doubt that Modi and his party, the BJP, used the breakthrough to but-

tress their theme of the election — national security — and project themselves

as best qualified to keep it. A series of tweets by Ministers and other top BJP

leaders with the hashtag #NaamumkinAbMumkinHai gave further ammunition

to the Opposition with leaders like Samajwadi Party (SP) chief Akhilesh Yadav

claiming that this gush drowned out electoral issues that matter on the ground.

It is sad that the discourse around one of India’s most memorable missions

has gotten diluted by politics. Both the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO)

and DRDO deserve more than a pat on their backs for being self-starters, act-

ing independently and setting achievable goals over the last few years without

faltering a bit. As this bit of news sinks in, there’s the next lunar mission and

preparations for Gaganyaan or the manned mission, intended for 2022, to look

forward to. Even NASA has pulled back on manned missions to the moon. ISRO

has in a quick spurt of a decade or so emerged as one of the key players in the

global space market, particularly as a low-cost carrier of surveillance and com-

munication satellites. Ever since we launched 104 satellites in a single rocket

(PSLV-C37), 96 of which were from the US, without any of them colliding in a

high risk operation, the big space-probing nations have acknowledged our cred-

ibility. With many of our landmark missions costing much lesser than equiva-

lents in Russia, Europe and the US, India can now proudly proclaim to have shift-

ed the axis of the space race to Asia. Space is not just our final frontier, it is a

profitable, multi-dimensional one at that.

Space superpower

India makes it to an elite club by testing its A-SAT missilesystem though the feat was dimmed by electoral politics

Is Ashwin a pantomime villain for his actions in an IPLgame or just a highly motivated competitor?

Where are Cong funds?

Sir — This refers to the editori-al, “Vote guarantee scheme”(March 27). One fails to under-stand how the Congress will gen-erate funds for the said mass pro-gramme. And what about cor-ruption or pilferage of money?The fact is that a huge chunk ofour population is still poor with-out even a nutritious square meala day. The gap between the richand the poor is widening everyday while the wealth of politiciansacross the spectrum multipliesevery five years. Political partiesshould be advised and warned bythe judiciary not to misuse tax-payer money, especially duringelection time. Sops only end upmaking people lazy. Instead, themoney can be put to use forindustrialisation and creating theinfrastructure that will give jobsto our unemployed youth.

Sravana RamachandranChennai

Giant step forward

Sir — The Election Commission(EC) is striving to make pollingaccessible to physically chal-

lenged voters. Among other ini-tiatives, the EC has ensured iden-tification of such voters and pro-viding them with free pick-up anddrop facility. Apart from this, theelectoral body is also making ade-quate arrangements to providewheelchairs at polling boothsand has requested volunteers tochip in with additional wheel-chairs if the numbers fall short.Further, the EC can look at

arranging mobile polling boothsfor the exclusive use of physical-ly challenged voters.

Varun DambalBengaluru

Worth comparison

Sir — This refers to the editori-al, “India firm on terror” (March25). The Union Government has

taken a firm decision to ban theseparatist outfits in Jammu andKashmir. This move is laudable.The Pulwama terror attack fur-ther provided ample scope andopportunity to the Government.It allowed the Army freedom toeliminate terrorists across theborder.

However, it is not understoodwhy similar retaliatory steps werenot taken during the 2008

Mumbai attacks. The thenCongress-led Government wasrattled and frightened. It darednot retaliate even though theinternational community wouldhave overtly or covertly extend-ed unstinting support to us.

Nimai Charan SwainBhubaneswar

Election gimmick

Sir — This refers to the editorial,“Vote guarantee scheme” (March27). It looks Congress chief RahulGandhi has proceeded to give afresh coat of paint to theCongress’s decades-old ‘GareebiHatao’ slogan less than threeweeks before the general election.Whether ‘Nyuntam Aay Yojana’ orthe minimum income scheme canbe the ‘final assault on poverty’, asRahul Gandhi thundered on TV,one would not know till all its con-tours are revealed. Till then hischallenge should be on how toshift gear from a negative cam-paign against Modi to a positiveone for his affirmative agenda.

J AkshayBengaluru

P A P E R W I T H P A S S I O N

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op nionLUCKNOW | THURSDAY | MARCH 28, 2019

08

European naivety over?

CLAUDE ARPI

Even as Beijing managed to find a new ‘client’ in Italy, other European nations

such as France and Germany are not convinced about its bonafide interest

India had the anti-satel-lite missile capabilitymore than a decade agobut there was no politi-cal will at that time.

Former ISRO chairman—G Madhavan Nair

India getting the hostingrights of the 2020 FIFAunder-17 women’s WorldCup is nothing short of arevolution for the country.

Woman footballer—Bembem Devi

We stand ready to work witheveryone to find solutions toglobal challenges. We areready to extend a hand offriendship to one and all.

President —Ram Nath Kovind

S O U N D B I T E

L E T T E R S T O T H E E D I T O R

India slides down happiness index

The UN’s seventh annual World Happiness Report,which ranks the countries on how happy their cit-izens perceive themselves to be, has showed that

India is moving down at an alarming rate. It rankedthe country 140th among 156 countries and 117among 158 countries in 2015. However, among ourneighbours, India’s position is better than that ofAfghanistan (ranked 154th). Growing inequality,unemployment, social insecurity, intolerance andfarmers’ distress have all contributed to India’s fall inthe happiness journey. India must take cue from theNetherlands, which has a higher population density(488 per square kilometre) than India's (382 per squarekilometre), and ranks fifth in the World Happiness Indexand 10th rank in the Human Development Index.

Growth can be counter-productive if it is unequal,which is bound to create rift and unhappiness in any soci-ety. What India needs is a paradigm shift in its policies.We have to make the transition from the lack of jobs to

labour intensive growth and halt the continuous declinein happiness index. At an individual level, people mustnurture love for humanity. This can generate more har-mony and happiness in society.

Sujit DeKolkata

THE FRENCH PRESSQUOTED THAT THE

SRI LANKANEXPERIENCE IS ‘THE

DARK SIDE OF THENEW SILK ROAD.’ IT

MENTIONED THEPORT OF

HAMBANTOTA ANDHOW IN THE

MID-2000s,COLOMBO AGREED

‘TO ENTRUSTBEIJING WITH THE

CONSTRUCTION OFAN EX-NIHILO PORT

IN THE TOWN OFHAMBANTOTA, IN

THE SOUTH OF THEISLAND. IT IS NOT

YET A QUESTION OFTHE SILK ROAD…BUT ALL THE

INGREDIENTS WERETHERE’

Send your feedback to:letterstopioneer@gmail.com

Between spirit and rules

The BJP and the Congressare both birds of the samefeather in betraying the inter-ests of the poor, labourers,farmers and others.

BSP chief—Mayawati

Return our green cover

PRIME MINISTER MODI GOT HIMSELF AN HOUR OF

FREE TV AND DIVERTED THE NATION’S ATTENTION

AWAY FROM ISSUES ON THE GROUND.

—SAMAJWADI PARTY LEADER

AKHILESH YADAV

THE SUCCESSFUL TESTING OF AN ANTI-SATELLITE

MISSILE IS A MATTER OF NATIONAL SECURITY. THE

OPPOSITION MUST NOT TERM IT ELECTION STUNT.

—UNION MINISTER

ARUN JAITLEY

POINTCOUNTERPOINT

After several years of deliberations andcounters, the Ministry ofEnvironment, Forest and ClimateChange has finally decided to drafta fresh legislation to replace the colo-

nial Indian Forest Act, 1927. In doing so, it seeksto reflect the changed needs and aspirations ofthe country while negotiating the challenges offorest and environment conservation, originaldwellers and development imperatives.

Truth be told, the colonial law has little rel-evance considering the British framed it with theexpress purpose of harnessing natural resourcesfor the Empire’s needs. The imperial rulersrealised the potential of scientific forestry man-agement practices that could help the colonialadministration in procuring timber for revenue,developing the track infrastructure of the IndianRailways and other needs. The British Raj, there-fore, established the Imperial Forest Departmentunder Dietrich Brandis, a trained forester, in1864.

Brandis held a vision of conserving forestcatchments so that they could help in soil andmoisture conservation that in turn helped agri-cultural practices. In 1884, he laid down a pol-icy subordinating forestry to agriculture with theintention of protecting farm communities fromrepeated famines which would have a cascadingsocial and economic cost. The first forest act wasthus drafted in 1878 and with the formal open-ing of a dedicated college at Dehradun, forestry,as a full-fledged science, started taking roots inIndia. To mirror the changes of an evolved under-standing and assessment, a new Forest Act wasenacted in 1927, which is the law-enforcing bookon forests in India today (many States framedtheir own laws exactly on the pattern of this Act)until the Forest Conservation Act, 1980, WildlifeProtection Act, 1972, and the Scheduled Tribesand Other Traditional Forest Dwellers(Recognition of Forest Rights) Act, 2006, cameinto force.

In the early 1990s, the Central Governmentfelt the need for a new law, considering there wasa need for a joint forest management policy inthe face of increasing plundering of forests by thetimber mafia. Existing and codified punitive mea-sures were archaic and clearly not sufficient. Thiswriter was a member of two committees that wereentrusted with the task of revising the Act, butafter preparing a voluminous draft, it was foundto be too unwieldy for implementation.Ultimately, it was decided to propose an increasein fine and compensation as also the duration ofimprisonment for those committing offences byamending certain provisions in the Act.

Dimensions for forest conservation havechanged in the past 15 years, primarily due to ashift in the focus from timber-oriented forestryto people-centric forest management practices.A fresh approach was required following theenactment of the Forest Rights Act, 2006, whichhad to factor in emerging challenges likeencroachers, illegal poachers and mafia besideshrinkage, degradation and change of the forestcover itself due to climate change. Now let us dis-cuss some of the silent features of the new draftAct. It must be accepted that the colonial ForestAct was the most people-friendly from among

imperial edicts. It had a provisionunder Section 28 to create villageforests, which is akin to the present-dayjoint forest management and the com-munity forestry concept. Further, underSection 80, the Government can joint-ly manage any forest or wasteland withanybody’s support.

The old Act laid emphasis on theconsolidation of forests and at the sametime had left the door open for people’sinvolvement in deciding the extent ofthe Government forest land and thewillingness to jointly manage any for-est with anyone who is willing to do so.The new Act improves on this byexpanding the chapter on village forestsand giving them legal backing. Thisindeed is very crucial in the present-dayscenario. The draft policy documentalso talks about degraded land and howit can be improved by undertakingafforestation activities using public-pri-vate partnership models.

The new draft Act aims to ensuresmooth sailing for those people, whoare dependent on the forests for theirlivelihood as also for capacity-building.Section 2 clearly defines forest land andproduce, community, owner, localbody, non-timber forest produce andshifting cultivation. This will helppeople exempt themselves from thetransit regulatory regime for peddlingtheir defined forest and horticultureproduce. Section 4 will help in quicksettlement of rights on forests by a des-ignated officer. The new Act makes itexplicitly clear under Section 5 thatexcept under the Forest Rights Act,2006, no pattas can be given to anyone.It also acknowledges the harmony

between forest management and trib-al life and makes provisions for ade-quate compensation for tribal land.

In the draft Act, the role of GramSabhas has been codified and it seeksto make provisions for other stakehold-ers, too, like people cooperatives/bod-ies, tribals and other Ministry officials,who will now be holistically includedin forest management. One of theimportant features in the new Act isunder Section 22(A) that recognises aprocedure for recording individualand community rights — a very pro-gressive and laudable venture.

The new Act seeks to deal firmlywith emerging challenges, be it of tim-ber mafia, poachers or any other anti-social elements. It rightfully empowersthe forest officials and other law enforc-ing representatives to deal with sucherrants. According to global reports,India tops the list in losing forest offi-cials to forest crime syndicates. The newdraft provisions must, therefore, becomplemented by enhancing infra-structure for the forest personnel, at parwith the police.

However, in India, corruption is abig problem, even among forest staff,and self-proclaimed tribal well-wishersemerge with assistance from vestedinterests to derail any reform. Some ofthem have already started a campaignto criticise the provisions in the newdraft Act that empower field forest offi-cers. By raking up the issue of forestbureaucracy, they want to confuse ourpolicy-makers. Stringent provisionsare needed to deal with organised crim-inal activities, along with a people-cen-tric approach in governance. India

cannot meet climate change and otherinternational commitments to sustain-able goals and aim to enhance tree coverwithout a viable and strong legal backup. As it is, India is a water-stressedcountry. Unless forests in the catch-ments and elsewhere are saved, the sit-uation will worsen. According to sta-tistics by the Central Ground WaterBoard, 70 per cent of India’s districtssuffer from shortage of ground water.The situation is turning acute year afteryear. Many rivers and their tributariesare drying up and many Indian villagesand cities are facing shortage of drink-ing water. Water riots have broken outin many places.

It would be anybody’s guess as towhat will happen to our agriculture inthe next few years if steps are not takento recharge the aquifers, protect ourforests, manage our rural landscape andtackle climate change on a war-footing.Social media as well as intellectualsmust realise that the good work of alarge number of unsung foresters innation-building should be recognised.In fact, it should be expanded with theprovisions of the new Act to cater to thelivelihood of the villagers situated infringe forests.

Further, State Governments mustcome up with positive suggestions onthe draft Act early without getting influ-enced by naysayers. Simultaneously theEnvironment Ministry should wrap updeliberatons on it in a timely manner.This is the best they can do to accom-modate aspirations of forest-dependentpeople and save our green cover.

(The writer is a retired civil servant)

The draft National Forest Policy is by and large well-conceptualised. It seeks to modernisemanagement practices while keeping in mind challenges posed by climate change

analysis 09F I R S T C O L U M N

Peace plan

gone awry

GWYNNE DYER

The only reason Trump ‘recognised' the Golan Heightsas Israeli territory is to give a little electoral boost to

Netanyahu, who is facing corruption charges

VK BAHUGUNA

DIMENSIONS FORFOREST

CONSERVATIONHAVE CHANGEDIN THE PAST 15

YEARS,PRIMARILY DUE

TO A SHIFT IN THEFOCUS FROM

TIMBER-ORIENTED

FORESTRY TOPEOPLE-CENTRIC

FORESTMANAGEMENTPRACTICES. A

FRESH APPROACHWAS REQUIRED

FOLLOWING THEENACTMENT OF

THE FORESTRIGHTS ACT,

2006, WHICH HADTO FACTOR IN

EMERGINGCHALLENGES LIKE

ENCROACHERS,ILLEGAL

POACHERS ANDMAFIA BESIDE

SHRINKAGE,DEGRADATION

AND CHANGE OFTHE FOREST

COVER ITSELFDUE TO CLIMATE

CHANGE

When US President Donald Trump signed an executive

order this week, affirming Israel’s sovereignty over

the Golan Heights, there was an outcry that went far

beyond the Arab world. His action went against the interna-

tional rule on the “inadmissibility of the acquisition of terri-

tory by force”, we were told — conquest, in less lawyerly

language. Alas, that is just an ideal, not a hard-and-fast inter-

national law. The Golan Heights, which belonged to Syria, were

part of Israel’s conquests in the 1967 war. Israel returned

most of Egypt’s lost territory (except the Gaza Strip) in the

1979 peace agreement but continues to occupy the lands it

conquered from Jordan and Syria 52 years later. The only

part it has annexed according to Israeli law, however, is the

Golan Heights.

As far as Israel is concerned, the issue was closed in 1981,

although nobody else in the world accepted the annexation,

not even its greatest ally, the United States. They all went on

referring to the ‘occupied territories’, including the Golan

Heights, as defined in the UN Security Council Resolution 242

— but Israel didn’t care and the legal issue was sidelined for

another 38 years. The only reason Trump has now ‘recog-

nised’ the Golan Heights as Israeli territory is to give a little

electoral boost to his good buddy, Israel’s Prime Minister

Benjamin Netanyahu, who is facing corruption charges that

might cost him the election in April. It doesn’t change the legal

situation as far as everybody else is concerned, nor does it

make Israel’s hold on the territory more secure.

What guarantees Israel’s position in the Golan Heights

is a crushing superiority in military force and the same is true

of most other occupied territories around the world. There

is text in the United Nations Charter (Article 2), requiring all

members to refrain “from the threat or use of force against

the territorial integrity or political independence of any state,”

but it’s a pious hope, not a universally enforced law. When

there is a conquest, the victim is expected to take action itself

if possible as Britain did when Argentina invaded the Falkland

Islands. It will probably get some legal cover from interna-

tional law but it is unlikely to get military aid unless it is in

other countries’ interests to give it.

Such interests were engaged in the 1990-91 Gulf War,

when Iraq conquered Kuwait. For strategic reasons (ie oil),

many Arab and Western countries volunteered military forces

to reverse that conquest — and they got legal cover from

the UN, too, for what it was worth. But when it’s a great power

doing the invading, like China in Tibet (1950), the Soviet Union

in Afghanistan (1979), or the United States in Grenada (1983),

Panama (1989) and Iraq (2003), the UN is paralysed by

Security Council vetoes and most other countries lie low. The

invaders have no legal cover but that doesn’t stop them.

When non-great powers invade, like the Indonesian seizure

of Timor or the Moroccan annexation of Western Sahara, both

in 1975, there will be no outside help for the victim unless

some great power cares about it — or unless the local peo-

ple can wage a guerrilla war long enough to make the con-

queror cut its losses and go home. They succeeded in Timor;

they failed in Western Sahara. There has been a major effor t

to shrink the role of force and expand the rule of law in inter-

national affairs since the Second World War. That war fright-

ened the people in charge enough and they were willing to

consider fundamental changes to their old way of doing busi-

ness, and to some extent they succeeded. This is the most

peaceful era in human history.

But it is not actually peaceful and the project everybody

signed up for in 1945 is still very much a work-in-progress.

Trump would quite like to wreck it entirely as in his view it’s

just another part of ‘globalisation’ but there is little chance

that he will succeed. He just doesn’t have the leverage.

Trump’s recognition of Israeli sovereignty over the Golan

Heights makes the simultaneous American campaign to

reverse the Russian annexation of Crimea look hypocritical

but that campaign wasn’t getting any traction anyway.

Similarly, it hasn’t sabotaged the much-trumpeted Trump

peace plan for the Israeli-Palestinian conflict because that was-

n’t going anywhere either. Everybody in the Arab world already

knows that Trump is completely loyal to Israel if only because

that is the best way to get the votes of US evangelical

Christians. Nobody expects anything to come from his Middle

East ‘peace plan’, if it ever sees the light of day. On the shock-

horror scale, this whole episode rates about 2 out of 10.

(The writer’s new book is Growing Pains: The Future of

Democracy and Work)

The spectre of water shortagelooming large over India isnot new. In fact, this crisis has

become a stark reality, especiallyduring gruelling summer months.As the municipal water systemstruggles to keep pace with the ever-growing urban demand,the beleaguered ground water tablein rural areas is increasingly unableto cater to an average farmer’s irri-gation needs. In the cities, waterriots and buying up tankers are fair-ly common occurrences.

This has had a telling impact onagricultural productivity and con-sequently, food security. Further, thewater availability scenario in ruralareas has assumed grim proportions

due to a fall in levels in the tradi-tional hand-dug wells such as bao-lis.

As India prepares for yet anoth-er summer, it is not surprising thatmany citizens have already madepreparations to face the attendanthardships. Thanks to climatechange, rains have been playing tru-ant and have shown irregular pat-terns for a long while now. This sce-nario is resulting in a cumulativeimpact on the availability of wateracross major Indian cities that arereeling under the impact of scarcenatural resources besides having todeal with an immense load ofmigratory population. These con-ditions have made living in someIndian cities such as Bengalurualmost unbearable.

Where has India gone wrong?Clearly, climate change has becomea reality for nations across theworld but some countries are han-dling its consequences much betterthan India. There are some aspectsthat are unique to India such as ahuge population problem, whichweakens our fight against climate

change. Since population and otherassociated issues cannot be wishedaway, India must find ways to over-come the challenges posed by scarcenatural resources and manage themfor consumption. How we achievethis basically depends on how wellwe observe the goings on in othercountries around the world.

Singapore is an apt example ofhow a nation can beat the odds ofwater crisis to become self-reliant.It emerged from being a water-scarce developing nation to a worldleader in water management prac-tices in just a few decades. Since itsindependence in 1965, one of themain concerns for the Governmentwas to provide clean water to grow-ing domestic and non-domesticsectors. In 1965, Singapore wasdependent on Johor, a state insouthern Malaysia, for waterresources under two agreements:One signed in 1961 and the otherin 1962.

In view of this dependence,long-term security of water becamean essential consideration for thecity-state. As a result, it developed

and executed plans to enhancewater security and self-sufficiency.Innovations covered aspects of pol-icy, planning, management, institu-tional development, finances, tech-nology and most recently, societalbehaviour. The main reason forSingapore’s success in managing itswater resources was a parallelemphasis on supply and demandmanagement, including conven-tional and non-conventionalsources of water — reused waterand desalinated water.

Singapore’s entire water cycle ismanaged by the Public UtilitiesBoard (PUB) that collects, treatsand reuses water on an extensivescale — a step that very few coun-tries have taken. The supply ofwater has further been expanded byreducing water that’s unaccountedfor, which is defined as actualwater loss due to leaks, plus appar-ent water losses arising from meterinaccuracies. Also, Singapore doesnot have illegal connections and allwater connections are metered.The unaccounted for water hasdecreased from about 9.5 per cent

in 1990 to about five per cent inrecent years, one of the lowestrates in the world.

Water conservation is encour-aged in the domestic sector andmandated in the non-domestic sec-tor, too. These include efficiencymeasures, both engineering solu-tions and human behaviour, such asappliances within PUB’s efficiencyratings. The ability of the nation toachieve these feats can be attributedto Government support, long-termplanning and realisation that cleanand reliable water resources areessential for overall socio-develop-ment.

Following the policy paradigmof ‘think ahead, think again andthink across’, Singapore has lookedfor every opportunity to collect,treat, reuse and produce the neces-sary water resources not only at pre-sent but in a horizon that spans sev-eral decades. The city-state’s waterresources planning, governanceand practices hold lessons for everyother developed and developing cityand country.

Indian conditions are apt for

emulating the Singapore model.For a successful simulation, concen-trated efforts have to be made toensure that free water sops for thesake of political mileage are discon-tinued forthwith.

India must also consider thepollution of its remaining freshwater bodies and rivers from urbanand industrial pollution. Unlessthis is done, we are in the processof worsening an already difficultposition. Stress has to be laid onensuring that water wastage is con-tained during supply. Additionallyit is also crucial that the wastewatertreatment facilities are not onlyramped up with growing require-ments but the STPs are also ade-quately functioning. India hasample resources if only they aremanaged well. The responsibility toeffectively and optimally utilisethese resources lies with each oneof us under the guidance of theGovernment. If this translates intoreality, water scarcity will be athing of the past for India.

(The writer is an environmentaljournalist)

A Singapore chapter of water management A solution to the country's water problems lies in emulating the model that helped that city-state beat the odds of water

shortage and become self-reliant. For that to happen, concrete efforts have to be taken

KOTA SRIRAJ

LUCKNOW | THURSDAY | MARCH 28, 2019

www.dailypioneer.com

F O R E I G N E Y E

Any new settlement – MsMay’s bespoke deal, no-deal Brexit, a customsunion — has to be put tothe people to gain popularconsent. The referendum of2016 was flawed in manyways, but it was a popularvote; and another will berequired on the terms ofBrexit, with the option toremain as the fallback onthe ballot paper.(The Independent)

NEED FOR ASECONDREFERENDUM

money 10LUCKNOW | THURSDAY | MARCH 28, 2019

PTI n BENGALURU

Housing sales are expectedto rise in 2019, as the

realty market is on a recoverypath after absorbing the impactof policy reforms like RERA,GST and note ban, according toCBRE.

The CBRE said 200 millionsq ft of space would be addedin 2019 across all segmentsincluding housing, office, retailand logistics. The real estatestock in India will reach 3.7 tril-lion sq ft at the end of this year,the consultant said in a report‘Real Estate Market Outlook2019 — India, released here.

“The growth of the IndianReal Estate market in 2019 willbe driven by numerous factorsincluding technology, demand-supply dynamics, improved easeof doing business rankings andthe dust settling post the imple-mentation of reforms such asGST, RERA among others,” saidAnshuman Magazine, chair-man & CEO of CBRE India.

Magazine, who is also thechairman and CEO of SouthEast Asia, Middle East andAfrica, said significant growthacross segments, would lead tothe addition of almost 200 mil-lion sq ft of new real estate spacein 2019 across categories includ-ing office, retail, residential andlogistics.

Post the policy reforms in2016 and 2017 such as demon-etisation, Real Estate RegulatoryAuthority (RERA) and Goods &Services Tax (GST), the resi-dential market is absorbing theimpact of these changes and ison the path to recovery, CBREsaid. This led to a growth ofabout 15 per cent year-on-yearin new supply and 13 per centyear-on-year in sales.

“As developers align them-selves with structural policyreforms implemented in thepast few years and with chang-ing characteristics of demand,we can expect residential supplyto improve in 2019,” the con-sultant said in a report.

The residential market isbetter placed this year as spec-ulation-led investment activityhas reduced significantly andfinancial checks are in place toprevent over-gearing, it added.

On outlook for housingsector, the report said the sup-ply-demand scenario is expect-ed to improve and unsold inven-tory levels are likely to declinefurther. Affordable housing willdrive supply and demand,backed by several governmentreforms.

“Alternate assets such asco-living, student and seniorhousing will continue to garnergreater interest from end-usersand developers,” CBRE said.

PTI n CHANDIGARH

Snapdeal is making progressin taking Indian markets

online to offer sellers a robustand future-ready opportunityto grow their business byexpanding their operations, asenior company official saidhere on Wednesday.

“In India, (just) 10 per

cent of the retail is in theorganised sector... In the past,unorganised retail was adverse-ly impacted by organisedretail... Snapdeal built a mar-ketplace to provide these(unorganised) sellers with anopportunity to move online inorder to grow,” Snapdeal seniorvice-president (CorporateAffairs and Communications)

Rajnish Wahi said here.He said the country’s over-

all consumption demand wasworth USD 800 billion cur-rently and was expected toreach USD 2 trillion by 2025.“Online commerce is nearly 2per cent of India’s retail and willreach 10 per cent by 2025.Thus, the online market inIndia will be worth USD 200

billion in the next 7 years.”On the Punjab market, he

told reporters that Punjab-based retailers were the high-est sellers of sports goods onSnapdeal and serve buyers allover the country. “Some of thepopular sports goods soldonline by Punjab-based sellersare punching bags, badmintonracquets, sports shoes, hand

wraps, and home gym sets.They also sell huge quantitiesof safety rods and protein sup-plements,” Wahi added.

Snapdeal has more than 5lakh registered sellers fromacross India including 15,000 inPunjab, he said.

“On the buyer’s side, the e-commerce market in India isgrowing not only in size but also

in diversity. In 2018, India’s e-commerce heralded the rapidemergence of buyers from India’stier-II and III cities. This growthof e-commerce into India’s non-metro cities is expected to accel-erate in 2019 and over the nextfew years,” he said. Punjab isindustrially an aggressive andprosperous state and is a signif-icant market, he added.

PTI n MUMBAI

Benchmark Sensex erasedearly gains and endedover 100 points lower on

Wednesday as investor senti-ment remained subdued aheadof expiry of derivative con-tracts.

A weak rupee and linger-ing worries of a global slow-down also weighed on themarkets, brokers said.

The 30-share BSE Sensexsettled 100.53 points, or 0.26%,lower at 38,132.88, while thebroader NSE Nifty slipped38.20 points, or 0.3%, to11,445.05.

During the day, the bench-mark indices witnessed sharpvolatility after Prime MinisterNarendra Modi tweeted that hewill be addressing the nation,

amid various speculationsabout the message.

However, the markets roseduring Modi’s announcementthat India had demonstratedanti-satellite missile capabilityby shooting down a live satellite.

“Market gave up openinggains ahead of F&O expiry (onThursday) and on worries overglobal economic growth as US10-year yield slid further.However, bank index remainson positive trajectory in expec-tation of ease in liquiditycrunch and pick up in creditgrowth by FY20.

“India is likely to continueits outperformance amongemerging markets due to FIIinflow, expectation of revival inearnings growth and politicalstability,” said Vinod Nair, head

of research at Geojit FinancialServices.

NTPC was the biggest loserin the Sensex pack, tumbling2.25%, followed by Tata Motors,Bharti Airtel, PowerGrid,HDFC, Reliance Industries,Hero MotoCorp and M&Mthat shed up to 1.85%,

Yes Bank was the top gain-er, spurting 5.62%.

Other winners wereIndusInd Bank, SBI, Bajaj Auto,HCL Tech, ONGC, BajajFinance, Axis Bank, Infosysand Vedanta, rising up to 5.27%.

Sectorally, BSE Utilitiesshed 1.08%, energy 1.01%,power 0.95% and auto 0.77%,among others.

Bankex gained 0.70%, fol-lowed by consumer durables,finance and basic materials.

Meanwhile, foreign insti-

tutional investors (FIIs) netbought shares worth `999.02crore Tuesday, while domesticinstitutional investors (DIIs)offloaded equities to the tuneof `196.70 crore, provisionaldata showed.

Globally, equity marketswere mixed amid expectationsof action by central banks tocounter slowdown fears.

In Asia, Japan’s Nikkeidropped 0.23%, Singapore’sStraits Times 0.06%, Taiwanindex 0.16% and Korea’s KOSPIfell 0.15%. Hong Kong’s HangSeng rose 0.56% and ShanghaiComposite Index advanced0.85%.

Among European markets,Paris CAC 40 fell 0.42% andFrankfurt’s DAX shed 0.33% inmorning deals. London’s FTSEalso dropped 0.47%.

PTI n NEW DELHI

GMR Infrastructure onWednesday said Tata

Group along with an affiliate ofSingapore’s sovereign wealthfund GIC and SSG CapitalManagement would invest`8,000 crore in the company’sairports business.

Following the transac-tion, GMR Infrastructure andits subsidiaries will holdaround 54 per cent stake inGMR Airport, while employ-ee welfare trust will hold about2 per cent, Tata Group around20 per cent, GIC about 15 percent and SSG around 10 percent.

As part of this transaction,GMR Infrastructure alsointends to provide exit to exist-ing private equity investorswho hold 5.8 per cent equity

stake in GMR Airport Ltd.GMR Infrastructure has

signed a binding term sheetwith the investors (TataGroup, GIC and SSG CapitalManagement) pursuant towhich the investors haveagreed to invest `8,000 crorein GMR Airports Ltd, GMRInfra said in a regulatory filing.

The investment amount of`8,000 crore will consist of`1,000 crore equity infusion inGMR Airports and ̀ 7,000 croretowards purchase of GMRAirports Ltd’s equity sharesfrom GMR Infrastructure andits subsidiaries.

The proposed investmentis subject to definitive docu-mentation, customary regula-tory approvals, lender con-sents and other approvals, thecompany added.

Sensex slips 100 points, Nifty closes

below 11,450 ahead of F&O expiry

Realty market to grow in

2019; to add 200 mn sq ft

space this year: CBRE

Tata Group, GIC, SSG CapitalMgmt to invest `8,000 cr in GMR’s airports biz

Snapdeal an opportunity for unorganised sellers to go online: Company official

Script Open High Low LTPSUZLON 6.70 6.86 6.60 6.65YESBANK 258.45 269.70 256.10 267.95JPASSOCIAT 5.55 5.66 5.36 5.42JETAIRWAYS 285.00 286.70 274.15 277.15RELCAPITAL 202.00 212.00 196.00 200.60ICICIPRULI 334.00 354.30 333.00 349.10SBIN 305.00 310.70 304.30 308.05SPICEJET 92.00 97.50 91.20 96.30RELIANCE 1377.00 1377.00 1344.90 1350.10IBULHSGFIN 732.10 759.60 731.40 749.55RELINFRA 134.75 137.10 130.05 130.65ICICIBANK 395.00 397.90 389.60 392.05INDUSINDBK 1720.10 1814.20 1720.10 1805.85DHFL 136.00 140.00 135.20 136.40JUBILANT 682.40 683.80 647.05 651.85GMRINFRA 21.25 21.25 18.85 19.40PNB 93.60 95.05 92.85 93.35IDEA 29.45 29.55 28.30 28.45DABUR 428.95 428.95 410.00 412.25UBL 1363.80 1428.80 1329.65 1355.50BAJFINANCE 2957.00 3009.00 2931.05 2942.65WOCKPHARMA 431.40 443.00 426.35 429.35AXISBANK 762.00 769.85 756.00 760.15TATAMOTORS 174.00 175.00 169.00 169.90MOTHERSUMI 146.60 147.75 140.00 140.40MARUTI 6605.00 6643.70 6500.00 6522.25RPOWER 10.80 10.85 10.29 10.38NTPC 140.60 140.85 136.20 136.95IDFCFIRSTB 52.95 54.60 52.80 53.55INFY* 728.00 732.40 726.25 729.05L&TFH 149.00 152.90 148.05 151.50TCS 1985.00 1998.25 1961.00 1968.20HDFCLIFE 369.55 375.90 369.55 371.45SUNPHARMA 469.35 477.50 460.40 464.20HDFCBANK 2311.20 2326.70 2280.30 2300.20SAIL 51.00 51.80 50.00 50.20ASHOKLEY 87.00 87.75 85.05 85.30RBLBANK 661.00 678.65 658.00 670.50DLF 197.05 199.10 189.25 190.50STAR 452.00 468.00 449.15 460.25FORCEMOT 1659.80 1748.00 1650.00 1679.25BOMDYEING 137.50 139.85 134.40 135.85BANKINDIA 102.75 103.50 101.50 103.10KOTAKBANK 1346.20 1362.50 1325.25 1333.65AVANTI 391.60 421.90 391.60 418.90ABCAPITAL 101.60 103.15 99.05 101.00HINDUNILVR 1689.40 1707.00 1676.00 1680.05TAKE 137.90 142.45 129.95 134.75RECLTD 151.65 152.20 148.75 149.35TATASTEEL 519.35 523.00 513.10 515.90VENKYS 2318.00 2370.00 2305.00 2341.25M&MFIN 412.00 431.50 412.00 425.00IOC 161.05 163.70 160.50 161.40ZEEL 423.95 428.35 419.80 424.20RNAM 194.20 207.20 192.00 197.40INDIACEM 100.50 104.15 100.45 101.30BANKBARODA 122.85 123.45 120.40 121.55JUSTDIAL 611.30 617.65 595.00 597.55LT 1376.30 1390.75 1363.00 1367.85INOXLEISUR 303.00 341.80 296.40 323.45M&M 675.00 675.00 660.15 661.60BHEL 71.50 72.65 70.70 71.25ORIENTBANK 106.15 115.50 106.15 114.20ESCORTS 811.10 824.65 800.90 816.80VEDL 175.00 177.15 173.55 175.55UNIONBANK 91.80 94.25 90.90 93.85CGPOWER 44.00 44.30 42.50 42.70IBREALEST 90.00 90.85 88.15 89.65HEG 2013.35 2026.00 1970.00 1983.60ONGC 160.00 161.40 157.40 160.25HDFC 1959.90 1959.90 1906.75 1920.45MINDTREE 939.90 948.50 911.00 940.95CANBK 282.00 287.40 279.30 285.90PCJEWELLER 80.25 81.80 79.75 80.45GRAPHITE 423.00 428.00 414.00 416.80GODREJPROP 819.05 879.00 806.00 853.75ITC 293.00 296.35 291.75 293.00HINDPETRO 275.80 276.95 268.20 269.15BEML 973.00 990.40 956.95 967.00PFC 119.00 119.80 117.05 117.70TECHM 772.10 772.90 762.35 764.40ICICIGI 1014.65 1023.00 972.70 980.00DELTACORP 248.00 258.90 247.30 257.25LUPIN 734.00 741.00 723.00 724.75ALBK 51.70 52.55 51.00 52.25JINDALSTEL 164.50 168.05 164.20 166.25PHILIPCARB 169.00 176.00 168.10 172.55HEROMOTOCO 2593.00 2593.00 2538.00 2548.60IBVENTURES 273.00 288.85 267.75 281.75JSWSTEEL 282.35 289.20 281.60 287.50GICHSGFIN 250.05 275.50 242.20 271.85ASIANPAINT 1486.55 1495.00 1465.90 1470.00VIPIND 470.30 483.40 465.00 477.90NCC 112.00 114.05 111.65 112.10UJJIVAN 327.95 341.95 326.85 338.20SRTRANSFIN 1204.45 1263.70 1197.05 1247.45BAJAJELEC 536.00 565.80 534.50 560.30LICHSGFIN 530.00 542.95 528.00 528.50JSWENERGY 65.05 69.05 65.00 68.60BEL 93.00 94.15 91.50 92.05ACC 1572.00 1613.50 1570.00 1601.00CHOLAFIN 1379.50 1460.00 1379.50 1428.05EDELWEISS 187.90 191.00 185.85 189.00AMARAJABAT 709.00 730.00 705.45 721.05IFCI 13.31 13.55 13.10 13.19JAICORPLTD 110.95 114.00 110.50 113.10NESTLEIND 10706.70 11080.00 10598.95 10855.00FEDERALBNK 91.20 92.60 90.65 91.85

NATIONALUM 53.60 54.30 53.00 53.35WELCORP 126.80 133.40 125.60 133.00BHARTIARTL 330.00 333.15 321.05 323.30RADICO 399.00 399.00 390.00 393.70MEGH 58.70 62.60 58.15 61.80GRUH 262.00 270.95 261.05 268.50DBL 654.20 681.95 654.20 660.95WESTLIFE 444.90 444.90 420.00 427.70PIDILITIND 1227.00 1236.90 1213.80 1225.80TIINDIA 381.00 383.00 363.30 365.00ADANIPOWER 47.85 48.50 46.40 46.70HINDALCO 208.00 210.55 206.50 207.25GNFC 302.05 306.10 298.50 302.55VOLTAS 613.00 626.75 613.00 623.80SPARC 187.75 195.55 186.00 191.90INDIGO 1422.00 1422.00 1392.50 1400.40BALKRISIND 956.00 972.05 954.00 960.95NATCOPHARM* 569.95 570.00 557.00 559.10COALINDIA 236.60 238.05 233.05 234.50MGL 999.00 1034.15 990.30 1020.05REPCOHOME 461.85 478.80 460.75 471.40PNBHOUSING 819.70 840.75 816.00 816.05SUNTECK 460.80 464.25 453.45 460.00STRTECH 220.10 222.00 216.90 218.70ULTRACEMCO 3931.00 3996.75 3885.00 3913.90DMART 1490.00 1490.00 1470.15 1477.75IDBI 42.60 42.95 42.25 42.45WIPRO 255.50 256.50 253.75 254.50WELSPUNIND 58.75 60.65 58.15 60.15MANPASAND 113.00 120.00 113.00 119.30BLISSGVS 165.10 169.50 162.25 167.25IGL 308.60 309.80 302.75 304.90HIMATSEIDE 200.50 225.00 199.55 221.60NOCIL 144.95 146.50 143.25 145.15ENGINERSIN 114.65 117.90 114.35 116.15PEL 2639.05 2673.95 2605.00 2621.70NBCC 65.00 65.10 63.50 63.70SIEMENS 1066.55 1084.00 1058.50 1061.80HFCL 22.05 23.10 21.65 22.90GRASIM 840.00 844.35 823.30 827.00KEI 410.00 429.25 405.80 426.10GODREJAGRO 504.00 518.00 500.10 505.00CANFINHOME 337.95 344.75 333.30 333.50INFIBEAM 42.80 42.80 41.30 41.65MAGMA 105.65 123.00 104.00 120.00RAYMOND 806.85 812.50 793.95 797.00AMBUJACEM 232.00 238.15 230.65 231.60FSL 46.65 48.75 46.00 48.30DRREDDY 2782.90 2812.00 2748.50 2757.00BIOCON 612.35 617.75 600.00 603.15

BANDHANBNK 490.00 499.00 485.80 492.60HCLTECH 1034.00 1054.60 1027.80 1041.50IDFC 45.00 46.95 44.65 46.20NMDC 104.70 105.40 101.35 101.70HAL 722.10 775.00 721.05 739.20EMAMILTD 393.90 411.00 393.00 396.90JMFINANCIL 88.00 93.80 87.85 92.45AUROPHARMA 780.20 788.00 771.85 776.45TATAPOWER 72.25 72.80 71.10 71.35BAJAJFINSV 6999.00 7075.00 6963.35 6967.00JSLHISAR 88.45 93.00 87.65 91.45AARTIIND 1538.00 1596.00 1531.90 1591.70BBTC 1280.00 1296.65 1260.00 1281.45PVR 1609.00 1623.45 1570.20 1606.90RAIN 97.00 98.45 96.15 96.35TITAN 1120.00 1123.10 1105.00 1119.00SYNDIBANK 40.70 40.85 39.85 40.50NAVKARCORP 39.80 41.50 39.25 40.80CASTROLIND 163.55 165.65 162.75 164.65SOBHA 460.00 474.00 459.45 472.00OIL 178.10 183.00 177.65 181.65TATAGLOBAL 196.05 200.15 195.35 196.45CIPLA 535.00 535.00 522.30 525.00MPHASIS 955.35 955.35 937.70 946.50JISLJALEQS 57.50 58.70 56.75 57.05TATAELXSI 957.30 966.55 948.25 950.95POWERGRID 203.50 204.60 198.55 200.00INTELLECT 200.45 206.40 195.90 204.10DISHTV 35.80 37.35 35.80 36.20BPCL 384.90 385.95 377.35 378.65BATAINDIA 1370.00 1385.40 1356.25 1365.50GRANULES 111.15 117.45 111.15 116.50MANAPPURAM 120.45 123.75 120.35 120.40CEATLTD 1109.90 1109.90 1075.95 1077.90IRB 144.50 144.50 138.80 141.40GODREJIND 543.00 553.50 541.00 541.25DCBBANK 199.20 205.80 199.20 202.00JUBLFOOD 1463.10 1468.30 1441.05 1449.40PETRONET 238.20 240.30 234.10 235.45

ADANIPORTS 369.50 371.70 364.15 365.70AUBANK 560.30 580.40 559.80 572.85CENTURYTEX 919.90 924.00 891.95 895.85BHARATFORG 493.00 499.15 486.70 490.90ABFRL 218.00 224.70 217.50 223.90UCOBANK 19.50 20.10 18.30 18.60KTKBANK 131.55 132.25 129.30 131.50SFL 1222.00 1297.20 1201.75 1246.80EQUITAS 132.85 136.35 132.30 134.00TATAMTRDVR 86.85 86.85 84.65 85.05UPL 904.20 911.65 895.40 900.05SUNTV 588.05 601.40 583.05 588.85KALPATPOWR 445.00 469.50 445.00 467.70MFSL 440.95 451.20 438.20 449.50INDIANB 263.05 267.65 261.45 263.55JKTYRE 90.30 91.00 89.00 89.50EICHERMOT 21460.00 21528.75 20881.30 20972.85PAGEIND 24766.85 25462.85 24402.65 24402.65HAVELLS 760.00 764.40 745.10 749.60TORNTPHARM 1893.45 1915.85 1872.00 1885.50CHAMBLFERT 165.00 171.00 164.70 171.00MUTHOOTFIN 600.10 603.05 589.75 593.95KEC 299.05 301.85 292.40 297.00LAURUSLABS 395.00 404.50 391.55 401.90DCMSHRIRAM 417.00 417.00 407.00 407.10CADILAHC 336.00 341.40 328.55 332.05SOUTHBANK 16.00 16.10 15.80 15.85IEX 159.40 161.00 156.00 158.80MCX 788.00 799.05 781.00 787.50VGUARD 217.75 224.30 215.30 223.45TVSMOTOR 461.00 465.00 457.70 460.55LTI 1674.00 1690.20 1662.65 1668.75JINDALSAW 86.15 87.85 83.75 84.45APOLLOTYRE 215.00 217.40 213.20 214.10EXIDEIND 227.70 228.50 224.55 225.80SWANENERGY 104.50 108.95 104.20 107.00PRESTIGE 259.00 260.65 245.30 248.80SUVEN 267.00 269.95 263.10 265.50BRITANNIA 3102.20 3108.70 3080.00 3100.00FRETAIL 467.40 467.40 452.25 467.00BAJAJ-AUTO 2956.00 2992.85 2950.00 2986.15INFRATEL 314.00 318.80 311.30 316.20COROMANDEL 484.00 495.50 482.00 491.95DEEPAKNI 274.00 276.00 266.00 272.25ITI 94.00 95.50 93.10 94.35RAMCOCEM 711.60 722.00 707.65 711.70BERGEPAINT 321.00 325.50 319.35 324.00NIACL 187.10 197.00 186.35 194.85HINDCOPPER 48.20 48.65 47.70 48.15BDL 279.05 300.00 277.40 284.00HEXAWARE 329.55 337.20 329.50 335.90MOIL 155.60 156.15 152.05 152.50FCONSUMER 44.70 45.35 43.95 44.65KAJARIACER 560.10 584.45 560.00 568.00LAKSHVILAS 65.00 67.80 62.80 63.15ASHOKA 126.95 131.60 124.80 130.20GODREJCP 692.00 696.45 686.00 688.10RCF 58.25 58.50 57.10 57.65APOLLOHOSP 1167.35 1177.10 1151.95 1157.00OMAXE 209.45 209.45 206.05 207.80MERCK 3363.00 3500.00 3363.00 3461.20SBILIFE 609.70 621.50 605.55 618.35BHARATFIN 1098.00 1137.75 1098.00 1133.70CUMMINSIND 732.00 744.70 732.00 736.85HINDZINC 274.15 274.15 271.25 271.95AJANTPHARM 1018.65 1023.30 982.30 999.00EVEREADY 196.60 198.50 187.70 195.60INDHOTEL 151.45 153.00 149.25 151.25HSCL 115.75 117.80 113.05 114.20JAMNAAUTO 59.40 60.00 58.60 59.25JSL 39.70 40.50 38.30 38.70LEMONTREE 79.00 81.80 78.70 80.35HUDCO 44.70 44.70 43.30 43.60LTTS 1470.00 1490.00 1452.50 1463.45TV18BRDCST 35.05 35.35 34.45 34.55DIVISLAB 1711.00 1719.30 1661.00 1673.00OBEROIRLTY 521.00 527.00 516.35 521.00GODFRYPHLP 1123.60 1147.50 1111.40 1119.00GHCL 234.70 246.00 234.65 243.20CENTURYPLY 198.50 201.50 195.20 197.00GREAVESCOT 137.10 142.00 136.50 141.00TIMETECHNO 101.00 107.35 100.35 105.90TRIDENT 67.45 68.75 66.95 68.25COCHINSHIP 391.00 397.95 383.45 395.20NHPC 24.85 25.00 24.50 24.60BAJAJHLDNG 3291.00 3324.25 3253.80 3290.00TORNTPOWER 255.10 257.05 250.50 252.75SRF 2463.00 2463.00 2417.95 2437.45RCOM 4.57 4.57 4.57 4.57MOTILALOFS 598.80 600.35 589.55 594.70GSFC 101.05 101.95 98.55 99.50GAIL 362.80 362.80 353.30 353.60MINDACORP 137.30 142.80 135.60 138.00SCI 37.90 37.90 37.10 37.25PRSMJOHNSN 88.55 93.20 88.55 91.60NIITTECH 1310.00 1318.55 1302.25 1318.20INOXWIND 66.65 67.50 63.75 64.40GSPL 178.80 179.80 171.65 176.00MRPL 73.95 75.00 73.70 74.00INDOSTAR 353.60 369.00 351.75 367.05MAHLOG 500.00 508.35 496.00 505.60SYMPHONY 1356.10 1420.00 1356.10 1405.00ASTRAL 1125.50 1140.00 1103.35 1135.00KSCL 456.00 459.45 447.45 449.20THOMASCOOK 235.20 242.90 233.00 241.85WABAG 327.45 329.65 323.00 328.40COFFEEDAY 285.00 291.55 284.70 288.90BASF 1461.50 1468.65 1376.00 1442.95RAJESHEXPO 667.50 673.55 656.80 663.50

TRENT 376.45 380.00 370.00 370.20ASTERDM 155.50 160.00 154.05 155.85JBCHEPHARM 345.00 356.70 343.00 353.65ANDHRABANK 25.95 27.40 25.70 27.00NAUKRI 1894.95 1900.00 1850.00 1875.65TATACHEM 583.10 585.90 577.50 583.35HEIDELBERG 176.20 178.50 172.20 176.55MARICO 339.10 342.30 335.10 339.90IPCALAB 927.95 932.95 917.50 921.25QUESS 790.00 819.85 747.70 754.00SHANKARA 410.00 414.85 390.00 398.45VINATIORGA 1630.00 1661.50 1620.00 1651.85CHENNPETRO 265.00 266.70 256.90 258.35ABB 1330.00 1346.50 1321.05 1329.30GREENPLY 151.00 155.90 151.00 153.75COLPAL 1258.00 1274.95 1256.05 1262.10TEJASNET 167.00 172.90 161.45 169.05DEEPAKFERT 133.00 134.10 130.10 133.40TATAMETALI 623.85 634.95 616.50 620.85GICRE 240.00 245.25 238.00 239.00KANSAINER 453.70 454.00 444.00 446.90WHIRLPOOL 1512.95 1541.05 1501.00 1511.00ADANIGREEN 35.25 36.60 35.25 35.45SHK 152.15 154.60 150.15 151.65GPPL 102.55 103.65 99.10 100.70MAHINDCIE 233.50 234.00 225.00 231.60PERSISTENT* 636.00 648.00 625.15 626.00SUDARSCHEM 328.90 356.85 328.65 339.70J&KBANK 49.25 49.85 48.10 48.50CUB 200.80 205.00 200.00 201.00UFLEX 215.70 218.80 206.10 210.00ADANITRANS 218.05 219.40 210.10 212.30FORTIS 136.55 138.00 136.10 137.45OFSS 3362.25 3407.80 3340.10 3345.50GLAXO 1295.25 1300.00 1270.00 1292.10NBVENTURES 103.00 103.90 101.20 102.75ATUL 3391.30 3579.00 3391.30 3522.55NLCINDIA 70.85 71.10 69.20 69.45GUJGAS 146.00 146.50 143.00 145.00SADBHAV 250.60 260.00 250.00 250.00ISEC 245.00 247.60 242.50 243.65HERITGFOOD 532.35 540.65 518.60 520.35PARAGMILK 254.00 260.00 254.00 257.60NAVINFLUOR 716.25 717.15 708.05 711.10CONCOR 504.75 509.90 501.10 501.10RALLIS 162.00 163.00 161.10 162.40MHRIL 242.00 252.95 237.70 249.45MMTC 27.90 28.25 27.55 27.65ADVENZYMES 171.85 174.00 169.45 170.55LINDEINDIA 470.15 500.00 470.15 484.20IBULISL 277.00 287.00 275.55 279.05NETWORK18 33.95 34.60 33.25 34.50EIHOTEL 195.35 195.60 189.80 194.45TATACOFFEE 89.55 91.70 89.55 90.60SUPREMEIND 1079.35 1111.00 1063.40 1085.55ALLCARGO 112.95 114.00 111.25 113.00PTC 74.85 75.25 73.40 73.85PIIND 1025.00 1030.00 1014.10 1030.00CENTRALBK 32.95 33.10 31.95 32.00ALKEM 1769.10 1775.55 1748.00 1750.00FINCABLES 481.00 490.00 476.00 488.00ITDCEM 132.80 132.80 128.65 129.00GET&D 270.50 275.00 263.00 263.00EIDPARRY 202.20 203.10 195.10 199.35JKLAKSHMI 341.85 368.95 340.20 360.50BOSCHLTD 18280.00 18280.00 17905.10 17990.75GLENMARK 647.30 650.35 640.75 643.65JAGRAN 114.45 118.00 113.00 116.70BIRLACORPN 516.80 523.80 516.80 517.85TATACOMM 601.25 603.55 594.70 601.60CROMPTON 215.05 217.15 213.00 213.95KRBL 343.40 351.40 343.40 345.10REDINGTON 96.45 98.00 94.30 95.10BLUESTARCO 667.10 673.00 659.00 661.00NILKAMAL 1424.60 1437.90 1411.10 1424.90SUPRAJIT 236.45 240.00 231.00 237.50PFIZER 3206.25 3280.50 3192.85 3266.15TTKPRESTIG 8316.90 8400.00 8275.05 8379.15SREINFRA 28.40 28.90 27.80 28.15CORPBANK 27.90 28.80 27.90 28.25PGHH 10499.00 10990.00 10452.35 10680.00NESCO 463.00 484.35 451.70 484.35SHREECEM 18150.00 18299.00 17863.15 17945.50FORBESCO 2200.00 2276.95 2160.00 2170.05ISGEC 5510.00 5570.00 5375.15 5432.50CYIENT* 660.00 675.00 654.00 657.75

CARBORUNIV 376.00 391.00 374.45 390.00NH 227.30 227.30 210.15 210.40UNITEDBNK 10.90 10.99 10.77 10.84BAJAJCON 316.90 320.55 316.00 316.00GUJALKALI 489.70 492.65 484.60 489.20SJVN 24.30 24.30 23.95 24.05LAXMIMACH 6070.00 6194.00 5915.00 5975.00HSIL 250.00 255.50 248.30 252.10MRF 56300.00 56700.00 56223.95 56506.00SYNGENE 572.05 584.00 572.05 584.00ECLERX 1135.00 1143.50 1135.00 1138.50MINDAIND 346.00 346.00 335.10 335.10SUNDRMFAST 552.05 574.95 549.95 574.95APLLTD 537.00 537.00 522.50 528.00KNRCON 261.75 268.95 258.05 265.00GUJFLUORO 1059.50 1070.10 1057.00 1069.90DCAL 200.50 208.40 200.50 203.05GRINDWELL 568.35 594.00 568.35 585.00ZENSARTECH 230.20 237.00 228.10 236.20SANOFI 5620.00 5759.45 5620.00 5715.80DBCORP 188.00 189.50 184.45 185.00LUXIND 1348.00 1358.00 1327.00 1350.00VBL 811.65 816.90 805.10 811.90CRISIL 1504.00 1504.00 1455.00 1472.00SCHNEIDER 104.70 105.95 101.00 101.25SHILPAMED 345.95 353.00 337.15 344.30PNCINFRA 153.30 154.25 146.20 148.45BAYERCROP 4350.00 4350.00 4325.00 4345.00ITDC 279.90 283.65 276.90 278.00CAPPL 407.55 407.55 400.00 404.00GSKCONS 7018.00 7062.60 6960.00 6960.00IOB 13.75 14.10 13.68 13.77TEAMLEASE 3079.95 3079.95 2974.05 3011.55VMART 2861.00 2861.00 2660.80 2685.00SONATSOFTW 329.90 339.00 329.90 337.85GMDCLTD 81.15 81.95 80.80 81.50PHOENIXLTD 655.35 655.35 628.60 630.10ABBOTINDIA 7349.00 7349.95 7240.00 7245.00JYOTHYLAB 185.00 185.90 182.60 183.60TNPL 205.00 211.00 205.00 206.50LALPATHLAB 1085.00 1090.00 1055.00 1065.60AEGISLOG 201.60 204.50 201.45 203.15CENTRUM 32.70 32.70 31.00 31.70ENDURANCE 1142.05 1154.80 1139.05 1149.50GALAXYSURF 1082.00 1086.80 1041.50 1055.00JKCEMENT 814.45 840.00 814.05 840.00SOMANYCERA 398.00 409.50 398.00 408.50MAHLIFE 351.90 362.90 351.90 359.10SOLARINDS 1026.20 1032.55 1010.00 1020.00SUPPETRO 223.55 227.55 220.05 226.90CCL 290.00 295.50 288.60 290.00SKFINDIA 1925.00 1931.55 1884.20 1885.90NAVNETEDUL 108.15 110.00 107.00 108.00MAHABANK 13.45 13.55 13.20 13.27MAHSCOOTER 3392.35 3445.00 3371.00 3406.00TVTODAY 317.95 320.00 314.00 315.00TATAINVEST 830.00 835.00 826.00 826.75SCHAEFFLER 5415.20 5555.00 5398.65 5419.00GESHIP 287.40 287.40 279.00 281.45GAYAPROJ 149.85 155.45 148.85 151.55SHOPERSTOP 468.60 471.40 462.60 465.25AIAENG 1700.00 1775.00 1695.40 1775.00KPRMILL 548.00 549.00 537.25 540.00IFBIND 949.00 964.00 930.00 935.00DHANUKA 401.75 414.70 399.00 410.00GDL 126.30 127.50 123.45 124.55FDC 169.90 170.10 165.25 170.00MAXINDIA 68.55 68.95 68.20 68.20ASTRAZEN 1975.45 1981.75 1940.45 1969.85THYROCARE 519.05 530.15 517.00 517.00FINOLEXIND 498.00 499.40 490.05 498.80HONAUT 22015.00 22401.00 21926.50 22400.00CARERATING 994.90 995.50 990.00 991.55APLAPOLLO 1405.90 1437.00 1401.95 1423.00SIS 859.10 874.40 857.20 858.70BALMLAWRIE 185.80 186.05 184.00 185.75ORIENTCEM 85.00 85.10 81.20 81.20AKZOINDIA 1779.60 1779.95 1740.95 1749.70ESSELPRO 115.35 116.25 113.00 114.35KIOCL 138.25 141.45 136.10 136.50LAOPALA 206.55 211.00 201.85 209.70THERMAX 995.00 995.00 985.00 991.45JCHAC 1832.00 1964.40 1800.00 1939.00GULFOILLUB 828.35 840.00 819.50 830.00VTL 1078.10 1082.10 1062.00 1062.00RELAXO 751.70 764.50 751.65 760.00FLFL 480.20 483.25 475.70 480.00TVSSRICHAK 2200.80 2243.60 2180.00 2200.85GILLETTE 6497.00 6515.00 6462.00 6475.00TIMKEN 560.50 569.85 560.00 567.65TRITURBINE 106.00 108.00 105.50 108.00MONSANTO 2606.40 2607.00 2575.00 2575.00ELGIEQUIP 243.80 243.80 238.45 242.00ZYDUSWELL 1303.10 1305.05 1290.00 1290.00ERIS 634.00 639.70 627.00 636.00ASAHIINDIA 262.50 262.50 255.05 259.503MINDIA 23997.00 24007.00 23611.05 23611.05BLUEDART 3460.40 3488.00 3420.00 3483.25STARCEMENT 99.25 99.25 96.70 96.70APARINDS 663.90 672.00 662.10 662.70WABCOINDIA 6259.55 6449.00 6199.95 6449.00CERA 2571.75 2668.95 2571.75 2664.45SHARDACROP 360.30 366.65 360.00 365.00TIFHL 471.00 479.90 470.20 479.90GEPIL 807.00 812.95 805.45 812.95HATSUN 717.00 717.95 701.80 710.00RATNAMANI 904.00 904.00 888.00 888.00SUNCLAYLTD 2875.05 2935.00 2840.00 2935.00SHRIRAMCIT 1786.65 1789.50 1786.65 1789.50

NIFTY 50

SCRIP OPEN HIgh LOW LTP CHANGENIFTY 50 11531.45 11546.20 11413.00 11445.05 -38.20YESBANK 258.40 269.85 256.10 268.60 14.90INDUSINDBK 1730.00 1813.45 1720.10 1812.00 97.35IBULHSGFIN 735.00 759.80 731.05 750.00 20.30JSWSTEEL 283.00 289.25 281.50 286.15 4.80SBIN 305.25 310.85 304.35 308.00 4.50INFRATEL 316.90 318.50 311.10 317.00 4.15ZEEL 424.00 428.20 419.10 426.15 5.15BAJAJ-AUTO 2965.00 2995.00 2950.00 2985.00 32.20HCLTECH 1020.00 1056.35 1020.00 1042.50 7.90VEDL 175.30 177.25 173.40 174.70 1.10IOC 162.00 163.70 160.40 161.15 0.85TITAN 1125.00 1125.00 1106.00 1121.60 5.85AXISBANK 761.30 770.00 755.85 760.50 3.40BAJFINANCE 2950.00 3014.15 2932.50 2943.00 8.65INFY 730.00 732.30 727.15 728.90 1.15ONGC 160.15 161.40 157.50 160.10 0.05WIPRO 255.20 256.40 253.75 254.55 -0.45ITC 294.00 296.70 291.60 292.70 -0.70BAJAJFINSV 7000.00 7079.00 6951.35 6969.75 -18.10UPL 903.35 911.95 894.55 900.00 -3.30ICICIBANK 395.40 398.45 390.15 392.50 -1.60HDFCBANK 2318.55 2328.05 2279.05 2301.00 -10.35HINDUNILVR 1684.00 1707.80 1675.00 1676.00 -7.80LT 1379.00 1391.10 1363.15 1365.00 -7.80ADANIPORTS 367.20 371.70 364.20 366.25 -2.35ULTRACEMCO 3951.70 3997.20 3880.00 3900.00 -25.60DRREDDY 2781.05 2814.00 2744.10 2764.00 -18.35CIPLA 531.40 533.60 524.05 525.30 -4.00HINDALCO 209.05 210.85 206.70 206.90 -1.60TECHM 771.00 773.00 761.60 764.50 -6.25COALINDIA 236.40 238.10 233.60 234.45 -2.00TCS 1994.00 1998.00 1961.00 1964.85 -17.80ASIANPAINT 1494.00 1496.95 1463.50 1471.50 -13.55KOTAKBANK 1349.95 1363.90 1325.05 1329.95 -13.00TATASTEEL 520.00 523.00 513.05 514.00 -5.35SUNPHARMA 471.80 477.35 459.75 464.85 -4.95GAIL 359.00 362.00 354.45 355.00 -4.35MARUTI 6628.00 6640.00 6500.00 6505.05 -80.65GRASIM 843.00 844.40 825.00 826.10 -10.60BPCL 384.45 386.00 377.30 379.00 -4.90HEROMOTOCO 2593.80 2594.00 2535.00 2538.35 -36.10RELIANCE 1377.95 1377.95 1344.25 1347.00 -20.25M&M 672.05 672.65 658.55 659.00 -10.60POWERGRID 203.00 204.70 198.50 199.60 -3.25HDFC 1955.55 1959.00 1906.00 1914.10 -32.20EICHERMOT 21401.00 21485.00 20855.65 21024.00 -358.00BHARTIARTL 331.00 333.00 320.40 321.60 -6.20TATAMOTORS 174.00 175.00 169.15 169.75 -3.35NTPC 140.90 140.90 136.20 137.00 -3.80HINDPETRO 276.00 277.00 268.40 269.25 -7.80

SE 500B

NIFTY NEXT 50

SCRIP OPEN HIgh LOW LTP CHANGENIFTY NEXT 50 27806.65 27904.50 27575.95 27623.20 -58.55ICICIPRULI 333.90 354.00 332.15 347.65 27.40SRTRANSFIN 1208.50 1263.35 1197.00 1251.85 47.75PGHH 10398.05 10880.00 10398.05 10770.10 372.05L&TFH 148.90 152.90 148.00 151.90 4.45OIL 178.00 182.50 177.50 181.60 4.25NIACL 188.90 198.50 186.30 190.10 3.60BANDHANBNK 490.00 498.30 484.15 496.90 9.10SBILIFE 607.45 620.80 607.45 620.50 10.90ACC 1584.00 1614.00 1568.85 1597.60 26.75LICHSGFIN 531.05 543.55 531.05 532.50 2.50MRF 56350.00 56885.00 56200.00 56432.00 251.85SUNTV 587.00 601.70 586.00 587.40 2.60SIEMENS 1065.00 1085.65 1058.50 1062.00 4.45HDFCLIFE 370.05 375.75 370.05 371.00 1.45BHEL 72.00 72.75 70.65 71.30 0.25OFSS 3360.00 3410.80 3355.00 3370.00 11.70BANKBARODA 122.40 123.45 120.30 121.15 0.35DMART 1486.00 1489.95 1467.50 1481.50 3.55BEL 92.90 94.20 91.55 91.85 0.15AMBUJACEM 233.00 238.25 230.40 231.60 0.20COLPAL 1262.95 1276.00 1255.55 1255.55 -0.05BRITANNIA 3117.00 3117.00 3078.00 3098.00 -1.15GODREJCP 692.00 697.60 686.15 690.15 -2.05PIDILITIND 1230.00 1237.05 1213.55 1222.50 -4.05PEL 2644.00 2675.00 2607.05 2618.00 -10.05NHPC 24.80 25.00 24.60 24.70 -0.10GICRE 242.05 246.00 239.10 239.60 -1.25HINDZINC 273.50 276.00 271.00 271.30 -1.90ABB 1335.00 1348.00 1319.95 1321.30 -9.65ASHOKLEY 86.70 87.75 85.10 85.60 -0.70MARICO 338.40 342.50 334.90 335.05 -3.05CONCOR 504.00 510.35 500.00 500.00 -4.65ABCAPITAL 102.00 103.25 99.50 100.70 -0.95SAIL 51.00 51.85 50.05 50.15 -0.50PETRONET 237.40 240.30 234.00 235.15 -2.80HAVELLS 766.70 766.70 745.30 748.60 -9.20MOTHERSUMI 146.15 147.70 139.90 143.05 -1.90AUROPHARMA 783.00 788.70 769.40 771.15 -10.75LUPIN 735.50 740.85 722.30 723.95 -10.85BOSCHLTD 18200.00 18201.95 17900.00 17900.00 -282.60INDIGO 1421.00 1421.00 1394.00 1400.00 -23.15CADILAHC 336.00 341.70 329.15 330.20 -5.75BIOCON 614.70 617.50 600.00 600.40 -11.00SHREECEM 18239.45 18300.00 17790.00 17790.15 -336.05MCDOWELL-N 549.10 553.40 537.00 537.95 -10.75NMDC 105.90 105.90 101.25 101.80 -2.80ICICIGI 1019.55 1021.40 983.00 984.20 -29.05DLF 199.10 199.40 189.60 190.45 -6.10DABUR 425.20 427.05 409.45 410.45 -14.65IDEA 29.25 29.55 28.30 28.50 -1.10

world 11LUCKNOW | THURSDPAY | MARCH 28, 2019

Kylie Jenner reveals no-makeup look on Insta

Los Angeles: Platinum dye jobs and risky makeup looks are thebeauty statements that tend to define Kylie Jenner’s show-stop-ping Instagram posts—after all, she's made a billion-dollar liv-ing and a serious name for herself by creating products that con-ceal, highlight, and transform faces worldwide. Yet for herlatest post, Jenner revealed a new look in the form of afoundation-free portrait that showed off her genetical-ly blessed complexion."Skin," Jenner captioned the sun-drenched image, in which she wore nothing but a whitecotton bra and oversized gold bangles. Gone was any traceof heavy contour. "Baked" under eyes were exchanged fora natural constellation of freckles. While the new mom haspreviously gone without makeup, opting for a pared downbeauty routine while on vacation with baby Stormi, thislook is also a welcome refresh come spring. Could Jenner'slatest post actually be a subtle hint at a new skincare lineunder the successful Kylie Cosmetics umbrella? Only time—and more stunning selfies—will tell.

GLOBE TROTTINGComputer tool predicts risk of deadly irregular heart beatsPTI nWASHINGTON

Scientists have developed acomputer system that can

accurately predict which patientswith a rare heart condition willsuffer from a potentially fatalevents, and whether they maybenefit from life-saving implant-ed devices.

The tool, developed byresearchers at Johns HopkinsUniversity in the US, may helpavoid unnecessary — and poten-tially risky — surgeries to placethe devices.An estimated 1 in5,000 people have arrhythmo-genic right ventricular car-diomyopathy (ARVC), a com-plex, multigene, inherited diseaseof the lower heart chambers thatcan cause deadly arrhythmias, or

irregular heartbeats. Althoughrare, it is a very frequent causeof sudden death in young adults,researchers said.The average ageof diagnosis is 31, although it canemerge from adolescencethrough middle age. ARVC canbe effectively managed in manycases with an implantable car-dioverter-defibrillator (ICD), adevice thatdetects electri-cal abnormali-ties in heartmuscle andi m m e d i a t e l yshocks the heartto re-establishnormal rhythm.

ICDs preventsudden cardiacdeath and save lives.

However, these devices comewith risks and side effects, saidCynthia A James, assistant pro-fessor at the Johns HopkinsUniversity. The devices maydeliver inappropriate shockswhen patients are not experi-encing life-threatening arrhyth-mias. The ICD itself or pace-

maker leads placed inthe heart to deliver ashock may fail over

time, necessitatingr e p l a c e m e n twith surgery.

Infectionsbrought on by

these devices— andeven just

wearing out thedevice’s battery with time — also

require replacement, hospitali-sations and expense, she added.“Because patients develop thiscondition at such a young age,they typically need several ICDreplacements over the course oftheir lives,” said James.

“For ARVC patients, gettingan ICD is a big decision withserious consequences,” shesaid.While physicians are gen-erally in agreement that patientswho experience a life-threaten-ing arrhythmia qualify for anICD, it has been unclear whetherpatients who have not yet expe-rienced this event should get onefor prevention. Researcherspooled medical record data from528 patients in five registriesbased at 14 academic medicalcentres in the US and Europe.

The group was nearly evenly splitbetween male and female andbetween North America andEurope. None had yet experi-enced a life-threatening arrhyth-mia.

Then, using risk factorsderived from published previousstudies, researchers developed acomputer-based mathematicalset of consistent rules to try topredict whether any of the 528patients might undergo a seriousarrhythmia over time.Over near-ly five years of follow-up, justover a quarter of these patientsexperienced a dangerousarrhythmia, and 18 patientsdied. The researchers found thattheir model accurately account-ed for which patients would havelife-threatening events.

UK MPs take charge of Parl

for historic Brexit debate

PTI n LONDON

In a parliamentary first for theUK, MPs will take charge of

the House of Commons busi-ness on Wednesday for a his-toric debate on the kind ofBrexit that could command amajority to try and find a solu-tion to the current deadlockover Britain’s exit from the EU.

In a major blow to PrimeMinister Theresa May’s author-ity, MPs voted through thedebate earlier this week to seizecontrol of the business of theHouse away from the govern-ment and set a new precedentin order to weigh up alternativesto her twice-defeated EUdivorce bill through a set of“indicative” non-binding votes.May has vehemently declined tocommit herself to backing anyoption thrown up as a result ofsuch a vote as it could prove“undeliverable”.

“I must confess that I amsceptical about such a process ofindicative votes. When we havetried this kind of thing in thepast, it has produced contra-dictory outcomes or no out-come at all... No governmentcould give a blank cheque tocommit to an outcome withoutknowing what it is,” she toldMPs. However, she is undermounting pressure from allsides of the House, with her ownparty demanding her resigna-tion as a price for backing herwithdrawal agreement and theOpposition Labour Party accus-ing her of failure by runningdown the Brexit clock to leaveMPs with very little time todebate options.

In the current scenario, theCommons will be entering anuncharted territory Wednesdaywhen it first debates a businessmotion put forward by formerConservative Party ministerOliver Letwin, who is beingdubbed “Prime Minister forthe day” as he is in-charge of set-ting the course for the debate.As many as 16 options will be

on the table for MPs to thrashout, including revoking Article50 to reverse Brexit altogether,putting May’s deal to the pub-lic for another referendum withan option to remain in the EU,and staying closely aligned withthe European economic bloc’snorms as part of a softer Brexit.

At the end of the debate, ifthe motion is passed by theCommons, Speaker JohnBercow will whittle down all theoptions into an effective short-list for MPs to vote on. Such avote, if it goes ahead, will itselfset a new precedent by handingout ballot papers to MPs tomark their preferred choice ina ‘Yes’ or ‘No’ format rather thanthe usual way of registering theirverbal votes with parliamentaryclerks in the Commons Lobby.

The Speaker will thenannounce the final count infavour of all options, expectedany time after 2100 GMT (0230IST). While MPs have demand-ed a free vote in such a ballot,it remains to be seen if partieswill whip their MPs to vote ina certain direction. There is fear

of more Cabinet resignations ifMay attempts such a parlia-mentary whip.

“MPs should be free to voteas they see fit. This is bigger thanall of us, bigger than the parties;it’s country first,” said formerhealth minister Steve Brine,who resigned on Monday toback the motion that led toWednesday’s indicative votesmove. The nature of this votingprocess currently remains unde-cided as it will be determinedduring the course of the debateon whether to keep the votesanonymous and also whether tokeep some form of preferentialsystem of grading the variouschoices on the ballot paper.

While the votes are beingcounted, the House ofCommons has another impor-tant motion to debate onWednesday, which is to formallychange Brexit Day on its statutefrom March 29 to April 12. Thatdate has now already effective-ly been changed in internationallaw after the EU agreed to anextension to the Article 50mechanism last week, but

requires a kind of rubber-stamping by the BritishParliament.

The process of MPs keepingcontrol of Commons business islikely to spill over into nextweek, when they are expected tofind ways of implementing anyworkable solutions thrown upby the indicative votes thisweek.

Next Monday, the UK’smost-signed online petitioncalling for Article 50 to berevoked and Brexit to be can-celled is also set for a debate inthe Westminster Hall complexof Parliament. The petition,which attracted nearly 6 millionvotes, received a formal gov-ernment response as is cus-tomary for popular petitions.

“It remains the govern-ment’s firm policy not to revokeArticle 50. We will honour theoutcome of the 2016 referen-dum and work to deliver an exitwhich benefits everyone,whether they voted to Leave orto Remain,” the UK Departmentfor Exiting the EU statementread.

China reacts guardedly to India’s ASAT missile test

PTI n BEIJING

China on Wednesday react-ed guardedly to India’s

anti-satellite missile test andexpressed hope that all coun-tries will uphold peace andtranquillity in the outer space.Prime Minister NarendraModi on Wednesdayannounced that India success-fully test-fired an anti-satellitemissile by shooting down a livesatellite, describing it as a rareachievement that puts thecountry in an exclusive club ofspace super powers. The testmakes India the fourth coun-try in the world after the US,Russia and China to acquirethe strategic capability to shootdown enemy satellites. The

Chinese Foreign Ministry, in awritten response to a questionfrom PTI on India successful-ly test-firing an anti-satellitemissile, said: “We have noticedreports and hope that eachcountry will uphold peace andtranquillity in outer space”.China conducted such a test inJanuary 2007 when its anti-satellite missile destroyed adefunct weather satellite.

Prime Minister Modi saidin New Delhi that the actionwas not directed against anycountry and the satellite was apre-determined target orbitingat an altitude of 300 km.

He said India did notbreach any international lawsor treaties by testing the theanti-satellite missile. Mission

Shakti, which was led by theDefence Research andDevelopment Organisation,was aimed at strengtheningIndia’s overall security, Modisaid in his address that comesa fortnight before the start ofthe general election. In NewDelhi, the Ministry of ExternalAffairs (MEA) said in a state-ment that India has no inten-tion of entering into an armsrace in outer space.

“We have always main-tained that space must be usedonly for peaceful purposes.We are against the weaponisa-tion of Outer Space and sup-port international efforts toreinforce the safety and secu-rity of space based assets,” theMEA said.

... hopes nations will uphold peace in space

Boeing holdstest flights for737 MAX fixWashington (AFP): US aviationauthorities will defend their cer-tification methods for newplanes before lawmakersWednesday, two weeks aftergrounding the Boeing 737 MAXover two deadly crashes in lessthan five months. Boeing hasflown test flights of its 737 MAXto evaluate a fix for the systemtargeted as a potential cause ofthe crashes, two sources famil-iar with the matter said Tuesday.

The aviation giant, whichhas been under fire and has seenits flagship narrow-body planesgrounded since March 13, test-ed the system upgrade onMonday, two days after pilotsfrom American and SouthwestAirlines did simulation flights inRenton, Washington, the sourcessaid.Boeing needs authorizationfrom the Federal AviationAdministration (FAA) beforethe MAX can return to service.But the company still has notsubmitted its proposed softwarepatch to the FAA, a governmentsource told AFP.

The aircraft was groundedfollowing two deadly accidentsinvolving Ethiopian Airlines ear-lier this month and Lion Air inOctober that together killed 346people. A Senate CommerceCommittee panel will hold ahearing Wednesday to questionFAA Acting AdministrationDaniel Elwell and TransportationDepartment Inspector GeneralCalvin Scovel.

The session is set to be fol-lowed by a second hearing at alater date with Boeing, airlinepilots and other stakeholders.The officials are expected to facequestions from lawmakers on theFAA’s certification of the 737MAX — and whether regulatorshave become too cozy with thecompany and fast-tracked someapprovals.

Engineers have been focus-ing on problems with theManeuvering CharacteristicsAugmentation System (MCAS),a stall prevention systemdesigned to point the nose of the737 MAX 8 downward if it is indanger of stalling, or losing lift.

China sacks ex-Interpol chief

from ruling CPC for graft

PTI n BEIJING

China on Wednesday sackedformer Interpol chief Meng

Hongwei from all his officialpositions and expelled him fromthe ruling Communist Party,accusing him of corruption,serious disciplinary violationsand encouraging his wife who issettled abroad to campaignagainst his detention. Meng,65, who was once a rising polit-ical star among officialdom ofthe Communist Party of China(CPC), held the powerful post ofvice-minister of public securitybefore being appointed asChina’s first official to head theInterpol — a global organisationthat facilitates worldwide policecooperation.

He was expelled from theCPC and removed from officefor serious disciplinary viola-tions and suspected graft crimes,the Party’s disciplinary watchdogand national supervisory com-mission announced, state-run

China Daily reported.The Central Commission

for Discipline Inspection(CCDI) said the CentralCommittee of CPC had alsoapproved an investigation intoMeng, who was a member of thecommittee and vice-ministerfor public security.

The CCDI accused Meng ofabusing his position and powerfor personal gain, squanderingstate funds to finance his fami-ly’s extravagant lifestyle and dis-regarding the principles of beinga party member. In a rare acqui-

sition, the statement alsoaccused Meng of encouraginghis wife to use his status to fur-ther her own interests, the HongKong-based South ChinaMorning Post reported.Anyassets acquired as a result ofMeng’s alleged illegal activitieswould be handed over to procu-ratorial office in accordancewith the law, the anti-corruptionwatchdog said. Meng vanishedin late September after leavinghis home in the French city ofLyon for China.

He sent his wife GraceMeng a message on socialmedia, telling her to “wait for mycall”, along with a knife emojisuggesting he was in some kindof danger.

Grace Meng reported herhusband missing to the Frenchauthorities on October 4 andwas later put under police pro-tection after receiving threaten-ing messages over telephoneand online. Earlier this year, sheapplied for asylum in France.

Felt like I was politicalprisoner: Rajat GuptaPTI n NEW YORK

India-born former GoldmanSachs director Rajat Gupta,

who served 19 months in USjail for insider trading, hasblamed the prosecution led byIndian-American former NewYork Attorney Preet Bhararafor conducting the case in an“disingenuous and untruthful”manner, saying he felt like a“political prisoner”. Gupta, 70,also revealed that he was keptin solitary confinement forweeks in an American federalprison which, he termed, was“brutal”.

He was sentenced to twoyears in prison after beingfound guilty in 2012 of passingconfidential boardroom infor-mation about Goldman Sachsto then hedge fund founder RajRajaratnam, who is currentlyserving 11 years in jail forinsider trading.

They were incarcerated inthe federal prison in Ayer,Massachusetts. Gupta served 19months in prison and wasreleased in 2016. The formermanaging director ofMcKinsey penned his memoir‘Mind Without Fear’ thatreleased Monday and tells of hisdramatic rise to the top of thecorporate and financial worldin America and then his fallafter being charged in one ofthe largest insider trading casesin the US.Gupta will be dis-cussing his book and his expe-riences with a New York audi-

ence on Thursday at a booklaunch event organised by lead-ing arts and cultural organisa-tion the Indo-American ArtsCouncil (IAAC). “I felt like Iwas a political prisoner. I feltlike I had done nothing wrong,it’s just my destiny to be here(in prison),” Gupta told PTIhere.

The insider trading caseagainst Gupta was prosecutedby India-born Bharara, thethen US Attorney for theSouthern District of New York,pitting the two Indian immi-grants against each other.

Gupta blames the prose-cution for “lying” and exag-gerating to win the case “at anycost”.“The issue is not PreetBharara. The issue is the wholesystem. This system is mis-aligned, the way he handled thecase. It was very cleverly done,”Gupta said.He elaborated thathe was charged a week before

Rajaratnam’s trial.“I was triedin absentia at the Rajaratnamtrial with no opportunity todefend myself. That’s the firsttactic which is unfair and theyshould not have done it thatway,” Gupta said.

He asserted that the pros-ecutors “kept lying” and sayingthat Gupta was a 15 per centowner in Galleon International,the hedge fund founded byRajaratnam and that was thebenefit for him to provide con-fidential information to him.“Inever owned a single share. Inever got any benefit. Even inthe appeals memo, they wrotethat I was an owner in Galleon.They know that it was nottrue... because they had gonethrough all my financial state-ments, my bank accounts. Theydidn’t find anything, any ben-efit of any kind.“I don’t expectthe prosecutors to lie but theywere lying.

PTI n ZAGREB

India will take all “necessarymeasures” to protect and

secure itself, President RamNath Kovind has said in Croatia,referring to the IAF strikes ona terrorist camp in Pakistan’sBalakot following the Pulwamaattack by a JeM suicide bomber.Tensions between India andPakistan escalated last monthafter Pakistan-based terrorgroup Jaish-e-Mohammed(JeM) killed 40 CRPF personnelin Jammu and Kashmir’sPulwama district on February14. The JeM claimed responsi-bility for the attack. The IndianAir Force (IAF) launched acounter-terror operation againsta JeM training camp in Balakot.The next day, Pakistan AirForce retaliated and downed aMiG-21 in an aerial combat and

captured its pilot, who washanded over to India on March

1. Kovind, the first-ever Indianhead of state to visit Croatia,

arrived here on Monday alongwith his wife Savita Kovind on

the first leg of his three-nationvisit.On Tuesday, he thanked theCroatian government for itssteadfast support against ter-rorism.

Speaking at an event here,Kovind said: “As for India, wehave made it clear that we willtake all necessary measures toprotect ourselves, to secure our-selves, so that we can provide forthe welfare of our people.”“Peaceand security are critical to fos-ter the well-being of humanity.We are deeply grateful to theGovernment of Croatia for itssteadfast support against ter-rorism. The world needs totake decisive actions againstthose who harbour and supportterrorists,” the president said.Healso invited the Indian diaspo-ra in the country to invest inIndia and be a part of its trans-formational journey.

‘India will take all ‘necessary measures’ to secure itself’

President Ram Nath Kovind with his Croatian counterpart Kolinda Grabar-Kitarovic during a delegation level talks, at Zagreb inCroatia, Tuesday,. AP

Sydney (AP): The Netherlandsand Australia confirmedWednesday that three-way talkswith Russia have begun over theongoing criminal investigationinto the shooting down ofMalaysian Airlines flight MH17in 2014.

The two countriesannounced last year they wereholding Russia responsible forproviding the missile fired bypro-Russian forces in war-tornUkraine that brought down thejet, causing the deaths of all 298people aboard. The dead includ-ed 196 people from the

Netherlands and 38 fromAustralia. Dutch ForeignMinister Stef Blok and hisAustralian counterpart Marise

Payne said Wednesday that thefirst trilateral talks about stateresponsibility for the incidenttook place earlier this month,

after diplomatic approacheswere made earlier this year.

“We cannot go into thecontent of this process becauseconfidentiality is vital here,”Blok said at a news conferencein the Australian capital,Canberra. “But I can say this:We remain committed toachieving truth, justice andaccountability.” Internationalinvestigators last year said theyhad strong evidence the Bukmissile system that shot downthe Boeing 777 plane camefrom a Russia-based militaryunit. Russia has denied involve-

ment and dismissed the findingsfrom the international criminalprobe because it was not invit-ed to be part of the investigationteam. Payne said Australiaremained “a strong supporter ofthe Dutch national prosecutionof the individuals responsible,”and pledged her country’s con-tinuing commitment to theDutch-Australian joint investi-gation into the incident. If Russiawere ultimately to acknowledgesome form of legal responsibil-ity, it could lead to compensationclaims from relatives of the peo-ple killed.

Australia, Holland, Russia start talks over downed MH17

In this grab taken from video, Britain's Prime Minister Theresa May speaks during Prime Minister's Questions in the House ofCommons, London, Wednesday. AP

world 12LUCKNOW | THURSDAY | MARCH 28, 2019

Iran looks to remote port

to beat US sanctions

AFP n CHABAHAR (IRAN)

With the web of US sanc-tions tightening, Iran

faces a host of challenges as itlooks to an isolated port in thecountry’s far southeast to main-tain the flow of goods. The portin Chabahar, only about 100kilometres (62 miles) from thePakistan border and located onthe Indian Ocean, is Iran’slargest outside the Gulf.

It is also the only Iranianport with exemptions fromunilateral economic sanctionsreimposed by the United Statesin 2018.That is due mainly tothe pivotal role of the port, anda planned railway line, inbreaking landlockedAfghanistan’s dependence onPakistan for trade with theworld, especially India.Afghantrade as well as plans for a trad-ing route by rail between cen-tral Asia and the Indian Oceancalled the North-SouthCorridor are the main reasonsthe Islamic republic has invest-ed one billion dollars inChabahar’s Shahid Beheshtiport, official sources say.

“We will keep on develop-ing this port... our rail network,road network and airport areall being developed, so that wecan implement the North-South Corridor,” Roads andUrban Development MinisterMohammad Eslami told AFPwhile visiting Chabahar for adevelopment conference.

More than 200 hectares(almost 500 acres) of land havebeen reclaimed from the sea forthe project and over 17.5 mil-lion cubic metres (618 millioncubic feet) dredged, creating a16.5-metre (54-foot)draught.But more than a yearsince the new installationsbecame operational inDecember 2017, business hasyet to pick up.

The ships that officials sayhave docked i the past yearhave only loaded and unloaded

2.1 million tonnes of cargo, afar cry from the port’s annualcapacity of 8.5 milliontonnes.Only 20 ships havedocked at the new section ofthe port and most of its threekilometres of waterfrontremains unutilised, with newmachinery and neatly lined-upcranes standing idle.

But authorities remainupbeat about the prospects forgrowth.Hossein Shahdadi ofthe provincial ports and mar-itime authority said that in thefirst 11 months of the pastIranian year, which started onMarch 21, 2018, “there hasbeen a 56 percent increase incargo handled at the port com-pared with the previous year”.

“We’ve also had a 25 per-cent rise in the number of shipscalling at the port” on the Gulfof Oman, he said.Arun KumarGupta, managing director ofIndia Ports Global Limitedwhich has a 10-year concessionat the new port, played downthe startup issues.

“Any port will have a ges-tation period, there will be lullsbut we are very sure that traf-fic will pick up,” Gupta toldAFP. The Indian companybegan work in December andhas so far handled only an aver-age of 60,000 tonnes of cargoper month.

But Gupta is counting onthe port’s proximity to India

and Afghanistan to attractbusiness. Chabahar’s location,however, carries its own risksas it lies in the volatile SistanBaluchistan province wheremilitant jihadists operate. InDecember, a suicide attack onthe local police headquarterskilled two policemen.

During an investment con-ference in February, securitywas tight with many roads cutoff and hundreds of armedsecurity personnel deployedto protect delegates.Apart fromsecurity concerns, US sanctionsbanning financial transactionswith Iran make it ever harderto pay or receivepayments.Some like AfsanehRabiani, who runs a freight for-warding company, seeChabahar as an opportunity for“those willing to take therisk”.“I’ve been researchingChabahar for the past yearand a half, and the infrastruc-ture is now in place to do seri-ous work here,” she said.

As for the sanctions, Iran’sroads minister said the chal-lenge was nothing new.“Wewere born with sanctions. Eversince the (1979 Islamic) revo-lution, we have been undersanctions and we are workingon how to counter them,”Eslami said, as he oversaw theunloading of a first shipment ofAfghan goods lined up to be re-exported from Chabahar.

Pakistan must ‘deliver outcomes’: USPTI n WASHIGNTON

US Secretary of State MikePompeo has told Pakistan

that it must “deliver outcomes”to build confidence and trustbetween the two countries,the State Department has said.

State Department DeputySpokesperson Robert Palladinosaid this when asked about therecent remarks by Secretary ofState Mike Pompeo in which heidentified Pakistan’s nuclearproliferation as the third topnational security concern forthe US. “The secretary (of

State Pompeo) has emphasisedthe need (for Pakistan) to deliv-

er outcomes and to build con-fidence and trust between our

two nations and we do want tosee a prosperous Pakistan thatcontributes positively towardsregional stability and security,”Palladino told reporters onTuesday at his biweekly newsconference.

Palladino was answering aquestion on the recent remarksby Pompeo in which he iden-tified Pakistan’s nuclear pro-liferation as the third topnational security concerns forthe US.

“Nuclear proliferation isone of the very first national

security concerns articulated inour national security strategy.It’s at the very top of the list,”he said. “So that absolutelyremains something that thisadministration thinks aboutoften because the level ofimpact of what could happenis simply so great. So thatremains at the very top of ournational security considera-tions,” Palladino said.

Pakistan, he said, couldplay an important role inbringing about a negotiatedsettlement in Afghanistan.

US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo

Hindu lawmaker moves two bills in

Parl on forced conversion in Pak

PTI n ISLAMABAD

AHindu lawmaker fromPrime Minister Imran

Khan’s party has moved twobills in Parliament seekingenhancement of punishmentfor those involved in forcedconversion and for makingchild marriage a cognisableoffence, amid the nationwideoutrage over the allegedforced conversion of twoteenage girls from the minor-ity community.

Dr R amesh KumarVankwani from the rulingPakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf(PTI) submitted ChildMarriage Restraint Act(Amendment) Bill 2019 andthe Criminal Law (Protectionof Minorities) Act 2019 inNational Assembly onTuesday.

Dawn reported that thebills, moved in the wake ofalleged kidnapping of twoHindu girls and their forcedconversion to Islam, wereaccompanied by a resolutionwith the support of minoritylawmakers from all majorpolitical parties condemningsuch incidents.

Besides Vankwani, PTIlegislators Lal Malhi andShuni la Ruth, Pakistan

Muslim League-Nawaz law-maker Dr Darshan andPakistan Peoples Party’sRamesh Lal signed the reso-lution. The five-point reso-lution called for immediatepassage of the bill againstforced conversions, whichhad been unanimouslypassed by the Sindh Assemblyin 2016 and then reverted dueto pressure of extremist ele-ments, from all the legisla-tures. Through the resolution,the lawmakers demandedstrict action against the cul-prits including controversialreligious figures who areinvolved in forced conver-sions.“All those who arepreaching hate under thecover of religion must be

handled like banned reli-gious organisations,” the res-olution said. Vankwani, whois also patron-in-chief ofPakistan Hindu Council(PHC), later told the mediathat unfortunately the prac-tice of child marriage wascommon in al l parts ofPakistan, particularly inpoverty-hit areas.

He said the bills wereintended to serve as a deter-rent and to remove the exist-ing gender disparity in age.The lawmaker said he hadmoved the bills in line with aPHC resolution that con-demned the recent allegedkidnapping and forced con-version of two Hindu sisters,Reena and Raveena, and kid-

napping of another Hindugir l , Shania , f romMirpurkhas.

One of the two bills seek-ing protection of minoritiescalled for sensitisation ofgovernment officials, policeofficials and members of judi-cial service on the issue. Italso suggested setting up ofspecific courts to hear casesof forced conversions andshelter homes for victims.“Any minor who claims tohave changed their religionbefore attaining maturityshall not be deemed to havechanged their religion and noaction shall be taken againsthim or her for any such claimor action made by the minor,”the bill stated.

The bill proposed impris-onment of either descriptionfor a minimum of five yearsand maximum of life impris-onment and a fine to be paidto the victim by a person whoforcibly converts another per-son.

“Any person who is anabettor to a forced conversionshall be liable to imprison-ment of either description fora minimum of five years anda fine to be paid to the vic-tim,” it suggested.

Pak says it’s againstmilitarisationof outer spaIslamabad (PTI): Pakistansaid on Wednesday that itwas against the militarisationof outer space, hours afterIndia’s announcement ofshooting down a live satellitewith a missi le - a rareachievement that puts thecountry in an exclusive clubof space super powers. PrimeMinister Narendra Modi ear-lier announced that Indiasuccessfully test-fired ananti-sate l l ite missi le byshooting down a live satel-lite. The test makes India thefourth country in the worldafter the US, Russia andChina to acquire the strate-gic capability to shoot downenemy satellites.

“Space is the commonheritage of mankind andevery nation has the respon-sibility to avoid actionswhich can lead to the mili-tarisation of this arena,”Foreign Office spokesper-son Mohammad Faisal saidin a statement.

He said Pakistan was a“strong proponent of theUnited Nations resolutionon Prevention of Arms Racein Outer Space”.“Boasting ofsuch capabilities (to destroysatellite) is reminiscent ofDon Quixote’s tilting againstwindmills,” he said, referringto India’s test.

“We hope that countrieswhich have in the paststrongly condemned demon-stration of similar capabili-ties by others will be pre-pared to work towards devel-oping international instru-ments to prevent militarythreats relating to outerspace,” Faisal said, withoutnaming any country. In NewDelhi , the Minist r y ofExternal Affairs said in astatement that India has nointention of entering intoan arms race in outer space.

Lahore (PTI): Pakistan’s for-mer prime minister NawazSharif was released from jail onWednesday, a day after theSupreme Court granted him sixweeks’ bail to receive medicaltreatment within the coun-try.Sharif, 69, was lodged inLahore’s Kot Lakhpat jail sinceDecember last year, serving aseven-year imprisonment inthe Al-Azizia Steel Mills graftcase.

The Pakistan MuslimLeague-Nawaz (PML-N)supremo, who denies wrong-

doing, has suffered four angi-na attacks in recent weeks,according to his daughterMaryam Nawaz. On Tuesday,a three-member bench of theSupreme Court headed byChief Justice Asif Saeed Khosaaccepted Sharif ’s appeal andallowed him to get medicaltreatment from any healthfacility of his choice within thecountry.

Sharif is barred from leav-ing Pakistan. The deposedprime minister’s supportersand party workers gathered in

large numbers outside the jailand showered his car with

flowers as he left the area.Some PML-N party workers

moved along with Sharif ’s cartill his residence. The three-time prime minister wasreceived by PML-N leadersand his family at his house inthe Jati Umra Raiwind areahere.

Sharif ’s release got delayedas the court order and otherrequired documents could notreach the jail for more than 10hours after the bench’s direc-tion. The Supreme Courtobserved in its order that sev-eral senior doctors had sug-gested that Sharif ’s history of

hypertension, cardiac and renalailments may present a “mild-moderate risk” if he is to under-go angiography.

Therefore, granting himrelief for a limited period is a“reasonable” request, the topcourt said.It directed Sharif todeposit two bail bonds worthRs 5 million Pakistani rupees(USD 35,423) each, receivemedical treatment and sur-render after six weeks. PML-Npresident Shahbaz Sharifthanked the court for “meetingthe merits of justice”.

India, Lankahold jointmilitary drillto boostcounter-terrorcooperationColombo (PTI): India and SriLanka have begun a two-week joint military exercise inthe island nation with an aimto bring synergy and cooper-ation including in the field ofcounter-terrorism betweenthe two armed forces, officialssaid Wednesday. The ‘MitraShakti - VI’ annual exercise isdesigned to bolster militaryrelations further between thearmies of India and Sri Lanka,the Sri Lanka Army said.Some 120 Indian Army sol-diers and as many Sri LankaArmy personnel are partici-pating in the two-week mili-tary drill. It aims to shareknowledge on military tactics,experience, exchange ofinfantr y technical it ies ,counter-terrorism practices,long-range reconnaissancepatrol, small group opera-tions, effective employment ofinfantry weapons, simulatedattacks on terrorist hideouts,suicide bombing and impro-vised explosive devices, offi-cials said. The contingent ofthe Indian Army personnel,led by Colonel ParthasarathyRoy, Colonel Sombit Ghosh,Major Pujam Manhas andMajor Rohith Kumar Tripathiwere warmly received.

“The primary focus ofthe exercise will be to trainand equip the contingents toundertake joint counter-insurgency and counter-ter-rorist operations inurban/rural environment,humanitarian assistance anddisaster relief operations,”Indian Army’s ColonelSombit Ghosh said in a state-ment.

The Indian Army Officersvisited the memorial erectedfor the fallen soldiers who laiddown their lives in Sri Lankawhile fighting against theLTTE as part of the IndianPeacekeeping Force 1987-1990.

In New Delhi last week,the Indian Army said that“the exercise will go a longway in further cementingrelationship between both thenations and will act as a cat-alyst in bringing synergy andcooperation at grassroot-lev-els between both the armies”.

Pak man claims Hindu womanembraces Islam, marries him

PTI n ISLAMABAD

APakistani man has claimedthat a Hindu woman, who

authorities said was a minor andabducted by four armed men,has converted to Islam andmarried him in Sindh province,amidst uproar over a similar caseinvolving two teenage girls fromthe minority community.

His claim came a day afterthe provincial Minorities AffairsMinister Hari Ram Kishori Laldirected authorities to register anFIR of the abduction and pro-vide protection to the girl’s fam-ily.

The FIR was registered onTuesday after the girl’s fathercomplained that his 14-year-olddaughter was abducted fromtheir house by four armed men,three of whom were unidenti-fied, on March 17 from her res-idence in Badin district.However, the man came forwardwith the claim that she is now hiswife after converting to Islam,Dawn reported. He sent docu-ments to journalists, claimingthat he has married the girl after

she converted to Islam at thehands of Pir Jan Agha KhanSarhandi on March 17 at hisseminary in Samaro town, thereport said.

The man, who hails fromUmerkot district, also rejectedher father’s claim that she was aminor, saying that the girl was19 years old, it said.

The incident came amidstnationwide outrage over abduc-tion, forced conversion andmarriage of two underage Hindigirls in Ghotki district in Sindh.Raveena, 13, and Reena, 15, wereallegedly kidnapped by a group

of “influential” men from theirhome on the eve of Holi. Soonafter the kidnapping, a videowent viral in which a cleric waspurportedly shown soleminisingthe Nikah (marriage) of the twogirls, triggering a nationwideoutrage.

The Islamabad High Courton Tuesday ordered official pro-tection for the two girls due toconcern about their safety asauthorities widened a probe toascertain if the teenage sisterswere abducted, forcibly con-verted and married. Policearrested the cleric who solem-nised the wedding and six oth-ers for their alleged involvementin the girls’ forceful conversionto Islam.Hindus form the biggestminority community inPakistan. According to officialestimates, 75 lakh Hindus live inPakistan. Majority of Pakistan’sHindu population is settled inSindh province.According tomedia reports, approximately 25forced marriages take placeevery month only in Umerkotdistrict in Sindh province.

... FIR says she is minor, abducted

London (PTI): A collection ofrare artefacts discovered by acouple after years of lyingwrapped up in their attic in theEnglish county of Berkshireand evaluated as items fromTipu Sultan’s armoury was auc-tioned for around 107,000pounds.

The highlight lot, a silver-mounted 20-bore flintlock gunand bayonet from the person-al armoury of the last ruler of

Mysore, proved hugely popu-lar as it attracted 14 bids beforegoing under the hammer for60,000 pounds.

“Unlike other Tipu Sultanguns this one exhibits clearsigns of having been badlydamaged in its past...ratherthan being taken directly fromthe rack after the fall ofSeringapatam it appears tohave been collected from thebattlefield,” the lot description

notes.The other highlight lot, agold-encrusted swordand suspension beltensemble believed tobe one of TipuSultan’s personalswords, attract-ed as many as58 bids beforebeing sold tothe winningbidder for1 8 , 5 0 0

pounds.The two centre-

pieces formed partof a collection of eight

items brought back byMajor Thomas Hartof the East IndiaCompany after theTiger of Mysore’s

defeat atSeringapatam in 1799.

A l o n g s i d e

the arms, an intricatelydesigned Betel Nut Casket(17,500 pounds) and a GoldEast India Company Seal ring(2,800 pounds) belonging toMajor Hart, believed to havepassed down generationsbefore landing in the hands ofthe current owners, wereamong the other big sellers ofTuesday’s sale.

Berkshire-based AntonyCribb Ltd auctioneers, who

specialise in arms and armouryrelated sales, had announcedthe auction following the “excit-ing discovery” earlier this yearand said that majority of thebuyer interest had come fromIndians based in India.

The Indian HighCommission in London wasmade aware of the artefacts bythe India Pride Project, aworldwide volunteer networkset up to track “India’s stolen

heritage”, and attempted toconvince the auction house toconsider voluntarily restoringthe items to India.

The India Pride Project,which was instrumental in therestitution of a 12th centuryBuddha statue stolen fromNalanda in Bihar last year viathe Indian High Commissionin London, said it would con-tinue lobbying for such arte-facts to find their way back to

Desperate and hiding, collapsed SaudiArabia Oger workers left in limboAFP n RIYADH

Nearly two years after thecollapse of the construc-

tion giant Saudi Oger ren-dered thousands jobless,Lebanese worker Mohammedremains stranded in limbo inRiyadh — and desperate toavoid arrest. The demise in2017 of the once-mighty com-pany owned by the family ofLebanese Prime Minister SaadHariri forced thousands of itsexpatriate workers to exit thekingdom without months ofunpaid wages and end-of-ser-vice benefits. But many like 60-year-old Mohammed, whoworked for the company for 35years, are still stuck in SaudiArabia.

The expiration ofMohammed’s residence permitmakes his presence in SaudiArabia illegal, but he is alsolegally barred from leavingdue to an outstanding bankloan taken while he wasemployed. So Mohammed isleft in a bewildering limbo,barely scraping by on the kind-ness of strangers and cut offfrom his family in Lebanon. “I

am a prisoner,” he told AFP atthe Riyadh apartment ofanother former Saudi Ogeremployee from Lebanon in asimilar predicament.

“When I want to go out-side, I choose a time whenthere are no (police) road-blocks so that I am notdetained,” he added. SaudiArabia, home to some 10 mil-lion expats, is in the midst of anintensifying crackdown on ille-gal workers that has seen hun-dreds of thousands expelledover the past two years.There

appears to be no recourse forthe two stranded workers, whorequested that their real namesbe withheld.

Without a valid residency,the two men are not allowed tolegally find work and repaytheir debt. And until the debtsare repaid, they cannot get anexit visa, a mandatory autho-risation to leave the kingdom.According to court documentsseen by AFP, Saudi Oger stillowes Mohammed more than$100,000 in unpaid wages —more than double his out-

standing bank loan used part-ly to pay for his children’s edu-cation.

The impasse spotlightsSaudi Arabia’s long-criticisedsponsorship system, whichbinds workers to their Saudiemployers. It is unclear exact-ly how many of the company’snearly 40,000 former workersremain in the kingdom.

Company officials and theSaudi labour ministry havenot responded to repeatedrequests forcomment.“Employees took carloans, housing loans — they arenot allowed to leave until theyrepay, in line with the king-dom’s regulation,” said WissamSaab, a 48-year-old formeremployee, who left the king-dom after being bailed out byrelatives.

“No one is helping,” he toldAFP from Beirut. The testi-monies encapsulate the humancost of the labour-intensiveconstruction sector’s slowdownamid low oil prices, causingturmoil in the lives of millionsof workers and leading to thedemise of what was once one

Sharif walks out of prison after 3 months on medical grounds

Tipu Sultan’s silver-mounted gun fetches 60k pounds at auction

LUCKNOW | THURSDAY | MARCH 28, 2019usp 13

GOING THE ORGANIC ROUTE

In an attempt to diversify its revenue channels, the National Agricultural Cooperative Marketing Federation of India(NAFED) has ventured into the production of bio-fertilisers, organic products and certified seeds. The managingdirector of the company, SANJEEV KUMAR CHADHA, talks to ANKITA SAXENA about the company's growth plans

Sunanda Sharma kick start-ed her career with aPunjabi song, ‘Billi Akh’ in

March 2016, which gathered themuch deserved appreciationfrom the audience. This singerand model, went on to create abuzz with her songs ‘Patake’ and‘Jaani Tera Naa’ which resonat-ed amongst the youth and goteverybody tapping their feet notonly in Mumbai, Ranchi andDelhi in India, but her voice hasbeen creating magic across theglobe through her successfulshows in Canada, Australia,Europe, New Zealand, England,Dubai and so on. Sharma alsohas the accolades of being invit-ed to the Dolce and Gabbanashow in Milano, and at the storelaunch of Louis Vuitton, Delhi.

Such talent is not hiddenfrom Bollywood, and Sharmaspread her wings into the glam-our industry with the track ‘TereNaal Nachna’ in July, 2018along with Badshah, acclaimingmore than 160 million hits onYoutube. Talent and determina-tion bring out the pearls fromthe deepest of the seas, andSharma has proved this with herlatest chartbuster song ‘PosterLagwado’ for the movie, LukaChuppi. The singing industry isin awe of this fresh voice and sheis going to keep the audience ontheir toes with her soon to belaunched new track ‘Sandal’which like all her other tracksis going to resonate the youthspecially the girls with exhilara-tion and delight. Edited excerptsfrom the interview:

p How has the journey beenso far?It has been a wonderful chap-

ter! Everyday I have learnt newstuff, lived new moments and Icherish every single minute ofit.

p What type of music do youidentify with?There is no single genre whichdefines me. Up until now, I havegiven beat songs and romantictracks, and ,ore of the sad and

romantic songs will be releasedthis year.

p What have been your chal-lenges in making a name in theindustry?Honestly speaking, I have notfaced any challenges as such, forwhich I am thankful to mymentor, Pinky Dhaliwal paaji. Ifeel blessed and lucky that I was

able to establish myself in thisindustry with him, as his expe-rience and vision for me mademy journey in this field verystress free.

p Have you found the Punjabimusic industry different fromthat of Bollywood?The Punjabi music industry isequivalently good as Bollywood.As of today, every Bollywoodmovie is incomplete without aPunjabi number. Either thereare remakes or new Punjabisongs which give a sense of live-liness that lightens up the moodand pumps in blood when youstep out of the theater. Thesesongs have been responsible toboost up the energy and emo-tions in audiences. But, yes theBollywood music industry isvery professional and the peo-ple understand the value oftime, which is comparativelyless in the Punjabi music indus-try.

p Nepotism in Bollywoodhas caught quite a bit ofattention. What are yourthoughts on this?I do not believe that as such’ it’snatural that you will give pref-erence to your loved ones orpeople who are close to you.However, I believe that talentis the main key because ofwhich the performers sustaintheir level in the industry. Onthe hand, people fromPollywood (as we call thePunjabi industry), also get anopportunity at big platforms.So, I guess the claim of nepo-tism is not a 100 per cent true,though it may exist in somepercentage.

Bollywood next stop forPunjabi star

Born and brought up in Amritsar, Punjab, SUNANDA SHARMA has won overhearts all around the world with her charm. She talks to The Pioneer about herentry into Bollywood and her new track ‘Sandal'

Among the many sins thatman should avoid, thank-

lessness is one that is cruellydouble edged, causing morepain to the benefactor. To for-get the good deeds done on youby someone breaks the heart ofthe good-doer. Consequently,many others with good inten-tions for the society curb theirnatural inclination for helpingothers when examples ofungratefulness are put forth tothem. The world gets poorerwhen people start questioningthe very moral of doing good toothers and become indifferentto the problems of others. Thisis most damaging to the healthof a society. The sinner whocommits the act of thankless-ness in fact, causes grievousinjury to the society, much to itsdetriment.

At the spiritual level too,man falls prey to acts of thank-lessness, sometimes due to hisarrogance. God, our ultimateFather, has sent us to this beau-tiful planet, provided us with allthe requirements for survival,flora and fauna, a versatile bodyand a brain without a rival. Andthis, he has given us, withoutexpecting anything in return. Ofcourse, we can’t give him any-thing but we surely can give himsome of our time, just a fewminutes of the twenty fourhours in a day.

Our saints have stressed inthe holy books that man shouldremember God always. With

firm determination and regularpractice, it is possible to do soeven when submerged in ourdaily activities. In time itbecomes part of man’s existenceand he need not consciouslyremember God all the time.

God has given us life, themeans and spirit to survive, andto excel, and yet we fail toremember Him. It shows thank-lessness, which sometimesbecomes deep rooted in manand he finds difficult to cleansehimself of this sin. This happensbecause of his arrogance and hisself deception that he is the doerand should come out winner byall means. With this kind oftemperament he severs his in-born relationship with God.

If material gain is the pur-pose of life, or accumulation ofwealth gives us inner peace,then Ravanna, Kansa andDuryodhan should have beenmost happy and content butthen we see what kind of endthey met with because theydenied God, turning epitomesof thanklessness.

Being thankful makes aman humble and realise the trueworth of his existence, which isto help and do good to his fel-low beings. Always be thankfuleven to the smallest of gooddeeds. It spreads goodness allaround. And that is the essenceof life.

(The author is the chief edi-tor of a bi-annual magazine pub-lished by Ved Ishvareeya Vani)

Gratitude is key to humilitySwami Ram Swaup Yogacharya believes thatungratefulness inflicts pain on those who do gooddeeds, ultimately making them indifferent to kindness

After a stellar performance in the lastthree years, and with the support of thegovernment, NAFED is set to record a

turnover of `20,000 crore and should be ableto reach a profit of `450 crore in this year. Thisis the first time that NAFED has posted suchhigh profits. However, the managing directorof the company, SANJEEV KUMAR CHADHA,understands that the company cannot remaindependent only on procurement and thus, hasbegun to diversify its revenue channels intoretail, bio-CNG and is also exporting andimporting agri products on behalf of the gov-ernment. Edited excerpts from the interview:

p NAFED is eying to set up 100 bio-CNGplants across the country. What is theupdate on this front?The Ministry of Petroleum has come out witha policy to promote bio CNG in the country.The challenge in this sector till now was thatthe chain from the supply of raw materials tothe final product was not getting completed.Thus, NAFED has taken up the role of the facil-itator and we will be supplying the raw mate-rials in the form of agri-waste from sugar mills,municipal waste and stubble from farmer’sfields. We have tied up with the municipali-ties in Ahmedabad and Jammu to provide uswith segregated waste for the plants. We willalso apply for all the statuary clearances forthese projects and have tied up with technol-ogy and funding partners.

To make the projects financially viable, thegovernment has offered us a very good off takerate of `48 per kg for 10 years, following which,we have already signed an off take agreementwith Indian Oil Corporation. The businessmodel is independent of government subsidy.As of now, we have already applied for 12 suchprojects and actual work on these projects willbegin soon. We will lay the foundation stonefor one such project in western UP in the com-ing week.

India needs at least 5000-6000 such plantsand for this to happen it is important that thefunding source is not dependent on banks.Thus, we are looking at green bonds, UN fundsand maybe even consider collaborating withIndianOil to jointly create a bond structure forthese projects.

p There is talk about the launch of NAFED’sown bio-fertiliser. What are the plans in placefor this?We are launching our bio fertilisers since fer-tilisers are going to be one of the bi-productsat the bio-CNG plants. However, this fertilis-er will need enrichment since it will come outof different types of raw materials. It will needaddition of some inoculum, bacteria and oth-ers to make it rich and thus improve produc-

tion. It is important to note that the bio-fer-tilisers have to be enriched and packed at thesite of the bio-CNG plants to avoid transporta-tion costs from other location, to make it com-petitive. As far as marketing it is considered,with our outreach with the farmers across thecountry and our established NAFED brand, wewill be able to sell it easily. Also, Indian Oil hasaround 3000 Farmer Seva Kendras where wewill be selling this product. It is estimated thatonce functional, the bio-CNG plants will gen-erate employment for around 100-125 personsat a unit.

p What type of certified seeds is NAFEDsupplying to the farmers?We get the breeder seed from the IndianCouncil of Agricultural Research (ICAR),which is converted into foundation seed. Thisis used to produce the certified seeds whichare then supplied to the farmers. India hasbecome almost self sufficient in pulses in thelast three years but, we are lacking in oil seeds.Currently, we import around 80 per cent of ourrequirement for oil seeds but, there is a lot ofscope in this area for India. Self sufficiency for

pulses was achieved by government’s empha-sis on supply of seeds and its promotion but,the key was purchase. If the farmer is con-vinced that the government will buy hisgrains if the price is below the minimum sup-port price (MSP), then he is incentivised togrow more. This has to be similarly applied tooil seeds.

We are producing certified seeds for puls-es and oil seeds for this purpose and are sup-plying it to farmers. We have observed thatmany farmers in Uttar Pradesh have shiftedfrom sugarcane to mustard production, whichadds to their income. Also, growing legumeshelps nourish the soil with nutrients. This canreduce the use of artificial nourishment andeventually improve the soil quality. Anotherarea to explore is the demand for oil cake fromChina and other Asia Pacific countries, whichis one of the bi products of the oil industry.

p How are you planning to popularise theorganic products launched by NAFED?Under the NAFED brand, we have launched90 new organic products, starting from seedslike flax seeds, chia seeds, tea, flour, pulses and

so on. We have also partnered with e-com-merce platforms like Grofers and Amazon. Ourfocus is to popularise these products in thephysical markets in the states by making useof the distribution channel.

The challenge in organic farming is thatthe farmers who grow these products do notget the premium as paid by the consumers. Tobridge the gap between the growers and themarket, we have identified farmer co-opera-tives and farmer producer organisations whoget the products certified and we are nowsourcing the products directly from them. Thisway we are ensuring that the farmers are paidat least 20 per cent more for their products.Also, since we are able to make these productsmore competitive, we will be able to pass onthe benefit to the end consumers as well.Recently, we participated in BIOFACH, thelargest event in the world for organic food, tostudy and understand the international mar-ket in this segment. Since all our organic prod-ucts are APIDA certified, we can also exportthese to meet the demand from the interna-tional markets like the Middle East.

Photo Credit: Pankaj Kumar

The Steel Authority of IndiaLimited (SAIL)-Durgapur

Steel Plant has supplied the firstconsignment of 30 LinkeHofmann Busch (LHB) wheelsto the Indian Railways.Whilethe Indian Railways is shiftingto LHB coaches from the ICFcoaches for improved safetyand higher speed, the wheelsfor LHB coaches are currentlybeing imported. SAIL was ini-tially given an order to supply1000 LHB wheels by IndianRailways, of which, the firstconsignment has been dis-patched.

These LHB wheels haveunique web profile with met-allurgical properties and arespecially designed to befit thehigh speed movement on

broad gauge. These wheels aredeveloped with the help fromResearch Design and StandardOrganisation (RDSO) of theIndian Railways and the Wheel

and Axle Plant of DSP. Theyhave pneumatic disc brake sys-tem for efficient braking athigher speeds, reducing theimpact during accidents oremergency situations.Chairman SAIL commented,“Our entire focus is to beginthe supply of this advancedLHB wheels so that the require-ment of Indian Railways can befulfilled domestically. I believethat meeting the entire require-ment of LHB wheels domesti-cally, will reduce the importsand also help in saving foreignexchange”

The executive director (HR)of IndianOil Refineries, VK

Shukla, recently addressed thefirth batch of successful traineesof the youth skill developmentprogramme, undertaken by thecompany last year in associationwith the National SkillDevelopment Corporation(NSDC). IndianOil Refineries,as part of its corporate socialresponsibility, had undertakentraining of youth from theDelhi-NCT region in varioustraining courses to support thenational campaign of Skill India.He advised the students to reg-ularly update their skills andknowledge, to stand good in anycircumstance and support theirfamilies. Adding further, AnitaShrivastava, general manager(CC and CSR), specificallyadvised the female trainees to

keep up the momentum andmaintain their financial inde-pendence. As part of this sus-tainable project, 394 success-ful candidates found job place-ments by the NSDC in privatesector in trades like sewingmachine operator, generalhouse keeping, emergencymedical technician, visiontechnician, customer careexecutive and general dutyassistance.

The beneficiaries for thisinitiative were drawn mainlyfrom Below Poverty Line(BPL) families, placing a spe-cial emphasis on skilling girlstudents. Similar skillingschemes for youth were rolledout in all nine refineries ofIndianOil located in variousstates across the country, ben-efitting about 2500 youths.

The 48th National Safety Week was celebrated at POWER-GRID Northern Region-I recently. In order to generate more

awareness among employees about safety in all spheres of life.The training programme on first aid and fire fighting was alsoconducted at 37 establishments of the NRTS-1 along with train-ing and safety awareness programme for contract workers at allconstruction site offices. The celebrations saw the presence ofHK Mallick, executive director NRTS-I, YK Dixit, chief gener-al manager (AM/Engineering/ULDC), among other senior offi-cials of the organisation.

Focus on employee safety

Strengthen publicprocurement

To promote electrical safety, a focus areaamong consumers and employees,BSES discoms celebrated the NationalSafety Week during which several safetyawareness programs were organisedacross different discom locations, manyof them with the help of the RWAs. Keydignitaries present at the occasion wereBSES’s chief executive officer, PR Kumar,Central Electricity Authority’s director AKThakur, and the chief electrical inspectorand chief engineer, Gautam Roy.

IndianOil skills394 youths

SCOPE and the Competition Commission of India (CCI) joint-ly organised a workshop on ‘Competition Law and Public

Procurement’. CCI’s chairperson, Ashok Kumar Gupta, said thatPSEs are not working in isolation and therefore, they have tobe aware about the environment all around. He informed thatCCI will come out with a diagnostic tool kit for tender designto avoid bid rigging. The Director General of SCOPE, Dr UDChoubey said. “Procurement, value wise world over, is 15 percent of the global GDP. India spends 30 per cent of the GDP onprocurement.” He said public sector are system oriented and haveintroduced reforms in procurement like e-tendering, e-procure-ment, bill watch system, reverse auctioning and so on. Other dig-nitaries present during the workshop included AtanuChakraborty, secretary, Department of Investment and PublicAsset Management (DIPAM), Ved Prakash, chairman, SCOPEand CMD, MMTC, among others.

SAIL develops indigenous LHB wheels for railways

LUCKNOW | THURSDAY | MARCH 28, 2019vivacity 14

Actress ALIA BHATT, who will benext seen in Kalank, believes thatcommercial films are truly depen-dent on its story.“If you see films likeRaazi, Stree andBadhaai Ho, these aresmall-budget films butthey have got so muchof love commercially.The truth is that com-mercial films aretruly dependent onits story and afterthat everything fol-lows.”Alia recently wonthe Best ActressAward at the 64thFilmfare Awards forher performance inRaazi.Commenting on the achievement,she said, “It is just the beginning.There is lot more to do but yeah,this year has started on a verypositive note.”

Julia spent timewith prostitutes

‘It’s high time thatwe celebratetheuniquenessof peoplerather thanmaking themfeel small for

what they do nothave. The conceptof beauty needs tobe redefined. Thefilm (Gone Kesh)celebrates thatthought. Unless weembrace the diversestyles andindividuality, howwill we broaden ourhorizon?’ —Shweta Tripathi

Actress JULIA ROBERTS spenttime with prostitutes who werepaid $35 each to talk to her beforefilming Pretty Woman.Barbara Marshall, a former nurseand the widow of the movie'sdirector, Garry Marshall, hasopened up on how shewas volunteering at a freeclinic here in 1989 whenshe got a call from herspouse. She said,“Garry wouldnever visit me atthe clinic, becausehe was a hypochondri-ac and afraid of gettinga disease. But he askedif Julia could come andtalk to some of thepatients.“I recruited twoyoung women whocame to the clinic regu-larly, and I paid them$35 each to meet withJulia. I went back towork, and about 20minutes later, Juliayelled from the end ofthe hall, Bye, Barbara. We're goingto take a drive. We'll be backlater.” Barbara praised Julia as“one tough lady who can take careof herself on and off camera.”

Actor RAJPAL YADAV, who cameout of prison late February afterserving a sentence in a case ofnon-repayment of a loan, says heis healed, happy and excited to goback to a film set and start shoot-ing all over again.“I will soon start the shooting ofthe film 'Time ToDance' (alongsideSooraj Pancholi andIsabelle Kaif). We shotthe film abroad. Asmall part of itremains. We will finish that. Itcould have been finished before,but I am really thankful to the pro-ducers and directors who waitedfor me to come back. I can't waitto go back on a film set now,”Rajpal said.

It is just thebeginning: Alia

As they say, “short-cuts makelong delays” and director

Raman Kumar is its firm believ-er. He elaborates when he says,“There are no short-cuts in life,the simpler you live your life, thehappier it will be. In life, mostshort-cuts end up taking muchlonger than actually taking thelonger route.”

The director recently helmeda theatrical drama, Hello Zindagi,that revolves around five womenof different backgrounds andcharacteristics. These women areplayed by actresses MinisshaLamba, Kishwer Merchant,Delnaz Irani, Guddi Maruti andChitrashi Rawat, who live togeth-er in Mumbai. Raman explainsthe characters, “Pammi Singh(Minissha Lamba), is divorcedand lives with Bakula (DelnaazIrani), her ex mother-in-law. Theyare great buddies and live their lifeto the fullest. Shivani (ChitrashiRawat), the sanest member of thismad house, who not only runs thehouse but also takes care ofBakula’s hotel business. Pammi’sschool friend, Sheena (KishwerMerchant) is another resident ofthe house, who was physicallyabused by her husband and nowhad completely lost her self con-fidence. Lastly, the householdhelp, Bijoya Di (Guddi Maruti) isthe most respected woman in thehouse.

The harmony in the homegets tangled in a web of mixedemotions when Vicky (RahulNayyar) enters the scene andfalls in love with Pammi. Hewants to marry her and take herto the US. Bakula decides tomove with them too. The plotthickens when Bakula decides togive her business to a corporationon lease which is being organisedby Vicky. What’s guaranteed isthat these flaming personalitieswhen thrown together in thecauldron of life turn up the heat

leaving things more problematicand complex than ever.

Raman says that it is impor-tant to celebrate life rather thansimply living it, and “the playadvocates just that. Those five

women living under one roof pos-sess extremely disparate charac-teristics, and are from differentstrata of life, but humanity issomething that keeps them unit-ed. I have tried to portray that

God has made life beautiful, butit’s we who are the problem cre-ators and this results in causingmisery.”

Raman has been around forso many years, ask him how has

theatre evolved over the years, hewould say, “Theatre has changeda lot. Just as the advent of inter-net and digital platforms hastransformed our lives, similarlypeople’s attitude of looking at the

things have changed the theatre.It’s much more professional andit is no longer the platform for theamateur. With the emergence ofvarious theatre groups, it is sure-ly touching new heights.”

Raman strongly feels that infact, the emergence of onlinechannels and technology has beenspoon-feeding people, and hence,theatre has become a means forthem to come out of their housesand watch live performances onstage. “This has become a majorreason why we see more of house-ful shows nowadays,” he says.

While the director feels thatthe two media work in terms ofpeople’s comfort and entertain-ment choices, actresses Delnaazand Kishwer both feel that everymedium has its own charm and asan artist, one should keep the goodwork going, whether it’s acting fortheatres or for a film. “One shouldaccept the work and do it honest-ly. Nowadays, online shows areshowcasing a lot of bold content,however, one can find bold storiesin theatre too. So both the mediahas its own place,” says Kishwer.

Raman explains that it takes alot of hard work to transform awritten play into a stage perfor-mance. He says, “Everyone hastheir part to play. The director isthe captain but the crew’s contri-bution cannot be ignored.Especially, the actors’ as they arethe medium to convey the scriptto the audience.”

The director says that he findshis inspiration from life stories. Hesays, “I read a lot. I am an observ-er. I look around and find inspira-tion in so many real stories. Realityis great art and the world aroundyou, the greatest school.Interpreting life is more creativethan doing a pure fiction. It’sgoodness of those real storiesaround you that makes life beau-tiful and you feel like saying HelloZindagi!”

Gaulwasi Asterix. A literal transla-tion of Asterix in Gaul, ourfavourite comic hero is back in

Hindi to draw in fans from a cross-sec-tion of society that would naturally warmup to an underdog story and to whomsuperheroes are all about super achieversand least about human frailty. They areoddballs who fight while having fun andrenew us with the comforting warmth ofnostalgia. So it is that a city-based pub-lisher decided to get down to the businessof taking the franchise to a larger audi-ence. And yesterday, French AmbassadorAlexander Ziegler launched the first of thecomic books in Delhi.

The series follows the adventures ofa village of Gauls as they resist Romanoccupation in 50 BC. The comic book thatextends beyond the realm of just onemeant for children, the series has a fan-following that extends way beyond theborders of where it is based and has nowbroken one more language frontier withits launch in Hindi.

However, what was the need for atranslation? “Most of us speak two or threelanguages and range from dreadful Hindispeakers to the anglophone to theHindiphone. Hindi is our official languageand there are so many ads in it that wecome across in our daily lives. We read allour sarkaari documents in Hindi. Wewatch our news in the language. So, it’spretty much part of our day-to-day inter-action with people. So, we thought itwouldn’t hurt to pick up the comic andsee how would read in Hindi because wedo read comics written in the language.And also these are meant for collectors,anthropologists, ethnographers, linguists,translators, and college students. There isa vast variety of audience and readershipthat we are looking at,” says DipaChaudhuri, co-translator of the AsterixComics in Hindi.

The decision to have an edition in thelanguage, says Chaudhuri, originatedfrom “a lot of mad ideas that take placein publishing houses. During one of theinternational book fairs, the publisher AjayMago, made a blind call and walked insidethe stand of Hachette Livre, the publish-er of the comic in French. He had recent-ly acquired the publishing rights of TheAdventures of Tintin comics for its trans-lation in Hindi from Casterman (in2009). So he was almost convinced thatthe logical thing after Tintin ought to beAsterix. Then he negotiated with them forat least five years.”

One of the important component oftheir demands was that it had to be trans-lated from French and not from English.“I suggested Ajay that he should bringPuneet Gupta on board who had trans-lated Tintin from English to Hindi. Andsince, I knew French, Ajay Mago told meto step in. It just took me 24 hours to signthe project,” she says.

But the idea, feels Chaudhuri, origi-nate in Ajay’s head much before. “Likemost Indians we have grown up listeningto mad comedies and reading comics andwe have had serialised comics in news-papers and in single-frame as well. SoAjay, in his childhood, nurtured thisdream and imagined what would it be liketo read Asterix comics in Hindi.”

However, getting the project was thefirst of the many steps that they had toundergo. “There were several rounds oftranslation because there is a huge play ofwords. There are a lot of cultural inputsin Asterix in French so you don’t conveythe narrative, you communicate it.”

No, the purists need not worry for thepublishers never had the intention ofIndianising the narrative. “Every languagehas its own kind of rhymes and phrasesthat hail from its deep-rooted cultureswhich were kept intact.”

Moreover, while putting it in Hindi,the visuals which had a very importantpresence in the comic, had to match thetext. “There is no way in which you canpass off a wild boar as chicken,” she says.For getting it right, there were variousdrafts of translations — at least six to sevenof them before they went to HachetteLivre in France. “First they asked for asample translation and we sent them 10pages of the first book. After a month orso, they got back with a very good feed-back and they were convinced that it’sheaded in the right direction. We sentthem about two rounds of final transla-tion so that they could come up with finalchanges and feedback,” she says. However,this was not the end as laying out Asterixin a different language, in the comicframes, was another ballgame altogetherbecause Hindi is much longer thanFrench.

In French, all the accents are on top,whereas in Hindi, all the maatras are onthe side. All of us had to be very careful

about what we were writing so that wedidn’t exceed the speech blurb,” saysChaudhuri while talking about the chal-lenges that came her and her co-transla-tor Pankaj Gupta’s way while translatingthe first four comics of Asterix andObelix. So minute details to the extent ofnot changing the sizes of the blurbs weretaken into account.

However, it was not easy. “Every lan-guage has got its own sound system. Soa simple thing like a water splash wouldbe written plouf in French and splash inEnglish. The Hindi equivalent is chapaak!Even though it is obvious with the visu-al of splashing water, but again the textneeds to match with the language. So wetranslated a tremendous amount of wordplay too in the dialogues.”

Moreover, any one who has read thecomics can recall that it is peppered withframes which had only battle cries orsounds (without speech blurbs) so thoseframes had to be redrawn. “The originalFrench or English text is transcribed byhand (manually), but we did not do that.We looked for a font which was close tothe original one and the text was enteredby a keyboard,” she says.

Asterix often had run-ins with theGoths, who spoke in a dramatic Frenchaccent. This is depicted by harsher soundsin Hindi. “We had to look for fonts thatwere dramatic, bold and hard-hitting.People say, ‘God lies in detail’ and evenwhile being an atheist, I have to confessthat it did lie in detail and in the way wewere trying to convey each and everydetail through translation,” she says.

The comics have an abundance ofsongs and Chaudhuri uses those to illus-trate the nitty gritty that they went into.“There is a song where it says that theslaves do not know how to row a boatwhich is taken from a French nurseryrhyme which is actually cruel and indi-

cates that at the end, a boy would becooked and eaten. So while translating, wehad to take both into account to get thecontext right. It wasn’t just the questionof translating the dialogues but about tak-ing the background in account, makingsure that nothing gets lost in translationor goes out of context or becomes too oddsince they are speaking in Hindi,” she says.That is also the reason why even thoughAsterix speaks in Hindi, he still has theFrench connect intact. “We can’t do awaywith it because of the visuals since thestory is also French as are the battles,” shesays. The only thing that has beenchanged are the names of the Romansexcept for Julius Caesar, for the sake ofeasy identification.

Chaudhuri insists that Asterix comicsin Hindi has got the same production val-ues and quality as the French and Englishones.

Chaudhuri believes that it is a wrongnotion to think that Asterix is for children.“These relate not only the medieval his-tory of France, there are some expressionsin Latin like, de facto, ad nauseum that wecontinue to use that makes them very con-temporary. There are interesting, lesser-known facts that have multiple interpre-tations and connotations. A child wouldinterpret it very differently and is likelyto love all his antics and all the fighting.The adolescent might react to all the fight-ing very differently because of the raginghormones. The adult might want to gobeyond the surface and look at the con-structs — the social hierarchy, implica-tions of these songs and sounds and dia-logues as the meaning keeps slippingthrough your fingers and you have tocatch it. And then you might get a differ-ent meaning the next time you read it.”

So what is stopping you from pickingup the Hindi translation of the Asterix?

Photo: Pankaj Kumar

Co-translator DIPA CHAUDHURI tells SAIMI SATTAR what it took to getthe details and nuances of Asterix in Hindi correct

‘EVERY LANGUAGEHAS GOT ITS OWN

SOUND SYSTEM. SOA SIMPLE THINGLIKE A WATER

SPLASH WOULD BEWRITTEN PLOUF IN

FRENCH ANDSPLASH IN

ENGLISH. THE HINDIEQUIVALENT IS

CHAPAAK’

Say hello to life as it’s livedDirector RAMAN KUMAR tells AYUSHI SHARMA how the emergence of digital platforms hasforced people to get out of their homes and enjoy more live performances

Yeh Gaul kahan?

sport 15LUCKNOW | THURSDAY | MARCH 28, 2019

AFP n MIAMI

Novak Djokovic's pursuitof a record seventh Miami

Open ATP title ended in dra-matic fashion on Tuesday asRoberto Bautista Agut superblyrecovered from a first setdestruction to win 1-6, 7-5, 6-3 and book a place in the quar-ter-finals.

And the top seeds keptfalling as women's world num-ber two Petra Kvitova slumpedto a surprise 7-6 (8/6), 3-6, 6-2 defeat to Australian AshleighBarty.

Bautista Agut, 30, mayhave beaten Djokovic on the

way to winning the title inDoha earlier this year but 15-time Grand Slam championDjokovic started like a train inthis last 16 encounter beforebeing amazingly reined back in.

After just 25 minutes,Djokovic was 5-0 ahead and oncruise control, Bautista Agutseverely struggling to keep theSerbian at bay.

A short rain delay late inthe second set allowed BautistaAgut to regroup, however.

He returned a completelydifferent player and at the endof an absorbing two hours and29 minutes, it was the number22 seed who will now meet

defending champion John Isnerfor a place in the semi-finals.

"He is a solid player but Ishouldn't have lost this match,I had way too many wasted

opportunities," said the worldnumber one, who also failed tomake the latter stages of IndianWells this month.

Big-serving Isner movedinto the last eight with a 7-6(7/5), 7-6 (7/3) triumph overGreat Britain's world number22 Kyle Edmund.

Elsewhere there was a bril-liant win for 18 year-old FelixAuger-Aliassime, theCanadian who came throughqualifying, who beat Georgia'sNikoloz Basilashvili 7-6 (7-4),6-4.

Auger-Aliassime, who isset to become the first playerborn in the 2000s to break intothe top 50 when the rankingsare updated next week, playsBorna Coric after the Croatianbeat Nick Kyrgios 4-6, 6-3, 6-2.

In the women's draw,Barty, who beat Kvitova for thefirst time having gone into theclash 0-4, will play AnettKontaveit for a place inSaturday's final after theEstonian brought an end toHsieh Su-Wei's impressive runwith a 3-6, 6-2, 7-5 victory toreach the last four in SouthFlorida for the first time.

PTI n GURGAON

Former champions Anirban Lahiri and SSPChawrasia along with the 2018 Asian

Tour Order of Merit winner ShubhankarSharma go into the 55th Hero Indian Open,starting here on Thursday, as the leading homecontenders.

When it comes to international golfevents, Indians are always considered thetoughest to beat on home soil. Although noneof the four players who are in world's Top-100list are Indians, it is the country'sgolfers who would start asfavourites at the $ 1.75 millionevent.

Indian golfers have alwaysbeen the ones to watch out for atthe tournament. Whether it isexperienced stars like Lahiri orChawrasia or even MukeshKumar, who plays mostly in India,or youngsters like Khalin Joshi andViraj Madappa.

The field of 156 this time hasfour players inside Top-100 — JazzJanewattananond of Thailand (No71), Adrian Otaegui (No 73),Shaun Norris (No 90) and JorgeCampillo (No 93).

The field also boosts of somevery prominent winners this season like Jazz(Singapore Open), David Law (Vic Open),Aaron Rai (Hong Kong Open) and Scott Hend(Maybank Malaysian Championships), besidessome others such as the 2018 Scottish Openwinner Brandon Stone, long-hitting BerndWiesberger, four-time European Tour winner,and Gavin Green, a former Asian Tour No 1.

The depth in the field that includes adozen stars with a world ranking between 100and 150 is expected to spice up the competi-tion here at the DLF Golf and Country Club.

Between them, Lahiri, India's only repre-sentative on the flagship PGA Tour, andChawrasia — they have won the NationalOpen three times 2015 and 2017 and both willbe keen to put their best foot forward.

Lahiri is here on the back of a solid per-formance last week at the Valspar

Championship in Florida, where his lastround 68 was equal best score on a windy andtough Sunday.

Shubhankar was seventh here last yearafter going into Sunday with the lead.

Hend, who broke a near three-yeardrought with the Maybank title last week willalso be competing here. And so is last year'sother top-three finisher Sihwan Kim of theUSA and Maybank Runner-up Nacho Elviraof Spain.

Both Lahiri and Shubhankar feel that "thecourse is playing much better than last

year".Lahiri added: "It looks immac-

ulate. This course is probably in thebest shape that any of us has seenso far. It seems to be the mostplayable compared to all the otheryears we've played.

"The greens are definitely a lotsofter and the grass has settleddown. In the sense of what toexpect this week, it will be a greatgolf course. We'll see how it goesbecause it really changes depend-ing on if the tees are pushed backor pushed forward. That's a big fac-tor here."

Lahiri sounded upbeat abouthis chances this week.

"I love playing the Indian Open. It's myfifth major. I have happy memories, havingplayed well in this tournament for a numberof years.

"From what I saw during the Pro-Am thismorning, green speed is the one thing I needto get used to quickly. I kept coming up shorttoday and need to recalibrate my puttingspeed. That's about the only adjustment I thinkis needed."

Shubhankar said familiarity with thecourse will be a big plus for him.

"I am obviously a lot more mature this yearand really enjoying my game. I just want to getback into the groove again of playing at mybest again.

"This was my home course for the longesttime and it feels great to be back on familiarground," the 22-year-old said.

NEW DELHI: Teenage Indian shoot-ing stars Manu Bhaker andSaurabh Chaudhary smashed thequalification world record beforeclinching the 10m air pistol mixedteam Gold in the 12th AsianAirgun Championship inTaoyuan, Taipei on Wednesday.

Their feat came exactly amonth after they won theInternational Shooting SportFederation (ISSF) World Cup

stage Gold in the same event inDelhi.

The 17-year-old Manu and16-year-old Saurabh shot a com-bined score of 784 in the qualifi-cation round, breaking the recordset by Russians VitalinaBatsarashkina and ArtemChernousov at the EuropeanChampionships five days ago.

The Indians then went on towin the five-team final with a score

of 484.8.Hwang Seongeun and Kim

Mose of Korea won the Silver witha score of 481.1 while Wu ChiaYing and Kou Kuan-Ting claimedthe Bronze for the host countrywith a score of 413.3.

A second Indian team com-prising of Anuradha and AbhishekVerma also reached the finals andfinished fourth with a score of372.1. PTI

AFP n PARMA

Fabio Quagliarella attributedhis new-found serenity afteryears of a stalker nightmare to

his stunning form as the 36-year-old on Tuesday became the oldestplayer to score for Italy.

The player fromCastellammare di Stabia nearNaples converted two penalties ina crushing 6-0 Euro 2020 qualify-ing win by the Azzurri overLiechtenstein in Parma.

Italy top Group J with sixpoints after also beating Finland 2-0 in Udine on Saturday with goalsfrom youngsters Nicolo Barella, 22,and 19-year-old Moise Kean.

Bosnia threw away a two-goallead to draw 2-2 with Greece andboth are behind Italy on fourpoints followed by Finland onthree.

Serie A top scorer Quagliarellahas earned his recall to RobertoMancini's new-look Italy thanks tohis 21 goals in 28 league games, twomore than Portuguese starCristiano Ronaldo has managed forJuventus.

And he marked his return forthe Azzurri after nearly nine yearsby converting a penalty on 35 min-utes, adding a second, also from thespot, just before the break.

The Sampdoria player at 36years and 54 days becomes the old-est player to score for Italy, overtak-ing Christian Panucci who was 35years and 62 days when he nettedin 2008.

"I don't feel my age, I feel goodand I'm very serene," saidQuagliarella, whose career hadbeen blighted by a stalker whoforced him to leave Naples in2010.

"It's a wonderful evening," saidthe veteran forward after scoringhis ninth goal in 27 caps for Italy.

His first international startwas in March 2007, with his last inJune 2010, before Mancini revivedhis international career.

"Quagliarella deserved thiscall, because he is theCapocannoniere (top scorer) inSerie A this season," said theItaly coach.

"I want to thank myteammates," continuedQuagliarella.

"After the two goals theyencouraged me to get a thirdone too, but it didn't happen.

"I thank Jorginho and Bonuccibecause they're the penalty takersand they told me to kick.

"They said: 'The evening isyours, you kick it'."

Stefano Sensi had headed Italyin front after 17 minutes withMarco Verratti adding a secondafter 32 minutes.

Kean nodded in his secondItaly goal on 69 minutes with

substitute Leonardo Pavoletti,30, who got his first Italystart in the second half toreplace Quagliarella, addinga sixth.

MORATA ON ROLLMADRID: Alvaro Morata's

remarkable revival continued onTuesday as he scored twice forSpain in a 2-0 victory over Malta.

After edging past Norway 2-1on Saturday, Morata's double at theTa'Qali stadium gives Spain twowins from two in Euro 2020 qual-ifying and the perfect start inGroup F.

Luis Enrique's side again

showed the inability to convert pos-session into chances that cloudedtheir early exit from last year'sWorld Cup.

But Morata's brace offers roomfor encouragement, the strikerextending his return to form sincehe joined Atletico Madrid on loanfrom Chelsea in January.

He has five goals in six games,his best return since Sept 2017, andhas strengthened his case for aposition that has proved so trou-blesome for Spain in recent years.

"The boss knows how happy Iam to be here and I am grateful tohim," Morata said. "We want toqualify as soon as possible for theEuros so it was important to wintoday."

PTI n NEW DELHI

Australian Graham Reid isset to be named the Indian

men's hockey team chief coachtill the 2022 World Cup afterthe national federation andthe Sports Authority of Indiagave their go ahead to fill theposition lying vacant for near-ly three months.

Reid's name was finalisedin a meeting between HockeyIndia and SAI officials onTuesday. He was picked over anumber of candidates, includ-ing Jay Stacy, anotherAustralian and a three-timeOlympic medallist.

Reid's name has been for-warded to the Sports Ministryfor a final approval and accord-ing to a source in the ministry,an official announcementwould be made by the end ofthis week.

"Reid's contract is expect-

ed to be till 2022 but as hasbeen case in the past, the NSFwill review his performanceafter every tournament," thesource said.

A veteran of 130 interna-tional matches, Reid was amember of the Australian teamthat won the Silver medal in the1992 Barcelona Olympics. Adisciple of the legendary Ric

Charlesworth, Reid was hisassistant in the Australian teamfor five years before being ele-vated to the top position in2014.

He was Australia's coach atthe 2016 Rio Olympics but quitafter the Kookaburras failed tofinish on the podium.

In 2017, Reid took up thepost of head coach of his for-mer club Amsterdam as well asassistant coach of theNetherlands team. But earlierthis month, he was dismissedas Amsterdam coach followingwhich speculations startedabout him taking up the Indiajob.

Even though Reid wouldbe given a long rope till 2022,a federation source said qual-ifying for next year's TokyoOlympics would be theAustralian's biggest test and hisfuture with India woulddepend on it.

SAVITA TO LEAD IN MALAYSIA TOURNew Delhi: Goalkeeper Savita will captain an 18-strong Indian women's hockey team for the five-match series against Malaysia starting April 4,Hockey India announced on Wednesday. Savitawill stand in for regular skipper Rani Rampal, whois nursing an injury. The eight-day tour to KualaLumpur will have defender Deep Grace Ekka asSavita's deputy. Speaking about the tour ahead of2020 Olympic Qualifying events, chief coachSjoerd Marijne said: "One of the things we wantedto improve after the Spain Tour was our One VsOne defending and create more opportunitiesafter we intercept the ball." "These are the two keyareas we want to focus on in Malaysia and wekeep working on individual consistency ofplayers." In the absence of Rani, the experiencedNamita Toppo and dragflicker Gurjit Kaur, Marijnesaid, it would be an opportunity for theyoungsters to strengthen their future prospects."Young players get to show their bestperformance on international level and it'simportant for us in case of creating depth in theselection," he said.

MARTINO'S MEXICO DOWN PARAGUAYSanta Clara: Mexico made it two wins in twomatches under coach Gerardo "Tata" Martino onTuesday with a 4-2 victory over Paraguay in afriendly international at Levi's Stadium. Jonathandos Santos' long wait for a first international goalended as he opened the scoring in the sixthminute of his 40th appearance for Mexico. AGustavo Gomez own goal in the ninth and JavierHernandez's strike in the 24th extended Mexico'slead, and Luis Montes added a fourth in injurytime — after Paraguay had second-half goalsfrom Hernan Perez and Derlis Gonzalez. Thevictory followed a 3-1 win over South Americanchampions Chile in a friendly last week — anencouraging start for Argentina's Martino, whowas presented as manager in January saying hewas taking on the quest to end Mexico's "quarter-finals curse" that has dogged the team for the pastseven World Cups and will do all he can to steerthem to the long-sought fifth match in Qatar in2022.

ROHIT EXTENDS P’SHIP WITH ADIDAS New Delhi: Sportswear giant Adidas hasannounced to extend its partnership with Indiancricketer and Mumbai Indians' skipper RohitSharma. Rohit has been associated with Adidassince 2013 and has since been the face of thebrand in India. Commenting on the development,Rohit said: "I feel Adidas is the best brand forathletes - I truly believe in their products and thecomfort and benefit they offer me in my sport.Further, they have continuously stepped in toprovide customized solutions to athletes,including me, thereby helping us overcome manyinjuries. "It is the leading sports brand and hasplayed a key role in promoting sports atgrassroots, which includes providing world-classplatforms and experiences accessible to amateursand pro-athletes," he added. In India, Rohit isjoined by Kuldeep Yadav, Rishabh Pant, HimaDas, Manpreet Singh, Dipika Pallikal, Zeel Desai,Nikhat Zareen, Siddhanth Banthia, Manjot Kalraand the recently signed Swapna Barman.

OLE BOOSTED BY MOURINHO'S WORKManchester: Ole Gunnar Solskjaer's success atManchester United is partly due to the work of hispredecessor Jose Mourinho, according to formerOld Trafford chief Louis Van Gaal. Solskjaer hasmade a remarkable impact since arriving asUnited's interim boss in December followingMourinho's sacking. But Van Gaal, who spent twoseasons at United before being replaced byMourinho in 2016, insists the Portuguese coach'stactics have laid the foundations for Solskjaer tobuild on. The Dutchman also suggested Unitedplayed more exciting football in his time at thehelm than they do now. "The way ManchesterUnited are playing now is not the way Fergusonplayed," Van Gaal said on Tuesday. "It is defensive,counter-attacking football. If you like it, you like it.If you think it is more exciting than my boringattacking, OK. But it is not my truth. Agencies

SINGLES

PTI n IPOH

Striker Mandeep Singhscored a hat-trick as India

outplayed Canada 7-3 to booka summit clash berth in theSultan Azlan Shah Cup hock-ey tournament on Wednesday.

The 24-year-old Mandeepfired in three quick goals (20th,27th and 29th minutes), all ofthem coming in the secondquarter, after Varun Kumarhad given India the lead in the12th minute of the high-scor-ing match.

At the half time, Indiawere 4-0 up in the matchbefore Canada reduced themargin through a strike fromMark Pearson in the 35thminute.

Amit Rohidas (39th),Vivek Prasad (55th) andNilakanta Sharma (58th)struck later to take the game

beyond the reach of theCanadians who scored twolate goals through FinBoothroyd (50th) and JamesWallace (57th).

With the win, India con-tinued their unbeaten run inthe tournament, with threewins and a draw to top theround-robin league table with10 points. They are nowassured of a place in the finalto be played on March 30, witha game in hand.

QUAGLIARELLA

makes history in Azzurri romp

Fabio continues Serie A form and nets twice from spot against Liechtenstein to become Italy’s oldest goal scorer

AFP n PRAGUE

Substitute Gabriel Jesusscored twice in the closing

minutes to help Brazil comefrom behind to beat the CzechRepublic 3-1 in a friendly onTuesday.

The Manchester City strik-er first slammed home a crossfrom David Neres who hadsprinted down the left flank fol-lowing a superb pass fromDanilo on 83 minutes.

And then in the 90thminute, Jesus scored on arebound of his own shot aftera series of clinical passes insidethe Czech box.

The Czechs took the lead inthe 37th minute when mid-fielder David Pavelka foundhimself in possession behind aleaky Brazil defence andslammed the ball in pastAlisson.

Roberto Firmino equalisedfour minutes after half-time,picking up a pass aimed atCzech sweeper Marek Suchyinside the box and firing home.

"I'm super happy withGabriel Jesus, I'm glad I gavehim a chance in the secondhalf," said Brazil coach Tite,praising the 72nd-minute sub-stitute for his offensive drive.

Brazil had a lone shot ongoal in the first-half but Czechkeeper Jiri Pavlenka had littletrouble parr ying awayCasemiro's free kick.

In the second period,Philippe Coutinho saw his lowshot cleared by a diving

Pavlenka while substitute Neresfired into the Bremen keeperfrom close range.

"The Czechs were morecreative in the first-half, welacked this aspect," said Tite.

"The first-half was tough, Iwas upset with the passing, butsecond-half substitutionsallowed us to combine better."

USA REMAIN UNBEATEN LOS ANGELES: MidfielderChristian Pulisic scored earlybut limped off with a quadri-ceps injury on Tuesday as theUnited States remained unbeat-en under coach GreggBerhalter with a 1-1 friendlydraw against Chile.

Pulisic became theyoungest American to score 10international goals when heopened the scoring at BBVACompass Stadium in Houstonin the fourth minute.

Pulisic sprinted onto aneatly played ball from GyasiZardes, racing into the penal-ty area and beating goalkeep-er Gabriel Arias.

At 20 years, 189 days oldPulisic broke the US mark todouble-digit international goalsset by Jozy Altidore, who was20 years, 337 days old when hescored his 10th US goal inOctober 2010.

The lead lasted just fiveminutes as Oscar Opazo knot-ted the score at 1-1 with a left-footed blast in the ninth, com-pleting a sequence that saw USdefenders Omar Gonzalez andMatt Miazga beaten.

Jesus rescues Brazil

Manu-Saurabh pair smashes world record for mixed team Gold

Bautista Agut stuns Djokovic; Barty topples Kvitova INDIANS START AS FAVOURITES

AT HERO INDIAN OPEN GOLF

INDIA THRASH CANADA

7-3, ENTER FINAL

Reid set to be new men's hockey coach

THE FIELDOF 156 THIS

TIME HAS FOURPLAYERS INSIDETOP-100 — JAZZ

JANEWATTANANOND OF THAILAND (NO

71), ADRIANOTAEGUI (NO 73),SHAUN NORRIS

(NO 90) AND JORGECAMPILLO (NO

93)

LUCKNOW | THURSDAY | MARCH 28, 2019

16

}RUNS 103 Nitish Rana (KKR)

WICKETS 4 Imran Tahir (CSK)

6S 72

4S 158{LEADERBOARD

WE WILL NEVER BE A GREATFIELDING SIDE, BUT WE CAN BEA SAFE FIELDING SIDE— MS DHONI

Up Next

PTI n BENGALURU

With Jasprit Bumrah "ready androaring" after an injury scare,

Mumbai Indians would fancy theirchances against an erratic RoyalChallengers Bangalore when the twostar-studded teams square off onThursday.

The big sub-plot of the contestwould be the world's best ODI bats-man — Virat Kohli — taking guardagainst the world's best ODI bowler —Bumrah — in a format notorious forits unpredictability.

Bumrah's shoulder injury was acause of concern for the Rohit Sharma-led Mumbai but India's premier pacerseems to have recovered in time to beback in the fold.

Both teams will be eager to regis-ter their first win of this year’s tourna-ment and the onus will be on Kohli andRohit, both of who failed to justify theirreputation in the first game.

Mumbai will also be boosted bythe availability of IPL’s all-time lead-ing wicket taker Lasith Malinga.

The Sri Lankan was on Tuesdayreleased by Sri Lanka Cricket from thedomestic Super Provincial One-Daydomestic tournament, slated fromApril 4 to 11. The SLC had made thetournament a trial for the World Cupsquad selection, prompting Malinga topull out of the IPL's first leg initially.

However, the SLC softened itsstance, reasoning that the fast bowlerwill be bowling to better batsmen inthe IPL.

Mumbai will also heave a sigh ofrelief as Bumrah joined practice onWednesday during which he ran for20 minutes and participated in catch-ing drills. He also took to social

media to state that he is "ready androaring."

Bumrah suffered the shoulderinjury after landing awkwardly duringSunday's contest against DelhiCapitals.

Yuvraj Singh will also be in focusafter the 37-year-old started the sea-

son on a classy note hitting a sublimehalf-century against Delhi Capitals.While Mitchell McClenaghan will beeager to face the challenge of bowlingto Kohli, AB De Villers and hard hit-ting West Indian youngster ShimronHetmyer.

RCB will expect its batsmen to putup a formidable total after they werebundled out for a paltry 70 in 17.1overs against the Chennai Super Kingsin the opening match of the season.With power-hitters like Kohli, AB deVilliers and Shimron Heymeyer in theteam, that should not be an uphill task.

Leg-spinner Yuzvendra Chahalwill again be the key man in the RCBbowling attack and will need thesupport of the other bowlers.

PTI n NEW DELHI

Jofra Archer, one of the most sought-afterbowlers in franchise-based leagues, rates

Indian pacer Jasprit Bumrah as the best T20bowler currently playing in world cricket.

The Barbados-born medium-pacer,who will soon qualify to play for Englandin the international arena after completinga mandatory seven-year residency in thecountry, also placed himself andAfghanistan's Rashid Khan in the list of topthree bowlers in the shortest format.

"I am going to say that I quite likeBumrah. I would include a spinner in thelist and that is Rashid Khan. So it's myself,Bumrah and Rashid, who are three bestbowlers in T20 cricket," Archer, playing forRajasthan Royals in the ongoing IPL said.

Archer, who has 105 wickets from 82T20 games at an economy rate of less than

eight runs per over, feels Bumrah's unusu-al action makes it difficult for batsmen topick him.

"With the new ball, it can go either way,so for all the fast bowlers, it is essential thatyou have an extra edge at the death," saidArcher.

"Even with his action, he bowls york-ers really well. And the key to possessinga potent slower delivery in case of Bumrahis his action. His hands go on all directionsand suddenly you will find it really hardto pick up the slower one," explainedArcher.

Archer has a couple of deceptivebouncers and some good variation of slow-er deliveries but he admitted that the tough-est delivery to execute in a pressure cook-er scenario is the wide Yorker because ofthe margin of error.

"Personally, I don't even like it really

because your margin for error could be awide or a four or if you nail it then a sin-gle. Personally, for me I find it way too hardand try not using it," he said.

Royals have enough firepower to winthe IPL after 11 years, Archer exuded con-fidence despite the fact that England'sWorld Cup hopefuls such as Jos Buttler andBen Stokes will be back in the UK on April25 as per an England and Wales CricketBoard's diktat.

On the personal front, Archer has sethis sights on the 'Purple Cap', meant for thetop wicket-taker in the IPL.

"I just want us to get to the play-offs firstand then worry about getting into the finals.Personally, I will like to get the Purple Cap.I want to score a few runs as well as I did-n't score too many last year. Hopefully, I canturn that round this year and show what Ican do with the bat," the 23-year-old said.

PTI nKOLKATA

Half centuries from Nitish Ranaand Robin Uthappa, and yet

another blistering knock fromAndre Russell helped KolkataKnight Riders beat Kings XIPunjab by 28 runs in their IPLmatch at Eden Gardens onWednesday.

Mayank Agarwal and DavidMiller could not take the visitingside near the finish line despite oftheir half-century knocks.

Russell made full use of areprieve when he was on three tohammer five sixes and three foursin his 17-ball 48 to play a majorrole in KKR posting a big total.

Russell, who hit a sensational19-ball 49 against SunrisersHyderabad, was brilliantly yorkedby Mohammed Shami. But it wasadjudged a no-ball as only threeKXIP fielders were inside the 30-yard-circle against a mandatoryminimum of four.

The Jamaican then hit top gear,smashing Andre Tye for two sixesand two fours. He then went on tohit Shami for three sixes in a rowto take KKR past 200.

Playing his first match after the'Mankading' controversy, KingsXI Punjab skipper RavichandranAshwin found the going toughafter he opted to bowl with SunilNarine unleashing the fury earlyon with a nine-ball 24.

Nitish Rana struck his consec-utive half century, a 34-ball 67while number 3 Robin Uthappawas their top-scorer, remainingunbeaten on a 50-ball 67 (2x6, 6x4)

to lend KKR the stability.Off to a sedate start with 22

runs from 21 balls, Rana switchedgear against Ashwin hitting theIndia off-spinner for two sixes andcontinued his assault on MandeepSingh in the next over with succes-sive sixes.

Such was Rana's fury that his

next 41 runs came off just 13 ballsas he along with Uthappa made aspectacular 110-run third wicketpartnership off just 66 balls.

Having grabbed the spotlightin the Tamil Nadu Premier Leagueen route to fetching the joint-high-est bid of `8.4, VarunChakravarthy found IPL a differ-

ent ball game when Narinesmashed the debutant for threesixes and a boundary in his firstover. But Narine's innings (24 offnine balls) ended when SouthAfrican pacer Hardus Viljoenworked up great pace and bounceto get a top-edge for his debut IPLwicket.

PTI n NEW DELHI

Dwayne Bravo hasnever understood the

age-related fuss that cropsup everytime ChennaiSuper Kings win a matchbecause for him smartalways trumps fast in anysport.

CSK defeated DelhiCapitals on Tuesday andBravo could barely holdback when the age questionwas thrown at him at thepost-match press confer-ence.

"We are aware of ourage. It's there and you cangoogle it but that's nothing.We are not 60 year-olds, weare 35, 32-year-olds. We arestill young, we look afterour bodies and we have alot of experience," Bravo hitback at the critics.

It's the experience ofhandling crunch situationsthat makes CSK a cut

above the rest with the"best captain in the world"leading the side, said

Bravo, "In any sport, in anytournament, you just can-not beat experience. We

know our weaknesses andwe play smart and we arewell led by the best captainin the world. And he(Dhoni) keeps remindingus that you know we arenot the fastest team, but wecan be the smartest team,"the former West Indiesall-rounder said.

For CSK, it's moreabout situational aware-ness rather than long-drawn tactical planningsaid Bravo.

Asked if there is a strat-egy to bat around Dhoni,he replied: "We don't plan.We don't have team meet-ings. We just turn up andgo with the flow. MS has astyle, and every player hasa style. We just watch thesituation and adapt quick-ly and that's where experi-ence comes in." It was

Bravo's over that changedthe match when he dis-missed Rishabh Pant andColin Ingram in quick suc-cession.

"MS wanted me tobowl a straighter line, ontothe stumps, wicket to wick-et, a lot of seam ups. Sotoday I bowled a lot moreeffort balls than in othergames. Normally, I bowl alot of slower balls, a lot ofvariations, yorkers buttoday the wicket wasn'tsuitable for that type ofdeliveries.

"And again MS stand-ing behind the stumps, heknew exactly what wasrequired and he also knewthat he could count on meat any point in time todeliver for him," theTrinidad and Tobago crick-eter said.

PTI n NEW DELHI

Shikhar Dhawan has to up theante in the Powerplay overs as

it will not be possible for RishabhPant to be the swashbucklereveryday, feels Delhi Capitalscoach Ricky Ponting.

Dhawan's batting has becomea talking point as he didn't scoreat a particularly good pace evenin the opening win against theMumbai Indians.

Asked if he would have likedDhawan to accelerate, Pontingreplied, "Ideally, yes you'd like that.But it obviously wasn't an easywicket either for anyone to go inand strike, especially at the end ofthe PowerPlay." Dhawan's strike-

rate has been less than 115, whichis considered poor in T20 formatas his scores of 43 off 36 balls (MI)and 51 off 47 balls (CSK) wouldindicate.

"There's a certain role that wewant Shikhar to play in this team.Even by his own admission, hewould've liked to score quickertoday but at the 15th over markwe were 118 for 2," Ponting said.

"We struggled to get to 147 soit's the back-end of the inningsthat I am sort of most disappoint-ed in because I think we set up thefront part of the innings prettywell," he added.

It was Pant's dismissal thatbecame the difference between agood and a below-par total. Theformer Australian skipper saidone shouldn't expect the maver-ick keeper-batsman to do the jobeveryday.

"No, we can't expect Rishabh

to play like he did in Mumbai,everyday. No one can do that. Noone can go and get 78 off 20-oddballs in every game. But it wasthere for that to happen today. Itwasn't just Rishabh, (Colin)Ingram had an opportunity aswell. Shreyas (Iyer) had a goodopportunity again today," heexplained.

Ponting said he firmlybelieves that it wasn't poor bowl-ing but batting at the death thatcost them the match.

"At the end of the day, it was-n't the bowling that cost us thegame. We were 20-30 runs shortwith the bat, which has been thedifference in the game," he con-cluded.

PNS n NEW DELHI

India's Subhankar Dey produced thebiggest upset of the Yonex-Sunrise

India Open so far, knocking out fourthseed Indonesian Tommy Sugiarto, whileformer champions P V Sindhu andKidambi Srikanth also progressed to thesecond round on Wednesday.

Unseeded Subhankar, ranked 44thin the world, eked out a stunning 14-21,22-20, 21-11 triumph over world num-ber 9 Sugiarto to join a group ofIndians, including H S Prannoy, B SaiPraneeth and Sameer Verma, in themen's singles second round.

Earlier, Sindhu, who reached thefinals in the last two editions and wonthe title in 2017, brushed aside fellowIndian Mugdha Agrey 21-8, 21-13 inwomen's singles, while Srikanthrecorded his fourth successivewin over Hong Kong's WongWing Ki Vincent with a 21-16, 18-21, 21-19 triumph in men's singles.

Prannoy also showed good signs ofrecovering from a gastro-esophagealreflux disease that troubled him last year,notching up a come-from-behind 14-21,21-18,21-14 win over Thailand's eighthseeded Kantaphon Wangcharoen.

Fifth seed Sameer Verma beatDenmark's Rasmus Gemke 21-18, 21-12, while Riya Mookerjee shockedThailand's Phittayaporn Chaiwan 21-17,21-15 to set up a meeting withDenmark's eighth seed Mia Blichfeldt,who knocked out Rita Thaker.

Swiss Open finalist B Sai Praneethrecovered from a first-game reversal tooutwit compatriot Kartikey GulshanKumar 22-24, 21-13, 21-8 to also enterthe second round.

Former champions RatchanokIntanon and Li Xuerui made a goodstart to their respective campaigns. Thefourth-seeded Intanon, who is eyeinga third title at this prestigious event,

comfortably beat India's SaiUttejitha Rao Chukka 21-9,21-6.

London Olympic Goldmedallist Xuerui, the winner of

this tournament in 2012, overcamea tough opponent in Nitchaon Jindapolwith a 21-17, 21-11 win.

Third seed He Bingjiao needed 30minutes to dismiss India's Prashi Joshi21-12, 21-15 and was joined by hercompatriot Chen Xiaoxin following her21-15, 21-11 victory over YuliaYosephin Susanto.

In doubles, sixth seeds Manu Attriand Sumeeth Reddy blew away youngercountrymen Ravi and Lakshay Saroha21-14, 21-7.

Pranaav Jerry Chopra and ShivamSharma, who qualified for the maindraw, made short work of Senthil VelGovindarasu and VembarasanVenkatachalam 21-13, 21-13.

In women's doubles, the pairs ofPooja Dandu-Sanjana Santosh andVenkata Ramya Tulasi Bailupudi-Shivani Santosh Singh made it throughRound 2.

Subhankar, Prannoystage big upsets

LAST YEAR’S MATCHES

*Royal Challengers Bangaloredefeated Mumbai Indians by 14runs at Bangalore

*Mumbai Indians beat RoyalChallengers Bangalore by 46 runsat Mumbai

FOR THE RECORD

* Virat Kohli who scored 4954runs at 38.10 in 156 innings of164 matches, needs 46 runs tobecome the second batsman afterSuresh Raina to complete 5000runs in IPL.

*Ab de Villiers, needs 38 runs tobecame the 10th batsman tocomplete 4000 runs in IPL. Hehas scored 3962 runs at 39.22 in130 innings of 142 matches forDelhi Daredevils and Bangaloreso far. Faisel Features

BATTLE OF THE BEST

PTI n BENGALURU

The condition of Jasprit Bumrah'sinjured shoulder has certainly

improved but there is still no cer-tainty over India's international'sparticipation in Mumbai's matchagainst RCB.

"As we all know, Bumrah was

out there yesterday warming up andtook a few catches. He has recoveredwell today and looks fit," a memberfrom Mumbai Indians' manage-ment told reporters at theChinnaswamy stadium.

"He will be assessed after today's(training) session," the officialadded.

Bumrah is still being assessed

Live on Star Sports 1& 2

BENGALURU

RCB vs MI

THURSDAY | 8:00 PM

HEADTO

HEADM 25

RCB 9

MI 16

Pant can't do it everyday so Dhawan needs to pace up: Ponting

Raining sixes in Kolkata

Nitish, Uthappa, Russell’s power hitting exploits Kings XI attack to give KKR a 28-run win

I, Bumrah & Rashid are best T20 bowlers: Archer

CSK not an old boys club: Bravo